Flip It.

Leonora took a deep breath as she held the door of his study room. She could do it. She had done it all her life. There were hundreds of staff working in the royal palace. She would be one of them. Served by the royal maids beside his highness the crown prince. Who did not want that? Except me! A small vice spoke in her heart but she ignored it.

It did not matter! His majesty had personally chosen her as the knight and aide of his highness. What could go wrong? She had been trained for this all her life.

And now her family depends on it. Yet when she opened the door after a knock she stilled. 

The room was decorated luxuriously with expensive and rare books on the shelves. The smell of leather and thick warm papers had filled the room, making it a warm place despite its darkness.

The only torch was burning behind him, giving him a halo of a demon. Despite his breathtaking looks, and charming smile, Leonora did not feel better at all. She felt like something had struck in her mouth and she could not breath.

The man raised his head from the book he was reading and looked at her with cold eyes. 

"Are you the one my father had chosen?" Leonora gulped and nodded. She forced a smile on her face as she entered.

"Yes, your highness. I, Leonora Midnight Star, will serve you as your knight and your aide." she bowed her head deeper. She was not wearing fancy dresses like other noble ladies but the uniform of a knight with no makeup but a simple bun of her hair. 

Did he not know her to ask her name? They have worked together for two years! 

"You are chosen by my side?" She raised her head in time to see the disappointment on his face. He did not even hide it when their eyes met.

"Why did you not reject it?" his voice went cold and a deeper frown appeared on his face. "I am sure you do not want to be beside me." no one wanted to be beside me at this moment! He looked away, hiding the rage burning his chest. 

A pang of guilt filled her but she hid it under a bright smile.

"I do not understand your highness. It is my honor to work here by your side." Before the words left her mouth, the man stood up and laughed coldly.

Leonora did not flinch when he walked closer and towered her with his height. The man was broad, strong and had a strong presence. The room felt tiny now that he stood up. She felt tiny under his strong gaze.

"The whole palace is laughing over me! Trained as a crown prince all his life to take my father's position. But now, a new contender has come and taken my place. Now I am not the crown prince anymore. Even my ceremony had been cancelled at the last moment." Nora stared at his dark face. The anger was not directed at her but at himself.

The man who should have it all. The man who had always stood up on the top from the start had now fallen into a deep pit. He was angered by himself and here she was wondering why he did not recognize her! How selfish.

She looked at him with her bright eyes. 

"Your highness, you have only gotten an opportunity." he raised a brow, looking at her as if she was a fool. But she nodded, "if you have become the crown prince and taken the crown one day, the world has never respected you from their heart. They would have only called you lucky. 

But now, you have gotten an opportunity to prove that you deserve this position. You are clever, braver, stronger and a better strategist. You deserve to be there due to your skills, not because of your birth." Thalric paused as if a jolt of electricity had hit his body. The shock wave filled every cell of his body. The room had been dark from the start like his life, yet a single flicker of light fell on her face making the room illuminated.

"I must have lost my mind." he whispered, leaning closer to her. "I must have been so desperate to even believe your foolish words when my brain told me it is all for nothing. Leonora, do you know why you have been told only at the last moment?" he eyed her as if waiting for her expressions to change.

To show a point of weakness. But Leonora only took a breath and smiled at him.

"Yes, your majesty. Because I have the power to support you." he looked at her as her words sank in, a look of surprise, soon turned into a shock and then he laughed loudly. 

"You might not know me, but I have the best record in the whole empire. I have killed a maximum number of people in the war and I am the most proficient in accounting. I know seven languages and am well versed in the culture of the seven empires. I…" Leonora stiffened when his warm hands covered her lips. Despite being a man, despite being trained as a knight like her, his hands felt soft and warm in the cold room.

It had a soft musky smell that made her hold her breath. She was afraid of breathing. Why? He slowly took his hands back and shook his head. The gloomy feeling made it hard to breathe. 

"You are proficient as a narcissist too. I have never seen a woman praising themself like you. Yet, his face softened a bit. Now that he was smiling, he did not look like a demon anymore.

"Your highness, if we work hard, we can find a way to flip the situation. I am with you in it. All I want is your support to get everything back for you."