Villainess Loves

Part 68

I wake up to bright sunlight peeking through my windows. I pull my covers up to shield myself from the shining rays and snuggle in deeper.

I jolt awake, rising from my bed. Wait! There was an attack! I got attacked! The awards ceremony! I didn't get to finish announcing the winners! Oh MY GOD, I almost died! I almost died! Someone almost shot me to death! Henry saved me! Henry!

I push off my covers and head out the door, almost diving head-first into a big broad chest. Powerful hands steady me, stopping the potential accident. The familiar scent tickles my nose as I look up to see a devilishly handsome man, dressed in his familiar knight attire. His appearance shocks me as I look closer to see his clothes messily put on, his collar uneven, and his buttons loosely tied. I noticed his tired eyes and unshaven beard. His haphazard appearance confuses me.

"H-henry." I start. He seems just as shocked as I am before suddenly wrapping his arms around me and giving me a massive hug. His breath is hurried and warm.

"Annelise, you're awake." He whispers. I shiver at his close proximity and try to move away but he tightens his arms and pulls me even closer. I can feel my heartbeat increasing and my face rapidly reddening when I noticed a wet feeling on my shoulder.

"Henry?" I turn my head up to see his face full of tears. Shocked, I hurriedly try to wipe them with my sleeve.

"Henry! Are you okay?!" I ask him, struggling to stop his tears. He shakes his head but allows me to continue to wipe them.
"Annelise, it's been three days since you finally woke." When he finally speaks again the words ring through my ears.

"Three days?!" I exclaim, temporarily stopping my wiping. Luckily Henry stopped crying so there weren't too many tears left for me to clean up. He nods, sniffling slightly.

"Yes, you've been asleep for the past three days." He repeats. He buries his face into my neck.

"Your father has since arrived after you fainted. He's been working with the king to discuss the trades that Vendia wants." His voice is muffled by my clothes.

"Vendia? The attack was Vendia?" I ask. He nods. So Vendia did attack as I thought! But why did an arrow try to hit me? I had nothing to do with the royal family....

"I should have believed you more when you said there was going to be an attack." Henry's voice breaks me from my thoughts. His voice is shaky as he tightens his hold on me even more.

"I should have taken better precautions to prevent this!" He exclaims.

"Hey, wait, Henry. This isn't your fault!" I squirm my hands out to grab his face and bring it closer to mine. His beautiful face is shining with leftover tears, creating a heartbreaking scene. His unshaven and messy appearance doesn't mask his handsomeness and instead amplifies his manliness and sexiness, making me almost breathless.

"Uh, I mean!" I gulp, watching a tear falls and trace his chiseled jawline. Ah! Pay attention!

"This is 100% not your fault! Vendia attacked us! You don't have any connection to Vendia right?" I ask him seriously.

"No." He whispers, looking down. I drag his face up, pinching his cheeks. Ooh, his skin is so soft despite his shapely features. I guess he's not entirely made up of pure muscle. Ooh, his beard is fuzzy. Hmm, I kind of like the feeling. Ticklish.

"Annelise?" Henry looks confused at my wandering.

"Ah! Ahem!" I fake cough.

"Don't blame yourself, Henry! There wasn't anything you could have done to prevent this!" I said.

"That's not very nice to say. Are you saying that I'm not a good knight?" Henry pouts.

"Ah, um, I didn't mean it that way! You're a super good knight! The best of the best!" I give Henry a thumbs up to show my appreciation. He looks at me strangely.

"That doesn't sound very convincing..." He mumbles.

"Well, just believe it! I haven't lied to you yet right?" I said. He nods slowly.

"..I guess..." He mumbles. I feel his chest rumbling slowly as Henry breathes. His crooked collar catches my attention and I reach up to fix it.

"What happened these past few days while I was asleep?" I ask. Henry releases me a bit to allow me to easily fix his collar.

"Not too much. Vendia was only partially successful in their attacks. Besides attacking you and the royal family, they also had stationed attackers for the major aristocrats as well. Since we already assigned extra security for these families, there wasn't any serious casualties. They weren't able to do much damage as a whole since the royal guards were very effective and efficient in controlling the situation. When you fainted, Vendia was able to detain Prince Caelum, but Princess Echina released him in the scuffle." Henry pauses to take a breath.

"Ultimately Vendia wasn't able to harm anyone seriously but they did threaten to take the royal family hostage as they have the royal castle surrounded with Vendia troops." Henry finishes.

"...wait, what?" I'm so confused. Vendia didn't harm anyone but they surrounded the royal castle?

"We're hostages right now? But you said that my father was here...." I wondered. Henry nods.

"Yes, all of the guests attending and the royal family are hostages right now. But Vendia isn't stopping anyone from entering, only exiting." Henry explains.

"Eh? Why?" I ask.

"Because they don't want to wage another war with Elden. They just want better terms and there was a misunderstanding." Henry says.

"Misunderstanding?" I think back to the novel. Vendia initially wanted to attack to take back Princess Echina who they thought was forced to marry against her will to foster better relations with Vendia and Elden. Turns out that it was a misunderstanding because of the siscon princes and Princess Echina's love for Prince Caelum.

"Ah, did Vendia think Princess Echina didn't want to marry?" I ask. Henry looks shocked.

"Yes, Vendia captured Prince Caelum to threaten Elden to stop the wedding, but Princess Echina released him and announced her feelings about the wedding. How did you know that?" He asks. I shrug.

"I had a feeling. That's why I wanted to meet the princes. They should be really close with Princess Echina to the point that they would despise anyone who would take her away from them." I explain. Can't really say that they are siscons, that's not a phrase that is recognized here.

"Hmmm." Henry peers closely at me. His dark oryx eyes scan me curiously. I look away nervously. Haha, maybe I should have acted a bit more naive.

"Haha, anyways, I'm assuming my father came to discuss the new terms that Vendia wants with King Drayden?" I finally have all of my questions answered.

"Yes, they've been in discussion with Prince Astric and his attendants since two days ago." Henry says.

"Ooh, Prince Astric's in charge of this? Oh, because Princess Echina is technically now part of Elden so she's not in charge anymore?" I realized. Henry nods.

"Yes, as part of her declaration, she revoked her stance on the crown to become the wife of Prince Caelum, making Prince Astric the next in line." Henry says.

He sighs and hugs me deeply.

"Let's not talk about this anymore. Let me go inform Mary and bring you some food. You haven't eaten in over three days." After his words, he carries me back to my bed and gently places me down.

"Eh, I've slept enough! I can sit at the table." I whine, but let Henry tuck me in. He smiles and pats my head.

"Just sleep for now. You can eat at the table when the food arrives." He waves and heads out, closing the door behind him.