Princess Shyra's life has only extended till planet Ziya and she doesn't know how to look beyond helping her people. As far as she's concerned, she's being trained to rule her entire life, and it's the only goal she's ever known.
Cue the handsome pr...
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Shyra paced the Palace's courtyard, spinning a dagger in her hand absentmindedly. Her mind kept replaying the incidents and her unconventional decision to pin the birds on the opposing team. Her face burned at Tuhin's righteous reaction to her methods, but she felt no shame or regret, and if given a choice, she would have done the same thing all over again.
"This is for my people. This is to alleviate their problems," she muttered over and over until she sensed someone enter the courtyard from behind her. Pausing in her tracks, she gripped the dagger and hunched her shoulders, waiting for a rebuttal from whom she thought to be Tuhin.
When he didn't offer any words, she took up his mantle and spoke in a bitter tone. "Tuhin. I understand that you're upset about what I did, but it isn't that big of a deal. It wasn't explicitly stated in the rules that I couldn't pull something like that. And besides, I'm not doing it for fame or glory. I need the reward money to help my people. Please understand my situation Tuhin."
"You're doing it for your people?" a soft voice responded. Its familiarity sent shivers down her spine and she turned around at once and bowed.
"Prince Mahi," she said with her head still bowed. "I... I didn't expect to see you here. I apologize for my words. They were meant for someone else, and I should have looked before speaking to..."
"Shyra, why are you still so formal? " he said with a slight admonishment. "Have you already forgotten the wonderful time we spent together yesterday?"
His last few words had a twinge of sadness to them, and they struck up guilt in her heart. "I haven't forgotten, Mahi," she said, looking him straight in the eye and offering no more explanation for her words. His intense stare took her breath away and she couldn't do anything else but stare at him until he cleared his throat and looked away. Shyra noted with amusement that he seemed to be blushing as he fumbled around for something to say.
"Ah, right," he said finally, looking back at her. "What was it you were saying? Your people? Is Ziya in such dire need of money that their Princess has to compete in the Games to receive funds? If that's the case, you could have appealed to our court. I'm sure dad would've granted you emergency funds until Ziya could get back in shape."
"Ziya is functioning fine. But we're barely hanging on," Shyra whispered, looking at her toes. "It's a long story, but trade is getting impacted by the absence of our Asteroid Path. It's cutting into our income to a drastic extent, so much so that Ziya is only depending on itself for food and necessities. But I don't know for how long we can go on like this. The reports I've seen of struggles and suffering..." her voice broke, and she took a deep breath to stabilize herself.
"I'm so sorry. I didn't know," Mahi said, cheeks reddening with embarrassment. From the corner of her eyes, she noticed him extending his hand toward her. Realizing that he was trying to comfort her due to her unstable voice, she cleared her throat at once and straightened up. He got the message in an instant and took his hand back with a little cough.
