The day had been quite unusual; even the morning assembly was canceled because Prince Harold was feeling unwell. Those who hadn't heard what had happened this morning began to spread rumours that he had probably been in a battle with a fierce beast the previous night and had been injured. Some didn't believe that. Instead, they felt he had killed the beast but needed to rest.
Meanwhile, the said person was deep asleep with his head on Alicia's lap in her chamber.
He was exhausted, and his body ached all over.
Alicia looked down at his sleeping face, smiling warmly as she gently stroked his hair. He looked so peaceful and innocent while sleeping. She almost laughed at the thought that cooking had turned him into this fragile baby.
She had only wanted to tease him a little the previous evening, but the more he answered, the more it turned serious, and she decided to keep pushing it. She hadn't thought he was going to do it.
In fact, she had been very surprised when he kicked her door open and stormed into her chamber with a tray of roasted chicken and vegetables and a blend of fruit in a jar for her.
Her jaw dropped when she saw him carefully place it on the table while muttering to himself. He looked angry.
"Are you okay?" She had asked in concern as she stood up in a hurry, wondering why he was the one serving her this morning when he usually escorted the maids.
He turned to glare at her, making her withdraw in confusion as she wondered whether he was still mad about last night since she had gone to bed before he returned to her chamber and only realized he had slept in here with her when she saw him disappearing in the morning.
But something about him stood out. His hair was a mess, and he had charcoal stains on different parts of his face.
He suddenly stretched out his hand to her, showing her different burn marks and cuts.
"What happened to you?" She asked with concern as she took his hand.
"I have never been burned before in a kitchen." He grumbled. "And I have never been cut by a kitchen knife before. Neither have I been put in a position where someone would repeatedly yell at me." He began to ramble in annoyance, much to Alicia's surprise since he was usually not like this.
"She said 'sprinkle a little salt' which I did. Then she said it was too small, and then I added more, and then she yelled at me for adding too much. WHY WAS SHE YELLING?!" He raised his voice, making Alicia step back.
"She was the one who was vague with her instructions! She told me to 'blow the fire' and got angry when I poured a bowl of water on it to blow it out. I don't know how Susan and Williams cope with her. She is a PAIN in the neck! She is a pain all over my body!!!"
First of all, Alicia had never heard him talk this much. Secondly, she had never seen him this angry at someone. If he was mad at someone, he was not vocal about it. Thirdly, was this what she thought it was?
She looked at the meal he had brought, at his stained face, the burns on his hands, his messy hair, and how he smelled of smoke, sweat, and a mixture of spices.
"You cooked for me!" She exclaimed in surprise, smiling brightly at him.
He was about to keep protesting when she suddenly embraced him, making him shut his mouth.
"Thank you!" She said with a heavy voice, feeling touched.
Seeing how this man, who grew up in an old-fashioned world, was willingly doing things for her that some men in her world wouldn't have agreed to do, made her emotional and feel cared for.
Harold looked down at her, also touched by her reaction. Now, he felt like he could forgive Lady Victoria a bit for pushing him to do the actual cooking while she instructed him. At least, it made him proud to know that he had actually made the meal and not just watched someone else do it. He could also forgive the stupid servants and guards who had seen him coming with a tray and fled for their lives as though he were carrying weapons.
He had wanted to ask someone to help him hold the tray because the burns on his hands were something he wasn't used to, and they were not healing quickly because of the amount of blood he had lost during this period for his father, but the crazy people had all run away! What was so scary about him holding a tray?
Now, he felt a twinge of guilt, realizing he had only focused on himself and his own needs and not stopped to consider the meal she might have actually been craving.
"I hope... you'll like it." He said, feeling a little uncertain.
"I don't care how it tastes. I love it!" She said before pulling away from him, smiling happily.
He smiled back at her and let her pull him down onto the chair to eat with her. But before then, she helped rub a balm into his hands to soothe the burns and also wiped his face clean with a towel.
The meal hadn't tasted bad. It was nice and average, but it seemed like the best meal she ever had.
He liked how happy she looked as she ate the meal. At one point, she even stood up and approached him, kissing the top of his head and taking him by surprise.
This wasn't bad after all.
Alicia placed a soft kiss on his cheek as she watched him sleep peacefully after they ate and he took his bath. She was glad to see him familiarize himself with other people. Harold probably didn't even know it yet.
She was proud of him.
Meanwhile, in his dream, Prince Harold found himself in a strange and unfamiliar place, surrounded by a dim, misty forest. For some reason, it didn't feel like a dream. It felt real.
He felt something approaching in the woods and just watched with curiosity, wondering what that was. He had a feeling he knew what it was, and he was correct.
He saw the giant black wolf walking towards him like a predator, and Harold tilted his head to the side, wondering what this crazy animal was up to. He had heard that some people were able to meet their wolves, but he didn't know how it happened, so this was a surprise for him.
"You've finally been able to join the mind link." The wolf said in Harold's head when he stood in front of him, but Harold shook his head, making it clear that he was not going to be conversing with an animal.
His wolf transformed into a human who looked exactly like him. But unlike Harold, he had jet black, longer hair that looked like his fur, and his eyes were bright red. But everything else was the same, including his naked body.
This was interesting.
"Long time, no see, Harold!" His wolf said with a cheerful smile.
"We've never seen each other before, wolf," Harold pointed out.
"No, no, no. You don't call me wolf. You call me Rold!" He grumbled.
Rold? Why did that sound familiar?
"I used to go by Haro. But it didn't suit me, so I chose Rold instead."
Harold just eyed him and looked around them.
"Where is this place?"
"My world. And let me tell you a secret..." He moved closer to Harold, his eyes glistening as he said, "I'm like a king around here."
Harold frowned. "Around where?"
Rold gestured to their surroundings. "This dimension, of course. It's just like your world. This is mine. But we are still the same people. I don't know what happened after the banquet night, but I feel great!" He said happily, making Harold annoyed at how vague and annoying his wolf form was.
"But you know... something is still missing," Rold said with a thoughtful expression.
Harold raised a questioning brow at him.
"You know you are my other half?"
"I don't see why that matters."
Rold shrugged. "It matters because you're not complete without me. And I'm not complete without you. We need each other, Harold. And you need to do it so I can be stronger. So that WE can be stronger. I am tired of counting on you."
"What are you talking about?" Harold asked his crazy half.
Rold smirked. "Oh, come on. You know what I'm talking about. We should mate with her." He said excitedly, causing Harold's blood to boil.
"Stay away from her. She is mine." Harold warned darkly.
Rold raised an eyebrow. "I wanted to tell you the same thing because I cannot trust you anymore!"
Did he just...
"You have guts!" Harold said calmly, trying not to show how affected he was by this insane Rold.
"You know I am very selective," Rold started.
"But after considering it, I decided to accept her, even though it is not beneficial for me because she does not have a wolf side in this place with me, so it's difficult to initiate a mating process between you two in your world. And lately, you have had too many women around you that smell awful, which makes me sick. Oh! Especially that girl whose name starts with a B." Rold pretended to throw up.
"The next time she shows up around us, I will rip her heart out and feed it to her brother. I've noticed how he stares at Princess; I don't like it--"
"SHE IS NOT YOUR PRINCESS!" Harold yelled in anger, jolting himself awake with the intense fury he felt.
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