11 Chapter ~ 10

Reuben.

The first time I laid my eyes upon her, she was just a thick tuft of chestnut red. Her hair had a warm hue of chestnuts, an under tone of red woven right into the brown. It was pleasant and it tumbled over her shoulders like rusty water, capturing the light in vibrant ruby hues. She had a pale heart-shaped face and was rather petite and dainty. Delicate, if you will. Peeking through her thick chestnut strands were eyes of the palest blue, like the warm reddish brown guarding the pools of cool water.

Her feline blue eyes were adorned with sharp straight brows, so beautiful that they almost seem fake. She had an aura of regal bearing, but aside from that and her ball of reddish-brown hair, there was nothing remarkable about her. She was not overly pretty, nor did her presence hold an extraordinary air. If she were to be stripped off her title and was let off in the middle of a ballroom filled with nobles, she would not compare to anything more than a wallflower.

She was holding her head low into a bow but when I walked into the courtroom she raised her head to glance over at me and for a moment our eyes met; however under my fleeting gaze her peeking eyes of brilliant blue tints didn't withdraw or flinch, rather she stared back with her cat-like eyes. She stared at me with the kind of look that's designed not to give any emotion away; the kind which hid a wealth of well justified mistrust. It was an atypical moment for me because in that instant stare I felt she could look into my soul. And that was when I decided I did not like her. Besides, I didn't feel the need to express my dislike towards her as she was as insignificant as a bug to me. And it wasn't a day for me to lose direction...

More so, she was already being send off to my nefarious uncle. There was no further need for me to cause needless nuisance.

Or so I thought.

Then fate had us meet once more. Never in a million years would I have guessed that she would recognize me under a disguise after meeting me but just once. However, she did, and that complicated matters. I wanted to kill her there and then to avoid trouble but there was something about her that averted me from executing her. I couldn't exactly put my finger on it, but I had a feeling this girl would be of much use to me alive rather than dead; and she did not disappoint me.

I found out her feline features were not just an exhibit. They were well-matched with her personality- silent and alert but almost unnoticed. There was a steadiness to her, as if all the storms in the world were a whispering breeze if she was there. She was the kind of woman you could go to war with.

But she was extremely peculiar. To the point where she could be put in a cage for show. Entertaining of course, but very strange indeed.

"You....You tend to hold your farts in, don't you?" She looked at me with her squinted eyes, a disdainful expression plastered on her face and I retaliated with a frown. "What!" I couldn't have heard wrong, could I?

"You have to. Because that's the only explanation for all your shitty ideas. Since your farts can't find an outlet, they must travel up your spine, into your brain and that's where shitty ideas generally come from." Yes. She did say what I heard her say and she rendered me speechless. Utterly speechless.

I soon realized Fake Lizzy was not only peculiar but also flamboyantly frank. Barbarically frank. And simple. That actually worked for me in a way.

Prior to our flamboyant conversation, I thought she wasn't as simple as she looked. As if she had hidden in a deep mind inside of her as she calculated my moves. I even contemplated her to be a spy or a confident of the enemy, I wasn't keen on letting her live much longer, but I wasn't enthusiastic about taking her life either for she begged me like I was the last drifting piece of wood that could keep her from drowning. Also, I was keen on keeping my enemies closer.

But after her confrontation with the queen, and her ragged barbaric manner of speech, I was certain if she were to work as a spy, she would be instantly killed on the very first day of her job.

For some strange reason, I was relieved. I seemed to have found just the person I was looking for. A woman as simple as her and with such a humble background wasn’t unlikely to be swayed by the Queen's temptations. Moreover, even though simple, she was alert to dangers and could blend in with the crowd. And she was afraid of me which further solidified my contemplations of her. She might be just the person I needed to get to the first queen. With such thoughts, I was willing to keep her by my side now.

Our wedding was the grandest event the kingdom of Reveldron had even seen in the last hundred years. It was my first marriage after all. I was keen on being meticulous about it.

