Elianna's expression was one of shock and awe as she stood motionless on the other side of her door. While she had considered her bedroom in Tri-Union City to be large, this room dwarfed hers in all regards.

  The room itself was painted a beautiful teal, which was complemented by its light brown wooden flooring. The furniture consisted of two dressers, a vanity, two nightstands, a desk, glass door shelves, and an extra-wide king-sized bed, which were all made of a beautiful white wood with a golden trim. A large painting of a beautiful landscape was hanging above the bed, which seemed to brighten the room. But, there was also a familiarity to the painting which Elianna couldn't place. On the opposite side of the room was a sliding glass door covered by beautiful white and gold curtains, which blocked most of the sunlight peeking in.

  Elianna's beautiful, celestial blue eyes darted around the room, completely mesmerized by its beauty. With a gleam in her eyes, Elianna walked further into the room, heading straight for the bed. She reached out and gently touched the soft, silky fabric of the bed with the pads of her fingers. Elianna's smooth pink lips curved slightly, thinking how luscious the fabric felt against her skin.

  As Elianna stood there, admiring the feeling of her bedsheets, her nostrils flared as she noticed the sweet aroma in the room. Her eyes flicked to the nightstand, where she observed a sphere of scented pink resin sitting in a glass vase. Elianna smiled slightly as she leaned forward and sniffed the resin, smelling the sweet smell of strawberries. Elianna hummed happily, loving the scent.

  After another whiff of the lovely resin, Elianna stood up and looked around the room, admiring it. Standing there, Elianna thought she had best start settling in, as she didn't want to keep Nicholas waiting.

  Walking over to one of the dressers, she pulled her socks and undergarments out of her spatial ring and neatly put them away. Next, she walked to one of the doors in the room and opened it, seeing that it was a massive walk-in closet. The closet had open shelves built on both walls, which seemed to small to hold clothes but just big enough to hold shoes. Elianna's eyes flicked to the hanging racks, seeing that there was enough space to contain a significant amount of clothing. In fact, Elianna was sure she could put all the clothes she owned into this closet and still have room.

  Elianna stood there, admiring the closet for a few moments before approaching the hanging rack and grabbing one of the hangers. One by one, she pulled her clothes out of her spatial ring and hung them up.

  Once she was done hanging up her clothes, she walked to another door, which she assumed was to the bathroom. And boy was she right. Opening the door and stepping into the bathroom, Elianna nearly gasped.

  The bathroom was opulent with white and gold-trimmed walls and silver-tiled flooring. The dual sink counters were made of polished marble, while the faucets were a shimmering gold. The shower seemed large enough to hold half a dozen people, with the ceiling above the shower seeming to be a rain shower head. Then, there was the bathtub, which made Elianna's eyes sparkle. The marble bathtub was huge, with two golden faucets. Part of her wanted to fill it up with water, soap, and bubbles, and just relax. But she could save that idea for later. For now, she wanted to hurry up and spend time with Nicholas.

  Walking to the bathroom, she took out her basic hygiene items from her spatial ring and placed them on the counter. She then walked over to the mesmerizing bathtub and put her soaps and washing materials on one of the massive corners. Once finished in the bathroom, she exited and approached the vanity, where she put her makeup and fragrances away.

  Stepping back and looking around the room, Elianna did a once-over, making sure she was settled in and she wasn't forgetting anything. After ensuring she was settled in, she made her way to her door and opened it. Elianna jumped slightly as she stepped out, and the two guards on either side of her snapped to attention.

  Elianna quickly moved forward and spun around to face the guards, seeing two human males in Gavarian knight armor standing there poised, with thousand-yard stares. Elianna's eyes darted between the males, feeling confused.

  "Uh," Elianna began, and cleared her throat. "Who are you, and what are you two doing here?"

  The guard on the right held his chin high, "I'm Corporal Hiefren, My Lady!" He gestured to his companion. "This is Private First Class Zeccra. We have been assigned as your personal guards for this rotation."

  Elianna raised a brow, "My personal guards? This rotation?"

  Hiefren nodded, "Yes, My Lady. The royal guard unit received word that members of the royal family had arrived and needed protection. Zeccra and I were assigned to you for the next twelve hours, until the next rotation takes over, My Lady."

  Elianna's eyes darted between both of them, "Okay. But, I'm not a member of the Gavarian royal family."

