"Your highness," I turned around to see who called me and saw Ernie who was hiding in a tree.
"What are you doing there, Ernie?" I asked as I frowned my brows, I sent him here to be a spy but not a hidden one.
"I was doing some rounds as you know that the duke knew who I am that's why I'm hiding," Ernie explained to him.
How could he forgot such a trivial matter? the duke almost knew every knights and noble person in their kingdom, after all he has a lot of enemies , and besides Solaris was one of the oldest and noblest family in their kingdom next to theirs.
"Did you get any suspicious thing about the letter and about the lady's who were involved?" Helion asked as they went more to a more hidden place from the crowd.
"I went to your palace yesterday and I saw the empress was there with Lady Noraya," Ernie said to him.
"And what are they doing there?" Helion asked as if he doesn't knew the answer, it was probably his mother touring the woman she want him to marry, and besides after his sister who died from a young age his mother has been fond of having a daughter and that's why she has been pushing him to get married.
"They were having some tea at your palace, Your highness," Ernie said as he scratches his head.
Helion sighed knowing his mother, she was probably the one who stamped the letter with his seal, this what he and his father hate the most about his mother.
She was too kind to know if she was been taken for granted or not.
"What about the letter? did you get the letter and saw what's the content?" I asked as I can feel pain in my neck with what my mother did.
" I hadn't had the chance to read as I heard from one of the maids here that Lady Acantha burned the letter.
Burned? how dare she burned the letter with his seal and try to ignore it, even though he was not the one to sent to her.
"By the way your highness, I asked the owner of the shop where lady Acantha and lady Noraya caused and his statement is different from those people who were also there, " Ernie said which caught his attention.
This matter wouldn't be his business hadn't his name was being dragged because of it and now his mother has been involve by sending a letter to the duke's daughter.
"Spill it," Helion said as he leaned in one of the tree.
"The shop owner said that Lady Noraya brought up the duke's power in an insult way that's why Lady Acantha got pissed , but everyone said it was Lady Acantha who humiliates Lady Noraya's family being low ranked," Ernie said as he put his hands on his chin as he thinks.
Seems like there are literal two sides of the story and he don't know which are saying the truth and which side are lying.
He had heard about the reputation of Lady Acantha that she has a short temper and she likes causing trouble, for a woman like her who hasn't even had a proper debut on the society, she's way to popular in not a good way.
"Did you get any information about the Duke Solaris daughter?" Helion asked to Ernie who just made a face.
"Your highness that woman- Ah, I mean Lady Acantha almost caught me the last time, she was asking me if I was new here and I just made up that I was," Helion just listen to Ernie as he blabbers some words he didn't understand.
"I was asking if whether you get any important information about her," Helion said as he stopped Ernie from talking too much.
"That's what I'm about to say, according from the maids that I asked her, lady Acantha did had some accident last time and that she lost her memory," Ernie said which made his back straightened from leaning into tree.
"They also said that the lady has been weird sometimes, she doesn't shouts that much and doesn't leave her room that much," Ernie said as he told him what he had learned.
Then the duke was saying the truth when he mentioned in his letter to the emperor when he requested to make Count Bellos party in the afternoon as his daughter had an accident.
Helion went back to his senses when they hear some foots step coming on their way.
"Mildred, are you sure that no one's here in the garden?" They heard a woman's voice as she was talking to another woman which he can tell that her maid.
"There are no people who will try to go here, my lady. The duke banned everyone to come here unless they were doing some rounds ," The woman named Mildred explained to the other woman who now he knows who.
"That's lady Acantha sh-," Ernie whispered to him but before he could finish his sentence Helion had already covered his mouth with his hands.
Helion saw that the lady stopped for a while too look at their surroundings, he could barely see her face as he was still facing her back and the woman was wearing a black robe.
"Did you hear something?" The woman asked her maid as the latter just shook her head.
------------------------------
"Did you hear something?" Acantha said as she asked Mildred who was leading her to the pavilion on her garden, she was so sure that she hear someone talk.
Mildred just shook her head at her as she was ready to leave her.
"I'll just get you some chocolate at the kitchen my lady, just stay here because if the duke sees that you are outside when you should be resting inside your room he'll probably get mad at us," Mildred said as she finally departed to get her some hot chocolate.
Acantha was left alone as she was sighing, she hear some little noises, she turned around and she followed where she heard the noise and when she peak behind the tree, and saw two men who was now scratching their feet.
"Aww-Aww" The man whom she recognized as the knight whom she met last time was now making some noise as he was scratching his feet, she turned to her right and there she saw that there is also a man who was doing the same thing.
"Damned i!" The man curses as he was trying to scratch his back now,
"Who are you?" Acantha said as she pointed at the man who she doesn't know who's.
Both men looked at her in surprised it seems like they were to busy with their thing.
"And you! It's you again!," She pointed to the knight who she remember that she haven't got his name.
"L-Lady Acantha" the knight said as he was looking at her like she just caught him doing something.
"Forgive my friend my lady but we were just talking here, " The man said as he was still feeling itchy as she saw that he was still scratching his back.
"And who are you?" Acantha asked as she doesn't recognized who this man is.
"Ladyyyy Acantha," She heard and she turned her back she saw Mildred was coming with her directions as she was holding a lamp on her right hand.
"What are you doing here in the dark my lady? if the duke saw you here I will be -" Mildred stopped saying anything and Acantha saw her eyes grew bigger as she looked at her back.
She turned to Mildred again who was still shock to what she sees and she doesn't know why is her reactions like that, " Mildred, this man here along with this knight are sneaking in here," Acantha said as she pointed to the man who was now stopped from scratching his back, and arms.
"M-my lady" Mildred said as she was stuttering.
"We should call for help from the other knights to escort them," She still continue to say at Mildred who seems not listening to her, " Mildred!" Acantha raises her voice as she shakes her to come to her senses.
"M-my l-lady," Mildred said as if she was scared of something.
"Ahemm" Acantha heard the man as if he was trying to get his attention.
"I'm so sorry lady, " Mildred said as she wen down on her knees and " Greetings to his royal highness the crown prince, " Mildred said which shocks me.
I looked at the man as I didn't seen his face a while ago in the dark , damned his illustrations in the novel didn't give him a justice.
I stiffened a bit as I remember that this man will kill me in the future and was even summoning me to his palace for his beloved Noraya.
"Seems like you also forgot who I am, my lady," He said as he smirks at me.