Heroine On Strike

Although she had lots of other questions to ask, Ella decided to focus on the records pertaining to women who refused the role of empress. If it weren’t for Xyle, who told her to sit, she would have rushed in to accomplish her goal.

“Finish the tea first. You shouldn’t expect yourself to find an answer that easily. Nine out of ten times the records don’t have what people are looking for,” said Xyle.

“Meaning at least one of them is a success,” replied Ella. She found hope in words that were meant to make her disappointed.

“Correct, but what you may find isn’t what you had wished for.”

“What do you mean?”

“Meaning, there’s a price to pay for what you want. As I’ve said before, nothing is easy in this world. But—“ Xyle was suddenly interrupted by a loud sound coming from a bell. Ella turned to see him frowning as he waved his hand again. A small mirror hovered in front of him and it showed an old magician with a troubled look on his face.

Irritably, Xyle asked, “What is it? I told you I’m coming down soon.”

“M-Master… there’s a guest waiting for you,” replied the old man in the mirror.

“A guest? I’m not expecting a guest today.”

“It’s… the strange girl from the Mellin family again.”

“What? I said she shouldn’t be allowed to enter this tower ever again!” yelled Xyle, making the old magician look even more troubled.

“She came here with the crown prince, sir. We had no choice.” 

Xyle glanced over at Ella once he heard the crown prince was here. He was expecting her to be jealous of Clara. To his surprise, she just shrugged, which made him smile. It seemed that she didn’t care who was with the crown prince anymore.

“Alright. I’ll come down. Then he turned to Ella and asked, “Hey, do you want to come with me or wait here?”

Ella stared at him for asking her such a question when he could have just gone down by himself. She decided to take his offer as she wanted to see Clara up-close and even talk with her if the situation allowed it. Whatever was going on, she too was a foreigner, like Ella. “I’ll come. I was curious about her too. Oh, and call me Ella.”

“Ella. Got it. Oh, and don’t try to befriend that Clara girl. She is the type to blame others for her own misfortune. You will be a good target to place the blame on.”

“Understood. Thank you for the advice, Xyle.” 

“It’s nothing. Don’t thank me,” said Xyle, who tried his best to sound cold to hide his embarrassment after receiving a compliment. They held hands, and soon they were at the first-floor lobby again. Clara was at the main gate, holding the crown prince’s hand and glaring at the magicians blocking their way.

Filled with rage, Clara yelled, “You dare to tell me to leave? I am here as his highness’s partner! HOW DARE YOU! Are you treating me this way because I’m from a Count’s family? Your highness, how can these so-called wisdom seekers treat a person like this? It makes me so sad.”

Ella and Xyle became bitter as they watched Clara faking some tears as she made her speech. What was interesting was that the crown prince himself looked a bit disconnected from the situation. He, too, seemed dumbfounded by Clara’s actions.

“Clara, the tower isn’t a place where you can just barge in. We can always request for a visit at a later time and return home today,” stated Cladis as he tried to calm her down. He never expected things would unfold this way when she told him she wanted to know more about the Flower of the Empress. The royal family had always been good friends with the people of the Magical Tower of the Long Moonlight, so a simple visitation like this was always welcomed. 

‘What went wrong?’ Entering the tower itself was easy until they found out who the visitor was. Magicians who had always welcomed him became stern, blocked them from entering, and requested them to leave. 

Clara, who was always calm and spoke softly, screamed and insisted on entering the tower. “When? When is it later? They won’t answer my questions.”

“Clara, what is going on here? Is there something that I don’t know about between you and them?”

Cladis’s question made her flinch, but she still refused to leave. Xyle, who was looking at them from afar, let out a snort and clapped loudly. Suddenly, magic that was flowing throughout the entire tower disappeared, making the atmosphere feel heavier. Ella became surprised by the sudden change and looked around while everyone turned to the source of the sound. Glaring at Xyle, Clara realized what his clap had done. Her thoughts began to mix chaotically in her mind.

“What brings the crown prince to the tower today?” asked Xyle. 

Cladis lowered his head to bow. The Master of the Tower was highly respected even by the emperor, so he had to show some respect. “This lady here wanted to ask a question about the Long Moonlight. But I never- Ella?” He was shocked to see Ella unexpectedly at the tower.

But Ella, who already knew he was here with Clara, calmly greeted him and pointed out his mistake. “Am I not Lady Constance to you? I would also prefer you to call me that from now on. Isn’t it better that way? Having such a distance between you and I?”

“Ella.” 

Cladis called out to her again in defiance while Clara couldn’t hide her shock, which Xyle had noticed. Ella smiled at Cladis and pointed out his error yet again. “It’s Lady Constance to you, your highness.”