WHO MADE ME A PRINCE
chapter seventy four - cousin.

"I AM YOUR COUSIN YOUR HIGHNESS. Princess Lilianna's daughter."

Arius stared at her with confused eyebrows.

My . . . cousin? Princess Lilianna? Mom. . . had a sister?

A chuckle escaped Millicent's mouth.

"You seem more surprised than I expected. "

"Okay wait, Mom had a sister?"

"Yes, An older sister. My mother was the first princess of Feradona. My father fell in love with my mother once when he came as part of the delegation for the peace treaty with Obelia."

"That's. . ." Arius tried to process it all.

"You don't need to consider us Villareals a cousin if you don't feel comfortable."

"No! That's not it! It's just, I'm ashamed to admit I never knew mom had a sister. So . . .this is a lot."

The two stood in silence for a while as the breeze calmed their faces.

". . .Princess Lilianna was seen as a disgrace to the royal family of Feradona. So not many spoke of her. . . At one point her name was erased from the royal family tree. So it is normal for many to not know of her."

". . .Might I ask why she was a disgrace?"

Millicent looked at Arius for a good five seconds before shaking her head.

"When you're a bit older." She smiled, very faintly.

Woah, okay. Let's process this all. I had an aunt. Princess Lilianna vi Feradona. The Villareals are my cousins.

"Alright. " Arius replied.

A strong breeze passed them, causing Millicents long open hair to go out of control.

"Perhaps we should head back inside." She suggested trying to maintain the hair behind her ears.

"Sure."

THE TWO WERE NOW INSIDE. Arius had processed the information he had gotten, but was still extremely shocked. Nevertheless he still maintained the conversation with Millicent. He still had things to ask her.

"Lady Millicent, would you please tell me about Feradona? Its cultures, traditions and so on. I would love to visit it someday, when I'm older."

"I'm afraid there's not much to tell. My father, although preserved much of Feradona's true culture, faced several issues and had to change many things. That being said I will tell you all that remains now."

The two discussed Feradona for what seemed like a few minutes yet in reality was an hour.

They discussed the traditional dresses of Feradona, their religion, festivals and holidays.

Food that was unique to their kingdom.

The language of Feradona, Ispal, which was quite underrated.

The Feradinies were more fluent in Obelian than Ispal, which led to the decline of the language.

The two still had so much to discuss, but Arius decided to begin his plan.

"Feradona used to be famous for its pottery. Many of the famous potteries were bought by the royal family and we have them in our Palace. I will show you when you visit."

"I'm really looking forward to it." Arius smiled. "Speaking of which, I heard there was an ancient tradition of burning a woman to death after her husband dies."

"Yes. . . the reasoning behind it was. . ."

"It's getting quite late, I will visit tomorrow and we can continue this discussion if you're free. " Arius stood up.

"Your Highness, I . . .will be leaving the Palace tomorrow. "

"Oh? But it has only been one say since you arrived. Are you heading back to Feradona?"

"No. . ." Millicent shifted in her seat.

"We will be staying at our uncle's manor for the remaining trip. We cannot burden the royal family so much. And I believe my siblings were disrespectful to you in the morning."

"Your uncle? Marquis Fritz? Do correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Lord Isaac cut off all connections to the Lubaina Marquee?"

Millicent hesitantly nodded her head.

"Lady Millicent, you have just gained the title of Governess, and I'm sure Lord Isaac had a good reason to cut ties with his family. It might not be safe for you to go there."

Millicent was about to say something, when Arius continued.

"And you needn't think you're being a burden on us. If the royal family is burdened by taking care of just a handful of guests, then that would ruin our reputation. You are no burden, Lady Millicent. It has been a pleasure to have you and your siblings here. The incident in the morning was nowhere near disrespectful, I quite enjoyed it. I haven't played with children my age for a while now, so today's incident was refreshing."

"I would've liked spending more time with you and them too. Especially now that I know we're cousins. Please don't be so formal or think you're a burden."

"Your Highness. . . "

"Or wait, does the lady and her siblings not like me? Do you not like staying here? Are you uncomfortable in any way?"

"Not at all, Your Highness, I was merely concerned about your comfort."

"Lady Millicent, I am more than happy to have the Villareals here."

". . .Very well then your highness."

Arius jumped in victory, before smiling at Millicent.

"Thank you! I'll tell the emperor of the change in plans, and let's meet tomorrow! There's still much to talk about!"

Arius shouted as he began running to Granite Palace.

Milicent nodded with a smile, before bowing to Arius as he left.

They're staying!

I can talk about Feradona more!

I'm so excited for tomorrow!

And. . . they're. . .

Arius slowed down.

. . .They're my cousins. . .

Rustle!

Arius jolted towards the bushes and saw Claude come out.

"D–Dad . . .what were you doing there?"

Claude sighed. "You took quite some time to come out."

"You were waiting for me?"

Claude averted his eyes.

Arius remembered his thoughts from a while ago.

"They're. . . my cousins?" Arius spoke quietly.

"Yes, I should've told you. . ."

"Its fine dad. I'm just glad I know now. And they're staying."

"What?"

"I want them to stay longer, so I talked with Lady Millicent and she agreed. I'll convince Athy."

Claude sighed.

"If you're happy with it."

"And dad, I have a request."

Claude looked at Arius.

"I want to know more. More about my aunt and mom. And I want to hear it from you."

". . . Fine, but it's late right now, time to sleep."

"I can't fall asleep! Not now that I have so much to think about!"

Claude looked at Arius with a questioning gaze, before holding him up.

"I'll tell you when you're a bit older." Claude mumbled before putting him to sleep with magic.