Chapter 74: Tales of the Maid
By the time Darius returned to his bedroom after delivering Mila to his brother’s bedroom, his lover for the night had already left. Unfortunately, he couldn’t bid her a proper goodbye, but he knew it was better this way. After a short nap, Darius was eager to greet a new dawn. This time, he had pleasing news to report to his father.
Callum greeted the prince when he arrived at the royal assembly hall, where the king was waiting to see him. The older man bowed slightly to show respect before briefing the prince on the current situation.
“Prince Darius, I submitted my report of all the princes’ activities last night to the king. The king has reviewed all the reports and requested a meeting with you,” Callum summarized smoothly.
“Did the king ask for Leonard?” Darius asked.
“No, Your Highness. At least, not yet...” Callum replied before gesturing for the prince to enter the hall.
Callum opened the large double door for the prince to enter. Darius took in a deep breath before entering the large and cold hall. The prince wasn’t a big fan of this room because of its overwhelmingly large size and the fact that it forced him to talk up to the king.
As always, the king sat on his extensive and elaborately decorated throne. His father, just like the king before him, liked to hold official meetings here and host his guests. Darius walked along the long, dark, red-carpeted pathway toward where his father was seated. The throne was positioned on top of a small flight of stairs, ensuring that the king looked down on whomever he spoke with.
“Welcome, Darius...” the king greeted his son warmly.
Darius could tell by the rare smile on his father’s face and the warmth in his voice that he was in a perfect mood. He quickly smiled and nodded as he came to stand at the foot of the stairway. The prince knew immediately that this meeting wasn’t supposed to last long because a chair hadn’t been prepared for him. He bowed respectfully to his father, who acknowledged him. Darius’s grey eyes then strayed to the woman who sat at the King’s side on a smaller throne of her own.