The Crown's Seduction
Chapter 228: [Bonus - ]His Past

Chapter 228: [Bonus Chapter]His Past

Dani occasionally snuck glances at Abel as they walked out together to leave the Queen Mother’s Residence. Knowing what she did now, she suddenly felt bad for Abel, especially after knowing that he was an abandoned child.

Inevitably, she stopped walking as she finally couldn’t help but whisper, "I’m sorry."

There. She said it. She couldn’t say it a while ago in front of the Queen Mother, but now that they were alone, she somehow found the courage to do so.

Blinking, Abel turned to face her, his brows furrowed as he asked, "Huh?"

"I didn’t know anything," she mumbled as she stared at the ground. "I even brought up your past."

Dani was about to sigh when she felt his hand on her chin, his arm tilting her up so she could face him. To her surprise, he had a playful smile on his face. "Hmm... If only I knew you’d be kinder like this," he chuckled. "I should’ve told you the tragic story of my past earlier."

Dani narrowed her eyes as she ignored his teasing. Despite his words, she was still really interested in knowing more about his past. "Tell me," she told him. "I want to know your story, Abel..."

His expression changed immediately. This time, he was the one blinking at her as if he couldn’t believe what she just said.

"Come on," she casually said as she grabbed him by the hand and dragged him outside. "Tell me more about yourself, Abel."

With Abel right behind her, Dani made sure that he would get away just before she quickly spotted a nearby small pavilion where they could stay. She then asked the servant nearby to get them some snacks before sitting down on a nearby bench.

"Don’t you have work waiting for you?" Abel questioned as she signaled him to sit beside her.

"The Queen is being generous," she nonchalantly replied. "She gave me some time off. Niran will accompany her with Zaila in most of her outside activities for now. In the meantime, I have a wedding to take care of."

Abel looked at her with suspicion in his eyes, his gaze making Dani gulp at how intense it was.

"We’re already husband and wife in the eyes of all Valcrezians, and I don’t want to look like some wife without proper knowledge of her husband," she scoffed. "Don’t you think I’d look pathetic if that happens?"

In truth, she just couldn’t bring herself to tell him how interested she was in him. She was too shy!

"Fine then. First, I’m an abandoned child. Hundred of years ago, a hunter found me inside a basket near the shore. He said I was protected by a spell so no wild animals could get near me, not even him," Abel began as he told her his life story. "Eventually, he called for a sorcerer to break the spell around me since he was getting worried. I kept crying, and he believed I hadn’t eaten a thing for days by that time."

"Oh, so maybe you’re not an abandoned baby," Dani pointed out. "Maybe something happened that forced your parents to leave you. If someone simply abandoned you, they wouldn’t bother putting a protective spell around you."

"I really don’t know, Dani. I tried finding clues to my origins when I grew up since I wanted to find out where I came from and who’s my real family, but there was nothing I could find at all," he explained. " But back to the story, I grew up with Father Bert, the hunter who found me. He took me in as his own son, and we lived in a quiet village quite far from other people since it was up in the mountain of Hydra."

Dani stopped herself from speaking as he looked completely immersed in narrating his story. She wanted to ask some questions, but she decided to simply listen to him instead. By the time it was over, she couldn’t help but feel a bit emotional in the end. It was a tragic story. Abel with his wife and his Father Bert faced bandits somewhere down the line... To think that she wasn’t even aware of how he already had his own family back then.

Abel gritted his teeth as he spoke. "She was carrying our child, and I was so powerless at the time... I failed to protect her."

Dani witnessed how Abel’s body tensed and trembled with each word. She felt bad for him, and even more, she wanted to know all there was about him and his past despite it looking like she had just brought up a painful event in his life.

"I’m so sorry," she apologized as she unknowingly pulled Abel closer so he could lean on her shoulders.

"I’m fine. So many years had already passed, and I already moved on. It’s just that whenever I think of it, I still can’t help but feel disappointed," he shrugged as he whispered, his breath hitting her bare shoulders. "If only I was powerful enough that time. Being a human is so pitiful."

She gulped as his presence began affecting her. Her heart started thumping fast, and she could only bite her lower lip as she tried her best to calm herself. Abel had great senses, and she was sure that he could hear her heart’s erratic beats with them being this close.

A beat passed while they were together, and Abel seemingly had an idea as he moved away from her and looked straight into her eyes. "Dani," he whispered with a frown.

’Oh shoot!’ Dani alarmingly thought the moment she saw his red eyes. They were too tantalizing and dangerous to even stare at.

"You..." he seductively whispered.

Dani held her breath. She already knew what he was about to say. It was definitely about her heartbeat and how much she was being affected by him.

’What’s with his eyes!?’

She felt butterflies fluttering in her stomach with how intense he was staring into her eyes and her lips. Was he going to kiss her right now? She... She felt like her heart would burst any minute now!

She quickly gave him an awkward smile as she steered the situation. "Is there anything that you kept from when you were a baby? Our Seer happens to have the power of seeing the past by touching things," she suggested.

"She could help you... Also, didn’t it cross your mind to look for someone with a clairvoyance ability to see the past through things? So did you keep it? Do you have any thing from when you were a baby? That can be your way to find out your origins!"

She smacked her lips as she waited for his response. When Abel chuckled and shook his head, she finally allowed herself to breathe again.

"You... you have a talent for killing the mood, Dani," he remarked with a loud sigh.

Dani chuckled. "You look like you were ready to eat me, so I had to do something," she snorted. "We’re in a public place after all, and it’s not the time for you to be playful, Chancellor."

She took another deep breath. It was one of her ways to compose herself after being in an awkward atmosphere as she tried to calm her heart.

"Don’t worry. Next time, I’ll take note to eat you in a more private setting," he smirked. "Being playful in a place like that sounds more fun if I’m being quite honest."

’This man!’

Dani’s face turned red from his words as she did her best to stay composed. Meanwhile, Abel simply chuckled as he enjoyed her embarrassment.