LOGINShare
Chapter 16
Latest chapter
I Don’t Need the Crown Anymore Chapter 19
Althea's sight returned on the seventh day. The first thing she saw was Theron's face, asleep against the edge of the bed. He was still holding the wax tablet where he had been tracking changes in her pupils, his fingertips stained with herbs. Althea did not wake him. She turned her head toward the window. The spring equinox was near, and the sacred oak had put out new leaves.Half a month later, Myrrhine's burial site was rebuilt. The headstone no longer bore only the name hastily carved in a single sitting. Althea inscribed her mother's identity, the people she had saved, and the Stygian oath into the stone. On the day of the burial rite, Damaris, Theron, and everyone in the sanctuary stood outside the oak grove. Althea placed the reunited ferry coin into the bone casket. "Mother." For the first time, the word did not carry only the ache of loss. "Thank you for not choosing for me. And thank you for making sure Zeus couldn't choose for me either."She sealed the casket and scattered
I Don’t Need the Crown Anymore Chapter 18
Messages arrived from Argos through the priestly courier network, one after another. Philocles had sealed the Lion Gate. Ianthe stood at the entrance of the Temple of Hestia, the prince in her arms, and read out a forged oracle. The Ares mercenaries were rounding up dissenting council members and priests. The greatest threat was that the bronze oracle tablet had already been sent to five neighboring city-states. Its text read: Zeus has rejected his impure, enslaved daughter who refuses to return to the court, and has instead blessed the legitimate royal heir.If five temples jointly ratified the oracle, Althea would no longer be merely a fugitive from Argos. Every city-state could lawfully hunt her down as a "thunder-demon."Althea finished the last message beneath the oak. "I want to connect to the Dodona thunder vein."Theron's expression darkened at once. "Last time, you only channeled a local storm, and it still tore open the wounds on your palm and knee. Argos is four days away."
I Don’t Need the Crown Anymore Chapter 17
The rain did not let up all night. Althea finished her watch shift as scheduled. At dawn, Damaris climbed the watchtower. "Water upstream has passed the warning line. If it rises another foot, the runoff channel will flood straight to the pass."Lysandros still knelt outside the boundary stone. Rain streamed down his face and his soaked robe. No attendants stood nearby, and his horse waited farther up the trail.Althea put on her cloak and walked down to the boundary. She stopped on her side. "Get to high ground. The floodwater is coming."Lysandros raised his head. "So you're finally willing to talk.""I'm simply not going to let a king die on the sanctuary's doorstep and give Argos an excuse to send an army up this mountain."The faint light in his eyes dimmed. He braced himself on his knees and struggled to his feet, swaying slightly. "I've been kneeling here because I want to repay the suffering you endured.""Repayment is not replicating someone's pain.""Then tell me what I shoul
I Don’t Need the Crown Anymore Chapter 16
The day after Lysandros left the market, the sanctuary held an open assembly. Wooden stools formed a circle in the center of the valley. Farmers, hunters, former Sacred Oak Guards, refugees, and healers alike had an equal voice. There was no throne raised above the rest, and no one claimed a more dignified seat by virtue of bloodline.Charon, the mountain guard, was the first to stand. "Argos has found the spring market. Next time, they won't send just the king and a handful of soldiers."Someone spoke up at once. "We should sail for one of the islands overnight. Load the medicine first, evacuate the elderly and children. This place is no longer safe."Damaris gripped her short blade and stood behind Althea. "If you decide to leave, I'll follow you."Althea turned to face her. "This isn't about me escaping alone. It's about more than three hundred people being forced to uproot."Damaris did not deny it. Althea walked to the center table and spread out a hand-drawn map. "Three hundred a
I Don’t Need the Crown Anymore Chapter 15
Lysandros did not immediately leave the market with his men. He ordered the soldiers back and followed behind the medical cart alone. When Althea stopped at the riverbank, she turned. "Do you have more to say?""I want to explain everything."Theron looked at Althea, waiting for her decision.Althea spoke. "Take the cart back to the valley first.""Are you sure?""I'm sure."Theron did not refuse on her behalf, nor did he stay to watch over her. He simply reached over and fastened the copper clasp on her deerskin wrist guard. "Be back at the valley before sunset. Not an order. The herb field needs your notes on the sick child tonight."Althea nodded. Only after Theron was gone did Lysandros speak."I only authorized Thrace to hold you for one winter.""You've said that already.""I sent Drakon gold. I sent word that no one was to harm you. After the winter passed, Philocles told me the border was still sealed, that you were being taken care of. I didn't go see for myself, and I didn't
I Don’t Need the Crown Anymore Chapter 14
Seven days later, Althea accompanied the sanctuary's medical team down the mountain for the first time. The Arcadian spring market was packed with merchants selling wool, pottery, and herbs. She wore a plain dark gray tunic. A cloth strip covered the thunderbolt mark on her chest, and only a medicine case hung at her belt. Walking into the crowd, she still instinctively scanned for exits. Theron did not offer hollow reassurance. He simply handed her a hand-drawn map of the market. "The north exit connects to the mountain trail. The west side runs along the river. If you want to leave, the medical cart is parked behind the big olive tree."A clear escape route gave her more comfort than any soothing words.In the afternoon, a child collapsed in front of a stall, seizing. A crowd gathered. Someone shouted that it was divine punishment. Others tried to force a bronze charm into the child's mouth to ward off evil. Althea pushed through the crowd. "Everyone step back. Keep the air clear!"T
