Princess of the Silver Ocean - Chapter 46

They both threw their heads back and laughed at each other’s compliments. They hugged their chests as they shook with laughter. Ai then stared at Astoria’s hair and walked to the closet. Grabbing a brush and some pretty, silver flower hairpieces, she ushered for Astoria to come and sit on the chair in front of the wide mirror.

“Let me help you style your hair, Nexi,” she said.

Ai then brushed Astoria’s hair, admiring its wavy, soft, and silky state. The colour reminded her of a deep, dark blue ocean. She meticulously brushed her hair then braided it to give it an elegant look. She put the remaining hairpieces and the brush on the table. Placing her hands on Astoria’s shoulders, she smiled at her creation.

“What do you think?” she asked her brother’s fiance.

Astoria loved the hairstyle as Ai had done a lovely side braid. Her blue-black hair flowed from the front crown towards the back and into a low twisted updo. Ai had then added the metal flower pieces on the braid.

“I love it,” she said with a thumbs up.

The hairstyle was both simple and elegant, matching her outfit and showing off her beautiful round face. Ai put the brush away and smiled. She stared at the clock which was hanging above the mirror. An hour and twenty minutes had passed. They both walked out of the closet and stood next to the bed.

“Glad that’s all over,” Ai said, sighing.

Astoria shook her head. She has learned that, as she is serving her time in this world, it takes longer than usual to dress up, mainly because she was a princess now. She has to sometimes wear layers of clothing before putting on the actual dress. She has to get her hair and makeup done, which takes about an hour. It was all exhausting. Luckily, the maidservants and Keya assisted her with those things, so she was grateful for them.

“We have about forty minutes before the festival starts. Let’s go grab something to eat,” Ai continued, walking out the room.

They wandered to the royal kitchen. The royal cooks were occupied with preparing fresh ingredients for the day’s dinner. Upon seeing them standing at the doorway, one royal cook walked towards them. He was a young cook, a fellow kitsune as well. Some of the kitsune’s in this kingdom chose to use their natural form, while others chose their human form. Right now, he was the latter.

“Princess Ai,” he cheerily spoke, “Princess Nexi. To what do I owe the honour of seeing two stunning beauties here in my kitchen?”

Astoria stared in bewilderment.

‘His kitchen? Wait, is he the head chef? But, he is so young,’ she thought.

Ai giggled and rubbed her tummy.

“We are hungry,” she answered, “However, we need something light since we need to have room for the food and snacks we will be eating at the festival.”

The head chef smiled and nodded.

“How about I prepare some chicken salad?” he suggested, “Is that okay?”

Ai nodded and turned to face her.

“Are you okay with a chicken salad?” she asked Astoria, who nodded yes.

“Great!” the head chef exclaimed, turning away.

Astoria and Ai walked to one of the seats situated outside the kitchen. The kitchen was near the cafeteria for the royal guards. It was almost like the kind of cafeteria you would see in high school movies. This was where the guards ate or came to relax and clear their heads. Even now, some guards were sitting together and having a discussion. Some guards were seated alone, resting their heads on the table or reading a book. The women carefully sat down, ensuring they did not step on their dresses or ruin them.

“You should see how noisy it gets in here at night,” she heard Ai say.

“It’s like a market,” Ai added.

Astoria smiled. “Yeah, I can imagine that.”

As they waited for their salads, they discussed setting up Ai’s stall to sell her paintings, the different kinds of food they would get to eat, and the funs games they would get to play.

“…and that’s only if Yashiro does not steal you away from me,” she frowned at the thought.

“What? Steal me?” Astoria asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes,” Ai replied, “He might ask you on a date.”

The fox winked at her, and she let out a nervous laugh. She doubted that would be the case since he would probably be resting after getting medical treatment. To attend the festival today would be an absurd thing to do and would worsen his health.

“I think he should rather stay in bed and rest up than attend the festival,” she told the fox, “He can attend tomorrow’s festival instead, but only if he is feeling better. After all, you said so yourself that the Festival of Paint goes on for two days.”

Ai chuckled at her suggestion. She stared at her, confused about what was so funny. Ai wiped some tears which had gathered in her eyes, making sure she did not ruin her makeup.

“Sorry,” she said, sitting up straight, “I’m not mocking what you said. It’s just, my brother will be at the festival whether he is injured or not. He is very, very, very stubborn. Pain is like nothing to him. So yeah, expect a date. I can feel it coming. So romantic.”

Astoria sighed. “So your brother is that kind of person who doesn’t care about the pain they feel and just goes about doing their business as if they are completely fine?”

The fox princess laughed, throwing her head back.

“Yes, that is undoubtedly my brother.”

Ai shook her head and ushered her to lean forward. Astoria leaned forward, wondering what the fox princess wanted to tell her.

“One time…” she heard Ai say.

‘Ah,’ she thought, ‘Is Ai going to tell me an embarrassing story about him?’

“…he was having combat practice with father. They got into a heated combat session, and although they used wooden swords, he got bruised pretty badly around the skin above his ribcage.”

“Oh really?” she asked Ai, wide-eyed.

Ai shook her head yes. “However, he did not tell father, afraid that he would appear weak if he did. Well, they continued with their practice session, and when they were done, Yashiro was sweating profusely. It was evident that he was in excruciating pain.”

Ai crossed her arms and leaned back.

“When father left the room after they were done, my brother fainted. He got lectured that night by our parents,” she let out a laugh.

“Wow,” Astoria said.

She was amazed by this story. He did seem like the type of person or creature who would numb their pain and continue with their work. After all, he came to see her without getting medical treatment first when he was clearly in excruciating pain.

‘What a brave fox,’ she thought, nodding her head.

Just then, the head chef appeared in front of them, a silver tray in his hand.

“Your chicken salads are ready,” he said, placing their dishes in front of them.

He neatly placed their serviettes down, with their cutlery, a knife, and fork, atop the serviettes. He stood across them, hands clasped behind his body. Seeing Astoria’s confused expression, Ai knew what she was thinking.

‘Why is he standing across us and not leaving?’ Astoria thought, tilting her head in confusion.

“He wants to know how the food tastes and if it’s to our liking before he leaves us to continue with our meal,” Ai informed her, causing her to turn her attention to the fox princess.

“Is that so?” Astoria asked to which the head chef nodded.

“Go on, have a taste,” the head chef ushered them.

‘He won’t poison me or anything, right?’ she thought, furrowing her brow.

‘I mean,’ she continued, ‘I have read novels where princes or princesses get food poisoning. This isn’t the case, right? I cannot die again. If I die here, it is obvious that I will die for good. My soul will be no more. I won’t transmigrate again. I won’t-‘

“Geez, Nexi,” Ai exclaimed, stopping her trail of thoughts, “Hurry up and eat. You know the festival will start soon, and we don’t have time to waste. Also, it’s not poisoned or anything so you can relax.”

“Ah, right,” Astoria nodded, earning a chuckle from Ai and the head chef.

She took her fork in her hand, piercing it into the chicken salad. She then brought the fork to her mouth and put the food in her mouth after saying a silent prayer about not wanting to die again.

Her eyes widened in shock as she began to taste an explosion of herbs and spices. She has never tasted such a delicious chicken salad. It was indeed out of this world. But then again, it really was out of this world since this was not her world.

“And?” she heard the head chef ask.

He bit his lip in anticipation, rubbing his hands together, waiting for her answer.