"What?" I asked.
She must be joking right? She must really be teasing. I know these past few days it seemed like I was almost obsessed with the idea of meeting the king. I had nearly gotten into trouble with the king's right hand man because of it.
"You heard me right. Gilbert says you should be downstairs in an hour's time so we had better start getting ready. I'll bring up water for your bath." She told me.
I folded my hand across my chest and scoffed. So now he decides to see me? Does that mean my orchard plans for today has been postponed? Who was this Dark Lord anyway? I needed to have a serious word with him. If only I could muster up the courage when I finally got to meet him and I was sure that wasn't going to happen.
I got out of bed and had my bath. Mirabel picked a pretty dress for me and helped me put it on. Afterwards, she brushed my hair and made it into a single plait that rested on one of my shoulders.
We walked down the stairs together to the first floor dining room. There Gilbert was waiting for us, looking sharp as usual.
"Good morning milady." Gilbert greeted with a smile on his face. I nodded back to him.
"I apologize for getting you out of bed so early." Said the butler crisply.
I waved his words away. "Don't worry Gilbert. Back at the village, I woke up at sunrise. The castle is spoiling me actually."
"Good to hear then. Please wait here, his majesty will be with you shortly." He said and left me in the dining hall all by myself. I stood there for a while watching the servants bring in the dishes for breakfast.
Breakfast, with the Dark Lord himself. What was that going to be like? Would he be scary and eerie, stiff and curt, or charming and pleasant? Scratch that last one out.
Charming and pleasant? What was I thinking? He could never be worthy of the title the Dark Lord if he was charming. He would charmingly order for someone to be put to death or pleasantly set an entire village ablaze to burn to the ground.
Something about my twisted mind found that funny and I covered my giggles with my hand.
"What a radiant sight to see first thing in the morning, a beautiful woman with a beautiful smile." I looked up and saw Mr Kellan walking into the room.
Mr Kellan? What was he doing here? Where was his master?
"Oh you must be looking for his majesty. He sent me in his stead." He told me when he noticed the direction I was looking.
"He sent you?" I blurted out the question before I could even stop myself.
His smile dropped. "What? The king's right hand man is not worthy of your audience? Well, I'll just go back and tell his majesty that you not very pleased."
What a petty man, I thought to myself. I shook my head. "No, that's not what I meant. I'm sorry I made it sound like that. I'm just surprised, I was told that I was having breakfast with the king himself."
He mouthed an oh. "I see. Well I'm sorry about that. Some emergency just came up that has the king cooped up in his study. He sent me in his place. And I am, after all, better than nothing."
I nodded in agreement so he could get off my case. He seemed like the type to keep petty grudges. What kind of emergency came in the space of an hour when I washed up and got dressed?
He helped me into a seat like a normal gentleman and then he sat opposite me. As I ate, or rather tried to eat, I realized I was very conscious of the man. My hand trembled slightly as I ate. I have never been so conscious of someone before. Not even the crown prince Rowland.
Was it because the man was so handsome? With his black hair tied back and his smooth skin, brown eyes and thin pink lips, the man before me could be considered as handsome. Very handsome.
But that was not the reason why. He looked up at me and when his eyes met mine, my fork fell to the floor. I picked it up but he wouldn't let me use it, claiming it had been soiled.
After breakfast, a long and uncomfortable experience, he asked me to take a walk with him in the garden. Like I had an opinion.
In the garden, we stopped by the pond. "This is your favorite part of the castle, isn't it?" He asked. I saw him watching me from the corner of my eye as I looked fondly at the ducks.
I nodded.
"What does the king want me for anyway? I thought he was coming to breakfast to tell me. But since you have come in his place then he must have told you." It was better to let him know what was on my mind rather than beat around the bush. Maybe if I was done with him quickly, I could get back to my orchard date with Mirabel.
"Eager to get to the point, aren't we?" He asked, a smirk appearing on his face.
"Well, you must be a busy man and I wouldn't want to waste your time." Like the way your king has wasted a month of mine, I said to myself.
"More like you wouldn't want to waste yours any further."
I turned so fast I feared my neck would crack. How could he have said that? Was he a mind reader or something?
"I heard you were going to explore the orchard today with the stableman's daughter. You must really be getting familiarized with the castle area." He said. I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding.
"The king is delighted to know that you are finding ways of keeping yourself busy while you're here. The library, the garden, the stables, the kitchen. You're a remarkable young lady. He apologizes that he hasn't come to see you yet. The affairs of the kingdom are just too great to be dealt with lightly."
I rolled my eyes. I'd rather hear it from the Dark Lord himself. All this songs of praises he was singing wasn't what I wanted to hear right now.
"If the affairs of the kingdom are just too great for him, shouldn't he just let someone else do it?" I asked.
Mr Kellan stopped. "Are you saying his majesty is incompetent?"
I blinked. What did I say? I shook my head quickly. "No, that's not what I meant. I mean there is nothing wrong with asking for help when you're in need of assistance. He has you to help him right?" I quickly saved myself. What was my problem? My big mouth was going to lead to my death someday.
The man nodded in agreement. "His majesty is just too meticulous. He likes everything to be done to perfection so he does everything himself."
"Oh, I see." I said, glad that the man didn't take offense at my words. Or maybe he did and just didn't want to say anything about it.
"But nothing good comes from over working yourself. You could stress your mind and your body until you become unwell." I added.
"Spoken like a true physician." Mr Kellan agreed. "Actually, that is the reason why you are here."
The reason why I was here?
"His Majesty, The Dark Lord is unwell and he needs you to cure him."