Queen Of Monsters

Ru Naya woke up early in excitement.

She was really eager today since she was finally meeting up with her best friend after a month. Zan Mei had been gone on a hunt in the forest near the border of the Human Lands, Bon Sicini, in search of any witches or creatures that lurked about in the endless expanse of the dark woodlands. Zan Mei was a part of one of the numerous groups that hunted near the border of the dangerous jungle where trees rarely encroached. Despite being on the edge, the animals living there were extremely dangerous- not to mention if a witch happened to be passing by. Therefore, the hunts were not safe and every time Ru Naya said bye to her friends, she was well aware that she could be bidding them farewell for the very last time.

Despite the dangers presented by the forest, Ru Naya loved to go hunting. In the imperial city, she and Yan Lin were two of the best hunters. They've hunted as deep as two kilometers in the jungle and made it out unscathed.

They were remotely popular in the city because of their skills, but this did not please the Ru family, as they were one of the many households who wanted to solidify their position among the aristocrats by using marriage. Therefore, their main goal was to have prim and proper daughters who were ready to become a good wife. It was essential for them to do so because they didn't have a high standing in the society where the royal family lived. Since Ru Jiahao was merely an advisor to the minister of finance of the royal court, the only way to go up the ladder was to get their daughters married off to a person of a higher status. Unfortunately for him, Ru Naya was opposite of what he wanted his daughters to be, as she was too free spirited, brash and un-ladylike. Therefore, because of her behaviour she was shunned by her family.

Her older sister, however, was treated differently since she was the apple of the family's eyes. Ru Yaya was perfect: she was gentle, ladylike and most of all, was submissive. She was the dream girl of many men and a role model for other women. She was also the only hope for the Ru Family.

Ru Naya was already 20, while Ru Yaya was 22. Therefore, it was time for these two ladies to settle down, so it was imperative that both of them started looking for a good man from a good family. Thus, Ru Naya going out to meet her hooligan friends and going hunting was even more of an issue in the family than it had ever been before.

"Mother," Ru Naya skipped out of her room and into the courtyard, where her mom was issuing orders to the servants. The servants took notice of the youngest lady of the Ru Family and scurried away quickly.

"Ru Naya," Xue Lan said exasperatedly, "where are you going so early in the morning? you have classes today!"

Ru Naya wrinkled her nose. Classes, she hated these classes! These were classes where she had to learn how to sit, eat, talk like a woman from high society. The classes were held by a royal tutor in the courtyard where he taught not only the Ru sisters but also nearby ladies who were hoping to become a proper wife. Of course, Ru Naya found the classes and the ladies obnoxious so she tended to skip these whenever she could.

"Er," Ru Naya said slowly, "I'm going to meet someone."

"Who?" Her mother said suspiciously, before widening her eyes, " don't tell me you're going to meet that runt Yan Lin! I cannot believe you are sneaking out to meet that outrageous boy again!"

Ugh, Ru Naya thought wearily, here we go again.

"First, I'm not meeting him. Second, he is your future son-in-law so don't call him names," Ru Naya spoke tersely. She left in a hurry before her mother could call her father to take her away and lock her inside the house.

---

Ru Naya had been 5 years old when she met an 11 year old boy from the slums called Yan Lin. At first he treated her like a little sister and taught her all about the forest and the hunts. He was the reason she became who she is today, much to her parents' chagrin. They tried to drive Yan Lin away so many times, even threatening to hurt his family members but he never stopped meeting Ru Naya. Somewhere down the line they started partnering up for the hunts and then in real life. Ru Naya was head over heels for the man, as he was a kind and gentle soul, a man who only wanted the best for her.

She hurriedly ran to border of the royal city, where hunters had to get inspected before being allowed to enter. This was done to make sure that some witch hadn't managed to sneak with them.

If that were the case then god only knows how catastrophic that would be.

Ru Naya zig zagged through the narrow lanes to reach the wall demarcating the end of the human lands. She only slowed down when she the saw guards on the duty. Since today was a relatively peaceful day for them they were gathered around in a group, polishing their swords while chatting with each other.

"Hey!" she waved to the guards, and they greeted her back. They all were quite familiar with each other since she had to pass through the inspections after hunting. They also offered her some food and water but Ru Naya declined politely. She was just too excited to eat or drink anything because of the anticipation of seeing her best friend.

