Lost

“How I wish I had my phone to record it!”

He turned his head towards the voice. There stood a young lady, her face covered by the hood of the brown robe she wore. 

It was the first time in his 10 years of living here that he had heard that word.

Phone. 

It reminded him of his past world, his original world. How he was so confused when he first opened his eyes here, in an unfamiliar room that was much more luxurious than he could afford. There he lay in a king-size bed, covered with silk covers, in a room decorated with gold and gems in the castle of Luxwaria.

But this castle of gold was yet another battlefield.

Before he could clear his mind and figure out this new world, he was thrown into this battlefield of politics, his own kin wanting him dead for the throne. The only person he could rely on was the aide. 

But that aide too fell victim to the conspiracies of those wicked kin and that was when he broke and ended up killing the king to claim the throne and avenge his aide. 

After silencing the opposition completely, he finally found some peace from the constant battles and conspiracies. 

That was when he decided to dive into magic and religion to find a way back to his own world but failed. 

And now, he roamed around aimlessly through the streets of Luxwaria in disguise, trying to find a new purpose in his life, when he found another being from his world.

He needed to find her. 

But his only clue was a brown robe. 

___

All she remembered was crashing into a car while on a call with a friend. 

The next thing she knew she was the count’s daughter in the kingdom of Luxwaria. 

Ït was like those typical isekai stories she had read in her world. Usually, the protagonist would die in her world to be transported to another. So she assumed the same and accepted her fate. 

It took a while and she had to fake amnesia to explain her confusion and memory gaps. But the Count and Countess did not question her any further and helped her relearn the history, politics, and ethics of the kingdom. 

She also found a friend in her personal maid and now, she roamed the night market of Luxwaria with her maid, wearing the same brown robe she had worn to snuck out of the mansion many times before.

“My lady, I am not sure if this is a good idea. I suggest we head back before master notices your absence.”, her maid suggested, knowing how worried the count gets about her lady’s habit of roaming around without her guards.

“You need not worry, Maria.  Father is usually busy till dinner and Mother has gone to meet her parents. We’ll be back before dinner anyway. I wish to see this night-hour musical the people talk about so much.” She knew about her parents’ worries. But she hated having those stoic guards following her around like glue. 

They followed the crowd that had gathered around the stage at the central square, where musicals were held at the end of each month. The singers were popular among the folks and many aspired to be part of the performance team. 

The music started and soon, the crowd also started singing and dancing with the performers.

“This feels like a concert.”

“What is a çoncert’’, my lady? ”

“Oh nothing! ”, she shook her head , “Just something I read in a book once. ” That was a lie. These concerts were a popular thing back in her world. Her own college hosted one every year, calling popular singers of the time

 How she missed that world! She wondered how her parents were doing. They must have been so devasted upon hearing of her death. What about her friends? Her friendships had always been confusing. She had trouble letting go and had cried so many times, fearing that she had lost her friends. She wondered how many of them showed up to her funeral. 

She could feel herself tear up at these thoughts. She turned to look for Maria, her maid and found her dancing with a few other ladies. 

She decided not to bother her and stepped out of the crowd for a while, choosing to take a walk in the park nearby to calm herself. It was no use thinking of the people and the world she had lost. She had to move on now. She is already dead in that world.

She sat down on a bench in the park, giving herself a mental pep talk. 

“Are you alright, miss? ”

She looked up to find a young man, about her age, standing in front of her. He held out his hand to offer her a handkerchief. 

“Thank you.” She was quite embarrassed, getting caught crying by someone, that too a stranger!

“May I ?” he asked, pointing to the bench.

She nodded, scooting over to give him space to sit.

“If you don’t mind, may I ask what has been bothering you, miss? ”

“Nothing much. Just the show reminded me of home.”

“Ah! Nostalgia. I see. I too miss my home a lot. Why don’t you visit them then? ”

“I wish it were that easy.”

“Why not? You look like you are from a well-off family. You could probably afford a carriage for the travel.”

“No amount of money and no carriage can take me home. ”

“Oh! My apologies.”, he replied with a tone of sudden realization, “I was too presumptuous it seems.”

“It’s ok-”, she quickly corrected herself, “- alright, it’s alright.”

“My lady!”, Maria came running towards her, “ There you are. ” She bowed in front of her, “Please forgive me, my lady. I got distracted and lost sight of you. ”

“I was the one who left early. You can lift your head, Maria.”

