“W-What? His Grace…” Orlando rolled his eyes in awe hearing her answer, as his words trailed off. Scratching his chin with a puzzled look on his face, he mumbled, “Y-Your Highness, are you suspecting Prince Zordan?”
“You must have known it already, my hunches have barely gotten wrong, Chief Orlando.” Lorelia folded her slender arms over her chest and gazed at him vaguely, “My instincts are getting stronger.”
Baffled at her response, he paused for a brief moment and gulped nervously, “Then…Your Highness, do you possibly think His Grace has been aware of what’s happening around him? Is that why…Chief Luther was murdered? Did he hire someone to do it?”
“Anything can be possible, Chief Orlando. But I am well aware, of how persistent that brat can become when he sets off his mind on something.” She exhaled another heavy sigh and glanced at the giant yard outside. She blankly gazed at the blooming cherry blossoms and frowned her brows a bit, “The way he acted persistently today to marry her made me certain that something was definitely wrong.
You know it well too, there’s no way, Luther could have possibly asked him to marry his daughter. Those were just blatant lies to fool everyone present there, especially His Majesty. But…”
“But what…Your Highness?” Orlando quickly asked back as soon as she paused for a second with a keen gaze towards her.
“Hmm, didn’t you sense a peculiar tension between the two of them?” The small frown on her brows grew steep as she rolled her brown eyes a bit skeptically. Twitching her jowl, she explained, “They were trying hard to act normal but I realized that Gabriel must be aware of something about him.
Possibly, that’s the major clue we can find to solve this puzzle.”
“I agree with you, Your Highness. So, shall I keep an eye on His Grace from now on?” His facial expression quickly turned obscure as he gazed at her glossy mysterious eyes.
“Not only him, but also Gabriel.” Her tone grew a bit stiff as she tapped her fingers over her frail elbow and huffed a small sigh staring outside. “I am getting a hunch that they are trying to hide something from us and we need to figure out the roots. But, since Luther is dead, we need to implant certain changes in our plan, Chief Orlando.”
“Changes?” Sounding a little confused, he blankly gazed at her.
But hearing his keen voice, Lorelia directed her cryptic gaze towards him as she assured him, “You don’t need to fret. I will keep you by my side since I have trusted you. So, I won’t possibly think of betraying you until it’s you who chooses to disappoint me first.”
“How can I possibly think about such a dreadful thing, Your Highness?”
Immediately, Orlando bowed his head low before her as he spoke in a resolute voice, offering his sincere gratitude. “The dignity and position I have achieved here in this kingdom have been only possible because of your generosity towards me. Or else, a poor orphan like me would have starved to death in the cold if you hadn’t allowed me to stay by your side.
So, I won’t think twice if I have to give my life up to follow your command. Whatever you ask me, I will gladly do so to prove my loyalty towards you, Your Highness.”
Holding a satisfied smile at his answer, Lorelia moved a step closer and patted his shoulder as she applauded him, “I do have faith in you because until now you have never let me down. But, after Luther ended up dead, this is a bit concerning for me. You must be aware we have a battle ahead of us and for that, you need to be careful too.
But, I also suspect, someone from the royal pack members here in this castle might be aiding Zordan behind our back. If they are aware of our motives, in return we need to figure out everything, even those traitors, to win victory.”
“Do not fret, Your Highness.” A witty smug curved on his crimson lips as he proclaimed in a hefty voice, “I promise, if a certain crisis arises, I will get rid of the traitor by myself. I will keep a stern watch over the activities happening in the castle and report everything back to you. But, there’s no way I will let you down.”
A dark, cryptic smirk sliced the corner of her lips as Lorelia nodded at his response. Standing proudly tall, she exhaled a small sigh. “After coming this far, we can’t back out either. Now that punny woman is involved with him, we gotta be careful with our next move. The situations will be tacky to deal with from now on.
Especially you, Chief Orlando. You have to be careful to never catch that punk’s suspicion towards you.”
“Yes, Your Highness, I understand. Then, what is your next command for me?” With a curious gaze towards her, Orlando pursed his lips.
Whereas, Lorelia put a tiny smile as she rolled her eyes mysteriously at him, “For now, send a letter to Marcus by mentioning everything going on in this castle.
It’s time for my son to return back here.”
The vague smile on her face grew a bit devilish as she whispered.
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