Chapter 111: Internal Struggle

Princess Qamari was his present and future. This was a fact that he was certain of from the depths of his heart. No matter what happened, he could never betray her. Even if that meant suppressing his feelings and living in despair for the rest of his life.

Because no matter what he might feel for someone else, it could never compare to the feeling of belonging that filled his heart whenever he thought of her. It could never compare to the familial feeling he perceived at the mention of her name.

Any woman in the seven realms could become his lover, his mistress. Any woman could serve him and stand by his side. However, no woman could fill the place of his family. No woman could fill the gap of loneliness in his heart like the way she did.

This was a fact he was very clear of.

However, the woman in the cave challenged this very fact. The emotions he felt in her presence were so similar to the ones he felt on his wedding day, that his mind was thrown in chaos. 

It was the feeling of a family.

"I had better not think of this matter at the moment. It is only going to make things more complicated."

Sighing in frustration, he turned and went in search of something to eat.

Princess Qamari huddled in the corner of the damp cave, her eyes distant as she thought of the events that transpired.

She killed a human being.

As she recalled the headless corpse of the Village Head, her stomach churned and her skin crawled. The very thought filled her with revulsion.

"It's going to be okay. Everything will be fine. I didn't do anything wrong..." As she chanted the words the stranger whispered to her, her mind drifted to the scene where she took the initiative to hug him.

That was very, very unlike her.

Since she was a kid, Princess Qamari was grinded with the idea of men and women maintaining a safe distance. The various scolding and severe admonishments on multiple occasions for playing with the opposite gender were branded into her very essence.

The notion was enforced so gravely on her that keeping distance from the opposite sex became second nature to her.

However, in the span of a day, she not only held the hand of a guy, but she had also hugged him, burying her head in his chest as she unrestrainedly cried out her heart for the first time in years.

"Why did I do that?" She whispered in confusion.

The man was a complete stranger to her. A suspicious individual that she had encountered while being chased by a group of strangers. Logically, she should stay as far away from him as possible, avoiding his very presence like the plague lest she got herself stuck in a sticky situation.

However, the harder she tried to keep her distance from him, the more she was drawn to him, like a Rainbow Fly to the blazing sun.

Today, she had gone as far as to hug him, an act she had yet to perform even with her own husband. She cried in his arms, a deed she had not performed since the disappearance of her parents.

With this stranger that she hardly knew, she performed two deeds that even the people closest to her had yet to experience or witness.

"This won't do. I need to separate from this man as soon as possible." Her violet-silver eyes gleamed in the dark cave as they flashed with determination.

In the Budh Village, at Sui Hua's house, Mei Na tiredly dropped her friend on the ground, the sweat pouring down her face entering her eyes and causing tears to drip.

"Xiao Na, what happened? Why are you crying? Is Sui Hua okay?" Sui Hua's mother came out of the kitchen with a pot in hand. Upon spotting the crying Mei Na and the unconscious Sui Hua slumped on the ground, her thoughts ran wild and she rushed over.

"Sui Hua, Sui Hua! What's wrong?"

Anxiously grabbing Sui Hua's arms, she roughly shook her shoulders as she called out her name. Getting no reaction, she slapped the girl across the face a few times until her hand was grabbed by a dumbfounded Mei Na.

"Aunty, Sui Hua is fine. She only fainted because of a scare. She will wake up soon."

"Fainted? A scare? What could possibly scare Sui Hua into fainting?" The middle-aged woman asked in confusion.

"That...let's wait for Sui Hua to wake up first. We can talk about it then." Mei Na roamed her eyes evasively around the courtyard before moving to grab a pot of water.

'This will probably wake her up sooner. Sorry, Sui Hua. After what happened, I don't have the courage to face your Mama alone.'

Silently asking for forgiveness, she splashed the pot of ice water across the unconscious Sui Hua's face.

"Ahhhhh!"

