A Mystery

Second Prince Alanus Varence was standing a few steps away from General Eloria who only noticed his presence a few seconds ago. However, the latter wasn't sure if the Second Prince even noticed her.

His calm and aloof nature; the way he still isolated himself from others... it seemed like he too was still the same. In her past life, these were the traits that made her dislike the Second Prince. He was always too cold and at one point, she even dreaded him. So, she always tried her best to not interfere with him.

This was why she didn't have many memories of the Second Prince. However, she still remembered how Crown Prince Owine Varence tried to step down to let the Second Prince take his place. But Rayan Varence seized the throne following the sudden death of their father, King Horace Varence.

Once Rayan Varence took over the throne, he was very quick to kill the supporters of the late King and the Crown Prince. Miraculously, he spared the Crown Prince and Eloria still remembered how everyone was shocked due to it. However, it turned out that the Crown Prince had an illness and it was also the reason why he wished for the Second Prince to replace him as the heir apparent to the Aritish throne. He died a few months later.

In the case of the Second Prince, he fled with the soldiers who were on his side. There were many rumors about his whereabouts but nothing was sure, except for one thing - that he planned to avenge his brother and father. He strongly believed that Rayan Varence was behind the death of his father though there was no proof.

As Third Prince Saerus was someone who never took an interest in the throne or power, he was under house arrest and Eloria didn't recall herself meeting him since then.

Those were the fates of the three Princes from her memory.

Maybe the General was too absorbed in her thoughts, she only realized now that the Second Prince was looking in her direction. From the look on Alanus's face, he seemed to be staring at her for a while now, perhaps due to confusion.

After all, Eloria never took her gaze off him the whole time she zoned out, recalling his fate.

The General gave a quick thought before she finally walked towards the Second Prince. She knew that it was her first time meeting him in her current life but she refused to pretend to not know him. After all, Second Prince Alanus Varence was one of the few people whom she struggled to figure out. And she knew that if the Second Prince put his mind to it, he was way more intelligent and capable than Rayan Varence.

How he managed to trouble Rayan Varence even when he was a fugitive while the latter was the King of Aritish, made everything clear.

"Your Highness." Eloria Camer halted a step away from the Second Prince and then bowed her head to greet him. She didn't fail to notice how the Prince's expression was the same all the time - calm as ever.

"General Eloria." Second Prince Alanus greeted the General back in a calm voice that matched his demeanor. He recognized her due to the introduction earlier but he was wondering how she did the same. If he remembered correctly, it was their first encounter. "I wasn't expecting you to identify me."

"I know how the people compared us all the time, Your Highness," Eloria Camer promptly clarified with a smile that was hard to read. "When I entered the hall, I was able to identify you right away. It must be because I was looking forward to meeting you."

Alanus Varence was still calm as ever but somehow, Eloria felt like she sensed his doubt. It seemed like he didn't buy her words but she understood. He was always a calm yet cautious person and Eloria knew that.

"That's an honor, General," Second Prince Alanus said after a while, surprising Eloria Camer much more than one could imagine.

That's an honor? Did she really hear this from Alanus Varence?

Even when she recalled her memories from her previous life, she was sure of one thing. It was the fact that this Prince always treated her as if she was invisible.

Even when the other Princes treated her well and even when many bachelors were eager to be the one capturing her heart, all for the sake of her father's power, Alanus Varence was always different. He never spared her a single glance and at one point, Eloria even thought that the Second Prince felt disgusted by her.

Did that Alanus Varence really say that it was an honor to be identified by her?

What a strange man!

"Your Highness is too kind." She slightly lowered her head while trying her best to maintain her composure. However, when he looked up again and saw the subtle smile on the Prince's lips, she was unable to hide her amazement anymore!

It was her first time seeing him smile!

"We should have a duel one day, General," the Second Prince suggested, turning a blind eye to the General's surprisement. "I'm sure that it will be for the better."

Eloria understood right away that the Second Prince was addressing the rumors that surrounded them as they were considered the best in Aritish. However, she felt a bit lost. She never heard about the Second Prince participating in a duel before.

"If you give me the chance, I will surely give my best," Eloria responded while the Second Prince nodded in satisfaction. Even his very small gestures were enough to render her stupefied.

It turned out that she didn't know this man at all and not being able to figure out someone was one of the things she hated the most in her current life.

She didn't want to be naively betrayed or used again.

When Eloria Camer was back to her sense, she saw a glimpse of someone watching her and the Second Prince from a few steps away. She only gave a side glance not to make it too obvious and proved that it was Fourth Prince Rayan Varence. Nevertheless, she decided to feign ignorance.

In her past life, he often warned her not to be close to any of his brothers and she used to do just that though the Crown Prince and the Third Prince were always kind to her. Now that she thought about it, it was all because of his greed; a part of his plan to use her.

Why was she so naive? Was it love that blinded her to that extent?

If that's the case, she told herself that she would never get entangled in a thing called 'love' again. Ever.

"I think you should get back inside."

The voice of the Second Prince snapped Eloria out of her stupor and she promptly looked at him. Then the latter continued, "Though it's my father's birthday, you're the main focus of this party. I'm sure that people will want to see more of you." He briefly paused and added, "After all, you're a mystery for so long."

He called her a mystery but... didn't he know that she felt the same way about him?

In her opinion, he was much more a mystery than she was.....