“Each candidate will receive a room and stay for at least a month within the castle. During the time spent here, the candidates are free to access any area of the castle they please and use their free time as they will. However, they have the obligation to attend all the social events organized by the Royal Castle, the official meetings like this one, and obey each of the King’s orders. Any refusal or absence to any of the aforementioned rules will result in the elimination of the candidate, who will be sent home and have all the previous rewards confiscated.”
Cessilia grimaced, and so did her cousin. They had to obey all of the King’s orders? This rule felt horribly ominous...
“His Majesty will select his future bride among the candidates. The family of the chosen candidate will receive, among other presents, ten thousand gold coins and eternal glory. The new Queen will be the official Queen of our Eastern Kingdom, and mother to all the official heirs to the throne. She will assume all the responsibilities of her rank and position, and be the King’s left hand in all but military matters.”
Another rule that the War God’s daughter and niece did not appreciate at all. All but military matters? Now that they looked around them, all the women present looked very fragile and delicate. None of them looked like they could lift a weapon...
The Counselor took a deep breath, briefly glancing toward Cessilia before resuming.
“Today is the final call for all the selected candidates. If any candidate or her family wishes to withdraw, this is the last chance before they are officially entered. No punishment will be held against those who choose to retract now. I will call the names of each candidate and have them confirm, as well as their families.”
One by one, the Counselor called out each of the candidates. Surprisingly enough, they all answered loud and clear their will to partake in this competition to be crowned Queen, but only half of the said candidates seemed to actually be present here, aside from Cessilia. In each case, a member of the family gave an excuse for their candidate not being there, claiming she was ill or still on her way, and no one objected to this. Cessilia felt out of place listening to this. She hadn’t thought she was walking into a competition with other women... and she didn’t like it at all.
“Cessi, we can go home,” whispered Tessa as the Counselor was still calling out the others. “This is ridiculous, you’re a princess, there’s no reason for you to compete for that crazy guy...”
Cessilia knew where her cousin’s opinion came from. This indeed felt very foolish. However, now, it was clear her fate was intertwined with Yassim’s. Moreover, there were still too many questions pending, including why Jisel wasn’t called among the candidates. Cessilia had listened. For each candidate, they mentioned her name and her family’s, but Jisel never spoke, and everyone seemed to forget her for a few seconds. She wasn’t among the competitors...
“...The ninth candidate is Lady Naptunie, introduced by myself, and my niece is willingly partaking in this, she will arrive tomorrow. Finally, uh...”
Yassim glanced toward Cessilia. He knew his life was in her hands, and so did she. Their eyes met, and the young woman nodded slightly. The old man didn’t hide the wave of relief in his eyes, instead looking infinitely grateful. He turned to his former colleague, and stepped forward.
“The tenth candidate is Imperial Princess Cessilia of the Dragon Empire, introduced by myself, former Counselor Yassim.”
“...Princess Cessilia,” called out one of the seven lords, “are you really going to participate?”
“Yes,” nodded the Princess.
She hadn’t stuttered, nor was she hiding from their gazes. Instead, all the nobles quickly tried to glance the King’s way. Ashen had his hand covering his mouth, but his eyes were still fixated on the Princess. It was hard to understand what he was thinking, except for the way his fist was clenched on his throne...
“Well, we have ten candidates then,” nodded Counselor Yamino.
Suddenly, the King stood, and all the nobles seated stood one second after him. It was like a storm had suddenly broken into the room, putting everyone present in survival mode. Some were frozen by fear, others looked ready to run away. There was a general movement of stepping away from the throne and the man standing a step in front of it. However, Ashen didn’t say anything. He stood there for a couple more seconds, like a statue of ice with eyes of fire. After one last glare in Yassim and Cessilia’s way, he suddenly stormed out of the room.
No one said a word, and it took a couple of seconds after he was gone for anything to be heard, anyone to dare move. It had all happened so quickly, not everyone had understood what had happened.
