Rob X Punzel ~ Forty-Four!

Goldie kept her mouth firmly shut, fighting the instinct to accept immediately or wilt under the queen's oppressive glare. Her gaze drifted from the queen’s penetrating stare to the king and prince, and a flicker of surprise stole over her as she saw their shoulders sink, their expressions falling into something akin to resignation. The offer—the threat, if she were being honest with herself—hung in the air.

“They're expecting me to accept… and why wouldn't I?” Goldie bowed her head slightly, allowing her hair to cover her face and muffle her voice so she could think out loud. “This is it. My chance to have everything I could ever want. I didn't even come here to marry the prince; this was all about getting away from the Alchemists. Why am I pushing my luck?”

She looked up, meeting the queen’s eyes with a steady gaze. The words of acceptance rolled around on her tongue, but something stopped them from escaping. Her gaze drifted to the prince, his eyes hollow, as though he had been bound in place by unbreakable chains. He looked trapped, maybe as trapped as she had felt for so long. A truth flashed through Goldie’s thoughts: he had sworn to help the orphanage, to hand over the value of the magical items she had given him. 

But if she left, and he married someone else—an eventual Witch Queen—would he be free to fulfill his promise, to slip into the city and hand over the coins he was oathbound to give? She hadn’t meant to, but the oath he'd sworn…? If he tried to honor it, he’d be risking his life. If he didn’t… his life would be forfeit, the system cutting into his heart for breaking its most sacred promise. Her gaze returned to the queen’s calculating eyes, and a spark of anger ignited. 

Goldie saw it clearly now: if she accepted, she might gain her freedom—maybe—but it would be at the cost of his. 

“No.” 

The voice, which sounded like hers, but couldn't possibly be, sounded out once more, growing in volume and strength. “No. I refuse. I won fair and square. I'm not going to let someone take away what I’ve earned. I'm so sick of losing.”

Her eyes were drawn to the king, whose head snapped up, a flicker of surprise crossing his face before his expression melted into genuine delight. The prince blinked at her rapidly, visage shifting between the dawning realization she wasn't going to back down then fear as he realized she wasn't going to back down. Goldie could just barely make out his whispered words, strangled as they were. “Celestial feces… she’s gonna get herself killed!”

Yet the most dramatic response was from the queen, who simply froze in place, the cruel smile painted on her face as though she hadn't been able to process what had just happened. Then, with jerky motions, as though her body were being pulled in different directions by ropes attached to her limbs, the queen tilted her head to the side. Her smile grew, then shrank, as if she were about to lunge at the defiant potential princess and bite her out of sheer vexation. “No…? You’d turn down everything I can offer, grasping like a fool for a position so far beyond you? What could possibly possess you to make me your enemy? He's not worth it, I guarantee it.”

Goldie found herself faltering, unable to order the swirl of emotions into cohesive sentences with the queen looming above her so threateningly. There was no easy answer. It was like being asked why she didn't just give up on breathing when life became difficult. Why she hung onto friendships far past the point when she realized they were bad relationships. Why she would potentially harm her future by handing nearly everything she earned over to the orphanage, to take care of others instead of herself. 

But then her mind flashed back only moments ago, envisioning the king’s defeated eyes, the resignation in the prince's sagging shoulders. She juxtaposed those with every exhausted face she’d seen in the slums—hundreds, thousands of people worn down by the Brute Kingdom, which constantly told them that if they couldn't brutally claw their way to the top, they didn't deserve to escape the mud they lived in. Goldie closed her eyes in an effort to center herself without the queen’s interference and began to speak.

“My entire life, I've watched people give up. So many people just stop hoping they can do anything better, be better than they once were. I can't—no, I won't do that, even if it's the safer, smarter choice.” Deeply inhaling through her nose, Goldie pressed on as words began spilling out of her. “I earned the right to be here. I can't walk away from this.”

She opened her eyes, swallowing hard when she realized the queen was standing only inches away from her, those beady eyes drilling into Goldie’s own, her reflection clear on each of the glossy, brick-teeth in the rictus grin. She managed to keep speaking, even if her voice wavered dangerously. “I've always been taught that I need to keep my head down to survive, that I should be satisfied with whatever I can get. You know what’s funny? All that did was put me in the crosshairs of powerful people who thought they could do whatever they wanted and eventually bring me here. So, that doesn't work. I think it's time for me to try something new.”

As her words trailed off, filled with uncertainty, Goldie thought for a moment that the queen might swing her hands in a clap and just pop her head like a bubble. 

