48- Break In

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Through a gap in the wall, a pair of blue eyes stared icily at the twinkling lights and birds chirping merrily below.

The room looked cold and lonely, but it was extremely hot and uncomfortable in here. Arthur wasn't sure what he was thinking, locking himself in a smelly, dusty dungeon cell. All he wanted was a place to think before the wedding starts.

The wedding wasn't just a trap for his stubborn brother and his friends. It will also determine the outcome of his future, whether he will win or lose. Marrying Guinevere and ruling over two kingdoms- and two fortunes- was bigger than some silly letter inviting you to go at some unknown battlefield and complete quests.

To win, he had to take a huge risk.

He might even die at some point.

Putting a bounty over his brother's head wasn't easy. The crowd had mixed reactions regarding this news. Others roared in approval, declaring Gusion the rogue 'black sheep' of the Paxley Family, while others shooked their head in disgust, muttering about how horrible a brother Arthur was for trying to kill his own family. That was one thing Arthur couldn't do anything about, of course- make a wrong move and his people will have more doubts about him being king.

Frustratingly, he can't do anything about Granger either. In order to attack him, he'd have to send orders to his useless hoods, who had been defeated by Granger several times. Since the Enchanted Forest incident, Granger has been dubbed the "Enchanted Hero" by the elves living in the forest and is the pride of the forests' citizens.

Killing Odette can lead to some problems too. His goal was to make friends with- and conquer small kingdoms to be truly influential and powerful in the Land of Dawn, but he knew he had to cross out Swan Lake on his list. Odette was admired by men and women alike, and peoples' faith in the Swan Princess was strong, and if he were to kill her, all citizens would know whom to point fingers.

Lesley was no problem. Sure, she was known as a Land of Dawn hero, but she didn't really do anything heroic than can ruin his plan. Oh wait, she fought alongside Gusion. But killing only her would be useless, as she wasn't that important to him.

And for Lancelot... problem solved.

After taking a deep breath, Arthur forced himself to smile. This will all happen soon, and he shouldn't get caught up in the hurricane.

"What do you mean, you don't want to?!" Larisa shrieked. "You can't just cancel now, your Highness! After all the nonstop preparation and number of guests who had come visit!"

"Alright, alright, I guess it's just the pressure of the wedding, that's all," Guinevere sighed deeply, causing a few maids in the back to panic.

"Would you like some water, your Highness?" Maid Lilla offered, her hands shaking slightly.

"Sure, thanks." Guinevere took a sip gratefully after the maid handed her a glass of water.

"Now, why don't you all finish retouching my makeup? This wedding might be the most surprising event of the lifetime," Guinevere smiled weakly.

"It already is, your Highness! All of Dawn had been talking about it since last week!" Larisa brightened, picking up a tube of lipstick and accidentally knocking over a tube of nail polish.

"What do we even do here?" Gusion sweated profusely, resisting the urge to take off his shirt in the staff room. Seriously, it felt like he was baked alive in here.

"shHhH! Keep your voice down!" Lesley said in an angry whisper. "We wait for the grand event to begin, and we- ambush!"

"That's it?! Ambush?" Gusion shook his head in disbelief. "You and Granger won't tell me the plan for days, and it was just- ambush?"

"You'd be surprised. Lesley has more elaborate plans for humiliating Arthur, but we were out of budget, and we don't have time," Granger laughed. "Feels embarassing to borrow anything more from Odette, honestly."

Odette smiled. "You know you guys are perfectly welcome to stay whenever you like and ask for whatever you want!"

"Yes! Stop spoiling our fun! I don't want to get out free castle membership get cancelled!" Lancelot glared at Granger, and Odette rolled her eyes.

"Odette will cast a spell when I send the signal. Then Gusion, you-" Lesley stopped at the sudden loud sound of the trumpet outside, followed by screams of delight.

"Ah, the bride's entrance. Come, come, let's wait for at least ten more minutes." They all huddled near the door, peeking through a small window to see what's going on.

Gusion couldn't see much, but Guinevere looked radiant, dressed in a long dress embroidered with rhinestones and small flowers. His stomach felt slightly sick watching her walk towards Arthur with her father holding her arm. God, I wish all this would happen as quickly as possible.

Arthur smirked, ever so slightly it was barely noticeable but it didn't escape Gusion's eyes. He knew Gusion was watching somewhere, he just didn't know exactly where. Seeming to want to further agitate him, he grabbed Guinevere's face and pulled her so close their lips were an inch apart from each other. Guinevere gasped at this sudden action, and looked uneasy.

Odette noticed Gusion's expression. "Gusion, hold yourself. Please!"

And before he knew it, he stormed out of the room, running outside until he found himself in the middle of the wedding site. Looking around, he saw wedding guests gawking at him, the priest went quiet, the choir stopped singing, and before he actually processed everything that happened in these past few moments, he adjusted his eyes to the bride and groom.

Arthur's eyes widened, but he showed no sign of shock. Instead, he looked rather disappointed.

"Ah, I see. The wedding crasher has arrived."

This statment was followed by loud boos, and someone even threw a banana peel at him. Gusion didn't expect this much hate. Did the crowd really lose faith in him?

Gusion felt weak and immobilized. Yet with all the remaining strength he had, he heard very faint voices from afar- voices telling him he still had people supporting him. He felt even more determined this time.

"Arthur, this ISN'T RIGHT. You used Guinevere in your evil plan, and now you're putting our friends' lives at risk too! His brother's as well!"

The crowd gasped, followed by an uncomfortable silence. Guinevere, who had been staring at the ground this whole time, slowly raised her eyes until it came contact with Gusion's, and his heart melted. However, he could never forget the next words she said-

"Who are you?"

Sorry I havent updated in months!! Ive been loaded with even more homework than before, and I'm also introduced to the world of online selling.

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