The second day of spring celebrations rolled in quicker than Lex had expected it to, but unlike his usual demeanor, the Kaxarene showed little sign of irritation this time around.
And although Lex would never admit it, his spontaneous outing with Kaari last night had much to do with it, but being the ever-prideful immortal that he was, there was no way he was going to admit that was the case of his sudden switch in personality.
As he walked, the maids and servants rushing to do their duties quickly scurried out of his way through the massive corridors, with his fellow shadow creatures following closely from behind.
Despite being shamelessly late for the second time in a row, he moved at a calm, unhurried pace, showing no hint of stress or urgency.
His mind, however, was racing to form a convincing excuse to defend his belatedness this time around.
'Blaming Nox this time probably won't fly.' He decided almost instantly, having dragged the poor creature's name through the mud far too often lately. 'Maybe I should just brazen it out and claim I was late on purpose.'
His brainstorming, however, was rather short-lived as it quickly shifted to wondering if Kaari would attend the party as well, and what on earth he's do if that were the case.
After escorting Kaari to her private chambers, Lex spent the whole night tackling his ever-growing list of tasks with his henchmen, without catching a single wink of sleep.
Immortals generally needed very little sleep, but the lack of rest was beginning to take a toll on him.
Still, he did what he always did when faced with such problems—ignore it.
The shadows naturally stepped forward to open the door for him once he arrived, successfully catching the attention of all the guests inside the massive ballroom.
Many rushed over to greet the unimpressed emperor, but he immediately caught himself and forced a polite smile, realizing that most knew him as his other companion, Kaiden.
His eyes darted through the room quickly, scanning for the familiar figure of the princess, but to no avail.
'She must still be asleep.' He thought as he half-heartedly acknowledged the countless nobles that tried to start a conversation with him.
Despite his stubbornness, Lex was an excellent actor when it came to masking his true self from strangers, though it was exhausting for him to do so.
'He just had to be as approachable as Mother was.' He thought, cursing at the other alter for burdening him with this reality as he struck an idle conversation with a nobleman whose name he couldn't be bothered to recall.
Lex quickly noticed another familiar face pushing through the crowd, and it was none other than the minister himself, wearing his usual stoic expression.
"I was beginning to think you wouldn't show, Your Majesty." Despite the formal address, Arius's tone barely masked the disapproval he felt over Lex's improper conduct when he finally reached his side. "The headmaster has been waiting for you for quite some time now."
"...Forgive me." The gentle tone of Lex's reply hit harder than Arius had expected, sending an uneasy chill down his spine. "I was rather preoccupied with some other matters."
Many years had passed since Lex took the lead after Kaiden's sudden dormancy, and because of that, Arius had grown accustomed to Lex's brutish personality compared to Kaiden's gentler nature.
And to make matters worse for the minister, Lex turned out to be an incredible actor, which made the scene even more unsettling to witness for someone who personally knew both alters.
"Your Majesty, you do know that he is aware of your condition, correct?" Arius whispered to Lex, who remained in character despite it. "You do not need to go out of your way to-"
"There is always someone watching, Arius." Lex softly cut him off, but his facade never once slipped, despite his blunt statement. "And besides, I'd prefer not to deal with any more messes I have to clean up myself.
"... I understand." Arius finally stepped back, knowing better than to argue with Lex when it came to this topic.
Lex would never admit this out loud, and probably never will, but Arius knew both he and Kaiden had always felt anxious about their secret getting out beyond family and peers.
Ever since his condition was discovered and Lex fronted, he had been a constant thorn on Kaiden's side because of their clashing personalities.
He was everything Kaiden wished he could be, yet Lex never shared an ounce of desire to climb up the ranks of the royal court like he did.
This caused a massive disconnect between the two, which made them grow so unstable, that they had no choice but to move out from the palace they once called home.
And as an unfortunate result, Kaiden's hopes of becoming a vital part of Stygia's royal family completely vanished.
Lex, on the other hand, couldn't care less of Kaiden's foolish dreams.
However, he had always been troubled by his own existence, though he never openly admitted it, and his disdain for himself was made very well-known through his often impulsive and frequent outbursts.
