"How is it?" Hecate asked Ethan, who was looking at the mirror in front of him.
"Not bad," Ethan replied.
Right now, he was wearing clothes fit for a prince of the Magdar Kingdom.
Ethan would only dress up whenever there were important occasions. Most of the ti, he was okay with wearing casual clothes or the robe of Brynhildr Academy.
But Hecate's words had succeeded in convincing him to treat this date as an important occasion, so Ethan wore the clothes she recomnded for him.
"Let's go. I'm sure they're already waiting for us at the breakfast table," Hecate said before once again pulling Ethan out of the room as if she wanted the Princess to see her Prince as soon as possible.
As soon as Ethan and Hecate entered the living room, the young man felt like his breath had been taken away when his eyes landed on the princess. She wore a beautiful white dress that clung to her body, showcasing her womanly curves.
Seeing his reaction, Joanne and Hecate high-fived each other. After all, the two of them coordinated to make this happen.
Ethan's reaction was proof that they had succeeded, but it wasn't only Prince Charming who was captivated by his date.
Princess Ramona was staring at Ethan with her mouth slightly agape, revealing how enchanted she was by her charming Prince.
The two stared at each other in a daze for nearly a minute before Hecate cleared her throat, making the two snap out of their trance.
"Princess, you know this city like the back of your hand, so it will be up to you to take Ethan to the many attractions in the city," Hecate said. "We'll leave him in your hands."
"Okay, leave it to ." Princess Ramona nodded.
She then curtsied to Ethan, which the latter responded to with a bow toward her. He then walked closer and held her right hand, planting a kiss on the back of it.
"Shall we go, Princess?" Ethan asked in a teasing tone, making Princess Ramona smirk.
Her eyes were still a bit red, but it only made her look endearing in Ethan's eyes.
He didn't know if it was because of Hecate's words, but he felt a strong urge that he should treat this date seriously.
Although the hand he was holding was bigger than he rembered, it felt just as precious as the one he held back then.
After the pair stepped out of the temple, several eyes were drawn toward them.
Ethan was already handso, but his looks got an upgrade after he dressed up properly, which happened very rarely.
Princess Ramona was the sa.
Whenever she dressed like the Princess or the Saintess she was, her beauty would always shine through it despite her clothes being simple.
When they arrived at the city, the number of gazes that were looking in their direction drastically increased.
The ladies looked at Ethan, while the n looked at the Princess, which made Ethan feel uncomfortable.
Although Ramona's dress covered her entire body, it was still quite provocative, enticing the eyes of the n who were attracted to her beauty.
An hour passed, and the two of them had visited two attractions in the city. But just as they were making their way to the third attraction, Ethan suddenly stopped walking.
"Is there sothing wrong?" Princess Ramona asked, worried that Ethan might not have liked the places where she took him.
"No," Ethan replied. "But let's go sowhere else."
Ethan causally lifted the young lady in a princess carry before summoning a pair of White Raven Wings on his back.
A mont later, he took off toward the sky, flying away from the city and the n who had been looking at the girl in his arms with lustful eyes.
Princess Ramona, who didn't know why Ethan was reacting this way, didn't say anything and simply enjoyed the feeling of being held by him.
They weren't aware that down in the city, two ladies, who were wearing disguises, chuckled at the sa ti. They knew very well why Ethan took Princess Ramona away.
"He's feeling overprotective of her," Joanne comnted.
"Yes." Hecate nodded. "It's just too bad that we can't follow them now."
"Then what should we do?"
"No choice. Let's go sightseeing on our own."
"Good idea!"
So, Princess Ramona's two wingwon decided to tour the city and eat delicious food together because they were no longer needed.
Even though things didn't go exactly as they planned, they were happy enough with the result. With how Ethan acted, they at least knew that he was taking this date seriously.
If he wasn't, then he wouldn't have minded the gazes that the n had directed towards the Princess during their travel.
But since he minded, it ant that he truly cared for her and didn't want others to look at her in that manner.
***
"I rember this place," Princess Ramona said after Ethan landed on the ground. "This was where we went on a picnic that one ti."
"Yes," Ethan replied. "It's still as beautiful as I rember it to be."
Ethan had taken Princess Ramona to a flower field surrounding a lake.
It was one of their most favorite spots among the places that they had visited in the Magdar Kingdom.
Ethan summoned a picnic blanket and spread it on the ground, right beneath the shade of a tree. He then motioned for Princess Ramona to co with him and rest in the shade.
At first, the two of them talked about random things, but as the hours passed, they started to talk about the things that they experienced in the years that they hadn't seen each other. "Being the Saintess of the Order of the Tidebringer was much harder than I imagined," Princess Ramona said. "The number of believers was staggering. Also, there was a higher percentage of Aunties and Grandmas who beca your devout followers. They said that looking at your paintings everyday made them look and feel years younger."
Princess Ramona giggled seeing Ethan's face beco beet red after she told him the story of a grandma who made it a point to kiss his lips in the painting everyday.
They even gave her the nickna "Tide Kisser." Every ti she went to the temple, she would always give Ethan a smooch.
"Of course, she isn't the only one who would kiss your painting," Princess Ramona said. "Many did. For safety, we enchanted it with an autoclean spell. That way, it remained
hygienic even with it being kissed hundreds of tis everyday."
"How about you?" Ethan asked in a teasing tone. "Did you also kiss it?"
"No," Princess Ramona replied firmly.
"You didn't?" Ethan arched an eyebrow to hide his disappointnt.
"I didn't kiss that painting. After all, I have my very own painting in my room," Princess Ramona replied. "It is the best painting among the paintings you posed for, and I don't plan
on sharing it with anyone."
