Villainess Loves

Part 66

"Ahem! Anyways, what are your plans after the event? Are you going to stay here at the royal castle?" I fan myself, cooling my head.

"Staying at the royal castle? No, thank you." Henry shakes his head.

"Then are you going back with me and Mary?" My heart thumps with anticipation. Could I maybe get Henry to continue to serve me even after his duties are over?

"? Of course. The Thornweather Dukedom is my home." Henry says.

"Ah so, um-" Before I could ask, a voice break our conversation.

"Lady Annelise! You've arrived! We've been waiting for you!" A servant comes to greet us. I didn't notice, but we've arrived at the awards area.

A bunch of servants is wandering here and there, checking and rearranging stands for our winners to stand on when we gift them their rewards.

"Has all of the rewards been delivered yet?" I ask the servant. He shakes his head.

"Yes, we've double-checked the list. All rewards have been accounted for. The quality has also been checked and they are all presentable." The servant informs us.

"That's good. Is there enough security?" I nod.

"Yes, we've arranged additional guards to monitor the perimeter to prevent any possible thieves from escaping." The servant notes.

"May we take a glance?" Henry pops into the conversation. Oh, to see for any suspicious activity! I glance over to see the servant's response. He seems slightly startled at Henry's sudden request but notices my response and nods.

"Y-yes. There's a total of three layers of security. The royal family themselves and the dukedoms have their own personal guards so we've only assigned an additional guard for the rest of the nobility and organized a small militia for the commoners." The servant explains, pointing out the layout of the security.

I glance over at Henry, who seems to be very invested in the servant's explanation. He even asks the servant questions about it, very serious in their discussion. I can't really make heads or tails on what they are talking about, but from the servant's proud look and Henry's occasional satisfactory nod, the security coverage must be pretty decent.

"Hahh..." I take a deep breath, trying to catch a break. I look ahead of me, where Henry and the servant are still busy examining the security line. We've been walking all over the rewards area for a bit and I'm already dead tired. I don't really want to interrupt but my tiredness and the fact that we do need to get back and hold the awards ceremony fuels me to force my body to catch up to them.

"....ey... hey! Hey!" I call them. They turn to look at me.

"Oh! Lady Annelise is it already time!? We've been away for too long!" The servant realizes and starts to rush back. Henry quickly comes to me, slightly apologetic.

"..Lady Annelise, I-." He starts, but I raise my hand to stop him.

"It's fine. I understand. J-just hurry up and carry me back. I'm tired." I whine, raising my arms for him to pick me up. He chuckles at my childish behavior and scoops me up into his arms. I wrap my arms around his neck and rest my head on his sturdy chest. Henry flinches at my sudden affectionate gestures.

"....Comfortable?" His slow drawl rumbles above me. I nod, squirming a bit to get into a more comfortable position. I hear him sigh above me.

"?" I peek up at him, curious.

"..? Am I heavy?" I ask him. He looks down, slightly smiling at me. I blush at our close proximity, turning away from his stare.

"..No. Lady Annelise is quite light." He says, walking back to the rewards area. His footsteps are steady, making me a bit sleepy. No! No! You can't sleep yet! You have an awards ceremony to do! I shake my head to clear the sleepiness away.

"Feeling sleepy?" Henry chuckles noticing my drowsiness.

"No!" I bury my face deeper into his chest.

"Well, it's probably not a good idea to fall asleep right now." Henry mumbles.

"?" I look up from his chest.

We've already arrived!!!! Countless stares and murmurs enter my ears as my face flushes to an even deeper red.

I hurriedly push away from his arms.

"WHY didn't you tell me we were already here!!!!?!??" I yell at him. I try to scramble off, but Henry grips harder at my waist, preventing me from escaping.

"Hey, hey. Don't move so much. I don't want to accidentally drop you." Henry laughingly scolds me. I bury my face back into his chest as we head towards the center of the awards ceremony, where the royal family is standing.

Everyone, I mean, EVERYONE is staring at me and Henry. The quick glance I did before trying to disappear into Henry gave me enough information to know that our arrival is a total spectacle.

I peek slightly to see Mary laughing, Prince Orion and Bella flirting without a care, and the rest of the royal family staring at me and Henry weirdly. Geez, it's not like I wanted this okay!?