The Seventh Moon 13 - Third Prince

"Are you alright, Miss?"

But the words didn't fully register in Risa's mind yet as the shock from what had happened earlier still got her. Not to mention, the sudden arrival of another stranger in the vicinity made her unable to say anything in response. In her opinion, it was highly unusual if she was to base it on the location of that house she was residing at.

'Who is this guy? And why is he here? He looked like a noble with the way he carried himself, by the way.'

As much as she wanted to voice out those questions, her body wouldn't let her do so. It wasn't until both Qilrun and Frindall had landed and roared to call out to her that she was able to finally come to her senses.

"What... just happened?" Though it was a faint question, both men exchanged glances before looking at her.

"We don't have any idea, as well. But there's one thing that's clear about this. They were definitely after you," the hooded man answered as he dismounted his horse and removed his hood to reveal his appearance.

Risa could only look at the handsome young man having bluish-black hair, fair skin, and light blue eyes with wide eyes as he slowly approached her. Were the men in this world all good-looking? Or was it just the nobles like Jehan? At the moment, she only had Jehan and the Master Mage as the basis for that, though.

"Miss?"

It was the other man that called her out and stopped her from looking too much at the hooded stranger. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to stare at you. I just... couldn't believe that you're here and had helped me."

He shook his head and smiled. "If staring at me is enough to dissipate the fear you are feeling, then I have no reason to stop you from doing so."

What the---? Did he actually say something like that without even blinking?

'Urgh! Does this guy have to say that so casually? And to think he'd even smile like this...'

But as much as she'd like to deny it, staring at the man did make her forget that the encounter earlier scared the hell out of her.

"I'm sorry. Where are my manners? Please allow me to introduce myself. I'm Elross. And this man is my companion Shuren." The other man named Shuren bowed to her.

She bowed a little lower than she'd usually do back in her homeworld to those two men. Those two indeed looked like they were nobles, and so she must at least give them a proper greeting that she knew.

"My name's Risa. Thank you... for saving me."

"We are not the ones who saved you, Miss Risa. You should give that credit to the Master Mage's two dragons. They did their best to protect you."

Risa smiled with pride as she faced Qilrun and Frindall who leaned toward her. She approached the two dragons and touched them, tears started streaming down her face.

"Thank you... for protecting me like that." She even bowed to the two creatures to show her gratitude.

'We are here to guide you on your journey in this world, my lady. We won't let anyone kill you in any way at all.'

"Or maybe you're afraid that the Master Mage would scold you a lot," she joked. She swore she could have heard Qilrun snort.

'You've dealt with so much upon your arrival to this world. Whatever is their plan for you, we're not letting them have their way. We made that pledge when we realized that you're a dragon listener.'

Frindall's words made Risa smile as her touch on the two dragons lingered for a while longer.

"Even still, thank you."

Both dragons nodded once before flying once again. It appeared that they wanted to survey the area to check on any possible spies or creatures that would still be lurking around. No one knew the reason why those creatures would attack them while she was at the Master Mage's house.

With a sigh, she turned around to talk to the two men. But to her confusion, they disappeared. She looked around to see if they were still nearby but with no luck.

"It's rude to leave without letting other people know. Did they even know that?"

xxxxxx

It was only when Elross and Shuren were a certain distance away from the Master Mage's house that they decided to ride their horses. They did feel bad for leaving without letting Risa know. But they couldn't disturb the moment between her and the Master Mage's dragons.

Yet the scene was enough for them to form a conclusion.

"Your Highness, why didn't you tell her that you're the Third Prince?" Shuren asked as they were riding away at a casual pace.

"I don't want to scare the young lady even more than she did. But let me ask you, Shuren. What do you think of Miss Risa?"

The long-haired young man didn't say anything for a short while. But Elross patiently waited for an answer, though. He knew that what they had witnessed was enough to get them both thinking.

"Without a doubt, the magical energy in her was unlike anything I've ever sensed before."

"But she said her name was Risa. And if what the Yoon clan told me was the truth, then something must have happened when the enemy tried to do the Dark Soul Summoning that day. And Miss Risa... could be the result of whatever happened at the time."

The Second Prince's bodyguard faced the Third Prince who now had a somber look on his face.

"Are you saying that Miss Risa is the dark entity?"

Elross shook his head and pulled the reins, eventually stopping his horse. "Do you think the Master Mage's dragons would risk their lives to protect her if she is the dark entity? And the way she spoke to those dragons..."

"Come to think of it, the dragon Rannir mentioned to the Second Prince that there was another dragon listener in this kingdom. Could it be Miss Risa? That dragon said that it was Qilrun who mentioned it to him."

"And you know that there is only one dragon in this kingdom who had the name Qilrun."

Moments of silence passed by between the two men. At the time, they made their horses move again following the path leading to the capital.

"What should we do about it, Your Highness?" Shuren asked, soon breaking the silence hovering between them.

For some moments, the Third Prince didn't say anything. But Shuren patiently waited as he was aware that the man was conflicted on what to do. That is if he was to consider the discovery they made as they attempted to protect Risa out on a whim.

"We are not mentioning anything to the King, as it appeared that the Master Mage had his reasons for doing the same thing. But you can tell this to Alathil under the condition that he would not say anything until we have enough details about Miss Risa," Elross said, giving emphasis on the point of not mentioning anything to the king.

Shuren sighed after that. But the Third Prince did have a point. They did not want to give false hope to the ruler of the kingdom with regard to the current situation that they had to deal with.

"I think the Second Prince has every intention of keeping everything he knows about Miss Risa a secret for now."

Of course, those words caught Elross' attention that made him face the Second Prince's bodyguard. "What do you mean?"

"He already saw Miss Risa before, while she was picking herbs with Lord Jehan. It may be just my observation, but it seems that she had already caught his attention."

Elross couldn't help smiling at that information. Shuren shrugged after that and continued focusing on riding the horse.

"Well, what do you know? No woman in this kingdom had ever caught my older brother's attention before."

Then again, they just have to see where it would all lead to.

"Your Highness, please don't even think of using that information to tease your brother again," Shuren warned even as he was looking ahead.

"Oh, please. Why would I ever? You make it sound as if I have nothing better to do when it comes to my dear brother." But even with such a teasing answer, Elross' expression soon turned serious once again. "Then again, if what you said to me is true about Alathil's interest in Miss Risa, then perhaps we can use that to our advantage."

Shuren turned to Elross, but the bodyguard only waited for the Third Prince to speak again. It didn't take long.

"We have to use Alathil to oversee Miss Risa's development in magic. We've already seen her communicate with the dragons and unexpectedly, see her unleash her wind magic ability. She might not be able to fully control it yet, but there could be other abilities that Miss Risa possess just waiting to be released."