High in the Clouds (Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii)

Stratus

Castra La Solis stood high atop a hill overlooking and outstanding all of the capital. It was the city's center, built upon foundations of old yet magnificent architecture with looming towers, sturdy walls and gilded archways. Even the gate that led into the highgrounds, connected to the city via drawbridge, was the grandest structure that Bianca has ever seen. Encrusted onto the panels were the symbols of the Sun Kingdom, intimidating faces of gold that seemed to watch your every move.

From her makeshift standpoint of rock and wood, Bianca dismayed at the fact that there seemed to be no way in.

No one was allowed to carelessly just pass through the gates. Since she looked like a commoner, she knew it was almost impossible to sneak past the guards.

Well, almost.

Afterall, every man's weakness was his stomach.

It was well past noon when they had arrived in the capital, just in time for lunch as it seemed. Bianca, with her keen eye and avid interest in not getting accidentally sent to the gallows early on, took note of the fact that security seemed lax during meals. This was probably because of the guard shift during those times.

Now, Bianca only had to wait until supper to sneak in. If her deductions proved right, as they often were, she would be able to vault herself over the eastern wall and sneak into the adjoining tower.

Easy right?

"As if." She grumbled.

The sky had turned a considerable shade of indigo as she pondered and schemed. Bianca waited for a while then decided it was all clear.

Reaching out, she grasped onto a tree branch and pulled herself upward. Step by step, she climbed the ancient oak tree that was conveniently growing next to the eastern wall. The bark was rough and scratched her palms but Bianca continued nonetheless, going up higher and faster as she went. By the time she got to a branch that was nearest to the stone partition, her clothes were streaked with leaves and bark shavings. Not one to pay attention to appearances, she held onto the trunk for support and eyed her path towards the Sun Castle.

"This is stupid and you know it." She chastised, biting her lip. "Here goes nothing."

Quickly, she ran across the wide branch, formidably ignoring the possibility of falling, and leaped aiming for the gap between the stone veneer.

"Ack!" The impact sent her entire body rattling, making her bite her tongue in the process. Though before she could pore over the pain, Bianca's hands were straining for hold.

Quickly, she used one foot to kick the wall, trying desperately to get a foothold. When she found it, she did the same to her other foot.

Dust from the stone coated her palms and the front of her clothes, but the girl climbed up nonetheless. Once she did reach the top, she quickly vaulted over to the open walkway and hid behind the stone ledge.

"I made it.." She murmured in surprise. She couldn't believe it- she had to let it sink in. She was finally in!

Her ears perked and she heard a distinct rattling sound- like metal against metal. Paling, she quickly rushed into the nearest tower for cover.

The place was massive.

The outer stone wall actually hid a magnificent castle within and inside said castle was architecture only renowned within the Sun Kingdom's highest of societal hierarchy. To describe what she saw would be like walking through a Fairytale picture book- wherever you go, everything was beautiful.

Yet it was very, very cold.

It was empty albeit a few guards and servants. However the majority of the place seemed lacking. Sure Bianca had only been within one part of the castle, but shouldn't a place as big as this be full of life? If stark humor were to jest, the Castle was just like it's king- gloomy and old.

Now that she was here, Bianca wondered what he looked like. No commoner has ever seen the Sun King except for the members of the high court.

All she knew was that he was intelligent and cunning. Portraits of his majesty were only limited to the nobility so unless Bianca had other plans to break into an aristocrat's house, her chances of knowing what he looked like where close to none.

You look a lot like your father, An.

So her father had blue eyes and black hair that was flat and boring? Doubt it.

As she sneakily walked through the halls, the girl allowed herself to marvel at the interior designs of the place. The Candelabras that graced the posts of every wall were all so intricate that Bianca itched for her sketchbook at home. She wasn't necessarily an artist, but to be able to capture the shadows that skimmed over their golden edges made her confident to draw.

However, the lighting proved to be low for comfort. Bianca had to strain her mind and eyes to guess where she was going. The throne room would probably be the best place to find him- that is if he didn't decide to get rid of her first.

Bright light caught her eye and Bianca looked ahead to see a door opened ajar. The soft glow streamed into the halls, seeming to beckon the girl to enter. And enter she did, curiosity pulling her towards the door like a magnet. It didn't seem like anyone was in there. It probably wouldn't hurt to go in. Probably.

Pushing the large mahogany gently, she stepped into a cool room carpeted with lavish hues of red and dark wood. Looking around, she realized that she had entered some sort of study. Four large bookshelves stood in each corner of the room and a desk was situated in the middle. The only thing was, most of the furniture except the aforementioned was covered in white sheets. As Bianca moved closer, she realized that the surface of the desk was coated in a thick layer of dust.

How long had this room been empty?

Nearing one of the bookshelves, she noticed that the books were coated in dust as well. Next to the shelf was a rectangle covered in a similar white cloth. Out of curiosity, Bianca pulled the sheet down.

What she saw made her heart constrict.

"Mother?" She choked.

Gentle eyes and a soft smile stared back at her, captured in iridescent colors of what was likely oil paint. Though the painting itself looked old and bland, no layer of dust could be found. Even the sheet in her hands seemed to be new.

Has someone been looking at this recently? The thought made her feel cold all over.

Looking closely, she realized that the image looked a little bit off. Sure the features were that of her mother but it looked edited- as if someone had to impose the idea of grandeur and nobility. Her mother was more, well, alive than what the painting showed. Maybe it wasn't her mother. Maybe she was just imagining things.

Unfortunately, a small plaque of gold seemed to say otherwise.

Engraved in intricate script was her mother's name.

Princess Nike Lemercier, year XXX.

It was dated sixteen years ago- four years before Bianca was even born.

She couldn't help it- she fell to her knees. This was ludicrous. She couldn't fathom the idea.

Her mother lived here before.

Her mother was the Sun Kingdom's missing queen.

Her mother was the Sun King's wife.

Which made her, the Sun King's daughter.

The door to the study creaked open. Before Bianca could do anything, a deep voice sounded behind her.

"What do you think you're doing here?"

-----

A/N: This took longer than expected 😂

I'm baaaack! Hope you enjoyed this chap. Not much excitement here though. What do you think about An's discovery of the painting? (Based on the portrait that Nike couldn't stay still for in the manga btw)

Also, is An a good nickname for Bianca? Idk, comment your thoughts!

THIS ANIME NEEDS MORE LOVE!!

So Vote and Share to spread awareness XD (kidding, but seriously, help me haha)