Chapter 312: Picking fights (2)
Leroy was startled by Teo’s outburst. He hadn’t done anything to the crown prince to warrant this kind of greeting.
Teo was shocked by his outburst.
Now they had more attention than they needed on them.
"I thought you were someone else. You must excuse me," Teo said, clearing his throat.
"You are excused, Your Highness. You frightened me," Leroy said, still shaken up.
Like other men, Leroy heard news of seats available in the court and thought he would take the chance to join the court.
Leroy looked at Tyrion, the night they last spoke still fresh in his mind. "Your Highness," he greeted Tyrion. He hoped Tyrion could forget about their interaction.
Leroy offered his hand for Tyrion to shake, but he was met by rejection.
’We both know I have good reason to take your hand and break it," Tyrion said, refusing to shake hands.
Leroy placed his hand back at his side. "Forgive me, Your Highness. I did not know you had intentions of courting the lady back then. Had I known, I would have set my sights on someone else."
"So, it is fine for you to badger a lady, though she tells you no, as long as she is not courted by another man?" Tyrion asked, trying to understand Leroy’s way of thinking.
"No, that is not what I meant. It was a misunderstanding. The lady looked lonely, so I wanted to accompany her and share my feelings. I had been in love with her from the moment I laid eyes on her," Leroy confessed.
Teo palmed his face.
It was best that Leroy stop talking.
"I did the lady a favour by not speaking of us being alone in the garden or of her being alone with you. That was how much I loved her," Leroy declared.
"It is best you don’t speak of it since you ignored her wishes and bothered her. You would make yourself out to be an odd man who needs to be avoided," said Tyrion.
Leroy smiled, and it soon grew into laughter. "With all due respect, a lady being alone with two men, married or not, would have given the town a terrible idea of Miss Penelope. Even now, it would stir up awful rumours, but I am protecting her."
Tyrion smiled.
First, Tyrion was annoyed, but now he realised he loved to be amused by fools.
"You are protecting my wife?" Tyrion asked, approaching Leroy as he spoke. My wife? Penelope Castro?"
Leroy stepped back.
"Yes, I care enough not to ruin a lady’s reputation. If the town were to hear of what happened-"
"All you did was hold her hand and try to push your love onto her. What else could you have possibly done to taint her reputation? You know now that stalking her would surround her with rumours, yet you followed her," Tyrion said, seeing through Leroy’s heroic efforts.
"Was it not your intention to be seen with her so she would be forced to accept your hand?" Tyrion asked.
This plot had been used one too many times.
"Of course not! I don’t need to resort to such measures to have a lady marry me," Leroy argued.
"Then why didn’t you leave her alone when she asked you? My wife doesn’t need protection from the likes of you. Don’t pride yourself as being her protector," Tyrion said.
He was one snap away from choking Leroy instead of hurting his hand like their last encounter.
Leroy looked to his right at his peers, who were here to ask about the court. With so many people around, he was safe.
Leroy felt cocky in the moment. The prince wouldn’t see him run off again.
"So, you are saying that I can speak of that night? It is an interesting story to share since Penelope is now a princess. I kept it to myself for her sake, but since you don’t want me to be her hero, I shall speak of it," Leroy decided.
"You fool," Teo interjected. "You must be more aware of what hides in your talk with my brother."
"Speak of it," Tyrion encouraged Leroy. "Go on," he urged Leroy. "Your friends are there."
Leroy laughed, calling Tyrion’s bluff. "You can’t fool me, Your Highness. I see that you are a man good at telling jokes."
"If I told a joke, we would all be laughing. You may speak of it if you wish, but it will be the last you ever speak. I will ensure that you are the last to hold your father’s name if my wife’s name leaves your mouth. Speak of her, and the same day, death will be knocking on your doors," Tyrion said in a low tone.
"Go home. The court is no place for you to be," said Tyrion.
"Your Highness, I don’t harbour any more feelings for the princess. You cannot rid me of this chance, all because of your jealousy," Leroy said, angry.
"Jealousy?" Tyrion chuckled. It was an awful assumption. "It is a day filled with entertainment. Go on your way."
Tyrion continued on with his walk since he wanted to see Penelope. Was she being entertained as he was?
Another day, Tyrion would have knocked Leroy to remove a few of his teeth, but he couldn’t answer every fool with violence, especially when they had an audience.
Tyrion wasn’t worried about attacking Leroy, getting back to his father. No, he was more afraid of his mother hearing about it.
Leroy turned around. Why did Tyrion rile him up only to walk away after?
Teo cleared his throat to get Leroy’s attention.
"Crown prince," said Leroy.
"I urge you not to speak of your encounter with Lady Penelope, though my brother urged you to do it. We both know why it would be foolish of you to speak of the time you followed her," Teo said, annoyed that Leroy pestered his friend.
"Not only would you have my brother coming for your head, but you would have the duke, the king, the Callahans, and me. Should I go on?" Teo inquired.
"No, Your Highness. I truly don’t intend to speak of the princess. I am already engaged to someone who has accepted my love. I promise that I am not an enemy of your brother and I will not speak of the encounter," Leroy promised.
Leroy didn’t want any trouble with the families Penelope was tied to. He had only been so bold because of how Tyrion spoke.
"Good. There is no place for you or your peers in the court. The seats have already been filled. Go home and think of something better to do with your time."
"If you wish to help the townspeople, there are other ways to help, and I might call upon you in the future based on what you do now," Teo said, patting Leroy’s shoulder.
Leroy nodded and said, "I shall take your word for it, and next time you see me, my name will be worth your attention."
"I hope so. Now, would you be so kind as to leave the palace? My brother shouldn’t see your face for a moment," Teo advised Leroy.
Teo was surprised that a fight had not occurred before him, but he was grateful.