Luana's birthday came. The weather was very cold, a proof that it was going to snow in the next few days. The young princess went out early in the morning with her father to go to the rose garden in the backyard of the castle, where the late empress's grave was.

Once arrived there, Luana knelt in front of the gravestone and caressed it gently.

she said, smiling sadly.

The princess put a bouquet of red and white roses that she brought with her on the ground.

Arthur knelt beside her as he pulled her closer to him by the shoulder.

he said with a heartbroken smile.

He stroked the gravestone gently.

he said, coughing very hard.

Luana asked, worried.

he cough again.

he replied, smiling slightly.

she said, standing up.

he replied, doing the same.

As she walked away, Luana turned around to look at the grave one last time.

she whispered, a small smile on her face.

Then, they returned to the palace together, hand in hand.

══════ ∘◦❁◦∘ ══════

Once back to her room, Luana took a long hot bath. When she finished, she stood in front of her wardrobe to choose her outfit for the evening.

'What should I wear for tonight ? I feel like putting on something simple but pretty,' she thought.

She was pulled out of her thoughts when she heard someone knocking on the door.

she ordered.

Agnes Purcell, her personal maid, entered the room, a big package in her arms.

she said, bowing.

asked the princess while taking the package from maid's arms.

she said, smiling softly.

Agnes said before stepping out of the room.

Luana put the large, beautifully wrapped package on her table and took the little card that came with it to read it.

┌─────── ∘◦❁◦∘ ───────┐

Happy birthday to the most

beautiful princess in the

world.

I hope that you'll like this

little gift.

Your dear dad.

└─────── ∘◦❁◦∘ ───────┘

She smiled affectionately at those words before putting the small card on the table and opening the package to discover its contents.

she whispered, smiling happily.

══════ ∘◦❁◦∘ ══════

In the evening, all the guests gathered in the main hall. The orchestra was playing soft music to match the warm and cozy atmosphere.

After a few minutes of waiting, the emperor and his daughter made their entrance under the dazzled eyes of the guests.

The princess was magnificent. She was wearing a very beautiful light blue, off-shoulder dress with transparent large sleeves that were adorned with pretty little white flowers. She also wore pretty high heels that matched the dress, a pretty white choker necklace and small earrings. As for her long wavy black hair, it was styled half up and half down.

Arthur whispered to his daughter, smiling.

she replied, smiling back.

he said apologetically while coughing.

she whispered, not completely convinced.

he added, smiling.

he exclaimed seriously.

Luana chuckled slightly at his reaction.

she asked curiously.

Arthur answered, looking straight ahead, smiling.

Luana looked in the direction her father was looking at to meet the gaze of Captain Koraxos who was walking slowly and elegantly towards them. She felt her heart skip a beat.

Sir Koraxos was dressed in a formal attire which consisted of a white top with black and golden details, black pants, a long jacket the same color as the top, and a pair of black boots.

Once in front of them, the young knight bowed in greetings.

replied Arthur, smiling at him.

Lucas turned his head to look at Luana as he bowed to her while offering her his glove covered hand.

Luana looked back at him, blushing slightly. She hesitantly accepted his hand.

.

Arthur left them together as he went to sit on the throne. The princess and her bodyguard made their way to the center of the room, hand in hand.

Then, they faced each other. Lucas was a very tall man. The young princess barely reached his neck, even with her high heels.

The knight put his free hand on her waist while she putted her right one on his left shoulder. And then, the music began again.

The two young people danced gracefully together under the amazed gazes of the guests. Their moves were so smooth as if it wasn't their first time dancing.

Lucas didn't take his eyes off Luana. On the other hand, the princess was avoiding his gaze completely.

A few minutes later, the guests joined the dancefloor with their partners as they all danced in synchronisation with the princess and her bodyguard.

