Chapter 49 - Two Years Part 3

"Miss, are you ok? You seem stressed out"

Selene was pacing back and forth meters away from the gigantic gate of the Aventus capital, blocking out the voice of her personal servant, Elsa.

The gnawing feeling of distress and nervousness kept plaguing her mind as she waited for Theo's carriage to arrive.

It's definitely been an hour! They must have gotten into an incident! I might have to go back to the palace and call for my father himself to check them out!

It had only been thirty minutes since she arrived at the gate.

She kept deluding that time had already passed for over an hour and something wrong happened to the people who escorted Theo and the others, even though a manpower enough to topple a medium sized country was literally guarding the envoy.

A demon! It's definitely the work of a demon! Maybe Gremory with his duke class spatial teleportation? But how is that possible when there's literally a gigantic barrier covering the whole empire that detects demons higher than the count class????

"Miss? Sigh, I can't get through her.."

Elsa sighed in resignation, giving up trying to convince her master from worrying about the arriving envoy. 

While Elsa was saddened that her master ignored her, she was suddenly called out, out of nowhere.

"Elsa! We have to report to Father that the envoy is arriving late! It's been over an hour! How can this be possible when four Grandmasters are escorting them!? Send a fast horse now!"

Elsa just froze at the crazed request that her master just made.

Does love really change people this much?

The master she knew was quiet, charming, elegant and most of all cold to those that she doesn't deem worthy of her attention. She's even distant to her family in some occassions, especially in public, doning a mask to seem more mature and strong than she actually was.

But, it all changed when she met Theo. She even made friends as well.

Elsa questioned how his highness Theodore changed her master to this degree of absurdity.

Elsa approached her master and held her by the arm gently.

"Young Lady, It hasn't been an hour. They still have five minutes left from the predicted time."

Selene's crazed eyes became a shade clearer from Elsa's 

"!? Really? Are you sure Elsa?"

Selene shook Elsa's shoulder, begging for an answer from her servant.

"Y-yes Young Lady, They should be arriving around- oh they're here"

Elsa's words cut off mid-sentence as she saw a horse far in the distance with a man in a white and blue armor and what came after him was Holy knights all in an astute position that protected the two carriages they were escorting.

There were two noticeable black attired people beside the knight leading the carriage, one was Violet's father, Florian Rosenberg and the other was the old Duke Elliot Shadowblade, the father of her mother, the Queen, who was now Levana Aventus instead of Levana Shadowblade.

He is an old man that shouldn't be underestimated, he was, after all, the leader of the Emperor's shadow. A dedicated group of Assassins that do the bidding of the Emperor, be it protecting, assassination and espionage, they are the group that offer their lives to the Dark Emperor without hesitation. 

Selene, who was crazed a moment ago instantly transformed into work mode. Her eyes colder than the northern continent, her form radiated majesty and her composure was as calm as the waves of a lake shore.

But her insides says something differently otherwise

Internally, Selene was about to explode into a million pieces, her heart was palpitating in an abnormal pace, her hands were sweating buckets and her legs, hidden under her dress, were trembling in anticipation.

The person who was leading the envoy was the familiar Duke of Virtus, John Windsor, The Thunder Arbiter and the current strongest lightning knight of Alethea.

The same person who also escorted Theo for my birthday in the game, so no changes with that.

The two grandmasters who escorted the envoy were also the same grandmaster in the game.

The Duke slowed down as he approached Selene.

John Windsor hopped off his armored horse and approached the princess that barged his way through the gates of the capital.

"I greet, The imperial princess of Aventus. It is an honor to be in your presence"

He knelt down to the ground, showing respects to Selene, daughter of the emperor. The others followed, including the grandmasters of her homeland.

""""We greet the Imperial Princess of Aventus.""""

Selene, used to this kind of treatment, simply lifted her hand up, asking the people who kneel before her rise.

