The Pirate & The Princess [KaneTou]

20

"Knight Nishiki, any news of our daughter?" King Arata asked, and to his dismay, Nishiki shook his head with a frown.

"I'm afraid not, my King. But rest assured, we will continue our efforts in searching for her and will inform you if there is any news." He bowed and left the room.

Arata and Hikari sighed in unison. It's been months since Touka was kidnapped by the awful pirate who invaded their castle and made off with their jewels. They've been trying to find her but until this day, no one knew how the pirate looked like, nor her whereabouts. Hikari sobbed into her husband's chest and Arata embraced her, a frown on his lips.

"The King and Queen of Kingdom Yuil have arrived!" A male guard announced to King Arata and Queen Hikari from outside their bedroom, making them separate from one another and quickly made themselves presentable to see to their guests' sudden arrival.

As soon as they were ready, they stepped into the main hall, they sat down onto their thrones. King Arata cleared his throat as he stared down at the 4 guests; the King, the Queen, a male with white hair and an unknown person who had a cloak on which covered their face. "To what do we owe the pleasure of having the King and Queen of Kingdom Yuil today?"

Said King and Queen bowed. "We apologize for our sudden arrival but we believe that we have someone whom you would like to see."

The person with the cloak pushed the hood back and it revealed their long-lost daughter. "Father, Mother, I'm home."

Hikari jumped from her seat and rushed to envelop Touka in her arms. "Touka! Where have you been?! Your father and I have been so worried about you! Are you alright?"

She smiled. "I'm alright. For the past few months, I have been blessed with the company of Prince Kaneki of Kingdom Yuil. He will explain to you what happened."

Stepping back, Hikari directed her attention to Kaneki, who also had Arata's attention, and Kaneki swallowed. Sweat started forming on his forehead and hands, and he felt his heart race as well. "To put it simply, I was the one responsible for the kidnapping of Princess Kirishima. I was the pirate who stole the jewels from your kingdom."

At that, Arata raised his hand and the guards that surrounded the room now cleared in and grabbed Kaneki. "Execute him!"

"Wait, father! Please listen to what he has to say! There's a reason for all this!" Touka exclaimed.

"I will not listen to a criminal who has done unforgivable things to you and to other kingdoms! He must be disposed of immediately!"

King Kaneki stepped forward. "King Arata, I hope you can calm down and listen to what our son has to say."

"..for King Kaneki's face, I will. Men, release him."

The guards released Kaneki, who proceeded to explain what he explained to his own parents. Of course, they had the same frown on their faces, just like his parents did, and didn't think very well of his methods.

With his throat dry, Ken forced himself to swallow once again before continuing. "I know this isn't the appropriate time to say this right after I've explained everything, but I fell in love with Princess Kirishima and I hope the two of you will be able to give us your blessing in marriage. Please."

Touka looked expectantly at her parents. Hikari frowned, whilst Arata was furious. "How dare you ask for her hand in marriage after abducting her and stealing our jewels?! We will not allow this marriage to happen. You are to stay away from our daughter."

"Father!" She exclaimed. "I love him. We love each other!"

"Nonsense. He must be brainwashing you. Do not be fooled." 

Kaneki almost rolled his eyes. There was no such thing as brainwashing.

"I'll ask you this. What can you offer my daughter?"

"Love, happiness and loyalty." He answered without hesitation.

"What about the sins you've committed, the fact that you went from kingdom to kingdom stealing their treasures? They're a black mark on your person and the sins will never go away. Besides, didn't you just take the Prince position? That means you are not cultured or the proper gentlemen, seeing as you've lived all your life as a pirate on the seas. I will not allow Touka to marry someone like that."

Then, he looked at Kaneki's parents. "I'm sorry, but I hope I did not offend the both of you."

"Well, to be fair, what you said is true. No offense taken." Queen Kaneki sighed, glancing over to her son. "But we would just like to say that we believe that he is able to love Princess Kirishima with all his heart. We can tell."

The King also added, "regarding him not having a proper behavior of a prince, it can be rectified by lessons with posthaste and we assure you that he will be ready in a few months time."

Kaneki mouthed a 'thank you' to his parents before facing Arata again. "Please let me marry her."

"How about your punishment for stealing the jewels from our castle? Those jewels have been passed down from generation to generation for the past few centuries and are very precious. What have you done with them?"

"..I traded them for money." He mumbled to the floor, avoiding eye contact with the King.

"I believe you deserve a punishment for that, don't you think so, darling?" Arata asked, looking to his wife, who nodded in agreement.

"..I'll accept any punishment given to me."

"Anything?"

"Yes."

The entire room filled with the longest silence ever as they waited for Arata's words. 

"I have decided. You are to stay away from Touka forever."