The latter saw her best friend smiling at her in the distance. Azusa was wearing a very beautiful pale pink, off-shoulder dress with long silky sleeves, a pair of high heels that were the same color as the dress and some small pretty pearl jewelry. As for her hair, it was styled in a very elegant low bun.

The princess saw Sir Carter approaching the girl slowly, his cheeks slightly red. He was very elegant too with his formal attire which consisted of a black shirt with white pants, a long red jacket and a pair of black boots.

He bowed to the young lady and asked her to dance with him by giving her his hand that she accepted right away, blushing slightly.

Seeing the cute scene unfold before her eyes, the young princess couldn't help but chuckle lightly.

Lucas asked, confused.

she replied, smiling absent-mindedly.

She's so cute, he thought, smiling slightly.

After a few minutes, they stopped dancing. The young knight faced the princess and looked her in the eyes.

he said, kissing the back of her hand.

she replied, blushing slightly.

he added, a small smile on his face.

she replied, smiling back.

They stood there, staring at each other for a while without saying anything.

she said before leaving.

he replied, bowing to her.

After that, the guests congratulated the princess on her birthday one by one. Then, it was the turn of Duchess Lobelia who took the princess in her arms, hugging her tightly.

she said with a big smile.

the young girl replied, smiling back.

she remarked, looking at her with a nostalgic smile on her face.

she replied with rosy cheeks.

she asked.

she replied, giving her two small packages.

Luana said, hugging her tightly.

she added with a soft smile.

After that, all the guests sat down to have dinner together.

══════ ∘◦❁◦∘ ══════

Later that evening, another guest, dressed all in black, entered the main hall and walked over to the emperor who was standing beside his daughter, talking to her.

he greeted, bowing to them.

Arthur replied curtly.

The duke turned to the princess and smiled to her. There was something evil and dishonest about his gaze that made the young girl uncomfortable.

she replied with a forced smile.

he retorted with a smirk.

asked the emperor harshly.

he said, pretending to be sad.

Arthur replied coldly.

Luana said apologetically to her father.

Arthur tried to call her.

The young princess left the main hall hurriedly, not looking back.

exclaimed the emperor angrily.

said the emperor, enraged before leaving the room and following his daughter.

The duke remained standing alone, smirking evilly. The guests around him hadn't noticed what had happened because of the loud music.

someone called him from behind.

When the man turned around, he saw Captain Koraxos staring at him coldly.

he said with a smirk.

he ordered.

The duke burst out laughing maniacally.

he said mockingly.

he replied with a menacing gaze.

he asked angrily.

The young man approached him slowly and whispered in his ear.

he said coldly.

The duke trembled at the captain's words as his face went pale. Without saying another word, he left the main hall hastily.

══════ ∘◦❁◦∘ ══════

Arthur asked gently.

He was in front of the young princess's bedroom's door, a painful expression on his face. He kept on knocking without getting an answer.

A few seconds later, the girl opened the door slowly, her cheeks strained with tears. Upon seeing her dad, she threw herself into his arms, in tears.

he called painfully as he caressed her head.

she said, sobbing hard.

he whispered to her, stroking her hair gently.

After that, he put her to bed and waited until she fell asleep to leave.

══════ ∘◦❁◦∘ ══════

In the middle of the night, Luana woke up from her sleep when she heard a noise coming from the balcony. There was someone there.

She walked over to the patio door carefully and opened it to go out to the terrace.

To her surprise, she saw no one. But she noticed a small wrapped box that was put on the small glass table.

She took it and opened it to find a pretty music box with a small note.

┌─────── ∘◦❁◦∘ ───────┐

I wanted to give you

this earlier, but I didn't have

a chance to do so.

Once again, I wish you

a happy birthday,

Your Highness.

Your faithful servitor,

Lucas Koraxos.

└─────── ∘◦❁◦∘ ───────┘

The young princess smiled happily as she read those words. Then, she walked back into her bedroom and put the music box on her nightstand before going back to bed.

she whispered, smiling before going to sleep.