Sacrificial Bride to the Feared Lord Hastings-Chapter 63: Bonding (5)

During dinner, Ophelia took a moment to look around at all the knights in the dining hall. They laughed loudly and ate large portions of food, enjoying the time they had away from work.

No one seemed interested in her presence, which Ophelia liked.

"Do you regret coming?"

"No. I am truly surprised by how good dinner has been. I don’t mind the noise," Ophelia replied to Dante. "Your castle is beautiful, as well as this mansion, but sometimes it is too quiet, and my mind gets the best of me. Sometimes it is fine to be surrounded by noise."

"My castle is peaceful? With an army of knights, I rarely have peace. They are like young boys I must keep a close eye on."

"Peace is the benefit of everyone wanting to avoid me. I get to roam the castle without anyone trying to get in my way. I quite enjoy that silence, but I also like this. You have a large dining chamber in the castle. Why don’t the knights eat with you?" Ophelia asked, thinking the space was wasted.

"They used to eat with us when I was a boy, but my mother thought the chamber was more suited for a family dinner. The knights wouldn’t enjoy themselves as they do now if they sat before my mother, but I should allow them to eat in this chamber to make use of the space," Dante considered.

"You should. They all look happy to sit with you now. It’s like a room full of children trying to get their father’s attention, and many of them appear older than you. It is cute," Ophelia said, fighting back a smile. "Your people all seem to be quite loyal to you. It must be nice."

"My family has helped their families for years, so they stay on our land and take work in the castle. I pay them well and take care of the families of those who were injured in the war or passed away. It is a mutual respect that has been here long before I was Lord Hastings. I intend to keep it."

"You truly are different from Joel. He is only close to the wealthy families on his land. He doesn’t talk to any of the servants, and he isn’t the one who oversees the conflicts on his land. I would never settle down near his castle," Ophelia said, since life would never be peaceful.

"Where do you plan to settle down with your brother?" Dante asked, curious.

"I do not know yet. You said you would provide a home for us, and I am quite close to accepting it, but I want to get away from all the war, and if I stay on your land, I will always be remembered as your former wife. I want to get away from being tied to the truce," said Ophelia.

Ophelia envisioned a normal life for her and Theo. One where no one recognised her and wouldn’t ask about either lord in her life now.

Ophelia wouldn’t mind owning a farm where she could grow her own food and stay out of the drama in the kingdom. She wanted to be forgotten.

"I must give it some more thought. Travelling with you has made me realise there is more to this world. I want to show it to Theo. If there is a quiet place on your land where I can farm and care for him, then I would accept. But then, a doctor would need to be close by," Ophelia realised.

"I can send Eliza to you as promised," Dante offered.

"But then you would be going out of your way to help your ex-wife. I will have it all sorted out by the time he is in my hands. We should be thinking of what we must face tomorrow. I am done with dinner for now," Ophelia said, deciding it was time to retire to her bed.

Ophelia stood up from her chair. "Thank you for convincing me to join you. I would have missed this good talk with you."

Dante joined Ophelia in standing. "I will walk you to your chamber."

"Why? Is your mansion not safe?"

"It is the gentlemanly thing to do, and I have to share what will take place tomorrow," Dante said, in an effort to stay close.

"Very well," Ophelia agreed.

Ophelia picked up the bread she wrapped in a cloth and walked alongside Dante.

Ophelia waited for Dante to share what he had to say to her, but it did not come. It did not come despite how close they were to her chamber.

Ophelia wanted it done with before they reached her chamber, so she asked, "Have you forgotten you wanted to share more with me?"

"I have not. It has been a while since I strolled around the mansion like this. I see now why you do it. What I wanted to say was, don’t wander off tomorrow. Sometimes the women get bored and form a small gathering of their own. Don’t join them," Dante said, concerned they would trap Ophelia. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Dante didn’t sit close to the women during gatherings, but he often heard of the aftermath. Some ladies were picked on for amusement.

"I wouldn’t join them even if they offered to pay me. If the queen is the one asking that I join her, I know I would sully a friendship with her by saying no, but I would decline. Maybe they would see nothing wrong if I act in love with you and yearn to watch all your games," Ophelia considered.

"You don’t need to go so far. Simply say that I tasked you to remain where I can see you. Even the queen shouldn’t try to meddle in what your husband asked you to do."

Ophelia stopped and looked at Dante. "Because I am to obey your orders?"

"In the eyes of others, yes. I would be a fool to attempt to get you to obey me, and I don’t intend to order you around. It is merely an easy excuse to use to get out of joining the other ladies. Should they find an issue with you not joining them, they would have to take it up with me. They won’t," Dante said, as many were afraid of him.

"I see. Well, I will make good use of you tomorrow. Is that all?" Ophelia asked, puzzled as to why Dante was still beside her. "You should go to your chamber and rest. You have a long day ahead of you. While the women will circle me, the men will do the same to you."

"Rest well," Ophelia said, curtsying to end their talk here. "I can go alone from here."