"Cadres A to B, surround the Princess and protect her! The rest will come with me!" he shouted in stentorian as his root was already visible caused by rage.
The soldiers rushed towards me and surrounded me in preparation for any sudden attacks on me.
Because of the unexpected occurrence, I was trembling with fear.
I haven't felt well since I arrived at the King's palace. I assumed I was just uneasy because I was still wary of him. It turns out that a tragedy is in store for me.
King Levin was about to leave with his troops when his eyes widened and he came to a halt.
"Brother..." I heard him said.
"Cadres C, go to Prince Ephraim's chamber!"
"Yes, my King!" as they ran.
Despite the fact that I was surrounded by soldiers, I noticed King Levin approaching me.
He drew his sword slowly and placed it on his back while holding it.
While the soldiers in front of me were surrounding me, they made room for King Levin to enter.
He took my hand in his, lifted it, and kissed it.
"I'll be back."
He kissed my hand several times, but it wasn't until now that I felt his touch. When it landed on my hand, his palms and lips were both warm. And just the touch of his gentle hand assures me that I am safe in this situation.
"Protect her at all costs," he said as he walked away, leaving me in the dining room with the knights.
Is that letter addressed to me?
Or for King Levin?
I don't know who would hate me so much that they would try to assassinate me in front of the King if it was me.
I had never left the palace as a child unless I was in rehearsal with my Father. I also did not engage in any fights.
Perhaps...
Is someone envious?
I began to wonder if King Levin had a previous relationship so that he could do this to me because we were about to marry.
Because I'm still scared, I'm sitting in the farthest corner of this room. The soldiers attempted to coax and calm me down, but they remained frustrated until we heard a few loud footsteps.
The knights sent by King Levin to find Prince Ephraim barged in, looking perplexed. After they shut the door, the Prince appears to be looking for someone, and when he spots me, he walks towards me with a concerned expression.
"What happened? What's up with this sudden commotion?" he inquired, noticing that I was still quivering in fear.
"Don't worry, Princess. I am here." he then locked me warmly in his embrace.
I blushed at his sudden action and appeared idiotic, not caring what the people around us thought. I can see that the knights inside this room were taken aback by Prince Ephraim's unexpected clutch on me.
He finally lets go of the hug and kneels down.
"Don't worry, Brother will protect the two of us. I don't know what happened, but I know we will be safe in Levin's hands. Just believe in him. Everything will be stable soon," he said, rubbing my back for comfort.
The tension in my body has lessened slightly, but I am still uneasy because King Levin has not yet arrived. I'm overthinking the possibility of something bad happening to him.
"I see you're worried about your beloved King," Prince Ephraim said abruptly.
"Uhm... I-" I play with my fingers, feeling shy by his right prediction as I heard him chuckled.
"I see you're also shy right now," I avert my gaze in embarrassment.
I believe I blushed because I was speaking to him, rather than because he mentioned King Levin.
Sometimes I admire King Levin, and other times I admire Prince Ephraim. I'm mystified, and perhaps I already have feelings for King Levin, but for both of them? It now appears to be fallacious...
Then, suddenly, the dining hall door opened sonorously, and I saw that King Levin had returned with the knights, but he was not sweating and still had a trace of anger on his face.
"Brother, what happened?" Prince Ephraim quickly gets up then approached him.
"Let's talk about that later. Where is the princess?" he immediately looked for me and when his eyes landed on me, he approached me right away.
"Princess... are you okay?" he cupped my cheeks.
"I'm fine, Your Majesty" I replied.
"Glad to know." then he pats my head as his serious face flares up.
"Assemble all the knights! Surround the castle! Butler Caddel, inform the people of Mondreich that we are on lockdown until we capture the culprit!"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"General McGunning, lead us first."
"Pardon, Your Majesty?" the General then appears.
"Please guide us to Starnstadt. I will send My Queen home."
"Yes, Your Majesty!" he bows.
"King Levin, you don't have to. My carriage is sti-"
"No, Princess." he turns his head to me and looked at me again with worried.
"You're not safe here. You must return home; I don't want you to get in trouble because of me. I promise we'll have a peaceful get-together, okay? Just not now. I don't want you to get hurt, and I will never allow everyone to touch you, even for a fleeting moment."
He pulls me out of a hug and runs his palm through my hair. His other arm is around my neck, hugging my shoulder.
He kisses my forehead while tightly hugging me, but I am taken aback by what is happening.
My face was on his chest, and I could hear his heartbeat racing.
I slowly raise my arms, attempting to hug him back by placing them on his waist. I gave it a light clinch when it finally perched.
We slowly let go of our embrace then he smiled.
"I wanted to embrace you more, but I don't have time."
I was taken aback when I realized what I had done. I also averted my gaze out of embarrassment.
That was a bit hasty of me...
I could hear him chuckle.
He approached me, grabbed my chin, and lifted it up.
He casually brushes my lower lip while peering into my eyes.
"I'll touch your plump lip with mine sooner or later."