Lying in Nicholas' bed, Elianna stared at the ceiling, hearing the shower running in the background. Lifting her head, she eyed the shower, and a rosy tint appeared on her cheeks at the thought of Nicholas showering just behind those doors. Her thoughts began to wander, and the tint on her cheeks deepened at the images of Nicholas washing himself off.

  Quickly shaking her head to compose herself, Elianna lay her head back and took a deep breath. But as she took her breath, her soft-looking lips curled as Nicholas' scent filled her nostrils. Rolling onto her side, Elianna quickly noticed how the bed where Nicholas had been lying still smelled like him, and held traces of his warmth. She brushed the area lightly with her hand, remembering how he looked lying there shirtless.

  Elianna's blush quickly returned, turning redder than before as she enjoyed the warmth of Nicholas' bed. She rubbed her hand gingerly across the area a few times, thinking about him, when her eyes flicked to the other side of the bed. Lifting her head, Elianna's brows raised as her gaze fell upon the tan leather satchel lying on the corner of the bed, with a sketchbook atop it. Elianna smiled as she recognized the satchel she had given Nicholas for his fifteenth birthday.

  Sitting up, Elianna reached over, grabbed the sketchbook, and opened it. Her smile grew at the sight of Nicholas' beautiful drawings, which she had always loved. Flipping through the book, she came across the drawing of the beautiful Zasaly sunset, then a drawing of the pond, and next was a drawing of the palace garden, with what looked like individuals walking around. Flipping the page again, she came across a drawing of the beach house, which made Elianna reminisce about how much fun she had at the beach. Turning the page again, she came across a drawing of the beach itself, with a clear blue sky and sparkling ocean waves. She loved how Nicholas had captured the beauty in such small details.

  Elianna stared at the beach drawing for a moment before she turned the page again, and she froze. Slowly, Elianna's smile faded as she gazed upon a picture of a cave surrounded by trees and grass. It only took Elianna a second to realize this was the cave from her dreams, the same one she and Nicholas had gone into. As Elianna stared at the drawing, she realized she hadn't brought up the cave incident to her parents like she intended to. She had become distracted by Tristan's arrival and treatment of Nicholas, and it completely slipped her mind. She made a mental note to herself to tell her parents about it tonight when she contacted them.

  The sound of the shower shutting off had Elianna looking at the bathroom door. She knew Nicholas would be coming out soon, so she closed the sketchbook. Elianna reached over and grabbed the satchel, placing it into her lap. She opened the bag to put the sketchbook in it, but her brows raised when she noticed a second sketchbook inside. Curiosity filled Elianna at the sight of the second sketchbook, and she placed the one she was holding onto the bed.

  Taking out the second sketchbook, Elianna's head tilted slightly as she held it with both hands. She ran her thumbs over it, seeing how it looked similar to the first one. However, the notable difference was an emerald fabric that was tied around it. Elianna curiously pulled at the fabric to untie it, but her brows raised as it didn't move. With her brows furrowing, Elianna pulled at the fabric harder, and her brows raised as an emerald hue suddenly emitted from it. That's when she realized the fabric must've been some type of spell to keep the sketchbook closed.

  Elianna's brows furrowed, and she pursed her lips as her curiosity piqued. Several thoughts began to go through her mind as she wondered what exactly Nicholas was hiding in this sketchbook. She had half a mind to pull out her sword and cut the fabric off, but she wasn't sure that would even work. Brushing her fingers along the fabric, Elianna pulled at it again when her head snapped up at the sound of the shower door opening.

  Elianna's gaze was locked on the open door, and her eyes widened a moment later, with her cheeks turning apple red. Nicholas walked out of the steamy bathroom, wearing only his tan pants. His black shirt was draped over his shoulder, and he was currently in the process of drying off his hair with a towel. Elianna swallowed hard as her eyes fell to his bare chest and abdomen, seeing his toned muscles were still slick with water, and the light from the window reflected off them, showing the perfect dips in his muscular frame. Elianna's mouth went dry at the sight before her, her face feeling incredibly hot.

  Pulling the towel away, Nicholas shook his head, letting his hair go all over the place. "That was refreshing," Nicholas said, and looked at Elianna with a smile. "Sorry if I kept you waiting."

  Elianna's eyes snapped to his, her face still feeling hot. She slowly shook her head, "N-No worries." Swallowing hard, she forced a jestful smile, trying hard to avoid looking at his well-defined chest and abdominal muscles, "I'm just glad you didn't drown."

