Wedding Without The Groom

Laylin decided not to hold back.

Today was her last day in this wretched Palace so she promised herself that at the very least, she won't bite her tongue, like she had all her life.

"Walk steadily, Princess!" The older woman pushed her forward, almost making her stumble.

'Would the King do this to me if my mother was alive...?' She gritted her teeth to suppress her anger. Her eyes were already swollen behind the flimsy veil from crying the night before. 'Would he sell her in marriage like a hostage?'

Today was her wedding. A wedding without a groom or holy rituals.

Her father had accepted this national marriage from the Lycans to pacify them but the truth was he wanted to catch the Lycans off-guard and start a war.

".... So Princess, please behave with dignity. This is your honor to be selected for this noble sacrifice. Ehan has to know it is your will so they can revere you! The end of those savage beasts is God's will! Smile and look content...." The poker-faced maid who was dragging her ahead like livestock went on and on. "...Don't disgrace the Royal family in front of national guests or you will anger the King!" 

Times have changed. Lycans, though less in population, ruled the continent with iron hold for generations but fewer and fewer lycans could shift these days, and their birth rates have also dropped. Lycans were still stronger than humans but humans were great in numbers. 

When they were right in front of the door, the old maid's nails dug into her arm as she sneered at her. "Do you understand your role, Royal Princess?"

Her father was an ambitious man. He was forcing her, his eldest Princess and only legitimate child to marry the King of Lycans, so he could prepare his troops and annihilate Lycans once and for all

Laylin took a deep breath, looking at the woman for the first time. "I do, actually. 'Let the King of Beats poke his penis in you till your father grows some balls.' Yes, I understand." The woman's mouth dropped but the bitter Princess scoffed, snatching her arm from the older woman. "Oh, and as such... the King has become a disgrace to me."

The woman fell to the floor in recoil.

"Such blasphemy...!" The old maid gasped at the shameless 19-year-old Princess but Laylin just scoffed at her. She was done being treated like a doormat. Did they think that lycans would let her live if Ehan troops barged in their land?

Laylin was powerless but she was no fool. 'My father was sacrificing me to fulfill his ambition. I need to escape or I'll die a gruesome death.' Laylin fisted her trembling hands.

She scrunched her eyes, she had a trick up her sleeve that will help her escape from the lycan King but she can't let them be suspicious of her till she was ready.

She took a deep breath and waved her hand at the guards. They slowly once opened the doors to the Grand Hall. Her eyes slowly took in the grand interior.

She was here just a day before... begging on the cold floor for her father's mercy. Her knees ached from kneeling and begging.

The ambassadors from Rakhbar had arrived before the break of dawn with a wedding dress for her. And not even a needle for the rest of the royal family. Even peasants shared betrothal gifts.

Her eyes flickered to the two Foreign Representative Ambassadors, who looked like anything but respectable noblemen who knew a thing about diplomacy.

Monstrously tall and wide physiques, devilishly handsome features, and arrogance to match. Both of them were Lycan-borns, the beats of the night.

In the sitting hall with thirty other council Seniors and the King; they were cozy. Flirting with maids, drinking, and gobbling food like wretched men. Her nose scrunched up in distaste. They didn't bother with courtesy to the King and had been playing around like it was their mother's pavilion.

"Father." She curtsied to the King. Her father met her eyes. Her eyes searched to see a little hesitancy but he was rigid like a stone. Cruel as ever.

The lycans heads at once turned to her, both halted mid-air and with a swipe of unseen speed, they were in her face. Gasping, she stumbled a step back on the threshold but a hand shot out to her elbow steadying her.

The hand disappeared as it came but gave her balance. She couldn't even tell whose hand it was between these two.

"I'm Rurik, the Second in Commander of the South Border, assigned to escort the Princess." The broad man with a scowl etched on his face spoke. He tilted his head at the other lycan, "He's General Ivan."

No last names, courtesy, or proper introduction. An obvious insult. Lycans sure were daring.

