Ambition and Destiny

👑 Chapter Eighth 👑

Her feet were so tired from walking, that the sandals she was wearing with mid-heels, which she was not used to, caused sores on her feet. She stretched out her legs after she took off the sandals and put them aside.

Annie talked to herself: "What am I doing now?" Am I waiting for someone to come or will I continue walking until I get back?"

She took a five-minute break. After that, she walked in her cotton socks, her hand swinging the sandals. The soles of her feet even turned black from the dirt.

Annie nagged, "Why is the fog settled now? ...This is not its time!"

Suddenly, she heard the sound of rustling leaves in the bushes.

Assuming it was solely a result of the wind, she disregarded it without giving it much consideration. Then the sound returned, but this time it was closer and clearer. Annie froze in place, terrified.

Annie's voice trembled, and in a tone full of regret, she said, "Why did I involve myself in this? ...Now a wild beast will come out and devour me."

She squeezed her eyes and buried her face between her palms, trying to suppress the fear that was building up inside her. Then she opened her eyes and looked through between her fingers, waiting for the scene that she had drawn in her imagination to end. But nothing happened, so she looked in front of her again.

Standing in front of her was a tall, handsome young man whose coal-black hair swayed with the wind, and his blue eyes sparkled like lapis lazuli. He looked surprised at first glance but soon showed an attractive smile, and she couldn't help but stare into it.

The young man tilted his head so that his face became close to Annie's, who remained covered with her face, and gently said, "No doubt you are horrified by my sudden exit... I apologise."

She quickly lowered her hands, uncovering her face, and took a few steps back, but the roots of a tree that were protruding up from the ground caused her to stumble. The young man grabbed her wrist until she regained her balance and stood straight.

Annie avoided looking into his eyes in an atmosphere full of embarrassment and said, "Thank you, sir."

But the young man bent down on one knee, took off Annie's sock, and examined her swollen foot.

Annie spoke in a surprised tone: "What are you doing, sir?" This is dirty. Don't do this."

The young man, minimising her reaction to the situation, replied:

"These are just foot sores. When I was on the battlefield, I used to treat ten times worse than this condition," he continued, examining the back of her foot, "It would be bad to walk on it."

He got up and wrapped her in his cloak after noticing that she had been trembling. Then he spoke, wondering: "What is Miss doing here in the middle of the Royal Forest?" By the way, I didn't ask you your name; I'm Henrik. What About You?"

Holding tightly to the hem of her blue dress, Annie replied, "My name is Annie. I got lost on my way to meet the King."

Henrik looked intently at her and said, "I don't mean to belittle you... But not anyone can meet the King, miss, and then he approached her a little and said, in a tone full of doubt: "Who are you?... I've never seen you before!"

"What am I going to say now? It's hard to believe the story I'm going to tell him. And at the same time, I'm not in a position to lie to him"

Remaining silent and hesitant about her answer, Henrik gently continued his words: "Miss... I'm one of the King's advisers; I'm going to the Palace anyway; you can tell me about your problem; maybe I can help you."