As soon as the Lioncrest entourage arrived at the gates of Corona Kingdom's Royal Castle, the celebration was instantly thrown into a full swing.
Henry hasn't even set foot inside yet and the ballroom was already filled to the brim with several nobles and merchants. Some were catching up with their friends, while others were using the special day as a means to establish political connections.
All of it was something Henry was already familiar with. After all, he too was also a victim of being surrounded by countless people hoping to form some kind of friendship AKA benefits.
That's why it didn't take long for them to recognize him and his father and instantly surround them.
"You must be Crown Prince Henry! I can't believe I finally met you! You know, I'm so fascinated by all your inventions. I even bought my daughter one of your unique bicycles. Say, you don't happen to be looking for a channel to sell to small towns and villages? If so, I might be the right person for the task…"
"Prince Henry! I'm delighted to meet you! I was hoping that we could have a private chat…"
Henry calmly responded to each of them. A very polite refusal that he had practiced since he was little. Usually, refusal would earn disappointment and false hopes but his refusal was not only polite but also left no room for future negotiations.
The same can be said of Maximus, though the man wasn't as polite as Henry, simply staring and nodding his head with a slightly cold stare. The Lioncrest King kept doing this until the message was finally sent that he's not open for business discussions.
Which is unfortunate for Henry whom they saw as a second option for the said discussions.
It wasn't until Henry saw Princess Rapunzel descending the wide stairs that everyone finally stopped and stared.
All except for one persistent old man on Henry's side, "…so I was thinking you and I could form a very long-term partnership espe—" That was it for the man as Henry wanted nothing more than a peace of mind so he could stare at the beautiful angel on the stairs.
So he dropped the polite persona and raised his index finger in front of the old merchant's face, "Can you shut up or do I have to make you?"
With a fearful glance towards Henry's cold expression, the old man finally scurried off with unsteady steps.
Henry shifted his attention back to Rapunzel but this time she was also staring back at him with a smiling expression. She cutely waved her hand at him like an excited child seeing her friend outside the school.
Henry of course, waved back, which garnered stares and piqued the interest of several people in the ballroom.
Unlike Henry, this is their first time meeting the lost princess of the Corona Kingdom. So they found it weird to see the two act like long-time friends.
Now that Henry got a good look at Rapunzel, he finally noticed her light pink dress with several symbols of the yellow sun which is the symbol of the Corona Kingdom, along with a few intricate flower patterns stitched to the lower skirt of her dress.
'She looks beautiful I'll give her that. I just hope she doesn't fall head over heels for me like Ariel. It would be troublesome to have another Disney princess seeking to become my concubine.' Henry murmured under his breath, crossing his fingers in the process.
When Henry noticed the eager looks on the faces of several old men in the room, especially the ones who had introduced their daughters and sons to Henry earlier, he immediately knew the source of their eagerness.
'Oh, not in my watch.'
Maximus was surprised to see his son weave through the crowd, slightly pushing everyone in his way until he arrived at the end of the staircase where he extended his arm for Rapunzel to which the latter took with a brief bite of her lower lip.
"You look wonderful in that dress. I'd better give my gratitude to the designer." Henry started with a casual compliment.
To his surprise however, Rapunzel shyly looked down, "Thank you. I designed it."
"You designed it?" Seeing Henry's widened eyes filled Rapunzel with pride.
She puffed up her chest and nodded her head, "That's right. Pa told me yesterday that he wanted me to look good today so he gave me three different dresses to choose from." She fiddled with her fingers as she continued with an embarrassed grin, "Well, I didn't like any of it, so I drew one myself and gave it to him. I didn't expect the seamstress to finish the dress this morning."
"Sounds like your first day of being a princess, you have already tormented one of your subjects." Henry teased.
"No I didn't! Well…Maybe I did? I heard the seamstress didn't get an ounce of sleep last night." A guilty look appeared on Rapunzel's face, it's as if she's ready to leave now to go and apologize for the seamstress.
Thankfully, Henry held her back. It would be bad for her image as a princess to leave her Welcome Back party after all.
"We can just do it together later. For now, you should be having fun. It's your day and your parents definitely spent thousands of gold coins and a sleepless night just for this celebration." He held her hand and guided her to the center of the ballroom, "So just relax and enjoy the rest of the night."
Thankfully, with Henry's presence beside her, no one could attempt to approach her. Even if some wanted to, Henry gave them a single look that promised a thousand years of pain if they ever interrupted the moment.
He may be known as a Samaritan and the kindest royal prince but that's reserved for civilians and non-nobles.
Rapunzel nodded her head after a brief moment of hesitation, though what truly helped convince was the long table filled with roasted meat, specialized dishes, and several heavy sweets that could ruin someone's year-long diet.
"What's this?" Rapunzel grabbed Henry's hand with both of hers and dragged him towards the table, pointing at one of the chocolate cakes sitting mesmerizingly on a plate.
"That's a chocolate pudding cake."
"What's that?" She tilted her head in confusion.
"…You don't know what a chocolate is? Have you been living under a rock—oh right, my bad." Henry feigned a cough out of embarrassment and deliberately changed the topic, "Anyways, chocolate is a type of food, it's a very famous delicacy that could capture anyone's taste buds. Here, try it."
He grabbed an empty plate and filled it with a single slice of the chocolate pudding. Though it proved to be meaningless as the moment the delicacy touched Rapunzel's tongue, she instantly devoured it and grabbed the entire plate of chocolate cake.
