[Music Recommendation: Whom The Fire Burns (Winterscape remix) ~ Phildel]
The hem of Oriana’s dress ruffled gently on the marble floor as she made her way outside the palace. Her mind was blank at the moment; she didn’t want to think about anything else. All she wanted was to see Adric and hold him close while he told her that everything was fine.
Stepping outside the palace, she saw Nicholas and other ministers discussing something with serious looks on their faces.
"Where is the soldier?" Oriana said in a calm voice, and the ministers became quiet. Their eyes darted left and right as they tried to keep their expressions blank but failed because Oriana noticed this.
"The one who returned with Adric’s jacket, I want to see him myself," Oriana continued, ignoring the men. Her eyes scanned the palace in search of the person she was looking for.
Nicholas sighed, taking a step away from the ministers. He walked towards Oriana. "Your Majesty, I understand what you feel right now, but we need to act before it’s too late."
Oriana’s eyes slowly moved away from the space and settled on Nicholas. If she had considered the man in front of her a human before, right now she was looking at him with so much disgust.
"You understand what I feel?" she asked, with a soft chuckle escaping her lips. "Tell me about it."
Nicholas raised his brows slightly; he wasn’t expecting Oriana to retort in such a manner. "I mean, hearing about the King’s death—"
"Adric is not dead until I say so," Oriana interjected, glaring at Nicholas with so much intensity. "And this is an order to every one of you; should any minister speak of the King’s death or indulge in a rumor similar, I shall consider him and his family to be traitors of the Crown. This applies even to members of the royal family."
Oriana’s voice was shaky as she spoke, but she tightened her grip at her side, looking at the ministers with an intimidating gaze.
"Did you all not hear a decree from the Queen?" Her voice was cold and low.
The ministers, including Nicholas, bowed their heads deeply.
"Your loyal servants accept the orders of the Queen," they spoke in unison.
Oriana nodded. "Now bring me the soldier who returned alone. He surely can’t be the only survivor. Seeing him back alone makes it suspicious, and that was what I was expecting the prime minister to investigate instead of proclaiming his King dead. It makes me wonder where your true loyalty lies."
Nicholas bowed, his jaw clicking as he looked down at the ground. "My loyalty lies with the crown. I was only trying to do my best, but I have failed to show it to the Queen. Forgive this lowly servant, Your Majesty."
As these words left his lips, Nicholas clenched his teeth in anger. He had always seen Oriana as a naive princess who acted carelessly, but with things happening right now in front of him, where she even made him agree to be a lowly servant, he realized he had looked down on Oriana. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺
"Then be the prime minister this kingdom needs and act right," Oriana said, looking at Nicholas calmly.
Nicholas raised his head. "I will, Your Majesty." With a slight bow, he turned and left the place with the other ministers behind him.
Oriana closed her eyes, exhaling deeply when the ministers left. She didn’t know where she got the newfound strength, but she was glad to have handled things calmly, hoping that Adric would return before she fell apart.
Freya, who was standing behind the young queen, smiled proudly. It was as if lately she had changed into a totally different person. Though her innocent nature was the best, right now this no-nonsense part of her was needed, else she would be devoured by the politics of the royal court.
"Freya, where is your father?" Oriana turned to ask the girl after she had taken a deep breath to calm herself. "Take me to him."
The duo made their way towards the kitchen where Louis was staying. The man was outside, his eyes looking at empty space. When he heard footsteps, he turned to see the young princess who had always been a soft person with a heart of gold, but seeing her at the moment, the smiles had left her eyes, replaced with something empty.
"Your Majesty," Louis bowed.
Oriana gave the man a wry smile. "Louis, no need for that. Did you receive any letter from Madame Rosalie?"
Louis raised his head. "I didn’t. Freya already came to tell me, but I was on my way to tell you about it when I heard..."
"That’s fine," Oriana nodded. "I have something else I need to do. Can you leave the palace for the meantime?" Her voice turned low as she spoke.
Louis turned to look at Freya, then at Oriana. "You need me the most now. I don’t trust anyone else to prepare your food."
Oriana’s heart melted at the man’s concern. "Thank you so much, Louis, for thinking that far, but I want you to do something much more important. The fate of the kingdom might depend on that," she turned to Freya.
"I know I’m asking your father for something very difficult, but I really need to be sure all of this is not treason... even though," Adric’s jacket was covered with blood, Oriana completed in her mind. The scary thought of seeing Adric covered in his own blood tried to creep into Oriana’s mind, but she shook her head, shaking the thoughts off.
Freya turned to look at her father. "We owe our life to you. If you didn’t save us that day, we wouldn’t be here together today. All our loyalty is where you are."
"Freya," Oriana muttered, patting the girl on her hair. The young girl she had met long ago was now growing wisely.
Louis nodded in agreement to his daughter’s words. "If Freya is beside you, then I have nothing to worry about. Tell me what to do, Your Majesty."
Oriana looked around to be sure they were alone, then she started. "I want you to leave the palace tonight. You’re going to meet with Madame Rosalie. I have a feeling that the soldier whom I saw today didn’t leave with Adric but somehow got his hands on that jacket. It doesn’t make sense, I know, but I want to be sure. Madame Rosalie will let you know what to do when you meet her."
Louis nodded with a new sense of duty. "I will go now to get ready and leave the palace by night time," the man replied, looking at Oriana. He sighed; the girl was trying to do everything in her power to keep her title despite hearing of her husband’s death.
"What about you? Are you okay?" Louis asked with a worried tone.
Oriana pressed her lips; she didn’t want her voice to shake. She smiled, "I’m fine... for now," her voice barely above a whisper. She had been trying hard not to think of the worst since she woke up. When Oriana felt like a tear was about to slip down her eyes, she turned to the side.
"Since I’m going to separate father and daughter, I should let you both spend some time. Freya, you can rest for the day. I’ll be fine from here."
Freya, worried about Oriana, tried to run after her, but Louis held his daughter back.
"I think she needs some time alone now. We should give that to her."
Freya sighed, watching the path Oriana had passed. "Pa, will she be okay?"
"I wish I knew, Freya. I just wish I had the answer to that," Louis whispered, taking in a deep breath.
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