  Nicholas chuckled as he tossed the towel onto the back of his desk chair, "That'd be a crappy way to go."

  Elianna's eyes flicked to the towel as Nicholas tossed it, and she tilted her head slightly, "Why did you use a towel, and not that one spell?"

  Nicholas shrugged as Elianna looked back at him, "Sometimes I like to do things the mundane way." Nicholas eyed Elianna, and when his gaze slowly moved down, his smile faded, and his eyes widened slightly.

  Elianna slowly looked down, following Nicholas' gaze, which was when she noticed she was still holding the notebook with the emerald fabric around it. She looked back at Nicholas, seeing that his gaze was locked on it, and his throat bobbed. Elianna's brows raised as she noticed Nicholas was nervous, which only made her curiosity grow.

  With a grin, Elianna decided to tease Nicholas a little and held up the sketchbook, "I wonder. Why does this one have some spell on it, but the other doesn't?"

  Nicholas cleared his throat, still staring at the sketchbook, "I uh, it's uh, uh—" His eyes snapped to her, looking nervous, "Just because."

  Elianna hummed and nodded, then looked back at the notebook, "Not hiding anything naughty in her, are you, Nick?"

  "N-No!"

  Elianna's gaze snapped to Nicholas with a grin at how fast he answered her. She met his gaze and pulled at the fabric, watching as Nicholas tensed. She contained a chuckle, thinking how funny it was to tease Nicholas like this. She looked back at the notebook and wrapped her hand in mana, "I wonder if I could break the fabric like this." She looked back at Nicholas, "What do you think?"

  Nicholas let out a nervous chuckle, "I uh..."

  Nicholas and Elianna stared at each other for a moment, with her grinning. Then, Elianna's eyes widened as Nicholas suddenly dashed toward her. She yelped as Nicholas jumped on top of her, and she quickly raised her hand with the sketchbook in it, as Nicholas reached for it.

  "Oi!" Nicholas said, as his body pressed down on Elianna's while reaching for the notebook. "Give it!"

  Elianna chuckled as she used her legs to try to slide up, but Nicholas' body had her pinned. "Just tell me what's in it!"

  "No!"

  "Please!"

  "Nu-uh!"

  "Pretty please!!"

  "No way!!"

  Nicholas and Elianna's bodies wiggled, getting tangled into each other, with Elianna desperately trying to keep the sketchbook out of Nicholas' reach. Soon, they were both smiling and laughing as they wrestled for the sketchbook. Then, Nicholas managed to get hold of Elianna's wrists and pinned her to the bed.

  "Ha!!" Nicholas yelled, smiling widely and breathing hard. "Got you! Now give it to me!"

  Elianna was laughing and smiling, still wiggling underneath Nicholas. She tried to push up with her legs, which were on either side of Nicholas, but he had her effectively pinned with his hands and body. Elianna playfully shook her head, "Nope!" She gave a playful pleading face, "Please, tell me what's in it."

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  Nicholas shook his head, looking down into her beautiful, celestial blue eyes, "Nope."

  "Ugh!" Elianna sighed. "Why not!! I want to know!"

  Nicholas chuckled and smiled, "Well, I'm not gonna tell you."

  Elianna pursed her lips and grumbled, staring into Nicholas' deep sea green eyes. But, as they stared at each other, Nicholas' laughing slowly died down, and Elianna's face began to relax. She blinked, and a rosy tint began to appear on her ivory cheeks as her heart began to beat fast, and she started to process their current position. Nicholas was currently on top of her, completely shirtless, settled between her legs. She could feel the heat of his sun-kissed skin seeping into her through her clothes, as his body was pressed against hers. The feeling of him on top of her had her stomach doing backflips, and her mind racing.

  Staring into Nicholas' eyes, she could see his cheeks turning red, and his pupils expanded. His chest began to rise and fall faster, pressing against her breasts. She knew he realized what kind of position they were in as well, and when his eyes flicked to her lips, she swore a wave of fire flooded her veins and her skin tightened. The only coolness she felt was Nicholas' pendant, which hung from his neck and brushed against her flawless skin. It gave her the idea of hooking her finger around the chain of his necklass and pulling him down to her, if Nicholas didn't have her wrists pinned, that is.

  The room was dead silent, and you could hear a pin drop. Elianna and Nicholas breathed heavily against each other, their gazes locked. Slowly, Nicholas' head began to lower, and Elianna's head began to rise, when they suddenly both froze, and their heads snapped toward Nicholas' door.

