The wild night passed with a breeze as Elaine Louise Gustova slept in the arms of her brothers. It was awkward in the beginning, but as fatigue built within her, she dozed off defenselessly. Noah and Gerard chuckled and followed their sister soon after, in the land of dreams.
Meanwhile, King Kelvion had to break the news to Lady Elaine's parents. As one would expect, there were tears and sobs involved, followed by regret and anger. They wanted to blame their daughter's misfortune on someone, but that wasn't possible.
The Duke and the Duchess of Gustova went silent after the poor parents released their wails of agony. Stephanie Vulient Lanford-Gustova ran out of tears and energy, but she couldn't bring herself to rest as her husband and her King had told her.
"...As a mother," She started with empty eyes, "this is heartbreaking. However, I sensed that before this incident, Elaine went through some difficult times and could not confide in us about it."
"What are you implying, dear?" Duke Gustova held his wife's cold hands. "Was something the matter with Elaine before?"
"She was a bright and strong child." King Kelvion added with a frown. "I assumed nothing could shatter her will, even when provoked."
Duchess Gustova sighed with a tiny smile—it was a sad one. "It has already become a thing of the past. If Elaine does not recall her troubles, perhaps her memory loss would be for the best."
The King paused at Stephanie's statement, recalling his son's proposition earlier that night. "I have something to inform you of as well. Lucas wished to break his engagement with Elaine."
Duchess Gustova flinched upon hearing the news while the Duke sighed disappointingly. There were a million things the Duke wanted to say, but he managed to hold back and acted rationally. "If the Prince wills it, and if His Majesty allows it, then the decision is made."
Stephanie's hands were trembling as her heart throbbed in pain. The mother remembered faintly of her sweet daughter blushing in embarrassment when she found out that she had fallen for her betrothed a few weeks after learning of their engagement.
"I don't intend on making the final decision." King Kelvion glanced at the Duchess momentarily. "If the parties involved wishes for their engagement to be dissolved, then it should."
Insulting a royal is a blasphemy itself, but boldly saying it in front of the King of Athelis was a feat that history has not recorded.
"Forgive my impertinence, Your Majesty." Duchess Gustova did not have the patience of her husband. "I believe the Prince is prejudiced against my daughter. The two have not spent much time together, yet he discriminated against her from the beginning."
"Duchess!" The Duke stopped her by raising his voice a little, glancing at His Majesty warily until he saw a smile on his face.
"It is all right, Duke." His Majesty then sighed. "We seem to have the same opinions, after all."
The King clicked his tongue in annoyance. "That son of mine. He said Elaine was not fit to be a Queen candidate. Is he suggesting that the woman I acknowledged is not within his standards? This incident is going to make him lose points."
King Kelvion had a few children, but even his subjects caught him favouring Prince Lucas among the others—though the truth may not seem like it. As such, Prince Lucas himself thought he would become the Crown Prince of Athelis when he came of age, but the fact that the King has not appointed one until now means he still had doubts. No one knows who would receive the Crown Prince position, but it was inevitable that most have sided with Prince Lucas.
The Gustova Dukedom was neutral. However, when the King announced the engagement between the Gustovas and the Royal Family, they openly declared whose side they were on. It turned the tables because the Gustova Dukedom held a considerable amount of power within the Athelis Kingdom, causing Prince Lucas to have more supporters to be Crown Prince. It was an apparent turn of events as the Gustova Duchy held the military power of the Kingdom.
But, if the engagement broke, indeed, Prince Lucas would be the one losing out. His decision could be called foolish, and many would think the same, though no one would dare say it out loud. As a result, the solid foundation of Prince Lucas that he built over the past two years would crumble when he announces his decision.
If anyone were to pay proper attention, however, the hidden key was Lady Elaine herself. Behind closed doors, His Majesty was fond of the child. However, he would hide this preferential treatment on the exterior and consider other ladies wedded to the Royal Family's potential rulers. The fact that the King offered Elaine Louise Gustova a proposal to be married to Prince Lucas Rovét Ascania only meant one thing.
What his subjects were assuming were true. Prince Lucas would have been, without a doubt, be named Crown Prince.
The King could only scoff in his mind as he thought further into it. 'The son I had high expectations of turned out to be a fool.'
Elaine Louise Gustova accepted the marriage proposal because she also acknowledged Prince Lucas' skills. No, she was not the dumb lady that everyone thought her to be. The people said that she was the type of woman who would drown herself in jewels and wealth and fall helplessly in love at first sight with any handsome man, but those words held no truth. Only those who have personally known Elaine Louise Gustova would know her true self. Including the King of Athelis.
"I apologise for Lucas' past behaviours towards Elaine." His Majesty said with sincerity. "He does not deserve your daughter."
The Duchess felt complicated but responded nevertheless. "Thank you for your kind words, Your Majesty. We do not deserve an apology from a respectable monarch such as yourself."
"No." The King sighed once again. "It was a delayed apology I have owed your family for a while now."
Stephanie felt relieved at His Majesty's words and finally smiled. "Thank you, Your Majesty."
"I could try to investigate methods to revive Elaine's memory discreetly, but I cannot guarantee success." His Majesty mentioned. "I also think Elaine's memory loss is sensitive information that outsiders should not spread."
"We agree, Your Majesty." Duke Gustova nodded. "Regarding the cure, we are grateful for Your Majesty's concern, but please do not overexert yourself. Your Majesty has more important appointments, after all."
"Whether she is engaged to my son or not, I consider her family." His Majesty had a fatherly smile plastered on his face. "It would not be a burden for me at all."
"We cannot express how thankful we are to you, Your Majesty." Leonard bowed towards his ruler. "Really."
The King laughed it off. "All right, all right. Drop the formalities. I will be leaving as I have much thinking to do."
"Blessings and Glory to the King of Athelis."
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