1.
The Kingdom of Haplice was flourishing under the rule of Shokalsy III.
Located in the lap of ice-capped mountains and vast stretches of valleys, the kingdom looked nothing less than the land of fairytales.
The markets were crowded with people and merchants. Irene smiled to herself as she witnessed this. A few children ran past her feet. She couldn't help but chuckle at their happy giggles. People were eyeing her for the clothes she was wearing. She couldn't blame them.
You wouldn't expect a woman in armour, walking through the markets.
But what could she do. It was a part of her job. Well technically, she wasn't even supposed to do the job in the first place. She had bestowed the job on herself.
She greeted them with a good afternoon, attempting to de-escalate the awkwardness. But she knew it wasn't helping. She let out a sigh and continued anyways. She marched through the market, appreciating the social conditions of Haplice. Since her childhood, she has heard stories from her father about how he used to imagine a bright and flourishing future for their kingdom. What she was seeing, convinced her that his dream had come true.
"Umm, Miss." She turned around to see a vendor calling her.
"Yes?"
He looked at her from top to bottom and cleared his throat before talking. "I work at the drama and make costumes. Your costume seems so realistic. Where did you get this from? I must take inspiration from the tailor. It's-"
This infuriated her. "Excuse me! I am a royal guard!"
The vendor broke into fits of laughter. He was amused how a person could stay so much in their character. He asked her which play she was going to perform, causing her to fume.
"Listen, I have no time for this bogus talk. You believe or you don't." She opened the body armour and threw it on her back. She adjusted her pants with one hand while the other held onto the armour. "Stupid people," she mumbled to herself. She tucked the shirt into the trousers and looked at him with anger.
"Girls can be soldiers as well." She left him without listening to his reply.
"Mama, that woman is wearing boy's clothes," whispered a little girl, as she climbed to her mother's leg.
"Shh! Don't say it." The mother shoved her child as Irene passed them.
Irene could hear them quite distinctly but she decided not to respond. People could be so nosy sometimes. She observed the colourful toys, charms and trinkets displayed in one of the shops.
As she made her purchase and was on her way to the Huckey's, a famous knife maker, she heard a lady screaming, and the footsteps of people running; and their voices, commanding everyone to calm down.
She quickly ran towards the crowd, to find the cause of the commotion.
"The man stole my purse. Thief! Thief!"
The lady kept on running behind the man. Irene took no time in spotting the robber and ran behind him.
She outran the lady. "Stop, stop or else you'll be punished," she shouted. She quickened her pace and threw the armour on him. This caused the balance of the robber to falter and he fell down.
She reached out to him and snatched the purse. "I did tell you not to run," she said, as she took the armour from the ground.
The man cried in pain. He held onto his knee as she continued to scream at him. The lady reached her and thanked her for her help. "Punish this boy," she shouted.
Irene saw how young the boy was. "What's your name sir?" The lady frowned at the use of 'sir' for such an uncooth thief.
Although a bit hesitant at first, he did tell his name to her. "Charles."
She kneeled down to take a better look at him. "I am sorry for throwing that armour on you. But, you should know that stealing is a sin. What tempted you to do so?" Irene had become sympathetic of the young face. What could have tempted such a young boy to steal?
The boy broke into a fresh pool of tears. "My family has been starving since the last day. My father left us. He was the bread owner. But after he left us, we were left with nothing to eat. I thought that maybe I could manage something- I didn't want to sin. I wanted to provide for my family."
Irene somehow controlled her welled up tears, threatening her to fall down at any moment.
She brought out twenty copper coins from her pocket and gave it to him. "Don't you ever steal. We don't want anyone to sleep without food in their stomach. I want you to go to the palace with me. You can work and earn for your family."
The lady looked at them scornfully. "Why even bother helping this kid. Once a thief will always be a thief."
Irene stood up and told her that this wasn't the vision the King was thinking of when he was construing the future of Haplice. His goal was to eliminate hunger and poverty. Being his servant, it was her duty to ensure that his visionary was being kept alive. And no kid should be insulted for attempting to feed their family. This caused the lady to shut up and go away. She looked back at the boy and smiled at him. "Well, I'll have to get you bandaged and now I owe you one for this. I am sorry."
"No, it's fine. I got punished for what I was doing. Thanks for doing so, or else I would have been tempted to do it further in the future."
~
"You went out again? That too with my armour? And why does it have a dent on it?"
Irene stood in her father's chamber while he scolded her for sneaking out of the castle yet again. That too with his armour, without his permission. "What do you think the king would do if he finds out that you were upto some nuisance again?"
