Kitanna
Chapter 222: FLOWER MARKET

Chapter 222: FLOWER MARKET

[MUSIC RECOMMENDATION: BLUE ~ YEOYU AND SEOLBIN]

Axilla used the public carriage as she left the palace. There was no time, so she wasn’t able to search for Cortez and tell him that she was stepping out for a while.

She wasn’t really familiar with flowers; she glanced through the names inscribed on the list and wondered what type of flower they were that was so special to the Crown princess.

"I didn’t even get her name," Axilla muttered to herself. She had only been referring to the girl as the crown princess and didn’t know her actual name.

"I’ll ask her when I’m back," she nodded, tapping her feet nervously on the ground, praying that the carriage would go faster, but there was a crowd gathered at each stop. This was because if a royal family was celebrating, the villagers took it as an opportunity to also have their own celebration.

Finally, the carriage stopped at the market. Axilla had to step down and walk the rest with her legs. This time around, the people gathered didn’t leave any space for carriages to pass through. Paying the coachman with the coins in her pouch, she was glad she saved up all the money she earned while working for Cortez. Axilla started walking deep inside the market, people who were dancing and enjoying their feast nudged her from time to time, but she tried to wriggle her way through the crowd.

When she got to the flower shop, the only one that was open, Axilla was shocked by the long line of people waiting to buy flowers. She wondered why everyone was so interested in buying flowers on the same day at the same time. She sighed, looking for a way to push through and fix herself in front. It was a wrong thing to do, but it was also an urgent situation. If she knew it was going to be this busy, she would have asked for the royal seal or something to show that she was from the palace. Axilla walked to the front and decided to try her luck out.

"Excuse me, can you let me buy first? I’m getting the flowers for the crown princess. She’s getting married today," Axilla begged the first woman she saw who was next to be attended to.

The woman gauged Axilla from head to toe, then she scoffed, "And I am the Queen’s elder sister. I have to get the flower for the queen."

Other persons who heard the conversation laughed at the girl as they murmured amongst themselves.

"This is not the first time we see likes of you trying to lie your way in cases like this. Go back and wait until it’s your turn," the woman huffed and turned to face her front.

Axilla touched her chest, "But I’m not lying; I really came to get them for the crown princess. Look, I have her handwritten note." She tried to convince them that she wasn’t lying. Even if they won’t let her buy first, they didn’t have to tag her a liar.

The women snickered, pointing at the girl. One of them raised her own parchment to Axilla’s face.

"Look, I have the king’s seal on mine. These young girls always making up stories just to buy things before elderly women. Go to the back and wait for your turn, young lady. We are used to likes of you," the woman spat, while others continued to mock the girl.

Axilla turned and started walking back to the line she had initially gotten, but someone else already occupied it. When she tried to touch the person’s shoulder and explain to them, she was pushed roughly, making her back hit a wall or so she thought. Because when she got her balance; it wasn’t a wall at all but a sturdy well-built man.

"Watch it, young lady!" Axilla took a step back; the person who looked like the guard of the man she had mistakenly hit now came to push her. But the man waved him off, looking at her with so much interest.

"Are you here to celebrate the festival of springs?" The man asked Axilla in a friendly tone. She took note of how different the man looked; his cornrows were packed behind, and he was very tall despite being old, the man was still very handsome. For a moment, Axilla was lost looking at the man. When she snapped out of her daze, she looked away.

"Do you not talk? But I clearly saw you talking to those women earlier," the man asked again, coming close to Axilla.

Axilla took a step back; she decided to reply the man and end the conversation quickly. "I don’t know about the festival of springs." She turned her head to the side, avoiding the man’s intimidating look.

The man hummed, "Then why do you need flowers?" He asked.

Axilla sighed tiredly; she was already having a hard time. She wished this man could just let her be. "I’m getting it for a bride; if you don’t mind, I’ll prefer not to talk!" She replied with a tone of finality.

"How dare you talk to the Supr-" Axilla noticed how the man’s assistant tried to push her again, but he was stopped with just a raise of the man’s hand. She inhaled and followed the line that was now moving; in the process, the parchment she was holding slipped from her hand, as the wind carried it to someone’s leg. Before Axilla could reach for it, the tall, strange-looking man picked it up.

"Are you sure this is for a bride? Look at these flowers; the blue hyacinths means, the giver is truly sorry for their actions, and look at those; black Dahlia means betrayal t means betrayal, apology, and finally bird of paradise means freedom and adventure. Except the bride is one twisted person, these flowers are not weddings." The man pointed out the flowers like he was very familiar with flowers.

Axilla grabbed the parchment immediately, "It’s what the bride wants; please mind what you came for." Deep down, Axilla was confused with the meaning of the flowers. It didn’t have anything related to happiness or marriage. Did the crown princess perhaps deceive her, or was this strange man trying to confuse her? She didn’t just know.

"You don’t look surprised, seeing a man that knows so much about flowers," the man asked following the line that was now moving.

Axilla shook her head; why would she be surprised? Cortez knew very much about flowers too, "I have someone who knows about flowers, so it’s not something strange."

The man hummed, "Nice, a man?" When he didn’t get a reply from Axilla, he continued, "If you’re really picking flowers for a bride, then don’t use that list." The man pointed out, but Axilla was already done paying for it. Without replying to the man, she walked away from there.

Standing alone, Venantius watched the girl disappear into the crowd, his eyes following her movement.

"Is something wrong, Supreme king?" his personal aide Dominique asked. He had known the king for a while now, and he only had affairs with older women. He didn’t want to believe the man had an interest in younger girls now.

Venantius clicked his tongue, "Get your mind out of the gutters, Dominique, next stop Morado; let’s see what Deonisia is up to these days." Saying this, the king walked away without buying anything from the flower shop.

Meanwhile, Axilla finally got a carriage going to the palace, but her mind kept going back to what the strange man said about the flowers.

"He is just a strange man; I shouldn’t take all his words seriously." Axilla nodded to herself, placing the flower carefully on her laps. When the carriage stopped in front of the palace, she tried to get down, but her dress got stuck to the nail on the carriage door, and this led to her dress ripping a little. Axilla cursed under her breath, paying the coachman, she rushed inside the palace, running towards the crown princess’s chamber.

As soon as she got there, she saw Cortez and Adric standing with other palace servants; everyone looked worried.

"It was her, the last person the crown princess spoke to." One of the maids pointed at Axilla.

Axilla, who didn’t understand what was going on, stood there confused, waiting for someone to explain what was going on.

Cortez was the first to reach where she was, taking the flower away from Axilla’s hand, he asked, "Where did you get this?"

Axilla pointed, "The crown princess asked that I get them for the wedding," the girl replied innocently.

Cortez raised the flower for Adric to see, and he said, "She’s gone."

Axilla couldn’t register the words clearly in her head; she stood there with her mouth hanging open.

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