Hearing her answer, a genuine smile appeared on Ethan's face as he imagined Ramona kissing
his picture everyday.
But after this short happiness, it was replaced by sadness because seeing her in that state
made him feel sorry for her.
"You shouldn't feel pity for ," Princess Ramona said as he gazed at Ethan's eyes. "Even if you don't say anything, I can tell you feel that way."
"Ramona... I—" Ethan wasn't able to finish what he was going to say because the young lady
pressed her hand on his lips.
"Don't say it now," Princess Ramona said. "Now is not the right ti for it. Why don't you tell
more of what happened after you returned to your ti?"
Ethan nodded and told her everything that he had done after he returned to his world. In
return, he asked Ramona to tell him everything she had been through.
Their conversation lasted until sunset.
Finally, Ethan asked her the question that he wanted to know the answer to.
"Ramona, do you plan to step down from your position as the Saintess and travel
sowhere?" Ethan asked.
To his surprise, she gave him an answer.
"Yes," Princess Ramona replied. "I plan to step down from my position as Saintess and travel
sowhere."
"But where do you plan to go?" Ethan inquired.
Princess Ramona turned to look him in the eyes, and smiled sweetly.
"I plan to go here," Princess Ramona said as she rested her palm on Ethan's chest, where his
heart was beating. "I plan to go to where you are."
Ethan felt as if sothing was restricting his throat because the young lady's words were firm
and serious.
"And how are you planning to do that?" Ethan asked. "Who did you ask for help?"
Princess Ramona tried to open her lips, and say sothing. But just as she was about to say it,
she lost her voice.
Ethan, who suddenly beca aware of the situation, beca anxious, but Princess Ramona
only shook her head and cupped his face.
"It's fine..." Princess Ramona said hoarsely. "This is temporary."
"Okay, but you don't need to tell anymore," Ethan replied because he could see the pain in
the Princess' eyes.
Although she did her best to look calm on the surface, she was currently feeling pain because
she almost said sothing she mustn't say.
Ethan hugged her, and the two stayed like that until their surroundings beca dark.
"It's cold," Princess Ramona said as she snuggled closer to Ethan's chest. "But you're warm,
so it's good."
Ethan, who could sense that the Princess was no longer in pain, decided to change locations so that she would feel less cold.
"Let's go," Ethan once again lifted her in his arms as he flew to the Temple of the
Tidebringer.
He flew to the highest tower in the temple, and used the key to unlock the magical barrier that protected it from outside interference.
Once they were inside, the two of them sat on the bed and gazed into each other's eyes. "Ramona, I will not lie to you," Ethan said softly. "When you confessed to , you were still a
child, so I thought that you would move on from your puppy love. "Also, I never took your confession seriously because we are not ant to be. When we saw each other for the second ti, you beca closer to , and yet, I knew that we were still not
ant to be."
Ethan started to pour out everything he had not been able to tell the young Ramona of the past. However, his words now flowed freely as if trying to set things straight.
The Princess listened, until Ethan said his final piece.
"Ramona, even now, I still don't know if the feelings I have for you are love... or guilt," Ethan
said bitterly. "I like you. That much I can say. If there is soone who attempts to hurt you, I
am willing to fight them to the death if I have to. But, I don't know if it's love. I'm sorry." Princess Ramona shook her head before standing up.
She then held Ethan's head and rested it on her chest, right above her heart.
"It was who forced my one-sided love on you, Ethan," Princess Ramona said. "But I don't
regret it. I should be the one who is sorry. Because of , you are hurting right now. However,
can you feel it? Can you hear it?"
Ethan closed his eyes and allowed himself to imrse himself in Ramona's warmth and
softness. A few seconds later, he heard it.
Her heart was beating painfully inside her chest.
A heart that was beating only for him.
"Since the day I saw you until the day you left, I told myself that I should probably move on,"
Princess Ramona said. "But every ti my father introduced to a marriage partner, my heart hurt so much that I found it hard to breathe.
"I knew then and there that there was only one person that I could love in my lifeti. But
since you were not able to be in that lifeti, I decided to chase you to where you are." Ethan raised his head to look at her face, and saw the unshed tears in her eyes. "When you see again, I will not look the sa," Princess Ramona stated. "My voice, my
touch, the way I talk, and my eyes-they will be very different from the ones I possess right now."
"But, sothing will stay the sa, no matter what form I have. It is this, Ethan. My heart only beats for you."
Ethan was no longer able to stop the raging emotions in his chest, so he stood up and held the
Princess close to him.
"Just for tonight, please treat as your lover," Princess Ramona said as she looked up at
Ethan. "Allow to feel your love."
Ethan nodded and cupped her face.
He then lowered his head to kiss her lips, making the unshed tears that Princess Ramona had
been holding back finally fall.
The kiss was sweet.
Sweeter than any candy or dessert that she had eaten.
Sweeter than the ti when Ethan held her lovingly before he returned to the future.
It was a sweetness that lted her heart, making her feel like crying. When the kiss ended, Ethan saw the tears in her eyes and kissed them away. Princess Ramona smiled and gave him a quick peck on the lips before taking a step back.
They stared into each other's eyes for a few seconds before Ethan reached out towards her.
The rustling of clothes echoed inside the room, and the princess' dress fell beside her feet.
A mont later, Ethan's clothes also fell on the floor, freeing him from the restraints that weighed down on his heart.
He could no longer lie to himself, and soon his lips sought out hers once more, until they found themselves on the bed, seeking each other's warmth, showering each other with the caresses and kisses that were hundreds of years overdue.
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