Kiss Me Not

Cedric arrived at the Palace before lunch and went directly to the meeting room where his father was in a discussion with his counsels.

The people inside greeted him when they saw him enter. He gave them a polite nod before he took a seat beside his father. His father continued the discussion and Cedric paid attention to what he was saying.

"Your Majesty, the Prime Minister is getting out of hand. He was convincing the Cabinet that the Royal Family should not get too involved in politics," one of their trusted people inside the Cabinet reported.

Country B had a constitutional, hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary form of government. Cedric's father,  King Lucas, remained the country's ultimate authority that wielded power over the executive, legislative and judicial branches.

The King indeed exercised a great deal of power but their country was fairly democratic with the appointment of the central government headed by the Prime Minister and the Cabinet through an electoral system.

The current Prime Minister, Greg Philips, Olivia's father, was often in disagreement with the King. He was a man who was hell-bent on taking full power and authority from the Royal Family. This was also one of the main reasons why King Lucas wanted Cedric to consider marrying Olivia. Lucas hated any disagreement that could potentially lead to something chaotic in their country so he was hoping to resolve things by getting the two families connected through marriage.

On the other hand, Cedric disagreed with it because a person's perspective cannot be changed just by family having ties. Because if that were to be true then there would be no families, sharing the same blood, fighting each other over power and money. Cedric had met Olivia's father twice after he lost his memories and he could tell that he was the type who would not change what he believed in for anything. 

He could also tell that there was something more to the old man than what he showed others. He was someone who has a greed for power and wants to rule above everyone in their country, and that would not happen unless the Royal Family was stripped off of its power.

"We need to replace him. The election is near so we have to find a better candidate for that position. Someone who has the same goals as the Royal family. This is not just about keeping the Royal family's political position stable but also about the welfare of the citizens. 

The Royal Family is the one responsible for balancing everything. I'm sure that all of you can attest to how my father, my grandfather, and our ancestors maintained fair treatment towards the people regardless of the situation. No one dared to rule as a tyrant king because we always made sure to put the citizen's interests first before our own needs," Cedric commented to which everyone in the room agreed.

The Royal Family was someone who prioritized the peace and well-being of their citizens above power and greed. Lucas signaled his son to continue and brought up his opinion on the matter. He could not help but feel proud of how Cedric grew up to be the man he was now. He was ready to hand over his throne to him especially after seeing how he tackled the things regarding his people.

Cedric was still not aware but he knew that his health was not in good enough shape for him to undertake the responsibility alone. It would have been nice if Prime Minister Greg was someone he could trust and rely on but it was now a questionable thing after hearing all the negative reports gathered around him.

The meeting went on for an hour and everyone was dismissed except for Cedric and Will.

Cedric looked at Will and Assistant Sean and said, "I would like to talk to father alone."

The two nodded and left the room.

"What is it that you want to talk about, son?" Lucas asked with a tinge of worry in his voice. 

"Dr. Cain called me and told me everything about your situation and I want you to know that you can pass all the responsibility to me anytime you want father but before that, there's something you need to know," Cedric said in a serious tone.

Cedric wanted to clear things up once and for all. He wanted him and his father to have an honest relationship with each other. He grabbed his tablet, opened a folder, and handed it to his father.

"Once you pass the throne to me, the media will go haywire with it and spread the news of a new King all over the world. I can no longer keep my face hidden from the media like I used to do when I was a Prince. Once I become King, my face getting exposed is inevitable. 

The man in the picture you're seeing is named Gavin Wu. He was in a ship accident the same day I was kidnapped. I have ordered a group of people to conduct a confidential investigation about this matter. I had also asked Will to get our DNA test done just to make sure since I have lost my memory. Right now, I'm really confused so I want to ask you about the past to confirm a few things. Am I your only son?"

Cedric looked at his father, deciphering his reaction and expression.

"Hmm… So he is from Country D. If this matter spreads, then it will bring great problems to the Royal family," Lucas whispered and looked at Cedric fixedly.

"You are my son and the DNA result proved it right?" Lucas asked in a calm tone to which Cedric stiffly nodded.

"I don't know why this man looks exactly like you. It might be a coincidence for the both of you to have a tragic incident happen on the same day. He might just be your doppelganger and this kind of stuff happens. You don't know this but I was there when your mother gave birth to you…" Lucas said and felt his throat getting constricted. It was an incident that he does not want to recall as much as possible.

"What happened during that time father? I know that you are not telling me everything," Cedric pointed out, seeing how his father looked uneasy.

"But this is impossible, son. I mean the possibility of you having a twin. That is what you wanted to imply when you asked the question about you being an only child right?" Lucas whispered lightly as his thoughts flew to the incident on that night which he wanted to bury and take to his grave.

"Is there something I need to know, father? If there is something then it would be best to tell me because I will not stop investigating this matter. I need to confirm if Gavin is somehow connected to me," Cedric said with a dark face. 

He wanted to close this case and be done with it as soon as possible because he was hurting. Even though he kept cheering himself on, he knew that it was his own fault for wanting an answer from her so soon because Brione had been honest about her feelings to him from the start. He told Brione he loved her before parting but he got no response from her. He had already expected it but that didn't mean it hurt any less. Her lack of response broke his heart into a million pieces.