Elysium: Desired by the Cold-hearted Princess [GL]
Chapter 183 183: Hunter's girlfriend

Electra's POV

I stared at Iris, my mind still racing to process what she had just said. The name 'Hunter' had rolled off her tongue so casually, like it was nothing out of the ordinary, but to me, it was everything.

Hunter Vale, the brother I never knew existed at all until this life, was dating Iris, of all people? To think that both of them didn't even exist in my real life, and for some reason, in this one, they were connected, was messing with my mind way more than I'd like to admit.

This universe must really love playing stupid jokes on me.

It took every ounce of self-control to keep my face neutral as I forced myself to respond. "Hunter Vale?" I repeated, trying to sound nonchalant. "A prince of Elmeria?"

Iris tilted her head slightly, a surprised smile spreading across her face. "Yeah, Hunter Vale. Wow, how did you guess so quickly? I didn't think you'd know much about Elmerian royalty since you're from Aldoria."

Forcing a smile, I nodded, hoping she didn't notice the tightness in my expression. "Oh, I've… heard about him," I said, keeping my tone as light as possible. "His sister mentioned him in passing."

"Ah, of course," Iris said, her expression softening as she laughed lightly. "Sometimes I forget Seraphina Vale is his sister. She's so different from him. Anyway, I'd appreciate it if you didn't mention anything about this to her. I don't think she knows Hunter is dating someone at Elysium, and well… you and Seraphina seem kind of close."

My mind was in shambles, but I managed a calm nod. "Of course. I wouldn't say anything." The words felt foreign, almost robotic, as they left my lips.

Iris smiled, clearly relieved. "Thank you. You're really sweet, Electra."

Sweet? I didn't feel sweet. I felt like I was trapped in some twisted, surreal nightmare.

Still trying to piece everything together, I blurted out the first question that popped into my mind.

"I'm just curious," I began, keeping my voice as steady as I could, "how did you and Hunter even start dating? I mean, you mentioned you've never been to Elmeria before transferring to Elysium. How did you even meet him?"

Iris chuckled shyly and began her explanation, and I felt my brain struggling to process what I was hearing.

"Well, about a year ago," she began, "Hunter Vale was in my kingdom, and we met by chance and started talking. At first, I didn't know he was a prince, but we kept in touch, and even when he returned to Elmeria, we continued talking. One thing led to another... and, well, he became my boyfriend."

I blinked, still struggling to believe that this was actually happening. It felt like a joke, but the shy smile on Iris's face said otherwise.

"So..." I began, my tone laced with skepticism. "Did you lie to us about your father being the one who told you to come to Elysium? Were you actually the one who convinced him to let you come here?"

Iris hesitated, now fiddling with the hem of her jacket, before meeting my gaze with an apologetic expression. "I'm sorry I lied before," she said softly. "I didn't know you or Yuna very well, and I didn't think it was necessary to tell you the truth. And yes, I did convince my father to let me come to Elysium because I wanted to be closer to Hunter."

For a moment, I just stared at her, unable to respond. Then I let out a short, fake chuckle. "Wow. You're definitely not as innocent as I thought you were. I could have sworn you were some innocent little girl, but I guess I was wrong."

Iris shrugged, a faint smile tugging at her lips. "You assumed I was innocent because I'm quiet and naturally shy. I never said I was."

Her response threw me off more than I cared to admit. I had pegged Iris as a shy, sweet, and harmless girl, but now I was starting to see there was much more to her than I had initially thought, and the possibility that she might be way more important in this life than I expected crossed my mind.

"So, let me get this straight," I said, crossing my arms. "You've been dating Hunter for over a year, and you convinced your father to send you to Elysium so you could be closer to him, and in all this time, you've managed to keep this whole thing under wraps. Are you planning on telling Yuna about this as well? Maybe if you tell her, she'd stop trying to set us up."

Iris shook her head quickly. "No. I haven't told anyone about Hunter, and I don't think I'll be telling Yuna. She seems to talk too much sometimes, and I don't want people to find out about Hunter and me and start treating me differently because of who he is. It's hard enough trying to blend in here, and I definitely don't need everyone finding out I'm dating a prince."

I raised an eyebrow at her. "Blend in? You're dating literal royalty, Iris. Whether you like it or not, as long as you two keep going out, the world is going to find out, so you might as well start preparing yourself for it."

She sighed, her expression thoughtful. "I know, but... I like being seen as just Iris, or better still, I like not being seen by people I don't care about. I don't want a situation where I'd become 'Hunter Vale's girlfriend' or some girl who's chasing a prince for status. That's not who I am, and it's definitely not who I want to become."

I couldn't help but smirk. "Well, you've certainly been doing a good job of keeping it hidden, so if you want to continue, please go ahead. I personally had no idea you were capable of this level of stealth, but keep it up for as long as you can."

Iris laughed softly. "It's not stealth, my dear. I'm just private about my personal life. Also, the only time I'd want anyone to know is when Hunter is announced as the Crown Prince. That way, I'll be seen as the Crown Princess and the future queen of Elmeria," she added, and just when I thought I couldn't hear anything more shocking from her, she proved me wrong.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.