Chapter 159: A Peaceful Lunch

The drizzle outside stopped. Some butterflies started coming out of nowhere and surrounded the garden. It was only then Lauren realized what made the mansion different from Alec’s mansion in Evardin. The garden was filled with different kinds of flowers, some of them were not even familiar to her, while Alec’s garden did not have a single flower.

"Do you have a caretaker of this mansion?" Lauren asked while Alec was putting down a bowl of noodles on the table. The aroma of its hot broth filled her senses and she suddenly felt hungry.

"No, but Vincent had some men clean this place earlier this morning." Sitting across from Lauren, Alec gave the spoon to her.

"The garden is nice. Your mother’s family must be a lover of flowers. I wonder how the flowers still look maintained though." She looked down at the bowl of noodles and took her first taste. Alec was calmly staring at her and the way his lips curved a little spoke about his confidence.

When she finally tasted it, Lauren’s eyes widened a bit. She now understood why Alec looked so confident. How could his noodles taste better than the one she liked for years? There was this noodle restaurant near Vivian’s brothel which the two of them loved. But she doubted if she could still call it her favorite noodle recipe after she tasted Alec’s.

"You know what... even if you were not a king, you would still become successful. You can open your own restaurant and be a rich businessman," said Lauren and the image of Alec Everston being a chef king made her giggle.

"And my restaurant would be closed just after a few months because some people died due to poisoning," Alec broke her bubble. "I am not fit for that job. I never liked cooking for people. I never did it before, not even for myself. This is the first time so you should feel honored."

Lauren almost choked. "This... is your first time cooking for someone?" Why was she even so surprised? Well, she thought he had done it to his family at least. Or just for himself.

"Are you joking? This is the first time you cooked in your life? Ever?"

Alec crossed his arms and cocked his brow, "I said it, didn’t I? Besides, why would I cook for myself when I have plenty of servants? I can also drink blood instead. It is not necessary for vampires to eat so I never thought about it."

"But this is too good for a first timer..." She eyed him suspiciously. "Did you put some magic on it? I heard a cooking spell that can make anything taste good."

"Cooking spell, seriously?" Alec scoffed, finding the accusation ridiculous. "Are you accusing your king of cheating? Do you want to be beheaded?"

"I don’t see any wrong if I accuse my husband of anything," she smiled sheepishly. "As your wife I should have that power. Don’t you agree?"

Alec’s eyes that were narrowed sharply relaxed. His lips parted a bit while she kept smiling at him.

"Why do I feel like I won’t care even if you enslave me?" His husky voice filling her ears sounded like alluring music. It was like a predator’s voice echoing in the dangerous paradise while luring his prey to his honey trap.

Lauren couldn’t wipe off the smile on her lips. For a moment, she forgot about her problems and the responsibilities they left at home. She was able to smile and laugh without inhibitions, enjoy a good lunch in a place where she could see the meadows bathing with sunlight... and be at peace with him.

She couldn’t help but think. If she were an ordinary person who only aimed to lead a good life and he was just an ordinary man... would life have been easier for them?

She guessed so. But they wouldn’t have met if that was the case. They met because she was a rebel princess and he was a powerful man who could help her. Their fates were tied that way and it would be different if they were living different lives.

"You mean the man we are going to meet who knows where is the elder mage you talked about is the King of Acheron?" After her wonderful lunch, Lauren was shocked at the information Alec just told her.

"Yes. He had his eyes on Anthony because he is useful to him, that’s why King Sebastian knows wherever Anthony is."

Lauren had never seen the King of Acheron. Whenever the royal family of Acheron was invited to Evardin during important occasions, they often refused to attend. Well, she saw the crown prince attended a few ceremonies before but never King Sebastian. Her sisters went to Acheron a few times but she was never allowed to go with them so she had never stepped foot on Acheron’s castle.

"Will we go to the castle? But with the King and Queen of Evardin suddenly visiting Acheron castle, for sure this news would spread. No one is supposed to know we are here, Alec. Vincent is pretending to be you and you cannot be in two places at a time."

"I had it all planned, Lauren. Of course I have thought of that," Alec smirked at her worried face.

She sighed in relief. "Good to hear that."

"That must be the carriage," Alec said at the sound of galloping horses in front of the mansion. "Since we will ask King Sebastian a favor, it is only right we talk to him in person. We can’t just pop in the castle out of nowhere so we can’t use my portal."

Outside, a young man stood unmoving in front of the carriage. When he caught sight of the couple going out of the mansion, he bowed to pay respect.

"I came here by the orders of Master Vincent. I will escort you to the castle, King Alec, Queen Lauren," the man said and stepped aside after opening the carriage.

Alec offered a hand to Lauren as she stepped on the stool. They sat beside each other inside. While they were on the road, Lauren asked,

"Are you a close acquaintance of King Sebastian?" It was a guess. She had heard Alec mention Prince Dimitri’s name casually a few times and he was friends with Vincent. She also heard Alec attended King Sebastian’s birthday celebration months ago.

"If you can meet him in secret and has faith he won’t tell anyone about our visit to the castle, you must be well-acquainted with each other."

"I guess you can say that."

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read