Dinner was the only time the entire imperial family sat together to eat. Lady Chimeka never allowed anyone to miss out on dinner at the table since according to her "family bonding was incredibly essential for the upbringing of sane minded individuals." 

Despite being the mistress to the emperor, her hold on the court officials and overall influence made her no different from the mother of the empire which is why despite her desperate efforts, no matter how hard she tried, Daphne never managed to escape the ordeal known as Imperial dinner.

Lady Chimeka had two children. Valerie graduated top of her class and was currently managing rations of food in a far-off county of the Count Lerone, no doubt gaining connections in the process. She got to miss out on dinner with the excuse of being physically away which made her lucky and Daphne jealous.

Kori on the other hand, was a jerk. Enough said about that man. 

That left them with Neysa, a poor child still too young to understand that the ridiculous reason for her mistreatment was being born to a commoner maid. Neysa never spoke much, and Daphne never made an effort to get more out of her. She had her own problems after all.

The clinking of silverware sounded out amongst murmurs of conversation between Lady Chimeka and Emperor Seymore. The maids were serving a second helping to Kori who was getting a good peek at the maid's neckline as she bent to serve him his peas. 

Daphne scrunched her nose in disgust as she spoke with intent to drive his attention away from the maid who noticed and, red in the face, scurried back to the corner once she was done.

"Brother, I heard from mother that you succeeded in trade agreements with Dvarca?" Lady Chimeka's head whipped to her, as it did whenever Daphne created trouble for her. 

Figures. They probably wanted to pocket the profits themselves, hoping the Emperor wouldn't notice. Tough Luck.

"It was simply a small neighboring kingdom, nothing worth noting. These kinds of success are pretty common while handling the Empire's political affairs. Though I suppose you wouldn't know much about them, Daph. I have heard your pursuits are more... creative? I thought I saw you gardening today afternoon."

There was the jab. It was so predictable; she didn't even pause before retorting. "Not all of us have the opportunities coming your way, brother."

"Indeed, doors probably close to their faces because they waste their days in the garden." Kori snapped.

"Enough." A deep voice commanded, bringing silence to the table. The emperor put his cutlery down in exasperation. "Daphne, the only reason you don't get those opportunities is because you deny yourself of them. As for Kori, I have no knowledge of the trade agreement." His voice took a warning tone as he ended the discussion. "Come to my office later, I want to hear what this is about. Daphne, you too. I have something to discuss with you as well."

Daphne had the rest of her dinner in silence, relishing the evident anger and frustration radiating off of mother and son alike. 

─── ⋆⋅ ☾⋅⋆ ───

"Knights, stand in place. The princess shall choose her official attendant now."

Daphne was confused, mainly due to the fact that the very important conversation the emperor had called her for was picking a guard knight. Valerie had a guard night, but that was because she was far from the capital and travelling. Daphne didn't really need one since she was not considered as someone of importance. And yet, here she was, standing in front of a line of formally- dressed knights in their training grounds.

She examined the heads bent in a bow with a sigh. The very idea of someone following her wherever she went was a disturbing thought, but she wasn't left with an option. This was an order from the emperor.

Her steps stopped in front of the knight taking the least effort to bow. While the rest had their upper bodies parallel to the ground, this man barely bent enough for his hair to fall into his eyes. 

The Captain noticed the same as Daphne saw his eyes widen in disbelief. "Sir Cahir, show some respect to her highness is-"

Daphne raised her hand. "No, it's fine. Sir Cahir, was it? Please raise your head." 

He did and Daphne had noticed well. He had a noble air around him and was subsequently one of the best in matter of looks. He also looked terribly disinterested, which she took as a good sign. Maybe she could bribe him to look the other way if he was careless enough.

The man furrowed his brows just enough for a slight change in expression. He stared at her with such arrogance, Daphne could practically hear the Captain's mental breakdown. She leveled her gaze with his, hoping her stare conveyed dominance enough to deter him from refusing her future bribes.

"You will be my knight."

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟 𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