{Music Recommendation: Tattoo ~ Loreen}

As Malcolm led Fidelis to the room, he was careful as the man’s form had become even weaker. Fidelis paused in his steps.

"You should go and find Adric. I have a feeling he won’t let Nicholas stay alive..."

Malcolm furrowed his brows, wondering why the king wanted to keep the traitor alive.

"He deserves death; for even treating you this way, he should be killed immediately."

Fidelis nodded as he struggled to speak. "I know, but that’s not how the royal family works. Imagine what the ministers would say if the reigning King kills his prime minister out of rage."

"Weren’t the ministers here when Nicholas took over the throne and tried to disgrace the royal family? Nicholas and the ministers deserve to be punished. And I will stand with king Adric on that," Malcolm spoke with a note of finality in his voice as he continued walking.

But Fidelis sighed. "I know, Nicholas will get what he deserves, but Adric shouldn’t do it in a fit of rage. A lesson must be taught to those other greedy ministers. So please go and stop him before it’s too late."

Malcolm exhaled, knowing that somehow the king was right, but at the same time, he just wanted to let Adric follow his mind.

"I will go stop him, but first let me make sure you’re being taken care of."

Inside the room where Oriana was, she covered her ears with her hands as her body shook beyond control. The sound of Nicholas’s bones breaking filled the whole room as Adric continued to hit him.

Adric’s knuckles were already covered in blood, but he didn’t let go of Nicholas, not even for one moment to let him breathe. He dragged him by the neck, bringing out the dagger that was tied to his waist, ready to end the man’s life when Malcolm barged into the room.

"Your Majesty!" Malcolm shouted, running to stop Adric from killing Nicholas.

Adric fumed, pushing Malcolm to the side. "Malcolm, don’t stop me. Let me end his miserable life right now."

Malcolm’s eyes noticed Oriana, who was on the bed covered with Adric’s jacket. He didn’t need an explanation to know the reason behind Adric’s fury.

"I understand...but your Majesty, death is a luxury for someone like him," Malcolm suggested just as Fidelis had advised, bringing Adric’s hand down as he took the dagger gently.

Nicholas spat the blood that was in his mouth. Then he started grinning.

"Kill me now...you know you want to kill me, Adric, unless you want me to live knowing how your wife squirmed under-"

Malcolm used his elbow to hit Nicholas on the vital spot in his neck, causing him to faint.

"I’ll go lock this filthy rat in the dungeon... someone else needs you right now..." His eyes settled on Oriana and then on Adric, whose eyes now looked bloodshot, before the general carried Nicholas out of the room. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Adric’s jaw ticked as he tried to control his anger. Removing the band from his knuckles, he wiped the blood on his shirt, then slowly turned and made his way back to the bed where Oriana was sitting.

"Ana..."

There was no response, only silent sobs that now filled the room. Oriana couldn’t bear to look Adric in the face; she had a lot of things to say to him. She was happy about his return; she waited for him. She was scared, she lost hope. So many words, but they came out as soft sobs.

"I’m sorry..." Adric knelt down beside her, his hands slowly reaching for her.

He could tell that Oriana was broken in so many ways; her whole body was shaking, and all he wanted to do was take away all the pain she must have felt while he was away. Even now, all the pain he felt on the battlefield was nothing compared to his aching heart as he watched his woman cry uncontrollably.

"I’m sorry I was late. I’m sorry I wasn’t here to hold you...Ana, look at me..." Adric’s voice was soft as he called for his woman.

Oriana slowly raised her face, the rim of her eyes bloodshot and her skin now looking pale and flushed.

"I-I was scared, you-"

Before she could complete her words, Adric pulled her into a hug. It wasn’t rough but just tender, like if he added any pressure, the girl would crumble.

"I’m here now...I know...I know you were scared...I’m sorry, but I’m here now... I shouldn’t have left you all alone..." Adric rubbed her hair gently as he spoke these words of comfort.

