Chapter 2
Everyone went on their knees without hesitation or a second thought. It was customary to kneel before the king as a sign of respect and anyone who didn't abide by the rules was severely punished. The punishment was cutting of your legs, so that you will forever be on your knees, pretty wicked if you asked the subject. They were all supposed to gaze at the ground and not at the king directly as that would be seen as a sign of disobedience.
Although everyone was looking at the ground, Nalani was curious to get a glance at the king. She wanted to see how he looked like and if the rumours about him were true. She peeked through her lashes the first but didn't see anything of use. The carriage carrying the king was still closed.
She tried to stretch her neck more but immediately stopped when she spotted one of the knights observing her . She quickly returned her gaze to the ground. Thankfully the knight didn't call her out on her disobedience. The carriage door squicked before it opened.
Heavy step was heard when the king stepped on the ground.
' Even his steps exude power' thought Nalani.
Thinking this was the best time to peek, Nalani glanced on more time and this time instead of getting caught be the knight, her gaze met with that of the king. She looked away quickly and faked a cough.
King Ambrose did notice the girl who stared at him. She looked so tiny kneeling down. He was curious to see the face she was hiding with her long black hair. He thought of a way to approach her but couldn't find any. The king can't be seen associating with commoners. It was discouraged by the kingdoms rules and the delicate balance created through the years .
' I am the king, I can do whatever I want' he thought.
Mastering a blank expression he took steady steps towards the girl he noticed earlier. He must admit this girl did have a lot of courage to do that. Didn't she know who he was? The cold king! The cruel king! All names used to describe him over the last three years.
He stopped right next to her knees. He watched her shoulders shake as she struggled to keep her breaths even and steady. He smirked at her and looked behind her where he saw a cart full of fruits. The fruits looked healthy enough for him to eat.
All his food were tasted by a taster before he could eat them. His life was prescious, so a royal taster was used to prevent any chances of poisoning. Although this time, it seemed so unlikely for the fruits to be poisoned.
" Do you have apples?" He asked in a deep voice.
Nalani was confused as to who he was speaking to. She glanced at her friend but Kellen only shrugged her shoulders.
" You! The king is speaking to you. How dare you disrespect the king by not answering " yelled the announcer.
Nalani started visibly shaking. She had made a grave error and she could pay for it with her life. What was she supposed to do now? Have courage she thought.
She slowly got to her feet but maintained her gaze on the ground.
" I am sorry my king, I didn't hear you correctly. I have a problem with my ears" she whispered
The king heard her explanation but he didn't believe her. Instead he gave her a deadly stare before he decided to let it go. This girl didn't deserve to die simply because she didn't hear him.
" I want some apples" he ordered.
"Yes my king" she gave a small bow and rushed to her cart to pack some apples.
She chose ten of the best looking ones and placed them in a bag. Was ten enough? Or was she supposed to feed the entire entourage. How was she supposed to know how many was enough? She glanced at the entourage and came to the conclusion that it was better to be safe than sorry.
She was about to shove another apple in the bag but was stopped by the king.
" Those are enough. Pay this woman for the apples" he said before he headed back to his carriage.
Nalani could finally breathe normally when the king walked away. She tried to see him one last time but his back was towards her. All she saw was his largely shaped shoulder and his tall height. The king was indeed tall, he towed over everyone in the market.
A skinny looking man came towards her with a brown satchel. He stopped at her cart and looked at her products.
" How much are the apples?" He asked with annoyance.
Nalani decided that she didn't like this man at all. Being skinny was not the issue. The issue was ,she felt some kind of uneasiness when he approached her. He was a bad man and her instincts are never wrong.
" Ten pennies sir" she answered
He opened his satchel, counted ten pennies, placed them on top of her watermelons and walked away.
' Rude' thought Nalani.
As soon as the skinny man joined the rest, the entourage started moving towards the castle. When they were finally out of sight, people started getting on their feet and wiping the dirty of their knees. Some couldn't get back on their feet without help .
People started talking all at once , trying to figure out why the king passed through their town. The king was always confined in the castle for the last three years and it was miracle he was outside the castle walls. Some were happy that they could finally see the king.
Most of the commoners didn't even know what he looked like. They could pass him on the streets without recognising him. Apart from the noble men and the people working in the castle, the rest had no idea what he looked like.
Some were scared that the king left his castle. As far as they know , he was an unpredictable person and he had a reputation of being cruel. Everyone has heard the rumours by now , of his cruelty and cold nature but they have never experienced it first hand. It was human to be scared of what is foreign to you.
For Nalani and Kellen they were curious like everyone else.
" Did you have a good look at him" asked an overly excited Kellen.
" No! How could I when all those knights were staring at me."
" I would be scared too, I suppose. The announcer's voice almost made me pee my pants"
" Me too. I was so scared that I was about to die"
" You are still alive ....let's get back to work" suggested Kellen.
The two spent the rest of the day talking to customers. Some bought their products while some promised to buy the next day. The day was otherwise boring after the mornings event.
Evening came and the two parked up their carts and started their journeys back to their homes. Kellen lived closest to the market while Nalani lived at the edge of the town where the houses were cheaper.
She thought of the money she had made today and tried to make a budget as she dragged the cart. She could eat an apple for dinner and cut down on cost. She had to pay some of her increasing debts. The loan shark was not a patient man and she didn't want to be on his bad side.
She was already late on last week's payment. The terms of payment were she would pay back the money every end of the week. Last week she failed to pay the loan but she planned to pay for the two weeks. She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't notice the two large men blocking the road. She walked closer and closer towards them but was yet to notice them.
Her cart was in front of her and she pushed from the behind it. When her cart suddenly stopped she tried to push harder thinking it was a pothole but nothing happened. She bent down to search the wheels and see if any of them were ruined but the wheels were alright. However she noticed two sets of legs in front of her cart.
" Do we have to break your cart to get your attention?" One of the men raised his voice
She straightened herself, brushed her hands on her dress before she focused on the two clearly rude men.
" Who are you? And what do you want?" She asked
" Our boss is asking for his money"
" Tell your boss, I will bring his money tomorrow"
" Look at this short disrespectful woman woman. Do you know what we do with pretty things like you?" He asked in a voice that felt disgusting.
" I am not being disrespectful, I merely gave you the feedback you wanted " she crossed her hands on her chest
The action seemed to agitate the men looking at her. They assumed they had the upper hand as they were men. Women were under men and they were not supposed to talk back. However Nalani seemed to be the one exception who didn't care for the society norms.
The two men looked at each other and shared a smirk. Their boss told them to get his money but he didn't say how. They were free to do whatever they wanted to this woman. After all their boss would care less.
" You think you are brave huh! Let's see how brave you are after this" said one of the men.
They casually walked towards her but Nalani's demeanor did not change. In her cart was a birthday gift she received when she was ten and she was not afraid to use it to protect herself. When they were about three steps away from her, she reached in her cart and took out a long, light, beautifully engraved sword.
The men were taken back by the weapon and most importantly puzzled as to why she was in possession of one . The sword looked expensive and there was no way it belonged to her . They glanced at each other , smiled and proceeded towards her, not fazed by her weapon.
'She is a woman, how can she know how to use it' they thought.
When the men came closer to her Nalani knew they thought she was joking. They thought she couldn't use a sword. They were right about one thing, women were not supposed to know how to fight.
" You want to play? Let's play" she said with an evil smile.