Captured To Become A Vampire Prince's Bride {Book 2}

Captured To Become A Vampire Prince's Bride {Book 2}: Chapter 42

Our tour of the newly rebuilt Nox Aterrima involved finally bringing Alexander to the orphanage, much to the children's delight. This was followed up by making appearances at the schools affected most by the war to see how the children were managing.

We also visited the largest hospital in Nox Aterrima which had had one of wings completely destroyed after being targeted by a bomb. While we were there, in a supervise announcement, it was revealed that the wing would be renamed after Alexander, to which he appeared flustered by.

There was a longer visit to the zoo which Alexander had taken me to not long after I'd first arrived in Nox Aterrima. We were shown a live video stream of a Jaguar cub that had been born at another site after being evacuated along with a majority of the other, endangered creatures. She was a tiny thing, born early under the stress of transportation. She was kept under close watch by her mother, whose same deep blue eyes she'd probably own. The zoo had named the baby Mona, derived from Monaghan, we were described as being 'strong', which is what the cub was having survived such a situation after being born prematurely.

Stall and shop owners around markets were eager to show how business was back on the rise again, and people in residential areas were eager to catch a glimpse of us. All were eager to celebrate the official ending of the war, and to congratulate us on the King's offer. Which, I hadn't thought about at all until I finally settled down in the back of the car.

We'd spoken to so many different people and I had focused so much on my appearance that I hadn't had time for my own thoughts, to dissect exactly what it was that the king had proposed.

It was early evening when we finally stopped. The low hum of the car was almost relaxing, compared to the sounds of continuous talking and commotion. Masashi No Shinden could be seen on the hilltop in the distance as we drove towards it.

Alexander had his eyes shut, but he wasn't asleep. He was sat upright in his hair, probably just relaxing his eyes. Also calming down.

"Are you okay?" He asked, his eyes still remaining shut.

"Y-yes," I responded, flustered that he knew that I was watching him, "I was checking to see if you were."

"I'm fine, don't worry. Just needed a moment to gather my thoughts. Very hectic day."

His eyes slowly opened, to reveal soft purples with light blue hues swirling around as they usually did when he was calm. His other eye was of course, still red, but it wasn't as shocking as it was when he first revealed it.

"What do you think about Father's offer, about ruling Nox in his absence?" He asked. His tone was calm and collected, he himself seemed to have no doubts about it.

"Well, it'll definitely be something to put on my resumé," I joked nervously.

Alexander smiled gently, "you needn't have any worries. Everything will run smoothly."

I couldn't help but smile back at him.

The conversation deviated from that, and on to the Jaguar cub that we vowed to see once it was back at the zoo, that would be too adorable of an opportunity to pass up. It significantly sped up the journey to eat as we were both famished.

The car parked outside of the restaurant which, if not for the lights on inside and a few moving figures, would appear vacant. The only person visible was the imposing doorman posted outside.

"Where is everyone?" I questioned, exiting the car cautiously.

"Father probably bought the whole place out so we can dine in peace," Alexander answered casually. Obviously, this wasn't the first time this had been done.

Maybe we'd get to finally discuss why the King had decided to trust us to rule over a whole country. Not even yet in our mid-twenties. I'd never had a job as demanding as this before and my role as a princess had hardly given me any responsibilities apart from maintaining my public appearance. I wasn't entirely sure about Alexander, but I had no experience in running a country. I wouldn't even see myself fit enough to be head of a society at university.

The tall doorman bowed and smiled at us and then proceeded to let us in the building. Alexander lead us over to our usual window table, which had been extended. The King, Queen, Henrietta, and Emmanuel were all seated on one side of the table, the other side was empty.

Masashi was stood talking animatedly with those already at the table. We were all there except the twins, and I had no doubt that Jayden was the reason.

Alex pulled out the seat for me, before taking his own across from Emmanuel. I was sat facing Henrietta, who didn't even spare me a glance.

Masashi then came over to our side to greet us, welcoming us back to his restaurant. "You both look healthy and happy," I remembered him saying.

After taking their time, and after I'd picked at the appetizers put on the table, the twins arrived and swiftly took their seats, almost a whole hour late. Leyton apologized for the delay, putting it down to Jayden wanted to take a few "detours".

We ordered our food finally, and as we waited, Alexander went straight in with the question: "you completely trust us with Nox Aterrima?"

"Am I supposed to not trust my son? You're a man now, and there's nothing you can't do. If you feel like behaving impetuously, then I'm sure Arianne will have no problem with getting you to think straight. If neither of you knows what to do, then Charlotte and Leandra will be by your side. Of course, I'll be here too, and so will Emmanuel who also rules his own country. You're surrounded by support, so neither of you need to worry. Besides, it's only temporary for the meantime... unless you really like it."

Alexander nodded, he seemed satisfied with his father's response. He looked confident enough. This is what he'd been prepared for, and it was his duty to be King one day.

"Didn't you want this opportunity?" Alexander then queried, directing his question towards his sister who had been strangely silent about all of this.

"I'd rather be a queen beside a king's side... or princess with a prince. Ruling a country sounds great in theory, but I'd rather not have the burden of millions of people relying on me. Maybe a smaller country." Her answer seemed well thought out. Maybe she'd already discussed this with her father which is why he was willing to pass the opportunity on to his second born.

I understood what she meant though. It was quite burdensome, but it'd be rewarding too. To know you're doing your job well, helping others and ensuring the best courses of action would be advantageous. Alexander would be a great ruler in the time the King allowed him to do so, and then in the future, he'd be an even better King.

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Totally forget to put this up yesterday, sorry! Super short chapter, sorry about that too.

However, we are very very close to the end now, a few chapters leftat most, and hopefully, they'll all be out soon.

Thank you for reading :)