To His Hell and Back-Chapter 174: Princess’s Quirk-II

"Did someone face appeared in your pretty head, Bella?"

Taken aback, Arabella snapped from her thoughts and looked at Isabelle who was still smiling. But something in the air had begun to shift, not so tangible but rather felt in the air which made her worried for a second as she shook her head.

"No Your Highness."

"That’s great," Isabelle said which made her confused.

Great? What was great?

"Men are lousy things aren’t they?" Princess Isabelle picked a teacup and took a sip as she spoke. "Lousy and incapable. Only good in helping women with bearing a child."

But that’s odd, thought Arabella in her head. Wasn’t the princess here to marry Cassius?

"My father," said Princess Isabelle again, "He has seven wives, that’s only counting those who are legally married to him. As for how many maids he had slept, hm, perhaps it would have filled the entire castle."

Cringing Arabella immediately thought of her own father who was no better. Gambling, hitting while drunk, and selling his daughter. Then Cassius and the King... seems like they are a group of children with fathers who are best called one simply because they helped their birth.

But Arabella looked at the princess with positivity, "I’m sure while there are lousy men, there are also many who are loyal and capable."

"I wonder," Isabelle said while puckering her lips. "Was the man you thought about earlier that man?"

Choked, Arabella who had taken a bite on the dry bread coughed as her food went down the wrong pipe. Isabelle chuckled and passed her the warm tea, pouring it to her cup with a hum, "So easily surprised. You remind of me a hamster, Bella."

A bird, then a hamster... But now seeing that Isabelle didn’t seem to like men a lot, she wondered why all those who serve her are only males.

"Have Your Highness seen the Crown Prince?" Arabella asked as Isabelle shook her head softly.

"I heard he went to see the ship," Isabelle listlessly stirred the teacup with her small spoon, "You said that you serve him right, Bella? Then why don’t you tell me what kind of person he is?"

Arabella had wondered why would Isabelle, a Princess so beautifully and mild mannered would even invite her to eat and even spared time for them to talk. The Princess didn’t seem disgusted at the slightest with her presence and it seems she rather enjoyed it. But all kindness are never for free. She had learned this since young and was trying to find reasons why Isabelle would do so much for her.

But now it was clear.

Perhaps after hearing that she serves Cassius, Isabelle became interested. If she could learn about Cassius, wouldn’t it be better from the ones who serves him?

After all they were going to be engaged soon...

"Is your chest hurting?"

Arabella lifted her head to the Princess and only then noticed that she had been scratching her chest this entire time, "I’m sorry, I just feel a slight itch," and before the princess think she’s ill, she answered in a hurry, "The Prince is... a little..."

A little like the devil. He’s malicious but he could also be kind. At some point he seems to like doing kindness but was taught to never practice such behavior as it was deemed weak.

He seemed like someone who would never utter an apology but he apologized at once when she was hurt. Though he could easily replace her, Cassius never want harm to touch her. And they share similar wounds and scars left by people they consider their family. And perhaps that was why she understood him, why he understood her.

He loves bird and sometimes when he smile truly from the bottom of his heart, not those sarcastic smile, he would shine bright as if a halo lit behind him, soft and radiant, making him almost unrecognizable.

The prince is... broken and shattered but in those shatters, lies softness that was made for her.

He’s someone who she would never think the Gods above would ever given her.

But what is he?

What is he to her?

What does she wants from him?

"The prince is?" Isabelle asked and Arabella’s eyes was back on her from the thousand yard gaze.

She smiled and answered, "I think he would be a fine match with you, your highness."

Isabelle chuckled and in that Arabella felt as if she could see a perfect picture of Cassius and Isabelle, both having that radiant smile, truly a perfect match like a pair of gloves.

Her lashes downcasted her eyes, hooding the bright green hue of her pupils with shadow. Only then did Arabella understood. Somewhere... somehow, she had found something more than friendship. But she refuses to call this love. After all nothing would bear fruit from a love between a crown prince and a lower woman with no rank.

When Arabella had left Princess Isabelle’s room with the itchiness to her heart finally resolved, The princess had her promise to come again and play with her. She didn’t remember how she had answered the princess as she mustered a smile and walked out of the room. She didn’t know how Isabelle’s red eyes had keenly watched her even as she left, her smile spread wide until Arabella was gone and it finally dropped and disappeared.

Ernath who had been standing outside the room found the Princess who had walked out Arabella with a disapproving look on his face, expressing it by words as he knew the princess was pretending not to notice his discomfort.

"Your Highness. Surely you are not thinking of doing something you shouldn’t again, aren’t you?"

Isabelle looked at him and her smile that was no where to be found caused her face to turn as cold as the glacial ice, "Ernath since when a servant could demand their princess to do what they wish?"

"The King- eugh," before Ernath could finish his words, her hand had shot up and grabbed him by the neck in split of a second.

Isabelle tilted her head, "I just found an amusing doll to play with, Ernath. The King himself can’t stop me this time so you better be at your best behavior and stop doing unnecessary things. After all, you heard the King tell me that I could finally do whatever I wish to do as long as the Crown Prince marries me."

Ernath coughed for breath when Isabelle threw him across the ground and then wipe away her hands with the silk handkerchief from her pocket.

"But she’s-"

"She’s going to help me, hm?" Isabelle said as she pulled a smile on her lips, one that barely reached her eyes, "Don’t question my action and remain as quiet as a mule. That is unless you wish your head hung for decoration tomorrow. So stop worrying won’t you?"

Ernath gritted his teeth.

It wasn’t Isabelle he was worried about, not truly. It was that poor human.

His mistress had always worn kindness like second nature, and most of the time, it wasn’t just a mask. But Isabelle had a particular taste, always drawn to girls like Arabella: strong, defiant, and far too endearing for their own good.

And everyone knew what purebloods could do when they were simply... bored. Especially with someone they found adorable.

That was what unsettled him most. The way Isabelle had looked at the girl, not with malice, but with interest. That dangerous, glittering kind of interest that meant she was toying with something she might want to keep. Or break.

He feared the human wouldn’t last long under that kind of attention. And if something did happen, it wouldn’t just be a personal tragedy.

It would be a spark thrown into the volatile powder of their already fragile relationship with Cassius.