New World, New Life: I Became A Bigshot In The Ancient World
Chapter 49: INNOCENT THREATS

Chapter 49: INNOCENT THREATS

"Princess, we have arrived." The voice of the Coachman startled Aristia from her thoughts.

"Okay." She replied, then turned to Owen, "Follow me."

Lucas came over to help Aristia alight the carriage. After she had gotten down, she handed the remaining meat skewer and meat bun to the coachman.

"For you," she said. He was a human too and was probably hungry after driving them to places.

The Coachman collected the snacks with both hands, surprise flashing across his eyes. He thanked her and bowed.

Owen was also surprised at her gesture, staring at her wordlessly.

Aristia pulled the cloak back over her head and stepped into the clean but empty restaurant. She took a seat beside the window and gestured for Owen and Adeline to sit down.

Reluctantly, they both sat down. Owen took a seat opposite her on the wooden chair.

Adeline stood up, "Princess, let me go get the food." Adeline said. She seemed to have been here before.

When Aristia still looked confused, she explained, "Ah, Princess this restaurant was opened a few months ago. Here, we go to the cook and they give us a meal. They are the ones to decide which meal we eat. It is a new concept."

That was when Aristia understood something. So, this restaurant was running with a prix fixe* menu. Was that why it was empty?

One of the main drawbacks of a prix fixe menu was that they could be less flexible than a la carte* menu, as diners were limited to selecting dishes that were included in the set menu. This could be a problem for diners with specific preferences, or those who didn’t like some of the dishes included on the menu.

Also, in a fixed-price menu, diners may feel obligated to eat more than they want to get their money’s worth, or they may feel that they are paying for items they don’t want.

After Aristia gave her permission, Adeline walked out to another door at the opposite end of the restaurant. She knocked on the door and Aristia watched a woman open the door.

While waiting for Adeline to return with the food, Aristia tuned to Owen, watching him silently.

Not only did he share Owen’s face... he shared his name.

Aristia’s mind was racing.

Could this truly be the same Owen she knew? Or was it really just a strange coincidence?

Aristia met the boy’s wary gaze, trying to figure out the connection.

If he really was Owen, then why was he here?

She had so many questions.

But for now...

"Tell me, why were you being chased?" She asked, even though she knew the answer.

Owen turned his head away, silently refusing to give an answer. For some reason, he couldn’t look her in the eyes and tell her what he did. "Don’t you already know?"

[Hmm... quite stubborn. He’s almost the same as Owen.] Aristia thought in amusement.

But, refusing to answer to a Royal was a crime.

"Are you not aware that refusing to answer to a Royal is a crime?" She asked in a low, threatening voice.

Owen snapped his headed back to look at her in surprise. Then, he lowered his eyes. "I-I stole a bun."

"Mm," Aristia nodded slowly. "You stole a bun. Stealing is a crime, you know?" She asked rhetorically, tapping a finger on the table rhythmically with a cunning smirk on her face.

Owen didn’t answer, but she didn’t need him to. She continued,

"You can even be arrested or whipped." She continued. She wanted to trap him.

Of course, she was bluffing. The authorities wouldn’t arrest or whip a kid for stealing. But, luckily, the boy seemed to believe her words.

Owen gulped, "Are you going to have me arrested?" He couldn’t believe he was being threatened by this girl who was obviously younger than him. But she was the third princess, she could have it done and no one would probably even know.

Aristia just smiled. "I could..." She watched him fidget nervously, waiting for her to finish. "But instead, I have an offer for you."

But instead of Owen to show curiosity and interest at her words, his gaze once again turned wary.

"What do you want?" He asked guardedly. His shoulders were tense.

"Geez, relax. I don’t bite," Aristia smirked, but inwardly, she grumbled.

[It’s not like I’m asking you to sell your body.]

"I want you to work for me. Then, I won’t hand you over to the law." She said finally.

