My Disfigured Duke Husband Helps Me Plot My Revenge
Chapter 273: Found

Chapter 273: Found

Stephano saw Desmond and Leonor go under the walkway and out of the ballroom to cool themselves off. He could justify their departure considering they did as they were told and took part in the first dance–even going so far as to participate in the second one and only leaving when the room was satisfied.

In the King’s opinion, however, Quinn didn’t have an excuse for leaving already. He wasn’t required to greet anyone but he could have at least stuck around and waited for him considering he was supposed to be his mage.

Seeing Cian gone as well made Stephano’s head feel hot. Would it be like before? Would he find the two of them with one another as they commiserate over-hating the palace?

Stephano bit his lip and had to hold himself back from making himself bleed.

Quinn knew that he hated the palace, too, so why wouldn’t the mage vent to him instead? They had years more friendship than he and that knight.

Stephano was stuck in the palace and had no choice but to continue with his duties as if being there wasn’t a mausoleum for the suffering he had endured in his life. He had no one to comfort him while everyone could go off and enjoy themselves away from him.

How could he meet people when he was stuck there? If even his friends weren’t wanting to stick around, who else did he have?

As much as he tried to clear out much of the staff in charge of taking care of his father, he couldn’t get rid of everyone. In turn, he couldn’t trust anyone either.

Stephano faced away from the people still in the ballroom enjoying refreshments or dancing. He wore an expression of pure anguish he couldn’t show the people. He needed to be strong for them even if he had to stand by himself.

The King had already had much to drink that evening but it didn’t stop him from grabbing the chalice off of the table that was filled and waiting for him. He decided that, since all his guests were occupied in one way or another, he could step outside with little repercussion. It isn’t as if the guards would allow the situation to get out of hand anyway.

Slipping out of the ballroom, he chugged down the chalice. As he lowered the glass, expecting to be able to move forward effortlessly, he was shocked to be stopped by running into something soft.

To his horror, that something was an intoxicated Anna Marie with more hanging out of her dress than Stephano ever cared to see.

His impact with her was going to make her fall over so he had no choice but to lay a hand on her and straighten her out. It wouldn’t be good if he was caught in the hallway with a drunk woman. His reputation as a womanizer had never done anything positive for him and he didn’t want any confirmations about it.

"Y-your Majesty," she uttered with half-lidded eyes. "Did you come out here to see me?"

"Not, particularly, my lady," he uttered. "I have business to attend to elsewhere. Perhaps you ought to cool down in one of the sitting areas. I’ve made sure the servants keep the rooms attended to."

"Well, perhaps..." she responded.

Stephano let go of her shoulders, but she started moving towards him. It wasn’t until she extended her arms and clung to him that he realized what her intentions were.

Anna pressed her lips against the King’s, leaving behind a smear of rouge on his lips as she was pushed away.

Stephano lifted the back of his hand to his lips and stared at the girl in horror.

"How dare you lay your hand on the King," Stephano scoffed.

Was she cunning enough to play drunk? Was that her intention all along or was she drunk enough to misread the situation?

Regardless, he felt eyes on him and all he could do was separate her from him.

There was a guard by the door leading outside already on his way forward as he watched the King shove a woman away.

"Take her somewhere she won’t cause any more trouble," the King demanded, trying to make his innocence believable. "I will look past this incident considering my connection with the Buriens, but this is the final straw."

"Your Majesty," she uttered desperately. "You are the one who followed me into the hallway." Her voice became louder. "You have a way of leading someone on. I am worth more than that!"

Stephano was backing away from the situation, but he soon realized why she was talking louder. The door to the ballroom had opened and people were coming outside.

Considering how intoxicated he was starting to become, he knew it wouldn’t be worth anything if he stayed there and pleaded his case. It wasn’t as if anyone could say anything against him without repercussions.

He quickly escaped the door he had originally set out for.

"Don’t let anyone exit this way," he ordered another guard. "Tell Antoine to handle the lady."

He was referring to a butler who had gotten used to cleaning up after the late King. Why should Stephano be so different from his father when he could just as easily be exactly the same?

Before he even realized what he was doing, Stephano was on autopilot and heading toward the mage’s quarter. He had an empty chalice in his hands and was hardly reacting out of anything more than instinct.

Quinn was who pissed him off the most that night so he was going to seek him out and tell him how he felt about it. Perhaps if Quinn wasn’t interested in taking on the duties as his head mage, he could find someone else.

Stephano brushed a gloved hand over his face and into his hair. He didn’t want anyone else by his side. He was thinking in extremes because he was hurt.

As he stepped through the doors, there was no one on the first level but as he went deeper into the space, his eyes widened at Cian’s outer coat hanging over a chair. He stumbled towards it and leaned into the chair.

What on Earth could they be doing that Cian would need to remove his clothing?

With only the worst scenarios playing in his mind, Stephano kept going and made his way to the second floor. He held onto the coat as if he needed a reminder of the betrayal his friend participated in. Why was he not worthy of being chosen over an Eirenguardian who was considered an enemy of Castille?

Even if Cian had been nothing but cordial, he still wished Quinn would pay him more attention. Did he want more? Perhaps he could convince the mage to give him attention if he gave him more.

The King stopped in the empty hallway on the second floor and he stumbled to one of the walls. Just like Quinn a short while before, he had to hold onto shelves as he walked by. He was starting to feel particularly dizzy.

Normally he didn’t allow himself to get so out of control but socializing made him drink more than usual. He couldn’t talk to so many people if he didn’t have a crutch of some sort.

Knowing just where Quinn would be with Cian, Stephano took to the final staircase. Although, he had to stop halfway up and grab his head as he stabilized himself. The alcohol he drank outside of the ballroom was hitting him at full force.

Even in such a state, mana was second nature to him and he knew how to unlock Quinn’s door considering he was the one who set it up in the first place. After all, he knew how much the younger mage valued his privacy.

Stumbling into the space, he witnessed Cian hanging onto Quinn and Stephano felt sick to his stomach. Whether it was because of the alcohol or the strange jealousy eating him alive, he wasn’t entirely sure.

"Why is it that whenever you’re not supposed to be someplace, I always find you with him?"

That was enough for Cian to spring forward and Quinn to fall against the workbench. He wasn’t in a state to be surprised.

However, Stephano’s focus wasn’t on the knight but on the mage who had wounded him so deeply. It was only after seeing him that he realized the man he once thought he meant a lot to was finished with him.

Yet what he did to ruin their friendship was beyond his understanding. It hurt even worse.

Since the two of them didn’t answer, Stephano stumbled forward again and pushed the knight to the side. He then approached Quinn, placing his hands on either side of the workbench so the mage was trapped. He looked down at the slightly shorter man.

"Tell me why you hate me so badly or what I did to wrong you in such a way," Stephano demanded. "It feels like you took all of the air away and now I can’t breathe. Why can’t you be my friend?"

Quinn had drank more than he should have, but the wine he smelled on the King’s breath, he knew that Stephano had drank far more than that.

"I ought to handle this," Quinn uttered, glancing at the knight.

Cian could only be understanding as he sheathed his sword and left behind two drunk men. It was beyond his understanding and none of his business anyway.