Oriana’s nails dug into the skin on Adric’s neck, holding him very closely as if he would disappear if she let go. She didn’t want it to be a dream or that Adric wasn’t there with her. The horrors she had faced in the past, being punished and tortured like she wasn’t even someone’s daughter. All that pain, all that hurt she decided to push behind her and love Adric, living every day with him as if it was the last. But...

It all came down, pouring in like flashes of horror. The horrible days that were nightmares to her brought back the memories she had tried to forget. Even when she had tried to be strong, all her defenses were broken. In front of Nicholas, she became weak, and he almost...

"Shh.... it’s okay," Adric whispered, holding the girl closer when her sobs grew louder. He didn’t know what had happened in his absence. All Adric knew was that Nicholas had crossed the line and there was no return.

Oriana was a strong woman, but whatever made her shake this much must have been really terrible. And he didn’t even want to imagine the worst; all he wanted was to comfort her until all her sorrows melted into nothing.

After a few minutes, Oriana finally stopped crying. She sniffed back her tears, inhaling deeply. Adric moved back, looking at her face, but Oriana tried to avoid his eyes.

"Why...why won’t you look at me?" Adric asked, trying to look at Oriana’s eyes, but she kept avoiding his gaze.

Oriana looked down at her knees. She had tried her best to avoid Adric seeing her in such a complicated situation, especially with Nicholas, knowing how she was close with the prime minister in the past.

"Won’t you talk to me now?" Adric asked again, but there was still no response. He sighed, rubbing his temples tiredly.

Oriana pressed her lips together. She decided to explain the situation to Adric so he wouldn’t misunderstand what was happening.

"T-hat...when you came in... Nicholas...ah!" Oriana gasped when Adric scooped her up effortlessly from the bed. "What are you doing?" she asked, holding Adric’s neck for support.

Adric raised his eyebrows slightly. "What does it look like I’m doing?" He started walking towards the bathroom. "I should wash you off first."

"Oh...if it’s about earlier, nothing happened...I was just scared, but nothing happened..." Oriana’s voice sounded above her beating heart.

Adric nodded. "I know, but to know that he even touched your leg makes me want to..." His voice trailed off as he thought about Nicholas and the possible ways he could kill him while making it torturous.

When they entered the bathroom, Adric put Oriana down, filling the bathtub with warm water before he returned to her to undress her.

"W-wait..." Oriana chewed her lips. "Um..."

Adric’s eyes narrowed, with a deep frown on his forehead. "Why? Did something else happen?"

Oriana looked down at her body, using her hands to cover her breasts. She didn’t know how Adric would look at her, as her body was no longer as it used to be. She had gained weight, and it made her a little embarrassed.

"Can I bathe myself?"

Adric’s frown deepened at this comment. "Is there something on your body I haven’t seen? Is there a part I haven’t touched yet? Or did my absence change anything?"

Oriana nodded. "Y-yes...I mean not that..." Seeing that Adric was going to misunderstand, Oriana slowly pushed the small dress she was wearing down to her feet.

Adric’s eyes moved from the anxious gold eyes down to Oriana’s naked body, and he felt his slacks tighten. It was even harder because he was also angry that he failed to notice the change in Oriana’s body.

Oriana took a step forward and held Adric’s hand to her stomach, then she rubbed it gently.

"You-Ana...our child..." It took Adric a few seconds to understand what she meant. Oriana nodded with a smile as tears filled her eyes again.

Adric’s eyes softened as he rubbed Oriana’s stomach gently, then the softness slowly melted, replaced by new anger. He turned, going towards the door.

"Where are you going to?"

Adric turned, his anger now returned twice as much. "Going to kill Nicholas. He dares to touch my wife and child-any air he breathes is-"

"Just stay with me...please," Oriana’s low voice called out.

Adric turned slowly, letting go of the door handle. He walked back to Oriana and hugged her.

"Thank you...thank you so much, love...." His eyes filled with tears as he held Oriana closely.