Saved By The Mad Duke

It had been three weeks since Aideen’s powers were sealed and Ahspid secretly left the castle in the middle of the night. Safie, the only person who saw him leave, did not confess to anyone that she saw him; something deep inside her heart urged her to respect the man’s decision, no matter how obnoxious or troublesome he had been during the time he spent with them.

Although Tillian sent out his knights to search for him, the mage was never found, and they could only hope that he reached his desired destination and was not buried under the snow or torn apart by the wandering beasts.

To the duke, much like to everybody else in the castle, Ahspid’s decision seemed inconsiderate and selfish, after all, he was the princess’s trusted teacher, someone who could have helped her cope with the loss of her powers, offered a valuable piece of advice or simple moral support during such trying times.

But he still chose to disappear, leaving nothing but a small ring as the only thing to remember him by.

Now, that ring was secured on Aideen’s finger and she refused to let go of it regardless of the occasion.

"Silly old man," Bella continued to lament over and over, "How could he do something like that? Her Grace is falling apart and I refuse to believe that his decision to leave had nothing to do with it."

The maid was right, Lady Valentine was indeed falling apart.

Every single day, without a change, she spent most of her time in bed, half-asleep, half-awake, her face always turned away from those who wished to look at her, her voice––a mere whisper whenever she was in the mood to speak.

The princess refused to leave the bedroom and barely touched the food that was diligently brought to her every four hours. Bella couldn’t simply lose hope, she was convinced that at some point, the nice smell of the delicious meals cooked by Martin would finally make her feel a little better and promote her appetite.