The Innkeeper

Only Kenta, the princess, Aoi and Lex were present in the hallway. There had been a few guards standing there awkwardly, but once the heir got slapped they vanished as if their life depended on it.

Lex was more than happy to let the princess vent on Kenta, while Aoi was shocked and had her mouth covered with her hand. She was wondering since when had the princess become so violent? But at the same time, she felt that this was so different and exciting for her normal life of study and research. A fire was lit up deep inside the Nymph's heart, unbeknownst to herself and anyone else.

Not dragging the matter further, the princess revealed her true appearance. It took Kenta a moment to recognize her, which immediately startled him.

'What is she doing here?' he questioned in his heart as he suddenly began to panic. This was not good. He wasn't even married yet, but if his to-be wife heard rumors of him meeting another woman literally hours before their marriage, he would be doomed!

"What are you doing here?" he could not stop himself from asking. He had intended to be more tactful in his wording, but his anxiety got the better of him.

His tumultuous emotions did not go unnoticed by the princess, who took it as an affirmation of all her thoughts.

"Kenta we… we're elves from two different worlds. We cannot be together. I… I'll forgive you for your actions back then, but you must put this matter behind us."

"How can I put this behind us when you're here?" he asked, a headache starting to develop. He had already forgotten about her, but she came knocking on his door asking to let bygones be bygones, which was the most ridiculous thing ever. He would be more than happy to let this matter rest, but she would have to not randomly show up at his door first!

"Kenta I… I didn't want it to come to this but… I don't feel the same way as you. This cannot work."

"You… you don't feel the same?" he repeated, feeling devastated. Was his flirting so powerful? Had he gotten her to fall in love with him after a single meeting? Could she no longer ignore him?

"But… but princess… you're at my wedding!" he exclaimed, trying to convey to her that he simply couldn't be with her. He was already in over his head with one wife who he was being forced to have, if he had to deal with a scorned lover on the side his life would become complete chaos.

"Exactly!" the princess exclaimed, trying to explain to this dumb lovestruck fool that she couldn't be with him. "It's YOUR wedding! You have to get married, just not to the elf you want. Trust me, ultimately, things will turn out for the best this way!"

Aoi was teetering with excitement as she tried to figure out what was happening. She was filling in the blanks herself, and coming up with a love story for the ages. Lex, on the other hand, was trying his best to suppress his laughter.

It was a good thing his expressions couldn't be seen under his mask, or else it would become evident how hard it was for him to keep a straight expression.

"No, no, no, this can't be happening!" the heir said as he turned away from them and walked back into his room, his thoughts swirling. He had to think of a solution, and fast. How had things gotten so out of control? He was only trying to get his hands on some ingredients!

The princess, who was trying out the soft approach, was losing her patience now. What the hell was wrong with this guy? Why was he so adamant? Sure, she was beautiful. But that was no reason to harass her with his undying, poem inspiring love… suddenly her thoughts paused.

'Wait a minute… if the part about him being married was removed, and it was true that his love was really so great, he wasn't a bad candidate. No, ew, what the hell am I thinking?'

Having recovered from her momentary lapse in judgment, the princess became irritated and followed the heir into his room.

Lex could feel that the situation was escalating, so he decided to end it soon and take them all to the Inn before something unexpected happened.

"Let's follow them in," he said to Aoi, before walking behind the princess.

"Listen pal, this is happening whether you like it or not. Forget about your own problems for a second and think about how I feel? Why do I have to get dragged into this mess?"

Kenta, who was panicking, suddenly paused.

Yes, the poor princess. If he was having such a tough time, how did the princess who had fallen in love with him feel?

Before Kenta had an opportunity to respond, Lex cleared his throat.

"If I may interrupt, I believe I have the solution to all your problems," said Lex as he walked closer to the two, making sure Aoi was close by as well.

"Lex?" Kenta asked, suddenly recognizing the voice. By his completely covered appearance it was difficult to identify him, especially since there were a few races who preferred to stay completely covered. It was only when he spoke that Kenta realized who he was, and a crazy thought came to his mind. Was he actually trying to help him escape the wedding? Seriously?

"I'm glad you recognize me," Lex said, his voice warm. "That will make things easier."

He summoned an envelope from his spatial ring and placed it on a table nearby, and took out three golden keys and handed one to each of them.

"What's this going to do?" asked the princess who was irritated now. Having ordinary elves fall in love with her was not enough, now that she had to deal with one who had massive power and influence, she really wanted to resolve the situation lest it become something that bothered her throughout her life.

"I'll explain in a moment," said Lex as he initiated his own return to the Inn. Since it took a few moments he waited patiently in silence, and just as the time was about to be up, he used his spirit sense to crush the keys in their hands.

All four of them vanished at the same time.