Second Arc (His Art of War) End - 153. Welcome The King

Rose's eyes swept into that large room, looking at the servants who were busy decorating the room until her gaze met the throne. Her mind imagined the man who had put her in this strange place sitting there.
'I wonder what I have to say if I meet him again ...' she thought. She couldn't help herself but felt nervous about his arrival. On her way to Euphorion, even though Flare didn't say anything, Rose finally realized that Angel's letter to Flare before they left Zephyrus was an order to keep her safe from the rebels. That's why during their journey they were very cautious, even Angel prepared strong soldiers like Rai to handle this problem. Unfortunately, although Rose wanted to give him proper thanks, she never saw him again.

Amid her thoughts, Claire's voice came from her side accompanied by the sound of the footsteps. She turned her gaze to Claire.
"Your Highness." Claire walked up to her in a hurry and stopped near Rose.
"I finally found you," she said breathlessly. A list in her hand and just like the others she was already wearing her official outfit.

"What happened? Why are you in such a hurry?" asked Rose. It was rare for Claire to search for her in the early morning like this, moreover in a rush like this.

"I forgot to tell you the royal tailor is coming this afternoon," said Claire in a panic. In contrast to Chancellor Allan and Cley who was given the responsibility of organizing Angel's wedding, Claire was in charge of their outfit throughout that important day and the guest list. And of course, this was all done without Rose's knowledge, according to Angel's orders. Even though when Rose arrived at Euphorion, Cley and Claire felt awkward about her presence, they got used to it over time. Likewise with Rose as soon as she heard that Cley and Claire were from Pearl Gate City, she didn't hesitate to apologize to them. Even though it wasn't her fault, she still felt guilty about this.

"Again?" asked Rose with a frown.
"The dress that the king gave me is more than enough. I don't need any more of it." In just a month, the royal tailor made her more than a dozen dresses. That besides her daily clothes and dresses. She was a political prisoner and didn't have much freedom apart from wandering around the castle. She would also rarely have guests nor have assignments, so she wouldn't need that many dresses.

"No. This is an important dress for tomorrow's event. So you should try it on after lunch," replied Claire. It was Rose's wedding dress. Even though the dress had been finished two days ago, they couldn't ask Rose to try it on without Angel's presence. Because without King Eudon's letter and Angel's explanation, they were afraid that Rose would try to run away.

Rose sighed.
"Fine." She didn't suspect anything since Claire said it was for tomorrow's event. Rose guessed Angel would show her to the guests to prove how he could defeat her kingdom gloriously. But since Angel said she was invited as a guest, of course, she had to dress well.

"Also, His Majesty will arrive at the castle soon. I hope you don't mind accompanying him for lunch," said Claire again. This was not Angel's order, but Claire's initiative since she knew that even though Angel and Rose would get married soon, they were far from knowing each other. So she decided to do this. Moreover, this was the first time Angel let a woman into his life, even if this was for political purposes.

"Me?" said Rose with another frown in disbelief.
"I don't dare to do it. I'm only a political prisoner. It's improper for me to eat at the same table with the king," she said again. A political prisoner was actually the same as an ordinary prisoner, it was just that she was not in a real prison. That's why she was quite happy since Angel still gave her some maids and let her walk around the castle to get rid of her boredom. But of course, he couldn't let her into several important rooms, such as his study room, Castle inner office, important document storage as well as Castle treasury and vault.

"Your Highness, you shouldn't say that. The king treats you differently from others. He even ordered the royal tailor to make many new dresses for you. He will be happy to see you accompany him," Claire tried to convince her. She had been arranging this for a long time, even making a bet with Cley that her plan would work since Cley always said Angel was too cold for romance, there was no way she would give up before Rose agreed.

'Treat differently ...' Somehow Rose wanted to think like that since she remembered what Rai said at Ecrin Village as well as remembering Angel's sweet treatment at Scarlet Stone Castle's entrance. Unfortunately on her way to Euphorion, Rose realized Angel was doing it because he wanted to use her as bait for the rebels. That's why the Euphorion troops were able to find the rebel hideout in the Whispering Forest. Also when Angel broke into her engagement more than a month ago, she couldn't deny she hoped that Angel was coming for her, sadly she was wrong... Angel came to conquer her kingdom. Since one by one her guesses were wrong, there was fear in her. Afraid that she hoped too much from Angel. Afraid that Angel was just using her and didn't have any feelings for her. Afraid that Angel's feelings had disappeared and been replaced by mere political interests.
"Claire, with my status ... My presence will mean nothing to him," Rose finally opened her voice.

Seeing Rose's reaction, Claire decided to change her strategy.
"What are you talking about?" said Claire. Then she approached Rose, her face close to Rose's ear.
"This is the king's secret request, Your Highness," reasoned Claire. Finally, Claire decided to use a method that Rose could not refuse.

Rose turned to Claire with a frown.
"The king's secret request?" she said in disbelief.

Claire nodded with a serious face.
"Please don't tell anyone," she added. If Angel found out she used his name for this then she would be punished.

"Fine." Finally Rose agreed as she tried to guess what Angel meant.

"Great. His Majesty will arrive before noon, please prepare yourself to greet him," said Claire with a smile.

"I'll get ready to welcome him."