  Zeccra and Hiefren shared a gaze before Zeccra looked at Elianna and curiously asked, "Are you not with Prince Nicholas, My Lady?"

  Elianna's brows furrowed, wondering if he meant she accompanied Nicholas here to Gavaria. She nodded slightly, "Yeah."

  Both soldiers then snapped back to attention and held their chins high. Hiefren declared loudly, "Then we shall protect you with our lives, My Lady."

  Elianna's lips curved down as she tried to hide a smile. "While I appreciate it, I would rather you keep your lives."

  Both Hiefren and Zeccra seemed to try to hide a smile. Zeccra said, "Yes, My Lady."

  Elianna looked to her right, "Nick's room is that way, right?"

  Hiefren nodded, "It is, My Lady."

  Elianna smiled, "Thanks."

  Elianna began to make her way down the hall and looked over her shoulder as she heard Hiefren and Zeccra immediately begin to follow her.

  Stolen story; please report.

  Looking at them over her shoulder, Elianna smiled jestfully, "Are you two going to follow me everywhere?"

  "Yes." They declared simultaneously.

  Elianna's brows raised, "Wait, really?" Looking back on her past experiences with Raina, she shouldn't have been too surprised, since she always had guards following her, too.

  Hiefren nodded, "Yes, My Lady. We will follow you where reasonable."

  "Except the bathroom, or anywhere private," Zeccra added.

  Hiefren sighed and looked at Zeccra out of the corner of his eyes, "That's why I said 'where reasonable'."

  Zeccra shrugged, "I just wanted to clarify for her."

  Hiefren gave Zeccra a deadpan expression, "I don't think that needed clarification."

  Elianna smiled humorously at their banter before looking forward. Her eyes fell on a door where she observed four Gavarian guards standing outside, looking poised. The four of them looked at Elianna as she approached. Elianna smiled and was about to speak when one of them spoke first.

  "Lady Elianna, I presume?"

  Elianna looked surprised, but nodded, "Yes, that's me."

  The guard nodded, and all four of them moved to give Elianna access to Nicholas' room.

  The guard who spoke before spoke again, "Prince Nicholas informed us that you would be coming to his room. He is expecting you."

  Elianna smiled and nodded, "Thank you." Elianna was about to step forward.

  "One more thing, My Lady."

  Elianna looked at the guard curiously. "Yes?"

  The guard coughed and looked slightly to the side. "Sound-dampening spells have been cast on these rooms. So, you and Prince Nicholas don't need to worry about your privacy."

  Elianna raised a brow, wondering why he needed to inform her of this. It wasn't like she and Nicholas were going to be gossiping secrets or anything. Elianna just smiled and nodded, "Good to know, thank you."

  Elianna reached out, opened the door, and stepped inside Nicholas' room. Closing the door behind her, her brows raised as she looked around the room.

  The walls of the room were light blue, with mahogany wood flooring that matched the mahogany furniture. The furniture inside Nicholas' room matched her own, except it didn't have a vanity. But she noticed a glass cabinet in one corner of the room that held several different crowns of different designs. Above Nicholas' bed was a large painting that seemed to depict a beautiful grassy hill with a tree growing on top and a beautiful, radiant sun shining down on it. Elianna smiled at the painting, recognizing the work.

  "That was my first painting."

  Elianna's smile grew, "I can tell." Eliana looked toward the voice, seeing that the door across from her was open. Her eyes fell on Nicholas, who was standing on the balcony outside, leaning against the railing, and facing Elianna with a bright smile. Elianna swallowed hard, seeing how magnificently the sun shines upon him, making his blonde hair glow and his deep, gorgeous sea green eyes shine. She managed a smile, "I recognize your work."

  Nicholas chuckled and motioned her over.

  Elianna walked over to him, and her eyes widened in pleasant surprise. The closer she got to the open door, the more she noticed a salty smell in the air, which overwhelmed the vanilla scent she smelled when she first entered the room.

  Stepping onto the bright balcony, Elianna looked at Nicholas curiously, "Why does the air smell like that?"

  Nicholas chuckled, seeing her nostrils flare, "It's because we're close to the ocean."

  Elianna's eyes gleamed. She had seen several of Nicholas' paintings of the ocean and the beach, and always wanted to see the ocean for herself. "We are?"