The only thing the two could completely agree on was that they each saw the other as a curse.
"Look who finally decided to show up!"
The headmaster's voice caught both Rosabelles' attention, and almost instantly, Lex's expression shifted as he extended a hand to greet the elderly Fire Deity.
"Headmaster, I hope you've been enjoying your stay here." Lex spoke with a polite nod and a smile that never quite reached his eyes. "I hope you can forgive me for my absence as of late. I've been rather preoccupied with work you see."
He happened to notice a petite figure standing just behind the headmaster, and before Lex or Arius could say anything, the headmaster brought it up himself.
"Oh, where are my manners!" The headmaster exclaimed as he stepped aside to fully show the sensually dressed Roseabelle. "Your Highness, this is Scarlett White, my goddaughter."
"It is a pleasure to see you again, Your Highness." Her sultry voice couldn't help but make Lex grimace, but he tried his best to be as cordial as he could in front of the headmaster. "I hope you've been well all these years."
'... You have got to be kidding me.'
Lex glanced at Arius for some sort of explanation, but the minister looked just as surprised as he did.
"... Lady White." Lex called out through a forced smile, though his eyes failed to hide his disdain. "What a surprise to see you here, of all places."
"I was unaware that you've met before." The headmaster spoke with furrowed brows, a hint of surprise crossing his face at this newfound information.
"We've crossed paths before a few years back." Scarlett explained before taking a sip from her glass of red wine. "I believe it was back in Toyah?"
"I must say, Your Majesty, it's rather strange to see you without your usual companion by your side." Scarlett remarked, glancing around with animated curiosity, which earned a puzzled look from Arius.
A shadow flickered in Lex's eyes as a warning, yet she couldn't resist pushing a little further.
"I heard the two of you were quite close. There's even been rumors of you two possibly being in love. Isn't that so thrilling, headmaster?"
The headmaster paused, sensing the sudden change in the atmosphere after his goddaughter boldly asked such a personal question in a public setting.
"With all due respect, Lady White, but this conversation seems rather inappropriate for a place like this-"
"It is alright, Arius." Lex raised his hand to stop him from saying anymore, and Arius reluctantly obliged.
"... I must say, My Lady, you have quite the talent for catching my attention." Lex said with a light-hearted laugh, slightly impressed by her unexpected braveness. "But what you've been hearing are simply rumors. As much as we are striving for an alliance with them as of right now, there is no place for romantic feelings between a human and a Roseabelle — not even for their rulers."
'She's not going to stop running her mouth unless I do something.' Lex thought, quickly devising a plan to deal with this nuisance.
Lex had lived long enough to know exactly where this was headed. Roseabelles like her were, unfortunately, all too common among the nobles, she just happened to be bold enough to approach their emperor in such a way.
Usually, one rejection was enough to send most of his admirers scurrying away in embarrassment, but apparently that wasn't the case for this particular one.
Scarlett answered with only a playful tilt of her head, seeming almost disappointed by Lex's cautious approach.
'I guess there's no other choice...' He thought, realizing that there was only one way to deal with someone like her. 'I can't believe I'm doing this...'
Before Scarlett could speak again, Lex leaned in as though to adjust her hair but instead murmured softly into her ear.
"Why don't I get us a bit of privacy, Lady Scarlett?" He narrowed his eyes at her, making Roseabelle blush. "Clearly you not just here to make small talk with me, are you?"
"I thought you'd never ask, Your Majesty." She replied with a satisfied smile, immediately holding onto his arms.
"If you do not mind, headmaster?" He turned to face the headmaster, who was for some reason being unusually timid.
"O-Of course." He answered with a nervous stammer, perplexed by the sudden turn of events.
Despite the unfavorable situation, Lex strolled out of the ballroom with Scarlett at a relaxed pace, casting a single glance at Arius before leaving, a silent cue for him to watch over the headmaster in his absence.
For once, he was relieved Kaari wasn't there to see this disaster unfold, and he could only hope she'd skip today's party, but sadly, it seemed as though fate some other plans.