I Became The Extra King With Seven Wives-Chapter 56: At Regina’s Home [1]

Regina hurried through the bustling, cobbled streets of the Capital.

She had been graciously relieved of her demanding duties much earlier than usual by King Lumiel, affording her a precious sliver of free time for which she was very thankful.

Her first destination was the vibrant market square. Her schedule had left her with scarcely a moment to spare, but now she wove between the stalls of the fruit and vegetable merchants, carefully selecting the meager necessities required to sustain her humble household.

She reprimanded herself to not have taken advantage of the leaves given by Lumiel to do this but she was only only thinking of being at her mother’s side during these two days and they had enough grains, rice and vegetables back then.

While working within the royal castle, the servants were naturally granted a brief respite to partake in the meals prepared for the staff by the cooks different than the Royal Cooks but still tasty. However, Regina still bore the responsibility of cooking for her frail, sickly mother. Moreover, the evening supper was a cherished daily moment, the one meal they inevitably shared together.

Ever since she had accepted the position at the palace, she had little time to spend by her bedridden mother’s side. The prolonged absences filled her heart with guilt, but in truth, she painfully had few alternatives.

The royal wages were superior to anything else she could secure. Moreover, her duties within the castle walls entirely spared her from the vile presence of Onark. The backbreaking laundry work she and her mother used to perform was situated directly beside the home of Onark and his wife, Rona, forcing Regina to endure the man’s humiliating, lecherous comments and his deeply disgusting, lingering gazes on a daily basis.

Even worse, the crude men of his ilk who frequently loitered about were no better, constantly subjecting her to shameless, lascivious stares that made her skin crawl.

Thankfully, she was entirely insulated from such common filth within the halls of the royal palace. Yet, the cost of that comfort and the higher wages was steep: her full-time hours meant she was forced to leave her ailing mother alone for the entirety of the day.

Every single day, a quiet anxiety would eat her, whispering that something terrible might befall her mother while Regina was behind the castle walls.

Her mother was the only family she had left in this world, and Regina simply could not bear the thought of losing her. That love was precisely why she drove herself so arduously, and why she had accepted the illicit proposition to work for Roland Kestrel without a single moment of hesitation.

Once her woven basket was suitably filled with enough provisions to last them the next couple of days, she finally turned her steps toward home, a sigh of satisfaction escaping her lips.

Today had proven to be a fruitful and joyous day. True, it had commenced on a tense note, but it had concluded in a manner she could scarcely have dreamed of.

She had been alone with King Lumiel, and he had actually... tasted her.

Simply recalling the intoxicating sensation made heat coil deep within her belly, leaving her yearning for more of his touch. Perhaps a foolish part of her had hoped he would summon her to his bed once again tonight, yet instead, he had thoughtfully dismissed her so she might care for her mother.

Regina had never explicitly mentioned her mother’s illness to Lumiel, yet he had still shown such gentle concern for her safety, refusing to let her walk the precarious streets alone in the dead of night.

’He is perfection.’

She could see nothing else in her mind’s eye but his visage. He was so attentive to the smallest of details, possessing an almost preternatural understanding of a woman’s unspoken thoughts. It was a trait that bordered on terrifying, yet it only served to draw her deeper into his magnetic pull.

However, today she had also borne witness to another shocking facet of his nature. She had seen the ruthlessness he had shown upon Morgana, simply because the noblewoman had dared to disrespect him.

Regina swallowed hard, a sudden lump forming in her throat at the memory. As expected, he was unimaginably charming... but he was also the King.

’If His Majesty ever discovers the truth about me...’

The mere thought sent an icy chill racing down her spine.

If he ever learned that she was secretly aiding Roland Kestrel in whatever dark, treasonous plot he was weaving, the King would never grant her forgiveness. He had shattered Morgana’s hand for a mere slight of the tongue; if Regina was exposed as a traitor, he would definitely execute her without a second thought.

She felt her entire body tremble at the mere thought of it.

’Perhaps I should have simply fled the capital with mother when I had the chance...’

A conflicted part of her was overjoyed that she had finally managed to bridge the gap and become intimately close with Lumiel. Yet, another, far more rational part of her was terrified, because achieving that closeness meant she was now fully entangled in Roland’s treacherous web.

Ever since she had first arrived at the castle under Roland’s clandestine sponsorship, she had dutifully attempted to charm the young Prince at his explicit command. Roland had chosen her because she was beautiful, highly educated due to her fallen noble lineage, and, above all, completely desperate to get a better life for her and her mother who showed first signs of sickness. In his eyes, she was the perfect pawn to manipulate.

