She Belongs To The Devil

Chapter 797 The Past, The Present

Everyone was already full from tasting all kinds of street food at the festival. It was also nearly their bedtime when they all arrived at the castle of Romania. And since they all were tired as well as full, they chose to go to bed rather than hang out together like they used to.

Ariel, however, didn't get to go to her bedroom right away.

"Ary, will you walk with me?" Theodore asked her before she departed from the group.

Ariel bid goodnight to all the others and then quietly followed her father.

When Ariel sensed that the two of them were alone, she began speaking on her own, "Dad, you already know how Kenneth had been pursuing me for years."

"Yes, I do." Theodore was happy that his daughter didn't protest or try to run away from the conversation. "So, what happened?" he asked.

"Well, he was successful in winning my approval for courting me. I had decided to let him try and win my heart. But…"

Ariel took a deep breath in and looked up at the clear night sky. The temperature was a bit chilly. She recalled how she had come across Damien on a very similar night.

And she continued speaking, "But, I had no idea that Damien would be back in my life again. I had decided to forget about him when I agreed to give a chance to Kenneth. I was ready to start anew. However, I found out that my determination was too fickle."

Ariel turned to look at her father. She had always been open with him. And he had never made her regret opening up to him. So, she didn't see any reason to hide what she was about to say.

She heaved a deep breath and honestly said to her father, "The moment Damien confessed that he always had feelings for me and that he wanted to win me over, I realized that I could never forget about Damien."

Theodore's lips curved up slightly. He was happy that his daughter was comfortable enough to share those things with him.

"And the more I talked with Damien, I realized that I had also loved him since a long time ago. I was just not seeing it." Ariel stopped on the path and looked down at her feet. And she said in a sad voice, "So, I had to make it clear to Kenneth that I wouldn't be able to reciprocate that vast ocean of love that he was ready to pour on me. He deserves someone who will reciprocate his love."

Theodore looked at his daughter with a proud look on his face. He held her by her shoulders and said lovingly, "Although I have never faced such a dilemma like you, I can say that you dealt with the matter very maturely."

Ariel was still looking down. She shook her head and mumbled sadly, "I don't think I handled it maturely. I… I don't know… Maybe I could have made it less hurtful for him somehow. I made him cry."

Theodore pulled his daughter into a warm embrace. He gently patted her on her head and consolingly said, "I know that you might be feeling sad thinking that you broke the heart of a good man. However, all I see is you drawing a clear line for him. I can sense that you told him you wouldn't be able to love him without bruising his ego."

"It doesn't change the fact that I made a grown man cry…" Ariel pulled away from the hug and whispered.

She had thought that her heart would feel much lighter after clarifying things with Kenneth. But she felt even more burdened because the good memories that she had shared with Kenneth were haunting her every now and then.

Theodore, on the other hand, was reminded of a certain incident from the past.

He took a deep breath in and mumbled while recalling the past, "Kenneth didn't storm off after being rejected by you. Nor did he display any kind of rage throughout the whole day. He was… sad. Very. But he stuck around with the group."

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Ariel didn't understand what her father was trying to get at. But she kept on listening to him.

"That tells me how good of a man Kenneth is. And it also shows that you said the right things to him. You might have broken his heart, but you didn't break his pride." Theodore ran his fingers through his hair and said in a low voice, "We weren't able to do that when Damien's father came to ask your mother's hand in marriage.

One thing led to another and eventually, that small thing led to the great war between Wyverndale and Mihir."

Ariel raised her brows and looked at her father in great disbelief. "The reason behind that war was a rejection from mom?" she exclaimed.

Theodore pursed his lips and nodded. "If we were able to calm the situation down during that meeting, then maybe, just maybe, we would have been able to prevent a great loss of lives and resources."

Ariel felt a pinch in her heart when her father confirmed that a simple rejection had escalated into a war between two Kingdoms.

Theodore looked at his daughter and caressed her hair. He gave her a comforting smile and said, "That's why I am telling you, you did a good job by drawing the line before things got out of hand. And rejecting him doesn't mean that you should stop talking to him altogether. You can still maintain a good friendship with Kenneth. Damien also seems to have a good relationship with him."

A soft smile appeared on Ariel's face after the whole day of sulking. She looked at her father's face and said, "Those two were like cats and dogs. But since the past few days, they have been close. I don't know how they grew closer, but I hope that nothing will change between them because of me."

Theodore smiled and replied, "They are grown men. They better act like one."