The night prior to the investigative tribunal, Shia tossed in bed uneasily, unable to sleep as a thousand and one thoughts raced in her head. Did she really hear the king say it correctly? He is proposing marriage to her, but why? She couldn’t think of a single, sane answer to her question. She knew that the king might have had disgusting thoughts about her inside his head, but she didn’t think he would be doing such an elaborate plan if his only end goal was to sleep with her. There was also the matter about the oracle and the letters that Langrion’s mother made to her grandma. From the looks of it, King Caldwell had every motive to hurt her grandmother, and he knew that Shia was aware of this. But to propose marriage just so she wouldn’t talk about this secret – this was utterly insane! She buried her head into a pillow. She missed Langrion so much. Her thoughts were all over the place, and she missed having him to discuss these confusing ideas with. She missed his

At noontime, Shia entered the library of the Rubiyah Manor. She has an appointment with King Caldwell at dinner time, but she wanted to come to talk to Danterion first so that she could make a clearer decision as to what she must do in order to free Langrey and Khailis. She actually hated the idea of talking to Danterion, but she hated to blindly trust the king to keep his promise even more. She knew that Sirion would become privy to her plans, but she also knew that he could only know what she chooses to reveal, so there was no need to become too anxious. Shia only half-expected Langrion’s brother to be at the library, but she did not expect that Lady Edelfina would be there as well. The golden-haired maiden eyed her smugly from across a cushioned seat while Prince Danterion looked up to her from a book he was reading as she came closer towards them. “Lady Shia, I can’t say that it’s a surprise to see you, but it certainly is a surprise that you would send m

“I kept my promise to you; now, you must keep yours,” King Caldwell muttered to Shia when she was just about to go down from the carriage that they shared. Shia painfully gulped down the tears and the uncertainties that were stuck in her throat. She recalled the promises he had asked her to keep the night before when they were discussing at the dining hall of the Rubiyah Manor. “This wedding has its own terms, love. If you expect me to keep my end of the bargain, you have to fulfil your end as well,” the king declared as he drank his wine from a fancy chalice. “What are these terms then?” she asked dryly. “I will release your dear prince and his guard if you fulfil all my wishes. I will release the guard first, but your prince will be kept locked up for a month until after our wedding. I have to ensure that the wedding has been fully consummated before I release him.” The term ‘consummate,’ made Shia’s blood boil and shiver at the same time. “

As soon as Shia and Khailis were shown to their rooms at the Imperial Palace, Shia locked the door and sat herself right in the middle of the hard, marbled floor. “A-are you alright?” Khailis asked, patting the top of her head gently. Shia did not speak. Her eyes were set downcast, and she felt so rotten to her core. She really didn’t want Khailis or anyone else to ever see her in this state. She hated that she needed comforting from her, and she hated herself that she let someone as vile as the old king make her feel so powerless and so defeated. She tried to act as nonchalant as she could when she was at the balcony earlier and even afterwards when she was escorted down from it, holding the king’s arm like they were really engaged. In truth, her insides were churning rapidly, trembling in nervousness and repulse of what had just taken place between her and the king. “Shia, we need to inform Langrey as soon as we can of what might happen to him.”

The world shifted dangerously under Shia’s gaze. Perhaps this served her right. She had been so flustered when she cornered Lady Edelfina earlier that she had failed to determine the actual amount of poison that her own body could handle. The truth was that she had half-wanted to die back there. Lady Edelfina’s proposition seemed reasonable. Death would have been the best route for her. By the gods of Teotroly, she will wed the king in two days! What can she do to stop it if not just die? She and Khailis had already thought of a plan, and although Khailis had assured her that it will work, she was still doubtful. She wanted to see Langrion so badly and tell him that help was on the way. She had tried talking to the king about it, but he was pensive about this and did not give her any answers yet. It looked like he was half-expecting her to propose something indecent, but even out of desperation, she couldn’t bring herself to do so, so she simply walked out of him at