The Chessboard Undead Prince

Chapter the Third

It was the night of the Princess's step into society. To announce she was of age to marry. She would attend lessons at a court of her own. 

The royal ballroom was a sea of courtiers, governors, lords, and baronets, and their ladies in arm. Couples from each district wore jewellery and attire to represent their town. There were eighteen districts in all: Pearl. Gold. Silver. Bronze. Metal. Salt. Marble. Fire. Horses. Flowers. Wood. Meat. Diary. Fruit. Bakery. Silk. Slaves. Paint. Each duchy was a supporting pillar of the empire. If one of the pillars cracked, the empire would suffer.

"Presenting her Royal Highness, Ellius Rose, Princess of Estela."

As the grand ballroom doors swung open, the Princess stepped onto the gleaming staircase, her gown trailing behind her like a river of moonlight. With each delicate step, anticipation filled the air, a symphony of whispers weaving through the crowd of denizens from every corner of Wonderland. One lady wore a gown that shimmered like blue-green fish scales. She wore a fashioned codfish on her head. Another overlapped with gold leaf between delicate white silk. One had her long nails encrusted with diamonds. A young girl from the poorer class of the bronze duchy wore an old-fashioned gown of bronze damask and russet linen. She wore too much jewellery around her very exposed breasts. Their eyes, aglow with admiration, followed Ellius' descent, enraptured by her grace and beauty.

Taking a deep breath, Ellius descended the grand staircase, the ruffles of blue tickling her toes. Yasmine had been wise not to tighten the corset to vice so she could still live. The massive sea of bodies parted as she stood in their midst. The ballroom was known as the Hall of a Thousand Souls, for hundreds of panels of pink quartz framed the lengths of the walls. It is said if one looked into the quartz, they reflected one's soul. Whorls of gold with touches of silver framed the panels, twinkling under the diamond chandeliers, the stones dripping from the painted ceiling. The painters of the eighteenth duchy had been commissioned on the ceiling at the start of Father's reign and had remained for eleven years till its completion. The ceiling depicted the great map of Estela, the Capital of Glass. The Salt ocean with its monsters and nymphs to the chilly mountains of Loreki where the great white unicorns who could surpass any element the world attacked it with.

Ellius spotted several ladies whispering behind painted fans, their eyes glued to her. On me or my dress? Hah. They won't be laughing when I choose my court.

It was a marvel of art her dress, and Ellius knew it. She had asked the atelier to create a dress to represent the Town of Silver. The silversmiths forged and shaped the precious metal into the greatest of trinkets and jewellery. It was where Adonis's first of many gifts had been from. It was from his first mission's bounty: Two silver bracelets. One was fashioned with motifs of the royal coat of arms. The second was crafted with dripping tiny silver rose charms.

Every one of his gifts she stored in a large leather jewellery box. Yasmine had guessed she had a secret admirer as he sent her letters. She had not known that Adonis had signed them. Now she knew.

At the foot of the stairs awaited a tableau of opulence, a spectacle of gifts representing the diverse tapestry of Wonderland's cities. Lords and ladies, adorned in their finest attire, presented offerings that shimmered with the essence of their realms. From the shimmering pearls of Opalo, to the gleaming gold of Carlien's mines, each gift bore the mark of its city's pride and craftsmanship.

Ropes of pearls cascaded like moonbeams, their lustrous sheen reflecting the Princess's radiance as she graciously accepted each tribute. Gold flowed like molten sunlight, a testament to the wealth and prosperity of Doscarta's goldmine: Gold-leaf Truffles. Silver sparkled like starlight, casting an enchanting glow upon the festivities, while bronze glinted with the strength and resilience of its forging.