But she was being sold so there was hardly any offense not done. She tipped her head in greeting: "I'm—"

"The tribute, we know." 'General Ivan scowled as he said that. Her heart tore a little. If mere escorts treated her like this, her standing in the Rabkhar was more than obvious, if it wasn't before.

Her father's eyes twitched. The King of Ehan was a prideful man and these lycans flippant attitude was getting on his nerves. 

Her gloved hand that she was instinctively extending for them to kiss, paused instead her face heated in embarrassment.

She was grateful, they couldn't see past her red lace veil.

Deciding to disregard the scoundrels, she set her jaw and took her eyes away from them to her father who was looking at the exchange with a dramatic pained expression.

Her father was playing the role of a disheartened father. She wanted to snatch his staff and gut him so he knew the pain she was feeling.

She leaped to him in a deep courtesy again.

"My King." She whispered with her voice clogged in her tears.

Her hands were trembling, she desperately wished in some corner of his heart he would have some love left for her and stop her from going.

"My child." Her father met her halfway. His voice was heavy with fabricated emotions. She wanted to applaud him for the flawless act. He held out his arm to her, she had to force herself not to smack it away.

Knowing what was coming, she took his arm reluctantly. He guided her to the open balcony where a huge crowd was spread.

The people of Ehan came to bid her Goodbye. 

"Play your part properly, Laylin." Her father gritted out, while apparently smiling. "You know what happens if you don't."

"Father!" A sob she had been holding back, tore past her lips, "Father, don't do this to me... I don't want to die! I don't want to go... They will kill me- Ah!"

She looked back in disbelief. Her father had jerked her forward but to the onlookers, it looked like she tripped. The golden sill pf the balcony stabbed in her stomach. She almost fell out of the balcony.

Hot fear flashed on her face behind the veil. "Fa- Father."

He took a threatening step forward and held her arm, digging his nail to the point where they stung. "Are you trying to disgrace me after I have fed and clothed you? Or do you want me to kill more of those pathetic pets for you?" He spoke coldly with a soft smile so to anybody looking, it would like a father helping his daughter. 

She shook her head, hurriedly. Those pathetic pets were her servants.

"Don't forget my mercy after you killed your mother. Serve your purpose." He hissed, remembering the death of the woman he loved more than life and who was dead because of Layin. His disgust was justified.

He held her by the shoulder and made her face forward. There were people who came to bid goodbye to the beloved Princess who 'volunteered' to be a symbol of peace between Lycans and humans.

They had come to bid her farewell. It was publicized that she had willingly agreed to this marriage for the people of Ehan. It was to fuel her father's ambition too because when she dies on their land, public unrest will ensue and her father will have a legitimate cause for war.

Wars need motivation and there's no better motivation than the gruesome death of a martyr.

Her heart shook at the thought of dying. Her father probably already has a spy ready to kill her in Rakhbar.

She looked at the crowd. These teary and heartbroken faces. Some she recognized, many she didn't. She had served them for years and this was her reward. 

She was a strategist for cultural reforms and her palace funded several welfare organizations.

They had come to see her off. She had an urge to rip off the veil and meet them eye to eye.  His knee pressed into her calf, painfully. She flinched and her eyes fell on a silk scarf-covered tray. She unwrapped it to see a blood-red grape sap served in two glasses.

"Get this over with, Laylin." His shoe stomped on her foot and she barely swallowed back a scream. 

Laylin turned to him, her fierce glare fixed on him. "Get away. If you have no love for me, I have no loyalty left for you either." She held the tray by the edge with a gesture that she was going to flip the tray to the crowd below. "I have been too good until now."

The King was instantly pissed at the girl who had been a puppet under his control all her life but was rebelling now. If she really did this, his plans would go down the drain. These millions of people will see with their own eyes that their beloved Princess is forced for this marriage by him.

When he just stared back. Laylin huffed, snatching her own foot. It hurt like hell but his presence was suffocating her more.

She looked directly in is eyes and whispered "I'll go for my mother but mark my words, father. I will not die before seeing your coffin."

