Chapter 81: Just Protecting What’s Mine
While they sat facing each other and Ivan tried to follow her words, the door suddenly burst open with Arthur and Alex barging in. But when they saw the sight of their prince on his knees on the ground and the lumen princess softly speaking to him while tenderly caressing his cheeks, they froze in their tracks and watched carefully to see if they needed to step in.
Eve didn’t care that two other people had entered the room; she continued to focus on Ivan. When he slowly shut his eyes and took a long, deep breath, the candles began to return to their original, steady flames.
Alex and Arthur had never witnessed Ivan control his rage so simply through breathing exercises before. Usually, he would go hunt for criminals, which would end up in a bloodbath before he was completely spent and was able to calm down, when agitated to this level. But Evelyn managed to tame this beast by simply talking to him and touching him. His body temperature usually became so high that a normal person would burn coming in contact with Ivan, yet she was able to touch him in this state, leaving them utterly astonished.
Ivan closed his eyes as he continued to listen to her, when he finally opened them, they were back to their original colour. Evelyn sighed in relief at the sight of them and asked softly, "You are alright, right?"
"Yes," he finally responded. He then turned his head to the two stupefied vampires standing at his room door and asked coldly, "What do you two want?"
Immediately, they straightened their spines and bowed to him, "Forgive us for intruding like this, Your Highness. We were just worried when we saw the candles flaring all over the palace," Alex explained.
"Hm, and why are you here, Alex?" Ivan asked.
Evelyn wondered, ’So this is the man named Alex.’ Until now, she had only heard his name back in Raven Street, but had never actually seen him. She slowly slid her hand down his cheeks, feeling very aware of the two other men in the room. When she did, Ivan caught her hands and wrapped his large ones around hers, making colour rise to her cheek.
Alex replied, "I came to inform you that we have been able to extract information from the captives from yesterday’s incident, and His Majesty has requested to have you both join him for dinner tomorrow."
Ivan’s lips curled into a faint smile, "Nothing stays hidden from father’s eyes, does it?"
"It would appear so, Your Highness," Alex responded.
Evelyn was surprised to know that the King of Versailles wanted to have dinner with her. Worry crept in, thinking about what kind of a man he might be. And worse, she was still injured. Thinking about it made her heartbeat accelerate, and Ivan gave her hand a reassuring squeeze as if he had understood her worries.
He replied, "Arthur, clear all the plates here, and Alex, let my father know we’ll see him tomorrow. Also, I will be there to get the full report out of them myself in some time, especially from that Viremont."
"V-Viremont?" Eve repeated in surprise to hear Ivan utter that surname. "Is it the same Viremont we know of?" she asked cautiously.
Ivan glanced back at her and replied, "Yes, there are a few things you need to be aware of, but we’ll talk later."
Alex bowed and said, "I will make preparations for your arrival, Your Highness." With that, he took his leave.
Arthur quickly cleared everything away and left after Alex, leaving the couple alone in the room. Without a warning, Ivan promptly scooped Evelyn in his arms and carried her towards the bed. She gasped and instinctively wrapped her hands around his neck. He gently laid her down on the mattress before picking up a green glass bottle and handing it to her.
"Drink this. It will replenish your energy and help you heal faster."
She took the bottle but then looked at him with worry, "Are... are you going back to the academy?"
He gave her a confused look, "Why would I go there when you’re here?"
Her cheeks flushed slightly, but she explained further, "I mean, you mentioned something about getting some report from Viremont." Her innocent eyes stayed fixed on him in question.
He stared at her and contemplated what to do. He didn’t want to tell her everything and then leave her alone with a disturbed mind, especially since her magic was no longer restrained. He had noticed that her locket had shattered completely.
So he replied gently, "Why don’t you get some more rest, and I promise to fill you in about everything you need to know, okay?"
She didn’t want to wait, but somehow she knew that Ivan would tell her everything once he returned, so she pursed her lips slightly and gave him a reluctant nod. He raised his hand and gently ran it through her hair, murmuring, "Good."
He was about to get up when she reached out and held his hand. He turned to her and asked, "What is it?"
"I’ve actually slept enough for now...so I thought maybe I could have a bath and then take a walk around after?"
Ivan understood her and said, "I’ll have the bathwater prepared for you before leaving, but...I must ask you to remain in this chamber."
"Why so?" she asked.
"Firstly, because this is Dracoria Palace, where most of them are vampires, and too many curious eyes and ears are around this place. So you never know where the danger might be. And secondly, you are currently in my chamber, where no one would dare enter....unless they’re courting death. For those reasons, you would need to continue staying here till you return to the academy."
Eve’s eyes widened at the thought of having to share Ivan’s room throughout the duration of her stay.
"B-but.." she opened her mouth to argue, yet she couldn’t find anything to counter his reasoning. And truthfully, after her recent captivation, she felt safe with only Ivan around.
Still, the thought gnawed at her; she was unmarried, and Ivan was a man. Lowering her gaze to the hand she was holding, she whispered in a small voice, "But...people will talk..."
Ivan lifted his other hand and gently placed it under her chin to tilt her face back up to him. He leaned closer to her and said, "No one will dare, and if they do, remember this, that you are mine. And I am simply protecting what is mine."
Her breathing hitched slightly, and he added, "You’re safe with me, my Eve. So don’t leave this room, okay?" he asked her as if wanting her to reaffirm him.
She nodded and replied, "Okay.."
He leaned in and kissed her nose softly. After that he rose from the bed and quickly disappeared behind the door next to the bed, leaving her a little dazed with a light kiss he had planted on her nose.
She picked up her hand and lightly touched the place where he had just kissed her, and a small smile curved on her lips as her heart continued to flutter. She thought to herself, ’He is right, I cannot risk going anywhere alone right now. Especially now, after the trouble I got myself involved in.’
As she continued sitting on the bed, lost in her thoughts, Ivan emerged from the same door five minutes later. Now dressed in a black shirt and pants, he adjusted a pair of black leather gloves on his hands before looking at her.
"Bathroom is this way," he said. "I’ll have Arthur send some fresh clothes for you. Your bath water is ready. Should you need anything, just pull this rope at the beside the bed and Arthur will come to assist you."
His gaze then fell on the medicine bottle still in her hand and prompted, "You should have that as soon as possible if you want to recover in time to meet my father tomorrow. It will accelerate the process of healing your bruises."
On hearing about the impending dinner with his father, her heart skipped a beat, which he clearly heard. "Don’t worry, believe me when I say this, he’d be more than happy to see you here."
He picked up his coat and moved to the door. Just before leaving, he paused and said firmly, "Don’t let anyone in and don’t step out." With that, he closed the door and disappeared.
Eve let out a sigh and gazed at the bottle in her hand. Without delay, she opened it and gulped down the entire contents in one go, only to wince at the bitter taste of the medicine. She quickly reached out for the glass of water placed next to her and drank it greedily in an attempt to wash off the remnant of bitter taste in her mouth.
As soon as she finished, she felt her lost energy slowly returning, along with a faint tingling sensation where her bruises had been. Gently, she got out of bed and walked to the door Ivan had pointed out as the bathroom.
