CHAPTER 9. Crowned Omega

　　?

　　“Princess.” His familiar voice made me let out a soft sigh of relief.

　　“I would like to be left alone, please, Gideon.” I said, turning my back to him so that he would not see me clenching my chest as the adrenaline died down slowly.

　　“I am sorry, Your Highness but I cannot do that. Not now, that is.”

　　I sighed once more and turned to properly face Gideon. “What is it? Are you here to tell me to go against my father’s wishes?”

　　“No. You must know that I am and will forever be loyal to your father. I have a duty to him to fulfil his wishes just as you do and if that is to fight for you to get on the throne, then so be it.”

　　“Gideon…you of all people must know that this will not end well for me. I do not have support from the noblemen like my siblings do. And being an omega…” My words trailed off as I realised that I was starting to sound like them, those who belittled me and looked past my worth because of my second gender.

　　I clenched my hands onto the thick fabric of my dress. After all this time, those words have truly corrupted my mind. I am afraid of what would happen to me or my family if I were to fight for the throne. Was it even worth it? Was anything even worth it anymore?

　　Gideon stayed silent for a moment, allowing me to ponder in my misery. “That is why I am here to convince you to agree to Lady Marie’s terms.” He spoke softly.

　　I let out a frustrated laugh. “You must know what she is planning to do, Gideon! She will use this arranged marriage as a way to control me. To control the throne!” I snapped.

　　“…and yet this is the only way to avoid bloodshed.” I stayed silent as I knew that he was only speaking the truth. “Even though Lady Marie did not outwardly say it, her refusal to support you taking the throne only meant that she will not hesitate to use her influence over the noblemen to protest against you.”

　　“…so you are telling me to throw my life away to avoid being assassinated?” Gideon stayed silent. “Hah…how ironic.” I sighed.

　　“It is a compromise that you have to take, princess.”

　　“A compromise…” I echoed.

　　“But you must know, princess, I will support you to the very end. As long as I am breathing, I will make sure you are on that throne.”

　　“…why would you go that far for me?”

　　“I would like to trust in Bryon’s judgement.” He said, calling my father by his name with such gentleness that for a moment I had to remind myself that father was no longer around. Gideon then looked up at me. “And I can also see that you are strong and resilient. But you will only fall if you continue to allow the negative words of others to taunt and haunt you.”

　　I smiled, even though deep down I wanted to cry out my frustrations over this situation. “Is this your way of comforting me knowing that I would have to marry some obnoxious alpha of Lady Marie’s choosing?” I asked teasingly. “Wait…” I whispered to myself, soft enough that Gideon had not heard. There was indeed a loophole in the terms Lady Marie had set.

　　The aged man smiled back at me sympathetically as he held out his hand to me. “I am at your service, princess…or should I say, Empress Cordelia?” He bowed his head down to me.

　　I stared at his hand for a moment before grabbing hold of it, appreciating the warmth his skin emitted. “A compromise to a compromise…” I muttered under my breath as an idea quickly took shape, an idea to make sure Lady Marie would not get what she wanted so easily.

　　*

　　When I returned to the council room with Gideon, the atmosphere was just as tense as I left it. My mother and Aiden instantly stood up when they saw me and I gave them a reassuring smile to calm their worries. I gestured to them to sit down as I approached my own chair.

　　“Since you are back, I am guessing that you agree to my terms, Cordelia?” Lady Marie asked, not bothering to look at me.

　　I paused, my hand tightening around the armrest of the chair. “Yes. I agree to your terms to get married before my crowning as empress.” I said.

　　I noticed how Elina and Lilian exchanged glances, failing to hide their delighted smiles from me. Even Frederick looked almost relieved which was rather telling of their scheming since the three of them had a shift in opinion all of a sudden. Lady Marie must have explained her plans to them earlier when I had left.

　　“Cordelia…you do not have to do this. There must be another way-”

　　“Now, now, Lady Isabella. Cordelia is an adult and she has made her decision. It is best that you respect her choices.” Lady Marie scoffed at my mother.

　　“It’s okay, mother. You do not have to worry about me.” I tried my best to make sure that my voice and words were steady and confident. There is no need to make my beloved mother and brother dwell in this matter. I have decided that this was my battle to fight.

　　“That’s right. We will make sure to pick a good alpha for your beloved daughter.” Lady Marie smiled innocently.

　　I returned her smile, the most polite and sweetest expression I could muster. “Do not fret, Lady Marie, there is no need for you to trouble yourself with that because I will be choosing my own partner.”

　　The atmosphere grew colder—intense even as I watched the expressions of Lady Marie and her children change drastically. Annoyance tainted their features and obviously, Lilian was the first to crack since she was prone to submitting to her anger.

　　“You must be incredibly dull, Cordelia. Why do you think you have a choice?” She said through gritted teeth.

　　“Whatever do you mean, sister? The terms Lady Marie set was for me to be wed to an alpha. She did not specifically say that I had to marry an alpha of her choosing. Everyone here bears witness to that, surely?” I said, revealing the loophole that I had figured out earlier in the gardens.?

　　Mutters and nods of the councilmen filled the room. I turned to Gideon who looked almost startled by my sudden announcement. A second later, he gave me a proud smile.

　　A loud bang caught my attention, making me glance over to Lilian who was standing, hand balled up into fists firmly placed on the table as her eyes glared daggers into me. She bared her teeth, a low growl escaping her lips. I thought for a second that she would transform into her wolf form but that was solely forbidden even for members of royalty. I held my breath in anticipation.

　　“Know your place! You are an omega! No omega has ever sat on the throne! No omega has ever ruled a kingdom.” She spat, fury in her words enough to make me tremble. I stood my ground, nails digging into my palm to keep myself composed, to not show any weakness to them…never again was I going to show weakness to them.

　　You have the heart of a warrior. My father had said once to me, in a distant memory where I remember the scenery of the setting sun more than I could remember his face and yet those words lifted me up, giving me just enough strength to fight back. After years of accepting their constant degradation, I was finally ready to fight back.

　　I held my head up high, looking down at Lilian with an unfaltering gaze. For a moment, I could have sworn that she flinched when she met my eyes.

　　“Then, watch me, sister. Because, I, Cordelia Rae Renaldi accept the responsibility that has been bestowed upon me by our late father and benevolent emperor. I will become a fair empress for this kingdom and I will not standby and listen to you or anyone else degrade my abilities just because I am an omega anymore!”