And initially, he had not been entirely wrong. Regina had been perfectly willing to ensnare Lumiel if it guaranteed her and her mother’s survival.

She had tried her hardest during that first month, but the Lumiel of the past had been different. He was a deeply broken, fearful boy, visibly crushed beneath the expectations and burdens of his status as Crown Prince. He was a pitiful sight, and Regina had not wished to inflict further pain upon someone so fragile.

So, for the ensuing months, she had merely gone through the motions, feigning a few half-hearted attempts to catch his eye without ever truly trying to succeed. Besides, Alice had always been steadfastly by his side. The young Prince was glued to her, and he seemed to find a measure of peace and happiness in her company. Regina had felt awkward attempting to wedge herself between them, knowing full well her only purpose was to manipulate him.

Unfortunately, months later, Lumiel awakened. He had completely transformed, and Regina suddenly found herself trying to impress him and capture his gaze, though this time, it was driven by her own burgeoning desires rather than Roland’s commands.

And now, she was trapped, with no discernible way out.

Over these past few days, she had debated spilling the entire truth to Lumiel. In fact, right after he had first taken her to his bed, her immediate instinct had been to confess everything, simply because she had fallen for him. But she could not.

Roland had threatened to butcher both her and her mother if she ever attempted anything foolish. Conversely, if she confessed to Lumiel that she had spent the last six months embedded in his staff as a spy, the King would almost certainly execute her for high treason. And having just witnessed the brutality he was capable of inflicting upon Morgana, she was far less eager to throw herself upon his mercy.

She despised the guilt of hiding such a monstrous secret from him, but survival demanded her silence.

With a clouded expression, Regina finally reached the decrepit stoop of her small home. But the moment she noticed the wooden door slightly ajar, and the low murmur of voices drifting from within, her eyes widened in panic.

"M—Mother!" She cried, throwing the door open in terror, only to freeze entirely in her tracks.

Her frail mother, Ada, was propped up on the carpet bed on the ground, very much awake. She was engaged in nervous conversation with a figure seated casually upon a rickety wooden chair beside the mattress.

It was Lumiel.

Regina’s entire body went rigid with shock.

"Y—Your Majesty?!" She dropped her bags.

"Ah, Regina. You have finally returned," Lumiel said, offering her a calm smile as he sat amidst the squalor of her humble home.

"Regina..." Ada muttered. The ailing woman wore a nervous and awkward expression, clearly overwhelmed by the reality of hosting the reigning King of Helios in their home.

He had simply slipped into the home a mere couple of minutes prior. At first, Ada had been terrified he was a prowling thief, or something far worse but the moment he lowered his hood and casually introduced himself as her King, she had instantly believed him. His refined features and regal aura were impossible to fake, and because he spoke so familiarly of Regina, Ada had been easily convinced of his intentions.

As for Regina, she was stunned into silence.

After Lumiel had dismissed her earlier in the evening, she had hurried home, made several exhausting trips to the public well to fill their water basin, and subsequently rushed to the market square. It had taken a couple of hours in total, and the night had fully descended upon the capital.

She had wanted to see him again, she would happily spend every waking moment in his presence if permitted but certainly not already, and not sitting directly beside her bedridden mother!

"What are you gawking at, Regina?" Lumiel asked, a single brow rising in mild amusement. "Come inside. I merely came to pay your humble home a visit," he added, gracefully gesturing for her to enter her own house.

"Y—Yes..." Regina nodded stiffly.

Stepping past them, she made a beeline straight for the cramped quarters of their small kitchen. She needed to drink something, to splash cold water upon her face just to ensure she was not completely hallucinating this entire scenario out of her foolish infatuation with the King.

Hurrying to the back of their modest home, she filled a cracked wooden cup from the barrel, drank it down in one frantic gulp, and quickly poured another to splash against her flushed cheeks. The icy shock helped, but her heart continued to hammer wildly against her ribs like a trapped bird.

A sense of unease washed over her. How had he even managed to locate their home in the back streets of the Capital to begin with?! And why on earth would he seek out her home immediately after explicitly dismissing her for the night?

She felt as though her chest might genuinely burst from the panic.

’I—I must calm down.’

Taking a deep, shuddering breath, she turned around.

"Eek!"

A startled cry tore from her throat as she found Lumiel standing silently at the narrow entrance of the kitchen. Startled, she took a hasty step backward, her heel forcefully clipping the heavy water barrel. She lost her footing instantly, nearly tumbling backward onto the hard stone floor, but Lumiel’s arm shot out with lightning speed. He wrapped a strong arm around her back, stopping her fall.