"He would praise me." She immediately regretted for cracking that joke. Her father glared at her.
"The guards told me you got in trouble in the market."
Sheet out a sigh. "Father, I was helping a lady. Her purse was stolen. But later I learnt that the boy had no choice but to do it. But don't worry. Being the warrior I am, and the servant of the people I serve, I offered him a job and twenty copper coins."
He raised his brows at the mention of money. "I don't remember you having money."
She rested her arms on her hips and bit her tongue. "Well, Father. Nothing is more virtuous than the act of giving. Also, those coins had been sitting in your drawer for a quite a long time. So I decided to take them out for a walk-"
She quickly ran and his behind her mother, who was surprised by the suddenness of her daughter's action. "What is happening?"
"That daughter of yours. First she takes my armour, then she decides to sweep money from my drawer." He tried to catch her but she wouldn't let herself from her cover.
"Mother, I donated the twenty copper coins. That's charity." She quickly turned around and sprinted away from his office.
The woman couldn't help but laugh. "Oh god. What have you..."
Her stomach began to hurt from all of that laughter. Her husband sighed.
"That's not funny Lily." She patted her helpless husband's back. Even though he was the Chief General of the army of Haplice, his daughter was able to throw quite some challenges to the big, burly man.
"Oh dear, Peter," she said in between her giggles. "She's surely our daughter. And who was the one to give her a bow and an arrow, the moment she was born?" The corners of her eyes crinkled while she smiled. "She's just like you."
He smiled softly and looked at her. "You are right. Maybe, I shouldn't have scolded her. Not that she minds." This earned a slap on his shoulder. "Alright! I'll just tell her to not go out without my permission. She still doesn't belong to the troop after all. She might be banned by the King."
"Honey, out of everything Shokalsy would do, it would be banning her. They have been friends since their childhood. Now don't worry. Dinner is ready. After that, you have a meeting with the majesty."
~
"Move aside," she ordered as she ran through the hallways. She screamed in joy as she stood through the polished marble floor.
"Careful," shouted Mrs Mason, as the free spirited girl whizzed past her. She was the head chef of the palace. She was a plump, amiable person who loved her free spirit. She giggled to herself when Irene walked back and greeted her.
"You are probably the only daredevil, who remembers their ettiquettes." She lightly slapped her back.
"Ow. What was that for?" She rubbed her back in an attempt to soothe the tingling sensation.
"For running around recklessly. And also for being late to the meeting."
"Meeting?" She looked at the old woman in confusion.
The old woman's smile turned into a frown. "Now don't telle you forgot-"
She smiled and played it off, convincing her that she promptly remembered about the meeting. She told her that she was about to get ready. Mrs Mason eyes her suspiciously but let it slide away. She told her to get ready as quickly as possible.
~
"Dressses are so uncomfortable. My leg keeps on getting stuck to the skirt." The moment she had our on the dress, she couldn't stop herself from groaning and mumbling. "Can't I just simply wear my 'work' clothes?"
She stopped in front of the meeting room. She waited for the meeting to end. After that, she would help Mrs Mason serve the dessert. But she wanted to be a part of that meeting. She groaned again.
After half an hour, the meeting was over. The door was opened by one of the guards. She followed Mrs Mason and her helpers and helped them with the dishes.
"Well thanks a lot for the dish Irene," said the majesty as he posed a smile to his friend.
She simply nodded and went on to the next person.
And she hated this person with all her guts. She controlled herself from banging the plate on his head. The man averted his gaze from her when she neared him.
This made her even cross. She should be the one to be angry not him. And ignoring one's presence- that is the meanest thing she might have ever witnessed.
Clyde Wallace, the additional minister of the troop was someone whom Irene couldn't stand. That guy had been one of her worst nightmares since her childhood. He used to tease her for being unable to draw a sword. The two would always end up in a fight. She didn't remember the reason but she was sure it was his fault.
They were 'inseparable,' pun intended.
She didn't waste a further moment, before moving away from him and moving onto the next person.
Clyde's dark eyes remained settled on her, making sure he did not get caught for starting. He wanted to laugh. A dress? And her? That's quite an oxymoron. He diverted his attention to the people at the table.
Irene stood at the back, listening to their conversation, and forming silent opinions in her head.
She collected the plates after the crowd dispersed themselves. Her father gently patted her cheek. She let out a sigh of relief when she realised her father had cooled down. Well, she knew that he would.
"Move from my way," boomed the deep voice of Clyde, making her jump from her position. He grabbed his pocket watch from the table and made his way through the hallways.
"Ugh," she groaned, as her hands itched to strangle him to death."
