CHAPTER 377: MINI THEATER KNOWS EVERYTHING

Arabella couldn’t help but crinkle her green eyes at his words. Understanding that though he wants to find the source of the prophecy, he also wanted to have time with her. How could she scold him when they have been far too busy and apart for too long? This was the right moment for them to spend time like any other normal couple, similar to the ones all around them.

While biting down the skewer, she hummed, "My, my, it’s rare that Your Highness wants to take a break. Do you know how to enjoy life outside the throne?"

"Despite how royal I look, I spend my time with commoners all the time. They told me a couple of stories regarding their little life and from there I can tell a thing or two on how to enjoy life."

"So, do you also know about the mini theaters?" Arabella grinned as she recalled that all market festival would have a mini theater right beside the magic show.

"Mini theaters?" Cassius raised his eyebrows, showing his confusion to the said theater.

Excited to show him something new, Arabella linked her arms around his elbow and eagerly pulled him away, bringing him to where all the other children were running to.

Swept by the wind across his hair, Cassius watched the excited Arabella with a gentle smile. His gaze softened as he realized that the freedom in her soul was once again living vicariously.

They passed through the crowds of people in an ease pace, and arrived when there were rows of benches placed in front of a small theater box.

Seeing no stage, Cassius wondered if they were going to perform on the ground, a rather terrible choice as the people on the back wouldn’t be able to see, especially considering how all the guests were children while he was a tall man.

"You can watch at the front," Cassius said to her, ready to stand instead but Arabella chuckled.

"You’re really forgiving to children. But don’t worry we can choose the sides, adults sit there so your height won’t matter much," she considered thoughtfully and brought him to the said seat. And Cassius smiled as if he didn’t really care but she could see how he seemed rather excited to see the new theater, just like a young child.

It makes her delighted to see that there is a side to Cassius that she had just seen, that others would never know.

The group of puppeteers then appeared toward the box, readying themselves with dolls inside their satchel while Cassius looked at how the children seemed so excited that they couldn’t help their kicking feet.

Curious, Cassius turned towards her, "Do you know what play are they going to do? There are no females here."

"The dolls are the actor," Arabella chimed with a small grin. "As for what play they are going to do, that I’m not too sure either. It’s known that most mini theaters in a market festival use new stories every time they appear."

"Aren’t there many stories from play for them to pick up?"

"There should be but what fun is it in repeating stories? The last time I sat here with Ariel they were doing a play of a..." Arabella hung her words and turned towards him, "Of how a Duke vampire stole a virgin bride during her wedding and they both fell in love?"

"Odd, why does that sounds familiar?" Cassius hummed. He wasn’t one to read romance story yet the story seemed to be very familiar to something he had once heard before. Where? He wondered.

"Duke Hellstaine," Arabella answered and he turned with interest.

"Correct. It is Duke Hellstaine. You know about him as well?" Cassius was familiar due to how Duke Hellstaine was often involved in the court. "A weird man who never quite likes the idea of mingling with others. A complete opposite of me. Never would I imagine that one day he would steal a bride."

"I have never seen him before. He wasn’t there when the coronation occurred." She was wondering if as the story entailed, Duke Hellstaine was someone with a long black hair and a rather dark vibe, like a fallen angel.

"But the story is quite more than simply stealing a bride," Cassius said the story with a smile, "That Duke has an older brother and unlike him who was withdrawn, though his older brother is a bastard of the family, he was fond of by many people and some even supported his older brother more than him."

"Then the bride he stole was the older brother’s? Out of spite?" Arabella leaned forward. Never would she expect such a juicy story would come from Cassius. Seems like the court was far more dramatic than any other novel or plays.

"True that is, but it’s not the entire story. The bride herself wasn’t the real bride. She was replaced because the real bride’s parents didn’t want that Duke Hellstaine to marry their dearest daughter."

"The story of the play was different... but in the end Duke Hellstaine did love the bride right?" Arabella wished and he could see her glittery eyes which made him smirk.

"Who knows? The feelings of others is such a fickle thing, difficult to predict. But this means that the plays in this mini theater is quite the opposite from the real world."

