She Belongs To The Devil

After Lillian, it was Queen Vultrada's turn to wish Adeline. As expected from Vultrada, she gifted Adeline a really heavy necklace and a set of matching earrings.

Then it was Queen Claricia's turn. She walked up towards the stage with two of her maids who were each carrying a tray.

Queen Vultrada rolled her eyes seeing Claricia with two gifts. And she whispered to one of the concubines who was sitting by her side, "Look at her, showing off in front of the Future Queen. But I think she was sly than most of us. She sided with Princess Adeline since the Princess was a kid. I think she knew all along that Princess Adeline would be the chosen one. And look, the Princess really favors her now."

The concubine just gave a smile to the jealous Queen and thought to herself, "As if Queen Claricia is a Goddess who can see the future. How can this woman backbite about such an innocent Queen saying that she was plotting all along? Does she take us as a fool like her?" Then she focused her attention back on the platform.

"Happy birthday, Princess. May you have a long and healthy life." Queen Claricia gestured to one of the maids and that maid presented the tray in front of the Princess. And Claricia said, "These are the daggers made by the most talented blacksmith of Aberdeen. I hope they will serve you well."

"Thank you so much, Your Majesty. These are very lovely!" Adeline's eyes were twinkling looking at that beautiful set of daggers. Both daggers had their scabbard made out of pure leather. They were made to be tied around the thighs. And she could not help but pick one up and examine it closely.

She ran her finger through the sharp blade and Claricia had a huge smile on her face because she could tell that Adeline was already in love with her gift.

Theodore, on the other hand, was worried seeing her playing with the dagger like that. He had this constant fear that she would end up doing something bad to herself. He wanted to snatch that dagger away from her but obviously, he could not do that.

To his relief, Claricia got Adeline's attention again and she presented another gift while saying, "Prince Nigel could not attend the ceremony. So he sent this gift for you." She then leaned in a bit closer and whispered to Adeline, "I hope you will forgive your brother."

Adeline looked a little sad but she nodded her head. She understood why her brother was not here. So she accepted the gift that he had sent her and thanked the Queen, "Thank you for your wishes and love."

Adeline glanced at the long cylindrical container that her brother had sent her and she already knew what it was. And she could not wait for this ceremony to end so that she could take a look at her brother's gift.

After the Royal family members finished offering gifts and wishes to Princess Adeline, the dignitaries began to climb on the platform bearing valuable gifts in their hands.

Some gifted her rare books and scrolls, some gifted her jewelry made out of precious metals, while some gifted her expensive garments.

Among the dignitaries, there were several young gentlemen who had come to wish the Future Queen. They were taking today's ceremony as a chance to acquaint themselves with the Future Queen and if possible, impress her with their charms and expensive gifts.

One of the Lord's son walked up the stage with great confidence. He had short blonde hair and looked quite handsome. He was wearing a white surcoat with golden rims. And he was carrying a jewelry box in his hand.

When he reached in front of the Princess, he gave a seductive smile and bowed to Adeline. And he introduced himself, "Greetings, Your Highness. I am Lord Elijah."

He then opened the jewelry box and showed a large diamond necklace to the Princess. And he boastfully said, "I brought this from the east especially for Your Highness. I hope you like it. Happy birthday, Your Highness."

Though Adeline did not like the overly boastful man, she smiled and thanked him politely, "It is very beautiful. You have good eyes. Thank you!"

Adeline reached out her hand to receive the jewelry box from Elijah but he sneakily reached out his hand to hold Adeline's palm. He was about to kiss Adeline on her knuckles and… well that was a mistake on his side.

"So you have a death wish!" Theodore screamed inwardly and flicked his fingers to render Elijah immobile. Elijah was holding Adeline's palm and was pouting very close to her knuckles. He tried his best to push his head down to plant the kiss but he just could not move.

Adeline was getting really uncomfortable because of that perverted man's action. She frowned and pulled her palm from his grasp and said sternly, "Thank you for your gifts and wishes. You may take a leave."

When Adeline said that, Elijah could finally move. He felt really embarrassed because of what just happened to him. His face turned red and he could not even face Adeline. He instantly jumped down the platform while hiding his face from those countless people in the hall.

Theodore felt really satisfied watching that young fool trying his best to hide his face. And he thought with a vile smirk on his lips, "This is what happens when anyone eyes my woman. You were lucky that so many people are watching. Else your body would have been searching for your head at the moment."

After everyone in the hall finished presenting their gifts, the King got up from his seat and announced with a cheerful face, "Thank you for coming here today and making the Palace livelier. As a gratitude for your well wishes for my daughter, I have prepared a small feast. Please enjoy the food and music."

The maids and servants began to serve a variety of food and wine to the guests. The hall was filled with the enticing aroma of food and Adeline felt really hungry. Adeline gave one look to Bennett and he understood what the Princess meant. He smiled and said, "I will ask the maids to bring food to you right away."

"Thank you so much!" Adeline clasped her hands with happiness and smiled back.

Theodore, who was watching the two of them from the beginning of the ceremony, kind of felt jealous of the unspoken understanding the two of them had. However, he couldn't quite get angry at Bennett because he had not made any inappropriate advances on Adeline. Theodore just wished that this ceremony would end soon so that all the annoying people would leave Adeline alone.

Theodore was not the only one to notice the like-mindedness of Adeline and Bennett. King Dragomir was also noticing it since a long time ago. While his eyes were following Bennett, he leaned to his side to whisper to Adeline, "How do you find Bennett?"

Adeline didn't think that he was implying it in a different sense and she simply shrugged, "Well, he is really helpful. He is a perfect assistant one could get."

King Dragomir chuckled and corrected his question, "No, I meant to ask, how do you find him as your future husband?"