Ireale's Crown

Chapter 7: Removal

Haven't proofread~

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Chapter 7: Removal

I was at first shocked by what I'd just seen. The King holding a knife. It made it look as though he wanted to kill us. But the more I thought about it, the more stupid I felt. Why would he want to use such a vulnerable-looking small knife to kill us? Why not just snatch a spear from one of his guards and just pierce it through our hearts? I was sure a bigger weapon was more intimidating. In addition to that, the King didn't look at all angry. Instead, he looked grave.

"What has happened?" The King frowned in Wallis' direction.

Wallis looked up at his father's eyes before lowering his head again, saying nothing.

"He's just jealous of Haile. And we're curious to know, father, whether you've really allowed Haile to enter this room before, when he was really young?" Ayleth asked politely.

He frowned, deep in thought. "Well, if my memory isn't failing me, I'm sure I did."

"And why did you allow him and not us?" Wallis finally spoke.

He clenched his jaw, obviously not liking his son's tone and attitude. "Is this how you speak to me, your King and you father? Is it?" he roared.

The Queen went forward to try to calm him down.

I flinched at the sight of his red face, how his fist were balled up, and at the volume of his voice. My ears rang a little after that. Wallis' eyes widened, then, and I knew that he hadn't spoken like the way he did on purpose. I knew at once that even though he had the same kind of temper as Haile, he still wasn't able to control it as well as him.

Ulrick immediately swam to Wallis' side and told him to apologise. "If you don't, get out of this room. There are visitors here and we aren't going to allow you to tint our reputation just like that."

Wallis' eyes narrowed a little before sighing and complying to what his older brother had just said. And on his own accord, he apologised to Haile as well, taking Haile aback, but who recovered soon enough with a small smile. Whether it was fake or not, I would never know. As for me, I heaved a sigh of relief, thankful that the conflict was over, and hoped it would remain that way during the rest of our stay.

The King's frowning face softened a bit, but the fierce look still remained. "I would like the four of you to leave this room."

I expected them to ask the burning question of 'Why?', but they never came, though I was sure the four of them really wanted to ask. I saw Arabella's mouth open slightly, but she closed it back with a pout. She was the first one to leave the room in a puff, and the other three followed a little after. I felt extremely sorry when I saw that all of their faces were sad-looking.

The King sighed again. "Now, let's move on."

He lifted up his hand and unclenched it, revealing the knife. Beautiful was the only word that could describe the swirling designs embossed on the handle. The bottom of it was a glowing, sea blue orb, and above were five small pearls encircling it.

"This is the knife that my great-great-grandfather owned. His name was Merarc, and hence this knife's name."

Haile's face lit up in recognition. "You and father were talking about this that time..."

The King smiled. "Yes, we were."

"But why did you even allow me to be in the same room as both of you that time, even though I was so young?"

"That's right. You were too young to understand... Or were you?" The King gave a knowing smile.

Haile placed a hand on his forehead. "I can't remember."