Chapter 911: Getting Ready For The Banquet

"My deepest apologies for my behavior earlier, Rowena." Prince Liam appeared in front of Rowena's room.

"How come?" Rowena raised a brow. "I think I need to be the one who apologizes because I simply left you earlier to chase after Julian."

"Oh, where is he now?" Prince Liam asked. "Are things better now with the two of you?"

"We're good now,  thank you for asking. He's in the next room trying to find the clothes he wore back as a magician." Rowena sheepishly smiled. "Since you mentioned a banquet, we realized that we needed to dress formally and so we're taking care of it."

"Ahh... my mother actually wanted to invite you to check out one of her favorite dressmakers in the city," Prince Liam said. "We could help you find suitable clothes for the event later if you wish?"

"That's incredibly generous of your mother, but we couldn't accept such a thing," Rowena said. "I already have a dress, the same dress I use whenever I act with Julian—your bodyguard was so kind to bring back our things from earlier."

"I see, that's good then," Prince Liam said.

The door right next to Rowena suddenly opened and Julian appeared dressed in eye-catching clothes that a magician might have worn during a performance.

It was a simple but classic dark suit, paired with a white shirt underneath it along with nice and decent shoes.  While it was far from the appropriate ballroom attire, it was acceptable enough for a guest invited to the banquet.

Prince Liam frowned a little at the sight of the other man.

"Oh, hey there. Does this look good?" Julian grinned. "I can pull several, and I mean several scarves from my sleeves. I haven't exactly mastered the rabbit trick yet, but it seems like a good suit, right?"

"Yes." Prince Liam deadpanned.

Julian was too happy about their departure tomorrow to care for the prince's attitude. He gushed, "You should see what Rowena will wear, it's incredibly nice—as much as our budget used to afford, but like I always tell her, our good looks make nice clothes look expensive."

Rowena bit back an amused smile. "I have clothes that I wear when I pretend to be a noble lady, it's not exactly fit for a banquet and more of a tea party, but it will do for the occasion."

"Don't you want to dress up a little? You don't have to worry about how much money we'll spend," Prince Liam said. "It'll be completely free of charge."

"We're not too comfortable with the idea of getting a dress and only wearing it once," Rowena explained.

"That's a waste of money," Julian added. "Also, this suit of mine is a bit bigger than my regular clothes so I ca

n eat a lot at the banquet. It's not restrictive around my stomach."

"Why did you have to say that, Julian?" Rowena rubbed her face. "That's a little embarrassing to say in front of a prince."

"I say that all the time to you and I don't see any problems." Julian chuckled. "But anyway, thanks for dropping by, Your Highness. We're grateful for everything, but we'll be leaving tomorrow and don't want to intrude too much."

"I see." Prince Liam threw a look at Rowena. "...I was not aware of it."

Rowena bit down on her lip. She would have been far more diplomatic if she got the chance to tell Liam about the fact that they were leaving, however, Julian already said it.

"My apologies for the sudden news, Liam. We only made the decision earlier when the two of us talked, I thought finding Julian's long lost family would make him happy—"

"But I don't need it, because I have my family right here," Julian said as he gestured to Rowena. "That's all I need. I have no need for a family that didn't want me and even threw me all the way to Ashland. That's just crazy."

"Well, feel free to change your mind if you wish." Prince Liam smiled as he looked at Rowena and ignored Julian. "You don't have to leave right away, and we're more than happy to accommodate you guys for some more time."

"Thank you so much for taking it well, Liam." Rowena sighed in relief. "I was frankly a little bit worried about how you'd react."

"Me?" Prince Liam rolled his eyes and snorted. "There's nothing to be worried about. I'm just a person who you met yesterday, Rowena. The two of us might have gotten along well, but I understand that your place is not here."

Rowena looked up at the prince's expression and knew that he was only holding back his emotions. She reached out and gently touched his arm. "You know, you're free to accompany us if you wish."

"H-huh?" Julian looked at her in surprise. "Rowena, can we have a second to talk about this?"

"I mean, don't you think that you'd be able to pull off more tricks if Liam was around?" Rowena grinned a little. 

"Tricks?" The two asked at the same time.

"People would be surprised to see Julian in one place and then suddenly for Liam to pop up in another direction," Rowena explained.

"Oh," Julian said.

Rowena blushed, embarrassed, and turned to Liam. "However, that's only wishful thinking. Compared to me... your family loves you, Liam. Even if they might seem a tad overprotective perhaps—you still end up coming back, right?"

Prince Liam's expression shifted slightly. "Well, I... I suppose you're right

. I do love them, even despite everything. But the idea of leaving is also tempting."

"As long as you return back to Verona, I think your family would be more than happy to let you leave, right?"

"My father would be fine with it," Prince Liam scratched his cheek. "I'd have to convince my mother... but I don't think I'm like you, Rowena."

He looked at Rowena with longing on his face. He wished he could fly away like a bird, but deep inside, he knew that he was not made for a commoner's life. Unlike Rowena. This girl did a great job at adapting to life outside of the royal palace.

Perhaps, it was because she had great company.