Wrongly in Love

33- Sudden Announcements

Make him think you're on his side.

Guinevere took those words by heart as she walked to the castle entrance flanked by two hoods, unsure about the horrible feeling bubbling inside her. Is that Anger? Dread? Hatred? All of them? Oddly, there were no guards in sight, so she raised her hand to knock the door. But before she even had a chance to, the door swung open and she saw a young man waiting by the doorway.

"Glad to see you back, Princess Guinevere," the man said, bowing. "I am Merlin, Prince Arthur's personal assistant. I have only started working in this castle for a week, so you might not have recognised me."

"Nice to meet you, Merlin," Guinevere said in the most gracious way possible, remembering all those stupid Princess Etiquette lessons her father forced her to take. "If I might venture to ask, was Prince Arthur informed of my arrival?"

"Prince Arthur is waiting for you in the private meeting room," Merlin replied, and together the two of them went upstairs to the meeting room. There, she saw, was Arthur and her father sipping cups of tea with two maids standing by the side.

"Ah, Guinevere, fancy seeing you here." How am I supposed to give her the tea without her getting suspicious?

"You too." Guinevere gave a curt nod. Even after a few weeks of not seeing you, the hatred hasn't quite gone yet.

"Your Highness, please take a seat," Merlin offered the chair next to Arthur. Don't worry, sir. I've mixed in a few drops of cherry essence, I know that is her favorite.

Arthur, catching the evil glint in Merlin's eye, turned to Guinevere. "Some tea, Guinevere?" Ah, clever, clever Merlin. You didn't get an award for Best Potionmaker for nothing.

"Sure, if it's not too much trouble," What's with all the strange looks these two have been giving?

Arthur turned to the maid. "Madeline, could you see to it that the Princess wants a cup of tea at once."

"Of course, Your Highness," the maid exited the room, and after a few moments carried a steaming cup of tea.

"Mmm... Cherry tea?" Guinevere asked, inhaling the sweet aroma. Mmm... It feels like I haven't tasted tea in a long time. She spooned some sugar in the tea and began to drink.

Arthur and Merlin grinned triumphantly as Guinevere finished the tea in a few sips. Standing up, Arthur looked at Leodegrance and said, "Your Majesty, do you mind if I take Guinevere outside for a walk?"

"Of course not, of course not," Leodegrance said dismissively, sipping his own cup of chamomile tea.

That's when Guinevere noticed the look on his face. It was emotionless and cold, and it reminded her of a stone statue. Just as she sent him a questioning glance, Arthur grabbed her by the hand and led her out the door. Guinevere flinched at his cold touch.

"Okay, then, we must be off!" Arthur said cheerily, leading her to the hallway. Guinevere noticed that they were exiting the castle through the servant's wing.

"Hey, why didn't we use the main door instead..." She started, but the sight in front of her made her stop. They had arrived at a small wooden stage, at the back of the castle. A large crowd awaited them, waving banners and signs at them. Guinevere looked shocked for a moment, then angrily turned to Arthur.

"What are these villagers doing here?! And why have you brought me here?" She said, stamping her foot. The people at the front of the crowd noticed the heated conversation, and Arthur quickly glanced an apologetic glance and whispered just as annoyed, "Don't you see? These are the people awaiting your arrival, and they would like to hear a word from you."

Guinevere scoffed. "And what am I supposed to say to them?"

"Leave it to me," Arthur replied. Facing the audience, he announced, "Princess Guinevere has indeed returned to the Baroque Castle. She has pledged her loyalty to me, as should all of you. That moment, I realized, I may be born rich, fortunate, and with a royal lineage, but not a single thing of these will matter if I do not have a chance to spend my lifetime with this beautiful young lady. Who would like to hear our Princess Guinevere speak? "

Guinevere was incredulous by his lies. Before she could protest, the crowd immediately let out a cheer." SPEAK! SPEAK! "

Arthur flashed a fake smile at Guinevere and stood to the side." The stage's all yours, darling. "

"Yes...of course," Guinevere said uncertainly, standing in the middle of the stage. After hastily muttering a spell to louden her voice, she said cheerily, "Um... Well, yes, it's me, Guinevere, and all Arthur said was true. I indeed, um..."

Arthur groaned inwardly. Thankfully, a little kid in the audience interrupted Guinevere's awkward speech. "So what made you come back her after weeks of disappearing?"

"Yes, and is it true that you fooled Gusion with your magic and tricked him to make him help you?" A young woman added.

"If so, then I admire your wickedness!" A teenage boy grinned. "You're the all powerful thief of hearts!"

Guinevere's stomach clenched. Was that she made everyone think when she left Gusion to hatch her secret plan? She thought. That she tricked Gusion and had him fooled? Gusion, the only man she ever loved?

At that moment, she also noticed another crowd farther behind, being blocked by guards.

They all carried banners of Gusion, protesting, and they all looked filthy and disheveled. They roared in outrage at the sight of Guinevere and began to bombard her with questions.

"TRAITOR!" A poor old woman screamed.

"COWARD!" A man shouted.
"GUSION TRUSTED YOU!"
"HOW CAN YOU DO THIS TO HIM?!"

Guinevere froze. She pursed her lips, not knowing what to say. Then she saw Arthur glaring at the protesting crown and knew immediately.

Anything she could say right now would change everything.

Which means she could tell the truth.

But then those words stopped her.

Telling the truth won't completely stop Arthur. He had a lot of believers, and telling the truth will only get her further away from knowing his evil plans. She needed an opportunity to truly let the truth out. She needed proof. Sighing, she barely got the words out. "Yes, I had Gusion fooled, and all his friends too... It was all a trick."

Cheers came from the first crowd. Arthur looked shocked at first, but then immediately grabbed Guinevere's arm and made a surprise announcement. "And, we've also decided, the Royal wedding will take place two weeks from today!"

More cheers from the crowd. Guinevere was surprised. Wedding? She glared at him, and Arthur immediately dragged her back to the castle. "That's all for today! Well, we must be off!"

Once they were alone in the castle, Guinevere whispered angrily to Arthur. "A wedding? You said no such thing!"

"I have said it. A while ago," Arthur said dismissively, summoning two maids.

"Annelise, Victoria, please show Guinevere back to her room," He instructed. He then turned back, just as Guinevere was being dragged away by the maids. "She has a wedding to plan."