Princess Mia is Unwavering
“Your Highness… It is an honor.”
Liora bowed to which Mia looked at her quizzically.
“Why are you in a place like this? No, actually can you tell me why that old man seems to be very angry?”
“Yes, that’s actually the chief of the Lulu tribe. So …”
“This hairpin… give wife gift… then wife die… give to daughter…”
“Your daughter, is that right?”
Mia tilted her head a little, but nodded that to show that she understood.
“I see … It’s hard for me to say this, but unfortunately your daughter is dead.”
“Dead?”
The chieftain mutters with a stunned face. Mia continued in a slow tone so as not to irritate the other party as much as possible.
“It’s probably your grandson that gave this hairpin to me.”
“Details… tell more.”
At the end of Mia telling the story, there was silence. The silence continued while the looks and gazes of the Lulus tried to assess the truth of the story.
“Chief, Her Highness is not the one to lie. And knowing the personality of Her Highness, it matches the story she was talking about.”
It was Liora who broke the silence. Then Dion came to help Mia.
“Look, it may not matter to you. But the reason we pulled back our army was because of a crafty move from Her Highness the Princess.”
“What? A lie… girl kick… our tree.”
The Lulu tribe warrior shut his mouth after being glanced by Dion.
“The army needs a good reason to withdraw. I think the chieftain will understand this, even if the soldiers at the bottom do not.”
Dion looks at the Lulu chieftain. The chieftain looked at Dion with a stern look and then said in a heavy tone.
“You’re right… yet… believing words… difficult.”
“That’s true. Then, I will send the boy to come back here. Besides, I don’t think it would be good for him to stay in the slums as it is. I’ll arrange it soon. You can make up your mind by then.”
With that said, Mia found the perfect excuse to leave the forest. She turned around, and prepared to leave. But Dion’s voice resounded…
“Your Highness, surely you don’t mean for this to be the end of negotiations?”
“……What?”
“I’m still waiting on how you are going to resolve all the conflicts in this forest?”
Mia face quickly turned blue. She saw the swordsman’s light in Dion’s smiling eyes.
“Oh…oh, of course. It’s convenient that Liora is here to represent the Count of Rudolvon. Let’s hear what she has to say!”
Mia was desperately grasping at straws. She has no clue what she should be doing now, and is on the verge of nervous breakdown.
“Yes… we should listen what she has to say. Then… each one can speak as well. Yes… yes! That’s exactly what we should do!”
After hearing everyone speak their minds, Mia was finally allowed to leave. But just when she was about to go, the chieftain approached her alone.
“Your Highness… me apologize.”
“Oh, I thought you did not believe me?”
Mia frowned at the patriarch who apologized in a particularly humble tone.
“Before… others were there… front of them… must act like chieftain.”
The chieftain said with a serious face,
“You enter enemy lands… only one guard… you brave… courageous… no liar.”
The chieftain bowed deeply.
“Thank you… care grandson… apologies… words earlier.”
The Lulu tribe is a prideful people. Those who are rude to them will be met with rudeness in kind. Violence will be met with violence, even if they are nobles. But Mia is viewed as a benefactor, caring for one of their tribesman. Even more, she is the princess of the Great Tearmoon Empire. She could have wiped them off from the map if she wanted to. Instead, she approached them in good faith, sincerity, and respect.
They have to return her kindness with equal amount of respect. Their pride would not let them do anything less. So even if it was just the chieftain in private, he was willing to bow down before Mia and apologize.
“You don’t need to apologize. After all, it was me who kicked the tree in your forest eventhough I know you treat it as a treasure. So how about we call it even?”
Mia gave the chieftain a smile. A smile that seems to say that there are more important things than pride and respect.
“More importantly, once your grandson comes, please treasure him and treat him kindly.”
The chieftain was shocked… stunned. In that last sentence, he understood exactly was Mia was trying to say. He was a man bound by pride. His pride caused him to fight his daughter. His pride caused his daughter to run away. His pride caused his daughter to die in a foreign place without even reconciling with her. He valued his pride more than he valued his daughter.
In that last sentence, this young girl… no, this wise Princess was admonishing him not to make the same mistake he did with his daughter when it comes to treating his grandson. He understood her. He pressed his lips and clenched his jaws to stop tears from forming. The princess, in all her wisdom, saw through him and gave him an honest wise advice.
“Your Highness… thank you… thank you much… deep words… me treasure.”
His quivering voice, however, betrayed his suppressed emotions. All he can do is bow down even lower and reverently to this young girl whose empathy seems no bounds.
… But, of course, Mia didn’t say those words because of her boundless empathy or her extraordinary compassion.
If that child is the grandson of the chief of the Lulu tribe, it would be problematic to leave him in an orphanage.
Although it has improved a little, the slums were still the slums. One could not guess what might happen next in there. And if indeed something might happen to that little boy, then the Lulus might really start an uprising. Better to pluck out any buds of danger before they grow.
It is best for that child to return to this forest. To do that, I have to get the patriarch to accept him kindly and treat him well so that he would not want to go back to the orphanage…
She was indeed sticking true to her motto of “Mia First.” It was just sad that not a single person realized the true motives behind Mia’s “compassion.”
