Chapter 90 - Can't Be Immoral

As they stepped inside the dining room, she greeted the King before greeting Duke Maverick and Duchess Flora. 

Her gaze lingered on Duke Maverick a little longer as she noticed that his face was paler than before and his skin seemed to have shrunk, his eyes looked more hollow than the last time she saw him. 

Feeling her gaze on him, Duke Maverick tilted his head, ''Is everything alright, Little Lady?" He asked in a gentle tone with a concerned look in his eyes. 

Realizing how rude she was being, Esme averted her gaze and she nodded. 

While Duke Maverick and Duchess Flora were sitting to the King's left, Aleister and Esme sat on the chairs to the King's right. 

''Has Uncle not been feeling good lately?" Aleister asked as he took his gaze off the lady who was trying to keep a safe distance from him.

Esme sighed in relief inwardly when he averted his gaze from her but she felt his palm on hers under the table and she stiffened. 

''My nephew is not concerned about my health anymore. How would I feel well?" Duke Maverick laughed. 

Aleister raised an eyebrow. 

Duchess Flora spoke up, ''He has not been well lately. The weather change is affecting his body and making him tired.'' 

Aleister did not respond. 

''Let's start,'' The King said and a few maids walked towards them as they arranged the plates and served the dishes. 

Esme frowned. Did Aleister avoid Duchess Flora's words just now? But then looking at how everyone looked normal, she believed it had to be her illusion. 

"Brother, what happened about that matter?'' Duke Maverick asked as they ate, ''I have not been able to meet you so I am unaware of it.'' 

''You should take more rest,'' King Alexander said as he looked at him, ''We have yet to find the murderer. The Magistrate's friend came over to report me of it.'' 

Magistrate's friend? It has to be her brother. Esme tilted her head as she glanced at Aleister. 

''There is a well near the border of Enchantment Forest and the people in the nearby village keep seeing the corpses there,'' The King said, 

Duke Maverick frowned, ''But only the maids of the Castles were dying before. Why was I not aware of this?" He looked at his wife.

Duchess Flora shook her head as she sighed, ''I did not want to agitate you.''

Duke Maverick glanced at his elder brother, ''What did Mr. Aiden say?" 

''They did not find anything except for the corpses and bloodstains. A few more corpses were found there yesterday,'' The King said. 

Duke Maverick glanced at Aleister. 

''He went there and reported the same as well,'' The King continued. 

After the dinner, Esme and Aleister left to their room and both of them were quiet on their entire way,

Esme had questions that she wanted to ask but she remained quiet knowing that these things should not be discussed in the hallways. 

After they stepped inside the room, Esme turned around to look at him, ''You haven't mentioned anything about what we came to know.''

He tilted his head down to look at her, ''We have not seen a witch with our eyes and what we heard is not worth mentioning.''

''How about that person? The old man…'' Esme hesitated. 

''No one has to know about it,'' Aleister said as he walked towards the table at the further end of the room and Esme followed after him, ''That person knows something about you.'' 

Esme paused, "How are you certain?" She asked him even though she also felt like that. 

''You noticed it too? He was looking at you as if he was looking at someone familiar,'' Aleister said and Esme nodded, ''Let's keep it to us for now.'' 

Esme walked closer to him, ''Don't talk about it. I think my powers are not working anymore and I am content about it,'' As long as it was like this, everything will be fine.

''Tell me you aren't curious about them,'' He took out a few parchments from the drawer before he looked at her. 

Esme asked herself. Was she curious about her powers? She was. She wanted to know more about herself, and her father, her mother but the fear of the unknown held her back. 

Whenever she thought back to the nightmares, to the time when she almost drowned in the sea, she felt scared. 

"Here, look at this,'' Aleister held out a parchment towards her when he noticed her getting lost in her thoughts. 

Esme took a seat on the chair and she looked at the contents of the parchment, her mind gradually drifted away from her hidden fears.

''Five years after you left Nevesray, Duke Elias revealed the evidence of the King's wrongdoings. The subjects did not believe him,'' he said and she listened to him. 

''They worship him. How would they believe it?" Esme said. To think that he was a man whom she called Uncle once but what did he do to them in the end? And knowing that he was dead made her a bit uncomfortable. 

''But then your brother appeared in front of them and they had to believe his words,'' Aleister said. 

''Where was he all those years?" Esme thought back to the scar on Adrian's face. Did he get it that night when the King was torturing him or did something more happen after that?

Aleister said, ''He was imprisoned by the King, your Uncle for five years. If the information Rowan got his hands on is right, then it should be Duke Elias who rescued him.'' 

Esme was confused, ''But why would they imprison him?" She frowned. 

''Your uncle should have the answer to this question of yours,'' Aleister raised his hand as he played with her hair. 

''But he is dead,'' Esme responded to him as she tilted her head to look at him. 

''Unfortunately, he is. They say opening the coffin is immoral so you won't agree to it…'' 

Esme glanced at him like he was about to grow another head. Does it mean he will open someone's coffin if she agreed to it? 

''But we have another person who has answers,'' Aleister glanced at her meaningfully. 

It's her brother.