KNOCK KNOCK

Tania immediately opened the door and it turned out that Lucas was bringing Arielle’s four other rabbits that had escaped from Lazarus’ supervision. Arielle welcomed the rabbits happily. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Without the girl moving much, after seeing Arielle, the four of them jumped happily into her arms joining Riel with her.

"Waaah, is this just my feeling or are they getting bigger?" Arielle exclaimed happily that her rabbits still remembered her.

"When you were not around, the only things they did were eat and sleep in their rooms because His Majesty forbids them to be released. They are quite difficult to catch if they are released," replied Lucas.

"Ah, no wonder they are getting heavier. Thank you Lucas for taking good care of them."

Lucas smiled happily, getting praise from the princess. "With pleasure, Your Highness. Riel and his family are so adorable."

"I know," replied Arielle proudly while stroking Riel who was sitting quietly waiting for Arielle to continue drying its body.

"Then, I’ll return to my duties."

"Hmm! Thank you Lucas!"

***

After having dinner and play for a while with the bunnies. Arielle planned to meet Ronan to discuss some matters. However, as she left Whitethorn Palace, her eyes fell on the Cathedral building.

The incident about her hand that was not injured by the molten iron and the heat of the fire at that time, even though it touched her skin directly, was still a question that Arielle had not dared to convey to other people, including Ronan.

It was already evening, which meant that the afternoon blessing schedule had long been over. It was likely that Priest Elis was also resting. Arielle thought tomorrow was the right time to meet him again.

Arielle also turned towards the Blackthorn Palace. When she entered the palace, she accidentally met Lazarus who had also just arrived.

"Hello, Lazarus," said Arielle.

"Oh, good evening, Princess. Are you going to meet Ronan?" asked Lazarus casually mentioning his king’s name without any honorifics.

"Err... yes."

"Ah, what a coincidence, I was also called to meet him," replied Lazarus enthusiastically.

Without any warning, suddenly Lazarus put his hand on Arielle’s shoulder making the girl startled.

"Your Highness, I must apologize for my negligence in looking after your rabbits. I only meant to bring them to welcome you, but I was wrong. They couldn’t calm down and ran here and there. I panicked even more when the king’s arrival was announced. So that made one of your rabbits fall into the fountain."

Arielle chuckled. "It’s okay. They are just small animals who also feel enthusiastic about getting free space. So maybe they were so happy to be released that they went wild."

"But, I see Lucas accompanying them very well," he said sadly.

Lazarus accompanied Lucas several times to feed the rabbits while Arielle was in the South. Lazarus repeatedly used the excuse of guarding her rabbits to avoid the task Ronan had given him.

They looked so tame when they were with Lucas, and he thought that he could get close to the rabbits, too. While Lucas was in the South accompanying Arielle, Ronan assigned Lazarus to specially care for and feed the princess’s bunnies.

That was because Ronan thought, while accompanying Lucas to look after Arielle’s rabbits, Lazarus had developed a bond with them. However, Ronan’s guess was wrong.

Lazarus couldn’t get close to them. Whenever he trying to get close, they would run away. Even as he stuck out the food, they couldn’t stop glancing at him in wary.

Now, it was Arielle’s turn who touched Lazarus’ shoulder and patted him lightly. "They are a little awkward when meeting new people. Don’t take it to your heart, okay? I can teach you how to get closer to them if you want."

Lazarus smiled awkwardly. He didn’t need a close relationship with those rabbits. What he needed now was for Arielle to understand his condition, so she could help him not to be punished by Ronan for being negligent in carrying out his duties.

"Thank you, Your Highness. I would love to play with them," he lied. "But... you understand my feelings, right?"

"Hmm?"

Lazarus tried to look sad in order to attract Arielle’s sympathy. "I mean... it’s possible that Ronan doesn’t understand my condition and will punish me later for neglecting your rabbits."

"Oh, were you summoned because of what happened earlier?" asked Arielle in surprise.

"I believe so. Ronan never really summoned me other than to punish me."

Arielle bit her lower lip. She grabbed Lazarus’ hand, giving him a gentle grip. "This is not your fault. It was natural for the rabbits to run around because they were basically wild animals. I don’t know if this will help you, but I will try to explain your condition to His Majesty the King."

Lazarus’s face immediately brightened and he returned Arielle’s hand no less tightly.

"Is that true?" he asked again.

"But I don’t know if my explanation will help or not."

"Your explanation will be very helpful, Your Highness! In this world only you can help me!" cried Lazarus happily. The man raised Arielle’s hand and kissed Arielle’s knuckles quickly.

A wide smile never left his lips. Of course, Ronan would listen to Arielle’s explanation. Lazarus knew very well about it and he would use the kindness of the princess for his survival. Although there was a feeling of guilt for using Arielle, his relief was greater.

The two of them walked side by side towards Ronan’s study. Lazarus knocked on the king’s door, and after getting permission he opened the door and allowed Arielle to enter first.

The first thing Ronan saw was Arielle. The man stood up from his chair and put down the papers he was reading to welcome Arielle in. Before Lazarus could go any further, Ronan pushed Lazarus’ face out of his room.

"Hey! You called me!" protested Lazarus who was violently chased away by the owner of the room.

"I’ll talk to you later," Ronan replied curtly.

"Huh? You called me just to kick me out? Ronan!" shouted Lazarus from outside his office.