" Yeah there is " he said nonchalantly and Lily turned to look at him
" But you're brothers, right? I mean, I argue with my brothers all the time but not to that extent "
" I and my brothers only share the same father, we have different mothers. You see Lily , there was no end to the king's debauchery "
" How ? " Lily questioned
" The queen was my mother and the first wife but she was without child for some time. This led to king to marrying his second wife, prince Rufus' mother. She bore him a son but my father still wasn't satisfied. "
" He was enchanted by prince Royce's mother who was a lady of the court. He never legally married her but she bore him a son and a daughter " he continued
" My mother was devastated at the time. It seems heaven rewarded her with the strongest children. As an Ashtian, every male child begins his training at the age of ten and the females begin at age twelve. I and my younger sister began ours at age eight and ten respectively "
" Wow, so what happened then?, what do you guys train so young for? " Lily asked intrigued. Rian just smiled at her, she unknowingly wanted to know more about him
" Well you could guess the rest. I was far better than my brothers at swordsmanship skills and my magic was above theirs. That only started the envy and when my father gave Falcon to me, it made them paranoid. "
" When my mother was on her death bed, my father felt remorseful for his actions. He banished both Prince Royce and Rufus's mother from the kingdom . That made them view me, my sister and my mother as monsters " Rian finished
" Then what happened to Prince Rufus's legs? Was he always lame from birth? " Lily inquired, when she saw the prince on a wheelchair, she knew there was a story involved. A dark one to be precise
" Price Rufus wasn't always lame from birth but he gave up on the throne and hating me the instant he lost his legs " Rian answered but she was not satisfied with his answer, she wanted to know more
" Your highness, I asked if... "
" I know " he interrupted her " let's leave that story for another day, okay? " he asked and she nodded " That's my story, what's yours ? I want to know more about you " he said and that left a fluttering feeling in her .
" There's really not much to tell , your highness " Lily blushed
" Why were you named Lily ?" he asked out of the blue
" According to my mother, when she was pregnant with me , she loved visiting the garden. In the process, she fell in love with a lily flower , its whiteness and it's scent attracted her. You know , my full name is Lilyrose Humbert "
" Your mom fell in love with a rose flower too ? " he asked laughing
" Yes, your highness " Lily replied laughing as well. When her mother first told her the story behind her name, she had a hard time controlling her laughter.
" What else? " he proved further
" Um.. . I have two annoying little brothers . They practically exist to annoy me. My father has just my mother as a wife and many mistresses for pleasure "
" What about Caebrth? Is there anything else that caught your fancy? "
" I play the flute as a hobby and as for Caebrth, I'm not so sure because I was never allowed to go anywhere apart from the castle "
" Well, I'm here now and we can go any where you want? "
Lily smiled, she could feel the sincerity in his voice but sue didn't want to believe it too soon . Then, she remembered the question that was on the back of her mind.
" Do you have other wives, your highness? " Lily blurted
" No, but I have bedded many women "
At his words, Lily's face darkened. She cursed herself for being so naive and believing him easily. He was just like other men, he used women for pleasure. She couldn't help but be angry. So she was not the only woman in his life?, if that be the case, then there was also no limit to his debauchery .
" Are you offended? " came his deep voice
" I dare not, your highness " she angrily answered
" Is this perhaps jealousy I perceive? "
" Most certainly not, your highness "
Rian stared at the lady in front of him. Her reddish brown hair was swimming in the wind, he knew she was jealous and angry but what could he do? It would be better if he told her himself than for her to hear it elsewhere.
" Lily " he called her name