I wanted it to be as grand as they come. Doing this was also not without any underlying motives. It would firstly give Lizzy the prestige and power she needed to reject the Queen's future matchmakings, and it would also help balance the political power in the court.

"What! Brother! Are you telling me that I am not even allowed to attend my only brother's very first wedding celebration!!??" Alexteris grumbled, looking a lot sullen.

"That is exactly what I mean." I nodded curtly.

"But brother...." His sullen face further sank.

"No buts Lexter. You can't appear in the wedding." I shook my head vehemently.

"Brother, I don't think there is a need for you to worry about having your identity being exposed, everyone knows that you have a little brother who is currently out of the country, traveling along with his master. I can just say I came back to attend your wedding." Alexteris shrugged.

"Lexter, it's been many years since people last saw the sight of you. I am certain they won't recognize you if they see you out in the streets now. That's the way I want it. I don't want them to know what the second prince looks like just yet."

Alexteris bit his lips but reluctantly refused to comment anymore. He was now sure I wouldn't let him appear before the nobles right now.

I sighed deep and lightly patted his shoulders and said, "I know you really want to attend my wedding, and I'm happy for your thoughts but you must understand the gravity of the situation Lexter. We can't let the queen dowager have any upper hand on us. Now she is holding back from exposing you because I hold half of the royal army in my hands but, if she were to gain more momentum and collude with the higher nobles it will no longer matter if I have half the royal military power. We must not give her any chances to strike back. Do you understand?"

I muttered in a grave voice, slowly but clearly stating and pointing out the facts to him.

Lexter was sulky but it couldn't be helped. We had to be vigilant at the right time, otherwise all will be for naught. And I recon he understood this concept.

On our weeding day, I got dressed as the king, hiding my face under bandages and stood side by side beside fake Lizzy at the altar. But I don't know what triggered her mad reaction for she bellowed like a banshee and accused me of being a counterfeit. I was shocked at first, then frustrated when I realized this woman was really stupid if she opened her mouth. Like she was smart enough to counter my wit at times of crisis but was stupid enough to be mistaken for a fool on rest of the occasions. I didn't know whether I should laugh or cry at my dilemma of choosing such a cynical person.

I gripped her hand harder to emphasize to not make a scene on our wedding day as I muttered to her with gritted teeth to stop. Fortunately, my voice seemed to have been recognized by her and she stopped her charade.

I was grateful. Really grateful, I didn't want people to peg my bride to be a lunatic on our wedding day. All my preparations to raise her high above her status would have been in vain if she didn't let up. As I said, at times of crisis such as then, she did a really great job at playing cool as if she wasn't the person who was acting feral just a while back. In a split second she became poised and changed the topic and diverted the attention of the crowd.

Once more, I was reminded of the excellent acting skills my little wife possessed. No wonder the Ronales sent her in place of their daughter. Her acting was truly impeccable. I feared if I didn't meet her under the circumstances we met, even I would be duped.

Sigh! Such a woman, truly unpredictable.

When we were in our bed chamber for the blessing of the holy bed, she seemed awkward. From time to time, her eyes would follow the crowd. Looking at them in unease and embarrassment. I could slightly understand why she was acting that way, after all no one would want to put their wedding night's bed into exhibition on their wedding day. But it was still entertaining to watch her squirm.

I don't know why but I felt like I can never hold myself back from teasing her a little every time she seemed uncomfortable. It is almost instinctive, as if her squiring face triggers a sadistic incentive in me. It suddenly becomes fun and before I know it, I start acting not very gentlemanly.

Not that I don't regret it, like the time when I kissed her on impulse just to tease her a bit but ended up with a bloody tongue or when I let her loose into the rapturous noble society to see how she copes with the crowd, I didn't expect to humiliate myself as in turn. I shall not lie, I almost regretted egging her on at that moment. It was hard for me to swallow the fact that she coloured me a pervert right under my nose.

