The King stood still, staring at the Commander of an 'enemy' kingdom who bravely entered his chamber in secret. Well, it wasn't his first time. It happened often, especially when his daughter was still alive.
"I don't expect you here," was his only remark. Then he turned around and retreated to his seat. Even he was surprised by how much he still trust this young man. The possibility of the young Commander having some hidden ill intentions didn't even cross his mind.
Nico Petrus approached the Jerivian King as he observed the huge chamber. "I'm surprised that you still didn't strengthen your security. Don't you know that you might be already dead if I happened to be an assassin?"
"If you were indeed an assassin, do you think I'll just sit here without fighting back or calling the guards?" King Tobias retorted.
Nico Petrus simply smiled and sat opposite the King. "How have you been?" he asked. "You look tired."
"I think I barely hold on these days," the King said and let out another sigh. He used to have quite a comfortable relationship with this young Commander until... that poison took his daughter away. The Commander hated him for keeping it from him but it wasn't his intention to do that.
He wasn't himself when his daughter was poisoned and when Nico Petrus finally crossed his mind, he didn't know of a way to inform him. Nico Petrus was just like a shadow guard. He never knew if he was around or if he was in Qalagon or Jerivia.
"You should try to rely more on your son," Nico Petrus calmly said to the King. His demeanor had changed a lot ever since their last encounter in Qalagon. He might be the King of an enemy kingdom but he admired him.
"Are you reminding me of how your King abdicated early in favour of his son?" Tobias Aventine mused. "Zaro is very different from your current King, Nico. Arin Helev is a gifted young man and if I were Regan Helev, I might even do the same."
"So you indeed admit that we have a very competent King right now," Nico Petrus pointed out, barely refraining himself from laughing.
"Yes," the King shrugged. "I bet Arin Helev has the ability to come down as the greatest King of your kingdom in history. However, his calmness ever since he took over the throne troubled me. It's not like he doesn't know what's going on."
"You don't have to worry," Nico Petrus said. His tone was quite sarcastic yet the Jerivian King wasn't offended. "If you were to know how patient His Majesty is, you won't believe it."
King Tobias nodded in approval. "I expect that much."
"Tell me, Your Majesty. Do you think my King will let that matter slide? After all, you fooled him for months," Nico Petrus cautiously inquired. He was only doing what he was told to do.
When he was asked the same question that always bothered him, King Tobias glanced at Commander Nico, trying to know what his intention was. "No kingdom would tolerate that," he said and meeting the Commander's gaze, he added, "Unless the new King is planning something else."
"Even when he was the Crown Prince, I know Arin Helev always wanted to prevent wars though he never hesitates to fight if needed. So, if he still waits even now, that means he didn't plan to attack us," King Tobias clarified.
"You should give a serious thought, Your Majesty," Nico Petrus said. "My King is still open to new terms but... if you keep on entangling yourself with some traitors, I don't know what will happen."
King Tobias slightly smiled and narrowed his eyes before he looked at Commander Nico again. "Nico, do you think I don't know why your King is being patient with us? I know why he held back despite what we did."
Then he rose from his seat and walked towards the opened windows, inhaling the fresh yet cold air. "If a man as powerful as him is willing to be patient with his enemies, there can only be one reason. A woman."
He turned his body towards the Commander and added, "Commander Iria, in particular."
Hearing what the Jerivian King said, the Commander's lips curved into a little smile. "I was right. I never believed that you will be dumb enough not to see through things."
Tobias Aventine returned to his seat. "I saw the way he looked at Iria while I was in Qalagon. Now, Iria had returned and I'm sure that he won't accept it. He wanted her back."
With a light chuckle, the King added, "I never know that Arin Helev will be such a fool for love." His face turned a bit serious when he said, "However, I had sacrificed Iria once. I won't allow it to happen twice. If necessary, we will just fight your kingdom again."
'He had no idea that the feeling was mutual.' That's what Nico Petrus thought. However, he won't say it to him. That will only make things more complicated and he was in no position to do that. At least, he now understood why King Tobias didn't make any move to mend the relationship between the two kingdoms and turned to the enemies of Qalagon instead.
He didn't want to lose Iria. Will he changed his mind if he knew how Iria felt?
"Commander Iria knew my relationship with the late Princess," he said to the Jerivian King after much hesitation. Noticing the amazement in the King's eyes, he looked down at the braided bracelet on his wrist and added, "She figured it out through this."
King Tobias didn't know what troubled him more. The fact that Iria knew or... that this young Commander still hold on to the little gift.
He was still young. He should move on and start anew.
The King was also quite surprised that Iria didn't ask him anything. However, he somewhat knew why she maintained her silence but... the Commander's next words put him in a more dire situation.
"Can you allow me to see Commander Iria just once?" Nico Petrus asked. He thought of his last conversation with her and... he also had many things to say to her.....
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