Delia and Tina had retreated to Delia’s room after the ceremony, but Delia wasn’t sure how long they had before being brought in for questioning. Tina panted and wrung her hands as Delia tried to figure out where she would manage to hide the empty vial she’d been carrying all day. It might not be poison since Adolph seemed unaffected at the ceremony, but she wasn’t going to chance being caught with it if she could help it. *Eden’s grey eyes glinted through the shadows as he followed Adolph and the priestess up the stairs and Delia rounded the corner trying to reach the stairs to her room.*His expression had been neutral, but his eyes had been furious. She worried her lip. What if he decided to pull her from the mission? It wasn’t her fault! He would understand once she explained the situation. She had no idea what was going on or how Adolph was completely fine! Maybe it hadn’t been poison, and she’d misunderstood what he meant by advance in which case none of this had anything to d
Adolph walked into the room where they brought Maria and took a steadying breath, hearing her weep. He sat across from her and offered her a handkerchief. She took it with a little whimpering cry. “Y-Your Majesty… Is she okay?”“The priestess has said she will recover with time.”She nodded stiffly, “That’s… That’s good. I… After this I… I wish to tender my resignation.”Arthur tilted his head, “Have you passed on the recipes?”She sniffled, looking up at him with confusion, “The imperial jam’s recipe is recorded in the archives, of course.”“Not the imperial jam,” Adolph smirked, “*Your* petal jam recipes.”She blinked as he relaxed into his seat, “I’m not prepared to start eating someone else’s petal jam, Maria, so I can’t allow you to resign.”“B-But…” She sniffled. “I… Someone… I… I didn’t see it.”“I’m not worried about what you didn’t see. I’m worried about what you did.”She nodded, “I-I understand. W-Where should I start?”“The poison has been determined to be crimson oleande
Adolph stopped at the door of the west parlor and forced himself to take a deep breath before entering. The first thing he noticed was that Tina was nervous. Everything about her movements and the shifting of her eyes said she was nervous. Adolph observed her as he walked to the table and sat across from her. “Tell me what you did today, starting from this morning.”“Y-Your Majesty, for all the years of my service—”“Spare me,” Adolph hissed. “Do not speak if you don’t intend to tell me what I want to know.”She nodded and seemed to steady herself, starting with her duties in the morning. She’d reported to the kitchens and was assigned to manage the food delivery to the lunar and azalea rooms. She’d taken the cart meant for Laurel’s room and pushed it there before serving the food. After brunch, she’d returned to the kitchens and helped with the banquet preparations.“Then, I returned to my room.”Adolph tilted his head, “And?”“That’s all, Your Majesty.”“My knights reported that yo
Basil looked at his father in horror as Tina was dragged into the hall and put before his throne. Tina curled up, sobbing pitifully. “Pl-Please have mercy. I don’t want to die. I don’t want to die….”“Father,” Basil said. “Does she not deserve leniency for all of her years of service? It’s probably just a mistake!”Adolph looked at Basil, “Tina. Do you confess to the crime of attempted murder?”Tina sobbed, “I-I… Y-Yes. I…”Basil’s eyes widened. He paled and he closed his mouth in shock. Adolph was grateful that he didn’t need to keep Basil on his list of potential threats. For all of his stupidity, Basil was still his son and heir.“I… I only did it for Luna Olivia,” she cried. “Please, you have to understand!”“What say the ministers for sentencing?” Adolph asked, and looked at Gavin. “Minister Mirabelle as she was once a servant of your house, you may speak first.”Her eyes turned bright and hopeful looking up at Gavin. “No true servant of my family would ever have attempted murd
The knight cried out in agony as he landed with a hard crash. Adolph’s chest heaved as he looked down at the man who curled up on his side, clutching his left shoulder. “Your left side is weak.”“My apologies, Your Majesty.”Chasel shook his head as he walked onto the training pitch. He had only taken his eye off of Adolph for a few hours. He had expected him to go and sit by Laurel’s bedside as he had been doing, but of course, he hadn’t. He’d have to apologize to the knights later for his oversight.“Your Majesty,” Chasel called. Adolph turned his head stiffly, his eyes narrowed and too alert.They were sleepless and agitated. Chasel had been lucky to reach him so quickly and know exactly where Raven was in the castle. “Lady Raven would like to speak to you,” Chasel said. “She awaits you in the rose parlor.”Adolph was tense, but he nodded stiffly and excused himself from the training pitch. He watched everyone on the pitch let out a solemn breath of relief. “My apologies,” Chas
Lily found a quiet room away from prying eyes and slipped inside. She closed it behind her, put her back to the door, and screamed. She was going to lose her mind if this kept going on. She took the position at Chasel’s request and pleading. He’d promised to make himself available to her. It wouldn’t be fair to blame him for the current state of things, but it certainly wasn’t her fault that the acting luna was an idiot. She closed her eyes, counted to ten, and left the room, bracing for the next catastrophe she would have to deal with as Sarah came down the hall with a sullen expression. Her clothes were wet and stained. She was so deep in her sorrows; she hadn’t noticed Lily in her path until she nearly bumped into her. “Oh, sorry…” Sarah said, her eyes a bit hazy. “I… wasn’t paying attention.”“What happened?” Lily asked.Sarah sighed, “… the prince’s wife.”Lily winced. It had only been a few days since the wedding. Adolph had made a formal announcement regarding Tina’s sentenc
Adolph walked down the corridor towards the dining room. He was exhausted after a long day of listening to Chasel's report about the progress of the lockdown of the city and the preparations for his marriage. He hadn’t been called in, having skipped practice to deal with other matters, he was looking forward to sitting down with the soldiers eating a full meal.Adolph nodded and Sam and Lynn, “It’s good to see you both. How are things?”Sam and Lynn shared a glance as Adolph settled into a seat beside them. It was strange for them. Adolph shared plenty of meals with them on the battlefield, but now that they were back in the castle, they expected him to eat at the noble’s table. “It’s going well enough. How are you, Your Majesty?”Adolph sighed, “I’m hungry.”The men laughed, a light relieved sound he’d heard infrequently while on the front lines. It was a bit of a relief to hear his men somewhat at ease even if he couldn’t be. Adolph scanned the table and frowned at the sight o
Basil walked towards the room, but there were no ministers inside. Chasel was there and several generals he had never bothered to learn the names of were there. The minister of justice was absent, and Adolph sat at the top of the table. Basil sat next to Adolph and looked around the room nervously. He’d never been in a war council meeting while his father was away. It was something that he and Laura had argued about at length. He had no martial training and no interest in following in his father’s footsteps, leading men into battle. That was what lowborn men who joined the army, like the generals, and men of valor and power like his father were meant to do for the kingdom. Not a single man of the Mirabelle line had ever seen battle as their strength lay in the management of the upper class and the people within the kingdom. So, why was he here?“Now that everyone is here we can begin,” Adolph motioned for two general. “General Atkins, what news comes from the border?”The older man