The following days proceed quite quickly.
I'm getting daily lessons about how to behave at the royal court, basic knowledge and history so I appear somewhat cultured, and some instructions about things I really should avoid if I don't want to start a war.
One day, after I returned from my lessons, a slightly trembling human messenger arrives at the temporary courtyard.

 

"P-pr-pr-princess E-Erys. I sh-shall i-inform you that th-the king's envoy w-wishes to c-consult you." (human messenger)

"Ehk, okay. I'll visit him." (E)

 

And as soon as he received my answer he's running as fast as he can back to the surface.
Poor guy, but I guess it's now part of his job to go to the insect base.
But maybe they should start to ask their messengers if they have any phobias.

So the king's envoy.
I don't envy him for his job.
He certainly was traveling for quite some time, just because he has to handle my audience affairs.
I should talk to him since he's handling everything regarding my invitation.
So I'll inform him that I'm coming.
But because the messenger already left I'll have to send my own to tell him that I intend to come this instant.
I believe it's basic courtesy that I ask for permission before bringing my whole escort.

Even if this isn't their role, I commonly use nurses to send messages to the castle.
The soldiers and servants simply react better to them.
They're not as intimidating with their smaller mandibles and lack of blade arms.
This is definitely a factor.

Since those are also very motivated with their tasks it doesn't take long for her to return and tell me that the envoy will receive me now.

I'm also bringing Honiu.
She basically got the role of maintaining the security and logistics of our delegation.
So it's important that she knows what the other party has to say.
Even if I don't think that she really cares about their opinion.
But at least I can try to mediate, right?

And because "a princess cannot be left unattended" this means her "personal nurse" is coming along, or in other words, my mum.
Also, it seems Kyska gave her some instructions, so she's now more discreet during my talks with the teachers or officials, if not for occasional winks in my direction.
So our group enters the castle through the now much more frequented gateways.

At least the guards got somewhat used to my presence by now.
Or rather the stupidly large escort of one hundred elite insects shadowing me wherever I'm going.
I mean their abilities advance continuously.
Now they even practice their security tactics while moving as teams.
Two to three teams of ten soldiers scout the rooms I'm entering and very diligently check all the entrances, while the rest makes sure that a route to escape is always maintained.
I think they are doing an efficient job, but I get why people might become nervous when my royal guard swarms a new room.

We almost had incidents the first few times when the guards thought this was part of an invasion.
Now that I'm thinking about it, I should talk to that envoy about this little trait of my escort.
No matter what I say, they won't stop with it, and I understand that a minimum of security has to be maintained.
And we shouldn't forget that I'm not the one who commands the "escort" troops here.
That's the lunatic next to me.
So I should appease her by showing that I'm not abandoning all my safety measures so she doesn't have to establish her own.

After passing the hallways our group reaches the place where the envoy established his office.
While my escort is no unknown sight at this point, I hope the envoy won't be caught off guard if he just arrived and like this isn't familiar with them yet.
But I don't hear any shouts after my escort entered before me, which is a good sign.
When I enter, the king's envoy smiles in my direction as soon as he spots me.

 

"Princess Erys... and Princess Honiu if I'm right. I was sent by his highness Kieran Redora to ensure that your trip to the royal palace runs smoothly. I've heard that my predecessor lacked in many ways and want to assure you that I'll treat you with the utmost respect." (Aaron)

 

He bows deeply to us and when he raises his head, there's that smile again.

 

<At least this human knows how to conduct himself.> (H)

"Ahem, I need to say that I am unfortunately not capable of speaking your language." (A)

"It was nothing of importance Sir..." (E)

"Please, call me Aaron. His majesty sent me here to make sure that you'll arrive safely at the palace and I plan to make this happen, beginning with your soon departure." (Aaron)

 

He has a certain firmness in his voice.

 

"Ehk, yes. I as well wanted to discuss the details of our audience. Principally, the necessary preparations for the journey and how our arrival will exactly commence." (E)

"I understand. We have already prepared a coach to depart as soon as you're ready. Just give the word." (A)

 

A coach?
Oh, he doesn't know how we arrived here.
I believe this is only a courtesy from his side, but we have already our... flesh carriage.
Now that I think about it, a real carriage wouldn't be so bad.
To be honest, I'd absolutely prefer it.

 

"Would it really be fine to travel by coach? Isn't this a bit difficult to organize?" (E)

 

I'm not even sure if the tunnels are all big enough for a real coach.
And to transport it below the earth in the first place might prove to be difficult.

 

"That won't be a problem. The roads to the capital are still mostly secured. Yet it's a bit of an effort. We have to send scouts in advance and prepare sufficient protection. To make full use of the light I'd like to depart early in the morning. After this, we'd travel with only a few stops till we reach our destination." (A)

 

The roads?
He's talking about traveling on the surface!
Oh my, when did I stop thinking about this as the natural way to move from one place to the other?

But it's a shame.
The Formicea are far too overprotective to allow any less than the secured tunnels.
Even though I still don't know how "terror worms" play into that.
But I guess they're not too frequent.

And then there is Honiu.
It seems impossible to convince her to do something as risky as this.
Or not?

 

<What is with you? You're emitting strange pheromones.> (H)

<Ehk, you've heard them, right? You know, since we already traveled all the way here the usual way, I would really like to ask you if we could maybe try traveling as the humans do?> (E)

<Like humans?> (H)

<Ehk, skriakiek!/Well, we would ride a coach, a special construction made of hard materials which get drawn by creatures, called horses. We'd sit comfortably in there, while it would carry us on the... surface.> (E)

<Skruk, cru!/So you're implying that we should abandon our safe position in our realm in exchange for foreign territory where attacks could come from all sides. And what would be the advantage?> (H)

 

If she says it like this...