  Celine walked into the room, "Nick, you awa—" She froze, her eyes widening as her gaze locked on the bed.

  Nicholas and Elianna stared at Celine, their eyes widening to the size of moons. Celine stared back, blinking. Not even a second later, Nicholas jumped off Elianna, with Elianna rolling to the side, and they both scrambled off the bed to their feet.

  "Celine!" Nicholas yelled.

  "We weren't—" Elianna began, waving her hands.

  Nicholas pointed to the sketchbooks on the bed, "The sketchbooks!!"

  Elianna nodded, "Yeah!"

  Celine's eyes darted between them, and she slowly bit her lips between her teeth, trying to keep herself from grinning.

  "She wouldn't give it to me," Nicholas sputtered.

  Elianna nodded, "So he tried to get it back."

  Celine crossed her arms, containing her laughter.

  Nicholas hastily nodded, "Yeah! By jumping on top!"

  "Then we wrestled!" Elianna yelped.

  "Breakfast," Celine calmly said, and both Elianna and Nicholas stopped and stared at her. She could barely hide her grin, "I came to see if you wanted breakfast. Mom is already heading downstairs."

  Nicholas just nodded, "Sure. That sounds good." Elianna quickly nodded in agreement.

  "Okay," Celine chuckled, then turned. "I'll meet you in the dining room."

  Nicholas and Elianna watched as Celine left, closing the door behind her. An awkward silence filled the room, with Nicholas looking to the side and scratching his head.

  Elianna's eyes were locked on the door before she slowly looked at Nicholas. The silence between them was suffocating her, so she jestfully smiled, "So, what's in the sketchbook?"

  Nicholas' head snapped toward her, brows raised high. He blinked a few times before his lips curled and he chuckled, "Oh, shut up."

  Elianna smiled, watching as Nicholas picked his shirt off the bed and put it on.

  Nicholas picked up the satchel, "You ready to head down?"

  Elianna nodded, "Yeah."

  "Cool," Nicholas said as he placed the sketchbooks into his satchel. Storing the satchel in his spatial ring, he turned toward the door, "Let's go."

  Elianna nodded and followed Nicholas out of his room. The guards snapped to attention and followed them as they made their way through the palace, eventually reaching the dining room. As they entered, they noticed Celine and Freya already seated, while palace staff were currently placing drinks onto the table.

  Celine's eyes flicked to Nicholas and Elianna, and she hid her grin behind her goblet, "Good morning."

  Nicholas shot his cousin a playful glare, "Morning."

  Elianna's cheeks reddened slightly as she kept her gaze averted. "Good morning."

  Freya raised a brow as she looked between the three of them. "Everything okay?"

  "Oh yes, everything is fine," Celine said, grinning a little as she placed her goblet down. "I just happened to walk into Nicholas' room while he and Elianna were wrestling over his satchel."

  Nicholas and Elianna tensed, their faces reddening.

  Freya's brows furrowed, "Wrestling over a satchel?" Her eyes flicked to Nicholas and Elianna.

  "I-I was just trying to get it back," Nicholas stuttered.

  "I just wanted to see what was inside!" Elianna said quicker than she meant to.

  Freya looked between them, confused, before she just shrugged, "Alright. Go ahead and sit down. The staff is finishing up making breakfast."

  Elianna and Nicholas sighed, then shared a gaze before smiling at each other and taking their seats.

  Freya took a sip of her drink. "So, how did you sleep, Nicholas?"

  Nicholas shrugged, "I slept like a rock. I was exhausted last night."

  "What time did you go to sleep?" Freya asked.

  "A little past midnight, I think."

  Celine's brows raised, "Why so late?"

  Nicholas sighed, "Because Tristan left earlier, just leaving my father and me to complete the paperwork."

  "Was there a lot?" Celine asked.

  Nicholas nodded, "Oh, yeah." Nicholas' eyes fell, before he looked at Freya, "Aunt Freya. Is there a chance you will be going to the wall?"

  Celine's smile faded, and her head snapped to her mother.

  Elianna looked at Nicholas, seeing that he was eyeing his aunt worriedly.

  Freya's brows raised, "Why do you ask?"

  Nicholas shrugged, "Apparently, Tri-Union City agreed to send troops to the wall. I was just wondering if you heard anything."

  Freya pursed her lips and hummed, "No, I haven't." She looked between Nicholas and Celine, seeing their concerned expressions. She smiled, "Hey, don't worry, okay?"

  Nicholas and Celine both nodded.

