And just like that, the Eldorin's Spring Festival ended. Some people were fortunate to have had a happy ending to the night. Solaire, who had developed a "crush" on Regulus' sister Rosaria, was unfortunate though as the king's sister was uninterested in all his approaches.
Meanwhile, Regulus, who only attempted to "flirt" with Alicia in a teasing way, somehow hit two birds with one stone. As he had managed to make both Alicia and Olivia fall for him, unbeknownst to him.
REGULUS POV
Four days had passed since the Spring Festival, and I had just learned that there was a death during the festival.
"So tell me, what did you say you saw?" I asked, interrogating the clearly terrified man in front of me.
"W-We were attacked, your highness…. we were patrolling the streets like usual, then I noticed that I was alone. When I turned back… I saw a man…. He was pale… As pale as the moonlight!" The man cried as tears began flowing out of his eyes.
"He didn't steal anything from us, your highness, nor was he some sort of assassin. He simply… drank their blood! He didn't even kill me! He simply smiled at me then disappeared into the dark"
Their blood? Could it be a v-
The door swung open, revealing Sir Eadic and a few of our city's watch.
"Sir Eadic! What brings you here?" I asked, startled by their sudden intrusion.
"You have a letter, your highness. And I request that you read it at this moment." Sir Eadic said, his voice was somehow funny? Like he read something that he wasn't supposed to, but instead of being serious he instead laughed?
"Who sent the l-"
"I recommend you read it yourself, my liege." Eadic said with his usual stoic expression, but again his voice and the way he said it seemed funny.
"Alright? You take care of him then." I ordered, pointing at the man who was still sweating and crying buckets.
I excused myself then exited the room, going up the stairs I greeted a few servants. Eventually I got to my room, ordered a butler to fetch some cold honey tea.
As I waited for the tea I sat down on a chair. A few seconds later the butler arrived with the tea, I thanked him and as he left I picked up the letter. Ripping the letter I grabbed the paper inside and unfolded it. The words that were written were
"Dear King Regulus,
First of all I would like to thank you for saving me from an extremely embarrassing moment during the spring festival held in your kingdom. I didn't know how to really repay you so I thought, would you want to go on a vacation in Loren? As you know our architecture is unrivaled! And as a king I know you rarely leave your country, so why not take a break and visit our best tourist attractions! Such as the Sin Rivalidad Cathedral! But if you're not the type to travel a lot, you might want to taste the flavors of Loren! If so, you could try our national dish, the La Paella Del Angel!
Though I would understand if you were busy, but in case you did decide to go, I had ordered a carriage to pick you up the fourth day after the spring festival! When the sun reaches its peak!
Yours truly,
Olivia McForland"
Wait…. What? Let me read this again….
What? Wait, is this some sort of joke? Let me try inspecting the paper to see if it really is true.
There's a signature… and the royal stamp of Loren.
Let me calm down…..
Immediately standing up I ordered a butler to call out Lucius, a few minutes later Lucius arrived.
"You called for me, your highne- Why is there tea pouring from your mouth?" Lucius question.
Looking down I just noticed that I had never drunk the tea as I was too bewildered by the letter.
"Um… never mind that, would you mind reading this? I can't seem to understand the meaning of the letter." I say handing him the piece of paper.
He takes it with curiosity, and while reading it his face slowly crept up a grin?
"Ah, it seems princess Olivia is giving you a once in a lifetime opportunity!" Lucius said with a big grin on his mouth.
And out of nowhere he starts packing my things from my wardrobe into a large trunk.
"Wait, wait, wait! I can't go on a vacation now! There's a lot of things I need to do! First I need to finish the signing of documents for the approval of the building of both the magic academy and the church! Second there was an incident where four city guard's were killed by an alleged vampire! I do not h-"
But as I was yelling Lucius interrupted me.
"You highness, you may not realize it yet but the princess fancies you, this is not only beneficial for the kingdom but also for you!"
Wait, Olivia fancies me? What does he mean by that?
"Go change into something formal, maybe something like a mantle or a coat along with a long sleeved shirt! And wear some loose pants as well, maybe headwear as well."
"Lucius I understand that the princess 'fancies' me but who will take care of the kingdom while I'm gone? Who will approve the documents? You?" I snapped at him.
"Then we will halt all royal documents and business for the meantime if that's what you're worried about. I've seen how stressed you've been lately, go take some time off. When your father was overworking himself, your mother would always force your father to go on at least a short trip, so why don't you?" Lucius replied as he put an overcoat inside the trunk.
Thinking about the times where we vacationed to the sandy beaches of the canyon isles or the cherry blossoms of Kawaragi, a short vacation always seemed to remove the stress from father's eyes. Wait… I might really be overworking myself.
Looking at my reflection some of my muscle mass has visibly disappeared, my weight has gone down, eye bags were under my eyes now, and my hair had gotten so long that it had passed down my shoulders.
"You're right… Maybe I should, I'm sorry for snapping at you like that." I replied, apologizing to Lucius.
"Don't be sorry, you're a good king, but putting your kingdom over yourself isn't always healthy." He replied as he closed the trunk and ordered a few servants to carry it.
"Now come on, the sun is nearing its peak, that carriage could arrive any second now." Lucius said as he gave some more orders to the servants.
I nodded in reply, but just as I was about to grab my spear and give it to the servants, Lucius stopped me again.
"You don't need weapons, it's a vacation, relax for a bit. Being overly cautious can never be good." He said as he placed my spear back on its stand. Following this he left the room and headed with the servants.
Rummaging through my wardrobe I eventually decided to wear a white long sleeved shirt with a red mantle and some pants. Going downstairs I detoured to the training grounds, there I saw Rosaria practicing her magic, with the area slightly enveloped in ice.
"Oh Brother!Wait why are you dressed like that?" She asked as she wiped the sweat off her face.
"I'm going on a little trip Rosaria, it came up so suddenly that I wasn't able to tell you. But don't worry, I'll be back in a few days. In the meantime, try behaving yourself, okay?" I said hugging her while also emphasizing the last part of the sentence.
And as expected she sent an icicle right at me.
"I take that as a yes, I'll have sir Eadic watch over you when he's not busy, so don't try anything funny."
And on queue Sir Eadic came to the training grounds.
"Ah, Sir Eadic… I'll be going on a short vacation, make sure to watch over Rosaria. She might decide to go on a solo quest on her own if she's left unattended." I instructed him. He replied with a nod and that's all I needed.
Finishing my business with Sir Eadic, I went up to the entrance of the castle as there was a very… luxurious looking carriage. Its wheels were shining gold, and its exterior looked very metallic, except it was made out of wood.
Inside the carriage, there was a bed! A literal bed inside the carriage! And if you flip the bed it turns into a cushioned seat! Not only that, there were mana crystals that insulated the area to produce both hot and cold temperatures.
"So this is the difference between me and king André in terms of our kingdom's technology." I muttered to myself as I soaked in the comfort of the bed. Slowly the carriage started moving and before I knew it, I fell asleep.