The Rose That Blooms In North
Chapter 13: Les Lumieres du Nord

That night they spent time burning deer hunted by the soldiers. Although he was afraid of the blizzard that might come that night, but after the Crown Prince explained to them regarding his calculations, none of them had any doubts. They all believed the Crown Prince's words. And sure enough, they went through the night without a blizzard.

The soldiers took turns to stand guard and patrol around their tents. Anna gets a second guard turn. A soldier woke Anna at about eleven in the night when Anna had been asleep for four hours. Anna immediately washed her face with the cold water available. Instantly, his sleepiness disappeared completely.

The night air was the coldest Nordhalbinsel air Anna had ever felt after more than a week in the region famous for its eternal winter. Anna grabbed her fur coat and stuffed her almost frozen hand into the pocket of her coat. Anna could see the warm steam that appeared every time she exhaled.

Suddenly Anna remembered her mother, Queen Isabella. Anna recalled last year's winter she spent with her family at the Royal Villa, when everything was still normal. Although Schiereiland's winter was not as cold as Nordhalbinsel's, Anna could remember the cold of the night's weather. Anna who woke up in the middle of the night came out of her room and took a walk enjoying the cold midnight air in the garden of the Royal Villa. He accidentally meets Queen Isabella who apparently could not sleep that night. They then spend time chatting about many things. About the past and about the future. And although Anna wasn't too sure, but she remembered that night felt warmer after they spent time together.

"You're supposed to be on your guard, not daydreaming." Someone's voice breaks Anna's daydream.

Anna turned her head and found Crown Prince Xavier standing beside her staring at the sky.

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty."

"It's okay. But you should be more careful next time." He glanced at Anna. "Not about me. But you're on your own. If you let your guard down, someone could hurt you."

"Okay, Your Majesty." Then Anna realized something. "If I may know, why are you awake, Your Majesty?"

"I can't sleep. It's been almost a month since I last fell asleep in peace." Xavier said with a sigh.

"Are you thinking of something, Your Majesty?"

"nothing. But a lot of things. And a huge sense of guilt has been haunting me lately."

Anna was waiting for the next words that Crown Prince Xavier might say because it seemed like he wanted to say things that were troubling his mind at the moment. But in the following minutes Xavier simply fell silent while looking up at the sky.

Anna noticed what Crown Prince Xavier was looking at in the sky. But there's nothing there. There is only a dark sky of Nordhalbinsel without stars.

"Note a little more. In a minute." Xavier.

Anna obeyed his words. Watching the dark sky for longer. In the next minute none of them spoke. Anna and Xavier only watched the dark sky in silence.

Before long, in the blink of an eye appeared a light composed of various colors that Anna had never seen before. The light shimmered in the dark sky of Nordhalbinsel, shaped like a wave of sea water and constantly moving. The colors that appeared in the sky looked like a mixture of blue on the ice labyrinth in Nordhalbinsel Palace Park, the purple color on the fireflies that Anna saw in the lake in the forest near Schiereiland Palace, a yellow color similar to the golden glow of the summer sun at dusk, and the emerald green color that looks like the Crown Prince's eye color. The colors intermingled and danced in a regular but also free wave form. Making the originally dark sky seem much more beautiful and colorful. For a moment Anna was so hypnotized by the colorful light. For a moment Anna forgot who she was and what she was doing. For a moment Anna was only Anna and not the Royal Princess Schiereiland, and the person beside her was only the man named Xavier whom she had just met and not the son of the one who had killed her father. The dance of light is so beautiful and hypnotizes anyone who sees it that it can make people forget who he is.

"It's the Northern Light." Xavier.

"It's so beautiful." Said Anna, still flabbergasted by the Northern Lights before her eyes.

"really. It's beautiful." Xavier said with a smile as he saw Anna looking so astonished and awed watching the every movement of the Northern Lights before them. But in an instant the smile instantly disappeared from his face and came back grim. Anna did not see him, but Xavier's eyes back then actually shone with sadness.

