Chapter 100 - Aren't You Tired?

He held her hand before intertwining their fingers, his thumb stroking the skin on the back of her palm.

Esme was in a daze and her fingers unconsciously tightened around his, taking in the warmth that he gave her. It was a strangely sweet feeling to be held by him like this. 

But then she was reminded of something. And she had the urge to swat his hand, to push him away from her but she restrained herself from doing so infront of so many people.

At this moment, a guard stepped inside and bowed to King Alexander and everyone else present in the dining room, ''Your Majesty, they are here,'' he spoke to the King without raising his head.

King Alexander pushed himself to his feet.

Esme was further confused. Who were these people that the King had to stand up to greet them? It was a custom which only existed between Kings.

A King had to stand up to greet another King. So, the person who came… was he the ruler of some other kingdom? If yes, then which Kingdom's ruler is he? And what was the present that King Alexander talked about?

Both the doors to the huge dining room opened and as Esme glanced at the people who stepped inside, her questions were more or less answered.

The first person to enter was Duke Elias. 7 years did not do much to his appearance as he still looked as heroic and handsome as he did back then when he offered them a carriage to escape. The only thing that changed about him was that back then, he was a Duke but at this moment, he had the King's robe on him.

The person who was walking beside him was her Aunt, much to her shock. The paleness on her face was apparent but she looked healthier, compared to before how she would cough with every step she took. It was possible because of Aleister who assigned royal physicians to take care of her.

As they approached closer, Esme's gaze shifted to the two people behind them. One was Adrian. It seems he was no longer disguising himself as the magistrate's friend, Aiden, because he was dressed as a Prince.

And the other person was…. Arlan. Her eyes widened slightly and she looked at him from head to toe, looking for signs of any visible injuries, but there were none. He was wearing elegant white clothes and he looked better than how he looked before his disappearance. It did not look like he has been abducted or tortured before. From his innocent gaze to the naive expressions on his face, no one could say he has been to dangerous places like Enchantment Forest but they found his footsteps and clothes there.

Duke Elias greeted the King before turning to look at Esme, ''Princess.''

Esme's fingers tightened around Aleister's palm for a moment before her grip loosened. She took her palm back and bowed slightly, ''Your Majesty.''

…

''When did this happen?" Esme looked at her Aunt, disbelief apparent on her face.

She was still unable to comprehend how things turned out to be like this. She was relieved and happy that Arlan was back but anything else did not make sense to her.

Her family will be staying at Davens' Castle for some time from now, including Duke… King Elias. She thought her Aunt would oppose this but surprisingly, she agreed to stay here.

And now she was standing in the room which was assigned to her Aunt.

Marlene waved her hand to dismiss the servants, ''Come here, sit beside me.''

Esme did not move from her spot. She remained standing there as she gazed at the woman who was sitting on the bed, ''I am fine here. So, when did it happen? When did you reunite with Du..King Elias? Why is King Alexander aware of everything? Why did Brother Adrian reveal his identity when he has been pretending to be 'Aiden' all this while?"

''Yesterday, King Alexander came to my place with his guards. He was disguised as a commoner and he wanted to talk to me about your marriage with the Prince. Coincidentally, King Elias also came at that time. It turns out he has been traveling since days after Adrian wrote to him about my whereabouts.''

''And you decided to reveal everything about us? Despite the risks involved?" Esme glanced at her. It was another thing the Aleister's family seemed very accepting of her but being deceived was a huge offense and matter of humiliation to royalty. It could have been a blunder if things worked out the other way. 

''It turns out both of them were good friends, they knew each other,'' Marlene calmly said, ''And you know that I trust him.''

Esme knew. Her Aunt trusted and loved her fiancé with all her heart. So, she understood how everything turned out to be like this.

She turned around and walked towards the door but her footsteps came to a halt, ''Aunt, to this day, all of you have been keeping me in dark about one thing or another,'' she said without turning back, "And as wronged as I felt, I never said it but I hope you can stop doing this to me. I don't think I will be able to take another secret or another lie this well,'' with that said, she left the room without waiting for a response.

Marlene glanced at the door and Esme's words continued reverberating in her mind. She lowered her head quietly.

After talking to her Aunt, Esme contemplated a lot of things. She felt a little bit emotional as well so she went out in the royal gardens to take some fresh air. As the lanterns were lit and there were several guards, she did not have to worry about any strange occurrences.

''Aren't you tired?" came a soft whisper beside her ear.

''You…'' Esme was startled. She tilted her head to the side and glanced at the man who had now placed his chin on her neck.

He looked into her eyes with interest.