Chapter Four: His Possession...

A few weeks had passed since Prince Stev agreed to help Glovia escape from the palace. All through those periods, they met secretly, deepening their bond as they planned the escape route. Glovia realized that escaping the castle proved much harder than she had earlier thought. Prince Luther was making matters worse by giving her jobs that even ten servants couldn’t complete. She barely had time to go see prince Stev. Since the last incident with her master, Prince Luther hadn’t asked her to bathe him again. She was relieved yet somewhat worried that he had something worse for her in mind.

To get rid of the sad thoughts in her head, she started to think of her prince. She was tending to the garden next to prince Luther’s pavilion. Thoughts about prince Stev always dragged her out of her misery. The more she associated with him, the more her feelings for him deepened. She remembered the first day he called her his friend. She was shocked and honored that he had looked past their levels to define their relationship. Whenever she went to the garden next to the training ground, she always feared that his attitude to her would take a drastic turn once she reached there. But time and time again, he had proved her wrong.

He was always there to comfort her during her worse days, and she did the same for him. He taught her some magic moves meant only for the elite, not before making her promise that she would only use them in an emergency. She was very happy with that and would eternally be grateful to him. She was sure he had no idea how huge that was to her, as it was one of her dreams when coming to the high realm.

She blushed at the thought, watering down a pale plant. The flower reminded her of herself; though there was nothing special about it, it was surrounded by other beautiful plants. Unlike the plant, though, Glovia was surrounded by two beautiful people, one who was evil and the other who was extremely nice to her. She thought of life once she finally left the castle. She would surely miss prince Stev. Some part of her wished that he would come to see her once she was outside, but even she knew that was impossible. Just because he called her his friend doesn’t mean she should forget her identity.

Another thought she constantly worried about, though, was prince Luther. How would he react once she finds out that she had left? The whole realm knew him as somebody who took drastic measures when angered. It was possible that he might even come after her parents just to smite her. She would have to come up with a plan to save her parents from his clutches. Thank the heavens for inter-realm travels. She could travel to another realm, where the evil prince was least expected to search for her. Hopefully, prince Stev could help her with that.

Glovia sighed. Her thoughts had strayed back to Prince Stev again. Recently, he was all that occupied her mind. She found herself blushing just at the mere thought of him. When he was close to her, her blood ran to her head, making it impossible for her to understand whatever he said. The more she saw him, the more beautiful he became. Prince Stev embodied the perfect man she had always dreamt about when she was little. Now that she was an adult, she realized that there was no perfect man. Prince Stev had his flaws, but he still remained perfect to her.

Glovia couldn’t deny it any longer. She was in love with Prince Stev.

She had long known it, ever since the day he looked down at her and called her his friend. But it was a secret she intended to keep till the grave. She doubted someone like him would be remotely interested in someone like her. She had to remind herself of that fact whenever they were together. Yet, she found herself looking for hidden meanings in his actions toward her, hoping that he felt the same way somewhere deep inside of him.

She sighed, placing her garden tools on the ground. The thought of Prince Stev having any kind of relationship with her would cost them both their heads. It was a taboo set by the supreme lord, as he found it demeaning for a royal to be entangled with one of the lower class. He found it an insult to his royal bloodline. The other elites who are not related to the crown are exempted from the rule. But should any of them get involved with the lower class, they were automatically shunned by society. Their lives become worse than hell, causing them to relocate to the lowest levels of the realm.

Glovia thought that their case wasn’t bad. In the end, they still get to be with the one they love. They could fly freely without the judgemental stares cast upon them. To escape the growing feeling she had for prince Stev, she would have to leave the castle sooner than she planned. It was going to hurt her so much when she finally left, but it was better for them.

She slowly stood up, picking up her tools along the way. She looked around the garden, studying the work she had done with satisfaction written on her face, then turned around to leave the garden.

Fear slammed into her once she saw Prince Luther at the entrance, giving her a scrutinizing look. She hated that silent walk of his and had never gotten used to it despite how long she had worked for him. She wished he could announce his presence like any other person, but with what she had garnered about Prince Luther, that was asking for too much.

“My lord.” She greeted, bowing her head respectfully, then quickly bringing it back up to meet his gaze. Something about how he stared at her caused dread to curl deep in her stomach. But she remained impassive, refusing to allow any emotions to leak from her face. Slowly, he made his way towards her, his strut silent and proud like a predator out to hunt. She kept her gaze on his face, hiding her nervous hands behind her back.

