Chapter 004: Stripped Off Dignity 2

(Liora’s POV)

Alistair's face had turned to the side. Slowly, he brought a hand to his cheek and looked at my mother.

I had never seen anyone strike the King of Solmora.

“Mother...” I breathed.

My father immediately caught her arm, but she didn't look away from Alistair.

“You may be King,” she said, her voice trembling with fury, “but you are no man if this is how you treat the woman who trusted you with her life.”

Alistair's expression turned frighteningly still.

“Guards!”

The doors flew open.

“Take these two away.”

My heart lurched. “What?”

“Your Majesty,” my father began, “surely we can—”

“Throw them into the dungeon. They have forgotten their place.”

Two guards seized my father by the arms. Another grabbed my mother.

“No!” I rushed forward. “Leave them alone!”

My mother struggled against the guard holding her.

“Liora!”

“Please! They're my parents!”

Alistair didn't even look at me. “Take them away.”

“Alistair, don't do this! They came here because of me. They have done nothing wrong!”

My father tried to turn towards me, but the guards dragged him towards the door.

“Liora, stay calm!” he called. “Don't let him—”

The doors shut behind them.

I stood staring at them, my chest rising and falling painfully.

Then I turned to Alistair.

“Release them, this instant.”

He calmly rubbed his cheek. “You are in no position to make demands.”

“They have not caused any problem!”

“They gave birth to you, and you are becoming a problem.”

Before I could respond, he gestured towards the guards.

“Take the Queen to the court.”

I stiffened. “What?”

“You heard me.”

The guards approached, and I stepped back.

“Why? What have I done?”

Alistair smiled without warmth. “Since you seem so determined to involve your family in royal affairs, perhaps we should let the court decide what to do with you.”

I tried to pull away when the guards took my arms, but their grip was firm.

“Let go of me!”

No one answered.

They marched me through the corridors and into the grand court, where several council members and nobles were already gathered. Whispers broke out the moment I was brought before them.

I looked around, confused and frightened.

Then I saw Seraphina standing beside Alistair.

She had followed us.

Alistair ascended the raised platform and turned to address the court.

“Members of the royal council, I have called you here because a serious matter concerning the crown has come to my attention.”

He looked down at me.

“Queen Liora has been conspiring with her family against the throne. When I made a decision concerning her future, she summoned her parents to the palace in an attempt to pressure the crown into reversing it. Her father openly challenged my authority, while her mother assaulted me.”

A shocked murmur travelled through the court.

“That is not what happened!” I protested. “I only asked them to speak to you because you intend to send me away to be slaughtered by a beast!”

“Silence!”

Alistair's voice thundered across the hall.

I flinched, but forced myself to continue.

“I have committed no crime. My parents only came because they wanted to protect me!”

“Protect you from the consequences of your own failures?” Seraphina asked.

I turned towards her.

She looked at me with an expression of exaggerated pity.

“Liora, honestly. Must you make everything so difficult? You have been given a chance to serve your kingdom, yet you would rather drag your family into this and cause trouble.”

“Stay out of this, Seraphina.”

Her lips curved. “Still pretending you have some authority here? It's pathetic.”

She stepped closer, her gaze travelling over me with undisguised contempt.

“Look at you. You cannot give your husband an heir, you cannot keep your position, and now you cannot even accept a decision made for the good of your kingdom.”

Then she spat at my feet.

I stared at her, unable to believe what she had just done.

Alistair made no attempt to stop her.

Instead, he placed a hand on her shoulder, drawing her closer to his side.

“Enough of this,” he said. “The matter before us is whether the Queen's actions amount to treason.”

My heart began to pound.

“Treason?” I repeated. “You cannot be serious.”

“You gathered members of your family to challenge the King's decision. Your father questioned my authority, and your mother assaulted the crown. What would you call that?”

“They came because you were sending me away to be sacrificed!”

A few nobles exchanged glances.

Alistair's expression hardened.

“Are you accusing your King of acting against his own kingdom?”

I opened my mouth, but no words came.

He had twisted everything. He had turned my attempt to save myself into an act of rebellion, and now he was standing before the court as though he were the one who had been wronged.

“Your Majesty,” one of the council members said cautiously, “perhaps the matter should be examined before a judgment is made.”

Alistair looked at him. “Are you questioning my account?”

The man immediately lowered his head. “No, Your Majesty.”

“Then I will ask the court. Has Queen Liora's conduct brought disgrace upon the crown and challenged the authority of her King?”

Silence followed.

I looked around the room, searching for someone willing to speak in my defence.

No one did.

One by one, the council members bowed their heads in agreement.

“Her actions cannot be overlooked,” one declared.

“She has brought her family into a royal dispute,” another added. “Such behaviour must have consequences.”

“Then the court finds her guilty of conduct against the crown,” Alistair announced.

My knees weakened.

He had already decided my fate before I was brought here. This entire gathering was nothing but a performance.

I looked at him, my eyes burning.

“And what is my punishment?” I asked, knowing it can't be getting shipped to a beast. That is not the punishment for suspected treason.

Alistair regarded me for a moment.

“We cannot keep you here. Keeping a disgraced Queen within the palace, even in its dungeon, would only invite further shame upon the royal family. Solmora cannot afford such a scandal.”

He paused, then continued.

“Therefore, you will be sent to Verkhane as an offering to King Hazem. Your departure will serve as an apology for the destruction of his merchant vessel and a demonstration of Solmora's commitment to preserving our alliance.”

A cold shiver travelled down my spine.

The court remained silent.

Nobody protested.

I looked towards the council members who had just condemned me, then towards Seraphina, who watched with a faint smile.

Finally, I looked at Alistair.

“You're sending me away because I have no one here to defend me.”

His expression didn't change. “I'm sending you away because you have finally become useful.”

He turned to the guards.

“Prepare her for departure. She leaves for Verkhane before the next dawn.”

Then his gaze shifted to the woman who had served me for years, my court lady, who stood anxiously near the edge of the hall.

“Remove her royal robes. She will not be leaving this palace dressed as a queen.”

My court lady looked at me, her eyes filling with tears.

“Your Majesty...”

“Do it.”

The guards released my arms, but I couldn't move.

My court lady approached slowly, her trembling fingers reaching for the clasp at my shoulder.

“Your Majesty, I am so sorry.” She whispered to me as she carried out the King’s order.

And I just stood still and watched as she began to undo my royal robes.

The fine fabric slipped from my shoulders. The jewels were removed from my neck and wrists, and the crown that had rested upon my head was taken away.

No one spoke against it.

When the last of my royal garments had been removed, my court lady helped me into a plain white garment.

I stood before the entire court stripped of every symbol of my position.

I was no longer being treated as their Queen.

I was an offering.

And before the next dawn, I would be delivered to the Beast King of Verkhane.