Cover Photo: https://www.instagram.com/e_gblk/
Princess Silvanna is annoyed.
She just wants to be on the battlefield, for lord's sake!
She's trained for this, and has been training hard since she was eighteen.
But no, none of the advisors think it's a good idea. None of her advisors are willing to let her go out and fight. Even her captain Tigreal says the same thing, which is so terribly frustrating. How is she supposed to prove herself when she can't even have the opportunity to do that?
Well, at least today would be a bit more interesting. Apparently they were going to talk battle strategies, and she wanted to be involved in that. If they let her in.
Princess Silvanna walked aimlessly through the palace corridors, passing servants and knights. She was just about to pass by an empty hall, when she heard a weird noise.
Something that sounded suspiciously like a cough, which was immediately shushed up. Silvanna's head turned at the sound, and she backtracked into the empty hall.
Yes, her ears weren't wrong. That room wasn't empty after all. There was a man there, dressed in strange looking clothes.
He had a long black coat with spikes on the shoulders, and a red scarf, and he was lurking around. He doesn't stand tall and straight like the Imperial Knights. In fact, he seems to be trying to hide in the shadows, and his eyes dart around here and there. Like someone dangerous. Maybe a spy. Or a thief.
Her heart beat faster. This stranger should not be here!
"Are you lost?" her voice rang out, echoing in the empty hall. The stranger jumped, and turned towards Princess Silvanna.
He tensed when he turned around, then relaxed when he saw her. He puts down the black heavy case he's been carrying on the floor.
"My lady," he gives a short bow. "I'm here on official business."
"Is that so?" Silvanna said haughtily, using her best Princess voice. "And what, pray tell, would that business be?"
"That's private, I'm afraid." He looks over at her fancy blue gown, and her long white gloves, and bows again. "anyway, it's nothing that concerns you."
What, because she's clearly a lady, therefore she has no business in whatever he's involved in?
"Well, I'm sure whatever business you have, it would be something you can tell me." she says sweetly.
"It's nothing that concerns you." the stranger says again, emphasizing the word 'nothing'. Silvanna resists the urge to roll her eyes.
"How about we drop all this polite nonsense and get to the point?" she huffs. The stranger's eyes widen at her brusqueness now, and he stops his bowing.
"What is it that you want?" He says impatiently. "Let's make this quick."
She steps forward so she's right in front of him.
"This place is off-limits to you. Leave now."
"No offense but I have every right to be here." He said arrogantly.
"You?" she says in a half-laugh. "Trust me, you don't belong here."
His eyes narrow at her words, and he says nothing as he turns away from her.
"Leave now." she says as commandingly as she can. He turns his head back to face her.
"No." he smirks.
Wrong answer, she thinks indignantly as she grabs to push him. His reaction is quick though, as he catches her arms so she can't hurt him. She struggles out of it, then darts to grab his black case on the floor.
"Hey!"
She moves to the window to throw the case out of the large window, but his movements are frantic now, as he gives chase. He manages to grab the case and they tussle back and forth.
Silvanna looks behind the stranger, noticing a silver suit of armour right behind him.
She sees the opportunity, letting go of the case and dropping into a roll, her fighter instincts quickly kicking in. Confused, his eyes follow her until she grabs the helmet from the suit of armour and brings it down onto his head.
He's on the floor now, groaning, but he isn't knocked out yet. Silvanna looks around in panic. She sees the red velvet curtains at the window, and quickly unwinds the rope that's holding the curtains back.
Dashing back to the stranger, she grabs a hold of his arms and twists the curtain rope around his wrists.
The stranger struggles, but Silvanna uses her weight to hold him down. She uses whatever's left of the rope to tie his ankles together too. Satisfied, she gets up.
He struggles to his knees - the only way he can sit up without falling over. He can't stand either, and he turns around to glare at the Princess.
"What the hell?" he says angrily. She's had enough of him.
She turns away, checking the doorway, looking for a knight or a servant at least to help her get rid of him. There is none.