Startled awake, Sui Hua screamed in fear as she backed up and curled against the wall.

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"Sui Hua, Sui Hua! Calm down. It's okay, we are at your home now." Mei Na grabbed her arms, and gently whispered as she comforted her with a hug.

"It's okay. We are at your home."

The gentle words, warm embrace, and familiar environment finally calmed the frightened Sui Hua.

In her entire 16 years of life, she had never felt so scared. But then again, she had never witnessed an individual she was familiar with getting beheaded right in front of her eyes.

As the bloody scene resurfaced in her mind, she shivered.

Sui Hua's Mama was stunned by Sui Hua's intense reaction. Her daughter had endured 16 years of beating and scolding without shedding a tear or making a peep. Yet now, she was trembling in fear as if she had seen a ghost.

"Will anyone tell me what's going on here?" She angrily demanded.

"Mama!" In her muddled state, Sui Hua had failed to detect her Mama's presence.

"Don't Mama me! Tell me what's going on!"

"Ah..."

"Well? I'm waiting!"

"Aunty, let me speak first. Sui Hua is still frightened."

"Yes, I can see that, which is still hard for me to believe. Then you tell me Xiao Na. What happened?"

Mei Na was a year older than Sui Hua, making her mental fortitude far stronger than the latter. As such, she was able to cope with the death scene far better.

"Aunty, this is what happened. At the sacrificial ceremony, two strangers from Laining City appeared. They said they were officials personally appointed by the City Lord to handle affairs in the Bansi Village. But as they had interrupted the maiden offering ritual, the Village Head wanted to hold them accountable for the consequences. However, the officials took out a parchment clearly banning the offering of maidens for sacrifice."

Here, the girls' faces turned pale as they recalled the scene of the sword cleanly slicing through the Village Head's neck like a knife through butter.

"And?" Sui Hua's Mama found their sudden silence and pale complexion strange and disturbing. But she shook off the feeling and pressed on.

"And...well the Village Head was beheaded! He questioned the authenticity of the strangers' claims and demanded for a parchment. Once she took it out, all of the elders cleaned their hands off the matter. As the perpetrator, the Village Head was immediately punished for his crime through death by beheading. He was beheaded before our eyes. That's why Sui Hua is frightened."

"What did you say? They beheaded the Village Head? How is that possible? How is it possible?" Sui Hua's Mama stumbled back and slumped to the ground, her previous grandeur completely gone, as she asked in shock.

"They killed the Village Head. How could they kill the Village Head without any trial? That's against the laws of the East Minions Faction."

"What about the fact that the Village Head was willing to sacrifice Sister Ming Yue as a sacrificial lamb? What about the fact that they ignored the laws of the land by carrying out such heinous deeds?" Mei Na roared in rage.

"Aunty, do you know? Every individual gathered at the lakeside is termed as an accomplice and will meet the same end as him. That also includes me and Sui Hua."

"What!? What in the realms are you saying?"

Madam Sui felt as if a clash of thunder rang out beside her, her eardrums ringing and the background spinning as she held her head.

"Ans even if that is the cause, why? Why are they including the two of you? You are just kids yourselves!"

"Well, we were present at the scene of the crime. But don't worry Aunty. Once we get Ming Yue to write us a letter of pardon, our crimes will be forgiven." Mei Na nonchalantly shrugged her shoulders.

"No! This won't do! I will go and see Ming Yue right now. You two wait right here and don't take a step out of the house." Without delaying further, Madam Sui went out the gate.

"Do you think they will really let us off?" Sui Hua's tiny voice drifted in the suddenly quiet environment, attracting Mei Na's gaze.

"Truthfully, I don't know." 

At this point, it was useless to argue and play guessing games. Everything will have to wait until dawn arrived.

On the other side, Crown Prince Lail returned to the cave with wild berries and fruits, a small pink hare held in his hand.

Standing outside, he inhaled deeply as if preparing himself for a battle and cautiously entered.

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