She stood up and turned to him, “Thank you for your kindness, Sir. I shall return you the handkerchief after getting it cleaned.”

“Keep it. ”

She looked up in surprise. That was when she noticed. His eyes were a bright green colour. It was rare to see such an eye colour in Luxwaria. She nodded and left with her maid.

_____

He had found her!

She had such beautiful orange eyes, like the sunset.

Had she not slipped up that time, he would not have guessed that she was the one, the one he saw in the brown robe a few days back. He had finally found someone like him, someone he could share his pain with, someone who would not call him a lunatic for talking about another world and transmigration.

He described her to his new aide.

“Find out everything about this girl.”

His aide, Marcus, had already learnt not to question his majesty. He simply bowed and left to carry out his orders.

Within a week, a whole report about her was on his desk. 

 “ The daughter of Count Vanessa, huh?”, Count Vanessa had always been against his brutal ways. But he could not remove him as the count had a clean record. He found this to be the perfect opportunity to get rid of him. 

So, he sent a letter to Count Vanessa of Southern Luxwaria.

_____

“My dear daughter, you can’t stay here anymore. ” Count Vanessa had just received a letter from the king, more like an order. He had asked the count to give him his daughter. There was no way in hell he could ever let his daughter marry the king. The king was cruel and merciless and did not think twice before killing his own subordinates. His daughter deserved a lot better than that. 

“But why father? Where would I go ?”

 “The king has asked for your hand in marriage. I believe we’ve already told you the kind of man he is. ” her mother, Countess Vanessa stepped in. She returned last week only.

“As far as your stay is concerned, we have prepared a cabin in the forest on the outskirts. You are to stay hidden there. The necessary supplies will be provided through an underground tunnel, connecting the cabin to my room. ” , the countess explained. 

“What about you? Will you be able to face his wrath? What if he attacks us if we deny him ? ”, she was worried, worried that she might lose her new family too, “I should go. I don’t want any harm to befall you both. ”

“NO! ” , the count slammed his hands on the desk, “ No way are you going to him. I would rather die than see my precious daughter suffer. You will do as I say. ”

“But father - ” , the countess placed a hand on her shoulder, “ Your father is right. The king is many things, but he never attacks without solid evidence or reason. Your father and I have kept a clean family record. It will be hard for him to find any evidence to attack us. He will have to back down. He can’t stay unmarried and fixated on one lady due to his duties as a king. ” 

“Alright Mother, I will do as you say.”

And soon, she left for the forest. The count and countess faked her death. 

_____

“They are lying.” the king read the letter sent by Count Vanessa, “Marcus, search every corner of Luxmaria. Wherever she is hiding, bring her to me.”

As usual, Marcus simply bowed.

A whole year went by and they still could not find her. The king became more and more impatient as time went by. 

“If I can’t find her, I will make her come to me. ”

He could not find the slightest hint of corruption in the Vanessa family. So, he decided to make one. 

_____

Soldiers marched into the city. The central square that used to shine at night now burned. 

People were scared and hiding in their homes.

The king made his way to the mansion gates. 

Count Vanessa had anticipated this. He had ordered the mansion doors to be locked up beforehand and increased the security of the mansion.

“By the order of the king, open the gates Count Vanessa!”

Count Vanessa stepped forward, “I don’t recall breaking any laws, Your Majesty. May I ask the reason for the attack? ”

“How dare you question his majesty! You must - ” the king stopped him.

He got off his horse and stood in front of the count, the gate separating the two.

He pulled out a document, “You must’ve thought that you fooled me, Count Vanessa.”

The count’s eyes widened upon reading the document. The document was an agreement with the neighboring kingdom about smuggling rare gems across the borders. It had the count’s signature. 

“How do you plan to explain this, Count? ” 

“If it is my life you wish for, I will gladly hand it over to you, Your Majesty. Just leave my people out of it, I request you.”

“I don’t think you’re in any positions to make requests, Count.” the king turned to his soldiers, “Break down the gate! ”

The soldiers did as told. The count’s guards tried to fight back, but they could not hold up against the king’s men. 

Soon, the gates were broken down and the count and countess tied up and taken to the count’s office.

_____

She woke up to the sound of screams. She stepped out and saw smoke coming from the main city. Worried, she quickly put on her robe, got on her horse and rode to the city. 

