Not My Sins

CHAPTER TWELVE:

"If there is something I could ask for," Rain squeaked just before the boy climbed out of the window again. Doni paused, the nervous lady knotting her fingers, she was covered with a pretty warm shade and he could tell that she was embarrassed.

To ease the tension, he decided to smile slightly.

But it only made it worse, Rain tore her eyes away from his, and the shade grew darker. There was no doubt about it, the feeling in her heart.

"What do you want, Princess?" He asked.

"I am no princess…" She confessed, her eyes watering up. "I might wear nice clothes and dine with the members of the family, but I am no different from you."

"You are still a noblewoman." He concluded. "You would never be allowed to work in the fields or these harsh conditions."

"I don't want you to use the honorifics." She answered, her teary eyes meeting his strong ones. "Just speak to me naturally, the way you used to."

"You might not notice but I've always talked to you rudely." He explained and she moved closer, taking out his hand and squeezing it lightly.

It was cold, his whole body was cold but he was sweating, she could guess how his day had been and even when it was late at night he was still not allowed to retire yet.

"I was never offended by the way you spoke to me," The only thing that she didn't like was the look in his eyes. Even though a little faintly, she still saw the same look of disdain in his eyes.

"My lady," she gasped slightly when she heard the voice of Marine just outside her door, she turned in the direction of the door. "I brought you some extra blankets."

"I—" Rain was cut short of her statement when she realized that Doni had already gone, he was as fast as the gust of wind. "Alright, please come in."

"I am not going to apologize to that girl," Prince Aryan snapped, his legs crossed in a princely fashion, he picked up the sliced fruit from the plate and placed it in his mouth one after the other. "Mother, you are the Empress, you should act like one."

"You talk because you don't know just how powerful the Duke of Elderslot is." Vermil trembled, one finger in her mouth as she paced around the room nervously. "Of all the people to mess with, you chose Elias."

"Didn't I tell you that I was going to become Emperor and I would never allow that man to hurt you again?" He answered. "You just have to believe in me."

"You're still too young and powerless," She answered. "You aren't even the crowned prince yet, how could I burden you with such responsibility?"

Aryan's eyes tightened and once again, he decided to study his mother properly; she was shaking, he picked the plate from the laps and handed it to one of the servants on standby.

"Did that man hurt you?" He asked curiously as he moved towards Vermil, he noticed the small red marks on her neck, it looked like a wound from strangulation.

Aryan's blue eyes narrowed immediately.

 "That is not necessary, what you need to do right now is to pay the Estate of Elderslot a visit." She encouraged. "According to the information I heard, the girl was unconscious for three days and now she is still sick."

"It's her fault for being too weak." He snapped still concerned with the tight red marks on her neck. "I would never apologize to the daughter of a harlot."

A loud sound resounded in the room, and Aryan's face snapped to the side, he was still surprised because this was the very first time his mother would ever slap him.

"Please come back to your senses," she grabbed his face, especially from the part where she had slapped. "The Duke is not someone you should lightly play with."

"But…" He protested again.

"I know you are angry, but you should wait," She advised. "Wait until you are strong enough, wait until you have enough power, and that is until you become emperor."

"Why should I wait that long?" He frowned. "He is merely a Duke."

"Because you're not the only prince that this Kingdom has," Aryan's eyes widened in surprise. "Depending on what the Duke wants, you could be impeached and your rightful position be given to someone else."

"Who would believe him?" Aryan queried. "Father would…"

She interrupted him sharply.

"The Emperor trusts him even more than we can tell." She explained. "So please, Aryan listen to what I have to say, you have to keep the Duke on your side, only until you have become King."

"I see you got my message from your mother," Duke Elias put away the ink stone on his office table and then he raised his green eyes to glance at the arrogant prince.

"Yes I did," He muttered as he picked up his tea cup and drank from it. "So I am here to warn you."

"Warn me?" Duke Elias sounded very surprised and he burst into a mocking laughter, both mother and son, they were just so funny.

"Those marks on my mother's neck, I know you did that." He said with a small frown. "The Empress might be an idiot, but she is still my mother, and I hate it when she gets hurt."

"I won't deny the fact that my little sister is slow, that is why she didn't understand why I made her empress." He explained further. "It seems like I can rely on you as her son."

"Who is this other prince you talk about?" Aryan's question was on point. That was the only reason why he came, he wanted to know who else would dare rival him for the throne. "Did you just say that to bluff to my mother?"

"I wish that was the case," Duke Elias's eyebrows raised slightly. "But there is a Prince that could remove you from the throne succession."

"My father, the Emperor, has two sons, my older half-brother, Carl, and myself," Aryan explained. "The former crowned prince, Carl, died two years ago and we all performed the final rites to his remains, so who is this other prince you speak of."

Duke Elias stepped out of his chair and strolled around his study, his hands gently stroking his chin, he looked out of the window of his office.

 Doni, the stables boy was riding on one of the horses, that was his daily routine, take care of the horses and make sure they were well exercised, a smirk tugged at the Duke's lips, the boy is quite diligent in his work, he worked harder than most of his other workers, and he is smart too.

Despite being a child, he might prove to be more useful the older he gets.

"Who knows…?" He closed the curtains. "But let's talk about something more interesting."

"What might that be?" He asked picking out some of the grapes and stuffing it in his mouth. "I heard Elderslot is known for their fruits, the harvest is so bountiful, the taste is so sweet, they are considered high grade and are sent to the palace."

"The taste during the harvest seasons creates sparks on your taste buds." Duke Elias articulated with a proud smirk on his face. "So, do you know why the Empress always purchases golden hair dye?

Aryan's eyes narrowed.

"Didn't you always add the hair dye to your hair every morning?" Aryan froze, this was something he never let anyone find out, not even his guard who had been with him since birth.

The only people who knew about the hair dye were the Empress, her lady-in-waiting, and himself.

"How did you figure that out?" He asked curiously, his heart skipped a beat slightly. "Do you have spies inside the palace?"

"You can put it like that," Elias answered. "Judging from the way you speak, I can tell Vermil didn't tell you the truth."

"What truth?" His face contorted in surprise again.

"From the beginning of time, the rulers of the empire have been known to be descendants of the sun goddess." Elias narrated, that he strolled back to his desk and sat down, crossing his legs on the table. "From generation to generation, the rulers have all had one attribute in common."

"What attribute is that?" Aryan asked curiously.

"Hair of gold." Elias chuckled to himself. "That is something you don't have."

"Mother said it could be some mutation." He answered trying to feign confidence, but as his mother had described, the Duke is a terrific person. "And that is nothing but a fable."

Duke Elias chuckled even further.

"The father of the Emperor and former Emperor's hair was a light shade of gold, so was the Emperor before him and the one before that one, your father the Emperor also had the same and so also you're older brother, Prince Reynold Carl, and then what happened with you?"

"What are you implying?" Aryan tightened his face, the Duke's words were already getting offensive.

"You are not a member of the royal family of the Aubreun Empire," He explained further. "Your mother had betrayed you."

"What?" He gasped. "Mother would never."

"Then would you test her by washing off your hair dye, let's see what she would do."

 Aryan then chuckled.

"Why do you not tell the Emperor since you know so much?" He queried. "You could be rewarded for giving out such important information."

"I have no use for a blue-blooded Emperor, I just want an Emperor that would be on my side." Duke Elias relaxes into his chair once again. "You just need to prove yourself useful to me, Aryan, and the other prince will forever rot away."