Matthew held onto his armour gauntlet which was fixated beside his arm.
He stepped into the royal chamber that the prince had gifted him this morning and even asked the servants to move his things here.
Staring at the lavish room, he sighed, not knowing how else to be more grateful for this friend of his that the universe had given him. Even though he was quite overbearing sometimes, it didn't shake the dedication and respect that he had for him.
He dropped his armour and entered the bathroom to freshen up, scrubbing off any marks and dirt on his body.
When he was done, he wore a simple white tunic that reached his thighs before coating it with his brown belt that was usually worn around his waist, then he got into his trousers and left the room again.
He ran his hands through his wet blond hair, which curled down till it reached his shoulders.
Scanning his environment, he noticed a shadow that had been avoiding him the whole day and when the figure came into light and noticed him, she turned back immediately, ready to follow the same route she had come from just now.
Matthew smiled at her behaviour but had no intention of letting her go so easily. He entered another corridor that would lead faster to where she was coming from and when he reached her room, he hid behind a pillar, waiting patiently for her.
The girl had only intended to take a stroll around her quarters but she had soon forgotten that there was now a pest within it, that would not let her breathe.
Reaching her room, she sighed in relief when she looked around and didn't see Matthew anywhere. At least, he hadn't followed her, she thought.
Just when she was about to reach for the doorknob, a strong hand held her fragile ones in place, not letting her open it. Startled, she turned around and was about to scream but Matthew closed the little gap between them and placed his muscular hands on her mouth, muffling her screams.
"Shhh. You shouldn't strain your sweet voice for anything, mouse. There are more interesting things you could do with that lovely mouthpiece." Matthew teased her with mischief playing in his smile.
Princess Alice slapped his hands away from her mouth, "I'm not a mouse!" she spoke out with a straight face, glaring at Matthew.
He tilted his head at her words, a smirk playing on his lips, "Sure about that? The last I checked, only animals like those creep around at night and when they sense someone...," he trailed off when she tried to escape and placed his other hand on her side to block her from running away while his other hand was on the doorknob to prevent her from opening the door.
"...they try to run away...just like you. So why shouldn't I call you a mouse now?" he asked her with a glint of naughtiness.
But Princess Alice was having it.
"Let go." she attempted to turn around but Matthew closed the very little gap she had, giving her no space or chance to move at all.
Princess Alice could feel his hot breath close to her and noticed he smelt like a scented rose, showing that he had just taken his bath.
She tried to push him away, positioning her hand on his taut chest as she hit him repeatedly but even she was aware that was futile if he wasn't willing to back down.
"What do you want from me?!" she yelled at him as she looked up to meet his eyes.
"You want to know?" he raised a brow at her with a smug smile. "Are you sure you can satisfy it if I told you?" he was still gazing intently at her like she was the only thing that mattered to him.
Alice did not reply to him, knowing exactly how cunning he was when it came to manoeuvring people's words and she had known it was going to be hell for her when she found out her brother let this man stay in the royal quarters.
"Let me go and stay away from me," she said in a low threatening voice that barely fazed the man in front of her.
It was like her reluctance only invited him and she saw him lean closer to her ear to say something. She brought her hand forth again in an attempt to push him but she couldn't.
"Matt-" she didn't finish her words when she felt his lips slightly brush her ears, sending shivers down her spine.
He whispered against her ear in his charming voice, "Do you know the type of ladies that allure me the most...? Hmm Alice?" he let his words sink into her before slowly wrapping his hand around her small waist and finishing his message,
"The ones who play hard to get...like you, my princess-"
"Matthew, stop!" she warned him before placing her frail hands on his body again to push him away.
This time, he listened but didn't completely let her go as his other hand was still on the doorknob.
"Fine," he spoke out, and Alice looked at him quizzically, waiting for him to leave her doorknob so she could enter her room.
"But first you must answer this question I'm about to ask you...truthfully," he negotiated and this time, Alice could see he had something serious to say.
She nodded for him to go on and ask the question, anticipating what this man had to say.
"Tell me, Alice..." he raised his hand to touch her bruised lip that had been in sight since and he saw how her eyes widened so that they almost balled out of their sockets.
'How did he know...?' Alice asked herself as she had managed to hide it properly from everyone, the past few days...so how had he seen it?
"Who did this to you?" all trace of mischief and playfulness left his face as he stared intently at her like he would kill whoever it was that did it...not that he hadn't already taught him a lesson because he was sure it was Julian. He just wanted to hear it from her.
"What is your business with whatever happens to me?!" Alice shouted at him as she removed his hand from her face. "You should learn to stay away from things that don't concern you, Matthew."
"Right," he said, nodding. "This is something that doesn't concern me but the royal family as a whole including your brother. Maybe I should let him know-"
"No!" she cut him off.
"Why? Doesn't it not concern me? The soon-to-be King should handle matters concerning the royal family and not me, don't you think?" he asked her sarcastically and saw how she turned nervous before shaking her head.
"No, please. Don't let my brother know," she begged him when she saw the seriousness on his face and Matthew noticed her eyes turn moist.
Leon would not take things likely if he found out what happened to his sister. No matter how kind-natured he was, there was this fierceness when it came to matters concerning his dear ones.
Seeing she wasn't answering, he said, "It was Julian, wasn't it?" his eyes darkened and Alice looked at him in surprise, her lips slightly parted.
"Y-you knew!" she whispered in a provoked tone as she had just been played by this man. If he knew, why did he ask?
Matthew leaned closer to her, still with a serious expression, "I know you to be naive but not stupid, Alice." he said softly as he grazed the back of his hands on her still-swollen cheek.
"How could you hide something like that from your family?"His voice came out in a disbelieving tone.
What had she been thinking? Did she have any idea how serious what Julian had done was?
"Even if you hate me so much and don't want to tell me anything, how could you keep quiet about that bastard touching you?!" This time, his voice came out strained like he was controlling his pent-up anger and resentment against the fool that had touched her.
He knew he hadn't given Julian the amount of beating that he needed. He had been too lenient with the fool and now, he would make sure he got fourfold what he had given him before.
He didn't want to talk about himself because he knew Alice would never tell him anything concerning her private life.
Not yet, at least, he believed.
"I didn't want-" Her voice came out cracked as she searched for the right words to say. A tear slipped from her eyes at his words and he immediately brushed it away with his right thumb.
"Stop crying now." Matthew tried to console her, rubbing her soft, fluffy hair. A whimper came out of her mouth at his gesture as she tried not to cry in front of him.
"He wouldn't go scot-free," Matthew said more to himself than to her as he muttered those words, shaking his head.
"Do you want me to help you calm your cries now? You know I have a remedy to everything." Matthew teased her when she kept sobbing and she straightened up at his word.
"There are more interesting things to do with your mouth other than crying- Ouch!!" Matthew had been caught off guard by the crying girl that he didn't notice the rat that had approached.
"Stay away from my sister, moron!" A girl with a similar facial structure to Alice, only a bit fiercer in looks had hit him with a mop, making him stumble back and free Alice.
"My brother didn't bring you into this quarters just to corner my sister like a rat."
"You are the only rat here, Amie." Matthew hissed against his right shoulder as he tried not to glare at the girl in front of him.
"Seems the both of you don't sleep after all." came his comment as he realized why Amie was here and gave his usual smirk before he turned around and left the two to each other.
Amie stared at him in utter disbelief and annoyance plastered on her face before she looked back at her sister and her eyes dilated.