Instead, Brutehilda threw her head back and laughed, a sound equal parts mockery and challenge. The false laughter died as the queen returned her intense glare to the young woman, shifting into a combat pose. “What makes you think you have the right to make demands? This is the Brute Kingdom. You’ve no business standing here, spouting your pathetic ideals. I am Brutehilda the Punch Witch, Queen, law maker and law enforcer. You-”

“-Are exactly correct, young Rapunzel,” King Frieden smoothly interjected, his voice causing the queen to pause, as if she had forgotten he was in the room, no longer bedridden and unable to have a say in the kingdom's politics. “Enough posturing, Brutehilda. She's made it this far, succeeded in the tower, and is not willingly standing aside. That means she is entitled to consideration, and you cannot—will not—deny her.” 

Finishing his chastisement of the queen, the king moved along hastily. “Now, Rapunzel, the final portion of this gauntlet is the three of us giving you a small test of our own to see if we feel you have the potential to stand among us. Frankly… I am all but satisfied already. Yet, I would be remiss in my duties if I did not determine your worth in areas the queen did not test.”

A deep inhale was sucked through the queen's nose, an exhale, then twice more before she stood back, tendons and ligaments creaking like taut bow strings being released as she relaxed and turned to stiffly march over to her stone throne. The king pretended not to notice how Goldie's eyes followed the queen until she was seated, before finally, slowly, shifting to stare at him. “Very good, very good. My test will be a simple conversation between us of strategy and logistics. Are you ready?”

“As ready as I could ever be, um… sir?”

“You will address the king as ‘Your Highness’ or ‘King Frieden’!” The friendly guard’s voice boomed out, filled with dark warning. The queen perked up, as if she were waiting for the man to step forward and cut Goldie down for her insolence. Yet, the king simply waved off the formalities.

“None of that; family does not need to have such barriers between them when they speak. At least for the moment, I am speaking to someone who may be my daughter-in-law upon the morrow.” He steepled his hands, leaning forward on his fluffy chair and offering Goldie his full attention, only diverting for a moment to send an annoyed flicker of attention at the queen. 

“So that she knows I did not somehow slip you the answers, I will speak on a subject the queen herself brought forth. Tell me, Rapunzel, how would you handle the current embargo imposed by the alchemist guild? Between combat training aids, minor and greater healing potions, and even the exceedingly rare ailment cleansers they are able to concoct, the loss of their products have cut off vital supplies for the kingdom.” 

The king’s fingers drummed together, his intense stare turning inward, as though he were seeking the answer as well. “This has implications for our youth, who will not be able to practice their skills to the same extent as previously. Fourteen houses of healing across the capital have already announced that they will be closing their doors unless we release our emergency stockpile. So… how would you handle this guild, which has claimed an entire mountain city as their own, all but splintering off and forming their own city-state kingdom within our borders?”

Goldie's heart began racing as the question with enormous, long-term ramifications was dropped in her lap. She had absolutely zero experience with leadership and politicking, having even gone so far as to turn down every opportunity to climb into higher ranks in the thieves guild so she could remain working directly for Chay—who had gotten her into this mess in the first place. Then her thoughts stopped dead as she stumbled onto a massive revelation: King Frieden had to know about her involvement with the Alchemist. After all, she was the one who’d given Roburt the panacea, which must be why the king was healthy once more. That could only mean… this question was meant to be a free pass.

He was serving her the win on a silver platter.

A hesitant smile spread on her face as the realization led to an answer, one that should be satisfying to everyone present—especially since the corrupt organization had shown open defiance to the kingdom. “Your Highness… I would bring them to heel by offering a carrot while preparing to swing a hefty stick. At the end of the day, if they’re refusing your orders and no longer selling our people what they need, crushing their entire guild will not harm the kingdom more than their abstaining from providing for us.”

“Huh.” It was the queen who was the most surprised, and she looked at Goldie as if seeing her in a different light for the first time.

“I'm guessing that's the stick,” the king dryly commented, motioning for her to continue. “Or at least I hope it is.”

“It is,” she vigorously nodded, hissing in pain as her ribs clicked together. “Especially since I could use a healing potion myself. The carrot is to offer them a deal which would leave them no choice but to become subservient to the crown again, returning them to a simple guild within the kingdom—not being a kingdom unto themselves.”

“At this point, I feel they'd rather go to war.” The king raised an eyebrow but didn't countermand her thoughts. “That would have to be quite the sweet deal for them. How would you propose to make it happen? What leverage do you have over them to make your words a reality?”

Goldie swallowed hard as uncertainty twisted in her gut. If she didn't end up being the queen after this, sharing the next bit of information would practically guarantee a life of captivity. Deciding to put her trust in him, she spoke despite her doubts. “I know the true reason for the embargo. They are after me, because I’m the only one who can get them access to a source of near-endless components. Specifically, one which will allow them to eventually Perfectly replace any one other required ingredient in any alchemical creation up to the Legendary rank.” 

“Interesting,” the king stated blandly as the queen stared her down, practically salivating from the information. “So, your suggestion would be to give them the location of this component?”