The only one who could still keep a smile on was Jisel. If she had been shocked by the King’s sudden outburst, no one had seen it. She still had her little smile on, and her eyes met Cessilia’s. The Princess already didn’t like that woman, like a lioness who knew she was faced with a rival. Jisel gave her a little wink and quietly walked out while everyone else still seemed stunned.
The second person to react was Yassim. He turned around and looked at the two women.
“Let’s go,” he quietly muttered.
They both followed him as he quickly left the room, visibly needing to run away. They had barely walked out when a loud banter exploded inside, many people shouting after the old man and calling to him.
Yassim didn’t pay any attention to them and guided the two women out instead. He looked like he finally could control the situation a bit and was guiding them away, through the corridors and farther away from the previous room. After a little while, they seemed sufficiently far enough, although it was only one floor below. He let out a long sigh, a bit out of breath after this speed walking.
“What was that?!” exploded Tessa, clearly unable to hold it in anymore. “A competition to be that crazy bastard’s wife? Old man, I should be the one to cut your neck right now!”
“T-Tessa, c-calm down,” muttered Cessilia.
“Cessi, I’m not going to calm down! That old schmuck lied to us, and now you have to compete with nine other crazy girls, most of which were probably forced to do this? And you guys think we are barbaric! Our fathers don’t even dare take concubines, and you want to make Cessi beg for this tyrant to marry her while he’s already got that red slut on the side!”
“I swear to the gods I had no idea about that woman,” said Yassim. “I... I had heard rumors the King had taken in a mistress after I was dismissed, but I never met that woman before.”
“She’s not a c-candidate?” asked Cessilia, ignoring her furious cousin.
“One needs a strong backing to be appointed a candidate, my lady,” said Yassim. “All the women presented before belong to the strongest families of the Kingdom, and even the two Counselors who also introduced candidates are very wealthy men. I wouldn’t have been able to pick anyone but you.”
“So you came to our Empire to trick Cessi into this mess,” groaned Tessa. “Now you’re really going to lose your neck, old man. Just you wait until our family hears the–”
“T-Tessa,” said Cessilia, suddenly stepping up to her. “S-stop, please. I-I am fine.”
Because Cessilia asked her to calm down so frantically, her cousin frowned, tilting her head. She crossed her arms.
“...Cessi, why did you agree to this?”
But instead of answering, her cousin stayed mute and slowly shook her long locks. Tessa noticed her green gaze.
This was the glance Cessilia would make sometimes, when there was something she couldn’t say. It was a look she knew all too well, but it broke her heart each time. Ever since that had happened to her cousin, Tessa could tell there was something horribly sad and dark buried in her cousin’s heart, trapped in a chest Cessilia always refused to open. Each time she got close to that chest, Cessilia did this. Those sad eyes, and her voice that disappeared... as if she was asking her not to ask anymore. This had to be related to what had happened with the King just before, in that room... Tessa was the first one shocked by it. She thought she knew almost everything about Cessilia, but never had she seen her like that. For perhaps the first time, something had happened to that glass shell. A crack, perhaps. A little, shy opening into that tightly closed chest...
Tessa took a long breath, trying to keep it in and calm down.
“...Fine,” she grumbled, “but I’m going to make you pay for that later, old man. Or I’m just going to wait for Kassian and Darsan to hear this and come and slice you, and watch.”
“Thank you for your benevolence, Lady Tessa...” muttered poor Yassim. “And once again, I apologize for lying to you like this, Lady Cessilia. However, please know I didn’t do this to trick you, but because I had good reasons to believe my King would... have special feelings for someone from the Dragon Empire.”
“What?” muttered Tessa, confused.
Yassim kept staring at Cessilia, visibly expecting something, but the Princess remained mute. If she wasn’t curious to know what he meant like her cousin, it meant she probably knew the truth... and his theory was right.
