The Hidden King's Stolen Wife-Chapter 186: This Fine Evening I

Ralph’s expression froze briefly before he breathed out and relaxed. "You are right. I was simply too anxious because the princes cannot be trusted. I cannot believe they would offer us such news without asking for anything in return."

Soleia paused. "They wanted me to visit the palace..."

"That’s also too dangerous." Ralph shook his head. "What if they’re using this chance to kidnap you to Vramid?"

"Then they would have had ample opportunities to do so before today," Soleia mused, goosebumps forming on her arms as she remembered how quickly they had found her.

The princes had to have left Vramid after them, but they still managed to discover their new residence while being busy with state affairs.

"I have to assume that we have something they want, so that they would be willing to let us stay rather than haul us back to my father."

Rafael knew all too well what his brothers wanted. Once Soleia was asleep, he would get to the bottom of this. "Let’s not think about it for now. You’ve had a long day. How about I run a bath for you first?"

Soleia nodded. The exhaustion of the day had finally caught up with her. She took a quick bath, and rested in bed while Ralph took his turn. As she lay alone in bed, she began to think more carefully about what had transpired.

Ralph had improved his dancing by an incredible amount. His dancing skills were even highlighted by Prince Ricard― something she found very odd. She would assume a prince had other things more important to notice, let alone highlight to her.

Ralph could have put in the extra time to practice on his own, but she spent nearly every waking hour by his side. Where would he have gotten the time?

But that wasn’t the strangest thing.

Duke Kinsley. The princes mentioned how they remembered Duke Kinsley as a fat man with blond hair. The current Duke Kinsley was a well-built, muscled man with dark brown hair. Weight could be lost and muscles built in a few years, but hair color was near impossible to change without the help of magic.

They also mentioned that he hadn’t been seen in years. But for some reason, the villagers and townsfolk seemed comfortable enough in his presence. Or did they not know that he was Duke Kinsley? Could he have introduced himself as someone else in their presence? If Duke Kinsley owned a house here, he would surely be known by the people.

Soleia also recalled their first meeting. Duke Kinsley had visited them without a single escort, which was strange for a man of his station. But perhaps he decided to forgo it, since Ralph was his good friend.

Then, a tiny voice in Soleia’s head spoke up. Could the current Duke Kinsley be a fake?

Just the very thought made her snort. What a ludicrous idea. If a commoner had the audacity to pretend to be a duke, heads would roll. Besides, what would be the point― other than for said commoner to enjoy a life of luxury?

She paused. If Duke Kinsley was fake, that meant that Ralph was friends with a scammer. Or he was also unaware that the Duke he swore his loyalty to was a fake. Which also sounded highly implausible, judging by Ralph’s intelligence levels.

As though summoned by her thoughts, her husband finally emerged from the bathroom to crawl into bed with her.

"I could hear your mind spinning from inside the bathroom," Ralph said easily as he cuddled her in his arms. He rubbed a gentle finger on the furrow between her eyes. Soleia let out a soft hum and nestled closer, inhaling his manly scent. "What’s the matter?"

"Nothing," Soleia said with a tired yawn. There were simply too many conjectures. "I’m just worried... about the future."

"I won’t let anything happen to you," Ralph promised, pressing a kiss to her temple. "Come on, let’s sleep."

"I know you won’t," Soleia said, and she closed her eyes, clinging to him tightly. "We’ll always be together, right?"

"Of course, darling," Ralph said as he pressed another kiss to her lips. "I won’t leave you." freewebnσvel.cøm

Soleia slept on, reassured. But when her eyes opened in the wee hours of the night, she was all alone. She blinked and stretched out an arm, reaching for the far side of the bed for her husband, only to be met with cool sheets. She frowned instinctively.

"Ralph?" She called out quietly, but the house was silent. Soleia stood up, rubbing her eyes. She wondered if she was dreaming. Where had Ralph gone? Did he get stuck in the bathroom?

She made her way to the bathroom, only to find it empty. She made her way to the living room and planted her hands on her hips.

A quick walk around her house proved that Ralph was not inside at all. Soleia couldn’t help but feel worried. It was in the middle of the night. Where could her husband possibly have gone? There wasn’t even a brothel in town for him to cheat on her with!

She doubted Ralph would do so, but that still didn’t explain his absence.

With her heart in her throat, she spotted the imprint of where his shoes used to be. She peered outside her door cautiously, but the streets were silent save for the hooting of owls. The moon bathed the idyllic town in its silver glow.

Soleia breathed out. Was she going to go looking for her absent husband in the middle of the night?

Footsteps quickly sounded behind her, and Soleia jumped in her skin when she realized she wasn’t alone. She turned back, a smile of relief on her face as she expected to see her husband there, but before his name could even slip past her lips, her eyes rested upon the man who had appeared.

"And what might be keeping you up and awake on this fine evening, Princess Soleia?" Prince Raziel asked, his green eyes seemingly glowing in the dark.