"Tell me, are you always this hopelessly clumsy within the safety of your own home?" He asked, a faint, teasing smile on his lips.

Regina’s face instantly flared pink. Caught in the silvery shafts of moonlight, his refined features looked breathtaking, like a portrait of a divine being. She just wished to kiss him in that moment, but she forcefully suppressed the urge, reminding herself that the man holding her was the King of Helios.

Unable to find her voice, she simply offered a frantic shake of her head.

Lumiel merely chuckled, pulling her upright before stepping back. He casually lifted his free hand, revealing the woven sacks of vegetables she had unceremoniously dropped upon the floor out of shock in the main room.

"Where would you like me to put these?"

"Oh! Your Majesty, please, allow me!" Regina gasped, hastily snatching the rough sacks from his hands and hurriedly stuffing them onto a weathered stone shelf in the corner.

"I deeply apologize for my clumsiness..." She whispered, bowing her head in shame.

"It is perfectly fine," Lumiel replied with a smile, turning on his heel to stroll back into the dim living area.

As he entered, Ada was weakly attempting to push herself upright from her thin bedding.

"Y—Your Majesty..." She let out, attempting to rise and offer the formal, subservient greeting demanded by the presence of a King.

However, Lumiel closed the distance in two long strides, reaching out to place his hands gently upon her frail shoulders, pressing her back down against the straw-stuffed mattress.

"You truly must remain resting, Lady Ada," he said, gently.

"But, Your Majesty..."

"No buts. You are gravely ill," Lumiel insisted, withdrawing his hands and taking his seat upon the rickety wooden chair once more. "What kind of cruel tyrant forces his ailing subjects to rise from their sickbeds merely to satisfy royal protocol? I assure you, I am not nearly that obnoxious."

"I—I would never dare to think such things of you, Your Majesty..." Ada answered in a sudden, breathless panic, before a harsh, wracking cough tore through her fragile frame. "Cough! Cough!"

"Water, Regina," Lumiel said, casting a pointed glance toward Regina, who was still standing in the doorway, still overwhelmed by the surreal scene.

The strong tone broke her paralysis instantly. She rushed back into the kitchen, returning seconds later to press a cup of fresh water to her mother’s trembling lips. Ada offered a weak, grateful smile and drank deeply to soothe her burning throat.

"So," Lumiel started, his golden-amber eyes resting thoughtfully upon the ailing woman. "You are the Lady Clay. The former Baroness Clay."

Ada’s pale face instantly flushed with a deeply ingrained shame, her gaze dropping to the frayed blanket.

"Not anymore, Your Majesty."

"Hmm. Yes, I am well aware of the disgraceful actions the late Baron committed. It was a stupidly irresponsible, cowardly path for a man who possessed both a wife and a daughter," Lumiel said, shaking his head in quiet disdain.

At his blunt words, both Ada and Regina could only remain frozen in a tense silence. It was a dark, humiliating Chapter of their past that neither of them ever wished to revisit.

Gathering a fraction of her courage, Regina finally broke the silence.

"Your Majesty... if I may be so bold as to ask, did you require something specific of me this evening?" She asked hesitantly.

"Regina!" Ada gasped, her eyes flying wide at her daughter’s presumptuous tone toward the King. "Please, I beg you, forgive her insolence, Your Majesty!" The older woman pleaded, bowing her head as far as her sickness allowed.

Lumiel merely let out a chuckle.

"There is nothing to forgive. And no, I did not require anything in particular. I had just concluded a late-night visit with a friend, and since I was already in the city streets, I simply thought it prudent to visit your home, Regina. In truth, I have not even partaken in my evening supper yet," he said casually.

"I—If Your Majesty would not be entirely offended by our meager provisions, I would be honored to prepare something for you—" Ada began eagerly, before her lungs seized, plunging her into another violent fit of coughing.

"Mother, please... you must not strain yourself so," Regina said, instantly dropping to her knees beside the bed and gently rubbing soothing circles onto Ada’s frail back.

"Well, I am indeed quite famished," Lumiel smiled, his gaze shifting back to the young maid. "Since your mother is strictly confined to her bed, would you be so kind as to prepare a quick meal for me, Regina?"

Regina stared at him, dumbfounded. Here was the reigning King of Helios, sitting in a squalid slum, casually asking to eat peasant food from her dilapidated kitchen.

Swallowing her lingering shock, she immediately bowed her head.

"R—Right away, Your Majesty!" She scrambled to her feet, hurrying back toward the kitchen without another word.