Maxim called Emmelyn several times but there was no answer from inside the chamber. He scratched his head and tried to think where did Emmelyn go. Could she go outside by herself?

He decided to go down to the ground floor and found any servant or Tides to ask if they saw Emmelyn.

"Did you see my friend go out to the garden or the dining room?" He asked Tides as soon as the butler came to see him. "I called her several times but she didn't respond."

Tides shook his head. "No, Your Grace. I believe Lady Emmelyn hasn't left her chamber since last night."

Maxim furrowed his brows in confusion. "Oh... thank you. I thought she went out already."

Maxim wondered what happened to Emmelyn. Did she oversleep? Hmm... she might be. They didn't really get proper sleep for the past month. So, maybe she just badly needed a good rest and her body was making up for what she lost.

With that in mind, Maxim decided to wait for Emmelyn in the dining room. There, he met Myrcella who sat by the window and looked outside with a gloomy expression. She told Maxim that her son King Alexander didn't come for breakfast because he was feeling unwell.

"Where is Emmelyn?" Myrcella asked Maxim in return. "Did you get good sleep?"

Maxim shook his head. "I couldn't get a wink of sleep, but I'm fine. When I came to her chamber to get her for breakfast, she didn't respond. I think Emmelyn is still asleep. She had gone through a lot, and the past few months were the hardest. I will let her rest some more."

Myrcella nodded in agreement. "Maybe you are right."

She motioned Maxim to sit with her and started with breakfast. While eating, Myrcella decided to confirm to Maxim about his plan to marry Elise. She had heard from her son about it and wanted to hear it from Maxim's own mouth.

"So, it's true?" Myrcella asked.

Maxim nodded. "Yeah. I have asked King Alexander's permission. He said okay."

"Too bad, Elise is away..." Myrcella muttered. "She would have loved to meet you, and I think you will too."

Maxim didn't comment. He honestly didn't know how to react when he did meet his future wife. Elise seemed like a nice girl, but he was not ready to see her now.

Yes, he already made that decision to marry her, but it didn't mean he was ready. He still needed to prepare his heart. He was still feeling heartbroken because his love was unrequited and would never work.

Even though he was a man and he looked like he didn't have a care in the world, Maxim was not heartless. Like he told his mother last month, he had feelings too, and right now his heart was in a complete mess.

Emmelyn was not the only one who suffered, Maxim did too, but he didn't want to make this about him. He thought Emmelyn definitely suffered so much more than him and she had more to lose.

Setting her free was the only thing Maxim could do... even if it meant it broke his heart.

"Thank you for the breakfast. I have to check on Emmelyn," Maxim got up from his chair after he finished his meal. "It's been too long."

"I will go with you," Myrcella offered. "I need to talk to her about something."

Maxim nodded. He went out of the dining room, followed by Myrcella. They walked in silence toward Emmelyn's chamber. Maxim knocked on the door several times, trying to wake her up.

Still, there was no answer.

Maxim turned to Myrcella. "Do you think she is still sleeping?"

Myrcella shook her head. "No. Move away."

Maxim stepped aside and Myrcella waved her right hand. The door suddenly swung open.

SHOOSH!

Maxim felt bad to barge in like this, but he became worried, and Myrcella's reaction seemed strange. The queen just opened the door with her power.

Once the door was opened, she strode inside to check on Emmelyn's condition. Maxim followed her worriedly.

"Emmelyn..." Myrcella found Emmelyn was still lying on the bed with her eyes closed. She looked like she was sleeping, but the lack of color on her face made the queen feel distraught. Myrcella touched Emmelyn's forehead. "Emmelyn, wake up..."

Maxim's heart skipped a beat. He pushed Myrcella to the side and touched Emmelyn's face. He felt the shock of his life when he found her cold and not breathing.

"Em!! Wake up!!" Maxim grabbed her shoulders and shook her body in a panic. "Don't scare me like this... Emmelyn Rosehill!! Hey..! Wake up, you sleepyhead!"

There was no reaction whatsoever. Maxim became panicked.

He bent down and listened to her heartbeat, then he tried to feel her breathing.

"She... she is still alive..." The man dropped to the floor and massaged his temple.

Maxim's face paled and he could hardly breathe. He just got the worst scare of his life.  Emmelyn was still breathing, and her heart beating... but they were all very, very faint. If he wasn't trained, Maxim would have thought she was dead.

Myrcella checked Emmelyn's pulse and heartbeat, and she could confirm what Maxim said. She, too, almost thought Emmelyn died.

"You are right. She is alive..." Myrcella took a deep breath. "Her body is alive but... her mind is shutting down. It seems that she no longer wanted to live."

Maxim was shocked to hear Myrcella's words. "No.. no...! How come she no longer wants to live??? I just free her from the damned curse... Did something happen last night??? WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER??! WHY SHE SUDDENLY NO LONGER WANTED TO LIVE??"

He got up and grabbed the queen's collar, in a desperate act of getting answers. His action shocked Myrcella and she spontaneously pushed him away.

"Get off me!" she screamed.

BANG!

Maxim was tossed out of the door and hit the wall hard. 

"How dare you!" Myrcella panted and looked at Maxim with a murderous glare. Both her hands were raised forward after she pushed Maxim.

She didn't expect this young man to attack her like that and so she spontaneously defended herself.

The beautiful woman now looked like the goddess of death with both hands engulfed in fire and her face flushed red with anger.

Maxim felt his bones broken and his skin was hot.

What did just happen?

The man batted his eyes in confusion for a moment, trying to make sense of what just happened.

Did Myrcella attack him? It all happened so fast.

He looked down to the floor and saw blood dripping. So, he touched his head and realized his head was injured when he hit the wall headfirst.

Maxim looked at his hand and saw blood on it. Damnit. He was really injured, and it was not light either.

Maxim didn't have time to worry about himself as soon as he remembered what happened. Emmelyn was dying... 

He looked up and turned to see Myrcella still standing near Emmelyn's bed, with both hands raised. Her body trembled in shock and anger. Her eyes were looking at him with a dangerous glint.

Maxim was reminded that the Leoraleis was a powerful wizard family. He didn't know exactly what they were capable of, but now he could guess that Myrcella Leoralei was capable of killing him if she wanted to.

He shuddered at the thought.

"I-I'm sorry...." Maxim muttered, realizing his mistake. "It was an accident... I panicked."

He realized Myrcella must have attacked him because she felt threatened by him earlier. He admitted that he was presumptuous.

He shouldn't have grabbed her collar no matter what. Myrcella was a woman and older than him. So, he should have treated her with respect. All his manners went out of the window because he was so worried about Emmelyn.

.

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I have no comment on this chapter, except that the end is near.. We are going to have a happy ending, for sure. Hang in there!

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