Chapter 322 Disguised (1)
The Crown's Entrapment
âYesssss!!!â
The loud cheers from the crowd resonated throughout the open shrine in the Capital City of Cordon, the sacred area where every Cordonian was free to witness the trial that was happening inside the Element Forest being undertaken by the Kingâs human wife.
The particular shrine had stone benches scattered around the area for viewing purposes, But due to the number of people that went to watch the trial, they werenât enough to seat the numerous Cordonians that had gathered in front of it. As a result, some ended up watching from a standing position, while others craned their necks amongst the crowd before them just to have a better view of the scene playing out from the symbol.
Among the audience, Jayra and Freya were raptly watching, the two of them disguised as male commoners to avoid unwanted attention. The two also shouted at the top of their lungs when they saw their friend and sister-in-law pass the trial by fire. And Freya was actually still trembling at that point.
âMy heart almost burst out from my chest just from seeing that!â Freya exclaimed as she put a hand over her chest to calm herself down. âThat was too intense a scene. Thankfully, itâs over⦠I can finally breathe normally again!â
With the trial finished, the crowd soon left the vicinity of the shrine. Perhaps the symbol would glow again and show another vision of the trials once her sister-in-law reached her next destination. From there, theyâd be able to see whoever it was amongst the guardians would be the next to test her.
Leaving, Freya and Jayra looked at each other with a wide and satisfied grin as they watched the audience leave. With a nod, the latter smiled as she said, âLetâs go for now. Shall we see my sister-in-law next?â
Freya nodded. Right, Bella was at the arena right now for the preliminaries. Quickly getting up from her seat, they both started walking ahead with Jayra as they made their way to the arena.
âSay, did you not encounter any problems whenever you sneak out of the castle in Ebodia with my sister-in-law?â Freya curiously asked.
âHmm, sometimes we do, but since Iâm with Princess Xenia, we were always pardoned anyway.â Jayra giggled. âHeh⦠Well, theyâll scold us, but thatâll be the end of it. Really, the men in the royal family will always have a soft spot for the women.â
Freya nodded, understanding what Jayra meant since the same went for her mother and brother. They had a soft spot for her as the youngest, but of course, she wasnât free from being scolded if she ever committed something wrong.
She smiled upon recalling how she ended up outside the castle in disguise with Jayra. This morning, she went to her friendâs private chamber to return her books and have some of their usual casual talks, but then she saw Jayra wearing a manâs clothes, so she asked the latter what she was planning on doing.
Jayra then told her that she planned to go out of the castle and watch Xeniaâs trial together among the populace so that she could also hear the opinions of some Cordonians towards her Princess. And of course, hearing that, Freya decided that sheâd tag along for the ride.
âIâm so glad I checked on you a while ago. Being in disguise like this is so much fun,â Freya giggled. âItâs like you can do whatever you like without even bothering whether youâre being a proper lady or not. I can see why you and my sister-in-law did this often now. Ah, even my brother did the same with pulling that prank on us together with Sister-in-law when they last returned.â
Freya couldnât help but giggle as she remembered how that couple played a prank on them during dinner. No one recognized them except for Jayra, and she could only imagine what it was like at the moment.
She was really having fun with her disguise as a lad right now while roaming the city outskirts with Jayra, and no one seemed to recognize her as the very Princess of the kingdom they were. If she only knew that something like this was as exciting as this way before then, she wouldâve done it a long time ago.
Walking beside Jayra, Freya still harbored a wide grin on her face as she took in all the sights around her. Absently, she wondered if Gideon would be able to recognize her in her disguise, only for it to dawn on her that he would simply pick up on her scent, so he would definitely recognize her anyway.
âAh, so unfair,â she inwardly shrugged. âPity I wonât be able to trick him this wayâ¦â
âWhatâs with the long face?â Jayra asked, probably have noticed the sudden change in her demeanor. âWerenât you having fun just a while ago?â
âIndeed. Iâm enjoying what weâre doing so far, so I thought I could prank Gideon with it,â Freya explained. âBut unfortunately, weâre mates so itâs no use. Heâll recognize my scent instantlyâ¦â
Jayra chuckled. With a mischievous smile, she said, âI have a way for him not to recognize your scent, you know.â
âReally?â
Freya halted on her steps as she rapidly blinked at Jayra. The latter, in turn, nodded and boasted, âAre you forgetting that Iâm a royal mage? One of the best in our kingdom with spells and magic?â
Freyaâs eyes widened in excitement. âRight! You can hide my scent from him! Oh heavens! This will be fun,â she giggled in anticipation. âPlease use your spell on me right now. I want to see if heâll still recognize me even in my disguise!â
âHah, this reminds me of how Princess Xenia tortured your brother into thinking that his mate is a ladâ¦â Jayra hesitantly chuckled. âLord Gideon will probably kill me if he falls victim to this trick that youâre planning.â
âWell, yeah. But please though?â
Doing her best to plead, Freya begged with her ever so tender blinking eyes and fluttering lashes. She even grabbed Jayraâs hands as she pouted to the high heavens.
âFine then. Just let me go so that we wonât make a scene here,â Jayra scoffed. âWeâre both male right now, and holding me like this looks weird.â
âThank you, brother!â Freya beamed with her most manly voice, making Jayra laugh.
â¦.
âWho wouldâve thought that the Princess of Ebodia is that skillful? She already passed the trial by fire. She moved so fast during it, and sheâs remarkable.â
â¦.
Freya and Jayra looked at each other as they heard praises coming from the people talking as they passed by.
â¦..
âHah! Didnât you hear the Basilisk last night? She mentioned how the Princess isnât even human. She said she was special! And sheâs quite the fighter tooâ¦â
Freyaâs face brightened, hearing those praises being heaped upon her sister-in-law.
But while there were some that praised the Princess, not all were convinced of Xeniaâs capabilities just yet. There were still some negative comments floating about, like from another man with a messy beard.
âSheâs just got lucky at this point! With her fragile body being like that⦠Iâm sure she wonât last until tomorrow.â
Jayra suddenly coughed, and Freya gulped at seeing how red Jayraâs face was right now.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om