The Princess's Worry

It has been a week since she last saw Laif. He was released from his confinement the day after he was caught, but Commander Irvine was determined to punish Laif for going out of the palace without any permission.

Amelia was worried about Laif. But Adviser Damian had persuaded her not to see him until he was formally appointed as the official Royal Knight through the ceremony. The advisor had reminded her movement were watched in the palace and it would not do any good if her enemy found any of her weakness.

Knowing her priority to protect the throne until her brother had returned, Amelia had no choice but to follow as advised.

Amelia snapped out of her thought as her maidservant, Rae, walked in into her room with a curtsy.

"Your Highness," Rae called. "Everyone is ready for you."

Amelia nodded nervously at the thought of seeing the Knight again at the official appointment ceremony. Although this was the day that she was anticipating, Amelia could not help but be anxious.

On the night she was caught sneaking out of the palace, her identity as the Princess of Noa Kingdom was exposed. Now that she was going to see him again, Amelia was worried about how he was going to treat her after this. She knew that their interaction would never be the same, but was angry that she didn't clarify her identity?

As these thoughts were haunting her, Amelia found herself reluctant to head over to attend the ceremony. Therefore, her steps gradually slow down.

Although she did not know Laif for too long, Amelia found that it was fun to talk with him while pretending that she was a commoner for a while, even for a little while.

She was free to talk and do things without considering the Palace's etiquette, and she found herself enjoying her freedom once again as she was unbound with responsibilities.

It was at the time like this that she was grateful to Asher's protection. But at the same time, she was sorry for him. Amelia never knew that living her life at the top of the hierarchy could be so... restricted.

"Your Highness."

Amelia turned around once she heard her maidservant's voice. It was then that she realized that she has stopped to stare at the path leading towards her garden for some time.

"Rae, tell me." Amelia paused and hesitated. "Do you think that he will be mad for hiding my identity from him?"

Rae swallowed, not knowing how to answer to the Princess's question. Although she had served the Princess for years and knew of her temper, Rae was still worried about saying the wrong things.

"I don't think you should be worrying too much about him," Rae spoke after a long silence. "Pardon me for saying these, but I don't think Laif has the right to get angry. From what you have told me previously, I can see that everything is just a misunderstanding. Your Highness, you did tell him the truth about your identity. It was he who refused to believe you."

"You're probably right," Amelia muttered to herself.

Even after Rae's assurance, Amelia could not stop herself from thinking about it.

Her mind kept replaying the scene on that night when Laif had looked at her upon knowing that she was the Princess—there was surprised and another expression that Amelia could not decipher.

"Your Highness!"

Amelia turned towards Rae again when the maid had called her name in urgency. She watched her maid in waiting motioned towards a direction and saw Count Adlam and two other nobles were heading towards her. As the group came nearer, Amelia straightened up her posture.

"Good morning, Your Highness." Count Adlam greeted the Princess and the nobles behind him followed suit.

"Good morning."

Amelia watched the Count with a scrutinizing gaze as she recalled seeing the man at the gambling house a few nights ago. She had never thought that Count Adlam was someone who would visit a gambling house and gambled away his money until he lost a lot of money.

"I heard that you were going to have a few young men joining your Palace as your Royal Knights today," Count Adlam spoke.

"Yes. Commander Irvine had conducted a test and trained a few Knights for my safety. They have passed the selection process and will be officially appointed as my Royal Knight today." A frown appeared on her face.

Amelia could not stop thinking whether the Count was merely starting a conversation, or if he was interested in her Knights.

Count Adlam smiled. "Congratulation, Your Majesty. I hope those men will do their job well to protect you and ensure your safety."

Amelia raised an eyebrow as she began to be suspicious of the Count's words. Was he silently warning her to look over her shoulders?

"Thank you for your concern, Count Adlam," she replied.

The Count gave her another bow before he excused himself to attend another affair. It was then that Amelia noticed one of the nobles who was whispering something to Count Adlam.

Suddenly, Amelia thought that the man's face was somewhat familiar. She shook her head and decided not to overthink.

Anyway, she needed to hurry to head over to the ceremony as it won't start without her presence.

After a few steps, Amelia halted again as a thought crossed her mind.

It was during her secret outing last week that she had seen that man. Amelia was sure that she had seen that man at the gambling house along with the Count Adlam.

As she realized this, Amelia turned around swiftly towards where the nobles had disappeared to.

"Rae," Amelia spoke urgently.

"Yes, Your Highness?"

"Who was with the Count Adlam earlier?"

Rae turned to where the princess was looking. "Your Highness, that was Lord Benedict, Count Adlam's brother-in-law."

"His brother-in-law?"

Rae nodded. "Yes. Is something wrong, Your Highness?"

"No." She shook her head as her maidservant stared at her with worry. After thinking over the matter for a while, Amelia turned to her maidservant again. "Rae, help me summon Commander Irvine to come and see me once the ceremony ended."