Chapter 54: Royal Bug Hunting
Cece, Edward and Oliver rushed to her, "Evelyn!" Cece called out. "Are you okay?"
Eve turned to respond, but Oliver suddenly grabbed her shoulders and scanned her from head to toe, his brows drawn together, "Milady, are you okay?"
Eve stiffened under his sudden touch, she opened her mouth to reassure them, when the fine hair at the back of her neck rose. She felt a familiar presence on one side of the crowd and just as she turned her head, her gaze locked directly with his molten red eyes, piercing straight through her.
When he shifted his gaze from her eyes to the hands of another man clutching her shoulder, his aura flared like a deadly storm. Without a single word exchanged, she instinctively took a step back, the motion made Oliver realise he had crossed a line by gripping her. He instantly loosened the hold and stammered, "Um..please forgive me, your–I mean, milady."
But Evelyn wasn’t paying attention to anything or anyone else, as the one who had stolen her attention was the man hidden behind his dark attire, looking as though he had come to steal her very soul.
She swallowed lightly as he began walking towards her, each step slow yet deliberate. His intense eyes slowly swept over her, as if checking for any injuries, before slowly lifting his gaze back to hers, sending heat rush to her cheeks. With every step he took, the crowd parted automatically to make way for him.
As Eve stared at him unblinkingly, the others followed the line of her sight and spotted two tall figures heading towards them. Cece instantly recognised Ivan and Damien, while Edward realised who they were after observing them for a moment longer than Cece. Oliver, however, was not familiar with them and only saw the two of them as unknown men clad in black from head to toe, heading straight towards Eve. Before they could get any closer, he bravely stepped forward, breaking her eye contact with Ivan.
Oliver asked, "Who are you?"
Ivan’s jaw clenched at the sight of how closely Oliver stood in front of Eve, as if she belonged to him, glared at him. "Move, now," he said in a low, threatening voice.
Oliver’s brows furrowed at Ivan’s chilling command, not wanting to be looked down upon in front of the woman he was interested in, replied back bravely, "Why should I? What are your intentions?"
The air suddenly grew oppressive, as Ivan’s mood spiked.
Before things could escalate and to save the man from being turned into a pulp, Damien stepped in from behind. He opened his hood, revealing his face and leaned in slightly so only they could hear, "Now, now," he said, "that’s a rude question to ask the Crown Prince of the kingdom, don’t you think?"
Oliver, who recognised Damien immediately, widened his eyes in realisation that the hooded man beside him was none other than Prince Ivan. Clearing his throat awkwardly, he turned to Ivan and said, "My apologies, I didn’t recognise either of you, since your faces were covered." Then almost reluctantly, he stepped aside.
Ivan didn’t bother responding back, his gaze shifted to Eve, who stood quietly, watching the entire scene unfold. "Are you hurt?" he asked her directly.
A little surprised by the question, she shook her head lightly, "No, I’m okay."
After that, when neither of them spoke, Cece decided to break the silence. She turned to Damien and asked, "How come you guys are here?"
"Oh you know, we were nearby, doing some pest control," he replied with a wide grin, "You should’ve seen Ivan, he was smiling.."
Cece rolled her eyes at him, fully understanding what he meant, while the other three furrowed their brows in confusion.
Right then, the man who was carrying the wine barrels practically stumbled over them and bowed frantically, "M-my lady! I-I am terribly sorry for the trouble caused by the accident! I-If that drunkard h-hadn’t crashed into me, I wouldn’t have...oh heavens above...please forgive me!." He glanced nervously past her, at the towering hooded man who stood next to her and swallowed hard.
Eve held up her hands and said, "It’s alright, really.."
But he cut her off with another frantic bow, as if stopping her from forgiving him would somehow save his life. "N-no, my lady! I must- insist..." His gaze flicked again to Ivan, who hadn’t spoken a word, his red, cold eyes remained fixed.
Damien, who sensed the man might actually faint from hyperventilating, stepped forward and patted his shoulder lightly. "Now, now..you should relax yourself. We wouldn’t want another accident right after avoiding one. Apologies accepted, just be more careful next time."
