92 Arc 4: Chapter 92

When night fell, Elenor snuck out to the capital in a hidden carriage she had asked- mostly begged Paige to prepare for her.

She wore the black hood lower as she walked through the capital. It was still bustling with people. Elenor laughed to herself as she remembered the phrase 'the night is still young'. No matter which world, the phrase could be used anywhere.

Elenor continued to walk around the capital before deciding to head inside a bar. Though she was supposed to look for clues where Alec might be, she was getting hungry and craving for alcohol.

'I haven't drank any for so long, I must get at least a bit in my system!' she thought to herself, fist bumping the air before walking into the bar.

It was noisy and the bar was almost entirely filled with people. Elenor slowly made her way towards the bar counter and took a seat at the corner of it. The bartender noticed a new presence at the counter and made his way towards her.

He shot her a business smile, "Good evening, what would you like today?"

"Any special cocktail?" Elenor asked, pulling her hood lower.

"We have a special today, would you like to try it?"

"Yes please."

As long as she had a taste of some alcohol, she would be satisfied already. The bartender nodded, not minding she had covered her face suspiciously with a hood.

He prepared the cocktail and slid it over to her seat. She thanked him and slowly took a sip of it. Her eyes widened in joy as the sweet liquid flowed down her throat.

"This is delicious!" she exclaimed, given compliments to the bartender who had prepared it for her.

He bowed as thanks before continuing to tend to other customers. Not far from where she was seated was a middle aged man which kept staring at her direction. Elenor could sense the stare and tried to ignore it, drinking her drink faster than she wanted to.

Luckily the alcohol in the drink wasn't too high to make her drunk but only slightly tipsy. She placed the money down on the counter, adding a bit extra as a tip for the bartender before getting up, preparing to leave.

"Oi lady where ya going? The fun just begun!" the middle age man shouted over at her once she got off her seat.

She scrunched her nose in disgust at him. She pretended not to hear him and headed out of the bar. Once she was out of the place, she took in the cold night air. Just as she was slowly sobering up from the cool air, a tight grip held her by the arm.

"I said where ya going!" the middle age man from the bar said, impatiently.

"Let go of me." Elenor sternly said, trying to shake his grip off her.

The middle aged man grinned, forcefully pulling her hood down, "A pretty lady like ya shouldn't be hiding your face!"

Elenor was about to fight back when suddenly another force pulled her away from the middle aged man and harshly kicked him causing him to spit out blood from the impact.

"Scram unless you want to die." a cold, heavy voice spoke behind Elenor.

The middle aged man squeaked in fear before getting up on his feet and scurrying away. Elenor gradually turned her head behind to find Alec standing there dressed up formally. She blinked a couple of times before bringing her hands up to his face, touching his facial features to confirm she wasn't hallucinating.

"Is it really you Alec?" she asked, dumbfounded.

Alec nodded, releasing his grip on her. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at home?"

Elenor sheepishly smiled, "I was looking for you since we haven't seen each other for a long time."

He raised an eyebrow at her statement, "You were looking for me? In the bar, drinking alcohol?"

"I haven't had it for a long time okay!" Elenor answered back, defending herself.

Alec sarcastically laughed before grabbing hold of her hand. "Let's go."

"Go where?" she questioned, looking down at their hands which fit perfectly like puzzle pieces.

"We're bringing you back home. Right this instance."

"Then after that where are you going?"

"...I still have things to do."

"Like what?"

"Killing anyone who is a threat to you." he muttered to himself before coming up with another answer,

"Business that I need to take care of."

"Why do you need to do it? Is it that important that I can't see you all this time?" Elenor questioned further.

She could somewhat tell Alec was no longer a butler in the marquess' household which meant he wasn't her personal butler as well. She basically had no contact whatsoever with him now.

"Alec, you quit your job at the household didn't you?"

"Yes."

"So what are you working as then?"

"I'm afraid I cannot tell you at the moment."

"Oh, well I won't pry then. When you want to tell me, I'm all ears."

Alec glanced at her and shot her a nod, "Thank you for being patient."

"Hm of course, I love you that much." Elenor smugly admitted.

Alec shook his head at her. When they returned back to her household, he placed a kiss on her forehead before poking it.

