The dinner already goes on for almost an hour and Iria Alewine didn't talk much apart from the small conversation she had with the Second Prince. She would answer when the King or some officials asked her a question and the Nathanian Princess also talked to her once or twice.
The Commander noticed how Princess Athena got along pretty well with Crown Prince Zaro and... it also seemed like the Princess enjoyed chatting with him a lot. However, Iria knew the Crown Prince too well. He seemed normal but... he wasn't fine.
When the Commander was tired of the chatty atmosphere, she rose from her seat and walked out of the hall. Maybe it's better to get some fresh air in a quiet place. It's not like she had an appetite.
Iria Alewine didn't know that the Crown Prince would follow her. As such, she was quite surprised to see him when she was alone on a balcony which wasn't far from the hall where dinner took place.
"Zaro, the feast is not over yet. Why are you here?" she quickly asked her friend.
Friend. She wasn't sure anymore. After all, she already knew that she wasn't just a friend to him.
"You did the same, right?" the Crown Prince simply said as he walked towards her. He stood beside her and glanced up at the sky.
For a while, the two were very quiet to the point where the situation became awkward. It was even harder for the Masked Commander as this atmosphere was so new to her. She never finds herself this tight-lipped around him. However, when she looked at Zaro, she was taken aback by how calm he appeared.
"You don't sit with me," Zaro Aventine pointed out after what seemed to be forever. "Did I make you uncomfortable, Iria?"
"That's not it," Iria Alewine quickly said yet she didn't know how to continue.
"Then what is it?" the Crown Prince asked, finally shifting his gaze to her.
The Commander narrowed her eyes as she didn't have an answer. "I don't know what to say. That's why."
She also knew that it was a lame excuse. However, it's the only thing that crossed her mind.
Zaro looked at her for a while before he shifted his gaze back to the sky. "While you were in Qalagon, my father told me that as long as I can win your heart, he won't oppose."
Iria Alewine raised a brow at what he just said. The King already know?!
"He said that you're like a daughter to him and he had no intention to force you," Zaro Aventine continued. "I used to worry, thinking how you would spend many days with Arin Helev but... I never thought that what I scared will actually come true."
"Zaro -"
"Did Arin Helev love you the same as you do?"
Much more than she loved him. That's what first came to Iria's mind but she didn't say anything.
"Did he still accept you knowing that you're the Masked Commander?"
He did but... that wasn't the only obstacle between them.
"Then... will the officials and the people of Qalagon accept you? If they did... " Zaro Aventine paused and met Iria's gaze. "Will you abandon everything and go to him?"
It's his first time questioning her loyalty and it affected the Commander much more than one could imagine! She never knew that this day would come. The day when Zaro asked her such things!
Did he really think she will do that? He knew her the best!
"I already prove myself enough, Your Highness," she responded in a firm yet somewhat cold tone. She tried her best to understand him. After all, he was the Crown Prince of this kingdom.
"You don't know how powerful those feelings are, Iria. Once it became deep enough, you won't be able to control it anymore and instead, it will control you," Zaro said to her. Unlike her, his voice was calm all the time.
"Are you scared that I will betray Jerivia for his sake?" she asked. "You don't have to worry, Your Highness. If this feeling is powerful as you said, then I will lay down my life before it makes me lost my conscience."
Zaro Aventine just knew what he wanted to know. Rather than stop loving him, she was willing to die. That's another explanation of her response.
"The feast will be over soon, Your Highness. Your absence won't go unnoticed. So, you should go back," Iria Alewine said when Zaro maintained his silence for a while. Then she slightly bowed her head and turned around, trying to walk away until...
"What will become of us?"
She heard the question which she hated. She nervously squeezed her clothes, trying to maintain her composure.
"I don't want to lose you, Zaro," she finally said without turning around. "However, that's up to you. You are the key to that question."
Before the Crown Prince could say anything, Iria Alewine walked away from the balcony. Refusing to go back to the noisy hall, she left the palace and returned to her mansion.
Peace and a quiet atmosphere were what always brought the Commander to her mansion and even now, she got just that. She was all alone in her huge chamber with Zaro's words repeatedly played in her mind. Somehow, she felt that he was strange.
He didn't seem like the one she used to know. There was something different in him.
While she was completely distracted, thinking of what to do, her gaze landed on the braided bracelet on her wrist.
Arin Helev.
She had heard a lot of news about him these days. Now, he was the King of Qalagon with more responsibilities. He was working hard to stand his ground while his enemies were eager to take him down before he could establish himself in his new position.
What hurt Iria the most was that... her kingdom was one of the kingdoms whom the new king should be wary about the most. It wasn't even known if the tension would grow or not.
What if she really had to face him on the battlefield?
That's the last thing she wanted and... she really wished she could be of help to him. With his father and brother gone, he will be very lonely.....
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