Second Arc (His Art of War) – 39. Refusal

Once they arrived in front of the dining hall, two guards opened the door and bowed to them. Inside, a large dining table neatly arranged along with the servants who were ready with their small cart on the other side of the room. Ophelia had not been seen there, whereas according to the royal ethics the prince and princess had to be present before the king entered the dining hall. While King Gervis forbade Ilex to leave his room, at least until his wound improved. This was also to avoid a fight between him and Angel that could worsen his wound condition.

They entered the room and the servants swiftly pulled the chairs for them.
"Where is Ophelia?" asked King Gervis to one of the servants.

"Princess Ophelia said she would have her lunch in her room," the servant answered.

King Gervis sighed tiredly.
"Fine," he said. There was disappointment absorbed in his voice. Since he executed Angel five years ago, Ophelia had rarely eaten with him anymore. But with his busy schedule, sometimes he hoped to see his daughter even after only a couple of minutes.

Angel noticed King Gervis' disappointed expression.

King Gervis was just about to pick up the small bell on the table, but he stopped it.
"Wait," he turned his gaze to the servant beside him.

"Call Princess Ophelia here. Tell her, it's an order from me."

"Yes, Your Majesty," the servant answered and he carried out his orders.

King Gervis looked surprised by his orders.
'Does he agree with my lunch invitation because he wants to meet Ophelia?'
Without thinking twice, King Gervis drew a clear boundary for him.
"Angel, I hope you know your limits." Although he was grateful for Angel's help, he would not give Ophelia to him.

"I know my limits. I've never been interested in her," he replied coldly.

"I hope you will keep your word," said King Gervis menacingly while giving him a sharp look.

It was not long before the dining hall door opened. Ophelia entered the room, her eyes quickly fell to him, her heart was pounding in nervousness, a slight smile developed on her lips. Although she tried to stay calm she could not cover up her happiness. This was the first time in years they could eat together. She bowed to greet them.
"Forgive my lateness , Father, Your Majesty."

Angel responded with a slight nod, while a smile also began to develop on King Gervis' face as he saw Ophelia wanted to eat with him, even it because of Angel's orders.
"Sit down," he said.

Ophelia approached them and sat in the opposite chair from Angel. Once Ophelia was seated, King Gervis waved a small bell before him, then several servants brought a small cart filled with good looking dishes. Soon a well-made food dish began to be placed before them one by one.

Angel noticed that Ophelia kept glancing at him and her cheeks turned red. He secretly let out a sigh, he knew Ophelia had feelings for him and giving orders to force her to eat with him was like giving her hope. But on the other hand, he wanted to fix her relationship with King Gervis. There was a strong feeling of guilt after he found out he was the main reason their relationship was deteriorating.

Angel replied to Ophelia's glance with a smirk.
"Princess Ophelia, I heard you rarely leave your room. Is there a problem?"

As soon as Angel began a conversation with her, her heart pounded even faster.
"I am not feeling well, Your Majesty. So I spend more time in my room," she answered as calmly as possible. But she could not hide the excitement on her face.

"Then you have to take good care of your health. It's not good for a young woman to spend too much time in her room. She will miss a lot of things around her," he suggested.

"Yes, Your Majesty," she replied. Her heart fluttered when she found out he actually cared about her.

But then he continued.
"One more thing, sometimes what you are after is not something you can get. You should appreciate what you have now before you regret losing it." Then he turned to King Gervis who had been watching their conversation.
"Do you agree with me, King Gervis?"

"Yes, I agree with you," answered King Gervis as he understood the meaning of his words.

"Yes, Your Majesty," replied Ophelia. The smile on her face disappeared, her mood turned sour after she heard his words. He indirectly refused her and suggested that Ophelia should respect her family rather than chase him.

The atmosphere turned awkward, but King Gervis caught Angel's good intentions and tried to dilute the atmosphere.
"Alright, let's start eating."

They started to take the cutlery and started to eat quietly.

But they had only eaten for a few minutes, the knocking sounds came. A servant opened the door.
"Your Majesty is eating, you can report it later," said the servant.

"This is an urgent report," said the guard in the Asterian army's uniform.

"Tell him to come in," said King Gervis.

The guard entered and bowed to King Gervis.
"Your Majesty, Commander Irwin and his troops have arrived outside the capital's gate." There was a trace of panic in his voice.

'This is bad, I must inform him that the capital is fine. If he is attacking the city, the civilians will be the first victims.'
"I will greet him," said King Gervis as he took a napkin to clean his mouth.

"It's unnecessary," said Angel in a casual tone. He turned to the guard.
"Is General Flare there?" he continued.

"Yes, she's there, Your Majesty."

"Let her handle it," he said again.

King Gervis turned to Angel as he frowned in confusion. Without his presence how could Commander Irwin want to enter the city without any resistance?
"Angel, I don't want to add more casualties from my army."

Angel cut the meat on his plate nonchalantly.
"Calm down, Flare is my trusted general and she is a good negotiator," he said confidently.