"You want me to work for you? Why?" Owen asked with confusion. What was up with this little princess he just met?

"I have my reasons. You don’t need to know." Her words made him speechless.

[Actually he does since it involves him, but whatever.] Aristia shrugged.

"I will have to decline your offer." Owen said, looking at her suspiciously.

[I expected that.] Aristia thought, still with a calm smile on her face.

She was about to speak when Adeline arrived with a young woman that looked to be in her late twenties in tow, both carrying trays of food in hand. The lady bowed lightly when she noticed that she was a child from a wealthy family, from the little bit of clothing that peaked out of the cloak.

"Here is your food," the woman said.

Aristia nodded at the woman as she returned to the room she came out from.

Aristia turned to Owen, ignoring his previous words of refusal. "You can make your decision after you are done with your meal." She gestured to the food spread out on the table.

She smiled when she saw him gulp at the sight of the food. His stomach grumbled loudly and he stared at her in embarrassment, his cheeks turning red.

Adeline held back the urge to laugh, whereas Aristia wasn’t so reserved. "Eat up, we don’t want your stomach joining the conversation as we’re speaking." She teased him.

He glared at her before he began eating.

Aristia noticed Adeline standing at the side and not eating. "Is something wrong, Linny?"

"Huh? Oh, it’s nothing, princess." Adeline shook her head. It was just that she had never eaten on the same table as Aristia and wasn’t used to it. She took a seat and started to eat.

[The food is not bad. It’s actually very good.] Aristia looked around the empty restaurant.

After they were done with eating, Aristia asked a satisfied looking Owen,

"What about your parents?"

The question was out before she could think.

Owen was stunned. His eyes dimmed and hardened. "I don’t have parents." He spat defensively.

Silence hung between them and there was an awkwardness that none of them knew how to break.

Aristia hadn’t meant to ask such a sensitive question. It was just that she realized she didn’t know anything about the family of the Owen she knew. From this situation, it was obvious this Owen had no parents.

She cleared her throat, trying to ease the atmosphere.

"So, what do you say? Work for me and you will eat food levels better than this, you will also be paid. To put it simply, you will not ever have to worry about food, where to live, money or clothing." She said, her eyes moving across his worn clothes that were torn and patched in some places.

"You will be provided with all that if you come with me and decide to work for me. I am very generous and treat my people well, I won’t lie." She gave him her word which was the truth. "Think about it carefully, this isn’t an opportunity that comes everyday."

Adeline nodded in agreement, "Princess is right." She smiled widely. She didn’t know why Aristia wanted the boy but she would help her out. She wasn’t lying anyway. Aristia was different from before.

Owen himself could vaguely see that it was true from the way she let her servant eat at the same table as her.

He didn’t have much contact with aristocrat children but the few he had met were extremely arrogant and treated their servants very badly.

From what he saw, this princess was arrogant too, but in a way not like the others. She was different; different from those privileged children who looked down on the poor and commoners, as if they weren’t even worthy to be the dirt under their well polished, shiny shoes.

But this was different from what he knew about the third princess. So, those rumours weren’t true?

He didn’t know whether she was pretending in order to win him over.

But that was what confused him; why would she go through such lengths just to convince him? And why would she want him?

He wouldn’t say he wasn’t tempted by her offer. He didn’t want to give up this rare opportunity of not having to steal food and always running away to not get caught, he was just being careful. It wouldn’t be good to trust easily, regardless of who she was. Her identity even made him more guarded.

"Why are you so persistent? What will you gain from this?" He couldn’t help but ask her.

"Oh, nothing." Aristia shrugged, leisurely leaning back on the chair. "It would just be a pity if you were arrested and punished for stealing, wouldn’t it?" She drawled out, now leaning forward. "I wouldn’t want that for a boy as handsome as you..."

Owen stared at her, flabbergasted.

He felt he understood now. He should have known all along.

The princess... wanted him because of his face?!