Emmelyn stared at the queen, who walked gracefully with her son. For a moment, the girl was stunned in awe. These two humans were just too beautiful, she thought. They looked out of place in this human world.
Emmelyn could imagine how Mars and his mother would fit perfectly in the elven kingdom.
The Queen would sit gracefully with flowers around her as she created a beautiful flower arrangement, while Mars walked around looking cool, with bow and arrows on his hands, or just sat on a tree branch and played a flute. Ah .. they could even bring Gewen with them to complete the picture.
As she was imagining things, Emmelyn was snapped back to reality as she heard the two ladies greet the Queen with respect
"Your Majesty," Lady Preston and Lady Athibaud bowed in unison to Queen Elara as she entered the room. With a wave of her hand, the queen motion them to sit down.
Emmelyn followed suit, bowed down and then sat back on her chair. She noticed that the queen looked pale. She must still feel the shock from the information she received earlier.
So, why did she come back to this room and continued the afternoon tea? Wasn't she so shocked that she fainted and had to be carried to her room?
Emmelyn could only guess that Queen Elara might force herself to continue the afternoon tea to safe face. The other ladies might become suspicious if they knew the Queen passed out after meeting Emmelyn.
"Ah, I don't see Lady Chaucer. She is never late before. Do you know where she is?" asked Queen Elara, looking around. "Is she late?
Lady Athibaud shook her head. "No, Your Majesty. Lady Chaucer sent a cake through her servant. She is unable to attend our tea session this afternoon because she is sick again today."
"Oh .. what a pity. I will tell Doctor Vitas to visit her and bring some medicine," said Queen Elara.
Emmelyn listened to the conversation of the three women and was able to conclude that Queen Elara was friends with these three women and that their children had been friends with Mars since childhood.
The Lady Chaucer they were talking about was certainly Edgar's mother, and Lady Athibaud was Gewen's mother.
Then, did Lady Preston also have a child that was friends with Mars? Or, was she childless? If she was, then no wonder Lady Preston always looked like a bitter woman.
Emmelyn scoffed when she remembered how Lady Preston treated her in a demeaning way. As she looked away from the queen, Emmelyn's eyes met with Mars's, who had been watching her attentively.
"Have you met Lady Emmelyn?" Queen Elara asked the two ladies. Lady Athibaud and Lady Preston nodded in unison.
"Yes, Your Majesty." Lady Athibaud smiled sweetly. "We had a little chat."
Queen Elara glanced at Emmelyn, as if trying to find out what the girl had said to her two ladies-in-waiting. Only after confirming that Emmelyn didn't seem to be saying anything strange did Queen Elara let out a sigh of relief.
"Lady Emmelyn is the guest of the Crown Prince. She is visiting for a few months. I hope you will treat her well, "said Queen Elara in a gentle voice.
Lady Athibaud and Lady Preston looked at each other. The two of them then nodded gracefully.
Lady Preston still gave Emmelyn a resentful look, but she didn't dare to say anything openly in front of the queen, now that Queen Elara already asked them to treat Emmelyn well.
Mars helped his mother sit on a chair then walked up to Emmelyn and sat next to the girl.
"Will the prince join us for tea?" Asked Lady Athibaud. Mars nodded.
"Yes. It's been a long time since I have tea like this with my mother. That's why, when Her Majesty invited Lady Emmelyn, I decided to come along," replied the prince.
He waved his hand and signaled to the several male servants standing by the door to start serving them. Quickly, the servants came, bowed respectfully and began pouring tea for all of them. Only Emmelyn already had tea in her cup.
"Have a drink," said Queen Elara as she raised her own cup and started drinking. "Earlier, Emmelyn also brought us apple pie, but there was an accident and the pie fell."
"Ah… what a shame," said Lady Preston. However, even though she said those words, it was clear that she didn't feel any sympathy for Emmelyn at all.
This woman's attitude actually made Emmelyn wonder. Why did Lady Preston look so resentful toward her?
Somehow, Emmelyn felt like the old lady had a grudge against her. However .. they had never met before today. So, where did that hatred come from?
