𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐃𝐎𝐌

𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻.

王国

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    The day of the gala, the castle was whipped up into a frenzy as everyone rushed around trying to get everything ready for the arrival of the important novels from the nations surrounding Ophnelia. There was the King and Queen of Aplana, the Emperor and Empress of Estein, the Sultan and Sultana of Crouye, and other officials that would be attending, all high-ranking men and women who could only be served in the finest way.

(Y/N) was intrigued about the whole process when she was more thoroughly informed of what was going on.

The world was divided into seven continents: Askad, Otrines, Lucrece, Utraria, Edrax, Abrua, and Ostor. Ophnelia and it's surrounding countries were within the continent of Lucrece, and every year, the nobles and royalty of those nations would attend an annual gala held in a different place each year to discuss politics, peace, and anything else that came up for topic of discussion. It was no wonder why (Y/N) hadn't heard of it before, as it had been twenty years since the last one was held within Ophnelia, there being a total of thirty-two countries altogether within Lucrece.

It's quite interesting.

I'm curious as to what will happen.

And already, nobles and royals alike were arriving days before the gala to prepare themselves in advance for the grand day, Duran opening the door of his castle for them to take shelter in, assigning only the finest of rooms for them with high-class servants attending to them with whatever they may want or desire.

(Y/N) wasn't one of those servants, much to her disappointment.

Oh, well.

I am only mid-ranked.

Currently walking down the hall of the castle with Duran's morning tea, having made a special brew specifically for treating stress and stress-induced symptoms, she knocked on the door three times in a firm way before entering, finding that the man was still sleeping. This wasn't surprising, as she knew that he had worked late into the night that past week to prepare for this day.

"Your Majesty?" She said as she set the tray down on his nightstand and back away a few paces, then lacing her fingers behind her back. "It is time to wake up. I have brought your morning tea."

He didn't answer.

(Y/N) stepped closer and tried again, "Your Majesty, please wake up."

Still nothing.

Even though every instinct within her told her not to get closer than that, she told herself that the repercussions for not waking the King up on time properly would be even worse. So, taking the risk, she stepped upward to Duran's bedside so that she was no more than a few feet away, leaning down ever so slightly to ask him to wake up once more. However, she was proven right when immediately after, Duran's hand shot out to grip her arm rather harshly and tug her downward, flipping her over so that her back lay against the plush mattress of his bed with him hovering over her.

A knife was then pressed to her neck.

(Y/N)'s gaze slid to the side when the cool blade of the weapon could be felt against her flesh, then flicking her eyes upward to see that Duran was still in the process of waking up, everything having just been his natural reflexes.

"Apologies for approaching you so casually, Your Majesty," she spoke calmly even in such a situation with her arms and legs pinned down. "However, you weren't responding, so I had no choice in doing so."

Duran stared at her.

Looking into the depths of her (E/C) eyes, her (H/C) hair spread across the pillow in a vivid halo around her face, he couldn't help but be stupefied for the several moments that it took to process the situation. He had been in such a deep sleep that to suddenly be roused so quickly made him lash out at whatever was near, his maid apparently fitting the description. But what was most unexpected was how utterly unabashed she looked, as if nothing about the current situation at hand bothered her.

But it sure as hell bothered him.

And he couldn't put a finger on as to why.

"To think you would look so calm even while lying in a man's bed... in your King's bed..." Duran smirked as he lowered himself so that his lips were now next her ear, the knife's blade dancing tantalizingly close to her collarbone and breasts. "I never expected for you to be so bold."

And with that, he removed himself from her so she could get up and stand once more.

"I apologize for my lack of care when waking you, Your Majesty," (Y/N) bowed with her hands clasped in front of her, the black ruffles of her uniform creasing with the action. "I will make sure that such an incident where your sleep is disturbed like this will never happen again." She the gestured to the tray next to him which contained the cup of tea he wanted, saying, "Todays brew is Chamomile tea. It has a crisp and refreshing flavor that will help relax you and reduce any stress you may have."

"I'm assuming you made this considering that today is the day of the gala, no?" Duran hummed as he took a sip, the burst of flavor quite a revitalizing way to start the morning.

"Of course, Your Majesty."

"I hope you made some for yourself, as well, because I am informing you now that you will be one of the servers attending my guests," he announced, looking (Y/N) dead in the eye which allowed for her to see the gleam of mischief that was present. "I expect nothing less than perfection, and if how you present yourself falls below my expectations, your ranking will be stripped and I will have no choice but to assign you to a barren position."

"I understand," she nodded, for the fist time since she arrived in Ophnelia feeling her heart thrum with excitement. "Thank you for the opportunity."

I can't help but wonder...

What might happen at this annual gala?

⎡ 𝑻𝑶 𝑩𝑬 𝑪𝑶𝑵𝑻𝑰𝑵𝑼𝑬𝑫 ⎦