She Belongs To The Devil

King Dragomir looked very pale and weak as though he was sick. When Adeline ran closer to her father, she also noticed something more, "Is it just me or does father have more wrinkles on his face? I don't think he had this many wrinkles before… Or am I just over imagining?"

"Father, are you feeling sick?" Adeline asked again out of concern.

Dragomir gave a feeble smile to his daughter and replied, "No, I am not sick. I just feel a little tired, that's all."

Adeline climbed on the throne platform and sat on the armrest of the throne. She hugged her father and asked in a pampered voice, "Didn't you sleep well last night?"

Dragomir felt as though his worries faded away when his daughter hugged him lovingly. "Yes, I couldn't sleep very well, maybe that's why I look a bit tired."

"Is something worrying you?" Adeline wanted her father to share his problems with her. Her father had countless responsibilities and it was understandable that sometimes he might even have sleepless nights because of overthinking about some problems.

However, Dragomir's worry was because of a completely different matter today. He had seen the fearful demon from hell in his dream, which was thought to have become extinct already as the stories of their attacks weren't heard of in recent years. But that very same demon had successfully taken his life force and had made him feel weaker.

Dragomir shook his head and said, "No nothing is worrying me. I just missed your mother, that's all."

Dragomir didn't want to tell what exactly had happened during the night. He didn't want to make his daughter concerned about him. And the things that had happened were not exactly appropriate to share with his daughter. So he didn't even bother.

Adeline hugged her father even tightly and said in a sad tone, "I miss her too. I hope she is in a better place now."

"I hope so too." Dragomir let out a huge sigh. Deep down he had a feeling that Auvera might not have found peace because of the way she died. But he truly wanted to think that her soul might have already gone to heaven because she was the purest soul he knew.

"Right, did you have something to say to me?" Dragomir asked Adeline as she would rarely visit him in the middle of her training sessions, she would either visit him in the morning or in the evening when both of them would be free.

Adeline nodded her head and revealed her true purpose to have visited her father, "I was leaving for the market so I came to inform you that I would be outside of the Palace for a while."

"You are going to the market? Alone?" The King asked in a surprised tone.

"Yes," Adeline smiled.

"But you never leave the Palace. So do you even know how to go there? I don't think you should be going alone, take someone with you, someone who can guide you." Dragomir was not liking the idea of letting Adeline leave the Palace on her own.

"I won't exactly be alone, father. I will be taking some of the guards with me. And besides, I visited the market yesterday only, so I remember the roads." Adeline was confident enough because she had to walk through more or less straight paths to reach to Agnes's place.

But Adeline was surprised by her father's next reply.

Dragomir was visibly shocked to learn that Adeline had left for the market only yesterday so he exclaimed in a loud voice, "You visited the market yesterday? Why didn't you tell me first?" He toned down his voice a little and asked, "Did you go alone or did you go with someone?"

"I went with my brothers and sisters. I was coming here to inform you but we were already getting late. And Nefriti told me that she had already asked your permission so I went away without telling you first." Adeline puckered her lips because her father seemed to be slightly angry and very confused.

He thought for some time and finally spoke, "I don't remember Nefriti coming to meet me here. Actually, I haven't even seen her after your birthday banquet."

Adeline was shocked to hear that from her father. Several thoughts began to arise in her mind, "Did Nefriti lie to me then? But why would she do that? Did they sneak out? But why sneak out like that? I don't think father would have denied sending us out if we had simply asked him. And now, father seems to be angry at us."

"Who else was there with you?" The King furrowed his brows and asked with a hint of anger lurking on his face. "Did you all take guards along with you or you all went on your own?"

Adeline was getting a feeling that if she revealed who went along with her, her father was going to punish all of her brothers and sisters. And if she was to tell him that they went without guards, that also in disguise, then she was sure that her father would be furious at them.

"First promise me that you won't be angry with them. They were just trying to cheer me up because I was sad after Nigel left." Adeline gave the sweetest grin to his father like a pampered child to make him agree to her.

The King chuckled and caressed her hair. "You know how to melt my heart, don't you? If they were really trying to cheer you up then I will forgive them for this once. But if I ever find them going out of the Palace without my permission then I am going to punish them for misbehaving. You should pass my message to them."

Adeline nodded her head and agreed, "I will pass on your message."

"So who was there with you? What did you all do there? Did you have fun?" Dragomir shot Adeline with a number of questions.

"I went with Nefriti, Claudia, Raphael, Kaela, and Gustin. They showed me different shops around the market. And yes, we had a lot of fun. I had never been to the market before so I got to learn and see many things." Adeline explained to her father with enthusiasm.

Though Dragomir didn't like them sneaking out, he was at least happy that Adeline had enjoyed her time in the market. "I see. So you had something specific to do in the market today or are you just going to roam around for some time?"

Adeline was still not sure if it was okay to reveal about Agnes and her clan to her father. She did not want to put Agnes in an awkward situation, so she thought that she would tell her father about them after she got to know more, about them as well as about Lillian.

For now, she just said a half-truth. "I am going to meet with the villagers and try to know more about them. I think it is fruitful to know about the subjects if I am to become a capable Queen in the future."

Dragomir could not express how proud he was of his daughter. He smiled and said, "Okay, you can go.. But make sure to stay cautious and safe."