Chapter 107: Chapter 107: A Royal Reward

Chapter 107:

A Royal Reward

Jace's heart almost stopped in his chest when they entered the private room at Radiance. Balek was prepared and already there. He showed them the way to the room and entered with them. There was a singular couch on the far side, black leather and cushioned well.

This was a VIP room meant for important clients. With sound dampening and heavy security, it was a good place for a meeting. A round coffee table made of a dark wood sat before the couch. The room was lit by purple and blue neon lights.

As Evelyn jumped from his arms, his eyes couldn't leave the people in the room. Specifically, the insignia upon their lapel. A Crowned Rose. They stood as he entered with Evelyn, making their way towards her with happy faces.

However, Jace was too stunned to smile at the moment. His heart trying to restart itself. "The fuck is Royalty doing here?" Jace glanced towards Balek, and the two of them shared a look.

"Are they..." Jace whispered, to which Balek nodded.

Jace felt his face drain of color. It all made sense to him now. The secrecy as well as why the Elder Council made a deal with The Sparrows. It would have been a massacre otherwise.

Right before Jace was the King and Queen of the Nobles. The Royalty. Not just in name, but actuality. They were real Royalty. Yes, those who lead The Nobles were actual royalty.

Not many knew this fact. Most thought that The Royalty was just some silly rank, and they weren't going to dismiss that any time soon. They were quite content being a mystery. They ruled from the shadows for several reasons. Mostly for secrecy.

They were somewhat in the public eye. Appearances were everything. Jace only saw them once in the news, but never their daughter. Which is why he didn't recognize her.

Nadine and Balek had told Jace about The Nobles around the time his mother was hospitalized. He learned who The Nobles were and how they worked, but he never really gave much thought or care to it. He had his mother to worry about after all.

Still, all that information was coming back to him now. The Elder Council technically ran The Nobles. A group of individuals who were highly trusted and meritorious in their own right. They oversaw the everyday activities of the gang. The Royalty gave orders, passing them through a medium to The Elder Council. Though they rarely did unless something big was happening.

His thoughts were interrupted by Evelyn's cheery voice calling him a "Prince". It was so cute; he couldn't help but blush. To think she thought him a prince. An actual princess calling him a prince. He became even more flustered as The King and Queen bowed to him.

"P-Please, raise your heads..." Jace shifted around, glancing at Balek.

He was absolutely no help. Jace could only glare at him when he shrugged, a smug, amused smile on his face. "Damn it...you knew..." Jace grumbled to himself.

"Arc, was it?" The King asked, his voice deep and velvety, holding a dignified, regal demeanor, "How could I not bow to the one who saved my precious daughter?"

"No!" Evelyn exclaimed, hitting her father with a playful fist, "Jace! His name is Jace!"

"Is that so?" Her father smiled down at her pouting face, "I apologize, little star."

"Hmph, as long as you're sorry!" Evelyn huffed, then smiled and winked up at Jace.

"Ugh...she's so cute," Jace chuckled to himself, "I do go by Arc when I'm running, remember, Evie?"

"I remember..." Evelyn stated, though sulked a bit, "I like Jace better though."

"I see..." Jace felt a bit awkward and embarrassed about his name now, "Well, thank you."

Jace couldn't help but feel the intense gaze of The Queen. Her golden eyes watched him with an intrigued gaze. There was a calculating intelligence that sent a shiver up his spine. It was unnerving, but not unpleasant.

"Yes," The Queen chimed in with a wry smile, "It's as my precious little star says. You must be rewarded, and for saving my daughter's life, there is only one gift worth such a feat."

"It's...really nothing," Jace was beginning to grow nervous, "I didn't do much. Truly, it wasn't that diffi-"

"Jace," The Queen spoke with a sultry authority, "You know who we are, don't you?"

He swallowed hard, nodding. He felt his body warm up from her gaze and voice. She wasn't using any kind of magic as far as he was aware. "Is this...just her natural aura?" He was a bit overwhelmed, but quickly regained his composure as he took a deep breath.

