Behind The Castle's

**'ACE'**

"Bashwas... May I know about your past stories?"

Victoria looked at Fredick deeply and deeply, Fredrick threw away his face and looked back at the window

"It's all just Vic's past"

Victoria's hand grabbed Fredrick's face to look back at him. Victoria stared at the two gray eyeballs that now looked very gray not to blend in. As if he was holding something strong

"You hurt Bash. I'm your wife, I want you to share your wounds with me"

Smiling bitterly, Fredrick returned his wife's deep gaze with the feeling and fortitude he had released, so Victoria could see the deep and vast wounds in both of her husband's gray eyeballs. Victoria's chest was also sore to see the two gray eyeballs that had been shaking because of the severe injury

"Tell me Bash for your wounds" Fredrick closed his eyes tightly, his chest tight and Victoria had not given up. "Please.I want to know your wounds"

Fredrick's eyes opened and looked out the window

"You want to know about Larina?"

Victoria nodded, even Fredrick had not started anything but Victoria's chest was already sore as Fredrick's voice began to tremble in pain.

"I know you want me to escape my past, Vic, but..." Fredrick looked back at Victoria with a stern and confident look. "I've been able to escape it, I promise I will not wallow again in my past, especially my mother. But I'm not ready to open that story yet now, give me time"

Victoria who also has a lot of wounds understands that feeling, to go back to remembering especially to tell the wound that you tried to save is very painful, it feels better to keep it alone than having to go back to memory and again feel the feeling of pain and injury. Finally, Victoria nodded, giving her husband time to be ready and opening up the story of the past. Fredrick who saw Victoria nodded back grabbed Victoria's small hand to her lips

"I promise to open everything to you, everyone. But not now dear, because there is more important than the past" Fredrick's eyebrows furrowed deeply with his changing gaze, a gaze that Victoria could not understand. "The future and it's about you"

--000--

Victoria glanced at the waiter who served their tea and snacks at the long table of the meeting of the late King's office, which is now the official place of her husband and herself. In the leader's seat that is available already occupied by Fredrick, he and Edward have sat on the left and right of the leader's seat, and Tomy who stands behind Fredrick's chair. Fredrick began to sip the contents of his cup and casually put the teacup back down while continuing to look at Victoria.

"I hope you don't rampage Vic" Victoria just kept quiet and didn't answer her husband who spoke while linking her hands to the table. Fredrick continued. "As I said last night while we were taking care of the western region, we also routinely monitored Vancia" Victoria's head nodded briefly and was ready to listen to one of the important things and the big thing that her husband would explain. "You've also heard a lot of times that we've mentioned 'the ace'?"

Victoria nodded with a face that turned serious because the face of her husband and all the other men there also turned serious. Fredrick stared fixedly at Victoria as he glanced at Edward who was just silent on the chair while folding his hands in front of the chest.

"That makes us routine to monitor there not only because of Vancia's movements are quite suspicious but because there is also a smell of 'us cards' which is now that we have investigated and we have seen for ourselves is indeed there, even we have met him" Fredrick searched and looked back at Victoria who was still silent with a serious face. "There, we met your sister"

Victoria's brows furrowed deeply, deeply, she did not understand where the direction and max of this conversation was going. Because obviously, during his time in the Albany castle, Arthur was always there with him and from the time of departure Arthur who although occasionally went outside the castle a few days, Arthur, those few days were not enough to go home and leave Vancia. So what's the max of her husband?

"Your other brother.... Lady Charlotte"

As if she had just seen a time bomb ready to explode, Victoria stiffened in her chair, her throat choked, her chest rumbling strongly

"W-what's your max?"

Fredrick took a deep breath and glanced at Tomy who had directly advanced one step from the seat behind Fredrick. Fredrick nodded once at Tomy who looked at Victoria calmly but also firmly.

"Saved him"

Victoria looked at Tomy with a surprised, confused face and asked for an explanation. Fredrick who saw that took a deep breath and nodded back at Tomy. And Tomy went on

"We have a secret task given directly by the late King, to save Lady Charlotte, you know...."

"I don't understand..."

With livid lips, Victoria voiced her head. Tomy who understood that Victoria was being shaken searched for a moment to catch her breath, then reopened her voice and explained quickly

"Actually, on the night of the purge, we did nothing to Lady Charlotte other than making her look as deathly as the late Duke and Duchess, that we did to other knights, that we did so, especially the knight who became another 'dog' did not try to disturb him again and make them sure if, Lady Charlotte already has the same taste as her two parents"

Victoria's hands clenched firmly with a reddened face, her heart felt bombarded to the point of not being able to open her mouth which was increasingly moody. Fredrick, who saw Victoria getting shaken, took over the conversation and explained in his own way

"Bring the King, asking them to save Lady Charlotte who was 'made' horribly and fainted for quite a long time with the aim to show all eyes there until all looks as planned, until Edward took care of the lifeless body of the late Duke and Duchess then they took care of Lady Charlotte. When Lady Charlotte regained consciousness, they explained everything to her and offered Lady Charlotte a purpose to give her, a place to hide for her, but......"

"Lady Charlotte chose her own path to go to a place she chose herself, and we took it off"

Edward snatched Fredrick's words and glanced at Victoria who gasped with a heavy-looking breath.

"What's the reason?"

With great difficulty, amidst her shaken soul, Victoria's intelligent brain voiced out her surprise as well as her thoughts.

"To save Lady Charlotte as well as...." Fredrick took a breath and reopened his voice. "And also to be 'the ace', for preparation and holding..."

"Control me, subdue me, which you may not be able to tame and may not be able to match your expectations"

With trembling lips, Victoria kept her husband's words very piercing in her chest

"really"

THE PRANNGGG!!

Edward closed his eyes firmly, Tomy jerked in place, Fredrick's face wet and immediately flushed from the tea, as Victoria had already thrown her hot tea cup strong, right into the face of Fredrick who looked resigned while closing his eyes.

"THAT YOU SLY SNAKES!!!"

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Ayukk traces yukk

Greetings dear all