The King's Lover-Chapter 441: Just Curious

Rylen walked with purpose down the hallway as he made his way to the crown prince’s study. They had barely had any conversations recently; things between them were still strained.

Rylen wasn’t eager to change this. He found that he still held resentment against Caius for his treatment of Caira, but at the same time, a small part of him was grateful for his neglect—a small part that he was selfishly allowing to grow.

Rylen knew exactly what he was doing. At first, there hadn’t been any intention behind his actions toward the princess, but now he would be lying if he said that hadn’t changed.

He didn’t need to go see her in the library and he could easily put distance between them as she was handling the crown prince’s rejection fairly well.

At first, he had thought his cousin was the only thing she cared about and that his acceptance of her was quite important. However, he was quick to discover that wasn’t completely the case.

She never spoke about Caius since the incident, but she also hadn’t spoken about how she felt. Rylen would have been worried, but she truly didn’t seem as bothered as she had been that night in the gardens.

Rylen found that he was in a dilemma. He didn’t know what his cousin’s plan was, and he didn’t know how Caius would turn this situation around. He was glad Caius didn’t want the princess, but they both knew his avoidant tactic wouldn’t work forever—and Rylen didn’t even realize he was thinking of a way to keep them apart.

He wanted this situation to remain the same. It was hard to picture the crown prince acting like the perfect husband but what was even harder was ignoring his reaction to it. Rylen told himself that it was because Caius didn’t deserve her, not because he had ulterior motives.

He knocked twice and tried to shove his thoughts of the princess down; something else was happening. Something that might change a lot of things.

"Come in," a muffled voice said.

Rylen turned the handle and walked into his cousin’s private study to see Caius at his desk with a mountain of documents to go through. Rylen couldn’t deny that the crown prince took his work seriously, especially since it was hard to get a hold of after dinner. Rylen didn’t let his thoughts drift towards his suspicions in that regard.

"What do you want, Rylen?" Caius asked without looking up as he sealed a document.

"Your Highness—"

"Save the pleasantries. State your case."

Rylen frowned. If he weren’t more engrossed in his own thoughts, he would have said the crown prince was in a chipper mood. It was hard to say exactly why he thought so but he had spent enough time in his cousin’s presence to know the differences in his moods.

"Your father," Rylen started.

Caius’s hand froze mid-air, and he finally raised his head to look at him. His nostrils flared as he leaned back in his chair, dropping the seal on the table with a soft clang.

"What about him?"

"His condition has worsened. I’m sure you have heard the news?"

Caius scoffed and returned his attention to the table. "To call it news is pretty far-fetched. The old man will live forever. If I could kill him, I would."

"Don’t speak lightly of your father dying."

"I am confused—is that why you’re here? If you don’t have anything better to do, perhaps you’d take care of these instead of leaving them on my desk. You’re hard to get a hold of these days."

Caius lifted his eyes and peered at his cousin, resting his elbows on the table. His face looked serious, his aura threatening, and it was pretty clear he didn’t want to discuss the matter.

"No," Rylen whispered. "There have been a few letters. The lords want another council meeting, and they aren’t very pleased about your refusal to attack Galdoris. They believe we are likely to get another attack soon if we do not retaliate."

Caius rubbed his temples. "Perhaps if they paid more attention to their own towns, they wouldn’t be so worried about wars."

He scoffed and turned his attention to the table, clearly dismissing Rylen.

"What shall I say to them, then, Your Grace?"

"Absolutely nothing, Rylen. They already know my decision on the matter. Now, if you have nothing better to say, shoo."

"I have one more thing," Rylen said and took a step forward.

"Go on," Caius said without lifting his head.

"The Princess," he mumbled. "What’s your plan with her?"

Caius paused once again, giving Rylen his full attention. His face hardened. "I don’t see how that is any of your business."

"You’re right. I apologize," Rylen said with a bow and took a step back.

He had no idea why he had asked that, but he wanted to know something. It was pretty obvious the crown prince had no plans to lie with her, but Rylen was almost certain he had other plans.

However, he wasn’t quite sure what they were. Caius couldn’t annul the marriage yet, only because the king wouldn’t allow it. But what if...

Caius might say otherwise, but there was no hiding the fact that the king was barely hanging on. It was one of the reasons the Queen had been able to convince her husband to force Caius’s hand.

Still, he knew Caius was not the type of person to play a game of chance; he was usually convinced before he made any decision. Considering how easily he had gone along with the marriage was a little suspicious to Rylen, regardless of the king’s wish.

He could feel the crown prince’s gaze on his back as he left the study. Rylen was certain his last question must have put the crown prince on guard, but he needed to know.

Rylen told himself he was just curious—that Caius wasn’t good enough for the princess, and it wasn’t just for himself. He wanted to know that she wasn’t in a situation that would only get worse for her.