 

<It would be a little bit more entertaining? Instead of always having the same tunnels around us we could watch the environment. The surface can be very diverse. Traveling might be more interesting this way.> (E)

<So your reason to take such great risks is that you're seeking entertainment?> (H)

 

Damn, I'm looking quite stupid now, huh?

 

<It's no good, right?> (E)

 

Now I'm slightly depressed.

 

<I wouldn't say so. If this is your wish I'll accept it.> (H)

<Really, just like that?> (E)

<Naturally not. Our safety has still to be guaranteed. This means we'll need a sufficient escort. Not only your royal guard but a suitable number of drones to protect us from any possible threat. But if this is given then I am not against some distraction. After all, the mental state of a princess is of greatest importance.> (H)

<This means I can?!> (E)

"Ahem, I tried not to disturb you, but would it be possible to involve me in your conversation?" (A)

"We, we were discussing how we would make a journey per coach happen. You need to know, it's quite a bit different from our usual means of transportation, but apparently we are open for this." (E)

"Oh, I'm sorry, we should have considered this. Are there any measures to make this easier on you?" (A)

"Especially security is an issue. Are we allowed to bring a sufficient escort with us on the way?" (E)

"Uh, it could be a problem to enter the capital with too great of a force. The people are currently very apprehensive, due to the war." (A)

"No, no. Only for the journey. We would keep the escort for the capital at a minimum." (E)

 

I omit here that we'd have a whole army in attendance underground of the capital.
But I believe one of the reasons the people of Osari are still so apprehensive of us is that the "sufficiently big" escort back when I first arrived looked imposing.
They had the impression we were an invading army and that made them anxious.
However, if they don't see them it should be fine.

 

"There is but one problem." (H)

"Ah, princess, you can talk?" (A)

"Naturally. I'm no savage and learned the ways of those I'm interacting with. Different from others." (H)

"Ahem, what is now the issue?" (A)

"We'd need several stops for our intervals." (H)

 

Oh shit! I totally forgot about the eggs!
It's so much of a daily thing by now that I'm not really thinking about it.

 

"Ehk, how long will the journey take?" (E)

"The capital is quite a distance away from here. We should plan for a week till we arrive." (A)

 

Far too long, shit!
I can at most hold in for a day and already this isn't healthy as far as I know.
But the eggs I'll accumulate in a week are far too many to store.

 

"That's... not feasible." (E)

"Not necessarily. I'd have to see the planned route." (H)

"The route? It would lead along the main roads. Uh, here's the map." (A)

 

He shows the map of Tarsona.
Even for me, this is interesting.
I had a hunch of the general topography, but nothing more detailed than the closest settlements.
Now I can see the locations of the cities, villages, and how they're connected.

 

"So, we'd travel this way, and in the end arrive at this point." (A)

 

He shows the route with his finger. I can see that we would pass some settlement on the way.

 

"Scrah, I see. Erys, where would the hive be according to this "map"." (H)

 

Should I really say this here in front of all the people?
On the other side, we already know the location of the capital so it's only fair.

 

"Around here, I think." (E)

 

At least, I know where our home was and the hive isn't too far away from there.

 

"Perfect. Then we will make stops during the tour, so the eggs can be transported." (H)

"Ehk, I'm not sure if I can time this." (E)

"Naturally you can't. You will push them out and our brood will carry them along the way. Those points are only to let them bring the eggs through the tunnels to the respective facilities and feed the drones and also exchange our escort. Fortunately, your sessions aren't so long, as your mother told me." (H)

 

Mum!?
What did she tell her?!
And now the person in question looks guilty away!

 

"E-eggs?" (A)

<Scrikik!/Could you, maybe not point this out so strongly? There are people here.> (E)

"Why would I omit this? It's the most important occupation of a princess to produce brood. It's something no one should forget about! Those humans should know that we won't decrease our production because of their whims." (H)

 

Shit, can I bury myself somewhere?
I get right now a better understanding why one might want to live below the earth.

 

"Ah, okay... We... really should consider this. We already planned for some stops as the horses and men have to rest. But how would this work? There are no gateways to your realm, right." (A)

"Not yet, but I sufficiently remembered the system so I can assign them to open passages. For a simple opening they'll be done before we reach the points." (H)

"Uh, as you wish. But please inform me beforehand about the planned locations. We have to warn the populace of the respective areas." (A)

 

I can understand that the sudden emergence of giant insects can be disturbing for some people.

 

"Then let's figure this out. At least this isn't boring." (H)

 

After this, they agree on several settlements along the way where gateways could be built.
I need to say that Honiu seems to be surprisingly capable.
It's different from Liseti but she has as well a regal way to handle herself.
I just hope the messengers, the human ones, will arrive before the tunnels break through to the surface.
In the end, we have a concrete plan for our grand tour.
And even if I still don't like her, I am impressed.
And I know that I owe her for this as the alternative with the coach sounds very pleasant.
So I should do as mum taught me and give my thanks.

 

<Skreo, skrii!/Ahem, Honiu. I know that you didn't have to support this and I thank you for your cooperation.> (E)

<That isn't necessary. I did it for myself. The surface promises some distraction so I'm more than willing to plan a bit so I can entertain myself with it.> (H)

 

Okay, I remember that she was chronically bored.
But if this helps her and works out in my favor then I think I should be glad.
After we walked a bit further, Honiu suddenly adds,

 

<And if we die because of this venture this will bother Uma more than anything else.> (H)

 

Suddenly, I ask myself if it was really a good idea to assign the responsibility for our security to her.