"Don't do this. If you want to go out next time at least bring a guard or your brother." he glared at her.

She tapped her lips and cheekily smiled, "Then kiss me."

"Are you drunk?"

"No but I think I'm still a bit tipsy."

Alec heaved another sigh before wrapping his arm around her waist, pulling her in for a kiss. She brought her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. They continued kissing until Elenor finally pulled away. Alec nearly dived back in for another kiss but Elenor took a few steps back.

She then mischievously grinned at him, shooting him a peace sign, "Alright next time I'll bring a guard but no promises."

He sighed, shaking his head, not annoyed or mad that he fell for a simple trick. "Sweet dreams, Hyejin."

When she returned back to her room, she fell onto her bed and slept peacefully. The next day, she received a letter from Lloyd. It was an invitation to a ball which he was holding in a week.

Without hesitation she replied back to the invitation, accepting it.

A week flew by quickly even though she spent all her time at home, lazing around and it was time for the ball.

Elenor was dressed in a royal blue off shoulder halter neck dress with sleeves that end until her wrists, exposing her smooth and slender shoulders. Her hair was curled and the front of her hair was braided to the side.

"Being able to dress Lady ELenor up again, is truly the best." Alice commented, wiping away any tears that rolled down her cheeks.

"Indeed." Paige and Denice agreed as well, doing the same thing as Alice.

Elenor chuckled before thanking them for helping her get dressed for the ball. When she walked out of her room, Ray was standing there with a smile.

"Sister- I mean Lady Elenor you are looking beautiful as usual!" Ray beamed.

Elenor smiled, ruffling his hair. "Thank you Ray but shouldn't you be doing your job?"

"My job today is to bring Lady Elenor to her carriage!" he proudly responded.

Elenor laughed and nodded. "Please lead the way then, Ray."

Ray nodded and happily brought her out to the carriage where her brother waited for her as well. They both got into the carriage and headed to the palace.

Upon reaching the venue hall for the ball, many flocked towards Elenor talking to her and asking how she was as this was her first time coming to a ball ever since she woke up.

By the time the attention on her finally went away, she was exhausted. Richard noticed this and chuckled, patting her on the head.

"Tired from talking?"

She hummed in response and leaned against her brother for support as Lloyd finally made his appearance with Rosina by his side. He was dressed in a white and gold tuxedo and his mid length hair rested on his shoulder, tiny braids incorporated in his hair. Rosina had the same colour scheme as Lloyd.

Her dress was a white off shoulder dress with gold details decorated around her bosom area and in small areas of the dress. Her hair was tied into a low side ponytail with braids mixed in and rested on her shoulders, the same as Lloyd.

"Thank you to everyone who has joined this ball for tonight. I would like to announce something important. I am now engaged." Lloyd spoke with his back straight and confident.

Elenor raised an eyebrow in surprise but continued watching everything unfold in front of her. Rosina noticed where Elenor and Richard was standing and smiled brightly over at them. Murmurs from everyone were heard before Lloyd raised his hand, silencing everyone.

"I would like to introduce everyone to my fiancee, Rosina Millie Stout." he brought his gaze over to her, it was warm and sweet.

He turned back to the crowd and smiled, "She will be the future queen of Elaelind."

The crowd was silent, looking left and right, unsure of what to say or do but suddenly claps echoed. Elenor smiled as she clapped.

"Congratulations, your highness." Elenor spoke.

Soon after her, more voices spoke up, congratulating the couple, clapping for them harmoniously. Lloyd and Rosina turned to each other, smiling so brightly it could almost blind someone if they stared at them for too long.

"Oh! I have one last thing to announce." Lloyd spoke up again, gaining everyone's attention once more.

He cleared his throat, "Please welcome Duke Cullingford. He received his title a year and a half ago however this is his first appearance."

Alec slowly walked out into the spotlight, all eyes staring straight at him. He was wearing a royal blue tuxedo suit with his hair styled back. He had an expressionless face as he stood there with confidence.

"Oh my...he's quite handsome!"

"Hey hey do you think he's single?"

"He looks very familiar…"

"Ugh another competition...how are we ever gonna get married!?"

