The Crown's Entrapment

Xenia looked at her sister Mineah, and she couldn't help but feel a stabbing pain go through her chest. Her little sister had to suffer this discrimination alone, and she couldn't do anything to stop it.

Xenia balled her fists, her knuckles turning white as she mustered up the courage to voice out her thoughts. She opened her mouth to speak for her sister, but the Vampire King's voice came first.

"Aren't we also cursed? I'm sure most humans consider our kind cursed as well," King Nikolai plainly spoke, a subtle smile forming on his face as his eyes darted towards her sister.

"Isn't this a match made in heaven? To unite two people that are both cursed? A sucking blood monster marrying a cursed princess. I'm pretty sure that Princess Mineah and I will get along well, my dear sister, so please worry no more."

"We don't have time to waste then… We will proceed with the initial wedding for King Nikolai and my daughter, Princess Mineah, and finalize this alliance once and for all!" Xenia's father interrupted.

He then looked at Darius and continued, "It is in our tradition to not wed in haste and have two marriages at the same time. As such, we will have to wait for another thirty days to avoid a bad omen in the family."

He nodded, "We will have to make another set of preparations for your wedding to my daughter during that time, King Darius. But while it might not happen today, we shall announce to all the realms that my daughter, Princess Xenia, is already bound to marry the Werewolf King at the Kingdom of Cordon."

Hearing her father talk, Xenia let out a sigh. It all happened so quickly that she didn't even have time to process it all. Now, she was bound to marry Darius, the Werewolf King, and she had nothing to say in the matter.

"Mother isn't back yet," Xenia murmured.

Jayra who was still beside her, whispered, "I believe she's still fixing and arranging some things to back up our alibi just in case. But with the way things ended, it's no longer necessary. Let me go and get her."

Xenia only nodded in appreciation as she let out another sigh. Currently, everything was settled. And thus, the wedding would begin shortly as scheduled. Xenia sat beside her sister while Darius and Nikolai both became busy discussing matters with their father.

"You're back," Mineah greeted her with a faint smile. "I'm glad you're safe."

Xenia could only let out a pained smile as she grabbed her sister's hand. Gently squeezing it between her fingers, she said, "I am so sorry, Mineah. To have caused you all of this trouble... I don't know where to even start…"

"Please don't worry about it," Mineah uttered out, her soft tone doing little to assuage her. "I will go through all of this with my own accord, Sister."

Hearing her words, Xenia let out another sigh as she looked at the Vampire King.

"I was about to defend you earlier. We're not even sure if you're really the one cursed. And yet…" the eldest sister trailed off before continuing. "The Vampire King was considerate enough to step into your defense, Sister. I heard he doesn't drink human blood, especially those who he deems innocent. And Darius only said good things about him, so hopefully, he will treat you well. You can always come back to us should you encounter any problems once-"

"Hmm… I'm already old enough, Sister," Mineah smiled at her, squeezing Xenia's hand as if to stop her. "Remember, you're just a year older than me. You should stop worrying too much. I can protect myself just fine."

Xenia nodded at her sister's words. Yes… While Mineah might not have any skill in terms of combat, her knowledge of magic, potions, and poisons was more than deadly enough to give her some way to defend herself.

Looking at her sister intently, Xenia gently cupped her cheeks as she smiled, "Look at you… I guess you're definitely a woman now."

She wasn't lying by a long shot. Her sister was a beauty and was the real epitome of a royal princess.

She loved Mineah's eyes, even though everyone believed that she was the one among the Queen's children who inherited the curse because of their mismatched hue. There were two different colors on Mineah's eyes; one was blue, while the other was hazel.

It was a reasonable guess. Their mother, the Queen, was an angel who fell in love with a human. She was apparently cast out from heaven bearing a curse as punishment; that she would pass on the said curse to her lineage for all of her life. Still, the theory about the curse was unclear even to this day.

For all intents and purposes, it could also be her or even Ezekiel that bore the curse… But since Mineah had a rare physical trait, everybody just assumed that it was her who received the curse.

"My dear sister, I noticed that you're addressing the Werewolf King by his name," Mineah pointed out as she teased. "I'm assuming this isn't your first encounter with him?"

"Yeah… He saved me, thus he thinks he owns my life ever since," Xenia chuckled.

"Well, you must know that I am someone you all shouldn't be worried about. I can handle that king well enough!" she boasted just so Mineah wouldn't worry about her.

"That's good and satisfying enough for me then," Mineah chuckled. "At least we can contribute to our people's needs in matters like this."

Xenia nodded in agreement. It was simply their duty as princesses to be used as bargaining chips. Such was their life, and it was for the best.

Soon, their mother arrived inside the meeting hall with Jayra. The sisters both gave their mother a reassuring smile, seeing how their mother's eyes were welling up with tears at the sight of them.

Meanwhile, almost everyone left the meeting hall to prepare for the wedding. It would be held just a bit earlier than the original schedule, which was planned to happen at nighttime.

Xenia almost wanted to hug her mother with her sister. But before they could greet one another, she found herself holding her breath as Darius walked towards them. Approaching her father, he simply nodded as he spoke.

"I will take my leave to aid your son Ezekiel now, King Stephan," Darius boldly declared. "However, I would much like the Princess, my bride-to-be, to accompany me to the encampment of the Ebodia Army."

"What?! No!" It was the Queen who answered.

"My Queen, please calm down," King Stephan told his wife.

He walked towards Darius and politely replied, "King Darius, will you be so kind as to step out for now? My servant will escort you to your chambers. Kindly give me a moment of privacy with my family and discuss the matters at hand. I will visit you shortly with my answer."

Darius simply nodded. But before he left, he reiterated his stand and said, "You must know, King Stephan, that I do not wish for any counter offer you might have. I will only accept having your daughter alone by my side, and that is all…"

"I understand," King Stephan gravely replied.

Darius headed out, leaving the family to their lonesome as he made his way to Gideon and Bartos.