The King looked like he was a second away from strangling her but she turned away from him. 

It was Ehanian tradition for a wedded couple to chug a cup in front of everyone to announce their union, but her to-be husband had yet humiliated her by not even showing up.

She raised the glass with no toast and brought it in her veil to chug down. That's what she was told to do. It was a show for these people so later her father could publicize she married for the sake of the nation.

Her tears slid down as the bitter and sour drink trickled down her throat. 'Father, you are like this to the end then don't blame me for anything.'

It took a moment to register, and then deafening cheers, cries, and hollering boomed thunderously. A mocking laugh bubbled in her throat. This was one of the reasons she knew why she was being sacrificed.

The power she had over the Kingdom's people was a threat. They could all see she was aiming to be the Queen. 

All these years she acted like a good girl for this opportunity but now this was how her story was ending. Ministers whose daughters are mothers of princes were scared she would seize the throne so they supported the King's ambition wholeheartedly.

..............

After the show was over, she was seated in the hall beside her father where the Queen should have been. The discussion of terms was in full swing, she didn't dare lift her still-veiled head.

Her father was furious after her stunt and Rakhbar's Ambassadors were already getting on his nerves.

"… No entourage is permitted, though the Princess's luggage will leave before us," Rurik concluded.

Her head shot up and words left her before she could bite her tongue, "My entourage will follow me." If she left them here, her father was going to dispose of them with cruelty!

Silence ensued and she tightened her fist. "My entourage knows me best so they will follow me."

"Very well then, two of Princess's Servers can accompany her," General Ivan said with amusement in his tone. 

"No! My entou— Ah!" Her father clasped her hand and clenched it harshly. A little misplaced cry left her.

"The Princess is grateful." A rage like never before sprung up, as her head jerked toward him.

She snatched her hand from his and straightened her posture. She resented the man who talked to her annually for ten minutes. Even though he didn't want a female heir to succeed him, did he have to go this far?

She made a note to tell the rest of her entourage to leave the palace.

Everything after that was a blur. When she regained back focus, the carriage was jerking her back and forth. By now she spoting quite a few bruises on her pale skin.

The weather wasn't kind either. She had heard of the constant natural disasters that fell on Rakhbar since the new King ascended but she didn't think it was this bad.

It has been roughly a day and a half and they haven't even bothered stopping for sleep or eating breaks. Just two hours a day to let the horses rest and feed and that happened to be the only time she ate, drank, or sneaked out to relieve herself.

"These low lives!" She could only curse them silently as she had no courage to confront lycans.

She wondered if they thought they were delivering a package because not once had they bothered making a conversation with her or checking on her to see if she was still breathing and not impaled with something sharp in there.

In one sense, it throbbed her heart but in another, it was fine by her because even the thought of those creatures in her vicinity scared her.

They were beastly creatures who didn't need rest so they hardly bothered with it but her body was sore from being cramped in a sitting position. She brought her legs up but still couldn't rest a wink.

'KNOCK! KNOCK!'

On the night of the second day, the carriage came to a halt jerking her forward and her door was knocked, she stilled as a shock of awareness zapped through her body.

What, not? Did they go hungry and wanted to maul her? Were Lycans cannibalistic...? Her eyes immediately flickered to the door locks.

"Wh-Who is it?"

"We are here, Princess." A loud gruff voice replied. For a sec, she stayed frozen then patted her heart and slid the window open to see the two men nowhere instead a man dressed like a server facing her with an irked face.

Her eyes widened. It was a Lycan. Are they already in Rakhar?

He was scary but she had no reason to delay so hesitantly she tried to step out but slipped because of her sore legs. A hand shot out and held her, halting her fall. She looked up to see Eloise, not looking as haggard as she was but still flustered from the chill of the night in Rabkhar.

"Princess. Are you alright?"

Princess Laylin's Governess put a shawl on her. They had arrived a day before she did. Her luggage, Governess, and maid were made to go first by the sea route.