The Cursed Prince

Emmelyn smiled when the prince whispered to her ear that it was time for them to dance.

She remembered in the last ball they could only dance in private, on the terrace. Ahh... it's so good to dance with him again, this time in public.

It's not that she didn't like dancing with him away from other people.? It was good too, and it was solemn.

However, tonight, she wanted those 'sharks' or ladies who all set their eyes on the crown prince and wanted to snatch him away from her, to see that Mars was hers and only hers, even though Mars didn't formally announce their relationship.

Normally, Emmelyn wouldn't really care about how other people see her. She liked to be unassuming.

However, lately, her pregnancy hormones really made her feel easily irritated and insecure. She needed to have this moment, with him, before the public eyes, to get her feeling of security back.

She hated this feeling, but she couldn't help it. Fortunately, Mars was very understanding and he accommodated her needs.

Mars took her hand and they walked gracefully toward the center of the ballroom, while the musicians were playing a really famous song about love that bloomed in spring.

Everyone seemed to freeze in their spot, all eyes on the beautiful couple. Some people admired them, some felt envious, but none of them could deny how these two humans looked so good together.

Mars and Emmelyn danced to the tune and didn't really notice everyone else. The man's eyes were only on the beautiful girl in his arms, and so did hers.

"I am so happy tonight," Mars whispered to her ear. "I can finally dance with you in public."

Emmelyn smiled and nodded. She was happy too.

Ahh.. those tears and annoyance that she felt earlier today now didn't seem relevant anymore. They dance to the tune as their bodies adjusted to each other perfectly.

"I love you," Mars had to hold back not to kiss her when the song ended. Gosh.. how much he wanted to formalize their relationship, so he could do whatever he wanted to her in public.

"I love you too," Emmelyn responded with a barely audible voice as she was worried people would hear them. The second song had started and now, one by one, couples started joining them on the dance floor.

They continued dancing throughout the second song. Edgar had joined in with a beautiful girl that Mars recognized as one of the daughters of a marquis from the capital.

His friend was all smiles as the girl chattered in his ears. Mars believed the man only pretended to hear her.

On the contrary, his other friend, Gewen looked sour. He still didn't want to dance with anyone, since his mother was present. He didn't want to be forced to marry any girl he took for a dance.

The royal ball attendees were having fun and enjoying the music and the dance, led by the crown prince and his date. Queen Elara and King Jared exchanged glances several times with smiles on their lips.

Finally, they felt like a normal family, seeing their only son enjoying life like most men his age. For decades they didn't know that this moment would finally come.

Finally, the second song ended and all couples separated themselves from their partners. Mars let go of Emmelyn from his embrace and stepped back. Emmelyn curtseyed to him while the prince nodded and smiled.

He stood upright and cast his glance around the room, observing the faces and expressions of the people attending the royal ball.

These were the Draec's high nobility. The wealthiest and most powerful Lords. Dukes, and Marquis with their families. They all served the royal family. Soon, after his father abdicated, Mars would be the one to lead all these people.

Everything he did and said would be scrutinized by them. He realized that not all of them were loyal to his family. Some were plotting to take over power and they were ready to seize any opportunities to get rid of him.

This was something that he had faced since he was a teenager. The prince realized, they were the reason why he was so desperate to get heirs so he could secure his family's succession.

Feeling desperate, he made the mistake of asking Ellena to be his nominal wife and planned to adopt one of his nephews to be his heir.

It was something that he hadn't been able to rectify, since it was related to Ellena and how close was her relationship with the damn witch.

It was also the reason why he couldn't publicly announce his love for Emmelyn and that they would soon welcome their first child together, the heir to the throne.

"Good evening everyone. Thank you for coming to the royal ball," he started speaking with a firm and pleasant voice. "I would like to welcome you on behalf of the royal family."

Many girls shrieked and giggled when they heard him. The crown prince almost never talked in public events like this. They didn't know his voice was so pleasant to the ear.

Now that they no longer had to stay far away from him, they could also see how good-looking the man was.

Yes, he had that reputation as the devil incarnate for being fierce and ruthless, but now that they saw him from up close, they thought he actually looked like an angel.

Ohh.. he was so handsome, so confident and imposing. Wasn't his mother half-elf? No wonder he looked a bit like an elf himself.

Those mythical creatures were living in a different realm than humans and one must be really lucky to see them.

So, when they saw him in person, a man with an elf bloodline, the girls felt lucky too.

They could imagine who beautiful his children would be. The women in the ballroom wished they could win his heart and give birth to his offsprings.

It would be a dream come true.

However, they could only keep the desire to themselves, as they knew many other women in the ballroom were thinking the same thing.

"My mother loves festivities and she always finds ways to celebrate everything worth celebrating to lift up the mood and make people happy. Tonight we are celebrating the first day of spring. The winter is behind us and from tomorrow, we will enjoy the flowers bloom, the crops, and so many other beautiful things," Mars continued his words. "I would like to drink to that."

He motioned to John to bring him wine and the butler readily complied.

When John came with a tray and two cups of wine, Mars took one cup and gave it to Emmelyn, and took the other one for himself. He led the people to raise their cups and celebrate the occasion.

"I would also like to introduce my date for the night. She is Princess Emmelyn from a faraway land. She is here on an official visit and I have been showing her the beauty of our kingdom. Please welcome, Princess Emmelyn, everyone." He raised his cup, followed by everyone.

They all drank to her.? Emmelyn smiled and raised her own cup. She took a sip of her wine and put down her cup.

"Thank you," she said with her melodious voice. "It is a pleasure to be here and receive the hospitality shown by the royal family. I am grateful."

It was perfect, she thought. Mars introduced her as some princess from a vague land. People wouldn't ask too many questions.

She realized that the prince intentionally called her a princess in front of everyone so that those other women in the ballroom wouldn't look down on her.

Except for the maids and servants, all present in the royal gala were the people from this kingdom's most wealthy and powerful families.

They would think they were all? better than her if Mars only mentioned her as some lady from another kingdom.

Most other kingdoms on the Terra continent were colonized by Draec, which would make the nobles from those kingdoms at a lower status than the nobles from Draec's capital.

"I wonder why His Highness didn't just introduce Lady Emmelyn as who she is," Lady Athibaud commented to Gewen. "She is from Glendale, right? Why make it vague and called her a princess?"

Gewen only shrugged at his mother's question. "He must have his own reasons, mother."

"Yeah.. but I am curious." Lady Athibaud pursed her lips. She tilted her head to see past Gewen, so she could get a better look at the crown prince and Emmelyn.

However, her eyes suddenly noticed the main entrance was opened and two people stepped inside. She quickly nudged her son. "Gewen, isn't that Ellena? Do you know the man who is coming with her?"

Gewen turned his head in the direction his mother referred to. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the man walking beside Ellena. The man somehow looked familiar, however, he couldn't remember who he was.

At the same time, Emmelyn motioned a servant to take her cup from her. She was feeling tired after standing and dancing for two songs in a row. She wanted to go back to her seat.

Right at that moment, her eyes had caught sight of the man walking together with Ellena through the ballroom entrance.

Suddenly Emmelyn was frozen in her spot. She couldn't believe what she saw.

She had not seen the man for over two years... but she could never forget her own brother.

Her brother was still alive????