The Veil of Darkness
Chapter 176: Prophecy and Secrets

Chapter 176: Prophecy and Secrets

"Your Highness, His Majesty is waiting for you in his study. Please this way." The Chief of the Royal Palace guards received Annalise at the entrance of the Royal Court once her arrival was announced to the King.

She turned to look at Sera before she spoke, "Wait here for me, I’ll return after meeting His Majesty."

The girl nodded her head in understanding before she walked out into the garden next to the Court to sit there and wait for Annalise to return as soon as she would finish her meeting with the King.

Annalise followed the chief guard as he led her to the Royal Study where the King was waiting for her. Entering the spacious and brightly lit chamber, she noticed how everything was exactly how she recalled from her memories.

"Your Majesty." She greeted the King and performed a proper courtesy before finally looking up and fixing her gaze on the man who was sitting at the desk with some official documents covering the surface of the desk.

"Annalise, come here and take a seat." The King offered with a big and warm smile on his face as he closed the document he was reading and put it aside while turning his full attention to Annalise.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Annalise said politely before she moved forward and took a seat around the desk on the right-hand side of the King. "My husband informed me that you wanted to see me. Is there something important going on, Your Majesty?" She didn’t beat around the bush and just asked the question straightforwardly.

The smile on the King’s lips faltered slightly and his expressions became serious as he spoke, "There is indeed something important that I need to discuss with you. If I didn’t explain it now, I’m not sure if you will still stand by our side in the future."

Annalise found it hard to understand exactly what he was trying to say through those words but she waited patiently for him to continue and explain exactly what was going on.

"Have you ever considered yourself special, Annalise?" The King suddenly asked, leaving Annalise baffled for a second as she looked at the King with confusion coloring her deep ocean eyes. "Pardon, Your Majesty, but I didn’t get what you are trying to say."

She could feel her heartbeats picking up their speed as she kind of realized the direction of their conversation. Was she finally about to learn something about the secrets that surrounded her? She wasn’t sure if she really wanted to know or not. Such revelations always came with prices and she wasn’t sure if she was ready to pay them.

The King let out a small sigh before he spoke again, "I just want you to know that you are someone really special, Annalise. Exactly why? I don’t know. All that I know is you are the one who can save our Empire." The emotions in his voice were so raw that she could just feel how sincere he was about what he was saying.

"Your Majesty, I must apologize but I’m unable to follow you. What do you exactly mean by me saving this empire? Are you talking about the attacks and murders?" Annalise couldn’t help but ask as she was left completely clueless.

The King shook his head as he replied, "The prophecy that the High Priestess made when she tried her divination to project your future, both your parents and my late father realized that you weren’t someone normal. Instead, you were the light that was carrying the future of our entire realm."

"My father told me about the prophecy right before his death and told me to always protect you till the day your real protectors will appear. I was devastated and felt guilty when I used you in tge marriage alliance with the dark lords to save the empire, only to realize that all of it was already destined because... the dark lords turned out to be your protectors that we have been waiting for all this time."

Annalise could feel the truth in his words but tge more he spoke, the more puzzled she became. "There was such a prophecy related to my childhood? Why did mother and father never tell me about it?" She asked the question more from herself than from the King but the latter still decided to answer.

"Your parents really love you, Annalise. They might not have given birth to you but you are their entire world. They tried their best to keep you away from the burden of the prophecy but your father still gave in with a heavy heart when I put pressure on him because of the safety of the Empire. You should know him the best, if there’s one thing he puts before even his family then it’s his duty toward his people, and that’s exactly how I was able to manipulate him."

His confession was followed by a silence that lasted for quite long moments before Annalise finally asked, "Why are you telling all this to me now? Why confess now?" She didn’t even consider talking about the huge bomb that he just dropped on her about the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess not being her real parents. That was something she didn’t want to think about, at least not yet, and not in front of the King because she didn’t want to lose control over her emotions.

The King took in a deep breath as if he was thinking about something and then he finally replied, "I didn’t tell you about the prophecy because it was your parents’ wish. Just like I said, they wanted to protect you from the burden of the prophecy as long as they can but then I made you marry the dark lords because not only I wanted their help with the mysterious cases happening around the empire but also because I wanted you to earn their trust and help us form a long friendly relationship with them."

"How did you know they can help?" She asked as the question popped up in her mind.

The King looked into her eyes as he answered, "Because I know who they are and where they are from. It was a mere coincidence that I found out about their identity as the dark elves but I knew exactly how rare it was for our empire to have connections with people of such powers and wisdom."

"The day I received the message from you all concerning the Portal Hall incident in Millerville City, I went to talk to the High Priestess and it was then she revealed the dark lords being your protectors. It made me think a lot and I finally decided to come clean with you. I want you to know that everything that I have done so far is all because I want to keep this empire and the people here safe and out of the way of any sort of evil. I never meant any harm to you."

Annalise wasn’t sure how she needed to react to that apology. Even though it sounded sincere and genuine, it didn’t change the fact that he indeed used her as a pawn, no matter how good his intention was.

"The High Priestess, she seemed to be really good in her job." She wasn’t sure if she really meant to praise that woman or was actually angry at her for being the one to speak the prophecy. "Can I... meet her?"

The King nodded his head without missing a single beat, "Anytime you want. I’m sure you have a lot to ask her but I don’t think she can help you much about the prophecy because every time I asked about it, she told me that the prophecy is all she could see in your divination, nothing more, and nothing less. And if I have to think about the prophecy, you are already fulfilling it. Look at how you became the bridge between our empire and the people who have the real ability to save us. Ever since you married the dark lords, things have started changing for the best as you all continued to fight against the mysterious enemy."

Annalise nodded her head which was spinning because of all the questions, theories, and problems that were filling her mind. She hurriedly stood up from her seat and curtseyed, "Your Majesty, all of this is too much for me to take in. I don’t blame you for doing your duty as the King of this empire. You are the ruler of the people living here and you should put them first and foremost. But I’ll like to return to the castle and think about all this in my alone time. Hope you can grant my wish."

The King nodded his head, allowing her permission to leave just as she desired. "You can return now but I will wait to hear from you. I really hope that you can forgive me, Annalise."