Chapter 11

In spite of the fact that the Demon King had stated very firmly and clearly that he had no interested in seeking a spouse anytime soon, the ball held in the Blood Pledge Castle was still packed with people.

Being used to people gossiping about him in his presence, Wolfram expressionlessly watched as maids busily carrying food and drinks around to the guests, ignoring the noblewomen, who kept glancing at him from time to time behind those laced fans covering their mouths.

He was standing just a few steps away Yuuri. Afterall, he was a knight and it's his job to make sure that the king was safe. Everyone in this room knew very well that their king was more than capable to protect himself. Few months ago, the assassin who tried to kill him ended up almost choked to death by his own saliva even before he managed to get his dagger from his clothes.

"Sorry, I've just rearranged the location of your body fluid," Yuuri said, looking down at the assassin on the floor, with an expression that looked as if he was just explaining about something perfectly normal."It won't kill you but please don't try to kill me again."

Sometimes Wolfram wondered what Gunter had taught him during his maryoku control lessons. The lavender-haired adviser was always secretive about the content of magic-related classes he had with Yuuri. But he made sure to boast about how talented and powerful his majesty was. From time to time, Yuuri would show Wolfram his latest tricks.

The blonde shuddered at the memory of some of the "tricks".

Who in the world would use water like that?

The sounds of loud applause snapped him out of his trains of thought. The demon king himself made his entrance. Other than his usual high school black uniform, he was wearing a black suit instead, since he told others that he would graduate from the school very soon and he would feel like he was cosplaying if he still wore a uniform after that.

Actually no one would bother what he wore as long as it was black.

There were some high-pitch squeals from the crowd while Yuuri was walking towards the centre of the ballroom.

Well, maybe some people would bother.

Yuuri nodded and waved at the guests, wearing his usual friendly smile on his face. When he saw Wolfram in the crowd, he held his gaze until the blonde met his eyes.

The ladies gave another round of squealing and giggles when the king's beam turned more loving and gentle.

Wolfram quickly looked somewhere else when he felt the flicker and flutter in his heart. The king always has such an effect on him, which bothered the knight a lot.

As usual, once the orchestra started playing the music, the young king took the hand of the ex-queen. They danced in the centre of the hall and the others followed suit after a while.

"Do I have the honor to dance with you, my handsome prince?" a sweet voice asked with a slight giggle.

Wolfram turned and saw Greta, who was wearing a long, yellow summer dress, smiling up at him. He returned the smile and took her hand, "Sure, it's my pleasure, my princess."

She grinned and pulled him near the centre of the room, the whim her dress flapping with the motion, catching the attention of some gentlemen in the ball room.

And Yuuri couldn't stop himself from peeking at them from the corners of his eyes.

"Didn't Gunter teach you to keep your eyes on your dancing partner?" the ex-queen asked with a deliberately flirtatious voice, a teasing smile playing on her lips.

Feeling embarrassed about getting caught, Yuuri turned his eyes back onto Celi, "Sorry. I was a bit distracted tonight."

The blonde lady just giggled joyfully.

"Wolfram, you are really good at dancing," the teenage girl commented as she swirled. "I don't need to think about my next steps at all."

"You are good at it too," Wolfram told her.

They danced smoothly and slowly without any hesitations, grabbing the chance to chat with each other about all kinds of subtle things.

Greta did most of the talking, while Wolfram just listened patiently and gave little responses from time to time.

The music gradually grew softer, signaling the end of this dance was near.

"Ah, I wish I can dance with you longer," Greta said, looking up at him.

"Why don't we dance in the next song as well?"

She shook her head, "Wolfram, can you promise me something?"

Surprised with the serious look on her face, Wolfram's eyes widened, "What is it?"

The final note of the violin was gentle, as if it was a whisper in someone's ear.

"Make up with Yuuri for me?"

Her last syllable ended with a push on his shoulder.

Taken aback by her sudden action, Wolfram stepped back a little and bumped onto the person behind him.

"I'm sorry. I…" he turned, feeling a little confused. Wolfram raised his glance and met Yuuri's obsidian eyes, looking equally surprised.

At the exact moment, the music stopped. The noblewomen were pushing their ways through the crowd, hoping to reach and dance with one of them.

Oblivious to the surrounding, the king raised his hand and asked,"Shall we dance?"

The way he smiled was charming enough to melt many ladies' hearts.

And Wolfram was dazed by everything that was happening. He could feel the heat on his cheeks but he forgot how he was supposed to react.

