Chapter 23: Good Night And Good Bye

Dante escorted Laina back to her room. They exchanged a few words, seemingly trying to avoid looking straight into each other's eyes. Both of them were worried about what they would do if they did.

As they approached Laina's room, Dante grew nervous. He did his best not to show it, hoping Laina would not notice.

Laina, on the other hand, was too worried about Dante noticing the brush on her cheeks. She did not want to come off as desperate to him. Marius, who followed closely behind them, could not help but sigh while shaking his head.

Just as they came upon Laina's room, the two were so engrossed in their thoughts, that they walked past the room door completely. Marius did not know to laugh or cry, looking at the two of them continuing to walk off side by side. He wondered if he should tell them.

Seeing as it was a dead-end ahead of them, Marius knew what he needed to do. He pretended to clear his throat loudly, peeking to see if anyone noticed.

They did not.

Marius attempted it again, much louder this time around. Both Laina and Dante were startled by it. They swiftly turned to look at one another.

"Ouch!"

"Ow,"

The swift momentum caused both of them to hit each other's head as they turned. Marius did everything he could to stifle his laughter. The two love birds' eyes met as their cheeks grew hot and red. Laina rubbed her head and mumbled a word of apology.

Dante, worried, asked, "No need to apologize, are you alright?"

He lifted his hand to touch Laina's head, at the place where she was rubbing. At that moment, both of their hands touched. Dante could feel his heart palpitating fast. It had been so long since he last held her hand.

Laina, surprised by the sudden touch, quickly moved her hand away.

"I'm fine," she mumbled a reply.

She glanced over to him, hoping to gauge his reaction. But she could not read the expression on his face. As things grew increasingly awkward, Laina wanted nothing more than to run away and hide in a hole.

So, before Dante could say anything else, she spoke up first, "It's been a lovely evening, your Majesty. I am awfully tired so I wish to turn in for the night. I hope that you would have a pleasant night and a good night's sleep. Goodbye."

With that, Laina immediately rushed into the room

and swiftly closed the door behind her. She was careful as to not slam the door in his face. Laina turned to the side and placed her left ear on the door. Only when she heard their shuffling footsteps walking away did Laina finally let out a sigh of relief.

She turned around, leaning her back against the door as she slowly slid down until she reached the ground. The scene from before replayed in her mind. As she recalled what she had said, Laina placed her hands over her eyes.

"Seriously, Laina? Pleasant night, good night's sleep and goodbye? You couldn't think of anything better to say?!" She chided herself as she laid down on the side.

After Laina entered the room and closed the door behind her, Dante felt a hole inside his heart. The moment her burning flame disappeared behind the door, he immediately felt cold and lonely once more. Subconsciously, he lifted his hand up, wanting to knock on the door.

But just as he was about to, he stopped. Dante turned around and walked away with Marius following closely behind. This time around, his right-hand man remained silent, not saying a word. Dante was deep in his thoughts, but Marius's silence troubled him.

Finally, the King could not take it any longer, "Isn't this where you usually say something?"

He turned to look at Marius in the eye. Marius was not surprised by Dante's question. He saw it from a mile away. Marius simply shrugged his shoulders.

"You make your own decisions, your majesty. And I stand by them. That is my duty as your confidante," Marius replied as he placed his hand on his heart.

Just as he finished his speech, a smirk appeared on his face.

Marius got up close and whispered to Dante, "but as your friend, I would say go for it."

Marius quickly moved away, afraid of the retribution he might face from Dante. But Dante was deep in thought. Did his words get through to him? Marius wondered if that was it but he could not tell for certain. After a few moments, Dante continued to walk away without saying a word.

When they returned to his quarters, Dante removed his cloak and unbuttoned his shirt. He walked over to a sofa and sat down. He rubbed his temples with his eyes closed

"I need a drink," Dante commanded.

"I'll get a maid to bring it," Marius replied before leaving the room.

As soon as he left the bedroom, Marius was surprised to find two maids walking towards him. One of them carried a tray in her hands. He almost knocked down one of them. Much to his surprise, they were carrying bottles of wine and liquors.

Before Marius could even say anything, one of the maids, the one with the dark purple hair, spoke first.

"We heard our King has had a long day. So we prepared his favorite liquors for him to enjoy," she said in a seductive voice.

Marius wondered why the maid's voice sounded familiar, but he did not pay attention. He too had a long day. He could not wait to get some rest, tomorrow was going to be another long day.

"Right on time, he wanted a drink. Serve it to him, after that, you may leave." He instructed.

The two maids still kept their heads low, not making any eye contact. They curtsied politely to Marius and maintained their position until he walked off into the distance. Making eye contact with one another, they quickly straightened themselves and headed towards the King's bedroom.

They carefully knocked on the door and waited.

"Come in," Dante's voice called out.

A smirk appeared on the purple hair maid's face. The other maid helped her to open the door, she alone walked in. Once the purple hair maid was in, the other maid closed the door behind her. She whispered a spell beneath her breath.

A series of runes appeared on the doorknob, locking it.