Raised From The Wild-Chapter 46: Funeral

Zanzara cannot keep her curiosity to herself. "Cousin? Back on the island, did you sleep with him?"

"Yes, we sleep together." There was no malice in Amaya’s voice.

There was a pin-drop silence in the room after Amaya’s declaration.

Marx coughed lightly.

"Your Majesty, Amaya is just a child. Do not put malice in her words. What she meant by sleeping together is not the same as what you have in mind. She is pure and innocent so do not misunderstand her." Marx did not want to tarnish Amaya’s reputation. He did not want her to be misunderstood.

"We were in the middle of the jungle at that time. Daddy Ibrahim and I made a tree house, but that tree house was very small just enough for two people to sleep together. We went to look for friends of Marx. We sleep there as it was nighttime and there was a tree house. It was more comfortable than sleeping in a cave." Amaya explained.

"Do you know what sleeping together means cousin?" Tatiana wanted to clarify with Amaya.

"Isn’t it lying down together and sleeping?" Amaya’s eyelashes fluttered.

"When a man and woman sleep together then it means that they have sex." Zanzara spelled it out for her.

Amaya’s face was blank. She looked around trying to understand what they were asking of her. Marx’s face became expressionless. He was disgusted by Zanzara’s and Tatiana’s probing questions.

Clarissa, her governess looked at her gently. She took into consideration that this princess was not exposed to the ways of the world and her thinking process was different.

"Aryana, normally when people here asked you about sleeping together, it is akin to animals mating. So, you should be careful how you answer, otherwise, people will misunderstand you." Clarissa explained. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Amaya’s eyes finally brightened. She understood what they were asking. "Marx and I didn’t do that. We just slept and did nothing else."

The king and the crown prince were relieved to hear Amaya’s words. The princess consort sneered.

’What an idiot. She will easily be manipulated.’

The king dismissed everyone. Amaya retreated to her room to sleep.

The following morning, photos of Amaya lying on the grass and stargazing with a mysterious man became viral. A lot of netizens criticized her. They were saying that it was improper for a princess to act indecently. Others were understanding of her since she was raised in the jungle.

’People, why are you putting malice on a seemingly innocent act? What is immoral or indecent about stargazing?’ a netizen asked and his question earned a lot of likes.

An hour after the photos were exposed on the internet, they disappeared without a trace. People assumed it was the work of the monarchy. They did not want scandals that would taint their name.

Tatiana was displeased. She was the one who leaked the photos. She was using Amaya to boost her popularity. She was about to post her explanation about the photos when they were suddenly deleted.

Amaya has no idea that in the past two days, she has been the trending topic on the internet. She was the most popular personality in the whole of Lireya. Princess Consort Nelida, Zanzara, and Tatiana were jealous, and they were not happy that people were starting to adore Amaya and address her as the First Princess.

’As early as now, Amaya is already stealing the limelight from Danella. I should not let this continue. Well, I will let Zanzara and Tatiana handle this first.’ Nelida smiled slyly.

At 4:00 pm, preparation for Ibarra’s interment started. During the funeral memorial service, his classmates and friends from school and his colleagues from the military from four countries gave their eulogy. Amaya listened attentively and learned more about her father from another person’s perspective. Amaya was surprised to see Marx come up the stage to give his eulogy.

"My only regret is I never met Ibrahim in person. I knew him through his daughter and the things he left behind. He was an excellent man, a son that Lireya should be proud of. I admire his ingenuity. Only a genius can survive a plane that exploded in midair. I admire his courage. Only a courageous man can survive the harsh environment of Miraga. I admire his intellect and curiosity. Thanks to him we discovered new plants and animal species." Marx glanced at Amaya briefly and then at the portrait of Ibrahim.

"I admire his fatherly love. Which father would think about educating his daughter with the knowledge of the world when there were only the two of them and the chance of being rescued is nil? Which father would learn jewelry and dressmaking so he can make her daughter happy?"

Tears started to trickle down Amaya’s face. She did not make any sound. Her heart swelled with pride. How did Marx understand her father so well?

He took out a piece of paper from his pocket. "This is the last entry in Ibrahim’s journal, the last token of a father’s love for his daughter. He was willing to give up half of his possession to whoever can bring his daughter back to civilization. He signed this and thumb marked with his blood."

Marx took out a lancet and pricked his finger.

"With all of you present here as my witness, I hereby seal this contract with my blood. I am not interested in his possession. I only wanted to carry out his wish about his daughter." He placed his thumbprint beside Ibrahim’s and raised it for everyone to see.

He saluted the coffin and went down the platform. Amaya stood from her seat and went to the foot of the stairs. She hugged him as she rested her wet face on his chest.

Everyone was dumbfounded including Marx. ’Was she allowed to show such intimacy in public?’ Ibarra looked at his father but the king was also at a loss.

Zanzara’s eyes widened. ’What the heck? She is really shameless.’

Marx patted Amaya on the back. He gently untangled her arms from him and escorted her back to her seat like a gentleman. He acted as if nothing had happened.

Tatiana was busy looking down at her cell phone so she missed the scene. When she looked up, Marx was already escorting Amaya to her seat. She looked around in bewilderment. ’Why does everyone has an awkward look on their faces?’

"Sister, what happened?" Tatiana whispered to Zanzara.

"What a pity you missed it. Just check the Internet. Another scandal is brewing."