Chapter 248: In the King’s Bed

"What do you need to know about the kind of spell binding her soul?" Alec asked Anthony. He was willing to provide anything just to help Lauren.

"I need to return to my place and get some of my things."

Alec nodded and used his portal to transport Anthony. He then instructed Matthias to free the two maids imprisoned in the dungeon. Now that the truth was confirmed, it was clear that those maids didn’t do anything wrong. And they seemed to be friends with Lauren. He didn’t want to upset her.

When he was left alone in the room with Lauren, Alec gently sat beside her, careful not to wake her up from her peaceful slumber.

He stared at her with his eyes clouded with subtle tears.

His hand, slightly trembling, reached out for Lauren’s, and he held her tenderly.

He had been searching for a way to resurrect the dead without using sorcery in the past five years, but he didn’t find anything. He was slowly losing hope day by day, and the urge to resort to dark magic was strong. His sanity was being consumed by his misery.

And now that she was finally here, back to his side, he could hardly believe it.

The fear of losing her again was gripping him so tight, and all he wanted to do was stay by her side and spend eternity with her.

"I’m sorry for not recognizing you sooner, Lauren...I’m so sorry," he whispered while holding her hand and caressing her knuckles with his thumb.

Until the sun had fallen, Alec stayed in his bedroom, watching Lauren without doing anything else.

Matthias didn’t dare bother him and just did the King’s responsibilities on his behalf. He was also joyful that the Queen was finally back, but he wasn’t sure if he could tell anyone yet, so he didn’t speak a word about it. He would wait for the King’s word.

"My apologies, King Andrius, Queen Celeste, but King Alec has urgent matters to attend to, so he won’t be joining you for dinner," said Matthias to Bodeville’s royal family seated in the dining hall.

Princess Iris looked absentminded. She hadn’t told anyone what happened in the dungeon because she was too embarrassed to do so, but she kept thinking about what had transpired, and she couldn’t help but fear King Alec, which she hadn’t felt before. Now she was thinking twice about convincing her father to propose a marriage alliance with Evardin.

"We have no problem with that," King Andrius said, but the subtle sourness on his wife’s face told otherwise. "Duty comes first. Besides, I’m sure he has plenty of time for tomorrow night’s royal banquet."

King Andrius smiled and looked at his eldest daughter. He believed that this good relationship with Evardin would lead to a stronger alliance between the two lands. He was looking forward to marrying off his eldest daughter to Alec.

In the King’s bedroom, Alec was still watching over Lauren when her fingers moved.

Her eyes slowly opened, and when she felt her hand being held by another, she instantly looked at the person sitting by her side.

Lauren jolted, as if startled, and she pulled her hand away from Alec’s.

What happened? Why was she here, and why was the king holding her hand? She looked around and took note of the spacious and grand chamber she was in. She remembered almost being hit by Princess Iris’s whip, but she couldn’t remember anything after that. Perhaps she lost consciousness. But she was a prisoner, wasn’t she?

Seeing Lauren startled and defensive, Alec said, "It’s okay. I won’t harm you."

Lauren was more surprised by Alec’s voice. It was so gentle and soothing, unlike how he talked to her before.

And why was he looking at her like that? It was full of...emotions.

Lifting herself to a sitting position, Lauren subtly scooted away from Alec. Without her memories, Alec was only a king to her. A king she shouldn’t stay too close to, someone she should treat with respect. After all, she was a lowly maid.

"W-why am I here, Your Majesty?" she felt weak, and she couldn’t help the cracking of her voice.

"You lost consciousness, so I brought you here to my bedroom."

In his bedroom! Lauren’s eyes widened. That meant she was in his bed!

She was about to jump off the bed, but Alec quickly stopped her by holding her wrist.

"What are you doing?" he asked with worry.

"This is your bed, you said..." she swallowed hard when she noticed he was leaning too close. "A maid cannot be in the King’s bed," she whispered so low that she could barely hear herself.

"My bed is also yours, Lauren."

She was stunned at how Alec addressed her. To Lauren who had been living as Noelle Davis in the past five years, the name was unfamiliar, and she only knew the name belonged to the late queen of Evardin, who was the king’s dead wife.

She was stunned by how the king had mistaken her for his dead wife yesterday. A lot of things happened, and she even ended up in the castle dungeon. But she couldn’t believe she found herself in the king’s bedroom, with him addressing her with his late wife’s name after everything that transpired.

She had heard rumors about the king’s insanity, but she didn’t expect him to be like this...

But this was better, right? It was better than being killed for pretending to be the queen. She couldn’t be sure.

"Your Majesty—"

"Alec, please."

Lauren was dumbfounded. For her, it was atrocious to address the king by his name.

"You have to understand that you are not Noelle Davis. You lost your memory, Lauren. That’s why you don’t know who you are," he reached out for her hand, and she shuddered under his touch. "But I will make you remember."

Lauren was about to pull her hand away and tell the king that she wasn’t his wife, but all of a sudden, the striking pain she felt earlier in the dungeon came back.

Before she knew it, she was plunged into the pit of endless darkness.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read