Defend the Princess

Gousho Royal Palace

"Your highness, we managed to find out what is going on in Dumbi Royal palace," a servant bowed. The crown prince and the second prince were both seated.

"You did?" The second prince raised his brows; he seemed not to believe what the servant was going to say. The servant was gone for two months. How could he gain important information?

"Yes, your highness," the servant bowed. In the entire palace, it was known that the second prince never forgave those who offended him.

"Say," the crown prince commanded. He knew his brother's personality.

"The king and Princess are planning to trick the second prince into marrying Benedict Tait, the daughter of General Daiz Tait, the king's brother," the servant replied.

"How could they do such a thing," the crown prince was furious when he heard this. He was someone who wore his emotion on his face. He had hated his ancestors for making such an agreement with the family of Tait. In his opinion, if the power of Dumbi were still in the hands of their family, the Tait would not be so arrogant.

"Brother, as the next king, you should control your emotions," the second prince mocked. The crown prince, whose face looked ugly from his frown, had no choice but to relax and put on an indifferent look.

"Are you sure of this information?" The second prince turned his gaze to the servant.

"Yes, your highness, after hearing the rumour, I had made a trip to the palace myself," the servant replied.

"You heard the king and his daughter making these plans?" The second prince asked. He never believed in rumours. Sometimes those rumours are spread deliberately for people to hear.

"No, but I heard two maids in the palace discussing these things," the servant was shaking all over as he realised his mistake. The second prince hated rumours the most. After all, they were rumours that painted him as the devil. Some even said he was plotting to kill his brother and take the throne.

"You returned from Dumbi to report a rumour to your prince?" The second prince's gaze turned cold.

"Your highness, I might not have seen the princess and the king, but I saw the princess meets a young man from a small family who seemed to have an inappropriate relationship with the man. I inquired, and I heard that the relationship had been going on for months; the princess is in love with a young general. He was said to have saved her life when she was sixteen and went for her first war," the servant explained.

When the second prince heard this, he balled his fist under the table, but his face remained calm. He fell in love with the princess when she attended a bouquet in her father's stand a few months ago. It hurt to know that her heart already belonged to someone else, he wanted her, but he never wanted to make her unhappy.

"You may leave," the crown prince dismissed the servant. He knew that his brother was in a bad mood after hearing about the princess's affair.

"Ethan," the crown prince called.

Ethan turned to look at his brother; the cold war between the two families had been going on for years. He was the one that came up with the solution of marriage after he fell in love with Jessica. Now that he had found out that her heart already belonged to someone else, he was not sure what to do.

"I told you that the Tait could not be trusted," the crown prince said. "Look, they even dared to lie to us. I knew that all the news we had been gathering for years was true. Dumbi is indeed training a secret Army to fight Gousho,"

"Those are rumours without evidence. I do not believe it, don't forget that the reason you agreed to this marriage is not pure either. So you don't have the moral right to complain about being lied to," Ethan replied. The crown prince looked away. He had agreed to this marriage because he wanted to use it to get rid of his brother, and at the same time, the seed of the spurs would become next in for the throne of Dumbi. His intentions were not pure, to begin with.

Having his brother exposing his thought made his face red with embarrassment. There had been rumours about his brother wanting the throne. Although he knew the news was false, he still felt threatened by him. Although Ethan was his younger brother, his outstanding qualities were enough to make him feel threatened

So when his brother had brought the marriage union, he had jumped at it. He forgot that his brother was intelligent and that they grew up he could not hide his thought from him.

"This was your idea," the crown prince could only defend himself with this.

Ethan got up, "A king who rules by listening and acting on every rumour is doomed to fall. If the Tait tricks me into marrying from the second family, the throne will fall to the second family. But until I confirm the situation with King Lorenzo, you are not permitted to act,"

"I am the crown prince; you can not order me like this," the crown prince refused to bow. He knew his younger brother would always give him face. The reason he wanted to get rid of his brother was that he was sure that if one day Ethan made a move to steal the throne from him, he(the crown prince) would not be able to do anything to stop him.

"Of course, your highness, but if you start a war, do not expect me to fight in it. Father is still breathing," Ethan said and walked out of the room. The marriage was between the two families. He was rational and knew he could not fault the king for changing the bride. This did not mean that he would appreciate being lied to, so he planned to confirm this with the king first.

"You promise, father, to listen to me," the crown prince shouted after his brother, that was leaving the room. Ethan paused his steps for a few breathes and continued walking without saying anything or turning to look at his brother.

The crown prince's face turned ugly when he saw his reaction, but he was not angry at his brother but the first family of Tait. In his heart, it was the father and daughter peer that caused the fight between him and his brother. His bother was even willing to go against him to defend the princess. The crown prince could see through his brother's reaction; no matter what they found out in the future, his brother plans to protect the princess.

"Why does he want to protect her even if she loves another?" the crown prince wondered.

"That princess must have cast a spell on my brother; I would just lay and wait for the right opportunity to destroy the father and daughter