For a long time, Anna and Xavier were still enjoying the Northern Lights scene in silence. But it's not some kind of awkward silence.

"Do you know Princess Anastasia of Schiereiland?" Xavier asked suddenly after they had been quiet for quite a while.

Anna was surprised to hear that. The question came up so suddenly and broke his daydream. The question awakened him from the hypnotic charm of the Northern Lights. Anna hurriedly thought of the most reasonable answer inside her head.

"I'm just wondering, what kind of person is he?" Ask the Crown Prince. "I heard he was younger than me. But he's dead at such a young age."

Anna tried to be as normal and polite as possible. "I don't know much about him, Your Majesty."

"I heard she doesn't like to hang out and continues to be inside the Palace."

"That's not true!" Anna's refutation was immediately regretted. But Anna herself also admitted that she did not like to get along. He was also aware that he was more often confined to the Palace and did not come out of the Palace at all other than to practice swordplay with Leon. "I mean, he must have had a reason."

"really. There must be a reason behind everything."

Xavier sighed as if he was thinking of something very heavy, then continued, "My father has taken someone's life. And that made everyone in the country suffer. I don't know if I deserve to apologize for that. I understand if no one is willing to forgive me."

Anna silently listened. But hearing Xavier talk about King Vlad killing his father, his blood was boiling. He doesn't want to hear it. It aroused his anger at the whole country and the vile people in it.

"My dad wasn't a bad guy, you know? He is the one who will do everything for the one he loves. I think that trait is down on me too. But sometimes he does it the wrong way and it's inexcusable." Xavier. "I'm really sorry I didn't manage to prevent it."

Anna gripped the Nordhalbinsel knife on the right side of her belt. He did not want to hear any explanation from Xavier. Whatever it was, it didn't change the fact that because of the massacre Anna had to lose everything. His people are suffering and now his mother and sister are out of nowhere. Even though Xavier looked really sorry, it did not change the current situation.

Anna is considering her next move. Xavier probably won't notice if he makes a move as quickly as possible. The sudden attack in the middle of the night was just like what Xavier's father had done to his father.

"You've seen the wounds on my body, haven't you?" Ask Xavier. "Selena did it. She's my stepmother. Errata, one of my many stepmothers. You could say he was always looking for a way to kill me at any moment. I was six when Selena almost killed me with the sword she took from one of the Generals. I didn't die that easily of course, but the scar couldn't disappear until now. And that scarring I got when I was nine. Back then everyone in the Palace even my own father saw it. But no one can stop him. They were all afraid of Selena because she had the strongest magic in the entire continent."

Hearing that, Anna felt a little pity for Xavier. But he could not ignore the fact that his father had died at the hands of the Nordhalbinsel royal family. Even though Anna knows it wasn't Xavier who killed her father.

For a moment Anna was worried. He himself does not know what to do. Is revenge the right way to get rid of the feelings that continue to bother him? Is it possible that if he harms Crown Prince Xavier then King Vlad can feel what he felt when he lost his father and his kingdom? But Anna knew if she did that, she was no better than the Nordhalbinsel people who had ruined her life. After all, his main focus was not to take revenge, but to save his mother and sister.

"I think it's yours, Your Majesty." Anna said as she handed the knife while looking down, avoiding Xavier's gaze in front of her. He did not want to look at Xavier for fear that revenge would reappear. He does not want anger to control his heart and mind.

Xavier's eyes widened in shock upon seeing the blade. "Yes, this is mine. Where'd you find him?" Ask Xavier.

"I bought it from an arms dealer in a village. Then I heard this knife belonged to the Crown Prince of Nordhalbinsel. So I'm giving it back to you."

Xavier receives the knife from Anna's hand. "It's not a knife, Anna. This is my sword." As he said that, the blade in Xavier's hand suddenly extended and enlarged into a sword that was larger than any sword Anna had ever seen. It was even bigger than Leon's sword which was previously the biggest sword Anna had ever seen. "Only if it is in the right hands will this sword show its ability. But if it was in the hands of someone else, he would only be a not-so-useful knife. And if it's in the wrong hands or used for things it shouldn't, he'll just be a dull knife. That was the magic power of this sword. Thank you for returning it to me, Anna." Xavier said with a sincere smile at him.