'Sweet mother of Jesus.' Henry held back his laugh. He just watched as she devoured the chocolate cake piece by piece. Fortunately, she didn't forget to use a spoon and a table knife to eat instead of eating with her hands.
Though Henry wouldn't mind seeing that side of her. He always finds it cute when women drop the elegant act and show their true food-devouring selves.
Even some of the guests couldn't help but reel back in disgust after seeing how Rapunzel ate. Their decision to approach her for political reasons is dissipating. Which is good obviously.
Rapunzel just got back and has not yet been trained for encounters like that. If possible, Henry would even prefer to teach her himself.
Just as Rapunzel was on her way to grab the second plate of chocolate cake, everyone's attention was once again grabbed by the stairs where this time, Rapunzel's parents descended in all their glory.
Some Corona Kingdom knights and servants couldn't help but discreetly shed a tear. They've been used to seeing their lord and lady being solemn every day while barely curving their lips for a smile. But now it's different.
Their King and Queen are smiling wholeheartedly for the first time in 17 years.
"Let us welcome! The rulers of Corona Kingdom! King Frederick Sonne and Queen Arianne Sonne!" As the announcement was made by the castle's steward, the claps followed.
Frederick first approached Maximus, giving the man a bear hug while Arianne simply bowed her head in courtesy.
Rapunzel excitedly dragged Henry to their side, "Pa! Ma!"
Frederick opened his arms wide for his daughter to take, "There's our little sun!" He then turned to Henry after hugging Rapunzel, "And of course, here comes our Corona Kingdom's hero, Prince Henry of Lioncrest."
Henry only intended to shake the man's hand however, the King had other plans. He immediately pulled Henry and gave him the same bear hug, even lifting him off the ground in the process.
"Oof!" Henry gave an awkward stiff smile while Arianna gave him an apologetic look.
Once he was let go, Frederick then grabbed both of his shoulders and sincerely stared into his eyes, "I know I have already said this yesterday but thank you truly, Henry boy. You have done this Kingdom a great service. You back their princess and my daughter."
Henry felt something warm inside his chest after hearing this, 'This is the reason why I kept fighting to do good in this world. I just feel good inside whenever people give me their gratitude…' He whispered to himself.
He responded with a nod of his head and a smile, "Anyone in my place would've done the same."
"Alright now, you two. Can we have this day without two grown men shedding tears?" Maximus stepped in between, breaking the awkward yet touching atmosphere.
Before Henry could say anything, his arm was once again grabbed by Rapunzel. At this point, he even forgot the word resist and simply surrendered himself to let Rapunzel drag him to anywhere she like.
"Quick Henry! I'll show you my room! I can't wait to paint art on its walls and ceiling!" She excitedly dragged him through the flight of stairs, earning sighs of defeat and judging eyes from the elegant nobles who prided themselves on their trained etiquette and whatnot.
———
"This one here I'll paint the sun, the symbol of Corona Kingdom. And here is where I'll paint…" As soon as they stepped inside the room, Henry was surprised by how large it was. Almost twice as big as his own.
Rapunzel wasted no time introducing Henry to her room. The interior may look plain right now but the more Rapunzel discussed her plans, the more Henry doubts the room will stay plain that long.
It took nearly an hour before Rapunzel was breathless and fell on her soft comfy bed, "Huff….So what do you think?"
Henry sat on a chair beside him and crossed his arms, "It's going to be a banger, that's for sure. Cooler than my room."
"You think?" Rapunzel beamed with happiness before tilting her head in confusion, "What's a banger? "
"It's a saying. It means explosively awesome or something like that." Henry waved his hand in dismissal.
"Banger. Banger…" She repeated the word a few times to herself before growing to like how it rolls in her tongue, "Banger! That's right! It's definitely going to be a banger!"
Before Henry could go and match her excitement, she had already changed the topic to an entirely different one, "Pa told me your birthday is next week, is that right?"
Henry wasn't surprised, it would be weird for someone on the continent to not know when his birthday is. After all, his day of birth became a hot topic in the Kingdom after Maximus invited literally every single man and woman with status in the continent, including his Kingdom's rivals and enemies to celebrate the birth of his first son.
Well, it turns out to be a misunderstanding as Maximus was under the influence when he sent the invitation, yelling at his messenger to invite everyone which was a mistake as the messenger LITERALLY sent the word to everyone on the continent including the non-allies.
Of course, the messenger was at fault too for not getting the hint.
"That's right. I was planning to invite you actually."
"Really? I was just about to ask you for an invitation!" Rapunzel eagerly jumped off her bed, "It's a Banger then! Your birthday is definitely going to be a Banger!"
Seeing her keep repeating the word that she just learned almost made Henry fail to hold back his laugh. She resembles a kid learning an adult word from an adult.
"I'm attending your Banger Bang Bangity birthday! We're going to Bang together! I'll Bang you! You'll Bang m—!"
"Actually, Rapunzel. There are other banger sayings you can learn. I can teach you some if what you want."
Thank god he was able to stop her in time!
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[Apologies for not being able to publish a chapter on Wednesday. Tuesday was my birthday and I haven't written a single chapter during that day, not to mention I was out eating with my family. If there comes a chance, I'll make it up to you guys, especially considering how summer vacation is coming, I might be able to write more chapters than usual and perhaps mass release twice or thrice of chapters in a single day.]