The people of Vlamunda paid their respect to King Leon. The women bent their heads low while the men knelt at the throne and altar where he sat.
The procession of the new king was finally completed with the people cheering and jubilating.
Melina who was new to this could not believe her eyes. The parading and the welcoming of King Leon was not what she had expected it to be. It was ten times grand, with so many people running all over just to get a glimpse of the new king.
She had never gotten the chance to see so many people her entire life. She didn't even know this many humans existed.
She looked amongst the crowd and for a moment, her eyes searched for Aunt Paloma within them. It had been a while since she saw the woman and somewhere in her heart, she longed to see her again.
Her eyes moistened at the thought and if not that she had been warned by Ms Carlos to not try anything stupid, she would have joined the commoners and tried to look for her.
With the sun already out and heating the place, Leon was taken back to the carriage and everyone was dismissed to return to their residences.
Princess Alice who had been observing the crowd spotted Sir Julian and her eyes slightly widened seeing his condition. His head was bandaged and his cheeks were swollen with a bulge on his bruised lips.
So what Amie told her had been true... she thought as she kept scanning Julian who was embarrassed with his situation.
He looked utterly miserable and she didn't mind it but who would have done that anyway? She had one guess and her eyes narrowed.
She looked away searching for someone else and noticed Matthew who looked different for the first time since she had known him. Her eyes softened seeing him and how majestic he appeared. Though he hadn't been given his position as a knight, with the way he stood guarding Leon and his hooded cape cascading down, she would have believed he was a General in the army.
When Matthew looked her way and their eyes met, her heart skipped a beat and she turned away to stare in another direction.
Matthew took note of it and internally smiled. He also noticed how she was clothed in a golden-patterned dress that revealed the space between her cleavage and a little of the swell of her breast.
His eyes darkened seeing how she looked uncomfortable in the revealing dress and he could already tell that she was persuaded by her twin sister to wear it. Alice would never willingly choose such a dress for herself.
"I wonder who you have been staring at," Leon's voice pulled him out of his thoughts and he saw the king looking around like he was searching for something.
"I don't see Natalie anywhere." Leon continued as he kept peeking around, knowing Natalie was the only woman Matthew was very fond of.
"I was staring at no one." Matthew lied as he averted his gaze from Alice.
Speaking of Natalie, he remembered something and began searching the crowd for the girl but didn't see her close by.
'Perhaps she was just lost in the crowd,' he guessed, pushing the thought away.
"My King, the carriages are set." A guard came to meet Leon and bowed in respect and when Leon nodded at him, he quickly turned around.
As Leon was about to step away from the podium to the carriage, something clocked in his memory and he instinctively turned around, looking for someone in the crowd.
"She's over there," Matthew told him, pointing in the direction of the maidservants that led up, a smug smile plastered on his lips.
Leon turned to glare at him, "I wasn't looking for her,"
"I know that right," he replied with cunning, not arguing with him.
Leon finally spotted the redhead and gaped at her in worry. The physician had told him that she still needed rest and shouldn't be strained because of her injury but he knew she had been more than strained by having to walk all through with her fragile body and it was true.
With the sun out, Melina began to feel burns on her delicate pale skin which had turned red from the sun burns. Her back and legs hurt horribly from all the walking and pushing alongside her fellow maids.
Leon took note of how she was behaving as he stood on the podium wearing his crown. His eyes narrowed seeing her skin turn red and with one snap of his fingers, a guard who turned out to be Tynan came to stand before him.
Tynan came close and Leon whispered something in his ears.
Though startled at first by the instruction the King gave him, Tynan regained his composure immediately and bowed before stepping down the podium and walking towards the servants.
"Is there a problem, Tynan?" Carlos asked as she saw him walk towards her.
"The King has ordered that the maidservant, Melina come along with him in his royal carriage. I was only sent to lead her there."
His words had Ms Carlos's eyes widen and her mouth hung open. A few other maids who had been sticking around managed to eavesdrop and hear the conversation and they wore the same jaw-dropped expression on their faces before whispering to each other.
"Erm... A-are you sure you heard right, Tynan?" she cleared her throat and asked. Tynan nodded at the woman, assuring her that it was what King Leon had ordered him to do and though, a little sceptical, Carlos couldn't question authority.
After a while, Melina was hauled out of the crowd to stand before Tynan.
Tynan noticed how she looked weak and tired but didn't show any emotions or share a word with her as he led the confused girl away from there.
Princess Alice and her sister had gotten into the carriage and just as Queen Sonia was about to do the same, she lost grip and slipped to fall to the ground.
"Ahh!" she screamed in pain when her back hit the ground.
Tynan and Melina, who were just approaching the carriage saw her and immediately rushed to help her get up while the coachman who had been helping the princesses get in saw what happened and instantly ran to the other side.
"I'm sorry, my queen. Are you alright?" Melina questioned as she held the elderly woman by the waist to help her up.
The woman nodded as she stared at the girl before replying, "I am."
Melina, who was used to this and had been taught by Paloma how to deal with such situations immediately began gently rubbing Queen Sonia's back and from the woman's expression, she could tell that the action was bringing her relief.
With Melina looking more gorgeous and eye-catching than she usually did, it drew the elderly woman's attention as she stared at the girl before her attention fell on the girl's hair.
"My Queen, let me help you into the carriage." The coachman's voice distracted her and she quickly took his hand before climbing again.
She got into the carriage and sat down before turning back her attention to the servant who had just helped her.
Her eyes narrowed for a second before her face went back to its usual expression as she saw the girl walk away.
Tynan kept leading Melina until they stopped at the most extravagant-looking carriage of all.
"What is happening?" she finally asked Tynan with a furrowed brow when she saw that no one was seeing them anymore.
"Get in." a masculine voice echoed in her ears, making her almost stagger and fall in shock.
"Y-your Highness?"
"Shall I remove your ears since you can't use them anymore?" Leon asked her to see her red face turn even redder. She had not noticed him inside earlier which had been why she tried to speak to Tynan.
The tall guard opened the carriage door and stretched out his hand to help her get into the carriage.
When she didn't pick it up and only stood by, glancing between him and Leon, he sent her a subtle glare that was enough to knock her back to her senses and she immediately grabbed his hand before unceremoniously climbing into the carriage.
The loud slam of the door as she entered the carriage and sat down startled her. Then she realized what was going on.
With wide eyes, she stared at the King who only looked through the window without returning her gaze.
Had he been the one that ordered Tynan to bring her here?
She looked through the window to see that Tynan had left and she felt her heart stop for a moment in her chest while she remembered their interaction the previous night.
What was he planning to do to her in the carriage?!