It was the first time Yuuri had ever asked to dance with him. Wolfram waited and waited in the past years for the king to walk towards him. He forgot when he had given up waiting already. When what he had imagined for numerous times really came true, Wolfram didn't know what to do.

"Wolfram?"

He blinked, inhaled deeply to calm himself and put his hand onto Yuuri's extended one. "Sure."

Relieved, the king placed his other hand onto Wolfram's waist. "Can I lead?" he asked, looking at Wolfram into his eyes as he was trying to keep down his own nervousness.

"Of course you should," Wolfram replied quietly, trying to look sure. "You are the king."

Unlike the previous upbeat music, this song was a romantic one. The guests were automatically getting closer to one another.

"I swear I didn't plan any of this," Yuuri said tentatively once he noticed the style of the music that was playing softly in the background.

Wolfram let out a frustrated sigh, "That's probably Greta and Mother's idea. They didn't stop hinting that I should make peace with you tonight."

"I hope this doesn't get the opposite effect."

The blonde moved his lips a little but didn't reply.

The two of them then danced quietly, meeting each other's eyes. The silence between them was comfortable but the attraction and longing they sensed made everything feel different tonight.

This time I won't let go of your hand again.

Near the end of the song, Yuuri gave him a smile, a boyish, tender one, "Do you think we should be alone for a while? Let's go somewhere quiet," he suggested, squeezing Wolfram's left hand a little, the hand on his waist pulling him a little closer. "Just the two of us."

Hearing this, Wolfram stared up at him lazily, ignoring the chaos the king caused in his heart. "Do you think these people will let you get away?" He glanced around the hall and saw all those ladies in various shapes, sizes and incredibly fancy dresses. But all of them had eagle eyes aiming at Yuuri.

"I have my way."

Glancing back at the king, Wolfram narrowed his eyes, didn't quite like the mysterious smile the other kept showing on his face.

When the music was slowly fading away, Yuuri announced in a loud, clear voice, "Ladies and gentlemen, thanks for coming to celebrate my birthday. To express my gratitude to all of you, I would like to show you something."

The music ended once he finished saying his last word. At the same time, he grinned cheerfully at Wolfram and he noticed that the king was still holding his left hand.

Yuuri raised his other hand and yelled, "Eritque arcus!"

From the ceiling, huge amount of water with different colours was splattering in mid- air. The most absurd thing was, it seemed to come down to the people but it wasn't. Once the water nearly reached the people, it became some colourful water vapours and floated around the guests.

"How amazing!"

"It's gorgeous!"

Even Wolfram was caught off guard. He couldn't help but held up his hand a bit and examined the creamy light green steam that was drifting around him.

While the people were too busy admiring the fascinating floating water droplets, Yuuri tightened the grip of his hand and told him, "Let's go."

They had no trouble leaving the main hall as many of the guests began to gather near the stage when an eye-catching fountain which was made of ice appeared. The water streams going up were in seven colours and they are astonishingly dazzling and attractive to watch.

Everything was happening too quickly and it was a few moments later when Wolfram finally remembered to ask the king where they were going.

The response he got was, "We're almost there."

Indeed, they didn't go too far away. Yuuri just brought him to the field which was outside the main castle. With their hands still holding, they walked slowly further away from the bustle and hustle noises coming from the building.

Looking up the sky, tonight the weather was delightfully fine. The stars were shining brightly up in the pitch-black sky. There seemed not to be a single cloud in it.

"Do you like it?"

Not sure about the meaning of the question, Wolfram turned his gaze back to the king, puzzled.

Instead of clarifying, Yuuri smiled and raised his hand a little, his palm facing the sky.

Little colourful water droplets were floating in the air. They were magically bright even without any source of light. The water vapours looked like millions of fireflies in various colours.

Fascinated by the dazzling scenery, the corners of Wolfram's lips lifted a little. "When did you learn such a fancy trick?"

"Last week?" Yuuri replied, obviously glad that his knight was talking to him again. "You know Gunter knows all kinds of flashy magic tricks."

Then everything went dark again after a while.

"I think I like it," Wolfram told him, a graceful smile appeared on his face.

Yuuri didn't remember the last time when he saw Wolfram smile like this, so, for a few moments, he had forgotten what he was planning to say.

They just stayed silent for a while, looking at each other quietly without feeling a slight of discomfort or unease. The only sound they could hear was the bugs somewhere far away in the wood.

