ICE

113. More Observant

THE KING BOLTED to his feet, his movements hasty and unbalanced. The women around him had to move quickly just to keep him standing upright. His arm jutted upward, toward the ceiling, and his ale sloshed within his mug. It trickled down over the side and down his hand.

"We have a wedding!" he shouted.

Everyone in the room began to clap, slowly, their expressions filled with confusion.

The king swayed a little and jerked his mug toward Eoin and Ravenna. "Future princess," he slurred. "Future princess!"

All eyes zeroed in on Eoin and Ravenna. Blushing bright red, Eoin nodded and confirmed, "This is my future bride."

The clapping grew louder, more excited after a sober confirmation. Genuine smiles surrounded them and even Ravenna flushed red.

She kept a forced smile fixated upon her face. It was important that she remembered that Eoin was simply a piece of the game. She needed him, needed this, in order to advance her plan. She couldn't afford to get all wrapped up in the emotional aspect of a wedding. Nor could she afford to get attached.

The king pointed at a chair to his right. "I need to get to know my future daughter in law," he announced. "Sit down."

Eoin sighed beside her. His eyes were filled with panic as he leaned down and whispered, "It is custom for the royal heir to sit to the left of the king. My seat will be across from you."

"It will be a little hard to chat over all the food," Ravenna remarked.

"It will," Eoin agreed.

Ravenna slowly sat down in the chair that the king had picked. Eoin walked around the table and sat across from her. She noticed the chair beside her slide backwards and glanced over, somewhat relieved to see Mylo seated there.

"I am here to help if you need it," he told her quietly. "Or if you have any questions."

"Thank you," she whispered to him.

The first course was a simple broth filled with chunky vegetables and meat. It was served in a bowl larger than her head. Golden loaves of bread were placed in front of each person sitting at the table, a knife of hold stabbed into the side.

"Eat slow," Mylo leaned in and whispered, "Only take a few bites. The soup can be saved easier and handed out to nearby towns."

Ravenna nodded and brought a small spoonful to her lips. The soup was good. With the bread, meat, and vegetables, it would have been completely filling on its own. She lowered her spoon back to the bowl and looked around.

Eoin smiled at her from across the table. He looked completely at ease, chatting amicably with the well-dressed Lords seated beside him. Behind him, she could see several minstrels dressed in flowing gold tunics, playing their instruments softly. The minstrels moved around the room, almost as quickly as the servants, providing a gentle and relaxing melody that helped to drown out the chaos of individual conversations and the sounds of the king, drunkenly cooing over a member of his harem.

"Is this normal?" Ravenna asked Mylo quietly, her gaze focused on the king.

Mylo gazed at her, his expression devoid of emotion. However, when she tore her eyes away from the king to look at him, she could sense an element of softness to his gaze. "Unfortunately," he told her. "But nothing can be done to change it. He is the king."

"Something can always be done," Ravenna muttered under her breath.

Mylo didn't respond to that.

"He hasn't asked a single question," she said. "I thought he wanted to get to know me."

Mylo chuckled. "He won't. I can assure you that he has already forgotten about you entirely. It will take him a few days to fully comprehend that you are even here in the castle."

Ravenna took another small sip of her broth. She really wasn't surprised.

"The wedding preparations will start tomorrow, though," Mylo informed her. "The king is known for his absurd and drunken announcements, as he displayed tonight. However, with Eoin's confirmation, everyone in this room can trust that it is real and that you two are to actually be wed. The rest of the kingdom will know by sundown, after a formal announcement is made."

"I see," she said absently. Hands reached in between her and Mylo, grabbing at their bowls. She blinked and glanced back at the servant standing behind her. The young girl smiled pleasantly and set a new plate down in front of her. The second course was a plate filled with brightly colored fruits and cheeses.

"Remember, small bites," Mylo told her.

"I know, I know," she huffed at him in exasperation. She felt like she was doing good just to remember to eat at all. It wasn't like she was hungry.

Bite by bite, Ravenna managed to make it through every course. Once the final course had been served, even Ravenna felt nauseous with the amount of food she had ingested. Mylo sat back in his seat, his palm pressed against his stomach. Across the table, Eoin appeared exhausted, ready to succumb to a food-induced slumber.

The king had already passed out. He sat slumped down in his seat, his head tilted back and his mouth wide open. A thin string of saliva trickled down from the corner of his mouth to his chin.

"That is quite nauseating," Ravenna remarked under her breath.

Mylo let out an amused snort.

She glanced at him, her eyes narrowed. "What?"

"You are utterly oblivious to the people around you," he remarked. "You can't express distaste for the king, especially while in the company of his closest allies and friends."

She scowled at him. "None of them heard me."

"They could have," he said. His dark eyes glimmered with something unreadable. He shook his head. "You need to be more observant of your surroundings."

Ravenna stared at him. "What did you say?"

hello friends!

It's like midnight here right now and I have work tomorrow. Tomorrow-Me is going to hate me so much lol. Anyways, I'm so excited to see how y'all feel at the end of this chapter, haha! Thank you so much for taking the time to read ❤ I seriously appreciate you all so much! I hope that everyone has a super awesome week!

p.s. Chapter 114. A Meaningless Kiss is now available on my Patreon! Along with a bunc of other goodies. It only costs $1 a month to join! The link is in my About Me and also on my message board.