The guy squirmed under Damien’s so-called ’light pat,’ bowed quickly and scurried away. The crowd soon began to disperse as if nothing had happened, though many eyes lingered on Damien and Eve, since their faces were now exposed. Most of them recognized Damien as the future duke, while Ivan’s mysterious presence made it clear that this was no ordinary group.
"So, since you guys are here, would you like to join us for the rest of the fair?" Cece asked.
"I say, why not? I could use a break...and some wine!" Damien replied.
When everyone turned to Ivan, he simply looked away.
Damien grinned widely, "That’s a yes. Let’s go get some food!" And with that, the group started walking.
They stopped at multiple stalls, checking out various goods. The atmosphere quickly grew lively with Damien’s presence, while Edward and the ladies chatted animatedly as they browsed through various stalls. Ivan and Oliver, however, remained quiet, their attention drawn to Evelyn, her childlike enthusiasm and the way her mesmerising laughter at Damien’s antics held them captive.
After some time, Oliver was pulled aside by a nobleman who had business with his family, drawing him into a conversation. Meanwhile, Edward, Damien and Cece went off to get something to drink. Since Eve wasn’t interested in having another drink so soon, she stayed behind to look at some more stalls. They excused themselves, leaving her in Ivan’s company. As the crowd thickened, Ivan stepped closer to her.
As she moved from one stall to another, he followed a step behind, his eyes skimmed over the goods while his senses remained fully attuned to his surroundings and to Eve in particular. As he understood one thing about this little princess, trouble always seemed to find her, so he kept a close watch.
Eve, who was strolling at an unhurried pace, was acutely aware of Ivan’s silent presence beside her. When she could no longer bear the silence, she turned her face to him and asked innocently, "So...I didn’t know you were interested in catching bugs. Is that some kind of a hobby?"
Ivan, who had been quiet all this while, let his lips pull into a faint smile and replied, "Hm...and I didn’t know you could pull a stunt like that."
Hearing him mention her earlier heroic action made colour rise to her cheeks. She responded softly, "I used to train in self-defence from a young age. Septium made sure I learned enough to at least physically defend myself since, you know...about my powers." Her voice lowered at the last part.
"I see.." he murmured, while studying her delicate features before asking, "Who is Septimus?"
"He is the High Priest of the Goddess of Light’s Temple back in my kingdom. He is highly respected," she said, her eyes softening. "He was one of the only people who guided me throughout my life, when I.." She caught herself, realising she was about to reveal too much and quickly corrected herself, "When I was a child."
Ivan, sharp eyes didn’t miss the quick diversion and silently wondered what she had almost revealed.
"Seems at least one person was smart enough to make you learn self-defence," he remarked dryly.
Eve pursed her lips at his subtle jab towards her family for suppressing her powers, but then she had nothing to say in their defence.
"What about you? Did you have anyone like that?" she asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.
Ivan held her gaze and for a moment she thought she had stepped into forbidden territory. She braced herself to be coldly dismissed, but to her surprise, he replied softly, "My father."
She exhaled inwardly in relief, a small smile tugged her lips, "I see." Then, eager to change the subject, she tilted her head at him, "So...how exactly does this pest control hobby of yours work? Though I must say it’s pretty unusual for a prince to have such a hobby.." She caught herself rambling and quickly backpedaled, "Not that I’m not judging, of course..if royal bug hunting is a trend, I’m sure it’ll catch on any day now."
Ivan, who had been silently listening to her, let out a low chuckle, one that sounded far too good to Evelyn’s ears. Her heart did a wild leap and she felt utterly spellbound by him.
Then, as if the sound alone hadn’t undone her enough, he composed himself, and added with a faint smile curving his sinful lips, "Let’s just say, it’s not for everyone."
’Oh dear gods, as if his chuckle wasn’t enough...he is actually smiling?! Did that barrel knock me out and I’m just dreaming this while unconscious?’ Eve thought, dazed.