“I don’t know why I have been feeling uncomfortable lately,” he started, slowly walking around her. “I keep on feeling like there is something you are hiding from me.” He came to her front and paused, intensely scrutinizing her.

“My lord?” she asked, clearly confused.

“Glovia, is there something you wish to tell me?” he deadpanned, leaning closer to her.

She leaned backward. “I apologise my lord, but if I have something to tell you, i would have told you since. I have no reason to hide anything from you.”

Prince Luther remained quiet. Despite the bold face she had on, Glovia could feel her palms sweating. She didn’t know what he wanted her to tell him. Had he perhaps gotten wind of her plan?

“Glovia, are you engaged?” he asked suddenly. Glovia’s eyes widened in surprise. Of all the things she had imagined, him being worried about her having a partner was far below her list. She was dumbfounded. She didn’t even know what to think.

“M-My lord, I do not have a partner.” She answered slowly. Prince Luther’s face suddenly became inscrutable.

“Good. Because I would not tolerate such.” He leaned closer to her, harshly grabbing her chin. “You are mine. You work for me, and would forever attend to me.”

“My lord,” Glovia said, her voice trembling. “I do not understand...”

“You will understand, Glovia. You must understand that you can never belong to any one but me!” he let go of her chin but still continued staring at her. Glovia hunched her back in fear, not knowing what he would do to her next.

“take this as a warning. I do not like those who lie to me. If you have any relationship outside with another man, i suggest that you end it.”

“B-But my lord,” Glovia said, her voice shaky. “It’s a taboo for you to be involved with me. It could cost me my head! Please reconsider!”

“You don’t have to worry about that. You should just focus on me.” He turned around and began to leave the garden, the breeze gently blowing on his attire.

“I am betrothed!” Glovia blurted out. Suddenly, the air went cold. She didn’t know what had prompted her to make that declaration, but there was no way she was simply going to live at his bidding, even at the cost of her own life, just because he had taken some fancy interest in her. She might be a maid, but she had a family who depended on her. He might be the most powerful prince, but there was no way she would go down without a fight. He might as well kill her there.

“I have been betrothed since young.” She continued, sealing her fate. Prince Luther slowly turned around, his stare cold. Glovia gulped and began to ease backward.

“My lord, I can do anything you wish for me to do, but this wish of yours, I cannot fulfil. My family’s honour is at stake.”

He ambled towards her, each step of his more hostile than the last. Suddenly, before she could react, he spread his wings and flew towards her quickly, catching her chin in a strong grip and placing a fierce kiss on her mouth. Glovia was caught off guard, and her eyes popped out, widening in fear. The dread she earlier felt exploded into full-blown terror. When she realized what he was trying to do, she fought, instantly forgetting their levels. He was trying to mark her, and she would rather die than become his slave. She pushed at him, banging his chest hard. He took hold of both her hands in his grip, raising them high above them. Fear overtook her senses, and she bit his lip till she drew blood. That action made him stop his assault, and he drew back, releasing her from his hold.

“Let that be a lesson.” He whispered, wiping the blood off his lips. “You are mine, and except you want your family to all end up in the grave, better cut yourself away from them.” Then he walked out without another word.

Glovia collapsed on the ground, her breath coming out fast. She could literarily hear her heart pounding heavily against her chest. Torrents of emotions poured into her; fear, anger, disgust. She couldn’t believe that not only had she lied to the evil prince, she had also gone against his order and also fought him. She harshly wiped away all the trace of his kiss from her mouth, her tears falling in downpours. If he hadn’t stopped earlier, the prince would have magically created a bond through the kiss that would tie her to him forever. He must have felt her resolve at dying rather than belonging to him, hence his reason for stopping.

She covered her mouth with her hands, trying to prevent the sound of her choking sobs from escaping. Prince Luther had just violated her, and there was nothing she could do. She sobbed heavily, her tears heart-wrenching. What did she ever do to deserve this? What exactly warranted this action the prince carried out on her? She thought back to the first day he came to her. She should have known that it would not end well. She should have run since then. Had she done that, perhaps she might have had a different fate. Yes, she wouldn’t get to be friends with her prince, but at least she would not be assaulted.

She took in a deep breath, calming herself down. Sniffing, she wiped the tears from her face and slowly stood.

She had decided. She couldn’t wait any longer. No matter what may happen, she had to leave the castle.

Immediately.