5 Chapter-5 A test and a little tease

"Miss Zoya, please show the princess to her room," Sebastian's voice was curt, devoid of emotions.

Elliana looked up at him before quickly averting her gaze when she noticed he was already looking at her.

"How old are you?" Sebastian stepped forward, and Elliana clenched her fists on her dress.

"I am eighteen. You?" She asked in courtesy, thinking it was normal to ask back.

However, Sebastian found her innocent tone really funny.

He bent to her eye level before grabbing her chin, his strangely warm fingers sending shivers down her spine because of how nervous she was becoming.

"Do you really want to know?" Sebastian's simple question with his darkening eyes made Elliana gasp, and she quickly looked down.

"I... I am sorry," She squealed, and Lucas thinned his lips.

For some reason, he now understood why the prince let this marriage continue even when he knew this wasn't the same girl the elders had talked about.

The prince was getting bored with people around him, and he wanted a new toy or someone to play with. Lucas looked at the human girl, whose cheeks were as red as a rose, and sighed before shaking his head.

"Are you afraid of me, little one?" Sebastian asked, and Lucas widened his eyes slightly.

This was a trick question, and Elliana wasn't the first one he asked this question to.

Was the Prince already bored and wanted to get rid of her? Lucas looked at the girl, who looked shocked by his sudden question.

"Can I touch you?" Elliana asked back, rather than answering. And though Sebastian was wary of humans and always hated them for their two-faced nature and greed, for some reason, he looked into the genuineness of Elliana's eyes and found himself nodding.

With little confidence, Elliana placed her hand on the prince's mask as softly as she could, shocking everyone with her boldness.

"I am here as your bride, Prince. Am I afraid of you? I am. Because everything is new for me. If it had been anyone else, I would've been the same. I know a human's affirmation means nothing to a powerful person like you, but since I am your bride, I will stick to you till my last breath. I am not afraid of you, prince. It's the situation I am nervous about," Elliana said, keeping her voice extra soft and sweet.

It would be an understatement to say that her answer didn't shock the vampire prince, his secretary, or anyone around them.

Not only were they shocked by the softness in her voice but the strength in her words.

The vampire prince kept looking at the girl for any malice or forced resolution, but when he saw nothing, he sighed.

"Take her to my room, Miss Zoya," the prince maintained his gaze on Elliana. "Don't be too mischievous and wait for me," The vampire prince said, and everyone was shocked to hear the slight softness in his voice.

"Okay," Elliana said, anxious about sharing a room with him.

Sebastian looked at her, amused, as she still looked dazed, and couldn't help but want to tease her.

"Have you fallen for me already? Is that why you can't keep your hands to yourself anymore?" Sebastian asked, and Elliana widened her eyes before removing her hand from his face as if it was on fire.

"Be a good girl," Sebastian's eyes searched her as if piercing her soul, and Elliana took a deep breath, amazed at the beauty of them.

"Mrs. Elliana, this way, please," Zoya, the maid, bowed to Elliana in respect, and the latter nodded at the prince one last time before turning around.

However, before she could move a step, Sebastian held her hand, stopping her abruptly, and she turned around, her sole attention on his eyes.

"Call me Marino or hubby next time. Being called 'Prince' by you sounds too formal," Sebastian's voice was neutral, but his eyes gave away the amusement he felt when he looked at her cheeks, turning even redder.

Elliana touched her cheeks which were as hot as sunlight and bit her lower lip in shyness.

"I... I... " Elliana didn't know what to say to that. Her shyness was at its peak right now, and Sebastian's lips twitched before he turned around and left with Lucas, leaving a shy Elliana behind, who was still struggling to get a hold of what happened just now.

"Marino," She tested the name on her lips, her voice barely a whisper, but Sebastian, who was the vampire prince and had the sensitive hearing, heard her crystal clear and sighed.

"I have never seen our prince being so gentle with anyone, you know. You are really lucky. The last time he asked a human the question about whether he was afraid of our prince, his body ended in the lake of alligators," Zoya spoke as if that was supposed to encourage Elliana, but the latter only shook in fear and slight disgust.

Does that mean if she hadn't been genuine with her feelings and answered in affirmation that she was afraid or had denied it, she would've ended up in a similar position? Elliana's mind became messy with the overbearing thoughts.

"This is the prince's room. Also, your room from now on," The maid smiled, and Elliana turned to thank the maid.

