Casually stepping inside the royal palace which was his home, Prince Felix was greeted by dozens of servants and of course, his family.

His mother and father were waiting for him. Even though it had been two months since they last saw his only son, the King and Queen doesn't seem to be pleased.

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It's not that Felix didn't love his parents. He just couldn't understand them. For the royal couple, their reputation always mattered first than their only son feelings. It was the thing that caused a cracked in the family relationship.

He even went to Silveren as the country's Representative for the sake of his father. When the King visited Silveren three years ago, he suffered many attacks and assassination attempts. He didn't want his father to went through such things again. That's why he volunteered to go there in his father's place. But it turned out that he made a very good decision.

"I'm home." He simply said as if it was like other days. Two months yet it doesn't matter that much to him.

"Your flight already landed in the afternoon." The Queen glanced at the wall clock and sighed. "It's already 9 pm and you only greet us now. Son, it's been months since we have a normal chat." Her voice was much calm compared to other days.

Felix remained quiet for a while and then finally sat on the couch opposite to his parents. "I need to catch up with work." He replied with a nonchalant face.

"Felix, you must not be away from the country for that long in the future. We hardly suppressed the media and thanks to that, rumours didn't circulate much. No matter what, you are still the Crown Prince of this country, the one who will take over the throne in the future." King Lawrence Valestra calmly said to his son.

"I know." Felix frowned. "Ever since I was young, you told me that every day. So, even if you don't remind me, it's already engraved in my brain."

"But your actions don't match what you just said." King Lawrence retorted. He tried his best to keep his voice as calm as possible. After all, it had been two months since he last saw his son and he didn't want arguments to take place as soon as he returned.

"I have always tried my best in everything that I have done. I balanced my life as a royal and a businessman perfectly. The people are also satisfied with it. What more do you want from me?" Felix inquired. He was tired of the expectations on him which were growing higher and higher, showing no signs of slowing down.

"Are you really planning to push forward your relationship with that soldier?" The father asked, keenly observing his son's reaction.

"You already know my answer. Why ask me the obvious?" Felix clearly looked at his father, showing no hint of nervousness. "Don't ever think that you can separate me from her. Back then, I was only a young student and a weak lover. But not now, Father. I won't tolerate even a small thing when it comes to her. I had made a mistake once and it won't happen twice."

"Felix, don't..." Queen Nicola was about to throw a fit but her husband holds her back by holding her in the hands. King Lawrence shook his head at his wife as a means of urging her not to start arguments.

The Queen kept her mouth shut and hold back herself. Her husband rarely got in her way and if he ever did, she always tried to listen to him.

Felix was quite taken aback by his father's action but he chose not to comment about it. He sat still with a seemingly nonchalant face.

"I know you hate us for the things that happened in the past. But son, dishing on the past will not give you anything. We must try to live in the present and aim for a better future." The King paused for a while and then added, "No matter what, the living must go on."

Felix finds his father's words so laughable. He could barely resist the urge to laugh. "Do you mean that just because it's all in the past, what you did have been justified? Father, I will move on from the past but... only after I solved the case of Cara. Only by doing that, I can aim for a better future."

The King glanced at his only son who sat just a few feet away from him. But why did he felt like he was miles away from them? He looked so distant and cold to the point where it made him wonder if he was still that same boy he used to know. His teenage son in the past and his mature son sitting there; they had no resemblance at all!

"Four years ago, you locked me up for two weeks when Cara died. It was the most crucial moment for me yet I need to spend that time in my room. You may not know this but during that time, I felt like dying." Felix recalled the horrendous scene which was vividly rooted in his mind.

"The woman I loved died! She was buried without anyone mourning her as if she was a nobody. While I, the only one whom she called a family, was being locked up in a room, unable to do anything for her! Do you even know how excruciating that pain was?"

"Felix -"

"You should be glad that I'm still alive! So, let me warn you. Don't try to involve again in the life of my woman. If that happens, you won't have a son anymore. You know that I always mean what I said."

Felix rose from his seat and turned a blind eye to the drastic change in his parent's expression. He went upstairs and then straight to his room.

The rooms in the royal palace of Edeladon were the size of a big apartment. As such, Felix room was much more huge and lavish than one could imagine. Apart from his parent's room, it was the biggest in the whole palace.

He walked to one corner and sat on the armchair which was next to the fireplace. He leaned backwards and put his arms on the armrest and then covered his eyes with his hands. Being home was the most suffocating thing!

If he was not a member of the royal family, he would have already moved out and lived alone. He will be much comfortable that way.

Being lost in the suffocation of a place called his home, he didn't even hear the sound of the knocking on his room's door. Almost a minute had passed when he was finally aroused by the sound and with a tired voice, he responded, "Come in."

The door was opened and his right-hand man, Cayden made his way to him. He stood beside him and bowed to show his respect to the Crown Prince.

"Your Highness, did you have a safe journey back?" Cayden asked him with a respectful tone.

"Yes. What brings you here? It's already late." Felix asked as he poured himself a glass of whiskey from the table just before him. When he was about to take a sip of the alcohol, he heard the words of his right-hand man.

"Your Highness, drinking too much will ruin your health. You already rely on those drinks for many years."

The glass of whiskey which was about to reach his lips paused at once when he heard Cayden. The man reminded him of Yelena's words.

Before he returned, the woman told him not to drink too much. Though he hardly drank when he was at Silveren, he had once told her that he drank a lot in his room.

During the past years, drinking alone in his room had become a habit. Now that he returned to the same room, he almost forgot about the words of the worried Yelena.

Sitting still for a while with the glass of alcohol at just inch away from his lips, he reluctantly put down the glass on the table and leaned backwards again.

"So, what brings you here?" He repeated himself.

"Prince Alonzo came back yesterday. He said that Lady Gina is still in Silveren and he seems to worry about it. He told me to tell you this as soon as you returned." Cayden informed him.

"Am I Lady Gina's guardian?" Felix scowled. He had many other things to worry but his cousin won't stop giving him troubles. Alonzo was well aware of his ill-fated relationship with the woman! Even though she was a friend of his problematic cousin, she shouldn't be invited to Silveren.

"I apologize, Your Highness. But Prince Alonzo said he was afraid that Lady Gina would cause trouble to your woman."

"If Alonzo knows that, he should have never invited her to the exhibition." Felix clicked his tongue. He paused for a while, wondering what to do. He knows that Yelena was capable enough to protect herself but being careful would bring her no harm.

He looked at Cayden and said, "I got it. Lexus is still in Silveren. I will call him and ask him to keep her in check."

With that said, Cayden left the room and the Prince was all alone again. He narrowed his eyes and stared at the tempting alcohol placed on the table. At this huge room, he always finds it hard to sleep if he didn't get himself drunk.

Barely resisting the urged to take a sip, he ordered the servants to get rid of the alcohol in his room. After the servants did as he said, he opened his fridge and saw that it was good as empty.

"Seems like my nights will be very hard and boring from now on." He said to himself as he helplessly shook his head.....