"To avoid all the messiness that your first attempt resulted in," Matron Loom replied, "We will have a contest that who wins it will be betrothed to you."
"I'm supposed to marry the girl who wins this thing?"
"Eventually, yes."
The pigtailed prince still didn't want to get married, but the idea of having it being delayed for some time appealed. But there was one thing he was having trouble understanding. "Umm... Why would you think a contest would be a good idea?"
"Simple. This way we avoid any other problems. Only girls who would want to enter will, and the contest would weed out all the girls who wouldn't be up to the task they would be vying for."
"But what if there just happens to be more than one girl who gets to the end, or looks to be a good co-wife?" called out a voice from the back.
Matron Loom looked down her nose at the speaker. "In the case that we have more than one, then we'll simply have to have them share in some fashion. And if the Prince finds that he can not let a girl, or a group of girls, leave disappointed, then we shall have a decision then, won't we?"
More than one feminine set of eyes got a faraway look in them, and blushes lit cheeks as various girls considered gaining the Prince's eye enough to be chosen.
Ranma looked over the various girls and women, and wondered where that chill running down his back was coming from.
Genma had a sensible question though. "Who would this be open to?"
"Anyone who wished to enter," Matron Loom informed him.
"But how will they know?"
"The announcement will be going out soon enough."
"I just hope it's not really out there," the Prince groused.
"Do not worry. We have worked to make certain that it is properly presented."
Ken had come to work at the station much as he had every day. No matter whether there was a major attack, crime, or natural disaster, he came in figuring that it would be just another day of hectic rushing to get out the news better and faster than their competitors. He might have been only a cameraman, but he was sure that he had seen it all.
But even he hadn't seen a tall man with pointed ears and some kind of uniform standing in front of his lens as they went to a live feed.
"Hear ye, hear ye," the herald declared as he read from the unrolled parchment he held, "By order of His Highness, Prince Ranma, there shall be a competition the morning several days hence for any unmarried females, in which the winner, or winners, shall gain a betrothal to the Prince. The rules shall be posted wherever possible, and given out to any who may want to review them."
'This is going to be interesting,' Ken thought to himself, while:
(Posted Wed, 11 Feb 2004 01:09)
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