#THE_ROYAL_LOVE
©Sir Zach
EPISODE 76
“There are totally three major Kingdoms, each one following their respective God. For example, the Kingdom of Aletros used to follow Hades, the God of Death and King of un-derworld.”
“Kingdom of Myraina used to follow Poseidon, the God of Sea and Earthquakes. Other Kingdom is Kingdom of Ventris which follows Zeus, the God of Sky, Lightning and also the King of God.” Charlotte explained.
“History goes on like that. But for now, all we have to worry about is the Kingdom of Aletros and the competition we are having there.” she added.
“In Aletros, the Royal Family is Louis’s family while we have seven main Noble Houses which combinedly form the court. These Houses and the Royal Family rule the Kingdom.”
“Now, as for the Queen, all the Ladies from these Main Houses participate. One lady from each house. If no girls in their twenties are present in the family, they can sponsor someone and make them stand on behalf of the house. Brina is also being sponsored in the same way. And to let this happen, I and Louis are now acting like we broke up and we are enemies. So, this might keep Brina in a tough situation.” Charlotte said.
“You have actually done a lot for me and Louis, Char. The least I could do is to face these tiny situations. Don’t worry about that, I can handle it.” Brina told, sipping her fruit juice.
Louis was adamant that she has to take care of herself properly. So, Daniel has become her caretaker now, while Hailey would handle other matters.
Daniel might not be from the Royal Family but he was way too close to that family and he could be considered as the ‘third son’ of this family.
So, if he stays more with Brina and her team, it would cause unwanted trouble and suspicions.
“It’s not a big deal, Brina. Now, everyone is thinking that I am bringing someone to piss off Louis intentionally. They are thinking that you have a very minute chance of winning.” Charlotte told.
“Hmm.. that’s for my own good.” Brina said.
“Okay. Now, let’s talk about the Ladies with whom you will be competing with. And, you have two major opponents, Olivia and Katherine. Their families are second in most powerful and wealthier after the Royal Family.”
“The next powerful family is Louis’s mother’s family. I think you know Sir Francis, the one who came that day to take Louis back to the Kingdom. He isn’t married but he had long back adopted a girl and boy from his distant relatives.”
“So, Lady Amelia is his sworn daughter and she will be present as well. She is good and trustworthy compared to others. She is one of the highly educated Lady with almost three doctorates. She might not be the tough competitor. If there is someone whom you can befriend with.. it is her.” Charlotte told.
“How could you be so sure?” Brina asked.
Charlotte giggled and whispered “She has a crush on our Daniel. But this piece of wood here never un-derstood that.”
Brina and Hailey laughed. The way Charlotte told it, is so funny to listen to.
“We will help her with that then. At least he wouldn’t remain as a single man here.” Brina chuckled as she saw Daniel who was in the pa-ntry room, making herbal tea for his sister-in-law.
“Amelia will always be grateful to you then. She really likes Daniel.” Charlotte chuckled.
“Continue with our topic please.” Hailey said, not able to hold her curiosity.
“The next powerful family is us. House of Landon.” Charlotte said, coming back to the main topic. “But, due to some problems we are actually falling down and my parents are trying so ha-rd to hide it from other houses. It is a tough time at my house and everyone has thought that my engagement with Louis would help them, but you know the truth.” Charlotte laughed, but worry was evident in her eyes.
A marriage alliance with the Royal Family brings many advantages and benefits. However, being a les-bianand not interested in men, she couldn’t continue her engagement with Louis.
That too when Louis loves Brina too much. He is her best friend and as his best buddy she has to help them.
Brina pursed her li-ps. “Don’t worry about that. You will not lose anything.. In turn, I will make sure your parents don’t regret helping me and Louis.” Brina comforted her friend.
Charlotte got moved, that tears brimmed in her eyes and she swiftly hu-gged Brina. “I know that you won’t let me down. I have always trusted you with all my heart.” she said, her voice cracking
Brina is already making mental notes of what all she has to do and this is one of it. To help House of Landon.
