“If I do not see Jadeite alive before you leave the palace, you won’t like what I will do. Perhaps, that is a deal, Princess Natalia?” Emery added. But instead of receiving a reply from her, all she got was a giggle. “Queen Emery, you are the one who is backed in a corner here so you do not get the chance to make a negotiation. Just agree with my terms and we will be fine.” This time, Emery snorted which immediately made the princess flinch in surprise. “Just because I am inside your territory, it means that you have complete control over me, princess. You do not know what I can do to you, I assure you that. I have already known that you are after my husband so it is no surprise why you want to sleep with him. And even before coming here, I already know that your kingdom’s economy is dropping and that your father’s situation is getting worse as the sun rises.” After saying all of those, Emery noticed that the princess was glaring at her as she was already killing her in her mind.
King Lawson entered the shop without taking his eyes off of Sire. He guessed that he was probably the master that Emery was talking about. Looking around the shop, there was nothing suspicious at all because it looked like some old shop that had been forgotten a long time ago. When he returned his gaze to Emery, his eyes settled on the table where he saw the three vials which he presumed as the medicines that the queen once mentioned. “What kind of medicine is that?” he asked. A sharp whistle of metal leaving its sheath cut through the air when the king drew out his sword and threatened Sire on the throat to make him speak. In his peripheral view, he saw Emery shoot up from her seat. “Answer me,” he added. “Your Majesty, keep your sword back. Don’t you disrespect my master,” Emery snarled. But King Lawson did not listen to her at all. He was just suspicious of her action because she would not be in a rush to leave the palace for a simple medicine that seemed to not be even for him
Emery stared at him with a blank expression and replied, “What are we… little children telling some bedtime stories?” This time, it was the king’s turn to roll his eyes to the sides. He just thought that Emery could probably have some broken humor and that her jokes weren’t even funny at the tiniest bit. Still, he left his desk and occupied the space beside her. “Just consider this as an introduction since we did not really do that when we first met-” “Because you were such a proud douche,” the queen mumbled which the king heard clearly. He shut his eyes and told himself to ignore that unnecessary comment. He, then, added, “Let us just take turns and ask each other one question at a time. But of course, lying is prohibited. What do you think?” Emery narrowed her sight at him, thinking if this was some sort of trap but as she thought about it, she could use this chance to know more about his mother. Most especially that she was curious about what Lady Mica was up to that Lila had
6th Day of the Diplomatic Talk… Emery woke up even before the sun rises that day and when what happened the other night dawned on her, her face turned beet red as her eyes were wide open. She gulped as she turned her attention from the ceiling to the man still sleeping beside her whose torso was not covered. Her attention slowly moved to the kiss marks around the king’s shoulders and chest that reminded her of what she did. She felt more than embarrassed and there was no single courage left in her to face King Lawson. Thus, she grabbed her robes that were lying on the floor and immediately went to the bathroom. She made sure not to make any noises that could awake the king while she prepared to leave their room. When she finally shut the door behind her, she managed to breathe with relief and hurried to the kitchen to help with the preparation of food. It was the only way she thought that could help her bury the event that happened to her and the king in the back of her mind. Until
“Guards!” The king called and when the royal guards rushed to his side, he commanded, “Detain that woman and prepare to go back to Silex.” Jadeite was still too weak to go against the royal guards fighting back was already out of the question. She could not even slap their hands away from touching her. Thus, she shook her head at the queen, telling her that she will be alright even though she was not so certain about it. On the other hand, if Emery dared to go against the king at that very moment, it could give chance for their enemies to strike and that was not something she would allow to happen. Most especially because they were outnumbered and stood no chance against the men of Thorine Kingdom. Thus, she walked up to King Lawson with shaking hands. She could not even come up with a lie because her mind was in turmoil out of the sudden turn of events. Plus, his cold and dark glare made her shiver. “Your Majesty, she… she is hurt. Please, do not hurt her even f-further,” she begge
All throughout their trip, neither the queen nor the king said a word. Just like the time they left Silex, the tension inside their carriage was even heavier but the two of them were enduring it out of anger for each other. Despite sharing the same room and bed whenever they stop over in a village, they would not say a thing. Even the royal guards as well as Lady Joi could feel the tension and dark aura the two were emitting, making it impossible for them to intervene. They were afraid that if they even try to help them make amends, they would be the ones to be toasted by their anger. When they finally arrived at the palace, Royal Concubine Hazel was waiting for them at the gates. She could not help but be thankful that they have arrived earlier than she expected because she missed the king so much. Plus, she was so worried that Emery might do something to make the king only look at her and it was something the royal concubine wished so hard not to happen. Upon seeing the king and qu
