Third Arc (Fallen Heart) - 28. The Quiet Garden I

Lady Belle and the twins walked their way through the corridor with the guards standing neatly along that place. Since all the activities and the party were concentrated in the main hall, the other place looked very quiet. Only the sound of their footsteps could be heard in their ears as their mouths were tightly shut and their minds were lost in their own thoughts.

Even though Lady Belle's feet were getting further and further away from the hall, her mind was not. Instead, curiosity piqued her mind with unreasonable conjectures. Like, what if the king just pretended to love the princess because of an agreement with King Eudon? Or because there was something else that he could not be conveyed to the public? What if he did all this just because he wanted to get a real royalty status to expel the fact he was an exiled prince? The thought kept running through her head and made her want to go back to the hall, but she held herself.

While the twins focused their attention on Lady Belle and paid their attention to those around them. Their eyes occasionally swept around them, even at the guards. Since the assassins could be disguised as one of them. But nothing happened. After they exited the side door and passed through the open corridor, they arrived at the garden.

As their eyes fell on the garden, their steps stopped.

"It's so beautiful!" said Claire spontaneously. Whereas even though Cley didn't say anything his expression said it all. The night breeze that blew gently caressed their hair and clothes. Although Rose used to walk around here almost every morning, the ones who escorted her were usually her knights. While the twins were too busy preparing for this important event.

As for Lady Belle, she was stunned by the garden's new look and somehow it gave a melancholy feeling to her and it made a lot of speculation fly in her head. Illuminated by the full moon in the clear night sky, rather than the trees as before, the garden was filled with short plants and bushes with flowers. Some Moonlight Sunroses illuminated the garden with their dim light. Instead of the boring green colour that usually dominated the garden, the colourful flowers that decorated it made the garden look different. It made Lady Belle think, was that how His Majesty's feeling right now? Were the flowers also blooming in his heart? Or did he do this as a sign of love for the princess?

"What do you think, My Lady?" Cley's slightly loud voice turned her attention to them. His panic was evident on his face even though he tried to cover it up. Of course, that was because he had just seen several Black Devil soldiers pulling an assassin at the other end of the corridor. Even though the soldiers did it quietly, he was still worried that Lady Belle would hear them. They also didn't want Lady Belle to know about this, especially after they realized that Lady Belle's feelings for the king were still very strong. So they believe this would create a big misunderstanding.

Luckily, Lady Belle didn't notice it since she was drowning in her feelings.

"Beautiful," she replied with a bitter smile. Her eyes stared at the garden sadly. The feeling of the great loneliness bit her heart since her mind was only filled with the king.

Claire, who was standing on the other side, caught a guest approaching them from their other side. Even though he tried to cover it up, a dagger was in his hand. Realizing he was another assassin, Claire signalled to Cley by pointing the assassin with her eyes. Cley, who realized the enemy was coming from their other side, immediately shifted his hands to his sword. Cley could fight even if he wasn't that expert and it was enough to defend themselves.

"My Lady, how about we look around?" Claire tried to distract Lady Belle. Luckily, the Black Devil soldier acted quickly. An arrow flew through the assassin's head and killed him. Before his body hit the ground, another soldier caught him and pulled him to hide.

"That's a good idea," said Lady Belle in an impassioned tone. Since she still wanted to calm her feelings, she decided to take a little walk before returning to the hall.

Their feet moved into the garden. Walking among the maze made of short plants decorated with beautiful flowers. Although they were walking at the same pace, Lady Belle's attention and melancholy look were on the flowers. Meanwhile, the twins' attention was on the surroundings. A trace of tension was on their faces, even though they were trying to act normal.

As the three of them trod in the quiet and beautiful garden, Lady Belle's gaze swept around her with a blank stare. But rather than enjoying the scenery around her, she looked as if she was searching for something there. Someone that had touched her heart all along, but she was sure he wouldn't appear that night. Since the man was dancing with another woman in the hall. Her mind wandered when she met the king for the first time when he saved her from a monster that nearly killed her. Then save her again from the late King Xenos. It made her wonder... Would he save her again if she was in danger now? Just like in the past...