"I do," Jace answered, glancing towards Balek, "Though I wasn't told about this."

"Don't blame Balek," The King spoke with a hearty laugh, "We asked him to keep it a secret. Though, he begrudgingly accepted. It seems he doesn't like to keep things from you."

"He's my soon to be son-in-law," Balek crossed his arms with a huff, "And I've known him since he was a kid...of course I don't like hiding things."

"Little Liana?" The Queen asked in surprise, quite pleasantly amused.

"Yes, Liana," Balek nodded, smiling like a proud father, "I couldn't be prouder to have Jace as a son-in-law...no, a son."

Balek playfully jostled Jace, much to his embarrassment. However, his heart was warm from his words. "I'm proud of you for being the father I never had..." Jace smiled to himself.

"Son-in-law?" Evelyn asked, tilting her head while curiously holding a finger to her chin, "Are you getting married, Jace?"

Her question broke him out of his inner thoughts.

"I..." Jace felt a blush come over his cheeks as his angels flashed through his mind; a tender smile crept across his face as he nodded, "Yes. One day. I am engaged to three beautiful, strong women. Which..."

His thoughts and words trailed as he felt Selene through their bond. She was in the direction of the loft, most likely waiting for him to return home. It was a soothing thought to think about and he honestly couldn't wait to return.

"Jace?" Evelyn asked inquisitively, "Are they pretty?"

"Very," Jace answered softly.

"Even more than Mama?" Evelyn held onto the sleeve of her mother's jacket as she asked this.

He glanced up at The Queen who had quite the amused expression. Even The King looked on curiously. Again, Balek was no help as he held up his hands to state he was on his own.

"...Traitor," Jace muttered as he glared at him, then sighed as he asked, "Truthfully?"

"Mhm!" Evelyn's eyes were full of wonder and curiosity.

"Go on, answer her," The Queen enticed him, her eyes glinting strangely in the light of the room.

"Well..." Jace chuckled softly, "With no disrespect to her majesty, The Queen...yes. To me, they are."

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Jace spoke with conviction, his eyes and heart unwavering. The Queen seemed to be rather surprised at his answer but smiled softly. The King seemed to be amused and Balek eyed Jace knowingly.

"Really!?" Evelyn's eyes glimmered even more, "Woah! I'd like to see them then! Can I? Can I see them?"

"Only if it's okay with your parents," Jace told her, kneeling down before her, "Alright?"

"Okay!" Evelyn looked towards them with puppy dog eyes, "Mama! Papa! I wanna meet them!"

The two of them looked at each other, exchanging a defeated looked. "Even Royalty are weak to such a look..." Jace found it amusing. The two of them nodded to their daughter who jumped happily. Honestly, it was all too much for Jace. He didn't think his heart could take much more.

"Before that..." The Queen spoke once more, a seriousness to her tone, "My daughter wishes you rewarded. Is there anything you want?"

The question caught him a bit off-guard, but it didn't take him long to answer. He was content with everything he already had. He was just happy to reunite their family.

"I have everything I want," Jace told her as he stood, "Evie is safe. That's all that matters."

"Honestly, Jace..." The Queen laughed lightly, "You're too humble for your own good."

"My dear wife is right," The King added, stepping up beside her, "So, since you know not what you want, I will give you all that I can."

"Oh my," The Queen smirked, placing an alluring hand upon The King's shoulder, "It seems my dear husband is of the same mind as me."

"And...that is?" Jace inquired, rather confused.

"Balek, you still have a sword?" The King asked as he looked in his direction.

"I do, but..." Balek's eyes went wide with recognition, "Wait, are you serious?"

"Very," The Queen answered confidently, "He has earned it, and our little star seems to have taken a shine to him. What better reward than to be officially granted Knighthood?"

"On top of that," The King continued, "He will always be welcome in our home. He is a friend not only to The Nobles, but to us. The Rosemist Family."

