Agnes pulled Damian into the alleyway, her grip on his wrist surprisingly soft,as she turned and gave him a delightful expression. She was clearly excited about where she was taking him, but Damian wasn't so excited, why wasn't he? Maybe it's because he had no idea where she was taking him.
'I hope it's actually entertaining,' Damian thought.
"We are here," Agnes said, as she made an abrupt stop in front of what looked like a theater room, the one that has people performing various motion arts for the entertainment of the audience.
'A theater?' Damian thought. 'That might be interesting.'
"What do you think?" Agnes said, smiling.
"We haven't gone in yet, so I'm not sure of anything for the moment," Damian replied.
"That's definitely correct," she said. "But trust me on this one, this theater is known for their epic plays, and they happen to be doing one about a fallen prince and his quest to retake his throne."
Damian stared at her, he was happy to see her excited. He had begun to notice that seeing her this happy always made him happy too. He just smirked at the thought of it— he and her.
"What's funny?" she asked, seeing his smirk.
"Nothing," he replied. "Lead the way, my princess. Your knight is rightfully behind you."
"You're so over the top," she said while tapping his cheek. "I called you my knight, but that doesn't mean you should be all extravagant. I like you just the way you are."
She immediately blushed as she realized she had just admitted to liking him. But wait, liking could mean many things, she thought. Friends like each other.
"Anyways," she said, turning her face to hide her blush. "Let's get going."
****
The Theater was packed. The seats were almost full, with people of different social standings coming to be a spectacle to this 'extraordinary show.' The polished wooden aesthetic of the theater perfectly matched the tone of the play, one of betrayal, revenge, and love.
Damian and Agnes were lucky to be on time, just before the play began. Agnes had paid for a back-seat reservation, as that was what she could afford at the time.
"I heard the great Romano is playing the leading role," one man seated behind Damian said.
"Yes, yes, that's perfect," another replied. "Romano is sure to make this worth my time."
Damian quickly became intrigued about this Romano guy. Everyone seemed to be excited about this play just because of him. Damian just hoped that he lived up to the hype.
Cast and staff were already making their way to the set. It was about to begin, and the main guy already had all eyes on him, Romano—a tall, handsome, and charismatic fellow.
The curtains drew back, and the crowd hushed. On the stage, a man, Romano, playing the young prince, knelt on the floor. His father, the King, stood over him, his face hard with anger.
The King spoke loudly, declaring that his son had run away from a battle and brought shame to the kingdom. As punishment, the Prince was banished. Romano, as the Prince, rose slowly and walked off the stage, showing his pain but also his resolve. The stage lights faded, and a period of time passed in darkness, suggesting the Prince's lonely years of growing stronger, both in his body and his spirit.
The scene changed, and the Prince returned, now a hardened man. He saw a land ruled by fear, and he soon learned the terrible truth, his uncle had seized the throne. Worse still, his mother and father had both been killed by the usurper. Burning with a desire for justice, the Prince tried to start a rebellion, gathering loyal men. However, his initial attempt was quickly defeated by his uncle's powerful army. The Prince was captured and thrown into a cold, dark dungeon, his quest seemingly over before it even began.
While in the dungeon, the Prince's strong will and charisma reached one of his uncle's concubines. She was stunningly beautiful, and the Prince was immediately struck by her appearance. She saw the true nobility and strength in him. Together, they began to plot the downfall of the cruel King. One night, the concubine proved her loyalty. She had charmed the guards and managed to steal the prison keys. She then used her trusted position to poison the King, making sure he would never wake up.
That same night, she slipped the keys to the Prince, allowing him to escape. With the King dead, the Prince quickly gathered the soldiers and nobles who had remained loyal to his late father. He revealed the treachery of his uncle and rallied the loyal men. The short but decisive conflict secured the kingdom under his rightful rule. The Prince and the beautiful concubine stood together as King and Queen, ending the play on a triumphant note of revenge, loyalty, and new love.
The play ended as Damian had expected. It was indeed fun to watch, but the plotline was as generic as anything he had seen in his previous life.
Then, out of the blue, Agnes asked him something that made him pity the people of this world.
"What's your biggest fear?" Agnes asked. "Mine is the fact that anyone in this room could turn into a demon. It could be the guy behind us, or worse, it could be me."
Damian was shocked at Agnes's sudden change of tone, from being cheerful to quickly becoming eerily serious. Her fear was indeed warranted, as Omni had told Damian before, only one out of ten thousand people are cultivators, meaning the rest are dormant and could combust into a demon.
"Never mind I said any of that, I don't want to bore you with needless thoughts."
****
Both Damian and Agnes left the theater after the play ended. With a stretch, Agnes turned to Damian and smiled.
"That was fun, and no lies, I saw you enjoying the play," she said.
"I wasn't going to say otherwise," Damian said. "I really enjoyed the show, thanks for this time."
"That's enough, Damian. There's no need to thank me; it's something I enjoyed too."
"Now there's one last thing we need to do," she said with a wide smile.