Chapter 017: Peace Ever

Several days had passed after the incident Esther threatened Lucius II. True to her words, Lucius II returned her palace budget to its original state and absolutely no one interfered with her life and Arthur's. Esther could only hope that it would continue forever. It would be very annoying if someone interfered with their life.

Now Esther was in her dining room with Arthur, Leon, and Ariana. The two children of Lindsley's concubines began to visit and play frequently at Esther's palace, after the incident with Arthur hitting Prince Leon. Esther was not at all bothered by the presence of the two children. At least playing with them was more fun than hanging out with the other concubines.

Prince Leon and Princess Ariana used to come to her castle to play and chat with Esther, as well as pamper her. It seemed the children had found the mother they craved for in Esther. Of course, Esther was happy to treat them well as she treated Arthur.

This made the children also call Esther 'mother'. Even though they usually call their own mother 'Your Majesty the Mother'. You could say it was a very formal call.

"What are we going to eat today, mother?" asked Princess Ariana with a cute face who happened to be sitting right next to Esther.

"Today we're going to eat mom's homemade chocolate cake."

"Really? Wow, I can't wait for it!" said Princess Ariana, who seemed enthusiastic about waiting for dessert.

"You have to wait patiently. Helena will be here soon with the cake," replied Esther.

Esther felt like eyes were watching her. Esther immediately returned to her original position and saw Prince Leon who deliberately chose to sit in front of Esther while holding a fork and banging it against the table.

Esther looked at Prince Leon with a warm gaze while supporting her head with both hands. "What's the matter with you, Leon?"

"Why did mother only pay attention to Ariana? I also want to be noticed by my mother. Mother is only mine," said Prince Leon.

Esther just smiled at the child who could already see her possessive attitude. "Okay. Mom will take care of you too. So don't sulk like that."

Esther's gaze turned to Arthur who was watching Prince Leon with a strange look. She laughed a little at the look on the boy's face.

"Don't you feel the strangeness in your words, Leon? Since when did my mother become yours? Don't you guys have your own mother? Why did you have to snatch my mother? " said Arthur.

"Look at that child who doesn't want to lose his possessive nature," Esther thought.

Princess Ariana, who heard that, immediately hugged Esther's hand tightly. "No, you are wrong. Mother only belongs to the two of us. From yesterday to today, and forever, Beatrice is our mother."

The three children began to fight over Esther as their mother. Esther just watched the fight from the three little ones. You could say she really enjoyed the fight she found funny. It seemed that when the time came, she had to leave the Nightingale Kingdom, she would really miss their little fight.

Suddenly Helena came with a chocolate cake with two levels. Their bickering immediately stopped when they saw the delicious food that came. Their gazes were fixed on the cake, which already looked very delicious.

"That's enough. I am the mother of all of you. You'd better eat that cake quickly before mom devours all the cakes that look so delicious."

Prince Leon, Arthur, and Princess Ariana immediately took their share of the cake and put it on their respective plates. Then they immediately devoured the cake. Esther just kept quiet and watched the three children's cute behavior as they ate their respective cakes.

Time passes quickly. Nowadays, it has turned into night. The day really goes by quickly without realizing it. Esther was now relaxing on the soft sofa in the room where guests and Anne had been meeting. It seemed that both Helena and Arthur were asleep, leaving Anne and Esther awake until now.

Quiet and serene atmosphere. It was so quiet, Esther's sense of hearing could hear the sound of the wind blowing. Esther tried to close her eyes and take a breath of fresh air to help herself fall asleep. For some reason, after living in the Nightingale Kingdom, Esther had a hard time sleeping. As she lay her whole body on her soft bed, closed her eyes, and tried to sleep. It will definitely end with him feeling uneasy and awake again.

"Anne, did my father send me a letter?" Esther asked, still closing her eyes.

"No, princess. It seems that the Grand Duke is busy dealing with the dispute between the two kingdoms that are under the auspices of our empire," reported Anne.

Esther couldn't help but smile. "As usual, dad is always busy. I wasn't even surprised anymore when I found out that he was only able to see me after three years."

"Princess..." is called Anne softly, very unusual.

Esther immediately opened her eyes and turned to Anne who was sitting beside her. Before she could answer the call, Esther first groaned in pain while holding her stomach.

"Aahh…" Esther groaned.

"What's the matter with you, princess?" asked Anne, looking panicked.

"It seems the poison from a few days ago is still left in my body causing pain. Good grief! It really hurts. I can not stand it anymore."

Esther began to cry as she continued to whimper in pain. Anne who saw the princess she served like that also cried and hugged her.

"Don't cry, Anne. I'm the only one crying. You can't cry," said Esther, who was trying to stop moaning in pain and comforting Anne, who was sobbing.

"Princess, we better return to the empire. I really can't stand to see you tortured like this. We don't even know what they're going to do to you next," said Anne, who was still crying.

Esther patted Anne's back lightly. "I'm sorry, Anne. But I really can't. I still have to finish my responsibilities. Besides that, I honestly like being here despite being treated badly by all of them."

"Why did you choose to stay here? Like I said before we never know what will happen next? Maybe they will kill your life soon. If that happens I will never be able to return to the empire and forgive myself."

"When I was in the empire I felt lonely, Anne. As you know father very rarely returns to the mansion. It's just me and the incomparable silence there," Esther whispered.

"You can go back first with Helena, if you want to return to the empire quickly," said Esther.

"Not. I will never leave you here alone," replied Anne who was still hugging Esther.

"I don't know why, but ever since I was little, you were the only person who was always beside me to take care of me, strengthen me, hug me. Thank you Anne," Esther said with a small smile.

"Until my last breath, I will always be by your side, Princess. I will dedicate my life to you. Even I keep hoping that I can see you get married and see the children born to you who will surely be beautiful and handsome like you."