The very next morning, Emery woke up alone in their chambers. She already expected that since the royal concubine was pregnant so it was no wonder why the king chose to stay with her. However, Emery could still not shake away the pain in her chest and it made her feel so pathetic. It was even harder for her to admit that a part of her wanted to be chosen by the king over the royal concubine. It was not something she should dwell upon but then, her feelings of being ignored once again hurt more than they did before. In addition to her frustration was the fact that she could not leave the Western Palace and visit Jadeite in the dungeon. But she was no person who would just sit still and wait for the king’s orders when he was already preoccupied with something. It would no longer be a surprise if he had forgotten about her, especially since a king’s happiness was nothing but an heir to be born. While waiting for a chance to leave her chambers, she grabbed a clean scroll and some paintbru
Emery did not want to deal with the royal concubine so she simply walked past her and knelt in front of the maidservant whom she switched with. With a pained expression plastered on her face, she removed the cloth gagging the maidservant. “Your Highness, I beg for your mercy,” she cried. “Please, do not kill me, Your Highness. I… I still have two younger sisters outside the palace that I need to take care of. Please, please, spare my life.” The queen cupped her cheeks and responded, “You will not lose your life. I will not allow it.” Turning her attention to the maidservant’s hands, she lifted the hem of her dress and unsheathed her dagger to cut the rope and free her. The queen assured her that she will be the one to face the consequences of her escape, not anyone else. “Guards, take the queen to the dungeon to make sure that she won’t be able to escape,” Royal Concubine Hazel demanded. But even before the guards could lay their finger on the queen, Emery stood on both feet and f
It was already night time but the grandest brothel house here in the Realgar Kingdom was very much alive like it was the peak of the day. Noblemen continued to enter with much anticipation but I cannot truly tell if it was because they were planning to rise against the king or if it was for the women who will soon serve them or probably both. It was a huge party to cover up the noblemen’s real purpose of gathering here in this pleasure house. Thus, it was also a chance for me to test my girls’ ability to gather intelligence without getting caught. Beneath the main brothel, I gathered the 10 ladies I had been training for four years now for their briefing before they would go out there and do their very first mission. “I am reminding you again that all you have to accomplish this night is to gather information regarding the supposed rebellion. Serve the guests with food, wine, sweet talks, lip service, and whatnot but never engage in sexual activities. I forbid you to be in that kind
Emery, then, turned on her heels and started to away. Taking only a few steps, the king finally spoke. “Your accusations against them will be considered treason. To add up to that, you are still the prime suspect in killing the royal concubine. If you turn your back now without proving your innocence, you won’t be able to leave this place alive.” The assassin did not bother listening to whatever he had to say and still continued to leave. With her position as queen taken away from her, she had to pretend to leave the kingdom. She also needed to speak with the Arcana Heads to ask what shall be her next move with all the situations going beyond her control. “Your stubbornness annoys the hell out of me.” King Lawson, whose patience just snapped a few moments ago, grabbed Emery by the arm and dragged her into the tent. He strictly instructed the royal soldiers to make sure that no one would ever dare step inside the tent until he says so. Upon entering, Emery was a bit taken aback when
After the sudden appearance of the queen and Lady Mica, they met with King Lawson inside the tent, and even though he never said a word, his icy gaze said it all. He was not at all pleased with their visit as if this was some kind of vacation trip. “Your Majesty, I apologize for not telling you ahead of time about our arrival. I was simply worried about what was going on in here so I came,” Queen Natalia stated. Clearing her throat, Lady Mica intercepted since she noticed that her son was not convinced of the queen’s reason. “Lawson, that is not the way to treat your new queen. The two of you just got married and did not even spend your honeymoon in peace. At least, appreciate her efforts.” Clicking his tongue, the king shifted his attention back to the reports and said, “Mother, would you step out for a while? I need to speak with Natalia alone.” Lady Mica was about to negate but the queen gave her a reassuring look that everything would be just fine. Thus, the king’s mother left
