Chapter 3

"Why can't I remember the guy?" Ave growled when her eyes opened like two flashlight beams. She couldn't even think of why she barely recalled that a man approached her with pitch coloured eyes and asked if she was free or not. But she could neither remember his face nor the conversation after that no matter how much she tries. Not that she was drunk, she was completely sober. "Then why the hell?"

Peter who was driving the car jumped up at the sudden explosion of her voice. But the words that came out of Ave's mouth did not fully register with him.

"Our great Princess has lost it finally?" Peter chortled, his shoulders trembled slightly. "But Ave, did you really do that in that forest? I mean with whom? A man or an animal?" He paused and took the time to mock his childhood friend for a while. "Woah!!! A one night stand with a wild animal of the Purple forest."

Aveline couldn't withstand her friend's cheap sense of humour anymore. "Shut up, Peter. You are so fucking annoying." She yelped and tilted her head slightly at her friend with a murderous glare in his eyes. "Why did he call you? Where is my driver?"

Peter shrugged. "I guess, he doesn't want your driver to find out about your one night stand with an..." He restrained himself from uttering the next word when he felt the intensity of her glare.

"Just Kidding. He called me and asked me where you are. So I told him, you are with me and will be heading to the castle soon. From there, we will go to the art school for dance class and then Ethy's home together. But doomhead, did you really spend a night there?" He again teased his friend. But deep inside, he was concerned about what happened. When he called her in the morning, she was in the forest and her voice didn't seem natural at all.

Ave, on the other side, didn't bother his teases at all. She closed her eyes tightly and her thoughts started becoming tormentors. First the accident, meeting David, then waking up in the forest, the blood in the mirror. She was sure that waking up in that forest, and the words written on the mirror has something to do with him. But the whispers and the blood?

The sleek car cruised to the Royal Gate, running over the black tarmac so fast that the passing greenery became a hazy blur.

"What's happening there?" Peter gaped at the front whilst he pressed his feet on the brake. His sudden voice brought Ave back to her senses from her deep thoughts.

Without making a single sound, Ave took a glance at her friend before turning her head at the front.

There were at least hundreds of people. The crowd flowed down the wide courtyard of the castle. Their gazes were fixed in the same direction with a shocked and pale surface of their faces. In a hundred strong people, there wasn't a single smile or expression of pleasure.

Ave swung the door open with ease before she got off from the car and rooted there at place, trying to discern what happened there. From here, the only thing she saw was the edge long wooden beam. But the wooden beam was enough for her. to understand that it's a ducking stool and the condemned people were getting punished.

She sighed deeply and through it, some people of the crowd got aware of the presence of their Princess. From one ear to ten ears, it spread to hundreds of ears. Shortly the crowd divided into two-part, forming a way for her.

Though she didn't want to go there and see the scene, but now that they have made the way, she couldn't just ignore.

"Give me just twenty minutes. I'll be back." Ave said and made her way forward through the expanse between the crowd. Now another crowd has created, it has occurred between the crowd itself to bow to the Princess.

Whilst Ave stepped forward to the castle, she couldn't notice anything except the ducking stool. The ducking stool was located alongside the pond of the courtyard and the repeated ducklings routinely proved fatal, the victim dying of shock or drowning.

The apparatus consisted of an iron armchair onto which the condemned people were strapped. One of them was a man around 30 and the other one was a woman. She almost looked up at the woman but stopped herself as the expressions of the women in this crowd reflected in front of her eyes. She must be stripped.

So instead, she looked at the guy. He was bruised, crying, begging for forgiveness. His face was a mess, his shirt was all torn by the sword attacks, blood was falling every time he was opening his mouth. "He just had his initial punishments." Ave murmured underneath her breath.

The troop and the hangman were whirling a rope around him with the chair that was attached to a long wooden beam. And it's the ultimate punishment. Death!

Perceiving the Princess, one of the paladins who was standing near the stool came and bowed to her. His hair was all set, gelled, his fair face seemed extra white in his white cloak that's hidden his broad shoulders and some part of his bare chest. "Princess, the guy is one of our headmen, the woman is a witch. They got married yesterday. And..."

"And if a human has the least relationship with an evil-power being, he gets cursed. slowly the entire kingdom gets cursed, And to stop this, he should be thrown out of the kingdom or should die no matter who he is!" Ave took his words out of his mouth and a long sigh escaped her lips as her gaze fixed at him. "I know, brother Jeff. But what's wrong with that woman's robe?"

"Suspected witches should be strip-searched to see if they had the devil's mark on their body, Your highness. It's the evidence that we can show to the generals." Brother Jeff explained.

Ave nodded. "It's not about that witch. It's all about the women here who are humiliated by her. I can guarantee that if that woman or witch was covered properly, the women here would feel less awkward, half of the men would lose their interest and go back home. And your evidence. You are devoted to God. The citizens trust you blindly with or without evidence. I think you should consider it."

"Sure. Your Highness." Brother Jeff bowed again before he moved to the other paladins. After a while, a servant came with a robe and wrapped it around the witch.

Then, Ave took a glimpse of the witch up on the armchair. She looks the same as other humans with a pair of dark eyes filled with resentments, her hair was long-midnight black flowing from her broad shoulder. Underneath her armchair, some paladins were making fire.

Some were holding a pile of holy books, some were drawing circles with some chalks and others were reciting: "Burn in hell to bless Qidan." The motto the citizens here believe. To them, if they expunge all the evil power beings, Qidan will be blessed.

Does she also believe that? She doesn't know. But surely, she never bothers about these things.

Suddenly a heavy wind blew with a powerful passion, It sounded its mighty roar, making everyone shook in fear.

"Witchcraft. Witchcraft." The Paladins said one to another.

Seconds later, the rain started falling in torrents, the crowd of the courtyard had already run to their shelters, the place looked deserted now.

Ave didn't waste more time here. She walked into the rain, resisting its heavy waterdrops. She sent back all the servants who came with umbrellas. She liked this foreign feeling it was like the new rain of his new life.

She was already soaked when he stomped into the Qidan Castle. The servants ran to him with towels, she grabbed one and with that, she brushed the water away from her hair while she hurried her steps towards the hall where Queen Salena and Duke Elbert were discussing over something with their son Aaron.

The entire hall went silent when she entered with her white face that was flushed red and wet.

"I'm Home." Ave bowed to the duke and then to the Queen before she moved his blank gaze at the Prince, her step-brother. "What happened, Aaron?" She asked, presuming the distortion of his expression.

"You can't see what's happening?" Aaron raised his brows, couldn't believe how she looked so normal.

Ave shrugged calmly. "I'm no wiser."

"Some evil-power beings have started grounding here. You saw what's happening outside. It's truly a threat to us." Duke Elbert spoke tensely as he patted his daughter's shoulder.

Queen Salena's eyes didn't miss her daughter's drenched blouse. "Why are you all wet? Did you get drenched in the rain?" She panicked and as Ave nodded, she widened her eyes. "Why? What's wrong? You know you can't..."

"Mom, rain can't be a curse to someone. Rain is like grace to us."

"But... It's not for you..." Salena stopped in the mid-sentence when Ave heaved a deep sigh and walked away, not giving attention to her words. "I need to get changed. Peter is waiting outside. We need to rush. Bye."

Aaron shook his head in disbelief and sighed deeply. "She will understand when..."

"Nothing will happen." Salena scolded her son. "She will be safe under my shadow."