The Cursed Prince

By noon, Emmelyn had changed into a wealthy nobleman, wearing an expensive outfit, courtesy of Lyla Lowell. She was accompanied by a stunning 'wife' Lucia who left her skimpy, provocative work outfit and changed it into a noble lady's beautiful dress.

The old wagon was exchanged for a nice sturdy carriage that could fit 4 people. Mrs. Adler changed back into an old woman, no longer felt the need to disguise herself as a man.

The old witch dressed up as Emmelyn's elderly mother who wanted to go to Wintermere to visit her ailing sister.

A young servant named Noelle went with them, together with the coachman named Henry. All five of them set to depart after lunchtime so they could reach the next town before dark.

"I have sent a pigeon to my friend in Wintermere. He will send my letter through the merchants to Lysander immediately. I think my son will receive it by the time you board the ship," Lyla said. "He will immediately send a letter to Singing Cat to let you know what to do."

"Okay, sounds good," said Emmelyn. She cast her gaze around her and realized that her little entourage was ready. "We will go now. Good bye!"

"Safe travels!" said Lyla with a smile. Her eyes were teary.

She wished she could go with them to see her son. Unfortunately, Lysander never wanted to accept her visit. He said he was a nobody and would only open his home to her if he could prove himself and become an important man.

The fact that his own mother sold him out back then truly hurt his feelings. He only started to mend a relationship with Lyla after years, and it had been slow progress.

Lyla only hoped this time Lysander could get what he wanted and finally was willing to see her again. Lyla would love to travel to Summeria and be with him.

She wiped her eyes as the carriage moved farther away from view and finally disappeared completely. After Emmelyn was far gone, Lyla called one of his girls to get her a local physician.

She needed a corpse to trick Emmelyn's pursuers to stop looking for her. If she could arrive safely in Summeria, everything would be good.

*** 

Emmelyn traveled for two weeks before she finally arrived in Wintermere. They stopped by several cities and many villages during their travel. Her plan seemed to work so well because everything went smoothly.

Nobody suspected that she was a woman or a commoner because of the fancy carriage, beautiful outfit, and the timid wife she had with her. People just accepted her as a man who was traveling with his family.

It had a good impact on Emmelyn's health too because she could stay in nice inns and enjoyed a good bed to get her rest when they stopped in new places. Before, she had to feel satisfied with hay beds in barns or abandoned huts. 

Now, she could sleep well. Another good thing was, she also no longer had nightmares. It was as if her bad luck seemed to subside a little the closer she was to her destination.

This made her believe what Mrs. Adler said that those dreams were an invitation from the Leoraleis to come and see them in Myreen.

Emmelyn felt excitement in her heart as they got closer to her homeland. She had been missing Wintermere for so long and she was grateful to be able to see it again.

"We have arrived in Wintermere," Emmelyn blurted as she opened the window curtain and checked their surroundings. She could already recognize the scenery.

This was the most outer part of Wintermere that consisted of a huge savannah. It was so beautiful with endless greenery and flower fields that had many colorful flowers blooming, especially in summer like this.

Lucia also looked out the window. She gasped in awe when she saw the savannah and the colorful flowers.

"This is so beautiful," she whispered.

"Yeah.. it is," said Emmelyn. She cast her gaze to a faraway place, remembering what the place was like years ago when it was still owned by her family.

Now, her family was gone, and this was no longer her home.

Emmelyn was a stranger here, passing through to reach her real destination. After she dropped Mrs. Adler at her home at the Bay of White Whales, she would find herself a ship to travel to Glasswell and then headed to Summeria.

This was going to be a really long journey for her. 

"Let's keep going," Emmelyn said to the coachman. "We will arrive in the next town before dark."

Henry did as he was told and continued driving the carriage to get to the next town. They had been traveling for two weeks and the ladies at the back now looked like they were so tired.

"This town is called Loche," said Emmelyn when they arrived at the town she mentioned earlier. "Let's sleeps here tonight and tomorrow we will continue our journey to the Bay of White Whales."

They all agreed. Happiness filled their hearts, knowing that the journey had almost come to an end.

After this, the coachman, Lucia, and Noell would return to Twig, while Mrs. Adler could go back to her own home, spending her remaining time doing the things she loved.

And Emmelyn would go to Summeria, a kingdom completely foreign to her, and meet a man she didn't know who might be her savior if he decided to help her find Myreen.

Emmelyn realized she was taking advantage of a man in love for her own benefit. However, she didn't have a choice, so she could only act shamelessly.

Emmelyn promised she would try to help the king find the right woman after he helped her get to the Leoraleis. It was only fair.

The little group stopped in front of a really nice and big inn in the city center of Loche. Emmelyn got three rooms for all of them and paid in silver coins so they could have a nice sleep.

"Welcome, My Lord," said the innkeeper with glee when he saw the wealthy-looking young master enter his inn.

He was sure that this nobleman would give him a lot of business. so he tried to be on his best behavior. He wanted to instill a good impression.

"Hello," Emmelyn spoke. "I would like three rooms, please."