After a few days of travel along with a few royal soldiers, King Lawson was able to reach the western border. Just like what Vasmir reported, the planes that used to be ablaze were now only covered with the remnants of the war. He could see some of the soldiers cleaning up and gathering the dead bodies but before he could go and see what was going on beyond the borders, he headed to the campsite of the general. Seeing the king wearing his armor, all the royal soldiers got on their knees and lowered their heads. King Lawson simply passed them by and came face to face with General Kyan. Getting off his horse, he entered the tent and the general followed. “I have always regarded you as one of the greatest soldiers that the kingdom could offer. But hearing that you forbid the soldiers to fight alongside the people of the Thorine Kingdom changed my mind. You are nothing but a coward,” the king commented as he took his seat and his chin leaning on the back of his hand. Instead of getting
Emery did not want to force General Kyan into her plan but she had no plans of staying put either. Stepping out of the tent, she walked towards the battlefield but when she felt that the soldiers whom she just led a few hours ago, she stopped in her tracks and faced them. “Our mission is considered as a failure and I apologize for dragging you into a decision I made for myself. But I won’t be apologizing for the decision I made. Our mission has ended, thus, I am no longer your leader so wait for the general’s further instructions.” After saying that, she turned on her heels and scanned the vicinity, hoping to locate where the general of the Damas Kingdom was. It was not hard to spot him despite the wide horizon as her eyes reflected their group backing away with their weapons raised above their heads. The royal soldiers, however, were a bit puzzled at the sudden change of mind of their enemies. And for the ceasefire to be led by the well-known undefeatable general, they found it rat
Emery still did not budge and was on the verge of shooting the arrow right in the face of the general. However, she clicked her tongue when he managed to push away the royal soldiers surrounding him. With a thunderous roar, he claimed, “You will never win this war! The soldiers of the Thorine Kingdom shall back us up and your kingdom shall be eaten by fire!” Emery cocked her head and slowly dropped her weapon. She, then, walked towards the general with a crease on her forehead. “With what you said, am I right if I say that you are associated with the Thorine Kingdom? But how could that be possible now that Princess Natalia just became the queen of our kingdom?” Instead of getting a decent answer from him, Emery twitched as the laughter of the general rang in her ears. It was a burst of laughter to mock her as if she was the craziest woman in front of him. “She married him to kill your king and conquer Silex with our help!” This time, it was the general and the soldiers’ turn to l
When the night embraced the land, Emery briefed the soldiers first on what they should do upon arriving at the site of their ambush. Though, she started to feel a bit uncomfortable as she felt their stares at her as if they were becoming more and more suspicious of who she was. Her heart almost skipped a beat when one of them took the courage to ask about her identity since it seemed like it was their first time to see her. And to avoid that topic, she simply stated that it was not the right time to know her since they were about to do something important that could either give their side an advantage or not. She even almost got busted when a few of them claimed that she looked familiar. If she were to be too defensive, it would make them more suspicious. “Captain, the general of the enemies had arrived in their camp,” the scout came to report, helping Emery get out of the tight situation. She stood from her seat and grabbed her spear. “Everyone, in your positions. At exact midnight
Emery stared at the royal physician who was on his knees right in front of her. She did not know what it was all about but since he dragged her into an empty room, she thought that there was something going on. However, she never dared speak up and ask about it as she still felt a bit discouraged to do anything after witnessing the king getting married to another woman. “Your Highness, please forgive me. I… I know what I did is something unforgivable and I deserve to lose my head for lying but… Your Highness, I beg for your mercy,” he pleaded. He bowed to her until his forehead touched the cold floor. His lips quivered as he anticipated the reply of the queen who still remained quiet after a few minutes of silence. “I am no longer the queen of this kingdom so do not act so formal. But that aside, what lie are you saying?” The royal physician gulped. He could feel the tips of his fingers growing cold but this could only be the last chance he had to redeem himself so he had to speak
Not wanting to be recognized, Emery immediately turned away, swinging her sword towards an enemy. She did not dare look back because she just saw a glint of shock in the general’s eyes despite the few seconds of looking into his very eyes. With a grunt escaping her mouth, she lunged towards another enemy and swung her weapon down to injure his leg. Her enemy fell to his knees, giving Emery the chance to slit his throat and end his life. She kept chanting in her mind not to pay much attention to what she just saw but her anxious heart was unsettled. The thought of her getting arrested at that very moment was not just the best idea. Just then, she felt someone behind her but before she could turn on her heels to see who it was, the general spoke. “What did you come here for?” he asked just loud enough for her to hear. Emery was able to feel a bit relieved when she heard his voice without even a hint of threat. She simply hoped that he would not turn her into the king, at least, not f