"So .. is that true?" Lady Athibaud excitedly asked Mars as soon as she saw the man sit next to Emmelyn, their bodies touching. "Your Highness can touch Lady Emmelyn?"
"That's true," said Mars. "I met Lady Emmelyn in Glendale. I found out by accident that she is the only woman who is not affected by the curse. I then invited her to come to the capital and stay at my castle as my guest."
"Yes, she told me that too. I think, it must be lonely being the only woman in the castle. So, I invited Lady Emmelyn to come visit my home and meet Ilma and Lorian. I hope Your Highness doesn't mind," said Lady Athibaud again. "I will send the invitation later via Gewen."
"Oh, Gewen and I are going to Southberry for war simulation in two days. Maybe Lady Athibaud can invite Emmelyn to meet Ilma and Lorian while we are away?" asked Mars.
"Ah ... that is a good idea," said Lady Athibaud. She slowly sipped her tea looking really happy. Meanwhile, Lady Preston narrowed her eyes at Emmelyn and Mars.
"Is it true that Your Highness Prince Mars can only touch Lady Emmelyn?" asked the woman suddenly. Her question made the people in the room furrow their brows.
"What do you mean, Lady Preston?" Asked Queen Elara. She glared at the smart-looking woman.
"Uhm ... I mean, the curse was cast a long time ago, and for more than ten years there has been no victims, because Your Majesty has done so many things to keep females away from the prince." Lady Preston continued her words in a very serious tone. "What if, in fact… the prince is no longer cursed? What if the spell has been broken? We don't know for sure, right? Who knows, the witch who cursed him might already be dead now… You have been trying to find her for many years to no avail, haven't you? If a witch dies, then, aren't all the curses she ever cast would be broken?"
Queen Elara looked very surprised. She had never thought of this before.
That was true. It had been a very long time since a woman touched Mars and died.
What if, in fact, now her beloved son had been freed from the curse?
Should they try again? If Mars touched another woman and that woman died the next day, then the curse was still there. But if that woman didn't die, just like Emmelyn ...
Then...
GULP
Subconsciously, Emmelyn swallowed hard. She also had never thought about this.
If Mars's curse had truly been broken... then, what he and Emmelyn experienced was nothing special.
Emmelyn no longer had the bargaining chip she thought she had.
She just happened to meet Mars at the right place, in the right time, after the man was free from the curse without knowing it.
When he managed to touch Emmelyn without causing the girl's death, he assumed Emmelyn was a special girl who was immune to his curse. When in fact… she was just like any other girls.
Emmelyn turned to the side and saw the man's side profile. Mars looked as shocked as everyone else in the room. The prince never thought that way either.
What if he was actually free?
The man swallowed hard and turned to look at Emmelyn. Their eyes locked.
If he had truly recovered and now could touch any female, he would be able to sleep with any women and have children with them, right?
That means... he wouldn't need Emmelyn to bear him children.
So… how could he keep Emmelyn to stay with him now?
All this time, he had used the excuse that he needed her to give birth to his children. But… if he was already free from the curse… then, the excuse wouldn't work.
"Don't you wish to find out, Your Highness?" asked Lady Preston again, this time she directed her question to the Queen. "If we can confirm that His Highness, Prince Mars is indeed free from that curse ... then His Highness will no longer need to hide behind a false story that he is a woman-hater, an evil prince who will execute anyone who dares to touch him ..."
Queen Elara took a deep breath and turned to look at her son. "What do you think, Darling?"
Lady Preston joined in staring closely at Mars. "Your Highness… soon, you will ascend the throne. Let the people know that the future king is a good man who will rule them wisely. Don't let them keep thinking that you are a cruel and evil monster. This is very important. And… if indeed you are now free from that curse, you will be able to find any princess or noble ladies to marry and have children to continue the family line."
Now, all eyes were on the prince.
Lady Athibaud pressed her lips in excitement, Queen Elara was holding her breath, Lady Preston narrowed her eyes in anticipation, and Emmelyn's doe eyes were expressionless as she stared at the man, waiting for his decision.
If Mars was truly free from the curse… he could marry any girl and have children with them.
He no longer needed Emmelyn. He would have unlimited options...
Didn't he want to find out if he was truly free?