  The sound of the door opening caught everyone's attention, and they all turned to see William walk in. However, he wasn't in his usual royal attire; instead, he was wearing a nice shirt and pants. In fact, Nicholas looked at his father, surprised to see he wasn't wearing a crown.

  William yawned, "Good morning."

  Freya smiled humourously at him, "You look tired."

  William shrugged, "Just a bit." He walked around the table, "I was informed that you all were having breakfast, so I thought I would join." He approached his chair, then stopped, and his brows furrowed, "Tristan hasn't come?"

  Nicholas' jaw clenched, and Elianna's eyes fell, as she remembered her conversation with Tristan this morning.

  Freya shook her head, "No. He didn't even come to dinner yesterday."

  "He said he was going for a walk," Elianna said, and looked at William. "Your Majesty."

  William hummed, then looked at some of the guards, "Find him, and tell him it's time for breakfast."

  Several of the guards nodded before leaving the room.

  William took his seat, rubbing his tired eyes, "Thank you for helping me yesterday, Nicholas." He lowered his hands and looked at his son, "I greatly appreciate it."

  Nicholas blinked before nodding, "You're welcome, Father." His eyes fell before he met his father's gaze, "And, thank you."

  William raised a brow, "For what?"

  Nicholas sighed, "For giving the order to protect Lia and treat her as royalty."

  Celine and Freya both looked surprised, and Freya said, "You what?"

  William's eyes narrowed slightly. "How did you come to find out about this?"

  Nicholas' face tightened, "Because Tristan tried to order the guards to make Lia follow him when she didn't want to."

  "What?" Celine said, shaking his head. She looked at Elianna, "Did he really?"

  Elianna looked at Celine and nodded, "Yeah."

  William tapped his fingers on the table, "I see." He looked at Elianna, "Please forgive Tristan's actions. I will speak with him about this."

  Elianna looked at the king, surprised, before she nodded, "Yes, Your Majesty."

  Freya eyed her brother for a moment, watching as he sighed and took a sip from his goblet. Freya tilted her head slightly, "Trying to relax today?"

  William nodded as he placed his goblet down, "Indeed." He looked at his sister, "I'm all caught up on paperwork thanks to Nicholas. So, I thought I would take the day to just relax around the palace." His eyes fell, and he smiled slightly, "Maybe I'll spend some time in the garden. I haven't done that in a while."

  Freya smiled at her brother, "Would you like some company?"

  William met his sister's gaze, smiled, and nodded, "That would be nice."

  The doors opened again, and Tristan walked inside. He smirked as he approached the table, "It seems I am late. Please, forgive me."

  William's eyes flicked to Tristan, "The only person you need to ask forgiveness to is Lady Elianna."

  Elianna, Nicholas, Freya, and Celine all eyed William with surprise.

  Trisan froze as he eyed William curiously, "Father?"

  William leaned back into his seat, "Did you, or did you not try to command Lady Elianna this morning?"

  Tristan's jaw clenched, "I was merely trying to get to know her and be friendly."

  "Commanding one against their will is not the way to do that," William scolded. "Apologize to her."

  Tristan raised his chin, meeting his father's gaze. He was silent for a moment before he looked at Elianna, "My apologies. I meant no disrespect."

  Elianna just nodded, "Thanks for the apology."

  Tristan's eyes snapped to Nicholas, their gazes meeting in a glare. Nicholas' eyes narrowed, not dropping his gaze, watching as Tristan took his seat at the end of the table, opposite William.

  Tristan's eyes flicked back to his father, looking him up and down, "Why are you dressed like that?"

  William shrugged, "I thought I would relax today. Seeing that Nicholas and I got all the paperwork done yesterday."

  "No thanks to you," Nicholas added.

  Tristan's eyes snapped to Nicholas and narrowed, "Shame."

  "Where did you go last night?" William asked, eyeing Tristan. "I understand you weren't even at dinner."

  Tristan grabbed his goblet and took a sip, "I was out and about, doing my own thing."

  William hummed, eyeing Tristan, before he looked at Nicholas and Elianna, "That reminds me. I have already instructed the guards to prepare a carriage and escort for you into the city."

  Nicholas and Elianna perked up in excitement. Nicholas smiled, "Thank you, Father." He looked at Celine, "Wanna come?"

  Celine nodded, "Sure."

  The doors opened, and several staff members began to roll in food on trolley carts.

  Celine eyed the food, then looked at Elianna and Nicholas, "We can go after breakfast."

  Nicholas and Elianna nodded, with Elianna feeling excited to finally see the city of Zasaly.