Free Web NovelChapter 373: The Kneeling King
At Ivan’s words, Evelyn exhaled softly before moving with him toward the seating area. She took a seat on the sofa opposite Septimus and Regulus, placing her close to Solan, while Ivan settled beside her.
Barnaby entered shortly after they had sat down, pouring them warm tea before quietly taking his leave.
Eve stared into her teacup while Ivan looked around at everyone present.
He began, "During our visit to the High Council Headquarters, we were only required to answer a few questions regarding the events in Zareth. Since the High Council had joined the battle later with reinforcements, most of them had witnessed the destruction firsthand. Naturally, they did not have much to say about the facts, but..."
Ivan paused, and Iskara raised a brow. "But?"
Ivan’s lips curled into a dry smile. "But I believe they feel threatened by our kingdom... or, more specifically, they are threatened by me and the extent of my power."
Iskara and Regulus narrowed their eyes. "What did they ask of you, son?" Iskara prompted.
Ivan looked at the two kings before replying. "Incendium. They wanted it in their possession, ostensibly to ensure I do not go around destroying kingdoms as I please."
The eyes of all four men widened in shock at what they had just heard.
"What? Tell me you did not give your sword to them, Ivan," Regulus demanded this time.
Ivan turned his head to look at Eve, who was quietly sipping her tea. The corner of his lips twitched at how innocently she was acting. The others followed his gaze, their attention settling on Eve before Ivan finally spoke.
"They could not," he said simply.
It was only then that Eve turned to meet his eyes. Ivan’s smile widened, which only intrigued the others further. She finally broke her silence while maintaining steady eye contact with Ivan.
"Your Majesty, I would never allow anyone to take advantage of your son in my presence, even before he could react," she said. Her tone was so matter of fact that it took everyone by surprise.
She then looked at each of them in turn and continued, "I challenged them. I told them they could have the sword if they could even lift it. As they tried their luck one by one, not a single member was able to move Incendium."
Placing her cup down on the table, she added, "It was foolish of them to think they could claim a blade that once belonged to the God of Fire. It has been passed down to his son, and it is a weapon that answers to no one but him."
Iskara nodded, pride gleaming in his eyes, but then his brow furrowed as a thought occurred to him. "But son," he asked, "in your... past life, did you not give that sword to King Zevran?"
"I did. Because it was my choice, Incendium obeyed my command, likely because it sensed that I was about to depart from this world. Even then, it only allowed itself to be temporarily handed to Zevran; it never chose a new owner.
It was always waiting for my return. Eve knew that no one else could make that sword obey or even touch it." Ivan’s lips twitched as he continued, "That is why Eve challenged them to try and lift it. Let us just say the High Council members now have burns on their hands for daring to touch what no one else can possess."
The room went quiet for a moment before Iskara and Regulus burst out laughing.
They looked at Eve, their eyes dancing with pride. "You really wanted to teach them a lesson, did you not, Evelyn?" Iskara commented with a wide smile.
Evelyn smiled in return. "I simply wanted to show them the consequences of greed. Those burn marks will serve as a permanent reminder to never covet what they can never have."
They laughed again, and Iskara added, "You did well, Evelyn." He gave her an approving nod before his gaze shifted from Eve toward Solan, whose eyes were shining with that same unmistakable pride.
Iskara spoke again. "Is there anything else those fools attempted after that?"
"Hm. They tried to ask for Evelyn’s weapon, which she gladly displayed as a massive golden phoenix. Their little hall could not accommodate its size. I believe the point has been hammered home that none of them can take what they can never hope to possess."
"Well done, you two. It serves them right for being so audacious," Iskara commented.
"Hm," Ivan hummed in agreement.
"Now, if everything regarding the Council is settled, let us move to other matters that need to be addressed," Iskara said carefully, his eyes fixed on Evelyn.
Meeting her gaze, he added, "King Solan here wishes to declare you his successor to the Kingdom of Luminear."
It was only then that Eve’s eyes moved to meet Solan’s. Ivan followed her gaze, his heart heavy. He knew this was bound to happen; he knew that one day she would need to return to her kingdom and rule her people. But the thought of her being away from him for even a second did not sit well with him.
"What will be your answer, Evelyn?" Iskara asked.
He shifted his gaze from Eve to Ivan and noticed how visibly his son’s jaw clenched. He understood that this conversation was bound to arise sooner or later, and it would be the moment both of them had to make a difficult decision.
The real question was, what would be the best possible solution for everyone involved?
Iskara was pulled from his thoughts when he heard Evelyn speak. "Why now? What has changed?"
He watched as Eve looked directly at Solan while she asked her questions.
Solan swallowed the lump forming in his throat, his voice trembling as he finally spoke. "It... it was always yours, Evelyn."
"Mine? Is that what you told your people from the beginning?"
Her voice quivered slightly as she continued. "Is that what you told your second wife, the woman who has tried to sabotage me since the moment she entered the palace? The woman who is likely doing everything in her power to ensure her son sits on the throne?"
"Evelyn... you are my... daugh-"
"Don’t." Solan was cut off abruptly.
Her eyes brimmed with tears, but she refused to let them fall. "All my life, you have done everything in your power to engrave it in my head that I am no daughter of yours. I am a princess by name only; you are my King and nothing more. So do not let that word pass your lips when speaking to me. I have only one mother, and that is Goddess Theia, the only one who has truly and wholeheartedly accepted me as her child. So, don’t."
The hearts of Iskara, Regulus, Septimus, and Ivan squeezed at Evelyn’s words, but no one intervened.
They knew Solan had to face this; both he and Eve needed to endure this conversation in order to move forward, so they remained silent.
Solan’s eyes brimmed with tears as he heard Evelyn’s harsh but undeniable truths.
He knew this was entirely his fault. In the wake of his failure, the only way he saw fit to begin fixing his past mistakes was by finally granting Evelyn what was hers by birthright....something he himself had opposed and denied her for so long.
Without a single word, to everyone’s surprise, Solan rose from his seat. Every eye followed him, wondering if the King had decided to leave.
Instead, he shocked them all. He dropped to one knee and bowed his head deeply before Evelyn.
Even Ivan had not expected this turn of events. Stunned surprise was evident on a face that rarely showed any emotion. On the other side of the table, Eve’s eyes widened as she listened to Solan speak.
"Forgive me, Evelyn. I am your sinner. I do not know how I could ever redeem myself for everything I have done to cause you such immense pain and suffering."
His voice trembled, but he forced himself to continue.
"I was meant to be your father... your protector, like every father who shields his daughter from harm. But I turned my back on you... your pain... your suffering. I sent you away to a kingdom I knew was filled with a race that feasted on lumens’ blood. Not only did I fail to protect you... I placed you directly in harm’s way, never once knowing what you endured or how you survived without anyone to stand by your side."
He swallowed hard, his voice growing heavier. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
"I now realise it was the gods’ blessing that brought you and Prince Ivan together, so that he could protect you in my place. And yet... even when the truth stood right before me, I tried to keep you apart. I tried to marry you off to someone else who... turned out to be another monster."
A broken breath left him.
"I am horrible, Evelyn. I am your true sinner. Even if I spent my entire lifetime trying to atone for what I have done to you, it would never be enough."
Solan finally lifted his gaze, his eyes red as tears spilled freely down his face, mirroring Eve’s own as her breathing grew uneven.
"But if you would allow it... let me start somewhere," he pleaded softly. "I cannot change the past, but please... allow me to be better in the future, Evelyn."
