After Cassander left to fulfill his schedule of tasks, Lucian remained sitting at the breakfast table with a lost look. A memory of the eighth prince was revealed, and it seemed as clear as if it had happened only a few minutes ago. Only that the feeling was that the eighth prince was just a child.
That confused Lucian even more, as he felt even more guilty for being so far away from Cassander. If they were really close before, then something must have happened that forced Cassander to stop looking for his son and leave him in his abandoned castle. Or maybe it was the prince's own decision.
"Oh, what a mess!" Complained the alpha, messing up his own hair.
"Is there a problem, Your Highness?"
"No" Lucian answered automatically, as he raised his head he noticed that his personal valet was carrying some books. "Oh... I see you found quite a lot."
Argus approached a countertop and left the pile of books there. Then he approached the breakfast table and began to clean it.
"Your request was too specific, Your Highness. I did not find any book that talked exactly about souls, but the Emperor's library has many books that talk about the Goddess Kronosis."
"About the goddess?" Lucian held the will to make a grimace, limiting himself only to frown "Why did he choose such books?"
"Because is the goddess who guides the souls of the dead...?"
What the hell was going on in the mind of the author of that story to leave a death goddess as protector of an Empire? Lucian really did not understand, but at least he would have something to pass the time. Perhaps it was because of the incident of the mercenaries, Lucian was with heavy head and the body reacting too strange.
"Haa... whatever. Bring the books."
After the table was cleaned, Argus put the books on the table. Lucian took one of them and began to read, without expecting anything great.
It's been days since he researched the reason for his coming to this world, and thanks to his condition as a patient who needs rest, Lucian had plenty of time to read something. Unfortunately his own library had more empty spaces than books, forcing him to use the "free pass" in the Palace of the Sun to get something.
Obviously Lucian did not go to the Emperor's library, after all he would be beaten by the doctor, the consort and Argus for being trying unnecessarily. His personal valet was in charge of doing such search, mainly to maintain discretion and not be seen by anyone.
Absolutely no one other than Argus should know what Lucian was looking for.
In addition, the Emperor's palace was agitated because of the order to hunt the rebels. The first prince, Cadec, led a search and seizure team of those who rebelled against the Emperor. Several plebeian neighborhoods were targets of his search, and the nobles were agitated because of it. It was best for Lucian to remain in his small palace at rest.
And... it was not a bad choice.
" 'The goddess of the soul is the figure that cherishes the soul of the living who grieve the loss of their loved ones. Their first stories have no definite date, but they are known to have come before the foundation of the Empire.' ... Hm, so it is old.". Lucian mumbled to himself. "I think that doesn't change, whether it's fantasy or not."
The following pages told several myths about this goddess. Lucian remembered the statue he saw in the temple, and how he had a strange feeling when he saw it. A mysterious and gloomy air that caused discomfort, especially to see the Emperor and the Consort being so faithful to her. That was unexpected and surprising.
It was like being stuck in a horror story instead of a novel.
" 'Many rituals described in ancient documents were adopted by the temple after miracles were witnessed. Rituals that were made to guarantee the deceased peace in his rest, a good reincarnation or even try to bring them back to life.' Wow, that's really bizarre. But I don't remember the original mentioning anything like..."
Lucian tried to remember the plot of
Surely he would ignore those books for not answering any question that Lucian had, however there was a word that caught his attention.
Reincarnation.
It was the theme that most closely approximated the hypotheses that Lucian had about his coming into his favorite story. Being his only clue at the moment, he looked for the subject in the other books that Argus brought, and wrote down his ideas in the papers that the creater brought later. However, it was distressing to imagine that such would be his situation, because it meant that Luciano had died in some way.
Lucian was so absorbed in his research that he also did not notice when Argus left the room, in return his attention was stolen when he felt the smell of wine seduce him. Raising his head immediately, Lucian was surprised to see those red eyes staring at him.
"My goodness, Magnus!", Lucian took his hand to his chest and made a slight grimace for the discomfort in his throat. "When did you arrive?"
