"Yes... go ahead quickly." Duncan said in a very irritated voice. It wasn't particularly due to the servant who was delaying him or the letter he received, it was just the overall situation that made him really fuzzy.
"Her majesty, left the palace a few moments ago." The servant mustered up his courage and said it out loud. And everything felt like it had come to a stop.
"What did you say?" Duncan said with a cold voice. A dreadful voice.
"Uh... your majesty... her majesty left..." the servant was trying to say when Duncan stopped him and asked, "Where did she go?" He said in a mumbling voice, "Where did she go?" He yelled.
Everyone flinched and even Gordon was scared at the current scenario. "She went to the Central Palace." The servant added with his nervous voice.
Duncan finally lost his patience. "Arrange the carriage to go to the Central Palace." He yelled and Gordon flinched.
"Yes your majesty." Gordon along with the guard ran out the main door of the palace and arranged the carriage. They rushed towards the Central palace.
It was afternoon and Gordon was nervously seated beside Duncan. It was almost the same when they came from the Kalsa's buulding to the Eastern Palace.
But now the only minor difference was that Duncan had lost his patience. He was fuming or more like already on the verge of bursting out.
Gordon was seated there almost holding his breath. But somewhere even he knew the reason why Duncan was in the state that he was currently in.
"Desmond is indeed the snake in hiding, waiting to bite it's prey." Gordon thought to himself. Duncan constantly kept looking outside of the window. Looking at the droplets on the window glass as they raced down from the top to the bottom. He was lost in the thoughts.
Gordon looked at him. Pity was brimming in his eyes as he looked at his friend. Helpless, yes helpless was the feeling that Gordon felt as he thought about the things that Duncan had gone through in his life.
"I don't think he went there last night." Duncan mumbled as his eyes were sharp. He looked outside not with a lost sense of direction but with purpose.
Gordon flinched as he said those words, "Why do you think so?" Gordon asked him in a serious tone.
"Servants could never hide such things. It was clear." Duncan said as he looked into Gordon's eyes.
"Hmm, now that you so..." Gordon began thinking in more depth. "He just was mocking me, hah." Duncan scoffed at the thought of it.
"If so then why are we racing towards the Central palace?" Gordon asked innocently without even thinking much about it.
"Because the only person who can do so for now is Duchess Kermont.", Duncan said with guarantee.
"Hmm?" Gordon was still confused. "Isn't the duke supposed to come three days later from today?" He said. "Since we are instructed to deport the royal knights day after tomorrow for his arrival in the kingdom." He continued.
"You are correct Gordon very certainly." Duncan agreed to him. "But that doesn't define the fact that the duchess can't come early on right?" Duncan made his point.
Gordon nodded agreeing to his point. "She is here certainly to talk about the ball before the coronation ceremony of the queen." He made a few assumptions. "To make it more specific the reason why we chose Rachel D'Azure as the queen instead of Duke Stanton's daughter." Duncan was sure.
They arrived at the main gate of the Central Palace.
"Your majesty." Hilton Frandsen, Duncan's secretary almost rushed out of his umbrella that the guard was holding above him.
The other guards rushed towards the carriage and held the umbrella over Duncan and Gordon who got down the carriage.
"It's great that you are here Hilton." Duncan said.
"I was looking for you your majesty." Hilton hurried behind the group of guards that were walking behind Duncan as he made his way to the central premise of the palace.
"Hmm.. why?" Duncan asked non-chalantly.
"What do you mean why?" Hilton's expression said so clearly. But on the other hand he could never say such a thing to his employer and moreover the king.
"A letter arrived after you left Kalsa's building." Hilton said as he was shuffling through the documents that he was carrying in his hands.
"What?" Everyone suddenly stopped walking as Duncan stopped. "Yes, your majesty. I .." he took out the letter and looked at Duncan's expression. It was cold and distant or more like he may have an idea who was sender. It reflected in his eyes.
Hilton got to know the depth of the situation and decided to directly handover the letter to Duncan. "I went inside the office to work after you left Kalsa, and I found this letter on my desk." Hilton said handing over the letter.
Duncan heard everything he had to say and opened the letter.
"Got you!!!" The letter read.
Duncan let out a sigh of relief. "It's fine." Duncan said. "Let's go and meet the duchess." He said.
"I'm sure the queen would be there." Duncan said.
He later went and joined the duchess and the queen in their little tea meeting.
Later that evening.
Duncan rested in his chambers in the Central Palace itself. Gordon had left saying that he had somethings to wrap up in Kalsa before the day ended.
Hilton decided to work in Duncan's office in the Central palace and get over with some of his paper work.
And after everything, Duncan was alone. He sat there on the couch in his room. The room was quiet and the only sound that occupied the background was the sound of the rain.
The darkness that fell over the kingdom that early in the evening made it very obvious how it was rainy season.
"It should stop at some point. Otherwise the rivers will flood soon." Duncan mumbled to himself. But after sometime he decided to keep aside the book he had just opened and kept, and looked up at the ceiling.
"Today's day was a bizarre adventure." Duncan thought to himself.
"But I saw her once more." Duncan was slowly getting lost in his thoughts. "She is indeed beautiful, Rachel D'Azure." He closed his eyes leaning his head back.