"Your Highness," Ely bowed down, not meeting his eyes, "You are mistaken. My name is Bethy, a traveler..."
King Maro raised his eyebrow. He was pissed off that Ely was still pretending to be another person, so he played along for a while, "Fine, Bethy," he uttered, "Aren't you one of the performers? What are you doing here? The list of new royal performers will be announced soon."
"But it's time for me to travel to-"
"If you don't come, I will remove your band from the list."
"But-"
"Ely. Stop giving excuses and come with me... NOW."
When Ely heard the King's domineering tone, she trembled. Around them were several mercenaries and she had no other choice. She needed to accept that her plan to escape the city had failed. She would need to think of another way to escape him.
The King made Ely ride his horse. She sat facing the front as she leaned her back on his chest. He whispered to her, "Remember this. I will be strict from now on... so you better behave yourself." And together with some mercenaries, they went back to the palace.
In the nobles' event, everyone was puzzled as to why the King suddenly left. Minister Holter informed them that the King had some urgent business, but would be right back soon to personally witness the proclamation of the new royal performers. Food and drinks were served while they waited.
King Maro and Ely directly went to the chambers as soon as they unmounted the horse. He held her wrist tightly while walking in the hallway, and then, he left Ely in her bedroom with the maidservants.
Ely's awful makeup was removed. One of them asked her, "Why did you leave, Queen Ely? Did anyone mistreat you?"
Ely sighed and gave an apologetic look, "I'm sorry. You were all kind to me, but I…" she gave a weak smile, "I tried to leave because I needed to go back home." She couldn't tell them about her husband, the old woman's voice, and the Temple of Destiny in the war site.
Because Ely was naturally beautiful, they only placed a little amount of powder on her, and some blush-on using the pink powder dye. They also placed a reddish color on her lips. To match the King's blue velvet robe, they made her wear a gown of the same hue of blue. It was an off-the-shoulder, and an A-line gown at floor's length.
Meanwhile, King Maro proceeded to his seat in front of the guests. They all noticed that his expression had become lighter, and a smirk had escaped from his lips. While wondering what had happened, the King spoke, "I shall introduce my fiance to everyone. She has returned."
The guests murmured about it. Most of them were confused because according to the rumors, she had already escaped the ruthless king. So why did the King say it as if she only had a vacation? At that moment, they concluded that the rumors were false.
"Announcing the arrival of Her Highness, the Queen of Ballad, Queen Elizabeth of the Berry Clan!"
As soon as Ely entered the room, everyone bowed down to her, and they were stunned by her beauty and elegance. She was walking with confidence like a runway model.
King Maro stood up from his seat and waited for her to approach him, then he kissed the back of her hand. "Ely," his deep voice called, and he gazed at her.
"Your Highness," Ely uttered. When she realized that she had nowhere to sit on the front, "I will… find a seat at the guests' seats-"
But the King suddenly grabbed her arm, and with force, he made her sit on the golden throne.
"No, this is your seat!" she retorted, but was cut off when King Maro sat beside her.
"Don't worry, we fit perfectly in this seat," He then placed his right arm at the back of her waist and held her, then whispered, "From now on, I'll make sure that you will never leave my sight."
Ely couldn't say anything against his words. She knew it was her fault; she was careless, and had not expected the King to recognize her voice.
"Why don't you start announcing the list of chosen performers, Minister Holter," the King told his right-hand man.
"Yes, my King," the minister replied. Somehow, he felt a bit awkward towards Ely because he had invited beautiful women for the King. And as he glanced at the two, he already understood that the King only had his eyes for his beloved Ely.
Minister Holter asked all the performers to return to the dance hall, onstage. Ely quickly looked for her bandmates, and when she found them in the middle, they had worried looks on their faces. Karla was already there with them, but she knew they might be worried about Bethy.
The minister mentioned four groups of performers, and when he said the next one, "Akali Tavern's band."
Joy was evident on the faces of Karla, Vienna, and Nerion. But before they took the scroll of recognition from the minister, Rainier said, "Bethy is not here… She's the reason why we were selected. How can we accept being royal performers without her?"
"She's probably in the tavern and must have forgotten something," Karla said, then she received the scroll from Minister Holter. They then stood at the side, which was near the King's throne.
"But what if she has already left?" Rainier asked, "How can we continue to-"
Nerion questioned, "Rainier, I've been meaning to ask this, but… Do you have feelings for Bethy?"
King Maro narrowed his eyes as he heard the conversation, while Ely kept quiet, pretending not to hear them but she was actually afraid of what the king might do.
"I confessed to her, but she rejected me," Rainier explained, "She said that she's finding her-"
To distract King Maro, Ely quickly covered his ears.
And without thinking, she kissed him on the cheek, catching everyone's attention.