Roses for the King

Chapter 1 - The mission

Shoutout to @Lavapelz for giving me the honor of being the Beta Reader for the first two chapters!

Four years can't heal a broken heart. Not even Prince Roman's, who has always kept his hopes up with a great commitment to finding true love one day. The unexpected crushed his dreams: after two years of sending love letters back and forth, Xavenia, the daughter of the ruler of Zeratevia, wrote to her lover that they weren't destined to be together, as she was struck by a new arrow of Cupid and soon she will connect her life with this person.

Roman felt like he would never have his happily ever after.

Fortunately...

The prince got the opportunity to have it... on a silver platter.

On the other hand...

"It has been 2 years, Roman." King Marsus, Roman's father called after his son as the young prince was about to open the heavy door to storm out of the throne room.

"You discussed it without my consent?!"

"Son, you have to understand! It is for your own good!"

"Father. I'm over 20! A soon-to-be 25 years old!" Roman stopped for a moment to meet his father's gaze, only to show him the flames of pure anger simmering in his eyes "I can make my own decisions! And I can assure you that I refuse to marry someone I don't even know!"

"You need to let Xavenia go!" If anyone, the king was the one who felt that devouring guilt of not protecting his own child from disappointment "After two years of misery... You will finally have someone who can help you rule a kingdom as you always wanted! Tatjana is going to be a grandiose queen next to you." Marsus received no answer but a scoff, so he took a step forward "I want what's best for you, Roman."

"I wouldn't have cared if Xavenia was a royalty or not! She was the love of my life, not my would-be assistant!" Roman turned to lean against his hands on the granite wall "And I lost her...!"

"You have never even met her in your life!"

"I have not but I KNEW that I loved her." he held onto the past so desperately that all his bitterness was put into a punch on the wall, his fist lingering on the wall for a few minutes.

A mental picture of Xavenia and Not Roman being happily married didn't enhance the situation either.

"She made me happy whenever she wrote me a letter... but now."

King Marsus put a reassuring hand on the prince's shoulder "Roman. You have the chance to be happy again." he turned his head to look in a certain direction "Your mother would have wanted the same."

Mother...

Prince Roman bestowed his gaze upon two magenta-colored flags with the kingdom's emblem of the sun and the moon's simultaneous presence in a circle shape that enriched them. They were hanging on the sides of each seat. Above the thrones, covered in intricate patterns, there were two individual paintings of two young boys of the same age, one being Roman and the other being Remus, his twin brother. He finally took in a portrait of his parents and the brothers being toddlers in the center. The young man took a few reluctant steps forward and noticed how radiant her smile was... just like his father's used to be.

King Marsus rarely, if ever, displayed a smirk ever since he was left alone twenty years ago and had to overtake the responsibility to bring up the twins.

"I didn't know her... enough."

"She would be so proud of you."

"And Remus?"