Hailey sniffled. It is too sentimental for her too!
“All right, let’s get back to our main topic. Now, we are done with the four houses, in which two houses will be surely against us. We can count Amelia as our ally. But we still have three other houses and we have to get two out of these three houses to support us.” Charlotte told, holding her emotions.
“And, it’s going to be tough. Two of these houses are so, so loyal to Olivia’s family. Getting all of them into our side will be almost impossible. Whereas the other family is bonded to Katherine’s family with a marriage. They have mutual agreement to stick with each other.” Daniel said as he pas-sed tea to Brina.
“So, what about those ladies?” Brina asked.
“Their names are Kiara, Rebecca and Phoebe.” Charlotte answered.
Hailey sighed after getting fed with so much new information. As for Brina, she remained unfazed. She is least worried about the competition.
“So, it’s simple. We have Amelia on our side already. Katherine and Olivia are my competitors and also the ladies of two powerful houses. Kiara and Rebecca are loyal to Olivia while Phoebe is loyal to Katherine.” Brina asked them.
“So, if we have Amelia by our side, we also nee-d Kiara, Rebecca and Phoebe to support me, right?” Brina said.
“So, if we have Amelia by our side, we also nee-d Kiara, Rebecca and Phoebe to support me, right?” Brina said.
As every lady can’t compete, the ladies in last ranks will take the sides of the ladies who are likely to become a Queen.
“Yeah. I almost thought it’s as ‘simple’ as this. But, stars are totally against us.. now.” Daniel said, looking into his Ipad, his brows furrowed.
Charlotte panicked and almost jumped out of her seat to reach Daniel. If not for the seat belt holding her she would have already crashed on Daniel. That’s how worried she is!
“What happened?” she asked, panic invading her eyes and her face morphing as pale as paper.
This is definitely more serious than one could imagine. Or else, a carefree and go lucky Charlotte wouldn’t freak out this much.
“Kingdom of Sophene, they have announced that their Princess Penelope would be participating as well.” Daniel told Charlotte.
Kingdom of Sophene is a tiny kingdom in the middle of Kingdoms of Aletros, Myriana and Ventris. It holds the boundary to three of these kingdoms and has never come into any treaty with them.
Sadly, the rebellion has targeted that Kingdom but it somehow managed to escape from it. However, it is still facing the after effects.
So, to stabilize their grip over the country, they have decided to try for an alliance with the Kingdom of Aletros.
And that attempt has taken its debut by sending their princess to win over Prince Edward.
“Umm.. is it bad for Brina?” Hailey asked, mas-saging her forehead.
“Not if Brina plays her cards well. It can be taken as Brina has got another competitor.” Daniel said.
However, Brina remained indifferent.
And, for someone who is about to face the whole new and different world, she is not as nervous as expected.
Though it’s a good sign, never have they thought she would stay this cool even after knowing her chances of winning her love are getting slim bit by bit.
“I will take a nap, guys. Shouldn’t I look fresh and energetic in the opening ceremony?” Brina asked, standing up.
She freed her hair and combed her hair with her fingers before yawning a little. Of all the times, she is sleepy now?
So strange!
“Sure, Brina. We will wake you an hour before landing. And, don’t worry.. we have everything ready for you already.” Charlotte told.
“Thank you, Char. And, guys, don’t worry! I got this.” Brina said and walked into the tiny cabin to take a nap.
While lying down, she scrolled throu-ghher and Louis’s photos.. a smile dancing on her li-ps as she reminisced their happy and R0m-ntic moments together.
It made her more adamant not to lose her love. As she already decided to compete, there is no turning back!
Sighing with heavy heart, Brina deleted every photo of them together.
Brina looked at her ne-ck chain, that Louis had gifted her for the very first time. He said it was his mother’s chain.. that means, it belongs to the late Queen.
It’s better not to wear it around. Who knows how much significance it holds?