"Rise, I am grateful for your respectful manners, Duke Windsor. You did not have to go to such lengths." Selene said with impeccable calmness and manner

The Duke and the rest rose to their feet at the princess' command. The Duke standing at the height of 182 cm dwarfing Selene, but her composure was nonetheless not affected, a lot of male nobles from her experience dwarfed her anyway, this was no different

"It is only proper and the bare minimum to greet your imperial highness in such a way"

"I see, as expected of the Thunder Arbiter and prime minister of Virtus, you are indeed worthy of such titles, anyways, I am here in advance to greet my Fi… fi...." Selene who started to speak confidently, started to stutter into a mess by the end of her statement.

I can't! I can't say it! saying fiance to call Theo is too embarrassing!

Selene clutched her dress in embarrassment with her cheeks and end of her ears slowly reddening.

She did her best to not show it by lowering her head in shame.

"Be-?" The Duke said while tilting his head in confusion.

"I think she meant to say fiance, Duke Windsor." A familiar voice ringed through Selene's ears

This voice!?

Selene hastefully looked up and froze.

Selene

Theo

Theo, who walked and stood beside The Duke, froze as well, seeing the face of Selene up close after two years shocked him to the core.

And they stayed staring at each other for minutes, which to them felt like hours.

ZAP!*

Both felt it, the familiar feeling once more after two whole years of being apart.

Resonance

The first time one in two years. 

They're feelings aligned once more

They're sigils glowed in their respective color, connecting them with a single strand of pink light.

Selene felt Theo's sincerity, Theo felt the same

Theo felt Selene's excitement, Selene felt the same

Selene felt the loneliness of Theo, Theo felt the same

Theo felt the longing of Selene, Theo felt the same

Both felt a myriad of different feelings colliding into a one big burst of emotional roller coaster, making both smile at each other.

They looked at each other's eyes which glowed and filled with joyful emotion.

Selene and Theo took a single step forward and embraced each other, longing for each other's warmth and finding comfort at each other's touch.

"Selene" Theo whispered as he continued gently embracing Selene.

"Yes, Theo?" Selene sweetly asked

Selene's noir eyes sparkled as it stared into Theo's crimson sharp eyes.

"I missed you" Theo spoke with his heart.

"I know." Selene replied, tightening her embrace on Theo.

"Selene, you look more beautiful since the last time I saw you" Theo said as he stroked Selene's hair

"You look more handsome as well, Theo" Selene softly said as she rubbed Theo's back gently.

Theo and Selene whispered sweet words at each other as if they were in their own small world as they continued to embrace and caress each other.

"EHEM!"

Sadly for them, that feeling disappeared abruptly by a loud cough of a man standing behind Theo.

""Ah....."" Selene and Theo let out in unison.

"I understand that both his highness Theodore and her highness Selene miss each other, however we must deliver our message to the Emperor personally that we have arrived."

""Ah...."" Selene and Theo once more voiced in unison

"And I hope that both of you do such things in private if I may interject" The duke said as he averted his eyes from both Theo and Selene.

Wooosh!

Out of the two pairs, Selene was the first one to take action out of the two. She bolted away from the scene and essentially dove back inside her carriage which was parked in front of the gate, barging the way for the duke.

Selene huddled herself on the seat, she summoned a blanket and a pillow from her spatial ring, she covered herself with the blanket and screamed at the top of her lungs as she planted her face on the pillow to dampen the noise from the suspecting observers.

While all of that happened, Theo who was left alone also took action as soon as Selene ran. He also ran back to his carriage, covered himself with a blanket from his spatial ring and took a sleeping potion that would knock him out for half an hour.

Everyone who who had seen the scene of the two betrothed people embracing were cringed at the sweetness that the two radiated and all of them were now relieved that the few minutes of awkward waiting and silence were now over

They all gave Duke Windsor a mental thanks for his brave actions of ending the embarrassingly romantic display the two enacted.

From this day forward, the start of the rumors of their so-called 'Love' would spread throughout the two empires and slowly to the rest of the world.

It was also the day where the 'Greatest Couple' rumor was formed.