"Well it’s a story and if you pick apart the stories, I think the children behind you won’t be happy."

"Then I should tell you the truth after the show." Cassius then turned his red eyes when he saw the mini Theater slowly open, drawing its curtain to show what’s inside and Cassius raised his eyebrows when he saw that there were hand puppets with fair skin and red eyes, a striking look that matched his black hair.

Seeing that even Bella’s eyes widened as right beside the fair skin vampire was a bright green lady with reddish brown hair.

Stunned, she turned to her left, her eyes meeting Cassius who had grinned with mirth, with darkness hidden beneath his eyes.

"This is a story told from far far away," the narrator sang as the puppet Cassius drew the sword from his hip towards the sun. "A vampire has always been frightened for its strength and this story is about the one who stood above all those frightening vampires."

The scene then shifted into the battlefield where the puppet Cassius fought against all vampires, defeating each of them down and won alone, drenched in red blood. The sight of the puppet Cassius was charismatic but at the same time, it felt rather forlorn.

"Born from a King, the night Crown Prince spent all his days battling evil, reaching for peace for the kingdom and their civilians. Knowing his feat, everyone admires him but other than admiration was a deep fear to the mighty crown prince. He was always alone, told himself he never felt so lonely despite always being surrounded by no one."

"Aww! Poor crown prince!"

"So a vampire also feels lonely..."

"He’s cool for protecting the kingdom! But why is he alone? What about his parents?!"

The children let out their emotions through words, making the puppeteer to laugh while Cassius frown tighter.

"His father, the King had married an evil step mother, reigning as the Queen. Due to that, the crown prince became more isolated. Despite his loyalty to protect the Kingdom, the queen spread rumors of his evil deeds, making him even more alone and feared."

"But he’s a good person!!" The children cried.

"That’s debatable," muttered Arabella and she could feel how Cassius eyes had rolled to the side, staring at her for her words.

"But one day, the crown prince met a beautiful human who was sold for her father’s debts!" The puppeteer raised his voice along with the hand that was holding to the doll Arabella. "With her fierce nature and defiance, she garnered the crown prince’s interest and worried that she would be taken in by a bad bad minister vampire, the crown prince decided to take her under his wings."

"She’s pretty..." someone whispered and Arabella couldn’t help but pull the corner of her lips.

"The crown prince who was always alone finally felt more fun in his life with the human’s presence. Never once did she bore him and soon he began to treat her as his own heart, a person who he could find solace, someone who was always on his side."

Then the curtain drop to lift again with only Arabella, "The human girl herself at first found the crown prince frightening. She questioned his true self, always trying to see the real person under all those rumors and mask. Eventually she realized that the crown prince was gentle to those he cares, someone who was just a bit too far from the light to know how warm gentleness and love was."

Arabella leaned toward him and whispered, "Don’t you think the narrator knows quite a lot about us? I didn’t know that everyone was aware I was sold to the castle for my father’s debt."

Cassius looked at her and turned back at the narrator. "Don’t you think it’s already quite odd with how this narrator dare to write such narrative when this festival is held to celebrate my crowning?"

"Well..." it does seem to them now that this narrator was uncomfortably involved to their story... "let’s hear what they have to say more."

the narrator continued their story, even recalling the time when she was bullied by Adele or the time when Cassius had left her in the maze garden. Everything matched to their own story, causing for both of them to turn wary from curiosity. The story then ended at Cassius crowning after they have both killed the dragon.

"...as it turns out, the lady has a power. A power none others could have and with her pure heart that power could abolish any evil as she wishes. The magical power makes her what anyone would call as a Witch."

at this both Cassius and Arabella frowned more severely, gone was their amusement but the children were unaware of any of this, still eagerly partaking in the story.

"but witches are bad!"

"yes and they’re ugly! Green and ugly!"

"I heard their weakness is water too!"

"our lady is pretty and she isn’t afraid of water. She isn’t a witch!!"

"Boo! Liar!"

As if offended, the narrator broke his character for a moment, crying out, "Not all witches are bad!! This witch is a good witch!"