The Crown's Entrapment

Inside the most famous inn in the Capital City of Cordon.

It was a good thing that Freya left a note to her mother as Jayra suggested, saying that she was currently in a disguise with her friend while going out to watch the tournament by the arena. She assured her mother that there was no need to worry and that she would soon come back to the castle with Gideon.

Together, they continued walking around the city for some time before Gideon stopped by the most famous inn in the Capital City. It was known for its delicious meals, with a dining area that had a spectacular view of the nightly castle lights from afar.

Freya hid her excitement as they entered the place. The inn owner, knowing Gideon, immediately offered him the best and most private spot for the evening. Taking her place, Freya casually sat down, with Gideon sitting opposite her.

Sitting at the same table, she suddenly felt awkward as Gideon intently stared at her.

“What’s wrong, Commander?” she casually asked with an awkward smile. “Do I have something on my face?”

“You look like a male version of my mate,” he bluntly commented.

“Is that so?”

He nodded and then continued, “But you smell different.”

“What do you mean?” Freya curiously asked, wondering if Jayra had put a particular smell on her to somehow mask her natural scent even further.

“You smell like mud, while my mate smells like freesia,” Gideon dreamily described. “Her scent is so addicting and intoxicating that I wish I could just bury my nose in her forever.”

Freya gulped at how intensely he looked at her, his eyes shimmering as he talked about her.

She hastily brushed away her face, knowing how deep red she was at the moment. Frowning, she snorted, “Your stare’s making me uncomfortable, Commander. I’m not your mate, for heaven’s sake, and it’s uncomfortable for me to talk to me as such.”

“There are so many similarities between you two though,” Gideon pointed out.

Freya was only grateful that a servant had finally come to take their order, saving her at just the right moment from showing just how red her face had become.

[I bet he already knows and that he’s just playing along, enjoying tricking you in the way that you’re tricking him,] Yal commented with a yawn.

Freya didn’t acknowledge her wolf, and instead, looked closely at Gideon who was now busy talking with the servant. When he was done presumably placing their orders, he returned to looking back at her.

“Is she beautiful? Your mate?” Freya asked.

“Of course, she is. She’s the most beautiful woman in my eyes…” Gideon answered without batting an eye.

“You said I look like her… I’m the male version, you say?” Freya casually mumbled. “If so, then I guess I’m handsome in your eyes.”

Gideon let out a hearty laugh as he suddenly replied, “Oh, let’s just stop this, Freya. I’m so bad at acting… I feel like I can die anytime soon if I kept up with your trick.”

[I told you he knew,] Yal chortled. “I wonder since when though…]

“Since when did you know?” Freya whined. “I hid my scent and everything too.”

“I instantly knew it was you the moment you shouted, sweety,” Gideon scoffed. “Plus, it’s obvious that the one beside you is Jayra. You see, ever since Bartos and I failed to recognize His Majesty and Princess Xenia in their disguises, I vowed then and there that I won’t let it happen again.”

“Right, and it’s not even the first time you saw Sister-in-law in her disguise, and yet you still failed to recognize her that night,” Freya teased with a grin.

“Well, in my defense, Princess Xenia’s disguise that day was quite different from the one she used in her disguise as Xen before,” he defended. “Also, I’ve heard that she’s really quite good at disguising herself. Still, as one of the high-ranking royal knights of our King, I should make sure that this won’t happen again.”

“I guess you’ve indeed improved then, recognizing me with just one glance,” Freya praised with a thumbs up. “I’m appalled…”

Gideon chuckled. “It was way too easy for me to recognize you above all else. Even without your scent, you’re the love of my life, so I naturally know every little detail about you,” he confidently stated with a triumphant grin. “Your mannerism, and even the slightest expressions you always make on your face are all the same. Not to mention your style of writing and the fact that you’re left-handed.”

Again, Freya’s face turned crimson red in embarrassment. Before she could react, Gideon had suddenly moved to sit beside her, making her hold her breath at his sudden closeness.

He then raised his hand, his fingers trailing one of her eyebrows as he said, “These perfectly shaped brown eyebrows that looked cute whenever they moved… Those dark grey eyes that are so enticing that they can make me melt with every gaze…”

Freya gulped. She felt like a statue as Gideon trailed every part of her face. His fingers moved softly, trailing the bridge of her nose as he whispered, “The perfectly pointed nose that I would love to have a sniff of my skin… And these…”

‘This is pure torture! Does he know that what he’s doing right now is making every part of my body tremble?!’ Freya inwardly complained as she felt her stomach churning while Gideon seductively touched her lips, trailing its very shape as he spoke.

“Oh, heavens… This is what I love the most…” GIdeon gasped. “Your plump red lips that are so addicting to kiss…”

Finally, he leaned closer, and Freya closed her eyes as she anticipated his lips sealing hers. To her disappointment, however, nothing came. She frowned as she opened her eyes. Without her even knowing, Gideon was already back in his seat opposite to hers a wide smile on his face as he spoke.

“As much as I want to kiss you right now… It would be safer not to, sweety…” he chuckled. “I might end up taking you here without a care in the world. I would be labeled as a cheating man who cheated on the Princess with a lad.”

Freya felt like a bucket of ice had been thrown right at her. She almost forgot how they were still in a public setting, and the fact that she was still disguised as a lad.

“You’re so adorable,” Gideon commented with a teasing grin.

Freya touched her cheeks, knowing that her face was currently burning hot at the moment. She honestly wondered how long her self-control would last against him. She felt like she was about to give in at any moment to Gideon, and she was practically burning to be intimate with him…

At this rate, she might explode soon.

******

AN: I will post an AI-generated photo as reference visuals for Freya and Gideon in the comment section. Not that perfect but they are close enough… *Tell me your thoughts*wink