"Thank you. Also, you can call me Elliana. You look the same as my nanny back at home," Elliana held the maid's hand, and her mind went wild with thoughts.

'

~~

"I don't know what to think of it," the maid looked at a girl behind the door with a complex expression.

"Mom, please. I really need this money to get admitted into the university. You work in the royal Kingdom. If you could ask the prince, maybe he will help you -"

"Are you out of your mind? He is the vampire prince! How can I ask him for money?! He will snap my neck before I even utter a word. We can't afford your tuition. You should get into the local college. That's the most I can afford with your drunk and lost father," the maid's eyes were laced with tears.

~~

'

Elliana widened her eyes when she saw a snippet of vision of the maid's conversation with her daughter before she quickly jerked her hand away.

This was a phenomenon she has been feeling since she turned eighteen in prison.

She randomly gets these snippets of people's lives connected to their past or future, and as strange as it was, when she told the lady 'G' in her cell, the lady asked her to keep this a secret forever because people would want to use her for her newly formed abilities. According to that lady, Elliana has developed her psychic abilities through meditation and chakra enlightenment.

Nothing that lady said made sense to her, but she couldn't find any other reason.

"I... Uh, if you are free, can you come inside and sit with me for a minute? I feel a little edgy in new places," Elliana blinked at the maid so innocently that she couldn't deny her words.

Elliana looked at the decor of the room, and it would be an understatement to say she was surprised. This room was beyond what she had thought.

She had imagined a vampire prince's room in all red or black with a gothic theme, but this room looked too different.

Though the major part of the room was black, the dark-colored wooden decorations and a combination of gray and white made it look strangely beautiful.

"This is unique," Elliana murmured before she sat on the lush couch.

"Our vampire prince has a unique taste in everything. Like he has brought you here even when you weren't his destined bride," Zoya spoke before she could control her mouth, and Elliana looked at her, surprised.

Does that mean the prince and everyone knew she wasn't the bride they decided? And here she was, thinking they didn't know about anything.

If that was the case, why did they let the wedding continue? Will it affect her life and the royal Kingdom? What if the vampires get angry later and declare war for impersonation?

Should she clear herself who she was? Elliana bit her lips.

"You look troubled, Elliana. Don't be. Not everyone in the palace knew about this. You can say I share a mother-like bond with the prince. That's why he informed me about the girl," Miss Zoya cleared, and Elliana hummed.

She will talk to the prince later and tell him the truth. It was better late than never. She can't risk her father getting into any controversy because of this. Elliana played with her nails in nervousness and worry before she looked at the maid.

"I hope to have the same mother-like bond with you, Miss Zoya. Since I have arrived in the palace, I have noticed frown lines on your forehead. Is something troubling you? You can share it with me. I might not be useful to you because I am just a human, but I am a good listener. I swear," Elliana looked at Zoya with an unadulterated smile.

Zoya, who didn't expect the new princess to observe something so minuscule when no one noticed and asked her something so directly, felt her heart warming.

It was unusual for royals to even bother with their peasants, or should she call themselves slaves?

The vampire prince, Sebastian, was a different story because he never interacted with anyone.

Zoya looked into Elliana's eyes and felt smitten for a second.

'What is this feeling? Why am I feeling so warm towards this girl? It's like my heart is aching for her,' Zoya gulped at the strange emotions, and she found herself nodding.

"I don't have a daughter of my own, Elliana. My husband, well, he couldn't give me a child, so around 16 years ago, we adopted a kid whose parents were killed in the hunter's attack," Zoya stopped, feeling awkward because Elliana was also from the hunter's family.

However, the latter only smiled at her encouragingly.

"My husband has turned into a drunkard, and it's getting hard to run the household with his habits and the growing kid. My daughter is really good at studies. She has graduated and wants to go to college, but all those good Colleges have good fee structure too, and we can't afford it," Zoya sighed dejectedly.

"I am just sad that I can't provide a good education to my daughter. It's me who adopted her. That's the least I should do. I couldn't be a good wife or mother. How can I -" Zoya stopped when she noticed she had started rambling about her sad life, and she quickly blinked back the tears.

"I am sorry, princess. You should rest. Please press this button if you need some assistance, and someone will surely arrive to assist you," Zoya left as if her pants were on fire, and Elliana felt sad for the maid.

Should she ask the vampire prince to help them? But how can she do that? She is herself hanging on thin threads to save her life. She barely made it out alive today. Elliana sighed before she walked to the balcony to enjoy the moonlight, feeling calm under the wind.