Saved By The Mad Duke
Chapter 159: The Crown Prince’s Wife

Chapter 159: The Crown Prince’s Wife

As soon as Loraline was finally free from the company of the second prince, she rushed back to her lady, her entire body trembling with both fear and a suffocating sense of failure. Opening the door to the princess’s bedroom, she nearly fell to her knees, lamenting with tears swelling in her eyes.

"Your Highness! I am truly sorry! Please, forgive me!"

"Loraline? What is happening? Why are you crying?!"

Melania ran to Loraline and knelt before her, wrapping her arms around the woman’s shaking shoulders. The lady-in-waiting tried to explain through a torrent of bitter tears.

"I could not do it, My Lady! He saw me! And he took the blood! I have failed you, I am so incredibly sorry!"

The princess’s face momentarily grew pale, the true meaning of her attendant’s words twisting her lungs from the inside, choking the air they had previously breathed. As she watched Loraline cry her eyes out and hit herself in the chest with every broken inhale, Melania, too, felt tears running down her cheeks.

’What is this cursed man anyway? It is as if he is everywhere, like a prison guard. And I am indeed a sole prisoner here. I am only allowed to send out the letters approved by them and meet people they allow me to meet. What misery it is... What woe.’

"Loraline..." Struggling to make her voice sound as calm as possible, the princess wiped her cheeks with the soft sleeves of her dress and continued, "The letter... Did he get the letter too?"

The lady-in-waiting finally lifted her head from her chest and shook it, denying her lady’s terrifying assumption.

"No, I sent it before I met Prince Valon. The letter is safe."

"Good. Thank you, Loraline."

Rising to her feet, Melania slowly walked up to her bed and positioned herself on its edge, her trembling hands tightly gripping the soft blanket that covered it. She was convinced her plan would work. If before she came to Geraldion she was prepared to share a bed with the man she had never even met before, now that her heart truly belonged to another, the mere thought of someone else’s vile touch on her was making her skin crawl.

’I do not even have the right to be upset. I’m a married woman, after all. Yuraon is miles away; he will marry another lady and make her his queen. He will share a bed with her and have children. I will have to do the same with Prince Yanad. Whatever is happening between me and King Yuraon is a secret love affair that can get me shamed and sent as a lowly servant to the temple. It will bring shame upon my family and Lafad itself. And yet... I can’t force myself to stop dreaming about being in love.’

Melania shifted her empty brown eyes to Loraline and saw everything before her become blurry as more tears ran down her face. Scared for the princess’s well-being, the attendant took a seat beside her and embraced her in her warm arms, her chin resting on her hair as she whispered,

"What are we going to do now, Your Highness?"

The princess let out a long sigh and whispered back,

"There is nothing to do, Loraline. I have to be who I came here to be. I have to be the Crown Prince’s wife."

***

"Greetings, Lord Valentine, Lady Valentine. I apologize for coming here unannounced."

Sarith entered the gates of the castle and made his way to the main entrance, accompanied by three Holy Knights who followed behind him.

Both the paladin’s appearance and the sound of his voice made Ahspid flinch and recoil; the sudden change in his usually nonchalant expression was a clear signal of his utmost distress.

Having noticed such a strong reaction from her mentor, Aideen stepped in front of him, discreetly pulling Tillian by his sleeve as a signal for him to do the same. Sarith finally approached the masters of the castle and offered them a nod, accompanied by an introduction.

"My name is Sarith, I am the Chief Paladin of the Holy Church. It is a pleasure to finally meet you."

"Tillian Valentine. Likewise." The Duke responded with a nod of his own. "May I ask you what the reason for your visit is, Your Reverence?"

"Of course, Your Grace." Sarith gestured to one of the knights who, in turn, retrieved a sealed note from his inside pocket and handed it over to the paladin. The man then broke the seal and handed it to Duke Valentine, resuming his explanation.

"The Holy Church has detected abnormal use of magic in these lands, and as far as I know, there are no registered mages in The North. The law dictates that I investigate the use of unregistered magic and take appropriate measures. If you understand what I mean."

Tillian furrowed his eyebrows, his deep red eyes scanning the order written on the Holy Church’s notice in his hands. Aideen hugged her husband’s other hand with both of hers, her body succumbing to slight shivers of realization––she was the reason the paladin was here.

’It was me, it was definitely because of me. I used a lot of my mana to cause the avalanche.’

A light smile graced Sarith’s lips once more. Then, he peeked from behind the princess’s shoulder, his face darkening as his bright golden eyes noticed the purple-haired magus.

"Ahspid Adell, long time no see. It was quite rude of you to disappear for so many years like this; we now have so many things to discuss together. And we have many places to visit, too."

Aideen blocked the paladin’s sight again, offering him a stern and even somewhat warning look. Tillian, too, understood the situation clearly, handed the official note back to the man in front of him and said,

"I apologize, Revered Sarith, but all business talks must be postponed. My wife and I have just returned from a very exhausting trip around our fiefdom and you, too, I believe, are quite tired from the journey here. I suggest that we all take a few hours off to rest and then meet for dinner where we can discuss everything that needs to be discussed."