The Royal Revenge
Chapter 220: I Love You

Chapter 220: I Love You

Just as Aleksander had thought, his queen’s sleep was riddled with nightmares. The vampire thought she would have preferred to be left alone in her sleep, but he wanted to alleviate her woes even just for a few hours.

He reached out his hand to her forehead, touching the center of her temple with the tip of his finger, careful not to scratch her with his nail.

The young king closed his eyes and thought of the most wonderful garden he had ever seen during his childhood. It was the place he had been the happiest before he knew about him being related to his crazy father – his mother’s garden.

It was littered with a wide array of perennial flowers, vines creeping into the archway of the entrance.

A huge congregation of wisterias created a purplish canopy near a tiny lake near their small cottage, and Aleksander spent most of his days with his mother playing around while she was busy collecting plants.

For whatever purposes she used them for, he had no clue whatsoever.

The young Aleksander did not bother for the world except when it involved his mother – the only person he has ever loved and cared about.

Now that he had thought of it, Aleksander actually had a few happy memories he could hold on to. He just lost track of it all when his father came into the picture and the betrayal he felt after he carelessly disposed of young Aleksander.

He even blamed the late king of why he couldn’t remember the face of his mother.

The vampire king shook his head suddenly. This was not the time to be thinking about himself and his unfortunate circumstances back when he was younger.

He had brought out his most treasured memories to create a beautiful vision for his wife to dream of, and that was what he should be focusing on about.

Thinking a happy place could bring Elys calm in her sleep, he sent her the vision he wanted her to see. Right away, her restlessness stopped and Aleksander saw her exhale as if relieved by what he did.

A smile spread across Aleksander’s face and he leaned over to give his wife a gentle kiss.

"Sleep tight," he whispered as he brought his forehead to her temples. "For tomorrow is another day we face our troubles, hand in hand."

+++

Elys woke up to a thunderous voice in the morning.

"What do you mean our southernmost border has been destroyed?!"

"Your majesty, our knights at the other borders are being attacked as well. We are doing our best to send in reinforcements."

She immediately got up and noted she was not in the dress she had once worn last night. She was wearing a nightgown, and there was only one thought that came to her mind to explain why it was like that.

Aleksander had her ladies in waiting change her when she was asleep.

Or at least he had the decency to get her ladies in waiting and not undress her himself when she was knocked out in her sleep. But that was such an uncommon thing to happen to her.

Why couldn’t she wake up when she was being undressed last night?

She had always been a light sleeper, and the slightest of movements would send her eyes bursting open with apprehension. That was how she was trained in her younger days as the Crown Princess of the Northern Kingdom of warriors.

How could she have forgotten her trainings and let herself become weak as to sleep all throughout the night without noticing people touching her?

Elys quickly got up from the bed which she assumed Aleksander had tucked her in. She bolted to the doors and without even thinking that people would see her in her nightgown, opened the heavy doors just a crack to see what was happening with her own eyes.

"Your majesty, Baron Izef has sent a request for backup," she heard the voice of the frantic Marquis Lanz, "what are we to do? The southern border is the farthest part of the kingdom. Count Frin and his brother is barely holding on, while Sir Wiriam seems to be just fine."

"How long would our troops get there? Don’t we have anyone who has an affinity to teleporting or travelling in speeds of light?" Aleksander thundered.

"We do have people with related affinities like that, your majesty. However, they are scattered and are fighting off their own battles in the other side of our borders. Other knights would take at least an hour to get to the southern border, your majesty," the Marquis responded.

"Well, get all of them to back Baron Izef up!" Aleksander’s enraged voice reverberated outside of their chambers. "Have this order sent to each knight commanders – fortify their posts, and send spare hands to the southernmost border as soon as possible. We can’t risk an invasion."

"Right away, your majesty!" Marquis Lanz responded.

When the vampire raised his head, he saw the familiar ruby eyes of the human queen peeking through the chamber doors and greeted her in a haste.

"Your majesty, Queen Elysianne," he bowed and almost tripped. "Forgive me but I will be going now."

Aleksander turned around and saw his wife’s face as she opened the doors wider. She stepped out of the room and put on a serious face.

"What is happening, Aleksander?" she asked him. "Who is invading?"

The young king scowled as he crumpled the tiny scrolls the knight commanders have sent him to report of a sudden attack. There was still little to no information that he could gather to make a sound assumption as to who was attacking them, but he had a hunch that it had to be the Eastern Kingdom.

Who else were planning to wage a war to the Western Kingdom now that Aleksander was the king? Of course, it must be the Eastern Kingdom and its equally mentally unstable queen who could barely even make a decision by herself.

"An attack? Do you think it is the Eastern Kingdom?" Elys asked as she marched towards her husband.

His scowl deepened even more as he thought of the possibility.

"It is not a farfetched assumption," he said, "don’t you think so as well?"

Elys nodded and said, "We must make haste then. I don’t think I could stay idle if they are going to get my people in danger."

Aleksander didn’t want to wake her up knowing she was going to be like this. She always had put her people before anything else, even to the point of being reckless and jumping immediately into dangerous situations.

But he had lost his temper at the reports he had read. He had not even taken an hour of sleep yet, as his usual schedule was supposed to be an hour ago when the letters started to arrive.

"Elys, you might want to stay here in the palace," Aleksander said, "I already had Cordelia transferred. A knight is guarding her room, and all humans and vampires are being evacuated to the upper towns of the kingdom where they would be safer."

With his suggestion, Elys’ face darkened and she stomped her foot.

She was adamant that she will be in the frontlines, and she wasn’t going to let Aleksander treat her like she was some porcelain doll which would break the moment a knife would strike her.

"I am not weak, my king," Elys said with determination, "you either let me march to battle by your side, or have me escape and fight on my own if you hold me back. It is your choice."

Aleksander bit his lower lip and ruffled his hair in frustration.

"Alright, I understand what you want," he heaved a sigh, "you are one stubborn wife that doesn’t listen to her husband, aren’t you?"

Elys smirked at him and raised an arrogant brow, "Why, I am no ordinary wife, my king. I don’t cook meals or do embroidery – I released flames of wrath and kill my enemies by stabbing them with my sword."

The young king couldn’t believe his ears.

He grabbed her hand and then proceeded to bring her towards her chambers. Her ladies in waiting her already ready with a set of garments for her to change in. An armor was prepared by the corner, and Elys’ brows arched at the sight of it.

"I thought you wanted me to stay behind, dear husband?" she asked as Aleksander handed her over to her ladies in waiting.

Lady Azalea immediately went to work, with Lady Tabitha, Penelope, and Beatrice joining in to help. They worked efficiently, undressing Elys as she stood still and then dressing her in merely minutes.

"I did," Aleksander admitted, "but the probability of your stubbornness was much higher than you staying put that I just had to prepare these in advance."

When the last of her armor had been put on, her hair tied neatly in a braid, and Elys was handed her weapon of choice, she turned to fully face Aleksander and smiled at mouthed, "I love you, Aleksander Ardorlean."