***

The next morning before the sun was fully visible and the day was still very dark, the Crown Prince's troop line continued towards the Winterthur family Villa located in the border region between the Grand Duchy Winterthur and the Duchy Montreux. The villa is not too far from the forest where they spend the night. So a few hours later when the sun had completely shone in the Northern sky, they had already reached the Winterthur Family Villa.

The Winterthur family villa looks like a luxurious palace that stands firmly on a snowy hill. Starting from the entrance gate to the entrance of the Villa they have to go through the steep uphill road and covered with thick snow. The horses seemed to have difficulty going through that path so they all walked slower.

The entrance to the villa is wide open. The entire army looked relieved as they made it to the front door. They were all greeted by the servants and soldiers of Winterthur who guarded the Villa. As Crown Prince Xavier got off the horse-drawn carriage, a young woman immediately came to him.

"Greetings to Your Highness Crown Prince Xavier and Prince Jeffrey. Welcome, Your Majesty." Greet the young lady with a respectful gesture that looked extremely graceful.

The woman was the most beautiful creature Anna had ever seen in person. Her body was tall with a very small waist and decorated by a very beautiful dress in white and blue. His face is small heart-shaped with a pointed chin but his facial line looks soft and both cheeks look blushing. Her skin was as white as snow, like most people in Nordhalbinsel. Her full lips looked like pink rose petals smiling kindly to her guests. Its wide, round eyes are icy blue with long, pliable eyelashes. Her beautiful face was framed with long wavy blonde hair neatly and perfectly arranged. Anna could not take her eyes off the perfection of that woman, she had never felt so envious of this kind of beauty before. Even before knowing the name of the woman, Anna was convinced that the woman before her must be Lady Eleanor Winterthur, Crown Princess Nordhalbinsel and fiancee of Crown Prince Xavier.

Eleanor allowed her guests to enter and asked the servants to immediately show them the space they could use to rest and bathe. After Xavier allowed her, Anna immediately went to her resting place to shower and change clothes.

***

Xavier's calculations are correct. That afternoon, about four hours after they arrived at the Villa, the sky suddenly turned dark. The sun is covered with clouds and fog. Then came a very strong wind along with very heavy snow. The blizzard completely engulfed the entire Nordhalbinsel mainland for a full day.

Anna worries about Leon and Louis at their inn. Had Anna been able to find a way to send them a letter without being discovered by anyone, Anna would have warned of the blizzard first. Anna could only hope that Leon and Louis would be fine at their inn. Anna believes Leon is always reliable. He probably already knew that a blizzard would come without being notified by anyone.

After cleaning her body and having lunch, Anna went around the Villa in search of Crown Prince Xavier. The Crown Prince had already allowed Anna to rest for a while in his room and immediately meet him if he had finished resting. But the Crown Prince didn't tell her where Anna had to go. The villa was very large and had many rooms.

The room where Anna rested and bathed was on the third floor and was located next to the stairs leading to a long hallway. In the long hallway there are many doors to other rooms that Anna believes are more or less the same room as the rest room. He was second-guessing that perhaps one of those rooms was the room that the Crown Prince was referring to. But it could have been just another soldier's room. And Anna didn't want to risk wrongly entering the room.

Anna walked down that long hallway. The sound of his footsteps was muffled because the Villa's ceramic floor was covered by a thick, good-quality red carpet. The walls are made of marble and gold. There are ornaments embroidered leaves that are also made of gold adorn the walls to the ceiling that form the dome bend. Along the aisle Anna can see portraits of Winterthur family members who all have stunning visuals like Eleanor and Elias. They all had blond hair and icy blue eyes.

The long passageway reminded Anna of the passageway in Schiereiland Palace. Although vague, Anna remembered herself as a child having almost gotten lost in such a long passageway in her palace while trying to follow the purple-colored fireflies. But Anna doesn't remember that much because it almost feels like a dream to her.