"Nana!" An excited voice rang out.

"Zan Mei!" Ru Naya screamed back happily when she saw her best friend finally enter the wall.

Zan Mei was her friend who she had met when she was around ten. Back then Ru Naya could have never thought that the daughter of a wealthy merchant would also share her passion of hunting. They quickly bonded over with each other and ever since remained best friends.

Ru Naya almost teared up when Zan Mei started to run towards her after passing the inspection. They both hugged each other hard, almost suffocating but unwilling to let go either.

"My god," Zan Mei finally backed off, "Nana, I missed you so much!"

"Me too! Let's get something to eat while we catch up," Ru Naya grinned.

Though she had been to the forest so many times, she never got tired of hearing about the adventures of the other hunters. The dark forest was an alluring and an uncharted place, full of deadly secrets.

It also contained the wastelands of Karasi: the court where all the witches resided. According to the legends, the forest was bewitched by the witches who were evil, and only craved violence and destruction.

Zan Mei and Ru Naya walked along the streets and talked all about her excursion. Their group didn't met any witches or animals, and thus this excursion was deemed as a wasted effort.

"Don't say that," Ru Naya consoled her gently after seeing her best friend's fallen face, "hey! Yan Lin and I are going to go on a hunt in a few days, you should come!"

"Really?" Zan Mei brightened up, then drooped again, "Forget it, I don't wanna be a third wheel."

"Hunting is a serious business, so we won't get lovey-dovey. I promise." Ru Naya said seriously.

Yes, they were in love but both Ru Naya and Yan Lin knew about the seriousness of the hunts. Although the witches that made it to the edges weren't as strong as the ones residing in Karasi, they still were dangerous, and they didn't know who they would actually end up coming across. After all, they could easily come across someone dangerous like Yu Han.

Yu Han was the head of all the witches and the worst of them all. She was a dangerous evil woman who hid in the shadows but was the cause of every destruction and epidemic that hit the humans or the monsters. If the pair of lovebirds were to meet Yu Han, they would never have a chance to survive.

No one did.

Zan Mei finally agreed after that, and the two friends chatted away about everything they missed out on. They talked about their love lives to family lives and everything in between. The topic then shifted to the royal family of Bon Sicini; The royal family was usually always the talk of the people, especially in the imperial city where they resided in the imperial palace. This time the news was huge as the crown prince had finally agreed to marry. It was a big deal because not only was one lucky lady marrying the future king, she would also become the princess and the next queen of all the humans.

It was a bombshell news that had spread throughout the city, especially since the royal kingdom announced that anyone was allowed to become the princess, and thus all the non-aristocrats, such as the Ru family and their family friends had a chance to compete and become the future queen: the highest position in the human court after the emperor's. The families already had their daughters prepared to propose to the crown prince and Ru Yaya was one of the hopeful ladies as well.

"My god, have you seen the prince?" Zan Mei said dreamily, "he becomes more handsome every day!"

Ru Naya had to agree reluctantly. Yan Lin was good looking but he was nothing in front of the godly prince. The crown prince was the strongest person amongst all the three races that lived in this world. On top of that he was practically perfect in everything he did: from fighting to ruling the country. Talk about unfair.

"Uh yeah," Ru Naya rolled her eyes. She had heard about the prince every damn day. It wasn't a secret in the Ru family that Ru Yaya was obsessed with the prince ever since she was a young girl. She adored the man so much that once she had sworn that she would only marry him and no one else, much to her parent's delight. Ru Naya on the other hand, thought it was insane. The royal family had never even seen the Ru family and her older sister talked as if she was already married to him!

"I wish I could marry him," Zan Mei was already lost in her fantasies, "I would be the happiest girl if I did."

Ru Naya held her hands sympathetically, "you could try proposing to him.."

"Are you kidding?" Zan Mei exclaimed, "So many women have already been rejected by him! ladies from powerful and rich families weren't even granted audience with the prince, then what chance do I have?"

Zan Mei's eyes darkened and then she shook her head, "You know what? I have already spent a lot of time here, I must go and greet my family now. Oh Nana, let's meet up again!"

Ru Naya nodded and then they quickly hugged before Zan Mei left. Ru Naya stayed where she was. When Zan Mei was talking, she had noticed that someone had been eyeing her. He got up at the same time Zan Mei did, and after Zan Mei left, the man sidled in the vacant spot she left behind.