The Dragon King's Heart

If it was possible to die of embarrassment, Laina would have done so at that moment. She had been played like a fool by Dante. Her mouth agape in shock lasted merely for a few seconds before it was replaced with pouting. 

Laina swiped away Dante's hand as she turned back to her paperwork, "Hmph! If the King of Dracona has so much time on his hands to play a fool of the princess, I suggest he makes better use of his time elsewhere."

Thinking she was genuinely angry, Dante regretted his teasing a little. But he knew the way to Laina's heart. 

He took Laina's right hand into his and got down on one knee. 

He gently kissed the back of her hand as he apologized, "My sincerest apologies, Crown Princess of Kinshearth. I have misjudged my capabilities with humor and unintentionally hurt your feelings. 

I pray that the kind-hearted, beautiful, and intelligent princess would show me leniency as she punishes me for my transgression."

"I will consider the options," Laina replied, still pouting though feeling a little better. 

Delighted to see that she agreed, Dante added, "Wonderful. I will wait for the princess to decide on my humble fate." 

Dante got up and was about to turn to leave. Realizing he was turning to leave, Laina instinctively grabbed onto his hand tightly. 

"Where are you going?" She asked, "You're going to leave, just like that?"

Dante chuckled, "Of course not, I was just waiting for you to hold onto my hand. Just as you're doing so now."

Upon realizing what she had done, Laina quickly released Dante's hand. But he clasped onto hers just as quickly. 

"No no," he said as he shook his head, holding tightly onto her hand, "Once you've held onto it, you can't let go just like that."

How shameless could the King of Dracona be? Apparently, to the extreme and beyond!

"Dante."

"Yes, Laina?" 

"You're shameless," she declared with a straight face. 

Dante chuckled, "I know, is that not what you like about me?" 

"Well… I…" she did not have a reply for that. 

Seeing as she was unable to reply, Dante continued to speak, "Well, since Margaret isn't around and you seem pretty much done with your paperwork, would you be free to perhaps… visit a cafe?"

Was he asking her out? Was it a date? All sorts of questions swirled in Laina's mind. But the intentions of her heart were clear. She quickly agreed to his request. 

"A cafe you say? Like the one we went to before?" She asked him as she got out of her seat. 

From where she stood, Laina got a full view of Dante's attire. She realized at that moment that he was not wearing his usual regal outfit, a black and dark blue suit. Instead, he was wearing a dark blue oxford shirt with a pair of black suspenders.

"You look casual today," she made her observation, "Should I be doing the same?"

He did not expect her to notice his outfit, but he was glad that she did. She never failed to surprise him with her attention to detail from time to time. 

"If we match, that would be nice," he replied with a smile. 

Laina did not read too much into his words. She headed over to her walk-in closet and looked for a suitable outfit. She peered back into the room to look at what Dante was wearing just to get a better idea of what she should pick. 

As she changed into her outfit in the walk-in closet, Laina asked Dante, "So, what's so special about this cafe?"

Dante made certain to move away from the walk-in closet, so as to protect Laina's privacy while she changed. 

"They sell various types of fruit sponge cakes. Rumour has it, they have the King of fruits."

Laina paused for a moment. She peeked her head out from behind the door and looked straight at Dante. 

"The King of fruits? You mean, durian?" She asked as her eyes lit up. 

Dante nodded, "Yes. That's the one."

Laina quickly put on her outfit and stepped out of the closet. She had decided to match Dante's outfit with a variation of her own. She wore a short-sleeved maroon polo shirt with black suspenders and a pair of black pants. 

For footwear, she went with a pair of heeled leather boots. To keep her hair out of her eyes, she tied it up in a long ponytail that cascaded down her shoulder. 

"I'm ready!" She declared as she showed off her outfit to Dante, "I hope this is alright."

Dante walked up to her and gave her a quick kiss on her cheek, "You look perfect. Let's go."

Laina could not help but blush. Just as Laina was about to head towards the door, Dante pulled her back into his embrace. 

"Not that way," he explained. 

"Then which way?" 

Dante reached into his pocket and took out a spherical marble. He held onto Laina tightly and dropped the marble onto the ground. Dante looked over to Kol and mouthed a word of apology. 

Moments later, as the marble touched the ground, a portal opened beneath their feet. In the blink of an eye, Dante and Laina disappeared into thin air. Only a shocked and confused Kol was left behind, uncertain about what had just happened. 

He could no longer sense Dante or Laina, so he knew they had not simply cloaked themselves with an invisibility spell. A sense of dread washed over Kol. If Margaret returned to find Laina missing, he would be doomed. 

If she found out Laina had left with Dante, he would never live to see the light of day. Kol bit his lip. He wanted to give chase. But how can he chase after them when he had no idea where they had gone?

His duty was to protect Laina. Yet now, he had lost sight of her. What was he going to do?

Just then, Kol remembered the contract they had with one another. A master and servant. No matter where Laina was, he would be able to find her. 

All it takes is a little bit of time.