"Oh, Lady Cassia...!!", a voice resounded through across the streets, alerting the populace to her arrival. The princess in charge of these lands had come for a visit.
The dragon attacks had been sporadic, but predictably destructive in the cities unfortunate to have been hit the hardest... This was one such city, but as one found their way inside, they'd be hard pressed to even say so.
"At ease everyone... I'm here as just any other visitor today~", she spoke, waving her hand soothingly, resting her hand on the shoulder of the nearest person, a shopkeeper who'd left his business to join the few who converged around the voluptuous vision of violet who just surprised them with her presence, "Fufu~... Wouldn't want my advisors to find out I slipped out of the castle hmm?"
As a princess, she still had the luxury of time, to stroll around the city with a smile on her face to mingle with the commonfolk as they went about their daily lives... Poised, and graceful as befitting a woman of her status, yet not ostentatious in any way - clad in a breezy, classy white dress adorning her full figured form, fit for a day outside and not the stern political endeavors her role demanded. If she became Queen as she and her supporters envisioned, days like these would become few and far between. The responsibility of ruling a region weighed heavily on one's shoulders, yet didn't quite compare to that of ruling a mighty country like Bosco, held together by the shared interests of their ruling class, which could just as easily pull the country apart if mismanaged:
"Thank you for all the help you've given us, Lady Cassia. Our home is finally rebuilt...!", spoke one woman, a grocery saleswoman as she slipped to the front of the crowd, earning a smile from the princess as she couldn't help but nod thankfully to one of her advisors in turn.
"I'm glad to hear that... You have Sir Gottlieb's hard work to thank for that as well.", she spoke, resting her hand on the woman's smiling, "We endured this calamity together and we'll continue rebuilding together. The city looks more beautiful than ever~"
Indeed, even surrounded herself by her people, Cassia accompanied herself not by armed guards, but a handful of assistants and trusted advisors. For all her playfulness, she never truly forgot her position and the power it held, all the more so if she secured the necessary enough support to rule. At he end of the day, Cassia was just one woman. She dedicated her life to her role as a ruler and not so much to other pursuits, to studying the rule of law she'd want her country to live under, just like the proper progressive nation it was. She knew the constitution and monarchic law better than anybody in her court, but for every other matter deferred to those who knew better than her... And as she continued on her stroll, she couldn't help but admire the hard work of those responsible for rebuilding and developing the land, small devastated towns into prosperous, burgeoning cities once more. But even her open mindedness didn't stop her from questioning her advisor's decisions, such as when she walked right past a bustling street, and turned left to find an utterly levelled city block.
"Oh dear...", her hand raised over her mouth, appalled at the sight before her... City block felt more like an understatement really, the area stretched out as far as she could see past the rubble, looking quite literally like a dragon had raged through it. Almost immediately, her brow furrowed, arms folding under her chest as she turned to the same advisor she'd praised no more than a few minutes ago, "Jürgen, I remember you informing me reconstructions were almost complete?"
"...T-That quarter is...", the man jolted, awkwardly as she rubbed his temple and glanced away in shame, turning towards the destruction and sighing, almost exhasperated, "That part of the city is devastated beyond repair. Not just the metalwork, but much of the stone seems to have melted by dragonfire. It stretches out quite far too, so the best we could do with these resources was to slowly clear around it and make our way in."
"What about the citizens...?", she inquired, not remotely interested in what could be rebuilt, not nearly as much as the lives that would be affected.
"They've been relocated to the other parts of the city for now..."
Cassia turned to the man at his wit's end, away from the problem in front of them, her look stern yet not strict as she rested a hand on his shoulder:
"How many times have told you, don't sugarcoat the truth for me... Problems may surprise you when you least expect them, that's only natural...", she chided him, in the end just smiling as she added, "...But we can't really solve them by turning a blind eye now, can we?"