The King's Mistress

Chapter 64: Contagious Laughter

Each of them was holding a basket. Ida could barely hold one with both hands yet for Sierra and Alistair, it looked as if it did not weigh a thing.

"We’re going to feed some children," she declared with a smile.

"You know, you don’t have to do this to get into my good books," Alistair commented, not realizing how much his words would hurt.

Sierra stopped in her tracks for a moment. She turned around to face him, her eyes were filled with anger. Realizing he had said something wrong, he wanted to apologize immediately.

But what should he apologize for?

"Someone like you will never understand," Sierra said coldly before turning and walking in the direction the children ran in.

It did not take long for them to find it as the further they got, the more children they found. All of them were dressed in tattered clothing. Everyone was begging on the side of the streets. Alistair was stunned to see this.

He did not say a single word.

Ida was less surprised by the conditions of the streets they were entering. While most of Drakin was well kept and everyone had food on the table, there had been smaller wars with some of the border kingdoms. As such, many refugees fled their homelands and made their way to the capital city in hopes of a better life.

But not everyone found it here.

Sierra walked down one of the alleyways. She could feel all the eyes on her, Ida and Alistair as they continued to walk. She only stopped when she saw the child from earlier.

When the child saw her, he was fixated on the mountain of bread in the basket she held. The fragrant freshly baked bread and the people who held them looked so out of place.

Sierra took one out and handed it to the child, "Here, take it."

The child did not hesitate to take it from her. Just as he was about to put it in his mouth, he stopped. He looked up at Sierra, his eyes were almost covered in tears.

"Miss, may I have some more? For my siblings," he asked.

Sierra did not hesitate. She reached out her hand and ruffled the boy’s hair.

"Of course you can, here, have more," she said as she quickly gave him a few more to take with him.

With an arm full of bread, the child thanked her profusely before rushing off into the distance. Sierra looked on as she watched the child hand over the bread to his siblings on the corner of a street.

After seeing the child receiving bread from Sierra, more people young and old came forward. Sierra instructed Ida and Alistair to give them out. It did not take long before their baskets were empty.

Those who received it were grateful for it. Sierra knew this would not be able to do much for them, but at the very least, she was able to provide some of them with a meal.

As they made their way back to the main market, Alistair grabbed onto Sierra’s hand.

"What’s the matter?" She asked him as she slipped her hand out of his.

"Sierra, I’m sorry," he apologized.

Ida was surprised. She had never heard of King Alistair apologizing for anything before. Yet now, he was doing so, all for Sierra. Sierra was a little surprised too. It wasn’t every day that a King openly apologized for their actions.

"I wasn’t doing it to get into your good books. I was doing it for them," she pointed to the children on the side of the streets who were begging for food, "I did it for me."

She bit her lip, stopping herself from accidentally spilling her true identity to him. She hated having to lie to him, but there was no other choice. What would the King of Drakin do when he found out?

She did not want to know.

Alistair did not expect such a response from her. Her last sentence rang in his mind. What did she mean by she did it for herself? There was something she clearly wasn’t telling him, but he did not want to pry either.

"I was surprised to see it," referring to the conditions of the streets and the refugees, "Seeing it firsthand hits you differently. I should be thanking you, Princess."

"Thanking me? What for?"

"For opening my eyes to see the problem. Those refugees should not be living like that. Everyone should have a home. A roof over their heads and food in their bellies," he said firmly.

Alistair planted a kiss on Sierra’s cheek.

"I will see to it that they never go hungry ever again." ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com

Sierra blushed. It took her a moment to realize what had just happened. The smirk on Alistair’s face said it all. He enjoyed seeing how her expressions twist and change. He always kept her on her toes, never knowing what he would do next.

In the distance, the informant Princess Cassandra had sent had been following them. Though he was not able to get close enough to hear their conversations, the informant could tell their relationship was anything but normal.

When Sierra, Ida, and Alistair returned to the market, they headed straight for the food section of the market. Three lanes were lined with stalls of all sorts, selling different food items and drinks.

Sierra had never seen some of the local delicacies that were up for sale. The meals she had in the castle were always so well plated, even if they were the same dishes, she would not be able to tell.

"Princess Sierra! You have to try this one!" Ida exclaimed with glee as she pointed to one of the meat skewer stalls. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

The stallholder was grilling a fresh batch of tender meat skewers that were marinated in a mixed spice rub, doused in sweet tasting sauce. All of their mouths were watering, including Alistair’s.

When Sierra glanced over at him and saw the expression he had, she could not help but chuckle. Seeing her laugh, made him laugh too.