"I wonder if we can be friends with him...he could help us get some ladies."

Elenor blinked rapidly before turning to her brother who had a normal look on his face.

"Brother...what..?" she asked, baffled by the sudden turn of events.

Richard turned to her and briefly smiled, "His highness gave Alec the duke status after you went into a comatose. I'm not sure of the reasons why however."

"Lady Elenor."

The noises around them died down as they watched Alec stand in front of Elenor. She looked over at Alec. She had questions to ask him but held herself back.

"..Good evening." she muttered back, still not finished processing everything.

Alec smirked before getting down on one knee. This caused everyone around them to gasp, their whispers growing louder but Elenor could care less at that moment. She stared at Alec, eyes wide.

"What are you-"

"Lady Elenor, I have been in love with you for a long time. The only reason why I accepted the Duke status was the sole purpose of being able to marry you." Alec spoke, his voice never once wavering, his eyes peering only on Elenor.

Awes and astonishment echoed around them.

"Elenor Berry Hester, please marry me!" Alec asked firmly, holding out a ring.

It was thin and silver coloured with small diamonds embedded on it. Elenor stared at the ring before turning to her brother who had a somewhat glum look on his face.

"Mother and father have approved of this already. Not long ago he went on his knees and bowed deeply in front of us, asking approval to have your hand in marriage. At first we didn't agree but he kneeled there for weeks without rest." Richard spoke, sighing as he recalled of the events.

"Soon mother and father agreed after being moved by how devoted he was to you and they knew they could be in peace if you were with him. However, I still don't approve of it!" he scornfully but his eyes softened as he looked at Elenor.

"...But if he makes you happy, I can't stop you." he smiled, stroking her head.

Elenor smiled brightly at her brother, knowing he had somewhat accepted Alec being together with her. She turned back to Alec who continued to kneel on one knee, waiting for her response.

She let out a soft laugh before placing her hand in front of Alec, "Gladly."

Alec carefully took her hand and placed the ring into her ring finger before quickly getting up and engulfing her into a hug.

The crowd clapped, congratulating them.

"Two couples in one night! How amazing is that!?"

"I know right?! I can't believe I was able to witness all of this right in front of my eyes!!"

"Boo hoo two handsome men taken away..!"

"Alright!! Two rivals gone! What a lucky day this is!"

"Now we might be able to get a chance to get married!!"

-

"Now tell me everything." Elenor sternly asked once they got away from the crowd, resting in a waiting room Lloyd provided for them.

Alec nodded and told her everything, not letting anything left out.

"So you made a deal with Lloyd that you will support him and become his right hand man in exchange for the duke status? And this whole time you have been doing your work as a duke? ...No wonder you didn't want the baron title.." she mumbled the last part to herself.

"Yes. When I said that I only got this status in order to be with you and marry you was not a lie."

Elenor felt a warmth in her chest, overwhelmed by everything. Alec sensed something wrong with Elenor.

"Are you alright Hyejin-"

She pulled him into a tight hug, burying her face into his chest. "I hate you." she said, muffled, her eyes tearing up.

"Hm I hate you too. I hate you so much that I can't get my eyes off you."

Elenor's ears turned red, embarrassed by his words. "Shut up…"

Alec lightly chuckled at her reaction before pressing soft kisses on her red ears. "I love you Hyejin. Thank you for letting me marry you."

Elenor lifted her head up and rolled her eyes, "We're only engaged at the moment."

Alec rolled his eyes at her in return before kissing her longingly, "It's still better than nothing."

She laughed before pulling him back for another kiss, "That's true. I'm happy being together with you."

"Till death do us apart?" Alec whispered, his lips hovering over hers.

She nodded, "Till death do us apart."

"Hm till death isn't quite long...how about forever?"

"But forever doesn't last." Elenor laughed but Alec had a serious look on his face.

"No matter where you are. What world or universe you are in, I will always be with you."

Elenor hummed in reply, leaning her body against his, "Alright, forever then. Even after death."

A smile bloomed on Alec's lips, his cheeks dusted light pink as he repeated those words in his head.

He leaned in once more, capturing her lips, silently agreeing with her.

Even after death, we will be together.

The End.