It was like nothing I had imagined. The prince of Lorain walked in, his listless bearing showing no signs of elegance and charm a royal should have. More so, he gave me the image of a commoner coming into a luxurious bar, completely out of place. Even the way he dressed, unlike us who dressed like nobles, he wore a simple collared shirt under a plain red blazer with light trousers. But he was respectful at least as he stopped, just five feet away in front of father, straightening his back and bowing down respectively as he should when meeting a king of a different kingdom.

"I'm glad you made it here safely," Father spoke politely.

"There was no reason to deny your invitation given the circumstances." The illusion of a commoner withered away with how he spoke, the tone and speech of a prince carried off of him as he spoke. The prince of Lorain's voice is soft and deep. He pulled himself back up, his back remaining straight, and I was a little surprised to see that he was close in height to father who stood a good six feet two. I, as a nine-year-old, only reached the prince's rib cage. How old was he exactly?

"I've prepared a room for you in the palace center. I'll have my head butler teach your attendant the necessary details needed for your stay here." Father informed. The attendant in question kept his head bowed, standing a foot behind to the left of the prince.

The prince of Lorain chuckled. "My father ranted about how amazing your kingdom was the last time he visited. I hope to say the same by the end of my visit."

"I wouldn't know," Mother spoke up, drawing his attention. "His majesty visited during the time of my brothers rule. My brother was an amazing host, but my darling here," She gave a teasing glance to father, "He's the least knowledgeable in entertaining a guest."

I couldn't help the smile that came on my face as I watched father try to hold back retorting. As I looked back to observe the prince again, we were suddenly locking eyes, him observing me as I held my breath in surprise. "So your Prince Eli, the one in need of my assistance."

"Uh..." I suddenly lost all my etiquette training at that moment, unable to form a proper response for a good two seconds. "Yes." I finally answered.

An amused smile lifted the corners of his lips, "You'll be in my care then." His brown bangs fell forward, covering his hazel eyes as he looked down at me. He raised his hands and swept them back as he reverted his attention back to father and mother.

Something was wrong with me. I was paying him too much attention.

Soon, the head butler was called in to guide the prince to his room. Father ordered us back to our own rooms to prepare for dinner with the prince and as father gave me a meaningful glance, and softly patted the top of my head as he passed by me, the warning pit in my chest returned.

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I didn't want to be here, sitting across from the prince of Lorain as we sat around the palaces main dining hall. It's the same dining hall the Dukes had attended for my birthday. The nervousness then didn't compare to now.

"When shall I complete your request?" The prince said as he dabbed his mouth with his napkin. The more I observed him the more I was beginning to see that he was indeed a prince. He used a fork and knife perfectly, he even placed a napkin on his lap before eating. The way he spoke stayed formal.

"I was hoping after dinner," Father said.

"Very well,"

Dinner ended too soon. I gave Izzy a good night kiss on her forehead as I wouldn't see her for the rest of the day and father led me and the Prince towards his office. I looked back and smiled to know Louise followed behind dutifully.

The normalcy of father's office relaxed my nerves as always and I waited by Louise as the Prince eyed the design of the room. "I quite like how you remind yourself of your origin. From commoner to a king of one of the largest kingdoms, I have great respect for you." He said sincerely.

"It was all by chance. I'm lucky,"

The prince smiled amusedly as his eyes found his way back to me. I avoided eye contact, finding them to be too distracting. "Should we begin."