• They went deeper into the forest, and occasionally, she would talk about the creatures in the forest they are in. It seemed to him that the whole incident that happened yesterday did not affect her emotions at all. At times, he wondered if she actually felt any remorse for those who died for her back then.

    “No, girl,” he stopped her, “You tell me about the creatures when we actually see one,”

    “I’m just preparing you, evil sir,”

    The man blinked, “E-evil sir?!”

    She looked away, but had that cheeky smile on her face; “Oh, I couldn’t possibly call you ‘good sir’ after what you just did yesterday,”

    “I…I did not kill anyone yesterday,” he retorted, “Truly,”

    The princess was silent for a moment before she continued asking; “Why wouldn’t you? You were all at an advantage,”

    “I kill when necessary, not when it turns into a sport,” he frowned from inside his helm,

    “Killing is never a sport,”

    She paused once more, thinking of another question. He was already confusing her with his words; “Then why did you become the person you are now?”

    The black knight pushed her down and ducked his head as they passed underneath a broken branch; “I became a knight to serve my king and his kingdom dutifully and honourably,”

    “Is following the orders of a mad man makes you an honourable person?”

    “Is this my captain you are speaking of, girl?”

    She frowned, “Who else?” her eyes darted forward, “Does ambushing a campsite makes you honourable?”

    “Such things happen in wars. You wouldn’t understand,”

    “I know I wouldn’t be able to understand,” she shook her head; “All you people ever care about is to take something forcefully from the other, and if the people weren’t killed during it, they’d live to suffer and eventually die in the end. Yes, I can’t understand why anyone would want to do such a thing to others,”

    He blinked at the truth of her words; why did he join the war? Why couldn’t he think rationally about what he had done in the name of honour? He was at much confusion, and he knew she was too. Their confusions may differ, but one thing was certain and that is the fact that they will be stuck with each other for a while until they find a way out of this forest.

    Throughout the whole journey, they were both silent.

    - - -


    “We’ll rest here for the night,” he said, breaking the silence between them.

    The clearing he chose was near a small lake that overlooked the clear night sky above them. He took her down from the horse as soon as he tethered it to a tree branch and placed her gently on her two feet. With the flick of his tricky hands, he got the bonds off her. The princess flexed her arms and touched her nearly-skinned wrists.

    “You’re letting me go,” she turned to look at him, “Aren’t you afraid that I might run off?”

    He watched her from behind the cover of his helm; “Either way, you’re sure to end up back here anyway, even though you know the forest routes,” sheathing his dagger, he walked off and started gathering dry woods around the clearing, “No one is foolish enough to travel by night. You yourself should know that with your vast knowledge on strange creatures,”

    She was silent for a moment and studied him as he bent down to pick up the dry woods. Seeing that he was right in some way, she got to his side and helped him with whatever he was doing. “Let me help,”

    “Good,” he dumped all of the dry woods he collected on her and walked to his horse, “Then I’ll prepare the campsite,”

    It took them a few minutes to set up the camp, and with the black knight’s knowledge on how to start a fire properly, the fire was up and everyone felt warmer in this cold night.

    In the midst of their silence, he got up and took out his dagger, “I’ll go hunt for food,”

    The princess watched him disappear into the tall trees. He appeared to be a very puzzling man, she thought, and he was different from most black knights she has seen.

    The war between her father’s kingdom and the kingdom this man was from lasted for five years. It was believed that the war started because of that particular item she was entrusted with. Both kingdoms desired for this item, thinking that it might help end the war. But their main intention was altered entirely into thinking that whoever possesses the item will win the war and end it instantly. This has in turn, manipulated the minds of the leaders, making them forget their original intention for the item.

    She wanted her father to realise this, but he often attacked her with questions and words, saying that she never knew how a battlefield would look like. He kept telling her she would never understand why he had to do this. And because of that, she followed the general and his army to try and see what her father meant.

    It was also there that she learned of the presence of the item that had come to her possession. And she lost it.

    She hugged her knees tight and laid her head on it, angry at herself for loosing it.

    Eventually, the black knight came back with two dead rabbits. They prepared the meal and it was not long till they finished devouring their dinner.

    “You go on and sleep,” he told her, sitting by the tree with his sword in his hand, “I’ll keep watch,”

    The princess was about to protest in her usual way, but this time, she felt out of place and decided to obey him. Just for tonight.

    - - -

    She awoke by the sounds of the splashing waters from somewhere nearby. She reckoned it came from the lake. Slowly, she got up and looked around her; the black knight was nowhere to be seen.

    Out of distress, she scrambled up and ran towards the lake. And there he was, bathing in the lake under the splendour of the moon rays. He had all of his armours off, except for his helm. But slowly, he took it off, and let his long black hair cascade to the water. The light from the moon cast a mysterious aura about him and made it seem as though his hair was glowing. His was well-built with traces of hardened muscles on his arms and body. And he was noticeably young too, around her age. But the one thing she really wanted to see was his face, the face he hid throughout this whole journey. Often she had wondered of his face, thinking that it might not look like how she expected it to be.

    The princess leaned a little closer from her hiding place to get a better look, but she accidentally got a wrong footing and tumbled down into the lake with a loud splash. And then, she realised another problem she had;

    She couldn’t swim.