Though she doesn’t want to remove it from her ne-ck, she simply doesn’t have any option. Instead of moving further, their relationship has fallen back by many steps.
Starting from now, she has to act as if she doesn’t know the Prince and this is the first time they are meeting.
Though they have shared a fair amount of time with each other.. shared the same home, same bed and lived just like a husband and wife. Now, their relationship is quite in question.
How much the background of the person can change their life!!
Brina smiled, unfathomable emotions invading as-sailing her eyes.
“When has it been easy on me?” She mocked herself and drifted into sleep.
….
After a few hours…
Brina is now sitting in front of the hu-ge mirror, a hair stylist Br@iding her hair with keen interest.
She looked at her reflection, her eyes lingering on her dress.
It is a wine red, handmade one shoulder dress. It is simple yet very elegant.. perfectly complimenting her milky white skin and well toned body. It hu-gged her curves as if it was tailored just for her.
Coupled with it is a simple pearl ne-cklace. It is exclusively made to compliment the pearl wai-st belt adorning her dress.
The pearl ne-cklace has come with its own earrings, Br@celet and hairpin. It even has simple diamonds studded in the middle.
“Lady Brina, you are all set to go.” the hair stylist, politely said bringing her back from her reverie.
Brina politely smiled back and gestured for her that she could leave. And, as soon as she left the room, Charlotte and Hailey came inside, all excited.
Even they got dressed up and are looking beautiful. But, Brina is the highlight here.
Charlotte who saw Brina standing in front of the mirror, testing whether her red face mask is suitable enough to hide most of her face, gasped and gaped at her.
Brina was after all her crush once. Now, looking at her beautifully dressed up, she couldn’t take her eyes off.
Meanwhile, Hailey clapped her hands in joy. “You look too stunning, Brina. I’m sure Louis will not take his eyes off of you.” she teased.
“We should appreciate Charlotte for this top notch, selection skills. I bet you have invested a hu-ge amount on this dress and the jewellery.” Hailey said, shifting her attention to Charlotte.
Charlotte, who just got out of her daze chuckled. “Not me. It’s Louis.. All credit should go to him. He personally selected it and asked his sister’s personal designers to prepare it for Brina. Even this jewel is selected by him.” she said.
“Aww.. so sweet! Despite being very busy, he didn’t compromise at all, when it comes to Brina.. so sweet.” Hailey cooed.
Meanwhile, Brina got a message and even before she saw it, she could tell that it’s Louis.
Her heart is already flying. It is really so sweet of her boyfriend.
Though she hates getting dressed up like this, it is her boyfriend’s ha-rd work. She simply couldn’t bring herself to hate this. In contrast, she is truly moved.
Just with a simple touch, she could say that this fabric is very expensive and rare. Everything fitted her so well and never has she thought he knows her size this accurately.
He might have known her body like the back of his hand. And, thinking about it, it made Brina remember their hot makeout sessions.
No wonder, he knows so much about her body.
bu-tterflies are all over her stomach and when she reads his messages, her face slightly blus-hes, adding more beauty to her angel like face.
‘Hope you are dressed up, my love and I wish you liked the dress. I am pretty sure you are dazzling like a star right now.”
“Actually, I’m afraid that I might get stunned and overwhelmed after seeing my beautiful girlfriend.. dressed up so alluringly. So please have mercy on this boyfriend of yours and don’t tease him too much.’
‘I’ll be waiting for you, my dear.. Only for you.’
…
Meanwhile…
The masquerade ball.
The whole ballroom was decorated in the most extravagant way that others could never imagine.
More than two dozen of glittering crystal chandeliers spiraled down from the ceiling, illuminating the glimmering golden walls. The well polished floors were shining like an iced over lake.
The windows are decorated with the white and golden curtains and the walls are hung with the beautiful and unique paintings giving the aesthetic vibes to the room.
And, the ballroom has totally two big doors, one of it leading to the inner quarters of the palace while the other one is for the guests.
