The otherwoman’s casualness caused Ur
to scowl slightly for a split second.
She did
not appreciate to be called sister unless she had explicitly permitted it – and to the date, only very few had been granted
the honour of being considered family by her. There was the prince of the kingdom
west of her own, Ivan, who was not only distantly related to her but who had also
been her playmate in days long past. He and another prince had been right next to
her in the long summer months in the southern kingdoms when they had charmed their
way to the top of the social ladder.
It was
quite odd in this light that her path and Princess Sayla’s had never crossed before
but this did not mean that Ur
was unaware of the other woman’s reputation, that she did not know who she was dealing
with. She knew that she was standing face-to-face with a tactician and therefore,
it was only wise to assume that the forwardness was serving some advanced purpose,
that it was a trap of sorts.
And had
she not seen enough traps to recognise one?
Social
warfare was not quite her field of expertise but she had weathered too many schemes
other kingdoms had spun to ruin her reputation, to weaken her country to be considered
inexperienced. Her teachers had reminded her over and over that a princess’ sharpest
weapon was her smile and so she smiled ever-so-sweetly at the other princess.
»I’ve never had a sister
before, Princess Sayla,« she replied as she curtsied, pretending to be utterly flattered
by the other’s words although they made her want to grit her teeth and perhaps even
throw something across the room which was a bad situation as it proved that her
future sister-in-law was already getting under her skin.
(Because no one could know about this.)
She had
to live up to the reputation she had, the reputation of a young woman who was always
in control of her emotions, who never allowed anything to even scratch her defences.
She had been likened to her country’s endless frozen lands and the glaciers in the
past and this was exactly how she wanted to be seen by the rest of the world.
»And I have heard, of course,
impressive stories about both you and your brother,« she added, these words closer to
the truth. As her close friends and acquaintances had assured her, she could have
met a fate far worse than the one that had been decided on by her father’s advisors
– she doubted that the king of Crystallos had cared for anything regarding this
marriage apart from that he could add another country to the list of his allies. »So, do tell — how was the journey? It can be quite … complicated in this season.«
◘ ♔ ► α cяσωη σf ιcє ◄ ❄ ◘
Coming from a nation where the importance of family is utmost, the female felt no regrets about her apparent casual nature. Still, even as the heir to the Cognitio throne, she still enjoyed the company of those of foreign nations, so often she forgot her manners when appearing in other royal courts.
Her first impressions of the other princess were neutral; however, she could interpret the feelings and the aura behind the façade in her visage, and she could tell that the other princess shared her feeling of slight disdain for the other. The tactician’s long brunette hair flowed as she turned to step back apace, then turned again to face the other royal figure, keeping her etiquette in mind when behaving in such accordance.
Having been “trained” by many scholars on the art of tactics and social standings, as well as being educated through many voyages with her parents and brother, the female knew how to manipulate those around her should it be necessary. On the other hand, she knew that the other lady had gone through the same regiments, so her stance was not in a completely offensive position, but leaning towards more of a defensive angle; she’d heard about how fiery some ladies became in such positions, and would rather not sully her own reputation with the misdirection of others.
In a royal position, one must be kind, but also have the accordance to hand down a harsh verdict to the ones who disobey the law; such rules, the female also applied to social situations, so whilst she aimed to be kind and respectful to all, those who crossed her received no mercy in judgement. Of course, in accordance to her journey and the weather they had endured, she wished that she could conjure a bright ray of sunlight, or a fire perhaps, to melt the annoying ice which caused them so much hassle, but in the end, some obstacles could not be removed in life.
“–Ah, the journey was quite harsh, yes, but we made it in one piece, at least. In regards to any questions you may have about my appearance before you today instead of my brother’s, he will be arriving after me at a later date to see you, Princess Ur. Of course, we are equalsin the hierarchy, yes? I hope this union with my brother will bring our nations to a lasting alliance to come.”
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