“No.” Goldie replied firmly. ““They tried to capture me and make me vanish so I couldn't sell this secret to the crown. In fact, that’s why I entered the tower in the first place. To escape them. Instead, what I’d do is make it public knowledge that you have access to this material and let the alchemist guild collapse into civil war with itself if the leadership doesn’t bend the knee and swear fealty properly. Any other members will assuredly fall in line, and as they race past their peers in the guild in terms of skill and quality of production, even more people will come under your banner, swearing binding oaths not to even get close to rebelling in the future.”

“How can I know you are telling the truth, Rapunzel?” The king shook his head severely, “This is quite impressive in theory, but…”

Goldie pursed her lips as she thought of how she could explain without crossing the line of the oath she had carried for nearly a decade. She perked up at the thought of system oaths and lifted both hands so the royals could see all of her fingers. “I pinky swear to you that I know the location of a source of alchemical crafting components they want, which have the effects I described to you. If I’m lying about this, I ask the system to take my pinkies.”

Immediately, the air in the room was charged with energy as the system witnessed her words. The queen let out a shriek of pain and displeasure as flickering golden light coalesced around the young woman's hands and… dissipated, leaving her intact. Even as Brutehilda glared at Goldie, the king’s face broke into a broad grin. “Well, I can certainly respect you putting your trust in us and yourself enough to invoke the system itself. Consider my test passed and… after you have wed my son, you would be doing this kingdom a great service by following through and bringing the alchemists to heel.”

Still shaken by the pure energy of the system that had washed through the room, the queen was too slow to speak before the prince did. He stood up, expression neutral as he looked over his potential bride. “My test is even more simple than my father's. It is important for a leader to know the plight of their people. All I want from you is for you to name the current controller of an orphanage in the slums. Any one of them will do, oh! Also, at least three orphans who live or have lived there. If you cannot do something so simple without having to leave here-”

Goldie was nearly knocked over by a bellowing laugh, which erupted from the queen. The huge woman slapped her palms on the arms of her chair, absolutely howling in satisfaction before turning to look at the prince, apparently deeply impressed by him at this moment. “It finally happened! You showed your true colors, and they’re the same as mine. All this time, I thought you were going to side with your father no matter what, yet here you are… tying your fate to mine. You won't regret this, Prince Roburt! You know that intravenous skill comprehension infusion you've had your eye on? Well, consider it yours.”

“Headmistress Schule-tyrant is in charge of the orphanage in the southeast sector of the slums. Johnny and Emma, a set of twins, still live there currently.” She could clearly see the youngsters' faces in her mind, people who’d been a part of the massive family she’d chosen for herself. As Goldie rattled off the names, the queen's joviality shattered like spun sugar. “Lastly… myself, as that is where I grew up. Once more, I pinky swear to all of you that this information is true.”

Golden light swirled around her hands once more, again leaving her fingers untouched as it dissipated. The queen let out an unflattering noise of aggravation, followed by a rough shout filled with pain. “Will you stop doing that?”

“I… absolutely, my queen.” Goldie managed to stammer out. “I was only attempting to show you the truth of my words, so we wouldn't need to delay this further to have the information verified.”

“That… that’s not what would’ve happened otherwise,” the queen blustered, earning skeptical looks from the king and prince. Goldie didn't say a word, though she had to wonder to herself how someone could end up being the queen and also be a terrible liar. It was a surprisingly good quality, but at the same time, she was certain it hadn't come about because the queen cared about being truthful. No, Brutehilda just didn't mind spouting what she wanted to say, then fighting anyone who had a problem with it. 

Bowing to Goldie ever so slightly, the prince returned to his seat. “Consider my test passed, as surprising as that is to all of us.”

“Finally!” The queen lurched from her seat, muscles rippling as she flexed individual fibers. “Enough of these word games. Everyone else got to interview you how they wanted. Now it's my turn. Words are cheap. You want to be a princess? Here? In the Brute Queendom?”

“Kingdom,” the king mildly interjected.

“Whatever,” the queen scoffed as she stared at Goldie with a primal intensity. “If you want to stand next to me, you'll have to go through me to make that happen. Since the tower apparently never explicitly called for combat capabilities, my interview is a duel between you and me.”

“You can't be serious-” the king barked out in horror. 

“No!” For the first time, the prince’s mask of indifference shattered as he looked fearfully and fervently at Goldie. “I… I think she's exactly who I want to marry.” 

“Too bad!” the queen retorted, though she did glance questioningly at the prince for a long moment before returning her attention to the thief who had stolen his heart. “What's it going to be? Are you going to accept my first offer, which I won’t extend to you again, or are we going to fight?”

Goldie answered in a steady voice, surprising absolutely everyone in the room. 

“Oh, we’re gonna fight.”