Chapter 147: A Tea Party?

“The king is waiting in the garden.”

Sherry, the king’s head maid, said, accompanied by a few knights surrounding them, her voice polite but almost monotonous, as if she had rehearsed the line over and over.

The moment they arrived, the king’s knights didn’t waste time.

The carriage door opened, and before Ezra could even fully steady himself, they were already being ushered out, directed forward without pause.

There was no lingering, no chance to gather his thoughts.

They were expected to move.

And so they did.

Ezra kept a firm hold on Lior as they stepped into the palace grounds, the familiar weight of authority pressing in around him.

The air itself felt different here.

Everything felt controlled.

And Ezra felt like he was being watched, although there weren’t any eyes on him.

They were being directed not to the throne room, but down a familiar hallway.

Ezra’s steps slowed slightly.

’This is where I ran…and…’

The memory hit him without warning.

That night.

The ball.

The suffocating heat crawling under his skin, the panic, the loss of control.

He had run.

Through this exact hallway.

Doors lined on both sides, his vision blurred, his breathing uneven, until he found an empty room and—

Ezra forced himself to stop the thought there.

This was that very hallway.

The realization settled uncomfortably in his chest, lingering longer than he wanted it to.

But Ezra was confused.

Why were they being brought here if the king was in the garden?

That didn’t make sense.

He glanced at Kaelis, expecting at least a flicker of confusion, but there was nothing.

No hesitation, no surprise.

He was just calm.

Kaelis walked like this was routine.

Like this was normal.

So this must be normal.

Ezra frowned slightly.

And because Ezra was a naturally curious person, he had to open his mouth and ask.

“Why… are we here exactly?” Ezra asks, his voice careful, though the confusion was clear enough.

A few of the king’s knights glanced at him briefly, their expressions unreadable. “I mean, this isn’t the way to the garden. You mentioned the king was waiting.”

“The king is hosting a private tea party today, and he wants Prince Kaelis, you, and the child to be dressed for the occasion,” Sherry answers without missing a beat.

’A tea party?’

Ezra’s eyes widened slightly.

The king’s tea parties were not simple gatherings.

He has heard of the king’s tea parties before.

But—

“We don’t have clothes, though?” Ezra says, glancing down at Lior.

The boy was still a little out of it, quiet, simply following beside him without complaint, his small hand holding onto Ezra’s like it was the only thing keeping him grounded.

“We have a room prepared with clothes that would fit you and the child,” Sherry answers, turning around with a small, composed smile. “It has all been settled. Don’t worry, Ezra Belloren.”

Ezra blinked.

Still surprised.

Clothes prepared… for him?

That was…odd.

For Lior, it made sense, maybe. The palace housed various concubines whom the king impregnated.

Meaning, there were a lot of children in Sunspire.

So, of course, there would be clothes of different sizes.

But for him?

Ezra felt something shift beside him.

Kaelis moved closer, just slightly, leaning in enough that Ezra could feel his presence without it being obvious.

“Just go along with it. Father loves eccentric things like this.”

Ezra exhaled quietly.

Of course he did.

“Oh, alright then…” Ezra says, though the uncertainty hadn’t fully left him.

Then he watched as Sherry turned toward Kaelis.

“Ah, Prince Kaelis, the king also wanted me to inform you that the private tea party is for you, Ezra Belloren, the child, the great concubine, Aurelia.”

’Aurelia?’

Ezra’s brows knit together.

That was Aurien’s mother.

The king’s favorite concubine.

The supposed ’true love’ of the king.

That alone already made this feel… even weirder.

Ezra glanced at Kaelis, searching for a reaction, but Kaelis only shrugged lightly.

“That’s fine by me—”

“And also, Her Majesty, the Queen, Circe.”

The words landed heavier than expected.

Both Ezra and Kaelis tensed up, though for entirely different reasons.

Ezra’s grip on Lior’s hand tightened just a little.

Circe.

Helios’ mother.

The mother Helios adored, the one he spoke of with a kind of quiet reverence Ezra had never questioned before.

And now—

She was going to be there.

Ezra has never met her before.

If anything, his tension was more…fascination than fear.

In contrast, Ezra glances again at Kaelis, whose whole face has changed, as if he were dreading it.

It wasn’t subtle.

The shift was immediate, clear enough that even Ezra, who wasn’t particularly focused on Kaelis a moment ago, couldn’t miss it.

The ease from earlier was gone. In its place was something tighter, something restrained.

Sherry seemed to notice Kaelis’ dismay, or maybe she just knew that he would be in dismay.

“Please understand, Your Highness. Today was a scheduled time the king set to meet with the queen.”

Kaelis looks at her, his dread turns into a scoff. “I guess, this is going to be a very interesting tea party then.” He says sarcastically.

There was something sharp beneath his tone, something that didn’t quite match the casualness he was trying to show.

Ezra’s confusion deepened.

He studied Kaelis for a second longer than he should have, trying to make sense of it.

’Does Kaelis not like the queen?’

If so, why?

That didn’t line up with what Ezra knew.

Based on Helios’ words, he made it seem like Circe was the kindest, most gentle mother in the world.

Helios never spoke of her with hesitation.

Never with discomfort.

So why…?

Kaelis seemed okay with Aurelia’s presence, but not Circe’s.

That was odd.

Ezra frowned slightly, the thought settling in his mind in a way that didn’t sit right.

Usually, the concubines are the least liked.

To Ezra, they were just legal mistresses.

That was just how things worked.

But then again, Kaelis’ mother was the king’s concubine as well.

Lyra.

Ezra’s gaze drifted slightly, unfocused as he recalled what little he knew.

Though their relationship, as far as Ezra heard, was more political and friendly than romantic.

After Kaelis’ mother, Lyra, gave birth to him, she dedicated her time to her observatory.

She was the sole owner of the only observatory in the kingdom.

She was detached from politics.

Distant from the court.

Ezra had always found that a bit strange.

Ezra knew that because one time he had gone to that observatory and heard the story.

The memory lingered briefly before fading, replaced again by the present tension of walking beside him.

“Ah, here we are. Ezra Belloren, and uh…”

“Lior,” Lior answers Sherry.

His voice was small but steady, like he was trying to keep up with everything happening around him.

“Lior,” Sherry repeats, gesturing towards a door. “Please get dressed here, and then once you’re done, we’ll bring you to the garden.”

The door stood slightly open, revealing a glimpse of a prepared room inside.

Everything is already set.

Of course it was.

“Alright,” Ezra says, though his attention wasn’t fully there.

His eyes flicked back to Kaelis again.

Kaelis was quiet now, which was very uncharacteristic.

Whatever that reaction was earlier, it hadn’t fully left him.

And that, more than anything, made Ezra more alert.

’This might be interesting.’ Ezra thought. ’Or it might be another stressful situation.’

Either way, if it was something that made the loud-mouth Kaelis silent?

Not good.

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