She Belongs To The Devil

"What was that?" Ariel turned in the direction from where they had heard the sound of the explosion and asked in a scared voice.

Soon after, both of them heard the commotion from where they had set up the camps.

Kenneth glanced at Ariel and said, "We better check it out. Let's go."

Ariel was afraid that something bad was about to happen this time as well. She was afraid that those who were after her would try and harm her.

For a fraction of a second, she felt like teleporting back to the Palace so that nobody here would get hurt because of her. But she wasn't sure if she would put everyone in greater danger by running away.

And since Kenneth was by her side, she thought of checking out the source of the explosion first.

"Yes, let's go," she gave a nod and both of them reached the camps in no time.

They could see a few guards cleaning some scattered food and broken pot. Osanna was pouring cold water on one of the guard's hands. And the others had also gathered around them.

Other than that, they didn't see anything out of the ordinary. To be more specific, Ariel didn't see the presence of any supernatural entity or the presence of their aura.

Ariel then asked one of the guards, "What happened here?"

The guard stood in an attentive position in front of the Princess and briefed the situation, "We were preparing the food for everyone. But out of nowhere, a cooking pot exploded on its own."

Ariel glanced at the guard who Osanna was tending to and asked, "He got hit by the pot when it exploded?"

That guard also looked at the one who was hurt and replied, "He got some boiling food on him. But it's not that serious since he was still wearing his armor."

Ariel gave a nod and ordered, "Make sure to clean up the mess so that others won't step on the broken pieces of the pot."

The guard bowed to the Princess and walked away.

Ariel glanced at Kenneth and asked him, "It looks like a simple cooking mishap. But why don't you search the perimeter, in case we missed something. I will join you in a moment."

"Sure." Kenneth instantly disappeared from the sight.

Ariel walked near that guard and crouched down in front of him. She could see the burn marks on the back of his palm. So she held out her hand and asked, "Let me see your hand. I will heal you."

That guard, however, didn't want to trouble the Princess. "It's alright, Your Highness. It will heal on its own."

"It will be better for everyone if you heal faster." Ariel kept on holding out her palm.

The guard reluctantly showed his hand.

Ariel took his hand and started to pour her energy into him. Because it was dark, the subtle glow that her palms were producing was visible.

And the burn marks disappeared in no time.

"I am really grateful, Your Highness," that guard bowed to Ariel.

He was very happy when his hand looked like it wasn't hurt in the first place. And he was also happy to have received such benevolence from the Princess when he wasn't even her guard.

The three Royals who had wandered ahead of Ariel and Kenneth finally arrived running. Zach was out of breath while Niylah and Ramon weren't panting that much.

"What happened? Niylah said that she heard some explosion sound," Ramon asked Ariel the moment he saw her.

Ariel got up and briefed the newcomers, "A pot exploded, that's all. I don't think there was any external interference."

"But I should go and check–" Ariel was about to say that she had to go for a perimeter search but she saw Kenneth returning.

"There's nothing," he informed everyone.

That matter got closed right there.

After some time, dinner was ready. Everyone sat around the fire in small groups.

The guards and coachmen had prepared meat stew, rice, and stir-fried mixed vegetables, and they had also boiled some eggs.

The maids and servants served the dishes to everyone.

The Princes and Princesses were sitting together. All of them were enjoying their time together.

Zach looked at everyone and happily said, "I feel like we are on a picnic. We should sing some songs later."

"You know how to sing?" Kenneth asked him with curiosity.

Zach raised his brows and asked, "Do we have to know how to sing? We can sing however we want."

Ariel glared at Zach and asked, "Do you want me to give you another dare, Zach? Because if you start to sing then even the insects won't come closer to you."

"Come on! You don't have to be so mean," Zach rolled his eyes at Ariel and stuffed a whole egg inside his mouth.

When they finished eating, Zach was adamant about singing songs and dancing.

None of the Princes and Princesses knew how to sing so Kenneth asked the others, "Does anyone here know how to sing?"

A few of the guards raised their hands.

"Great. Why don't we all sit together?" Kenneth made everyone sit together in a large circle.

And when all of them were ready for the entertainment, he asked the singers, "Let's hear your melodious voices then."

Three of the guards began to sing a song that was popular among the travelers. The others gave the music by clapping to the tune.

Zach immediately pulled Ariel to the center and began to dance, which looked more like some random jump than a dance. Ariel was no better. She was tapping her feet and jumping while holding Zach's hand and laughing like crazy.

Everyone hooted and clapped for the singers and the dancers.

Kenneth was gazing at Ariel as if he was enchanted by her. He had never seen this cheerful and bubbly side of Ariel.

When another song started, Ariel and Zach pulled the other three Royals to the center to make them dance.

"I don't know how to dance!" Niylah protested because so many people were watching them and she was too shy to jump like baboons in front of them.

But Ariel kept on holding Niylah's hand and shouted, "Neither do we. Just let yourself loose. We are not competing to see who dances better."

Soon, all five of them were jumping to the melodious songs.

A little later, others also joined the dance floor.

After about an hour and a half, Kenneth said to Ariel, "I think we should rest for the night. Else our guards will be too tired to ride the horses tomorrow."

Finally, Ariel thanked everyone for making her night memorable and asked them to get a good night's rest.

"We had a great time. Thank you, everyone," Ariel was doing her happy little claps as the singers and all the others dispersed towards their respective tents or to their patrolling duty.

The Royals also walked towards their tents. Niylah and Ariel were sharing the same tent while the boys were sharing another.

While Ariel was saying goodnight to the Princes, Niylah left Ariel behind and rushed inside the tent to choose a nicer mattress.

Zach pushed Ramon inside the tent. Before entering the tent himself, he turned back and winked at the two who were still outside.

"He is never going to stop teasing us, is he?" Ariel mumbled to Kenneth and sighed.

Kenneth chuckled and replied, "I think he is not."

"Umm…" Ariel awkwardly stood there thinking if she should run to her tent or not.

Kenneth gently held Ariel's hand and pulled her close. "We never got to finish what we started earlier," he whispered and leaned forward to kiss her again.

But Ariel suddenly blurted, "G-Goodnight, Kenneth."

Kenneth was a little sad. But he smiled and kissed Ariel on her cheek. He had said that he would wait for her. And if she wasn't feeling comfortable yet, he was willing to wait for some more.

"Goodnight, Ariel," he whispered in her ear and entered his tent.

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