For a second there, I couldn't stay unruffled and felt very dissatisfied; but at the same time, I was somehow proud. Very few in this world had the skill to render me speechless, and fake Lizzy was one of them. I knew in that instant that I made the right choice. This girl, though simple, was not simple at all. She was so contradictory that she left me dumbstruck every single time.

And hence, I was once again certain that she indeed was a woman I could go to war with. In fact, she was the perfect woman I could go to war with.

We danced all night, and I still felt lively enough to dance another song by the end of the last song. For the first time in my life, I found someone intriguing. A person whose moves I could not predict. It was vexing, yes; but with her, every moment was lively, I was finally liberated of the constant boredom that overshadowed my world.

Things were finally turning out to be fun and it was eventually time for our first night after marriage. I stepped up first to get into the shower room but not before noticing the look of utter dread looming over fake Lizzy's face while she stood rigid as if petrified by the door.

I knew she was thinking of all sorts of ways to get out of this situation, but I suddenly felt like I shouldn't let her off so easy. I secretly smiled to myself a little and got into the shower room.

As expected, the moment I got out of the bath she started making suggestions. Not that it was impossible to put a couch in the room, I had intentionally forbidden it for I thought such a situation might commence.

She seemed adamant on having a couch in the room and I was obstinate enough to not allow her any escape.

I even daringly pointed out that our wedding was not a fraud and that we should fulfil the wedding rites. It was indeed amusing watching her face turn from pale to blue and then purple and then pale again. I could only guess the hoards of situations she was imagining while listening to my words. It was fun and true as well. After all, our ceremony was indeed not a hoax. And I had no intension to hold myself back while married to her.

But what had my jaws dropping to the ground was that she suggested her newly wedded husband to go visit a brothel on her wedding night. I truly couldn't fathom what was going on in the head of such a tentative woman. Where the hell did she drop out from?

My lips couldn't help twitching a bit when I heard her consecutive words of refute and wild suggestions. Now I was even more determined to bed her. I wanted to know how else she planned on worming out of this situation. If she could really worm out of it, then fine. I wouldn't touch her without her consent in the future, but if she couldn't then that was alright too. I would just take her as my legal wife and not think too much of it since I had originally planned on taking her as my legal wife anyway. If she wanted a divorce in the future, I would give it to her but if she didn't, I wouldn't care either way.

Those were my thoughts, but Fake Lizzy is a masterpiece all on her own. She in fact was able to render me speechless all over again.

I wanted to applaud her this time when she brought me a book of spring night(Porn Magazine) to relief myself.

I was dumbstruck at first; the images in the book were so vivid it was as if the women painted there would come to life the very next moment. For a second, I thought it was some kind of magical book for it looked very real and obscene. I was staggered to find out that my little wife had such a book in her possession.

I quietly flipped through page after page of it while she waited beside me, looking rather excited for whatever reason I had no idea. At times, the images were so bare that I couldn't help feeling a bit flustered and quickly flipped to the next page.

When I came to the very last page of it, I slowly raised my head to meet the awfully excited eyes of Fake Lizzy and thought for a moment, 'Why do you have such a book in your possession? What do you use it for?'

I narrowed my eyes a bit at the thought and gave her a pointed look as I seemed to have discovered a rather new side of my little wife. And then I got more curious. Who did she get this book from? And who was the original painter of this spring book? At the thought of some man presenting her this book, I felt rather uncomfortable. 'Does she have a lover? Is that why she is so reluctant to sleep with me? Was it that man who gave her this book?' All kinds of irrational thoughts clouded my mind and I felt quite irritated by it all. It didn't matter whether we were in love or not, which husband could digest the verity that his wife, in fact had a promised lover, after knowing about it on the day of his wedding.

Now I wanted to find this so-called painter by any means necessary and see with my own eyes what this bastard looked like.

So, I asked her in a cloying tone to fish out any details I could, "Who is the painter of this book? I want to employ him."

Fake Lizzy, "......."

To be Continued........