Meanwhile, the guests kept coming in and they were occu-pied talking with each other. The pianist was playing soothing and peaceful music, entertaining them.
However, all the guests are having their eyes on the other door, waiting for the contestants to arrive.
Their Prince Edward is someone who always has high expectations. And, the theme of this event has also piqued up the interest in them.
And more importantly, this event is very unique and special.
Olivia, who was the ex-fiancée of his brother will also be participating and besides that, a princess of another Kingdom has also shocked everyone by announcing that she would be competing as well.
Edward’s ex-to-be fiancée, Charlotte has also announced that she would not be participating because of the internal rifts between her and Edward. She even made an official statement that their House will be sponsoring someone who had never been to the Kingdom of Aletros at least once.
All of them are now excited to see how it turns out to be. Moreover, their Prince opted for a masquerade theme!
It will surely be interesting!
As the clock ticked eight in the evening, the doors of the other side opened. First, The Princess of the Kingdom of Sophene, Penelope entered with her cousin brother and her friend who is more like a bodyguard for her.
Princess Penelope was so beautiful and her blue eyes totally mesmerized everyone. However, they couldn’t see her face because of her mask.
But one could easily tell that she is a natural beauty.
Next, Olivia entered with her brother and sister.
Her sister Olive was her helper, just like how Hailey was to Brina.
She was dressed in Olive color and she is always eye-catching and elegant. Her face mask suited her perfectly, making her look mysterious.
After that, Katherine came inside accompanied by her younger brother and her as-sistant.
As soon as Olivia and Katherine had the eye contact, sparks rose between them, making everyone feel chilly and uneasy.
Their rivalry was like that.
However, both of them walked to Princess Penelope in order to make her their friend. However, Penelope just ignored them and continued talking to her brother.
She hasn’t even shown courtesy of nodding her head, leaving about asking them to sit with her at her table.
It was like a face slap to both Olivia and Katherine. Though they felt like strangling this spoiled Br@t, they put on their fake smiles and sat down, smiling beautifully.. as if they were least offended.
She is the princess after all.
They are just the Ladies of some powerful Houses.
Despite their petty nature, they are sensible enough.
Next person to enter is Amelia, the adopted daughter of Francis.
However, no one knows how she looks. Though they can see her hazel eyes and lower face, no one has ever seen her.
It is because she has left the country almost a few years back just like Louis. Though she used to visit the Kingdom, she never made any public appearances unlike Olivia and Katherine.
She and Louis has so much common.
And everyone knows that she is a genius with many doctorates in her hands.
She is very close to their Ex-Prince Ethan.. but like a sister. Now, they are curious how her relationship with their Prince Edward is.
It’s like, she didn’t attend Ethan’s bride selection because she looks wt him like a brother. But, she announced that she would be a contestant in Edward’s bride selection.
What does it imply, actually?
Is she having R0m-ntic favorism towards Edward??
This is what that made others so excited of her. Unlike Katherine and Olivia, Amelia is not after becoming Queen.
As soon as Amelia entered with her twin brother and her cousin, they took a cool glance at Katherine and Olivia and then walked to the farthest table from them and sat down.. amusing others.
As far as they know, there are no disputes between their houses.
They didn’t un-derstand why she did that.
However, before they could speculate something, a beauty entered the room.
Dressed in a red wine dress and adorned in pure pearls, she is simply more than eye-catching that they are awestruck by her beauty and unique aura.
Her face mask is made of red and studded with diamonds, resembling the one in her ne-cklace and earrings. All they could see was her hazel eyes and cherry li-ps.
She is simply breathtaking….
Accompanying her is Charlotte and Calvin. These brother and sister pairs are always famous in the Kingdom. Calvin is the Head of the Crime Department and he is the owner of the biggest media company of the Kingdom.
Moreover, these siblings have always been close to The Royal Family. And, of course the beauty accompanying them made everyone curious.
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