Chapter 7
So this is chapter 7 of this historical story :) Hope you'll like it and enjoy while reading it ;)
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The darkness covered the sky, it was already midnight. Most of the servants were already asleep. Arthit quickly wore the long robe of his eunuch, threw his white night gown to Ko Thiha, hurrying him up to dress up quickly before the soldiers notice his intention. The latter reluctantly dressed up the night gown, asking himself why he was doing it again. Listen to the Crown Prince again. It seemed he didn't learn his lesson from his near death experience from one day ago when he disguised himself as his Highness. If they found out about him playing the Crown Prince again, he won't have any mercy but would get killed immediately.
Tears filled his eyes, he was sobbing while dressing up. Arthit noticed he was nervous, he chuckled from his cowardness.
„Don't worry. I'll be back before they could notice anything."
„I'm sure the plan'll fail anyway, I can feel it. You won't succed with your intention and tomorrow my head'll be cut in the market like I was some kind of fish. With my punishment they would teach the other eunuch a lesson. They'll dispose of my body as if I was nothing more than a cockroach", he was sobbing, „Just for your Highness to remember, I even hate cockroach more than anything ...", he mumbled, didn't even know what he was talking about. His conscience took over him, „Why won't you kill me right now?"
„Stop being such a coward."
Ko Thiha wanted to call off the plan but shut his mouth when his Highness was looking at him with his puppy eyes, sulking like a little child seeking for his mother's forgiveness. Damn it! Whenever the Crown Prince looked at him like that, he couldn't refuse him at all. Why was his master so mean to him?
Arthit pushed him towards the big bed, quickly covered him with the blanket. He cleared his throat to speak clearlier when the soldier approached them.
„His Highness wants to see the guard", Ko Thiha raised his voice. He was playing the Crown Prince but needed to use his voice as the eunuch or else the guard would notice them switching if Arthit spoke the eunuch's part. Because most of the guard could already tell their voices apart.
„I'm coming in, your Highness", a guard shouted, came in to know the reason for him seeking his audience. He wasn't allowed to approach his Highness so he needed to stay back on the entrance. It was the first time the law of the royal family helped Arthit in a desperate situation.
Meanwhile Arthit bent over, speaking while standing close to Thiha so the soldier would believe his Highness was the one laying on his bed and speaking to him. „I'm not feeling well and need something to calm down my stomach."
Because he was confined, he wasn't allowed to leave his chamber for two whole weeks. Even Ko Thiha had restriction to outside since his master was permitted to set foot outside. He was asked to state every reason why he needed to leave his Highness's side. The guard wanted to verify if the latter was inded feeling unwell but he was in conflict with himself. According to the law, he shouldn't come closer to his Highness but he should be careful too to not let Arthit escape his confinement.
„Do...", Thiha almost forgot and spoke the part of the Crown Prince.
Arthit reacted quick and pinched him on the face to shut him up, cursing him for almost revealing their plan. „Do you want to see it for yourself?", the shorter man asked him, as if he was threatening him.
„No, you can go", he allowed them.
Arthit felt happy for finally leaving the confinement but he needed to restrain himself or else he himself would reveal their disguise. He stepped back while looking aside to avoid the man seeing his face. As he arrived in the middle of the chamber, he quickly turned around while staring on the ground, hiding his face from the soldier. The man, an idiot he was, wasn't even suspicious about them and let Arthit, disguised as the eunuch, leave for outside.
Arthit covered his head with the gown of the eunuch's robe, used the chance to sneak in the kitchen then grabbed at the claypot covered with a black fine silk. The claypot contained a few sweet bread, it was left by his eunuch earlier for him. Before he could grab at another claypot filled with water, he heard rustling coming from outside so he quickly hide under the table for the time being. A guard and a woman entered the kitchen, she looked aside to see if they were being spoted. She noticed they were the only person in the kitchen, she quickly rummaged in the biggest claypot, brought a bread out and gave it to the guard.
„Everything here's for the imperial family. You can have it but don't tell anyone about it", she said with a soft voice, trying her best to sound too sweet. So she was stealing food from the kitchen manager's back while knowing they would cut off her hand as punishment. Really brave of her!
„That's why I love you amoung the other maids", he complimented her, gave her a little kiss on the cheek.
She played the innocent girl, blinking her eyes many times before slapping on his cheek to play around with him before tapping her finger on his chest. „You're such a sweet talker."
A big smile appeared on his face, he nudged her on the shoulder, laid his arm around her then pulled her over to him. „Let me give you my love", was his line to win her over. He feed her first before he himself took a bit of the bread.
Arthit gritted his teeth, cursing him for being a player. He couldn't see their faces since it was too dark in the kitchen but he recognized the voice of this soldier because he was one of his soldier that everyone named the casanova of the palace. A relationship between a maid and a guard was prohibited but he ignored the law and slept around with many girls he set his eyes upon. He did it for fun and for the sake of food too since the girls always stole food from the imperial supply to give to him. Arthit was pitying the poor, innocent girls who believed him and even stole food to satisfy his stomach.
They shared a little kiss on the lips. He caressed with a hand on her neck, she moaned from the gently touch on her smooth body.
