The Royal Revenge
Chapter 66: Ring a Bell

Chapter 66: Ring a Bell

The road leading the Eastern Kingdom could make any knee buckle with dread. Elys peered over to the side as they carefully passed a narrow and steep road.

"God be with us," she whispered in disbelief, "I can’t even see the bottom of this cliff."

"This is a ridiculous place to live in," Aleksander commented. "The Western Kingdom is much safer compared to this."

"Geographically speaking that is," Elys reminded him, "much is yet to be decided whether the Eastern Kingdom is worse than the vampire infested West who enslaves innocent people."

Aleksander leaned backwards as he considered Elys’ comment. A scoff escaped his lips, and he cocked his head to the side, a smug look overcoming his handsomely dangerous face.

"What is with that face?" Elys asked.

"Nothing," he responded.

"There is absolutely not a single thing that can’t have a meaning when it comes to you, your highness," Elys replied sourly. "Now spit it out, what are you thinking to give me that sardonic face?"

Aleksander laughed and crossed his legs as he said, "You will never come to give us vampires a second to rest without barraging at our way of living."

Elys raised an incredulous brow.

"That’s something you shouldn’t even question, husband," Elys said, "I came to your kingdom as a slave. I think it is quite hypocritical for me to even glorify your ways – even as I have married into royalty."

"Fair point taken," Aleksander said, "but what else would you recommend to us then? Vampires had been seen as monsters since the beginning of time. Why condemn us for living up to your expectations?"

Elys scoffed, "You are one arrogant brat to even say such a thing. Of course, we would condemn your ways. Can’t you live by civilized means and abolish the slavery system of your kingdom? Yours is practically the only one left to continue such practice."

"Don’t come at me like that," Aleksander groaned, "my father has been the ruler of the West since time immemorial. How would you even abolish something that a man with absolute words demands?"

The princess spoke with gritted teeth, "Well, you could get rid of your father to start with."

Her husband only shook his head, "Easier said than done, my oh so morally virtuous wife."

Elys was about to lean forward to snarl at him, when suddenly the carriage halted. The princess lost balance; this time around unable to save herself from humiliation.

To her dismay, Elys found herself crashing towards the prince.

"I find this kind of attack pretty useless," the prince commented. "If you want me dead, you should do better than to fall for me."

Elys scrambled to get back to her seat, mentally slapping herself for the mistake she made. This was the second time around that she had tripped and was saved by the prince. She glared at him and to distract herself from embarrassment, opened her window to snap at Henry instead.

"Why the hell did the carriage stop?" she yelled.

"Forgive me, your highness," Henry said with a none-too-apologetic face, "but it seems like we have come to the end of the road."

The princess was confused. She opened the door of the carriage and cautiously stepped out to see what Henry meant.

"Careful, princess," Cordelia worried as the princess slowly eased over the edge of the narrow road.

As the princess reached the front of the carriage, her jaw almost dropped to the ground in disbelief. In order to reach the Eastern Kingdom, they had to cross a cliff. She slowly turned around – there was nothing connecting the two cliffs they were at.

"What’s the meaning of this?" Elys raised the obvious question.

"It seems like they want us to fly ourselves to reach the palace," the prince commented sarcastically, his head jutting out of the window.

"Not helping," Elys snapped at him.

"Your highness? What are we to do?" one of the knights asked.

The knights behind the carriage were getting agitated.

"For a while," Aleksander waved for them to wait. "We will think of something."

The prince climbed out of the carriage by hanging to the side and climbing to the front. Cordelia gasped in surprise as the prince suddenly sat at the carriage’s roof and hummed.

"Relax," Aleksander said without looking at her, "I am not going to drink your blood. You are too old for my taste."

"I didn’t say that," Cordelia blushed.

"But you thought of it," the prince grinned. "I may find yours and the slave princess’ minds difficult to read, but I can guess pretty accurately."

Henry stifled a laugh, and the old woman glared at him for doing so. He tightened his grip on the reins and swerved his eyes downwards.

"Wait, what is that?" Henry said as he pointed out to something.

Everyone veered towards the direction his finger had pointed out, and Elys realized what the attendant had meant.

"A bell?" Elys said.

The princess eased over the edge of the dead-end, and then dropped to her stomach – a tiny bell was dangling from a dead branch jutting out.

"Princess, you will get dirty! Let me do that," Cordelia started to get down the carriage but Aleksander pulled her back.

"Let her be," the prince said. "She obviously knows what she is doing."

"Still, she is the princess," Cordelia insisted, "what if Henry doesn’t offer to do things for you, your highness? Wouldn’t you be insulted?"

"Hey," Henry complained. "That would never happen."

"Just as what he said," the prince agreed with a smug look, "if it would, I will have him thrown over the deep trenches for being a useless attendant."

"Your highness!" the old man gasped in disbelief.

The prince laughed evilly and then turned his attention back to the princess. Elys had finally been able to successfully grab the bell from the edge.

A drop of sweat glided over the side of her face, and the princess let out a sigh of relief. She dusted herself and then stared at the bell in her hand.

"Try ringing it, perhaps a dragon would appear and whisk us to the other side," the prince joked.

The princess scowled at his snide remark, but ringed the bell nonetheless. Elys and the rest was confused.

The bell didn’t create a single sound.