***

Mars was right, after he notified Horatio that his family would go back to Draec in two days, King Loriel Ashborn or Maxim sent word that he would love to have them for dinner at his banquet hall.

No matter how much Maxim wanted to avoid them, it would look really awkward if he didn't at least meet them once more before they left. Besides... he needed to see Emmelyn before she was gone - out of his life forever.

It's true, he had let her go and he would need some time to process his broken heart. And the best way was to never see her again, because it would only rub salt on his wounds.

However, Maxim also knew that he would regret it if he didn't say goodbye to Emmelyn properly.  So, he licked his wounds, put on a smiling face, and welcomed them to his banquet hall.

"How was your visit to Castilse so far?" He asked Emmelyn and her family with a casual tone when entered the hall and his guests were all standing to greet him. "Is there anything you find lacking?"

Emmelyn quickly shook her head. "No, everything is fine. Horatio is a great host and he made sure we have a great stay. We went on picnics. We also visited so many wonderful places. This is an interesting opportunity for all of us to learn from another kingdom."

"I am glad to hear that," Maxim nodded in satisfaction. His gaze fell on Harlow who latched on her father and now looked at him curiously.

Ahh... seeing Harlow always made Maxim feel slightly bitter. She was like the victory flag that Mars Strongmoor kept waving at him to mock his defeat in getting the woman that they both loved.

Well... Mars didn't do such a thing, but that's how Maxim felt. He was bitter when he thought how this adorable baby could have been his.

Sigh.

"You have such a beautiful coat, little girl," Maxim greeted Harlow. "I recognize the best fur from our grey wolf here in Castilse. Is that new?"

His question was directed at Kira which the girl responded with a proud nod. Yep.

Maxim nodded in admiration. He knew those grey wolves were vicious and hard to kill.  When he found out for the first time how Kira hunted some wolves to make coats for herself, he found himself growing a bit of respect for the pirate princess.

Maxim always liked strong women. To him, they were admirable. He had no romantic interest in Kira, but he had grown to like her more, compared to the first time when they met where he thought she was annoying and dumb.

At that time, Maxim even wished Emmelyn let Kira stay in Mount Tempest as a castle decoration. However, now that they had met several times and interacted more, he considered Kira okay.

"Yes. It's a gift from me," Kira replied smugly. "The wolves you have here have the best fur. I just have to get her one nice coat."

She turned to Mars apologetically and added, "Not that I think her father, as the king, couldn't give little Harlow the best clothes and whatnot, but the grey wolf's fur here is just special."

Mars smiled at her and nodded, showing his understanding. "I know you mean well. That is such a nice coat."

"Why, thank you." Kira was happy because Mars knew how to appreciate her gift. It was not the monetary value, since he could provide all the most expensive and the best things the world had to offer for his daughter.

It is the thought that counts.

"I agree. It's such a nice coat," Gewen added. He was brimming with happiness. "I got mine too from Kira. We hunted the wolves together."

Kira furrowed her brows, wanting to protest to Gewen by saying it was SHE who killed the wolves, while Gewen was in a daze, but she eventually decided it was not important. She only grunted and went back to her chair.

"Let's sit down and eat," Maxim said. He looked around and realized he was only accompanied by Renwyck, while Mars and Emmelyn had five more people with them.

This made him just realize how lonely he was, having only one person in the whole Summeria whom he considered close enough as a friend and family, to invite to this dinner, while Mars had more.

Maxim saw Kira, Edgar, Gewen, also Elmer, and Bruinen. He didn't know the last three because they had not gotten acquainted before.

Mars formally introduced his people to Maxim and the king of Summeria also did the same thing. They finally could sit down and start dinner. Horatio and ten servants came to bring dishes and wine, one after another.

It was a sumptuous dinner and the atmosphere was warm and pleasant. Emmelyn admired Maxim's ability to put on a calm expression like this when she could guess that the man was still feeling sad about their situation.

She was not dumb and understood the reason why Maxim avoided her for the whole week. She couldn't force him to meet her and act as if nothing happened and everything was okay. She always knew that Maxim was a good liar, but this thing was next level.

"We have a nice time here in Castilse," Mars said. "I would like to thank you for your hospitality and your friendship. I wish you would come and visit us someday in Draec. We have things available in our country that might interest you."

Maxim never had the intention of seeing Draec, of course, but he had to reply in a diplomatic way, like the true king he was. "For sure. I would love to do it. I hope I can find a good time to do an official visit someday. Thank you for the invitation."

He raised his cup and motioned Horatio to fill his cup. The butler quickly poured more wine into the king's goblet, followed by the others. 

"To our friendship." Maxim looked at Emmelyn and faked a smile. "I am happy to have met Emmelyn in this lifetime and foster a friendship with her. Emmelyn, I will always cherish the moments we spent together doing all kinds of shenanigans."

Emmelyn smiled when she heard his words. They reminded her of their adventures together almost three years ago. Uff... how time flies.

Maxim continued his words. Even though he was smiling more broadly, his voice was laced with sadness. "Em, you are part of my youth that shaped me into the person I am today. I wish you all the good things in life because you are such a special woman, and I know your friends and family love you."

"Yeah.. we love you." Everyone at the dining table raised their cups and spoke almost at the same time.

They looked at each other and laughed. Emmelyn couldn't help but shed some tears because of the heartfelt statement.

She really liked Maxim and she hope her friend would someday find his happiness. She pursed her lips and wiped her eyes, then looked at Maxim seriously. "Please, come visit us when you can. It doesn't have to be an official visit. I would love to show you my new home."

Mars felt his heart flutter when Emmelyn referred to  Draec as her new home. She no longer thought that her home was in Wintermere.. He slid his hand under the table and squeezed her thigh lovingly.

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