„Stop it... What if someone see us", was her reply. Even if she was plaiyng the innocent girl, she didn't want him to stop but to continue caressing her, satisfying her lust she reserved from a longer time ever since she began to work in the palace.
His Highness wished for a fabric to blindfolded his eyes or to stuff his eyes so he wouldn't hear anything from the irritating sounds they were making. Her voice raised, her moan was irritating than from before. Since he didn't want to waste time on them, he decided to come out of his hideout. They jumped in surprise when Arthit suddenly stood behind them. She immediately turned her back to him, hiding her face from him.
„Continue what you were doing. You didn't see me and I didn't see you either", he promised them, waiting for their reply before he could continue his way. They couldn't recognize him because of the darkness but even if his face was revealed to them, they wouldn't know he was the Crown Prince since lowly servants like them didn't have access to see him.
They nodded as agreement whereupon he took the claypot filled with wather too, continued his way to the dungeon that was hiding in a basement. A man was guarding the prison, Arthit waited in a corner till the man felt the urge to use the toilet. Arthit quickly entered the prison. As soon as he set foot in the room, a foul smell raised in his nose. It was the smell of rotting flesh, fresh and old blood mixing altogether, the strong smell of sweat even mixed in the air. He could even taste the foulness on his tongue, almost fell uncounscious from the disguisting smell. Never in his life did he reek something so ranky like this that, he nearly ran outside to puke on the ground. But although he couldn't endure this stench, he needed to bear it for awhile since he came her for Chan Tha's and Thura's sake. The second man guarding the cells from inside, approached him while screaming at him.
„You shouldn't be here. Who're you anyway?"
„I brought you something to eat", Arthit spoke softly to him, trying to sweet talk him so the solider could let his guard down.
The guard seemed not interested and didn't want the offer first but he was really hungry. The cunning Arthit took the silk from the pot, letting him smell on the sweetness of the food. He even waved air to him, making the smell even stronger. The guard's stomach was screaming from being hungry when seeing the many steamed bread, he was drooling over the delicious looking food.
There was only a yellow bread amoung the white bread, Arthit took it out and hold it up to the middle aged man. „You can have it. This's specially sweet", he offered it to him.
The man couldn't hold his hunger back, he finally took the bait, bitting a big bit from the it. By the third bit, he suddenly felt tired. His vision was blurry, his body felt weak, his feet were trembling. As he couldn't stand straight at his own feet anymore, he realized the young man poisoned him. Before he could shout out for help, he lost his voice then his strength before falling uncouncious to the cold ground. Arthit held a finger over his nose, feeling his breath, meaning he was still alive. Great! The sleeping medicine seemed to be working already. With this, he would sleep for at least one hour. Now he could take care of his business, the reason for him to be down here.
Arthit took the time to go further in the dungeon. Now he found out why this place was reeking so rotten. The smell came from the prisoners, in some cells there were old blood from former prisoners who where tortured to death. Some prisoners lost a leg or an arm or even all ten fingers, they were bleeding from their wounds that wasn't properly taken care of. Just a single fabric was wrapped around the wound. Arthit knew the prison existed but he didn't know it was in such bad state. He was shocked to see how the people were battered as if they were some kind of animals. What crime did they commit to be so severly punished? Surely, some of them must be even innocent too. He was in rush that he didn't even had the time to feel pity for them.
Arthit took his cape from his head, revealing his face. Some prisoners shouted, begging him to free them when they saw new face walking before them. Some scary looking men with scars on their faces, whistled at him, telling him they wished to rape him here and now since he had a beautiful, alluring face. Those kind of words were insulting for him, the Crown Prince, but he choose to stay strong and ignore their comments. But some remarks almost forced him to act, he just wished to punch them for their comment like tearing him apart and making him cry by taking him in front of the spectators but he tried his best to restrain himself since he didn't had enough time to care about them.
There they were! Thura was sitting on the ground, playing with her finger and writting something like a name in the sand. Chan Tha was leaning against the wall, eyed closed as if he was sleeping but he was awake the whole time. They seemed uninjured, meaning they weren't tortured yet, just like he expected. Finally a good news for today, he was somehow relieved for the time being.
Thura noticed him approaching them, she quickly stood up and dashed to him, trying to touch him through the wooden bars. „Your Highness, what're you doing in such filthy place?"
Chan Tha opened his eyes as soon as he heard his Highness being mentioned. He didn't move from his spot but eavesdropped their conversation.
„I wanted to see both of you", he took the sweetest bread out his claypot and reached it out to her, „You're surely hungry. I know it's not much but take this to eat."
Another man behind them screamed he was hungry, wanted to eat from the sweet bread the handsome young man brought for them. Arthit and Thura decided to ignore him for the time being. She took the bread and looked at it. Tears fell down her eyes, she was sobbing in silent.
„You're giving me bread... Just like you did 4 years ago", she mumbled quietly.
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The last line should reveal who Ko Thura, a woman, actually was. Nobody mentioned about her in the comment in the last chapters so I think nobody knew it till now. But if you finally realize it, did anyone guessed it already? I'm just to curious to know who recognized her :D
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