[Music Recommendation: Icarus ~ Phildel]

Adric walked inside the forest with his father, as both father and son enjoyed the peaceful scenery of nature. They didn’t attempt to hunt anything, just casually taking a walk in the forest.

Fidelis was the first to break the silence, "Son, have you been able to get the information on the Queen’s army and where they are hiding?"

Adric moved a wet grass out of his way, "Not yet." He had been watching Oriana to see if she had any knowledge, but the girl seemed plain like she knew nothing. Either she was faking it, or it was really true that she knew nothing.

"About the princess," Fidelis started with a smile on his face. "I like how she can take care of herself. Yesterday during breakfast..." he narrated to Adric what happened during his absence.

Adric chuckled, "That is Oriana," he replied. The girl he knew had no filters and was quite stubborn. The only reason she had been quiet must have been because of the stressful event that led to her marriage with him, and since then, she hasn’t been able to recover.

"I like how she is now," Fidelis said with a smile. "Are you still going to let her go after you get what you want?"

Adric turned to look at his father. "Is she growing on you now?"

Fidelis couldn’t deny that the princess was now growing on him. She was the sincerest person around his son, and that was the only thing he needed in order to be king. Someone to trust in a palace filled with greedy leeches, someone with no ulterior motives.

"Oriana loves her freedom. It’s the best I could do for her for using her all this while. I can’t take that away from her. I will let her go when the time is right," Adric replied, his eyes looking ahead where he could almost sight the peculiar golden hair of Oriana, and she was with someone, a man.

Fidelis sighed. "What about having a child, like an heir?" He was really worried about his son. "I know you don’t want to fall in love, but a child to stay with you during your old age. It’s something." The king stopped talking when he noticed his son wasn’t listening. "Look, you need to overcome the fear. Yes, I know death is inevitable, but..."

Adric stopped walking and turned to look at his father. "I don’t want to talk about it... also, I don’t want to keep a woman who already has eyes for someone else," he picked up something from the ground. "I don’t want to be like you, father."

Fidelis cleared his throat. He knew very well that his decision to get married after losing Adric’s mother had really affected him, but he didn’t know it made such an impact. "There are good women out there too. Gwen is just..." he stopped talking, there was no point talking about it.. "Also, I noticed the princess hasn’t been looking into your eyes lately."

Adric nodded. "That’s because she hates me so much," he replied, then stopped walking when he got a clearer view of who Oriana was with. It was Nicholas, and he was touching her hair. Adric took a step forward but stopped when his father held his hand.

Fidelis fell to his knees, holding his chest tightly. "Son, I can’t breathe," the man squeezed his chest.

Adric held his father closely before helping him sit down on a fallen tree. "Here, take some water. I will have the servants take you back to the palace," he offered his father the water he carried close to his waist.

"I’m sorry for cutting our hunting session short," Fidelis said after drinking water. He closed his eyes and relaxed.

Adric sat on his heels, looking at his father with worry etched on his face. "The physician will have to change what he is giving to you as it’s no longer working."

Fidelis chuckled, now feeling better. He touched his son’s shoulder. "All I want is for my son to find happiness, ignore his father’s sins, and live his life," the king remarked with a low voice. "I want you to find what I had with your mother. Open up your heart. People around you don’t always have to stay for a reason only beneficial to you. Learn to love them and—"

Adric stood up, helping his father stand. "Now you’re speaking like it’s your last words. Let’s continue the hunting; you have energy."

"I want to go back to the palace; my chest," Fidelis turned, holding his chest, and walked back to the palace without help.

Adric stood there looking at his father. He smiled. "That sly man," he shook his head slightly.

. . .

Currently, Oriana held the small knife close to her chest. She had been disappointed when Adric was not her partner, and since she entered the forest with Nicholas, he had been talking about something she didn’t know because she wasn’t paying attention.

"...more than just hunting. Do you know that, Princess Oriana?" Nicholas asked, calling her attention.

Oriana, who didn’t hear anything, shook her head slightly. "No?" she replied with a confused look on her face.

"You look worried about something," Nicholas stopped walking, holding Oriana’s hand.

Oriana looked down at her hand where Nicholas was holding, and she felt like pushing him away. It was different from when Adric held her; this time, she was repulsed. She raised her eyes, looking at Nicholas.

Nicholas raised his hand, touching Oriana’s hair gently. "You’re just like I remember you, beautiful and with those innocent eyes."

Oriana blinked. She had almost forgotten that Nicholas could be the young master she met when she was young, the main reason she had even liked him. Now, thinking about her feelings for Adric, she felt guilty.

"How was I?" Oriana asked. She wanted to know, now looking directly into Nicholas’s eyes.

Nicholas smiled. "You always talked about your grandmother and how you wanted to run away from the palace," he replied.

Oriana nodded. She could remember a little bit of that. Nicholas had really met her when she was young. She inhaled deeply, feeling like she had betrayed him.

"Princess," Nicholas continued, "I promise to protect you if you take my hand," he raised his hand for Oriana to take.

Oriana looked down at his hand. This was the same thing Adric said to her, but why did it feel so different? Even without Adric stretching his hand, she took it, but with Nicholas, she didn’t even want his help.

"I know you’re scared, but trust me, I can take care of you," Nicholas added more pressure, seeing the conflicting thoughts flickering in the eyes of the princess.

Oriana pressed her lips. She needed to tell the Prime Minister that she already had feelings for someone else. They might have met when they were young, but she was no longer the small girl. Her heart changed and was now beating for someone else. She was about to say this when she noticed something crawling on Nicholas’s neck. She walked closer to remove it.

Nicholas smiled, thinking the princess was leaning in for a kiss. He knew she shared the same feelings for him, and he was finally going to win against Adric. As he brought his face closer, he felt something hit his face, causing him to lose his balance.

Oriana gasped, "Lord Nicholas!" She turned her back to see who threw the stone. She saw Adric standing close to a tree with more pebbles in his hand. "Your Highness..." she whispered.

Adric pushed himself up from the tree, sauntering towards Oriana. "Princess, you were taking your sweet time."

"Huh?" Oriana raised her brows.

Adric exhaled, going to stomp on the spider that was now on the floor close to Nicholas. He stepped on it twice. "It would have killed our dear Prime Minister at the pace you were going with it. I knew I had to step in," he shook his head. "Nicholas, that was close. It’s a black widow, very poisonous. Whew!" He wiped off the invisible sweat from his forehead.

Nicholas was seething with profound anger, but he tried to hide it because of the princess. "What about your partner?" His words came out harsher than he had intended, and even Oriana noticed this.

"He ran away. Now I have nobody. Can I join you?" Adric was now talking to Oriana, who was looking at his shoes, failing to meet his eyes.

"The princess will be uncom—" Nicholas started, only to be cut short by Oriana. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

"I’m fine. You can join us," Oriana replied, tucking her hair behind her ear.

Adric clapped. "Great, now let the hunt game begin!"