"Business? Irene, when are you going to drop your formal talking?"
Sasha whined, and Josiah chuckled.
"Lady Gracia, what type of business do you want to discuss with me today?"
Josiah replied formally.
Alice just sighed, Josiah was first confused about Irene's whole personality change now has just gone with it.
Or he was maturing, from what she heard, he seems to begin to take his more upper classes about being an Emperor, soon...Irene would start to move in.
In the future, Irene and Josiah are going to take the crown of the current Emperor and Empress.
Irene as an Empress seemed like a magical fairy tale to Alice.
"I want a divorce," Irene said calmly.
Alice drank her tea.
"Pardon?"
Josiah replied with his eyes smiling more than his mouth.
"I want to divorce you, get engaged to Alice instead," Irene's tea cup clanked on the saucer with her eyes without a single thought behind them.
Alice spat out her tea and stood up, "What!"
Sasha stayed quiet but clearly was in shock.
"Is there a specific reason why you want me to marry Alice instead of you, Irene?"
Josiah dropped the formality and asked her.
Irene's eyes did not meet Josiah's when she answered.
"Yes, there is, however, I cannot tell you why."
"Isn't that too cruel Irene?"
Alice reasoned with Irene as Josiah was in a state of shock.
"I have other plans for the future and being an empress was never on the list."
Irene said rather calmly as if the times she spent with Josiah were nothing.
"Did you talk this over with my father and the Grand Duke?"
Josiah asked with his head down, "Well, not yet."
"You are not divorcing me, I refuse it."
Josiah said with fierceness in his eyes.
"I refuse to marry Josiah."
Alice joined in with Josiah.
"I don't like what Irene is saying for the first time," Sasha hinting that she is siding with her brother and Alice.
Irene stared at them, "Okay then," she replied without a single but.
"Alice and Sasha, could you guys leave for a moment so I can speak to MY fiance privately."
The two girls nodded and left the room.
Irene looked at the tea in her cup with the elemental spirits going crazy with comments in her head.
Honestly, what was I thinking?
Irene had hidden her feelings after that night, but she decided to take them seriously now.
The realized how dangerous this situation is going to get, people can die and she fears that.
"What are you thinking, Irene?"
Josiah asked her with his eyes pleading for an answer, he was now nineteen; he was a young adult.
"I am not sure Josiah."
Irene only dropped the formality act times with Josiah when they are alone.
"Then what is it what you want? What do you want for your future?"
He asked Irene, it was only two questions but Irene felt overwhelmed.
"I just want to enjoy and be happy with someone I love in the future," Irene decided to think about the most basic things.
"Do you not love me?"
Josiah asked the sudden question, for the first time in so long, Irene was speechless and felt her eyes going red.
"I feel embarrassed if you ask me such a question."
Irene mumbled.
"Do you?"
Josiah asked.
"Josiah, our marriage was arranged by our parents, why would I love you?"
"Irene, you are being too harsh!"
Undine said that right after Irene finished speaking, Josiah's lips trembled.
The silence was loud.
It was deafening.
"Sometimes, you are too brutally honest," Josiah let out a sigh and put his head on the headrest on the sofa.
He let out a burst of airy laughter, "Do you perhaps love me?"
Irene asked him curiously.
Sometimes, Josiah's mature face suddenly turns into a little question, Irene spent so many times with him...she can tell whenever he is flustered over something.
Like now.
"Maybe..."
Josiah answered without confidence.
Irene did not know how to respond.
When did Josiah start to catch feelings for me?
Irene was being sarcastic, she knew along about his feelings but choose to play dumb and ignore them.
Irene was not sure about her feelings about Josiah.
He was a great help over the past years and he is respectful of my opinions.
The Emperor was talking about their wedding but Irene was sixteen and Josiah was eighteen, the minor rule here does not exist but it bothered her.
She told Josiah about having a wedding when she is ready or older which was weird because at that time age really didn't matter.
He respected it and had a discussion with his father stating that he will be the one choosing when to have a wedding.
Irene really appreciated it.
Josiah looked at Irene as if she was in deep thought, his lips kept together tight.
He knows something.
He found out by accident on that very day.
"What in the world is going on in Irene's mansion?"
Josiah and Sasha came to Irene's mansion in a rush after Alice wrote a letter in a rush to them.
"Irene has been refusing to eat or come out of her room, I mean she does this often but it's been way longer!"
Alice was very stressed, and Josiah's head started to hurt.
He and Sasha knew about the current situation with Irene, but the Grand Duke isn't doing anything to help with his OWN daughter's health.
"Alice and Sasha, I will deal with this."
Josiah said, "No brother! I want to go and see Irene as well!"
"Sasha if you came in and be your annoying self it is only going to cause her bigger problems," Josiah said.
Sasha puffed and sulked in response.
Alice smiled awkwardly and brought Sasha to her side, "Thank you, Josiah, I will be counting on you."
He nodded in response.
The only reason Alice sent a letter to them was that she knew about the mana Josiah possessed.
Josiah can break the magic seal Irene had on her room to prevent people to go in, she hated that Irene only used most of her mana on this.
Josiah is powerful enough to break it, hopefully, he is.
"Want to eat something as we wait for Irene to come out?"
Alice guided Sasha away with food, "Irene? It's me, Josiah if you don't respond I will break in."
It was as simple as that, but Irene's room was dead silent.
"You leave me no choice," Josiah's mana started to build up and his violet eyes darken.
The seal was broken. Easily.
Josiah knocked on the door before inviting himself in, her room was dark and cold.
He searched around the room, he saw Irene laying on her desk passed out.
"Irene?"
He walked up to Irene and shook her body.
"Irene? Irene??"
No response, Josiah panicked.
He checked her pulse, it was normal which means Irene was just in deep slumber.
Josiah sighed with relief, he was very worried about her as he got reports from Alice about Irene's condition.
Irene's personality did a whole 180 after the investigation in Alice's old mansion, a thought appeared in Josiah's mind.
The room that Irene was by herself in...was there something she found out and kept to herself?
Josiah's eyes glance towards the books Irene has been studying, and his pupils trembled.
Irene was self-teaching herself on becoming an Empress and then controlling spirits...also the past about the Dark Magic Tower.
"Irene...what on Earth is on your mind?"
Josiah asked her as he princess hugged Irene to her bed and gently tucked her in.
He stood there afterward, staring into Irene's face.
She had dark eye circles underneath, seems as if she was studying day and night.
Suddenly, Irene's relaxed expression started to change, "Irene? What are you dreaming about?"
She seemed to be having a nightmare as her expression seemed to be panicked and suddenly a strong presence of fear came out of her.
"Irene?"
Josiah worried about what was in Irene's mind.
Irene gasped and sat up, half asleep.
"Irene? Are you okay? Do you need any medical help?"
Josiah went to support Irene right away.
She opened her mouth to speak.
She muttered under her breath.
Josiah's body began to tremble.
"You killed me."
Irene said ever-so quietly.
Author's Note
Oops, you can't control what you say when your literally half asleep and just woke up from a goddamn nightmare. I am going to start to write more Josiah povs just the btw. My chapters are getting longer I think this novel will surpass over 120 chapters before the side stories even come.
- ANMU