The Hidden King's Stolen Wife
Chapter 109: An Uncomfortable Dinner I

Chapter 109: An Uncomfortable Dinner I

Soleia frowned at the curious display of magic, but she still held her breath and focused her energies on the pile of notes sitting on the desk. Her entire room could flood, but she had to save her notes.

A strange power flowed through her veins and once again she felt a burning sensation on her earlobes. Soleia hissed in pain, but she ignored it. She stared, enraptured, as slowly but surely the ice started to melt― no, it wasn’t melting. She watched on in astonishment as the ice seemed to fade away, as though it had never been there to begin with. Her notes were perfectly dry.

How was this possible? Before Soleia could marvel at this shocking reversal of events, she shivered and let out a sneeze.

"Soleia!" Celestina’s voice rang loudly from outside. "Don’t stand inside there― it’s cold!"

"Right, I’m coming out now!" Soleia panicked.

She quickly picked up her skirts and dashed out of her room to meet her sisters. She knew they had their best interests at heart, but her little feat would raise more eyebrows and cause them to ask questions Soleia truly did not want to answer.

No one could know about this ability of hers.

Meanwhile, Bellaflor shot Celestina an unhappy glare as she saw her youngest sister sniff pathetically with a red nose. She patted Soleia’s hair and rubbed her shoulders.

"Look at what you’ve done to poor Soleia. She looks like a clown now, right before dinner! She’s supposed to match her husband, not Florian!"

"It’s not that bad," Soleia protested as they walked to the dining room. "I’ve been through worse."

"It was an accident," Celestina added. "I had no idea what happened! I was just going to create a fancy ice sculpture for you to admire... not turn your room into a freezer."

"Whatever it was, make sure you fix it after dinner," Bellaflor ordered. "I highly doubt Orion Elsher dreams of sleeping in an ice box tonight."

"Yes, Sister," Celestina sighed, before apologizing to Soleia again. "Truly, this is my fault. If your husband is mad at you, direct him my way."

"We’re here," Bellaflor muttered quietly, and their mouths fell silent.

All three sisters straightened their backs and entered the dining hall in an orderly line. They were the latest ones to arrive, and Soleia could spot Florian’s smug face sitting next to her father. Reitan was seated all the way at the end as if he was an afterthought and not the king’s son.

Soleia tried to catch his eyes, but her brother resolutely kept his head down, as though he wanted to disappear. To Soleia’s unpleasant surprise, she was given the seat of honor beside Orion right across from her father, while her sisters sat further down the table. She could feel her stomach churning uncomfortably already.

Orion rose and pulled out her chair for her. He was the only man at the table that did. Soleia’s face flushed in embarrassment, but she did not miss the disgruntled expressions her sisters gave their husbands.

"Thank you," Soleia whispered.

"What happened to your nose?" Orion asked worriedly, raising a hand to her face.

"I’ll tell you later," Soleia said, her cheeks heating up at his casual display of affection. She grabbed his hand to pull it back down. "Let’s eat first."

"Now that we have all assembled, it’s time for dinner," King Godwin said. At his words, servants swarmed to fill the table. Meanwhile, King Godwin reclined on his seat, the very posture of pleased arrogance at Duke Elsher’s behavior.

An uncouth military man was the very image of a gentleman in front of his daughter, a far cry from his brutish behavior from before.

Clearly, his daughter was doing something right― and much better than his other daughters!

Meanwhile, the two princes shot disdainful looks at Orion. How could this commoner man dare to make them look bad in front of their wives? They had to humble him later during the dinner.

The tinkling of cutlery filled the air as everyone dug into their meals. Soleia continued to feel embarrassed as Orion cut a piece of steak to put on her plate, as though she was a child incapable of feeding herself. But the dinner was still pleasant enough since her father was in an extraordinarily good mood.

Then, Prince Deacon broke the fragile peace.

"Duke Elsher, you’re using the wrong knife and fork for the occasion," he said politely, causing everyone’s attention to be drawn to Orion’s hands. True enough, he was using the knife and fork meant for desserts to cut his steak.

Soleia froze; how could she have forgotten to teach Orion about fine dining etiquette? It had completely slipped her mind. Orion stared down at his cutlery and rolled his eyes at the inane rules of high society.

Prince Gilbert sighed. "Brother-in-law, there’s no need to mention such a minor mistake. After all, Duke Elsher has not been raised with our rules."

He seemed to be speaking up for Orion, but Orion wasn’t born yesterday. He knew implied mockery when he heard it, and the back of his ears burned.

That’s why he hated nobles and royalty. Pompous arrogant pricks, all of them. They would not survive a day in his shoes. Orion tightened his grip on the knife and fork, wondering how best to throw them at the offending princes. But a warm hand enveloped his own. He raised his head; the hand belonged to his wife, who was glaring daggers at her sisters’ husbands.

Soleia gritted her teeth, but she plastered a sweet smile at her relatives. For better or worse, Orion was her husband, and she would not tolerate him being picked on for something out of his control.

Only she and Ralph had the right to criticize this stubborn man!

"Thank you for your instruction, but the knife and fork work just fine for my husband," Soleia said. "After all, he is entirely capable of cutting down hordes of invaders with nothing more than a sword, how can he possibly be troubled by a piece of steak? Perhaps if we were eating dragon meat..." Soleia’s voice trailed off deliberately.