It was noon and the party was over. The royal guest had all gone yet no one knew what had happened in the chambers of the princesses.
Darkon and his father were given a chamber where they could stay.
"I hope you can enjoy your stay here in the castle, my Lord." The guard said to Darkon as he showed him the chamber. He only nodded without letting a word out of his mouth as he watched him leave.
The moment Darkon faced the walls surrounding this chamber, his callous demeanor shattered. Anger and hatred became the most prominent feeling he had at the moment.
Here he was, standing in the land he most despised in his whole life. The land that daily reminded him of his suffering, his anguish and the reason to seek for death.
Staring at this walls and remembering how the walls of his kingdom where shattered to pieces by greed and betrayal, his fist was clenching, his body trembling. He wanted to destroy, to kill every single living being, burn down the whole kingdom.
His heart blazed the more just knowing that he would be sharing a table with his enemies from now on. They don't know yet who he was, and when they come to know, they will understand that living with an enemy is better than living with a friend. For now he had to act like the a friend.
"I have waited for you." The soft echo of a woman's voice came from a close distance.
The woman stood with a subtle air of confidence, her maid's attire slightly askew, revealing a hint of mischief beneath her demure facade.
Her crisp, white apron was immaculately tied behind her, but her skirt seems a touch too short, exposing a flash of ankle that belied her innocent appearance. A stray lock of raven-black hair escapes her cap, framing her heart-shaped face and piercing amber eyes that sparkle with a hint of sly intent.
"Silvarena," Darkon hummed her name and moved towards the room.
"It's totally bad to start with your ignorance. And when last did I hear you call me by my full name, Darkon Luciano." The lady moved closer to him walking directly beside him. Though she knew why he ignored her now, she knew he was battling with his anger again.
"Darkon Luciano." The name rolled off his mouth like a velvet ribbon of silken prose gliding from his lips. He too thought of the last time she referred to him as Darkon Luciano. "You know this is the last place you must call me by that name."
"You made me. I'm sorry, Darkon Brutus Santos." Silvarena sighed, chiding herself for joking with such.
Indeed the combination of the names suddenly sounded weird in his ears. Nevertheless, he most preferred it when he was called Darkon or simply short formed Dark.
He ignored the names and asked, "Where is father?"
"The last I saw him, he was with the queen in the party, sipping their wine and probably talking of things hidden." Silvarena pulled the door of the room open now.
As they entered the room, they were met with the crackling sound of the fire place and it's warmth that brought a haven of comfort and tranquility fit for a noble guest or a weary traveler seeking rest and respite within the castle's sturdy walls. But all of this made him even more angry.
"You acted so well today, but you should have done better in controlling your anger. You must not let your anger betray you. You shouldn't have made the princess fall if you want her to build her trust in you."
"The princess fell in her own accord. I have nothing to do with her fall. The only wrong thing I know I did was to dance with my enemy's daughter." His mind flashed in rage recalling how her hands had wrapped tenderly on his neck, the way she had drew him closer when she had accepted to dance with him. That concerned look in her eyes and the way she spoke to him. As if she was a good princess.
Anyway, she was the good princess of her kingdom.
"And when she had fallen, you should have acted like a gentle man by defending her in front of her sister and the mistress." She chuckled, Darkon related well enough with the joke but his anger couldn't let him laugh.
"You shouldn't have just remained silent. If you continue in that way, things will not work perfectly well. No matter how tough a woman could be, a woman can easily be melted by men, men who dominates their senses with the gentle way they act towards them." She went closer to him. Just like the way you do to me. She thought.
"Anyway, the Princess seems kind. And it seems everyone truly want her to be the crown princess. But I can see that her sister, princess Vanessa is an ambitious type, more driven by greed like her father."
"They are all the same, Silver. They all have the blood of Tristan running in them. And they all needs to be destroyed."
"I perceived they are not in good terms with each other. I could see the hatred in the eyes of the two princesses when to look at each other. No wonder the queen working so hard to find allies. Going as far as making this deal with your father, it seems Alexia and her daughter's opposition is a strong one. With things now in such way, it will definitely go easy for us."
"So tell me, how did you attend the party to know this."
"It was simple. As the royal maid. One of the royal maids here had fallen sick, so I volunteered to take her place, and the kitchen head permitted me. They seem kind to some people here. Their maid dress oddly looks good on me, doesn't it?"
"You have already made friends in just few hours of our arrival."
"I think making friends easily is in my gene. Well, I need the acting for our good."
Silvarena turned her gaze towards him, stroking his hands on hers gently, she nodded with a smile and inhaled deeply. "Here take this." She said taking something out from the pocket of her apron.
"I have made a to do list for you." She handed the book to him.
"A to do list?"
"Yes. Your daily activities with Princess Gabriella. It's more like a strategy to pull her closer to you. Engaging in these daily activities will be a strategy to make her fall in love with you. That's the mission right?"
A melancholy smile drew on Darkon's lips as he opened the book. "You are very thoughtful." He stared at the words written on the first page attempting to get through the book. The page wrote, 'Romance strategies.' He turned to the next page and saw she had kept Gabriella's picture within the page. He took it out, coldly stared at it for a moment before his eyes went on the words.
Before he could read further, Silvarena took the book from him and closed it.
"You can study it later." Darkon could feel the sadness in her voice.
"Are you okay?" Darkon asked as she leaned in his arms.
"Yes, I am."
"No, you are not, I can feel it."
"Well, I will miss you... I mean... We won't have much time to spend together anymore. No more training with you, talking, cooking, so many things I'm going to miss."
"And why do you think you're going to miss those things with me?"
Silvarena fumbled her face and looked at him. "Don't act like you don't know. The mission is to make her fall in love with you before you use her to destroy the whole kingdom. Most of your time will be spent with her." She paused before she said,
"You might fall in love with Gabriella in the process and leave me." And this statement made Darkon scoff loudly, his hand clenching on the picture still in his hand. When she saw that his mere scoff were now turning into a burning anger, she instantly planted a kiss on his neck.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you angry. I know you hate everything concerning king Tristan, even his daughters. But you also know I'm a jealous woman. Even though Gabriella will be the source of your target to get king Tristan, she is still a woman and women are..."
"Stop." Ordered Darkon in a cold voice. His next action brought a gasp to the woman's lips. Darkon eyes were revolting into red hue, sending a horrific chill to the body of the woman. He had cut his skin allowing the blood to drop on the surface of the picture in his hand.
"That is how much I hate them." He billowed, making sure every word did not just sip into her ears but also into her bones.
"I'm sorry for what I said, my love." She began to kiss him in an attempt to reduce his flaming anger.
When Darkon was finally released by the tender touch of her lips, he heard her whisper. "I love you so much." Which he hummed as an answer to her affectionate kisses.
He finally pulled away from her when they heard sound of footstep. "Father is here."
The woman nodded, barely forcing herself away. Her heart was racing. She wanted to do more than just kisses. However, she had to control herself.
The doors to the room opened and the Marquess stepped in.
"Father," Darkon called.