"Leon Andrae De Seirende..
Third Prince of the Seirende Empire, son of the current Emperor Valentin and the Second Queen Tehila.
Actually good in playing musical instruments because of his admiration he had towards his Queen Mother's musical prowess.
Loves meat the most, but still tries to hide it from his aides and servants.
Ridiculed by the aristocrats because of the Second Queen's humble origins and his low magical aptitude. Often compared with the first and second prince who were born from high ranking nobility and excellent aptitudes.
Mistreated by the opposing nobles and their children, he was viewed no different from an illegitimate child.
Forced to train as a warlord starting from a very young age of seven, up until his coming of age at fifteen.
Upon his coming of age, he participated in several wars and battles. His victories earned him the reputation as the Barbaric Blood Prince."
Eli little by little came to know and understand the Third Prince background. Upon knowing his childhood, she felt sympathy towards him.
'No wonder he had a cold demeanor and was socially awkward, he basically spent his childhood in the warzone.'
Both the Prince and Elise had a very dark childhood. As to her, she was fortunate to have a redeemed childhood when her mum took her in. The days she spent with her were filled with warmth and love, enough to wash away the heartache of being an unwanted child.
Despite the sympathy, Eli chose not to let her guard down.
Whether the prince's personality reflects his reputation as the Barbaric Blood Prince, she wanted to see it with her own eyes and discover. She continued to read through his basic information, and came to know who his teacher was, as well as his notable battles.
But she noticed that the information about him being an S class mage was not included in the available information.
"Huh? This means that there were only less than ten people who knew of this information?!"
Counting herself, Grandpa Andi, Grandpa Ben and most probably Randel, that already amounted to four people. She couldn't believe that the Prince was able to hide this fact even though he had been living in the cruel battlefield.
"How strong was he to actually endure not revealing his great gift?"
Eli couldn't help but ponder. If he was a warlord, how was he able to conceal his real abilities while leading an army? How about his trusted confidants?
Suddenly a thought came to her mind,
"Class D devourer, Class S Mage… Open Paths.. Summoner! Of course!!" Eli exclaimed in self ridicule. She placed a palm on her forehead.
How could she not figure it right away? The summoner that the grandpas were talking about was none other than the Third Prince!
"No wonder the two grandpas looked so constipated while they saw me excited about the summoner!" She had been bamboozled!
"They were holding their laughter!! Ahh!!!" Eli blurted out in embarrassment, as she gently slapped her palm on her forehead.
As if it was perfectly timed, a knock was heard at the door.
Eli composed her embarrassed self and responded, "Come in!" Speculating that the visitor was the Prince, she immediately tried her best to calm down.
Soon the door was opened. Granpa Andi and Grandpa Ben's smug faces peaked at the door and said in perfect coordination,
"Young Eli~~ We brought you the great summoner we have been talking about!"
"Please be well acquainted with each other~~~"
After they said these teasing words, they playfully pushed the third Prince, who wore a stiff expression, inside the study then scurried away from the room. Eli was left stunned, twitching her eyebrows.
Relenting to the situation, she looked towards the Prince.
Just as Eli first saw his appearance, his striking blood red hair and sharp crystal blue eyes were both cold and valiant. When their eyes met, she could clearly feel the stiffness and awkwardness towards each other.
'Not good, we will be staring at each other for the whole day!' Eli thought as she figured out that the Prince stayed frozen near the entrance.
She carefully stood up and gave a little bow and greeted him, "Eli, greets His Highness, Third Prince.."
As she was doing this, she expected that the prince would still be standing near the entrance but she immediately felt two stiff hands on her shoulders and a low concerned voice saying,
"Free Lady, please do not bother to greet me this way. You are with a child, do not mind me. Instead, take care of your health." With his stiff hands Leon guided Eli to carefully sit on the chesterfield sofa.
'Mother said that pregnant women often suffer from back pain,' Leon thought while roamed around the study looking for something like a pillow for support. His eyes stopped on a throw pillow nearby and gently put it behind Eli's back.
Eli was surprised by the considerate gesture, from the moment that the Prince stopped her from taking a bow, to affixing a pillow on her lower back, her mind went blank. She didn't really know how to react.
It was the first time she experienced the care of a gentleman. She could feel her heart rate increase and her face heating up because the close proximity to the prince made her self conscious.
"Uhmm, thank you.. Third Prince.." she awkwardly expressed her gratitude for the prince's thoughtfulness.
"You do not have to worry, Lady Elise. It is my responsibility to look after your well being."
