The Hidden King's Stolen Wife-Chapter 12: Cold As Snow

"I don't need you to tell me that," Soleia hissed out, blood on her lips. If Orion's words had not sunk in, the blow to her face certainly did.

Lucinda's eyes widened with fear at the sudden bloodthirstiness in her eyes, but Soleia merely turned around and walked out with her head held high.

However, that bravado only lasted until she found herself alone in the corridor. Wet tears fell thickly down her face as she thought about her predicament. Even if she left, where would she go? And her inventions...

She stared down at the bag morosely. Her fall had caused some of them to break again, which meant that she had to start over on more of her projects, which would eat into her private funds...

If she was leaving, she needed all the money she could get.

Her cheek continued to ache. Soleia knew she wasn't going to waste resources on medicine, so she put on an extra coat and made her way outside to clutch a handful of snow to her cheek.

To her surprise, there was someone already outside. Before she could turn back indoors, the figure huddled on the ground rose and addressed her.

It was none other than Sir Ralph Byrone.

"Princess, I've placed your items in the servants' quarters as per your request― oh my god, what happened to you?" Ralph exclaimed as he caught sight of Soleia and her swollen right cheek.

"Your best friend happened," Soleia bitterly retorted.

There was no point hiding the bruise when he had already seen it up close. She dropped to the ground and began to shovel snow into her handkerchief, bundling it up tightly before placing it against her cheek.

She winced at the initial contact, but soon enough, the cool, powdery snow did wonders for the pain on her cheek. But alas, it could do nothing for the ache in her heart.

"Orion... hit you? Again?" Ralph asked, his eyes darkening at the thought.

Soleia could hear the shock in his voice, accompanied by the slightest bit of disappointment. She nodded, her eyes refusing to leave the snow. The last thing she wanted to see was the look of pity Sir Byrone no doubt wore.

"That scumbag!" he cursed, which was followed by the sound of crunching snow. "Let me talk to him―"

"No!" Soleia immediately said, spinning around in time to see that Ralph had already marched a short distance away. He paused only at the sound of her voice, turning back to look at her from over his shoulder.

"There's no point," Soleia said bitterly. "He only has eyes for his darling Elowyn now, and if you speak up for me things might become difficult for you too. You work for him, remember?"

"If he punches me, at least I would be able to take it," Ralph pointed out with a frown on his face. "He shouldn't be behaving in such a manner, especially not to a lady, and certainly not to his own wife!"

"I'll take your word for it since I don't know him well enough," Soleia mumbled bitterly to herself. At this rate, she might as well pack more snow for future purposes. She could find a way to preserve it even in the warmth of the estate― that could perhaps be her new project... after she repaired all the broken ones.

"Did you manage to retrieve what you needed at least?" Ralph asked, worry in his eyes.

"I did," Soleia said with a nod. Alas, her expression quickly betrayed her.

"You don't seem overjoyed about that," Ralph noted with a frown. "Did Orion do something else?" His eyebrows then rose higher. "Or perhaps his relatives? From what I recall, Orion's pesky cousins really enjoy poking their noses where they shouldn't be."

Soleia could only laugh stiffly.

"They did," she said.

Then, she showed Ralph the bag of broken goods she had retrieved from the study. Almost everything in there was broken to some degree. Some were just chipped at the corners — nothing detrimental — while others would need to be completely rebuilt.

With one look, Ralph immediately sucked in a cold gasp of air through his teeth. He winced, chancing a glance at Soleia, only to see she was merely staring blankly at the contents of her bag.

He cleared his throat after a brief moment of silence, gesturing to the wing on their left.

"Shall we move inside?" Ralph suggested. "The temperature is starting to drop. We should head in before you catch a cold."

Soleia only nodded in response. It wasn't as though she had any other plans. She scooped up a bit more snow in her handkerchief, and Ralph began to lead her to her new living quarters.

"Are you sure you want to stay here? Pardon me for saying so, the rooms are wholly unsuitable for human habitation. In fact, I wouldn't let a dog live in this place!" Ralph exclaimed as their footsteps echoed in the deserted corridor, his lips pursed in displeasure. "I've picked the best one out of the lot, but it's still intolerable. Are you sure you don't want to stay with me instead?"

The frown on his face grew deeper the closer they got to the servants' quarters. Lily was already waiting there in front of a flimsy wooden door, anxiously twisting her fingers into her dress.

"Your Highness! Sir Byrone is right, you can't sleep here!"

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Soleia sighed. "I'll adjust my expectations accordingly. How horrid could it possibly be?"

Ralph winced and pushed the door open. "See for yourself."

The moment Soleia stepped into the room, she began to shiver. This room was a lot colder than she expected. To call it a room would be generous― it was like a tiny box of ice.

Soleia could have crossed the entire breadth of the room in one long stride. There was a thin mattress on the floor, along with an old, dusty blanket that had clearly seen better days. Ralph had already helpfully shifted her trunks to the corner, to act as a makeshift desk next to it.

The glass pane of the window rattled ominously with every cold gust of wind.

"Princess, please take up my offer," Ralph begged in a pinched tone. "If you think it's improper for you to stay in my quarters, I'll move out and let you and Lily stay there instead. I may not have much, but my rooms have a proper bed and blankets!"

Lily stared at Soleia pleadingly, hoping that her lady would see sense, but Soleia shook her head.

"I'm afraid I can't accept your offer. While my husband is an utter brute, I am unfortunately still married to him. You giving me your quarters would cause tongues to wag. I wouldn't want to give him a reason to bloody my other cheek now, would we?" Soleia raised an eyebrow, before making herself at home.

"If you change your mind, the offer is always open," Ralph said dismally before leaving.

There was something he needed to check on.