"Indeed," The Queen smiled approvingly.

Waving her hand before her, Jace felt the slightest bit of mana fluctuate. Produced within the palm of her hand was a pin, similar in appearance to their own, but with a slight variation. His was silver, whereas theirs was gold.

"By my name, Queen Camilla Vel Rosemist," Camilla stepped forward towards Jace, intoning words with a deep reverence, "I hereby bestow upon you a token of our friendship. With this, you will be recognized as an honored guest. To be treated with respect and dignity. Wear it well."

Taking his jackets collar in her hand, she pulled him rather close. The scent of rose mixed with citrus hit his nose. It was soft and honestly rather soothing. Camilla took her time to place the pin upon his jackets lapel.

Jace wasn't sure how to feel in this moment. He was rather overwhelmed. What he did was simply save a child who needed saving. He didn't think it was insignificant, far from it. Saving an innocent life was extremely important to him, but to receive such a reward was also hard for him to grasp.

"Jace..." Camilla spoke softly, almost a whisper in his ear, "You may not think what you did is worthy of this, but you not only saved my daughter, but stopped a possible national incident."

"...Was it really that serious?" He asked back quietly, glancing over at the grinning face of Evelyn, "I know she's the princess of your nation, but..."

"That is precisely why," Camilla chuckled softly, "You saved her so casually without realizing. Balek was right. You are an amazing runner."

Jace felt his cheeks grow warm in embarrassment and from how close she was to him. He was still a bit awkward around women he didn't know. He also had to admit, she was beautiful. Nothing compared to his angels, but even so. He'd be a fool to not be aware.

"...Thank you," Jace calmed himself as he spoke.

With the impromptu ceremony done, the small group seemed to disperse. Balek went to greet The King as if they were old friends. The two of them talking and playing with Evelyn. She giggled in delight as she was lifted high into the air by Balek. Her father watched on with pride and love in his eyes.

Jace couldn't help but wonder something as he looked on.

"If you don't mind me asking..." Jace glanced towards Evelyn, speaking quietly to Camilla, "Did she have guards?"

Camilla grew silent. Turning towards him, she adjusted the pin. With the others preoccupied, they had time to talk. Her expression grew rather glum as she placed her hand upon his chest after adjusting his pin.

"Yes," She nodded, a sad smile upon her lips, "She had a shadow. I don't know how they knew about him, but the moment his life signs flatlined...We knew something happened."

"I'm sorry," Jace stated remorsefully, "I didn't mean to-"

"No, it's alright," Camilla shook her head, a friendly smirk on her face, "You were worried, right? Why we would let her go alone."

"...Yeah," Jace smiled sheepishly, feeling slightly foolish.

Of course, they wouldn't let her go back and forth to school alone. Still, he would have thought some low-level thugs wouldn't have been able to deal with a trained bodyguard.

"Is she going to be okay?" He asked with a soft, pained voice, "She probably knew them."

"She will," Camilla's eyes shone with a certain vigor as she answered, "You know, you're kind. Worrying about such a thing. I can see why Evie took a liking to you. You said you were engaged?"

"Yes," he answered with warmth, "It's a little surreal, honestly."

"Heh, it always is," she seemed to reminisce for a moment before speaking again, "I look forward to meeting them. I know Liana, though it has been a while. I'm curious as to who the others are that have taken such a young man for themselves."

She let her hand fall from his chest with a smile, though it left a lingering feeling. He was sure she didn't do anything with magic, but something about her touch was memorable. It had been tender and rather sincere.

He watched as she turned to return to her family. As he saw them interact, Camilla's smile shone bright. He realized in that moment that she had been showing her appreciation to him.

She loved her family, and her daughter was indeed precious to her. As a parent, her heart softened towards the one who saved them. It made him think of his own mother and look forward to the day she awoke. Balek caught his eye, giving him a gentle smile and a nod for a job well done.

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