After a long walk down the hall, Anna finally decided to ask the servants. But none of them knew of the Crown Prince's whereabouts. Until finally accidentally Anna passed Eleanor in the hallway.

"Greetings to Your Highness the Crown Princess." Anna bowed to Eleanor.

Eleanor smiled and nodded at him. "You must be Anna, the Crown Prince's bodyguard."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"It's nice that there's a woman here. It just so happened that I was wanting to drink tea but the Crown Prince was so busy that it could not be bothered. Can you keep me company, Anna?" Eleanor asked very kindly and politely.

Anna wondered whether she should approach Crown Prince Xavier first or obey Crown Princess Eleanor. Because Xavier clearly said that Anna had to see him as soon as she finished resting.

But then Eleanor added, "I'll ask the Crown Prince's permission to borrow you for a while. It's just tea, it won't take long."

Anna could not refuse the invitation. So the next minute Anna and Eleanor were already in a garden in the middle of the Villa with tea made from roses and various sweet snacks neatly arranged on a three-story plate. The garden in the center of the Villa itself is the result of magic done by Eleanor because there could not be a garden with various green plants and colorful flowers in such a cold place and in the midst of a snowstorm. Even the air around them now felt warm and full of the fragrance of flowers. Anna felt like she was at Schiereiland in mid-spring.

Anna and Eleanor were sitting in the middle of the magic-made garden. Their seats are very soft and soft velvet-lined. The table in front of Anna was full of sweet snacks and the tea utensils were made of clear glass which, when viewed from afar, looked like ice. On the ceiling grew vine tendrils with some purple and pink Wisteria flowers. All around it grew multicolored Tulip— flowersnot the Crystal Tulip that Anna saw in the garden of Nordhalbinsel— PalaceRoses flowers, Daisy flowers, and, lily flowers and many other flowers Anna had never seen before that she believed could only grow in warm climates such as in the eastern region of the Orient empire or in the Duchy region of Francis at Schiereiland in the spring. All the flowers bloomed together and gave rise to the colors that made the room feel like it was in a real garden. In the corner of the room, which is now covered by rocks and moss, also a variety of broadleaf plants and Hawthorne shrubs, gently flowing a stream of small river water that is only the size of two jengkal. The flow of water, as well as the sound of birds chirping that Anna did not know came from, formed a beautiful and soothing music. The atmosphere Anna seemed to have felt once but she did not really remember when and where. Various events that occurred in his life in the last few weeks seemed to erase the sweet memories of the atmosphere in his memory.

"I heard you were from Schiereiland." Eleanor started the conversation after the rose tea was poured. "I tried to make a replica of the city park in the famous Duchy Francis area. Whaddya think? Is this similar to the atmosphere of spring in Schiereiland?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. You made it exactly the same as it was at Schiereiland." replied Anna after finally remembering that the atmosphere she had once felt when she first visited Duchy Francis in the spring when she was much younger.

"Me and the Crown Prince visited Duchy Francis to visit the Crown Prince's old friend there in the spring of last year. You know Duke Nicholas Francis? I heard she's Princess Anastasia's fiancee."

Anna was shocked when she heard the name of her former fiance called. He had never expected that Crown Prince Xavier had a friendly relationship with Duke Francis. Is that why Nicholas still occupied his position as Duke Francis even after Schiereiland fell into the hands of Nordhalbinsel? Anna felt that there was so much that her ex-fiance had hidden from her. He's feeling pissed. This time not because of Nicholas' affair, but also because Nicholas seems to have secrets with the Nordhalbinsel royal family.

Anna tried to answer as reasonably as possible, hiding her shock. "I heard so too, Your Majesty."

"But do you know? Duke Francis actually already had a lover even before their engagement was held. What a poor princess. It must have been really painful knowing her fiance had another woman. If it happened to me I would be very angry."

Eleanor smiled meaningfully at him, “What do you think, Anna? Don't you feel like that?”

***