The Crown's Entrapment

Back inside the Great Hall, Darius was still busy discussing matters with his court. The longer their conversation went, the more he could see the displeased look spreading amongst his opposition.

His firm declaration of intent on making Xen his Queen obviously didn't sit well with them, and he could only imagine what they were thinking of throwing at him to dissuade him.

"Your Majesty, there are recurrently a few bad rumors circulating around the kingdom about your mate. Surely this is a case for consideration," Elder Nassar pushed on. "For one is that the Princess has a hidden agenda by disguising herself as a lad while she's on her way into our kingdom. There is also one wherein she intentionally did such a thing simply to get near you and seduce you after."

"Hah! Such nonsense! To think that so many false rumors circulated about my mate during my absence," Darius grunted with gritted teeth as he looked at everyone who opposed him.

"I do wonder who's responsible for this. Either way, I will definitely get to the bottom of this and make sure to punish whoever is responsible for this insult."

Watching them squirm under his gaze, Darius wondered if one of these Elders were responsible... He wouldn't put it past some of them, after all.

"Hmm... It'll be a waste of resources to pursue this matter further, Your Majesty," Gilas interrupted. "They're nothing more than baseless rumors, and we can always clear Princess Xenia's name by informing the masses of the reality against those rumors."

Darius squinted his eyes at Gilas. His Great Constable was right, but he wouldn't let something like this simply pass him by. With a tone of finality, he said, "This is about my future Queen. As such, I simply cannot take such things lightly. Like I said, I will make sure to find out who is responsible for this. Insulting my mate like this is equivalent to insulting me."

There was silence as the room sat on his declaration. After a few moments, Darius continued, "For clarification to everyone concerned, Xen was indeed the one disguised as a lad at the time. She wanted to escape the arranged marriage she never wanted to the Vampire King, and as such, posed as the person she once was."

He then added, "In fact, you can even say that she's destined to meet me along the way. The Almighty simply gave me the privilege to meet my mate at the same time."

"But we simply cannot allow her to be our Queen just like that, mate or no mate," Elder Nassar reiterated.

"You know very well of our traditions and customs, Your Majesty. No one in the history of our previous rulers bent the rules when it came to the appointment of a Queen. Doing so will only bring misfortune to our kingdom."

As he expected, a few Elders and officials seconded Nassar's words. The opposition was trying their hardest to fire back at him with their traditions and customs, and it was unfortunate that he still had to heed them.

It couldn't be helped. Dodging the topic, he simply stated, "I still have a few more days before the wedding. The Queen's position can be discussed after the fact."

He then swerved onto another topic, "But enough about this drivel. We should first focus on what's important, which is to say the welfare of our kingdom and securing our borders."

At his declaration, Chancellor Talon and the Elders who supported him quickly backed up his words, thus managing to divert the topic.

Still, Darius hated the fact that although he was powerful enough, he still had to bend on something so inane as tradition and customs simply because they should be respected. He would never stop finding a way to make Xen his Queen by any means without her being put in any harm, and if bending to the rules was what it took, then so be it.

The meeting with the court lasted till dinner time. Once the moon had completely set, Darius told everyone, "I prepared dinner for everyone present in this room. If we're all done, let's all proceed to the dining hall and enjoy a good meal celebrating my return."

He then added with a bit of emphasis, "I will appreciate everyone's presence for tonight's dinner."

It was a rare event for him to ask everyone to eat with him, merely because he had just come back to their kingdom. He was sure everyone already got a grasp about what he intended to do, which was to formally introduce Xenia to the rest of them.

There was a terse silence as Darius stood up first from his seat before walking towards the dining hall, and that was after he had already instructed a servant to fetch for Xen and Jayra. Predictably, the rest of his subjects followed him quietly.

By the time they arrived, the dining hall was ready, and everyone seated themselves in their respective seats.

As usual, Darius sat on his chair, and he couldn't help but curl up his lips as he turned his head to his left and saw the vacant chair he asked specifically for Xen. Usually, there were only two seats, reserved solely for the King and the Queen Mother, but now there were three.

As is custom, his Elders and high-ranking officers sat on his left and right side of the table respectively. Soon, his mother arrived and took her seat on his right. Her eyes darted to the vacant seat on Darius's left, to which he only gave her an enthusiastic smile.

His mother could only shake her head with a faint smile as she whispered, "I can only hope you've prepared yourself well for the consequences of your actions, Son."

"I'm always prepared, Mother, so please do not worry," Darius reassured her. "How about you just relax and enjoy this great meal while getting to know my mate more? I'm sure you'll love her, and I will be happy if you can get to know her more and make her feel more at home here in our kingdom."

He then flashed his mother a smile, a smile that only widened as soon as Xen entered the dining hall.

"She's here. Look how beautiful she is, Mother," he breathed out, his eyes fixed on his mate. Seriously. Xen looked so glamorous in her simple one-shoulder nude spring summer colored gown, one that blended well with her alluring orbs.

Darius gulped as he got to see her bare long legs wherever she walked. It wasn't like it was the first time he saw a woman's bare leg since some women in their kingdoms wore gowns with a slit kind of design as well. But still, no one could ever compare to his alluring mate.

Seeing as Xen had arrived, he immediately stood up to meet her halfway, making sure that she wouldn't feel awkward since almost everyone inside the hall was new to her. He wanted her to feel comfortable and secure, and accompanying her will do just that.

"You look stunning, love," he gently whispered as he offered his hand to her. His eyes were practically shining and shimmering with love for her.

He was so effortlessly captivated by her that he couldn't help but give the back of her hand a gentle kiss. It was the least he could do to show her his approval.

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A/N: A reference photo of Xen's outfit was posted in the comment section in case you're curious. hehe