The Tyrant's Pet



Meanwhile, the fighting in the great hall halted as the light within Aries grew brighter and blinding. Those people on her side, especially Conan and Dexter, held their breaths. Fabian partially opened his eyes. Miguel and the rest of the Raven also held their breaths, not knowing if this ceremony would result in their favor or not.

"Your Majesty…" Suzanne managed to drag herself to the corner, shielding her eyes with the back of her hand. "... is this what you truly want?"

At this point, no one knew what Aries's real motive was. Some of them were tasked with sabotaging the ceremony while others, like Fabian, were asked to stall Aries sometime. Thus, the confusion. They didn't truly know what Aries wanted with the divided task and secrecy in the entirety of their plan. 

All they could do at the moment was hope that everything that was happening was according to Aries's plans. From the bottom of their hearts, they truly and deeply wish her success in whatever it was. 

The light in the great hall only lasted for several seconds, but each millisecond felt like hours. And then the light disappeared without a trace. 

Thud.

Aries's body fell to the ground like a leaf being blown away by a branch. Her body landed with a faint thud, but somehow, with the pin-drop silence in the great hall, her fall echoed louder than it was supposed to. 

"Dani," a whisper slipped past Dexter's lips as his eyes were fixed on Aries. "Dani!!" 

CLANG!

Dexter clenched his teeth as someone suddenly attacked him, blocking his path from going to his sister. "You!" his voice shook in his chest. 

"Apologies, Marquees," said the man holding the other sword against Dexter. "Even if the ceremony succeeded, I cannot allow you to approach Her Majesty. Moreover, your attempt to intervene with such a sacred gathering deserves severe royal punishment. Your substantial relationship with the Queen might not help you from all your crimes."

Dexter had no other choice but to defend himself this time. He had to grit his teeth, swallowing down the bitter pill that he couldn't go to her as soon as possible. Still, knowing Aries was on the floor, unconscious, divided his attention and put him at a disadvantage. 

"Ugh!" Dexter blocked an attack, but then someone jumped from behind him. Thanks to his reflexes, he deflected the attack. However, he was a second late as the other sword from behind him grazed his shoulder.

Meanwhile, Conan and London stopped fighting just like Miguel and Fabian. The four of them stood on their spot, eyes on the unconscious Aries. 

"Your Highness, won't you rush to Her Majesty?" asked London, while keeping his eyes on the queen. 

"It would change nothing," was Conan's answer. "All I can do right now is to preserve my energy while waiting for what sort of person would wake up to that body."

Miguel and Fabian didn't hear the short exchange between London and Conan, but they also had the same thought. Fighting right now while Aries was unconscious was pointless. 

At this moment, all they could do was wait for the result of the ceremony. The uneasiness in their hearts slowly grew stronger with every passing second, hoping that the result would favor them. 

"Come…" Giselle whispered, keeping her eyes shut to feel the queen's heart. "… come now, Your Majesty."

The Queen's heart stopped beating when she fell to the ground. Until now, her chest had no sign of movement or sound. The beating of Aries's heart would determine whether Giselle succeeded or not. 

'It will succeed. I'm sure of that.' She told herself. 'There is no way Aries wouldn't inherit the king's will, even if the spirit of Maleficent was in her.'

BUDUM

Giselle's breath hitched as soon as she heard Aries's heartbeat once again. Her eyes slowly dilated while her mouth fell open. Satisfaction slowly resurfaced on her pale face as the corner of her lips stretched from ear to ear. 

"Yes…" came out a whisper. "Yes! Hah! It succeeded!"

Her short remarks echoed, causing another wave of unpleasant silence in the great hall. Fabian frowned while Conan secretly clenched his teeth. 

"It seemed her luck ran out." London cast Conan a glance. "If only whatever plan she had worked, I'm certain it'll be bad for the mainland. I'm glad it seemed we had avoided the worst."

Conan glared at London, and his fist trembled. "Say that again."

"Your Highness, it's pointless even if you wield your sword once again. The person you are fighting for has already changed her mind." London faced Conan squarely. "Once she regains her consciousness, I'm certain she wouldn't want us to fight each other. If you are still on her side, then stick to her side. But if you change your mind just because your goal doesn't align with hers anymore, then I will gladly fight you again. But this time, as a subject of the Queen against a traitor of this land and Her Majesty."

"You…" Conan's voice rumbled down his chest, but London was unfazed. The latter kept a dignified and robust front, waiting for Conan to make his choice. 

Meanwhile, as the tension between Conan and London rose, and Dexter was fighting viciously against multiple members of the Raven, Fabian stood still. Fabian gazed at his dark spear, his hand shaking at the violent reaction he was sensing from his weapon. 

"It seems there's no need to fight you." Fabian shifted his eyes to Miguel as the latter spoke. "You are not on Abel Grimsbanne's side, but the Queen. She is someone important to you. Hence, we can put the bad blood behind us and start anew. I am on her side as well, after all."

Miguel was quick to relax and heave a sigh of relief upon hearing Giselle's jovial announcement. Fabian, on the other hand, assessed Miguel from head to toe.

"Her Majesty is indeed important to me, but I don't think we are now on the same side, Count Miguel." Fabian's eyes slowly squinted. "Her Majesty, my dearest soulmate, hasn't forgiven you for all the deceptions you had caused in her life. I could feel her heart yearning for your demise, but as her soulmate for life, I'd save her the trouble of chopping all your joints herself."

"And apologies for popping your bubble, but it is too early for you to celebrate," added Fabian, making Miguel furrow his brows.

Not long after Fabian's remarks, Giselle's voice was heard again.

"No! No, no, no!!" everyone turned to Giselle's vantage point, only to see her on her knees while screaming, 'No!.'

No one knew the reason, but everyone was certain of one thing. Giselle never lost her cool, even if she was in the middle of the ocean on a stormy night. For her to react this way, everyone knew whatever reason it was… It was bad.