"Don't even try escaping my sight!" the stranger says angrily.
"Oh, shut up." Silvanna says, as she walks back to him, stuffing his mouth with her handkerchief from her pocket.
His face is priceless.
They stare at each other in silence for a moment.
"Are you going to come quietly? If not, I'm going to have to drag you out of here." she says threateningly. He obviously doesn't like that, as he starts to struggle again.
Princess Silvanna goes to the other set of curtains, to grab a second set of rope. She goes to wind it around his chest, intending to use it to drag him by the chest. She ignores the muffled sounds coming from his mouth.
The door opens.
She turns as the door opens, her foot still on his back, her hands holding the rope tight. From the corner of her eye, she could also see the stranger twist his head.
Her captain, Tigreal, enters, along with one of her demon hunters, Alucard. Both men are dressed in full armour, deep in conversation. They stop as they catch sight of the Princess in her regal flowing gown, hands holding a rope that tied around a strange man who's on his knees, hands and chest tied up, a white piece of cloth stuffed in his mouth.
Tigreal stares at Princess Silvanna. "Is... everything okay?"
"Perfectly fine." Silvanna tosses her hair over her shoulder.
The blonde man, Alucard, however, stares at this intruder.
"Granger?"
The intruder seems to spew out a thousand vulgarities, not that anyone could tell thanks to the piece of cloth wedged in between his teeth.
"What?" Princess Silvanna asks, looking between Alucard and the stranger. "You know him?"
"Err, yes. He's my friend. He was supposed to meet me today. Meet you too, actually, Your Highness."
Princess Silvanna stares again, her confidence in capturing this stranger starting to drop.
"Oh..." she looks back to the stranger again, letting the rope drop from her hands. She takes out the white handkerchief from his mouth.
He coughs. "Thanks." Granger says.
"He's the new demon hunter you were talking about." Silvanna said to Alucard slowly, pieces of the puzzle suddenly fitting together.
"Yep."
"And I beat him and tied him up."
Alucard raises his hands in surrender. "Hey, we won't judge you for any of your kinky bedroom antics, Princess." he jokes, winking at her.
"Princess?" Granger echoed. He swivelled to look at Silvanna. "You're the Princess?"
"Uhh, yes. Princess Silvanna of the Moniyan Empire."
"I'm Granger," he said, attempting a weird half-bow. "I came from the Monastery of Light, as I heard the Imperial Sanctuary was in need of warriors. I'm a marksman. At your service."
This was the most surreal situation she had ever been in. She had been so eager to meet this new demon hunter, having heard of his unparalleled skills, and now she'd treated her new guest like a common prisoner.
Suddenly, the way he was behaving made a lot of sense to her: the way he skulked in the shadows, the way he looked around for any potential threat, the way he didn't carry himself like an Imperial Knight.
Alucard didn't seem disturbed at all, in fact he was starting to laugh. Even Tigreal didn't seem to know whether to laugh or not.
"Shut up." she snaps at Alucard. "Come and help me."
Alucard steps forward to assist her in untying the marksman.
"Sorry Granger," Alucard said. "I know I promised you a warm welcome when you arrived but I didn't think it would get so hot."
Ugh Alucard, stop talking, Silvanna screams internally as her face blushes a deep red. Alucard is one of her esteemed demon hunters, but he also likes to say very inappropriate things at inappropriate times to everyone. It doesn't even matter if they're royalty (yes, he's said weird things in front of the King and Queen too).
"Is this what you meant by the royal treatment?" Granger grumbles to the blonde man. Alucard just winks. "Sure, if that's what you want."
"I... I'm terribly sorry." Silvanna apologises awkwardly, trying to revert back to her distinguished demeanour. "This isn't the way I wanted us to meet."
"That's alright, Your Highness." the marksman smirked, looking oddly comfortable despite the fact that he's still on his knees and tied up. "No one can resist my charm, not even my enemies."
Alucard facepalms as Tigreal smacks the back of the marksman's head.
***