The prince replied with his low magnetic voice. He then proceeded to sit opposite Eli's chair and kept a comfortable distance.
Another staring contest and awkward silence ensued.
Eli was having a mental battle in her head, 'What to do?'
Back then, she had no qualms in keeping a conversation with a male client during a business meeting. However, she found herself lacking in interaction skills towards the prince.
She couldn't help but feel uncomfortable especially that 'she' had such a juicy past with him. But she must not let this day over with them staring at each other! She missed her warm and cozy cottage already!
"Uhmm Prince!"
"Mi Lady!"
It seemed like they were both thinking of the same thing.
"No, you go first, Your Highness.." Eli immediately said with determination in her eyes.
'It is much better to hear the Prince first,' she thought.
"This.. First I wanted to apologize for my rash actions last night.." Seeing Eli insisting that he go first, Leon braved himself to ask for Eli's pardon over the things that happened last night.
"No.. I don't dare blame you, Your Highness.." Eli immediately replied.
"In fact, it was really a surprise to me that you didn't reject Little Han's existence…" She caressed her womb lovingly and continued,
"I already knew inside my heart that you wanted to embrace the responsibility you have with Little Han.. It's just that, I didn't know that there were so many complications around me, that I didn't know how to respond correctly…" She said in a dejected manner.
"Little Han…" Leon uttered in a trance.
"Yes, I gave the little one a nickname, Little Han. So regardless of Little Han's gender, it would still go well.." She said shyly, then looked towards the Prince,
"I hope you don't mind?"
"No, it was a lovely name of endearment. Have you thought of a name yet?"
Leon responded gently, if one would look closely, they would notice that the corners of his lips were slightly curved upwards. A hint of a faint smile could be seen from the frigid Barbaric Blood Prince.
"Y-yes, it was actually Johann or Johanna. It will be given according to Little Han's gender." Eli replied with a bright smile,
"It means, God is Gracious." She added.
Leon took a long look towards Eli's smiling face, as she was saying the meaning of the name behind their unborn child. He suddenly remembered the scene when he, himself, gave Elise her own name with similar meaning, connected to the Creator.
'Back then, her eyes were filled with darkness and grief. Now, how bright her face is!' He thought to himself feeling relief.
"It was a good name that you have chosen," He confirmed, this time with a visible smile on his face.
Eli was mesmerized by the Prince's smiling face.
The third prince was blessed with such an undeniable attractive face that even with his cold demeanor and barbaric reputation, no women in the Empire nor Prasinos could keep themselves from admiring his beauty.
But the moment he smiled.
It was two times, no, maybe ten times more attractive than his normal cold expression. It was like a pure flower blooming at the center of a desolate place. It will leave anyone in wonder - why does it not bloom so frequently to fill the barren land with such beauty and purity?
Eli's trance was broken by the prince's voice, along with his signature serious expression,
"I still wanted to apologize to you.. For not finding you right away.. For not being there in your struggle of being pregnant with our child, and for giving you a sudden shock of a hasty marriage proposal.."
Leon guiltily met Eli's eyes and continued, "The Creator knows how much I wanted to make it up to the both of you… But as inexperienced as I am, it turned into a messy situation."
Eli didn't interrupt the prince, but instead looked at him earnestly. As far as she is concerned, the Prince was an upright person, based on how he helped Elise redeem the last four years of her life.
What she was doubting right now were his intentions and plans towards their awkward relationship. How far was he willing to go when he said that he would take responsibility, she wanted to know.
Seeing that Eli kept listening to his words he continued voicing out what was on his mind,
"Of all people here in the Empire, I was the one of the people who understood the danger behind your identity as an Asani. Even after that fateful night, my intent to protect you still exists and only intensified because of our Little Han."
"I have heard the grand master's opinion about how marriage right now is definitely a disadvantage. I have also spoken with my Queen Mother and Father Emperor who were sharing the same opinion as them."
"However, Free Lady.. I don't know why.. But I couldn't picture myself out of the family you and Little Han are about to build!"
"I couldn't take it.."
He looked towards Eli, his crystal blue eyes glistened with deep fervor. His first clenched so tightly that veins could almost pop out, whilst trembling.
"Let me in… Lady Elise, Little Han.." His voice quivered in pleading.
"Apologies for my selfish desire, my stubborness are to blame.."
"For after thinking through it last night,
After deeply considering my parents and the grandmaster's opinion,
After knowing the dangers that would be around…
I still think that our marriage was inevitable…"
