Stolen by the Rebel King
Chapter 488: A Sea Full of Stars

Chapter 488: A Sea Full of Stars

"Where?" Daphne asked suspiciously. "Because there are no festivals for us to tour nor snow to have snowball fights in." She folded her arms across her chest. "Besides, you will definitely have to work a lot harder than a bouquet of flowers and some sweet words."

She couldn’t even tell if Atticus properly understood why she was mad. It seemed like he was trying to sweet talk his way out of things but it wasn’t so simple. Not this time.

"Slowly," Atticus promised. "One step at a time, I will earn your trust again." His hand was still stretched out to her, and he gently — no, cautiously — smiled. "May I?"

Daphne eyes his palm, squinting hard at it before she exhaled. In the end, she raised a hand, gently placing it in his hold. Atticus’s fingers instantly curled around hers, and immediately after their skins touched, Daphne felt a light — and fairly pleasant — jolt of magic course through her. She was lifted off the bed and flew into Atticus’s arms.

He led her to the window, opening them with a flourish to allow them access to the balcony. Then, with her still floating in the air, he elegantly hopped onto the railings before jumping right off― with her hand still in his.

A yelp of surprise ripped from Daphne’s throat as she was tugged down with Atticus, pulled towards the earth due to the power of gravity. However, they didn’t even make it anywhere close to the ground when they were soaring up into the sky, the wind whipping across her face.

Instinctively, she gasped in surprise. The cold night air that nipped at her nose and the wind that sent her hair billowing behind her was just about as refreshing as a bucket of ice-cold water dumped over her skin. Daphne desperately clung onto Atticus, her fingers digging into his arm as she tried to steady herself, not wanting to fall.

When she heard a soft chuckle, Daphne sharply turned her head to glare at the main culprit. She didn’t miss the curve of his lips as he grinned, broad as the moon. Immediately, she wondered if this was his plan all along― to have her so frightened for her safety that she would hang onto him as though her life depended on it.

Atticus definitely noticed the glare that was engraved onto Daphne’s features, for he shook his head and gestured to the skies above.

"As much as I love your attention, don’t look at me, sunshine. Look at the stars!"

Following the direction that Atticus pointed at, Daphne’s jaw dropped when she was met with a sight wondrously enchanting. The night sky was a vast artwork of twinkling jewels that were suspended in the dark velvet expanse above their heads. It was as if the heavens themselves had spilled their secrets, scattering a multitude of shimmering diamonds across the celestial canvas.

Countless stars dotted the darkness, their radiant glow keeping Daphne entranced as she continued to gawk and stare. Amidst the sea of stars, constellations formed intricate patterns, each telling a story as ancient as time itself.

"Look, Daphne! Do you see those stars?" Atticus asked as he pointed at two seemingly random dots in the night sky. "These stars represent The Lovers in the art of astronomy. Isn’t that wonderful?"

"Looks like any other ordinary star to me," she said with a huff.

Instantly, Atticus’s smile crumbled. A sick satisfaction rose in Daphne’s chest even though she knew it was an immature thing to do. But just to revel in it for one second seemed like a fair exchange, especially after all the emotional turmoil he had put her through. She then cleared her throat and pursed her lips.

"I suppose it can be enchanting if there’s a story behind it."

The way Atticus’s face brightened with a smile reminded Daphne of the early days of their relationship. Back then, he was just like tonight― a sea full of stars. He was not the day; Atticus had done too many cruel and ruthless things for him to be as glorious as the morning sun. However, he wasn’t evil to his core, despite the number of times Daphne labeled him as a monster.

That made the star-filled night sky perfect― brilliant spots of light that shimmered in spite of the dark. That was exactly what Atticus was.

Her gut churned with guilt as she thought back to the awful things she said about him.

She understood now, with her mother’s help, why Atticus did what he did. As his queen, she was supposed to support him.

Mature. She had to be mature. Daphne was now the queen of Vramid and the crown princess of Reaweth. Long gone were the days when she could hide behind the mask of a naive princess, tucked away from the world and without knowledge. It was time she grew up.

"Atticus," she started to say, quickly gaining Atticus’s attention.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I hope you understand," she said. "As a person, I find it difficult to forgive you for what you’ve done to my friends."

His face fell once more. Atticus’s range of emotions was starting to be able to rival that of a theater troupe star and it was highly entertaining to watch.

"But as your queen..."

Immediately, his eyes lit up with the stars above when she spoke.

"I am starting to understand why you did what you did," she said. "It’s for the good of your people― sacrifice two people to save what could be the world. It’s a fair exchange. Furthermore, this puts Vramid at an advantage. You might not be planning to use your powers to attack but in the future, other enemy kingdoms will have to think twice before setting their eyes on Vramid."

She sighed and looked at him dead in the eyes, using eye contact to maintain and emphasize the seriousness of their conversation.

"While I question your methods as a man, a friend, and a husband, especially after lying to me and keeping me in the dark, I respect you for your foresight as king." She reached out a hand, wanting to hold his cheek, but caught herself before she could.

Daphne internally scolded herself. What was she thinking? The rift between them hadn’t been fixed yet. Touching him like that would be weird.

However, the searing burn of his hand against her waist was a reminder that they were still connected in more ways than one.

"I can’t say I’ll be able to forgive you immediately, but I can definitely try," Daphne said. Then, it felt as though the old Daphne had returned― quirky, spitfire, and always ready for a challenge. "So why don’t you convince me, Your Majesty?"