Chapter 15: Return to the Imperial City

*Was it all a lie?*
It couldn’t be. There had to be something wrong with the situation. Adolph never married after losing his late wife. She remembered being a young girl and hearing about his great love story. She remembered wanting such an undying love for herself.
People still talked about their romance like a fairytale: the handsome young king meeting a young noblewoman on his way to training and falling in love at first sight.
Sure, the king of the fairytale was in the midst of war and was honor-bound to leave the Imperial City, the noblewoman waited faithfully for her beloved to return. Laurel remembered stories of her going to the border to see him despite the danger. They had been married at the border before he’d sent her back to the Imperial City for her safety
The entire kingdom had mourned their separation and their story had added to the hatred of the vampires. When the late luna had died giving birth to Basil, the people wept in the streets and the king had refused every suggestion from his ministers to get another wife. She’d been told he could never love again. She’d been told that no one could take that woman’s place in his life, in the kingdom, or his heart. Looking back, she was sure that this story of his parents had contributed to Basil’s disdain for her and finding a luna.
Maybe he saw her as spoiling that love story, besmirching the place where his mother had once stood with her low status and her beliefs.
But how much of that love story was true?
Was there such a thing as fairytale love in the real world?
Her heart ached and her chest grew tight as if a vice was squeezing it. Was there such a thing as a faithful man in the world? Maybe she was simply unlucky enough to never have met one. She certainly had her fill of lecherous men for a lifetime.
She scoffed. Basil was the most annoying man she had ever known, yet he was related to the man of her youthful fantasies: strong, loyal, faithful, and deeply in love. Somehow, learning that they weren’t mates only made their romance seem more beautiful and Laura’s life more pitiful.
Adolph and his late wife had loved each other faithfully, why hadn’t she been given that same chance?
She supposed fairytales were only meant for royals and nobles.
Alice scoffed, *You’re not funny. Our mate is better than a fairytale*.
Laurel rolled her eyes. The whole point of a fairytale was that it was the most idyllic version of life. There was no such thing as better than a fairytale.
*He’s real.* Alice quipped. *That makes him better.*
The thought drew her up short, and she pushed it away to go see Sam. She would have to worry about her relationship with Adolph, fairy tales, and everything else later.

******
The army packed up and continued on the path towards the Imperial City. The more of the surroundings she recognized, the more anxious she grew. The night before they were to arrive in the Imperial City, Laurel didn’t sleep. She was dead on her feet in the morning, falling asleep in her meal and shuffling after the soldiers with dark circles under her eyes.
“You look exhausted,” Chasel said. She lifted her gaze to look at him blearily. He gave her a kind smile and dismounted. “I’d offer to put you on my horse, but you’d probably fall asleep and fall off!”
“I’m fine, really.”
“I’ll look after you. His Majesty must enter on a horse and he’d have all of our heads if something were to happen to you.”
She thought of Daniel’s shriek of pain and the scent of blood. Then, the sight of the vampire slave’s body sprawled in the dirt flashed through her mind.
“... Thank you.”
Chasel nodded, walking along beside her with the reins of his horse in his hand. They walked quietly for a while before Sam neared her with a small smile of gratitude. She smiled back at him. He looked much better now, calmer. It made her feel a little lighter. She had done something worthwhile. It made her stand a bit taller. She almost felt some of the pride she’d had as Laura.
It was almost enough to push her anxiety to the corners of her mind.
The people of the Imperial City pushed in close and crowded the streets as they entered the city. They cheered the procession with drums and screaming, throwing garlands and bouquets from the balconies. Soldiers broke off to greet their loved ones as they marched and Adolph’s gaze remained focused on the castle ahead of them.
The Imperial City had not changed much from the last time she had been there as Laura. She knew the main road didn’t lead past the hospital she’d established, but she could smell the orchard behind Cynthia Castle and reminded herself that she wasn’t Laura any longer. She would only be in the city long enough to figure out who had killed her and get justice.
She just had to stay focused on that goal and not worry about anything else.
Laurel’s head pounded at the noise and the thick scent of the flowers being thrown over the parade. There were so many petals in the air it looked like it was snowing flowers and her hair was covered in them.
Still, it was hard to be too upset. In her three years as luna, she had never seen such a lively scene. Adolph’s aura wasn’t enough to make the people calm down, overjoyed that he’d returned.
Despite his reputation, the people seemed to think he was a good king. At the very least, she knew his ability to handle political machinations was better than Basil’s and that made her relax a bit.
Adolph’s bright red cloak fluttered in the breeze and she smiled. Slowly, she walked faster to walk closer to where Adolph was in the procession.
A bouquet of roses soared into the air and he caught them. Laurel tracked where they came from and saw the over-excited woman with a pretty face, screaming his name and clapping in joy. Adolph bent his head and smelled them before giving the woman a small smile and nod of acknowledgment.
Alice growled and Laurel winced at the sharp prick of pain in her chest. She looked away and walked faster so she walked closer to the front of the procession, so she wouldn’t have to see him any longer. Chasel and Sam kept pace with her.
The procession thinned out as they approached the gates of Cynthia Castle. Standing on the steps of the castle, Basil stood just as handsome as ever, dressed in a fine blue and gold suit that made his eyes seem as blue as the sky. She lowered her head as she felt herself sneering at him.
Her heart clenched in agony and hatred. How dare he look so happy when she had died? Did he grieve for her at all?
Seeing him there to greet Adolph’s return with all the nobles who had sneered and scorned her made her clench her hand with fury.
Gavin was there just beside Basil with his usual sneer and superior smirk. She hadn’t liked him as Laura, but now she loathed him. Another noble was nearby. She didn’t remember his name, but she remembered he was just as money-hungry as Gavin and the rest of the nobles.
The head maid, Tina, had been Basil’s nanny and she stood off to the side with the rest of the servants. She had been a mean-spirited woman in Laura’s life and held no kindness for anyone except for Basil.
Then, she saw Delia. She almost didn’t recognize her wearing the circlet of jewels on her brow and dressed in the finest silk gown Laurel had ever seen. She was far more beautiful dressed as a courtier as if she had been born to be a noblewoman. Laurel doubted she had ever looked so a part of the noble class no matter what she had worn in her past life. She wondered briefly what they had done with all of her possessions after she died.
Laurel stepped behind a taller soldier. She felt a bit foolish as she was no longer Laura, but it gave her a bit of time to collect herself.
It didn’t matter anyway. The nobles, the servants, Basil, and Delia’s attention were on Adolph.
Adolph dismounted and walked up the steps. Basil looked ecstatic, his eyes sparkling as he greeted his father. Adolph seemed subdued, but his tone seemed gentle. He embraced his son briefly, and they exchanged words.
Basil laughed. She didn’t remember him ever being so happy. It was enough to make her blood burn and her stomach turn. She focused on her purpose for coming to the Imperial City and tried to block out everything else.
Then, Basil’s voice rang out above the noise, breaking Laurel’s concentration.
“I'm so glad you came back in time, father! Any later and you might have missed my wedding!”