"Right now. What are you doing to be so focused and not receive your fiance?"
Magnus leaned over Lucian's shoulder and tried to read what he had on those sheets of paper scattered on the table. Encountering that strange and meaningless symbology again, he resorted to books and was surprised.
"Are you becoming a devotee?"
"No, I was just looking for something."
"Is this the kind of book you were looking for?", Magnus turned around the table and sat down in the chair next to Lucian, pushing the books with his elbow for space "The other day you mentioned that you wanted access to my personal library when we got married."
"It's not exactly that, but maybe something similar. Don't care for such details", Lucian closed the books and smiled at Magnus feeling his smell increasingly intense. The Alpha shook his fingers discreetly and smiled innocently to hide the sudden malaise. "What do I owe the honor of your visit?"
"Just check if you are better."
Oh, that cute. Lucian didn't even hide his smile and the blush on his cheeks for that pathetic phrase that could easily be a lie. I mean, it could be... but it's not. Magnus visited him when he regained consciousness and kept him company when he was examined by the royal doctor.
Although Magnus did not show affection, he was still taking care of Lucian in his own way.
Were crumbs? They were.
Was Lucian giving too much importance? He was.
But so what? It is not every day that you can receive such crumbs from your literary crush.
"I'm fine, just a little hoarse, but nothing to get in the way. And you weren't hurt, right?"
"Who do you think you are talking to?" Magnus crossed his arms and raised his chin in a boastful pose. "Do you think I'm the type to lose a fight'?
"I've never seen you fight, so I have the right to ask that question."
"It's an unnecessary concern, I'm fine. Anyway, I wanted to ask you something."
"Oh, and I thought you only came to visit me out of pure concern" Complained the alpha, pouting. "But I'm a kind groom, so feel free to ask."
Magnus frowned, and probably grumbled in debauchery, but he soon questioned:
"You knew someone was after you. I want to know who that person is and tell me what's going on."
Yes, Lucian knew very well what was going on. This thanks to the information as a voracious reader. However, remembering these details was problematic. After meeting Magnus, Lucian could not remember the minute details as before, only random events that could occur at any time.
When he forced himself to remember something, his head began to hurt and his mind seemed covered by a fog. He imagined that was so stressed dealing with Cassander and the other secondary characters that it prevented him from really remember.
Opening a frank smile, Lucian shook his head.
"I don't know, Magnus. I can't be hypocritical and say that everything that happens to me is because of the fight for the throne."
"You're right, but I still want to know which of your brothers would be stupid to try to attack my carriage."
Lucian shuddered with that austere look and intense presence. The stories have always portrayed the omegas as harmless, submissive, cute and adorable. Only that in front of him was an omega who looked so cold that it was sexy. Those arms and legs crossed, the cold expression that seemed to evaluate the soul of the prince...
Beautiful. Magnus Grimwood was beautiful when he scared someone.
The prince's heart accelerated and he felt something inside him break gradually.
That malaise intensified as Lucian smelled the sweet wine coming from Magnus.
"You could ask Cadec, right? After all, he is involved in the battle for the throne."
"He would not be foolish to attack me being my friend. What remains of three of his brothers."
"Since you narrowed down your suspect list, you can investigate on your own", Lucian got up from his chair, yearning for the bed to sleep a little before he lost control of anything. What an uncomfortable feeling!
Magnus just watched him quietly, which increased the pressure on Lucian. The last thing he wanted was to pass out again in front of him. Not enough the incident of the carriage to show how harmless and deplorable he was as alpha man, now would have to get sick?
Never!
Lucian forced his trembling legs to crawl across the cold ground and walk to his bed, which was not even a meter away. Only that he stopped when he felt something touch his back.
There could only be three options:
One, some killer came through the bedroom window and would kill Lucian.
Two, it was just a bad impression.
Three, Magnus was after him.
Swallowing dry, Lucian clenched his fists smelling wine.
"Are you... in heat?"