It took all his efforts not to pull Wolfram into a hug or hold his hand or kiss him. Yuuri inhaled deeply before he spoke, "Wolfram, I want to apologise about what I did last month. I'm really sorry."

Wolfram decided that he would be honest with himself this time. He knew that he could never be angry with Yuuri for long. Every time he saw the sincere expression on the king's face, he felt like he could forgive anything he had done.

"Okay, apology accepted," sighing heavily, Wolfram said. "But I really would like to know why in the world you would do such stupid things," he blew away the wisps of fringe that kept falling in front of his eyes. "Aniue practically exploded once he found out what you have done."

As time passed, Wolfram forgot all those strange speculations about Yuuri's motives he once had. At some point, he just totally ruled out the possibility that the king had romantic feelings for him.

"I did that because..." as if afraid that Wolfram would run away once he heard what he was about to say, Yuuri gripped both of his wrists. "... because I don't want anyone to come near you. I can't stand even thinking about anyone else laying their eyes on you, spending time with you, getting your attention or even breathe the same air with you."

He spilled everything out in one breath. Wolfram gaped at him.

Without waiting for his reply, Yuuri went on, lest he would lose his courage to confess to Wolfrom or that he might be misunderstood again if he didn't spell it out for him loud and clear, in capital letters, "Wolfram, I am in love with you."

This time, Wolfram was speechless. He didn't even have the strength to deny what Yuuri was telling him. Everything went blank, then choatic in his mind. He didn't know what to do or what to say.

Being with the king all these years, Wolfram knew that he wasn't lying. The glittering in his obsidian eyes was too familiar to recognise. He was utterly serious about what he said and no one could make him flinch.

I was so determined to be your friend.

The lost expression on Wolfram's face broke Yuuri's heart. He gave in and pulled his knight into a tight embrace, "I'm sorry, Wolfram. I know I'm an idiot and I'm too slow to realise how I feel about you. I can't stop think about you. Every time I see you I just wish our engagement is not broken off. I love you, so much. How can I be such an idiot? I'm so stupid. I'm such a moron…"

Somehow Yuuri's babbling calmed him. He returned the hug tentatively, listening to the sound of his voice.

"I'm a wimp, a loser, a useless piece of trash…" The rant went on and on. Once Yuuri started his rambling, he seemed to be triggered and was lost in his own world. The knight couldn't help but chuckled. Something just never changed.

Surprised, Yuuri held him a bit closer, "Wolfram?"

"You're the king of this kingdom. You shouldn't insult yourself like that," he said quietly, closed his eyes for a moment, considering how he should put his feelings in words."I'm happy to know what you have told me but I don't think…"

"I understand," Yuuri interrupted him, his heart racing. "I'm not suggesting that we should get married right away or go back to be fiancés." He slightly loosened his hold and looked at the blond in the eye. "We were going too fast at the beginning. We became engaged the first day we met. Though I am glad that we did, I think we should have taken one step at a time."

Wolfram tilted his head to the side, didn't quite get what he meant.

Yuuri smiled at the adorable gesture, raising his hand to gently brush away the locks of hair that fell back into his eyes. "Wolfram, will you go out with me?"

"Go out? To where?"

Actually, Yuuri knew that he wouldn't have understood what he meant but he just felt like asking him in the Earth way.

"Anywhere," he told Wolfram, leaning close, enchanted by his emerald eyes once more. "In Shin Makoku's term, I think that's called courting."

"Courting." Wolfram knew very well what this word implicated but he didn't know how he should respond other than repeating it.

Yuuri nodded, "Though I'm the king, you can totally refuse! I don't want to force you to do anything…"

"I will."

"Eh?" Yuuri managed to stop himself from another round of babbling and stared at Wolfram in big round eyes.

"I will go out with you," Wolfram averted his gaze, blushing. "Anywhere."

"Really?" Yuuri couldn't believe his luck. He pulled Wolfram into another hug and laughed. "I love you, Wolf!"

He didn't remember when he was this happy! He still had the chance of getting Wolfram's love!

Wolfram hid his smile in his shoulder, "Hey Yuuri," Even the sound of his name became different once they finally became more than friends.

"Hn?"

"Happy birthday."

The king had completely forgotten that today was his birthday. He smiled and nuzzled Wolfram's hair, inhaling his favourite scent in the world. "Thanks."

Yuuri wouldn't ever forget his 18th birthday. He got the best present he could never have imagined.

To be continued?