  Nicholas smiled at her excitement, "Yeah. Zasaly was built near the coast." He took a deep breath, smelling the ocean air. Even though he had a love for Tri-Union City, he didn't realize how much he missed the smell of the ocean. He smiled, noticing Elianna's excitement, and she too took a deep breath. "We have a beach house, you know."

  Elianna's eyes widened in awe. "You do?"

  Nicholas nodded, "Yeah. We can visit there while we're here, if you want."

  Elianna nodded excitedly, "I would love to!"

  Nicholas smiled and laughed at Elianna's reaction, with his cheeks turning slightly red.

  Elianna looked at Nicholas curiously, "Would your aunt be okay with that, though?"

  "I'm sure she would be."

  Elianna smiled with excitement, but her smile soon faded as a question that had been on her mind surfaced. "Hey, Nick. Can I ask you a question?"

  Nicholas' brows furrowed, "What kind of a question is that? You can ask me anything."

  Elianna tilted her head to the right, "Before, when we were with the guards and Victor. It seemed that they wouldn't listen to your aunt, why?"

  Nicholas' smile disappeared, and he sighed. He turned around, placed his forearms on the railing, and leaned forward.

  Elianna stepped forward and stood beside him. When she looked out, her gleaming eyes widened at the sight before her. Looking outwards, she could see the vast city of Gavaria, which reminded her slightly of Tri-Union City, but also felt different. Looking down, she could see the palace grounds, observing the lush green grass, trees, and bushes growing around the area. She also noticed a large, dark gray wall that seemed to surround the palace, which had iron spikes on top to prevent anyone from climbing over. And in the far distance, Elianna felt excited as she noticed a vast blue that stretched as far as the eye could see.

  Elianna stuttered, "T-That's—"

  "The ocean," Nicholas chuckled, finishing her sentence for her. His eyes fell, "To answer your question, it's not that they were ignoring her."

  Elianna broke her gaze from the ocean and looked at Nicholas curiously. She eyed him, seeing how troubled he looked. She reached out and gently placed her hand on his forearm.

  Nicholas' eyes flicked to Elianna's hand, and he smiled at the feeling of her gentle and warm touch. Looking into the distance, he continued. "While my aunt and cousin are older than I am, I hold more authority than they do."

  Elianna's brows raised, "You do?"

  Nicholas nodded, "Yes. In the right of succession, I would become the ruler of Gavaria before them."

  Elianna's eyes fell, thinking. "So, then your brother Tristan has more authority over you?"

  Nicholas flinched, and his face contorted into an unreadable emotion.

  Elianna looked at him, concerned, and her grip on his arm tightened. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

  Nicholas looked at her and smiled. "You didn't. It's just that the answer to your question is complicated and I'd rather not talk about it."

  Elianna smiled in understanding, "That's fine." She tilted her head slightly, "You have a palace to show me after all."

  Nicholas chuckled and nodded, "That I do."

  Nicholas pushed off the balcony, and Elianna followed him as he walked into the bedroom. Nicholas slid the glass door closed as Elianna walked inside, and looked at her as she curiously looked around his room. Her eyes fell on the cabinet that contained the crowns, and she tilted her head slightly.

  "Why do you have more than one crown?" Elianna asked.

  Nicholas shrugged, "My father always said it was to change things up. My father and brother have multiple crowns as well." He looked at her and smiled, "You ready? The palace has a lot of rooms, so we'd best get started."

  Elianna looked at Nicholas inquisitively, "How many?"

  Nicholas looked to the side and thought for a moment, "A little more than eight hundred, if I remember correctly."

  Elianna's eyes widened, "More than..."

  Nicholas chuckled, "Don't worry. I'll only show you the main areas."

  Elianna smiled and nodded, gesturing to the door, "Well then, after you."

  "Don't mind if I do," Nicholas chuckled and walked to the door.

  Nicholas opened the door and stepped to the side, letting Elianna exit first. As he left his room, he mentally groaned as the guards snapped to attention, preparing to follow them.

  Elianna giggled, looking at the guards, then Nicholas, "Looks like we won't be alone for this palace tour."

  Nicholas sighed as he began to walk down the hallway, with Elianna walking beside him, and the guards following. "You'll quickly find out that we will hardly be alone. The guards follow us everywhere."

  Elianna giggled and looked at Nicholas curiously, "So, where to first?"

  Nicholas looked at Elianna and grinned, "The theater."