In Sickness And In Health (Yandere M. Genius x F. Reader x Yandere M. Prince)

Chapter 17: Lilies

Presley stood idly by while watching over the orange-haired male. Contrary to how he had been previously doing, the boy was now immersing himself in a variety of books. The coral-haired man flushed as he thought about what he had to do to get them for him. However, when Orion had asked for something with such a hopeful look in his eye, how was he to say no? It was a royal knight's duty to ensure the absolute protection of their royal ward, whether that be physically or mentally.

He had asked for books on romance, but such things wouldn't have been in any of the royal libraries. Of course, the man had thought of the boy's cousins, but all three of them would never have such a book, whether it was instructional or fictitious. And because Satoru had slipped his mind (as he often did), Presley was forced to leave castle grounds to find such material for the male. He did so himself on behalf of the very embarrassed prince, who practically begged him to keep it a secret.

So, at the crack of dawn, before the prince had woken, he had slipped out, making sure to put other guards in place for the younger male. He had practically snuck out of Valiende towards the city, entering a handful of bookstores. Though he didn't know exactly what the prince wanted, he did his best to compile a few different things. Of course, searching for them in sight of anyone in the store was embarrassing, but there wasn't anything he could have done about that. He just hoped he wasn't recognized. Though, who, in Vethela, wouldn't recognize Count Alvaric?

Orion had spent the entire week reading the books. The first few he picked up were fiction novels, ones about princes and heroes. He seemed to like them a lot, glowing whenever there was a happy ending. The next few were instructional guides with very embarrassing names, ones obviously compiled as a form of sensationalized advertising. Either way, he was entranced, very focused. He had even taken to writing notes as he read. Then there were the historical love stories and ones in Viasti, the Vethelan religion.

"Ezdia fell in love with the Sun God, right?" the orange-haired male questioned, pointing to the depiction of the goddess.

"Some believe the Sun God was a human mage."

"But that's not true."

"...Well, it's just one variation of the myth, your highness. Another would be that he was the Sun God. That's why the Sun God Sect exists. If everyone believed he was a god, there wouldn't be any need for the sect, right?"

"Right. But he was a god though."

Presley chuckled awkwardly. It was a given that Orion would believe more firmly in the presence of a Sun God rather than a human mage. After all, his father was the supreme head of the Sun God Sect. And though most of the royal family sided with that argument, he knew that at least one of the boy's cousins disagreed with that logic. Similarly, his grandmother believed the man was a human, as well, but since he didn't want to put the prince in a bad mood, he just agreed. It didn't really matter that he thought it was a human as well.

"So the demon Zydon froze the eternal flower and the Sun God freed her," the boy mumbled, brightening up at the romantic notion, "Did they fall in love at first sight?"

"I'm not sure, your highness."

"The book doesn't say either...but it has to be true. Why else would he save her?"

"Maybe he was just kind. Or maybe he saw that the people of Vethela were suffering without her."

The orange-haired boy nodded, but, in his mind, he made a mental note to ask his father. He wanted to hear that they had fallen in love at first sight and nothing else. Either way, he moved to murmur a few other things about the myth of Inir and Asla, two other gods. Though they were both sardonic gods, the former was responsible for light and the other, darkness. Both were blind, but using only words, they were able to find one another and fall in love. After that, they learned how to love the world and the cycle of day and night began.