The streets were filled with the king’s soldiers. All the common folk were hiding in their homes. Anyone found roaming outside was killed on sight. The central square, where she had once danced with her maid and friend, Maria, was covered in flames. 

She got off her horse and decided to move through the dark alleys to stay hidden. 

She entered the mansion through a secret passage, which only the head and heir of the family knew. She took out her daggers and moved through the corridors, slicing through the guards that happened to find her. 

She found Maria, hiding in the kitchen.

“My lady! You can’t stay here anymore. You have to run away”, the maid whispered, “The count and countess are already held captive by his majesty. ”

She ignored her warning, “Where are they? ” 

“At master’s office. ”

“You did well.”, she handed her some coins, “Take this and go through that door. It will lead you out of the mansion and straight to the forest. Run away and don’t come back here again. I hope this much will suffice till you find a new job. I wish I could write a recommendation for you.”

“This is more than enough, my lady. ” Maria’s eyes were filled with tears, “Thank you, my lady ”

With that, Maria left and she headed to the office.

The guards came forward to capture her when she took off her hood. 

“Her majesty.”, the guards stepped back, bowed, and opened the door for her.

_____

“My dear! It took you so long. I almost killed them.” the king pointed to the tied-up count and countess.

Their eyes widened with fear upon seeing her back. 

“No! No! Go back! ”

“Don’t worry about us! Just run! ”

“Silence them.” the guards tied a cloth on their mouths. 

“Finally, some peace. They were giving me a headache.”, he turned to her, “My lovely wife, why did you keep me waiting for so long? ”

He stepped forward to hug her, but she stepped back. 

“Unhand them, Your Majesty.” she recognized him from the musical night back then. She never would have guessed that such a simple interaction could end up like this. That’s what they call a ‘butterfly effect’. 

“Straight to the point? I like that. But, you see - ”, he went back to the table and picked up the document, “Your father had some connections with our enemy kingdom. ” He waved the document in his hand. She moved forward and snatched it from his hand. Her hands trembled as she read it. She looked at her father. Her father shocked his head with tears in his eyes. 

“I don’t believe this. Father would never do such a thing. Even after disagreeing with your ways, he had been faithful to Luxwaria. ”, she threw the document on the floor, “Is this how you plan to repay him for his loyalty, your majesty?” 

“Noah.”

“What?”

“Call me Noah, dear. We’re to be married soon. ”

She was shocked, “So, this is what all this is about? ”

“You’re quick to catch on. I knew my wife was smart.” He was playing with her. Her angry expression was too cute to him. 

She knew what she had to do now that she had figured out his motive. 

“I will marry you, your majesty. ”

Her parents cried from behind, shaking their heads, telling her to run away and to not surrender to him. But she could not see her new family suffer. They had been nothing but kind to her. She had already lost one family, she could not lose another.

“Just leave my family out of this. ”

He clicked his tongue, “You demand too much, my dear. The count not only defied my order a year ago but also conspired with the enemy kingdom. You expect me to let him go unpunished ”, he shook his head. 

She got scared. Was offering herself not enough? What more does he wish for? 

She teared up at the thought of losing her family a second time.

Oh dear! His dear had tears in her eyes. As much as he was enjoying playing with her, he could not see her cry. He sighed, “I accept your request. I will let your family go if you come with me to the palace, right now.” 

She had no choice but to accept the deal. At least her parents would live. She nodded.

“May I bid them farewell? ”

“Of course! I am not that cruel. ”

The guards untied her parents. She ran up to them and hugged them. The count and countess were crying.  They knew saying anything would be useless now. 

“We love you so much, Ophelia.”

“You can still run away, sweetie. You don’t have to sacrifice yourself for us.”

“But I can’t let you both sacrifice yourselves for me. He will find me anyway. That is inevitable. But I wish at least you won’t have to die trying to prevent the inevitable.”

“Time’s up, darling,” he ordered.

She hugged her parents one more time before turning and standing beside the king.

The king held out his hand like he had done the first time they met, except he did not have his handkerchief on him nor did he have the same kind smile. This smile was wicked, mocking, the smile of someone who knew he had won. But he had won, she could not deny it. 

She had lost her life and freedom to him. But she did not mind losing as long as she knew her family was safe.

The doors of the office closed behind them as they walked out.