The Cursed Prince

After they rested for a while by the river, Lady Liz took Rowena back to the town square to watch the ceremony to show gratitude to the earth goddess.

Lady Liz made sure that Jarvis and the other three knights tailed them from a safe distance. She didn't want the incident with the mayor's son to happen again.

She patted Rowena's dress from dirt and made sure the girl's face was covered by her hat. 

The two of them walked back to the town square, holding hands. It was getting late and the sky was slowly turning into a crimson hue. However, that did not dampen the crowd's enthusiasm.

The town square was still filled with people. They wore the best clothes and brought their children with them.  This annual ceremony was believed to bring the Earth Goddes' blessings that allowed them to have a bountiful harvest every year.

The local townspeople didn't just watch, but actually participate in the ceremony. They all brought offerings. Some brought fruits and vegetables, some brought seeds, and some brought meat.

They would throw the offerings into the blazing fire and pray for next year's harvest. Rowena had read about this practice from one of her books and was excited to see the real thing with her own eyes.

"They look so devoted," said Rowena as she watched the residents put their produce in front of the statue of the goddess.

"Of course, we must be grateful for everything we receive," replied Lady Liz.

The bountiful harvest was a testament to their hard work and the goddess' blessings. The ceremony started with a priest leading the people to sing a hymn. Rowena watched them singing with interest and tried to memorize the words to the songs.

She thought it sounded like beautiful poetry. Five little girls were girls singing along beside the priest. The sight made Rowena smile widely. The town square was getting crowded as the ceremony progressed. Rowena and Lady Liz slowly got squeezed in with other people.

"Oh... I'm sorry," said Rowena when she accidentally stepped on the foot of a man behind her.

The man didn't seem bothered at all. He smiled and shrugged.

"It's okay, Miss. It's normal at times like this to step on a foot or two by accident," the man said making Rowena blush with embarrassment. "I am guilty of stepping on other people's feet too from time to time."

"Thank you for your understanding." Rowena was so relieved. She moved closer to Lady Liz and tried to be more mindful so she wouldn't repeat the same mistake. She refocused her attention on the ceremony.

Now, the hymn had ended, and the priest was chanting something. It sounded like another piece of poetry. It was really beautiful.

SWOOSH.

Rowena suddenly felt someone's presence behind her. The girl turned around to ask the person to keep some distance. She couldn't see him clearly because the young man was wearing a hat that covered his face.

"Oh, sorry, Miss. Am I getting too close? I'm sorry, I just wanted to see the ceremony ahead."

Rowena nodded. "Yes, you are too close."

"Then I'll find another place," said the young man.

Rowena turned around without replying to the young man's words. But her brows furrowed as she felt her coat pocket suddenly become light. Rowena reached into her pocket quickly and sure enough, there was nothing there. The pouch containing her money as well as the pouch given by the old beggar had disappeared.

Rowena panicked. She turned around, checking her left and right, looking for the young man's whereabouts.

Not far from the crowd, she saw the young man was opening the pouch containing the seeds. He looked disappointed and then threw it. Then, he opened the next pouch. He laughed happily, and threw the coins to air and caught them expertly. His good mood made Rowena growl.

So, he intentionally came that close to steal her stuff. A pickpocket!

Sensing that someone was watching him, the young man raised his head and found the victim was staring at him with a piercing gaze. He lifted his hat and bowed slightly to Rowena.

It was the same gesture made by the magician on the street after he fooled his audience into thinking he made their money disappear and then reappear.

"Thank you!!!" he shouted.

"Heyy… you thief!! Give me my money back!" Rowena shouted back.

"Oops!" The young man put his hat back on and immediately ran when he saw the girl begin to chase him.

When the thief took off his hat to salute her, Rowena was surprised to see that he was quite young, perhaps not much older than herself.

So, he was young and healthy. That means, he shouldn't steal money for a living. Rowena could understand the old beggar earlier. He had no choice but to rely on other people's kindness because he was too old and weak to do any work.

However, this pickpocket was just lazy. She couldn't let him get away so easily.  Rowena started running to get her money pouch back, leaving behind Lady Liz who was still so mesmerized by the ceremony in front of her that she didn't even notice Rowena's departure.

The noise made by the crowd around them kept her from hearing Rowena's voice calling out the pickpocket and then running after him.

Rowena ran faster as the young man suddenly took a sharp turn and continued running in the opposite direction. The thief didn't care when he bumped into an old woman who wanted to enter the town square to give her offerings.

She brought a basket of apples with her and they all scattered to the ground when the thief bumped into her.

"Hey, you!! Stooooopppp!!!" cried Rowena in frustration. She wanted to keep chasing him, but seeing the old woman's apples scattered everywhere, she couldn't bring herself to leave the pitiful old woman without trying to help. 

Rowena halted her chase and helped the old woman to pick up all the apples. She took the basket and made sure all the apples were collected.

"Thank you for the help, young lady," said the old woman. She presented Rowena with an apple. "Please accept my token of gratitude."

Rowena wanted to say no, but she thought it was rude to reject someone's kindness.. So, she smiled and took it.