Iria Alewine quietly returned to the palace with Prince Orius. The latter was very quiet but she knew that he was trying hard to remain calm. When she saw a secluded wall on the right just before the palace, she brought him there and they both stood behind the wall.

Prince Orius glanced around and after he confirmed that no one was around, he turned back to Iria who was standing opposite him. His rage surged once more. "What do you think you're doing there?!" He snapped, glancing at her with anger.

Just what was making him this angry? Iria didn't understand. "What do you mean?" She confusedly asked.

"If I failed to release my arrow on time, will you just sit there and die? You should do better than that. You should catch the arrow!" Orius howled and Iria finally understood. Was that what made him angry?

"That will raise suspicions and we will be doomed." She argued. "A single arrow won't kill me. I've survived so many shots."

Prince Orius hold his forehead before he roughly put his hand down again. "Don't be ridiculous, Iria. Your father also survived many wars but what killed him was a single arrow from the Qalagons!"

At the mention of her father's death, Iria's face was instantly darkened. She clenched her fist and narrowed her eyes. She was struggling to stay calm!

Orius Aventine realized that he just said what he shouldn't. He had also lost his mother and he knew that he won't be pleased if someone brought up the matter to him. "That wasn't my intention." He said, glancing at the drastic change in Iria's once calm face. He was blinded by rage and he wasn't thinking clear. That made him had a slip of tongue.

"I'm sorry about that." He added.

Iria darted her eyes to the Prince. Did he just... apologized?! Now, the pain and anger she felt were slowly replaced by bewilderment. Receiving an apology from a royal was a rare occurrence. Very rare!

When Orius noticed that Iria was slowly back to her sense, he continued by saying, "My father wants both of us back and alive, remember? Don't put yourself in such a dangerous situation again. I won't be always around to help you or cover for you. If it happens again, I won't sit still.

"Be it Crown Prince Vance Amias or Crown Prince Arin Helev; I won't hesitate to kill anyone if they pose a threat to you. Jerivia cannot lose you." He firmly added.

"What if I get exposed? The price will be high, Your Highness." Iria asked. She was quite amazed by the way Prince Orius talked. It was so unlike him.

"I won't let that happen. Even if it happened by mistake, we will leave this place quietly. We can deal with the aftermath later." He paused and said, "So, remember this. Survival comes first. We can plan for another only if we survive. Don't risk your life again just for not getting exposed."

Before Iria could even respond, the Prince observed their surroundings and said, "Let's go. It won't be good to stay here for long."

Iria nodded and they walked inside the palace. After she entered her chamber, Prince Orius left to continue his duty as a guard.

*

Sitting on a chair, Iria propped up her elbows on the table and braced her palms together. She gave deep thought to what happened and somehow, she had a feeling that Prince Orius in Qalagon was very different from the Prince Orius she knew in Jerivia.

The Prince Orius she knew was a cold and selfish man who never cared about others. He was also never interested in the kingdom affairs and despite his skills and intelligence, he had no interest in working for his kingdom. Even the King failed to persuade him at times and he won't do anything if he wasn't interested. He was the kind of person who never showed kindness or warmth to anyone.

Why did he change so much now that they were in Qalagon?! She didn't understand at all. It seemed like he truly cared about Jerivia and it's the first time Iria Alewine think that way! Why was he so mysterious?

She darted her eyes to the door when it was suddenly opened and Crown Prince Arin walked inside. When his eyes landed on Iria, he quickly made his way to her.

"How are you feeling now?" He asked and sat on another chair beside her.

"I'm fine. It's not like I'm sick." She replied, thinking how he tends to over worry. It didn't suit him at all!

"Why did you return so early?" She asked him.

"I'm bored. That's why." Arin said. He recalled how he couldn't pay attention to anything else after that incident. Feeling troubled, he just returned here so that he can check on her.

Arin slightly smiled and narrowed his eyes at the table. "If Davian didn't save you on time... if you were really shot, I don't know what will I do. You can be heavily injured and in the worst case possible, you might even lose your life." He muttered in a low voice.

"Nothing happened and I'm fine, Your Highness. It's always for the best not to think too much about it." Iria calmly said.

"After losing my mother, I was convinced that it's best to not get too attach to anyone not to be hurt later." He said and turned his head to her. "But I always failed. Even now, I have many people whom I wish to protect not as the Crown Prince, but as Arin Helev."

Iria turned to her and met his gaze. Who were the people he talked about? Once again, she was reminded that she didn't know much about him.

Noticing her confusion, Arin said, "My younger brother, my younger cousin, my friends and now, you are also included. I don't want to see you get hurt."

"I think it's best for you not to get too attach to me." The words escaped her lips before she could even realize! She regretted saying that but it's useless now. When she saw him caring about her too much, she thought of how betrayed he would feel when he knew the truth. The more he felt attached to her, the more betrayed he will feel and she didn't want that. She only wanted to finish everything quietly.

Arin didn't take her words that serious. He still believed that things will become better in the future without even knowing what the exact future had in store for him.

"Do you want to hear my story?" He finally said to her with a little smile. However, his smile slowly faded when he added, "Including my late mother's story."