Erica

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"And with that our meeting is adjourned. Thank you." King Aleric stood up dismissing the high council.

Aleric had adjusted fairly quickly into his royal duties as King for he had been trained to fill this position since he was barely able to walk on his own. King Alwin, his father, had a good reign leaving matters of the state almost completely stable as they were handed over to his son.

It was a very hard role to fill but as King Aleric stood, he had done an excellent job. Running a kingdom was no easy feat. Many of his councillor members had originally been against him believing he would be a young and foolish king but through perseverance and hard work he proved them wrong and gained their support.

Count Alvore had been in attendance of this particular meeting along with his eldest son Sorin. Sorin was already well recognised as the Alvore heir, and many believed that he would be taking over his father's position soon.

"Count Alvore, may I have a minute of your time?" King Aleric stopped him from leaving along with the other members.

"Your Majesty." The Count turned to him and gave a light bow. Sorin doing the same, he was his father's shadow in moments like these. It was his place.

"I believe you are to be visiting the Duke of Waisend soon?"

"That is correct, Your Majesty. I depart for Canterbre tomorrow at dawn." The Count confirmed.

"Good. I have a request," Aleric started handing the Count a sealed letter, "Give this to the Duke."

"It will be done. Is there anything else that you wish for me to do?"

"No that will be all. Thank you." Aleric dismissed.

The Count and Sorin took a final bow before making their way out when a sudden thought struck Aleric.

Erica.

So much had happened recently that he had no chance to even think about her until now. He remembered how panicked and injured she was when he last saw her. This sent a jolt of pain to his heart. He prayed that she was okay.

He wanted to see her again. The last time he saw made him almost desperate. Many things were wrong with that entire encounter. From the way she came to say a final goodbye to her injured fingers. Her terrified face when she saw the palace guards approaching worried him more.

Something was very very wrong.

Erica wore a disguise for a reason. She was scared of the guards for a reason.

Aleric hoped that she did not assume that it was him who called the guards that horrible day, he hoped that she did not think that the guards were there for her, but judging from her reaction at the time, he could tell exactly what she believed. There had been a major misunderstanding. This caused his stomach to turn.

He wanted to know just why she was so scared, why she was injured, why she was in disguise...

He wanted to protect her, to save her from all her troubles. It was a strong feeling, and he was yet to fully understand it.

One thing was clear. He needed to find her.

All he knew was that she was somehow connected to the Alvore family. The handkerchief she gave him the first time he met her and the fact that she was hiding for Walter confirmed this.

He grimaced at the memory of the handkerchief. He could not believe that he had thought it was Walter's sister Sibyl the entire time and even thanked her. Aleric had nothing against Sibyl, but he knew the type of lady she was. She toyed with his cousin's feelings and lied about the handkerchief being hers. All just to get close to him or rather his crown.