Just This Once

"Go and tell General Elias that it wasn't poison but an allergic reaction."

Captain Villiam bowed and hurriedly walked out of the Princess's chamber when he heard Prince Nicien's order. The royal doctor had left after prescribing some medicines for Rizelle and right now, Prince Nicien Vamieres was in the chamber with Fina and Vincent still standing near the bed.

When the Prince looked at the Princess's personal guard who stood still with his gaze never leaving the Princess who was yet to regain her consciousness, he noticed the deep concern in his eyes.

In Prince Nicien's eyes, the way Vincent looked at his wife was way above how a guard should look at his master.

He noticed everything but... he remained silent, like always.

"You know how to look after her, right?" Nicien's question was directed to Fina who turned in his direction. Like a while ago, the maid still appeared perplexed and anxious.

"Yes, Your Highness," Fina replied. Though this kind of accident was rare, she was always the one taking care of the Princess whenever there was one.

"I will assign more servants to help you out. So, take good care of her. You can also call the royal doctor again if anything happens," Prince Nicien instructed Fina who nodded. Then he glanced at his wife one last time before he walked out of the chamber.

Staring at the empty door, Fina was perplexed.

The Prince appeared quite worried before and the Princess was yet to wake up but... he won't stay?

* * *

Walking out of his wife's chamber, Prince Nicien crossed paths with General Elias and Captain Villiam who came from the dining hall. When the two men were just a step away from him, they halted and bowed.

"How is the Princess?" General Elias promptly asked the Prince who nodded in response.

"She will be fine." Nicien turned his attention to the Captain and commanded, "Keep an eye on the Princess's chamber while I'm gone. Also, assign more guards and servants to serve her."

"I understand, Your Highness."

With that, the Prince left the palace with General Elias right away.

Around half an hour passed and the two men reached the camp of the Vamieres Army. Once they entered the Commander's tent, Nicien Vamieres immediately sat down on the chair behind the desk. His hands that were placed on the desk were repeatedly pressed together and... General Elias understood what the Prince was thinking.

"Your Highness, why don't you just stay in the palace for today? The Princess is still -"

"In that report you gave me..." Nicien interjected and the General fell silent. A second or two passed when Nicien looked at his right-hand man and continued, "There is nothing about the allergy."

General Elias slightly raised his brows but he slowly understood what the Prince's meant. Then he was very quick to lower his gaze. "I clearly asked all details about the Princess, Your Highness. I don't know -"

"That little amount is enough to make her that way. What if the amount happens to be bigger?" Prince Nicien rose from his seat and his gaze was firmly fixed on the General when he rhetorically asked, "Do you think an apology or an excuse will cut it, Elias?"

His voice was too low... deadly low that it could send a shiver down the General's spine!

While Elias stood still, unable to mutter any word, Prince Nicien noticed a movement outside the tent in his left. Then he turned to the General who lose no time to rush outside while he shut his eyes.

When will this end?

It wasn't long before General Elias returned with two guards of the Commander's tent who were grabbing a soldier on each arm.

"He is the one who is spying on us just now." General Elias informed the Prince who only glanced at the soldier just once.

"Kill him," was the Prince's immediate response. His tone... it was as if he was bored and he retreated to his seat, paying no heed to the pleas of the spy who was being dragged out by the guards.

Despite what just happened, there was no hint of surprisement on the General's face as if he was used to this.

"How many times has it been this month?" Nicien Vamieres muttered in an obviously tired voice. "Tighten the security of my tent. I may not be able to notice them each time."

"I understand," the General promptly replied. He let a few seconds pass before he cautiously added, "You always have them executed without an interrogation. Aren't you curious about the one who makes them do the task? It might not always be the King."

"There is not much difference," Nicien stated. "No matter who sent them, the fact remains. They are my enemies and in the whole Esriven, I know who regards me as their enemies just like I know who my allies are."

The General stood still in his place as he didn't know what to say anymore. Besides, he knew that the conversation that took place before the spy interrupted them was still not finished.

"I will let it slide just this once, Elias," Nicien finally said, understanding why his right-hand man still hasn't left. "Don't ever let me down again." His tone was back to a calm one but the General knew very well that he meant every word he said.

"Yes, Your Highness," Elias responded with his head bowed. "Thank you for your kindness." He knew that if anyone else were in his place, the mistake would already cost them their lives. The Prince only let it slide because it was him.

"Do you plan to meet the guild members today, Your Highness?"

There was a slight change in Nicien's expression when he heard the General. After a brief thought, he nodded. "I have to."

"I will make preparations," Elias quickly said and with that, he left the tent right away.

Once he was alone, Nicien Vamieres narrowed his eyes and blankly stared at the ground. With the incident from the morning crossing his mind along with how he left while Rizelle was yet to wake up, he unconsciously clenched his fists tighter and tighter to the point where his nails dug his palms!

He was fortunately snapped out of his deep and maze-like thoughts before the palms bled and now that he was back to his sense, he attempted to brush everything off his mind. After many vain attempts, he finally walked out of his tent and left for the place where the members of the Varian Guild stayed.....