His Majesty's Devious Sin

"I\'m just used to starving…?" Adeline repeated as if there was something wrong with her words. Wasn\'t it normal to be a bit hungry when losing weight? A little bit of hunger wouldn\'t hurt. Yet, he seemed furious, as if someone stole his family heirloom.

"There\'s nothing wrong with it—"

"I\'ll have your chaperone hanged for child neglect," he growled.

Adeline was astonished. She tried to take steps back, but he had a firm grasp on her. She went nowhere. She could go nowhere. He had her exactly where he wanted.

"D-don\'t be mean," she stuttered, before regretting it.

So much for changing. It was only the first day, but she was a hard worker. Adeline didn\'t like to fail.

"Mean?" he harshly repeated, his lips twisting into a sardonic smile. "Oh darling, I\'ll show you mean."

Adeline tilted her head. And then he was gone. Her eyes went wide, as she turned around to see he had taken a step. Not a second later, she grabbed his hand with two of her own. She held tightly onto him.

"Your Majesty," she whispered, so that they wouldn\'t draw attention.

Elias ignored her. She was dragged along with him, her tiny feet quickly walking beside him.

To onlookers, they seemed to have gotten into a slight quarrel.

"Elias."

He suddenly despised his name. All she had to do was call his name and he would stop for her. Instantly, he turned around, his smile widening, much like his eyes.

"Yes, darling?" he bit out.

Adeline rapidly blinked. Once. Twice. Thrice. He was a man with many faces. He had always done this, but she wondered how. How can he maintain a smile when angered? How can he keep a straight face when he was furious?

"You\'re as dramatic as a prima donna," she suddenly realized. The words left her mouth before she could even think it through.

Elias stared at her, bewildered by what she said. She was full of surprises, the majority of which was pleasant, except for this one. Her bluntness was beginning to rub off on him. Whether it was intentional sass or not, he couldn\'t fathom what gave her the confidence.

"What?"

Adeline innocuously smiled, her eyes crinkling. "You know, the lead actress—"

"Darling," he deadpanned. "I know what a prima donna is."

Adeline\'s lips formed a small \'oh.\'

Elias could feel the curious stares lingering upon him. His supporters had never stopped watching. They wanted to know whether or not this human was food, a tool, or an actual wife.

He was wise, but willingly fell for Adeline\'s trap. Now, they had a part to act. And he had a role to play. She was playing her part exceptionally well.

"I was going to get your lemon cookies, darling. You said you loved them," Elias finally said.

Her eyes instantly lit up. Happiness was written all over her face.

"So, entertain the twins and wait for me," Elias added on with a slight smile of his own. He reached a hand out and caressed the back of her head.

Adeline could not read his emotions. One minute his smile seemed forced, the next, it was genuine. Just what exactly was he feeling? He truly was a prima donna…

"Just one is fine," she said, whilst holding up a single finger.

Elias merely laughed in response. He released her hands and walked off. The crowd instantly parted for him, as the quiet hum of conversations quickly began again.

Adeline watched his retreating form. Even his strut was powerful. A single step was enough to command the entire room. She wished to mirror that confidence and power. A decade of habits did not go away in one night. Luckily, she didn\'t fully let go of the past. It still haunts her to this day, especially the skills she had picked up as a child.

"His Majesty is unpredictable at times, don\'t you think, Princess?" Easton spoke from beside her. He nudged her by the shoulders and offered her a friendly smile.

Adeline tilted her head, pondering over Easton\'s words. She could never let her guard down in the palace. Those who treated her the best sometimes wanted the worst for her.

"Unpredictable at times?" Adeline echoed.

She decided to let him spin his own tale. One way to make people speak was to echo the last two or three words of their sentence. The more you ask, the more they say.

"Of course, didn\'t you see how quickly he went from being happy to mad and then back to happy? It\'s unnatural," Easton lightly laughed with a large smile.

"It seems like you\'re close with His Majesty," Adeline labeled with a smile.

Go on, talk more, Easton.

"Indeed, Princess," he mused. "I grew up with The King. I\'ve known him for as long as time knows space. I even have baby pictures of The King, but it was painted instead of taken by the fancy cameras you humans possess."

Adeline\'s brows wrung together. Just how old was the King? "You sound like you\'re his great friend."

Easton scoffed. "You make it sound like being friends with the King is a good thing. You should see how he bullies me and Weston."

Adeline merely nodded in response. She wanted to know more, but Easton\'s information barely scratched the surface. But he was the only one that would reveal more.

"How does he bully you and Weston?" she slowly asked.

"Well—" he paused. "I know what you\'re doing, Princess!"

Easton couldn\'t believe he fell for it! He was just eager to have a conversation with her to test the nature of her heart. But it seemed he had fallen into a trap.

"I don\'t understand…" Adeline murmured, whilst looking him in the eye.

Easton\'s brows drew together. His lips were slowly drooping lower. He wondered if he had read too much into their discussion. For a split second there, it was as if she was trying to make him spill some crucial information. There was a tactic he had heard of, which was the basics of government security training… What was it again?

"You\'re being fooled, Lady Rose," Weston finally said. He stepped up and stood directly beside her.

Adeline turned her head in his direction. Her brows were wrung together. She thought Weston despised her. Why was he suddenly telling her this?

"What do you mean, Weston?" Adeline softly asked.

"Your nothing but His Majesty\'s pastime."

Easton\'s eyes went wide. "Weston—"

"You\'re being played like a fiddle by His Majesty," Weston said. He coldly turned his gaze towards the bright-eyed and ignorant woman.

Weston knew he was being too harsh. But that was how naive women like Adeline learn. The worst mistakes create the best lessons. She needed to learn to trust people less. Especially a random man that she met for less than three days.

Weston didn\'t know how she did it, but she did. She had convinced one of the most powerful Vampires in the entire continent to be her husband. It was a tremendous feat.

The question is whether or not she was ready for this position as the Queen. Thus, he waited to see the tremble of her lips and the water of her eyes.

Unfortunately for him, she did none of that.

Princess Adeline Mae Rose flashed him a large smile. "Then I hope he plays me well."

"W-what?"

"I look forward to the performance of his Majesty as he plays me like an instrument," Adeline said in a light voice.

Without another word, she turned her back to the twins and walked off. Her long dress sashayed behind her, as she gracefully sauntered away.