The Devil's Betrothed
Chapter 223: ...Easier, Smarter Way?

Chapter 223: ...Easier, Smarter Way?

Oriana was about to say her honest thoughts, but she realized she could not. It would reveal that she was the intruder who saw Seren’s face without a veil that night. Though she could not expose herself, she could not stop herself from saying something indirectly to praise the most beautiful woman she had ever seen.

"You flatter me, Your Majesty. I believe Your Majesty can only say that because you don’t often see your appearance in front of the mirror."

"You think so?" Seren asked.

"I am sure."

Seren fiddled with the hem of her veil. "Other than my nanny, no one has seen my face." There was a wisp of wistfulness in her voice, as if there was more she was not saying. "And because of that, other than my nanny, no one praised how I look. You know how nannies are. They’re supposed to praise you about everything so that doesn’t count." Seren shook her head, before she changed the subject. "Speaking of my nanny, I heard what happened from her. I believe you will take care of yourself and won’t repeat the same mistake."

"I won’t, Your Majesty." Then, she mumbled under her breath, "I won’t like to embarrass myself again like this as well."

Seren chuckled lightly. "No need to feel embarrassed. I am sure it’s nothing compared to the most embarrassing experience I had. Yours could still be considered a normal incident."

"Huh? Your Majesty have an incident to be embarrassed about?"

The young queen avoided eye contact, feeling grateful her veil could hide her blush. "Of course I do, and as I remember it now, I can’t help but feel how silly I was. Do you want to hear it?"

Oriana nodded but then asked, "Is it fine for me to know?"

Seren wanted to ease the young woman and explained what happened to her. Her tale started with a question.

"Do you remember the first time you bled?"

Oriana thought for a bit. "I ought to be twelve then, Your Majesty."

"See, when I wed my husband, I was not yet an adult. I was seventeen. We did not even have an engagement, but to make things short, what happened was that I was suddenly married off by my family.

"Imagine, a clueless girl married to an absolute stranger, sent to live in another kingdom without anyone she can trust. That was me more than half a year ago. I was confused and scared. I did not even trust Dray. In fact, I did not understand anything about being a husband and wife, a sheltered lady as blank as white paper. So, here comes the embarrassing part.

"One fine morning, I woke up in pain and found my dress coated in blood. I was horrified! I cried and cried, blaming Dray for ’poisoning’ me. Back then, I did not know anything about women having a monthly cycle and though I was seventeen, I was one of those rare girls starting their cycles late. Seeing the blood, I really thought he wanted to kill me as Dray was still a stranger to me."

Oriana tried her best not to laugh, but in the end, she could not help herself. For a moment, imagining the panic on that cold-looking king’s face...it must be a priceless sight.

Seren continued, laughing at her own gaffe. "I blamed him, but he did not get offended and instead calmly called for my lady-in-waiting. Later, Lady Tyra—that is the head servant of the Queen’s Palace—made me understand what happened and only after I calmed down did I realize what a naive fool I must have looked like then."

Oriana continued to chuckle as she asked, "However, Your Majesty, you are a princess. You should have been educated about this, right? Not to mention, you have your nanny or your mother to teach you about these things."

"It is complicated to explain but..." Seren sighed. "I was not like any other princesses. Maybe, one day you will hear the story of the infamous witch’s daughter from the Kingdom of Abetha, and then you will understand." She then lifted a hand, as if to gesture the end of her story. "Dray must be back. I will leave you to continue resting. If you need anything, just pull the string next to your bed so Eva can come attend to your needs."

Oriana nodded and she watched Seren leave. Her last words reminded Oriana of something.

"His Highness must be back as well."

But the next moment, she frowned and wondered why she even related it to him. Why was she thinking about him in the first place? Whether that cruel man is back or not, it was none of her concern.

She lay back in bed, pulling the quilt over her head, trying to hide herself.

’I really have turned into a pet who waits for her master. Since when did I turn so useless?’

She started cursing herself in her mind for thinking about the man who had only hurt her again and again. Though she was servant, she had emotions and he had no right to treat her this way- when he wanted he would pull her closer and when he did not, he would push her away.

’Maybe I am a man in his eyes so that maybe the reason. But I know I am a woman and he is man and his actions affects me so much. I...I need to go away from him. I can’t bear to feel this way. It’s not for me. I..have to go away...’

For some odd reason, a line Yorian said made its way back into her brain.

’...an easier, smarter way?’

Oriana pulled away the quilt covering her face and narrowed her eyes at the ceiling, a flash of insight causing her face to gape, as if she finally found an answer to her question which she was ragging her brain on with each passing moment.

’How come it took me so long to realize it?’ She wanted to hit herself. ’Ah, stupid! There is really an easy way! It is indeed so easy! I can resolve all of my problems. I sure have lost touch over my smartness after getting used to being a prince’s pet. But not anymore. I will get away from him safe and sound.’