The King's Mistress

Chapter 29: How Are You Still Alive

Silence enveloped the room for a few moments. Sierra knew she was doomed. There was no way she could spin another believable tale now. She had to tell them the truth. Sierra sat up in bed and straightened her back.

Just as she was about to open her mouth to speak, Ida hugged her tightly with tears in her eyes.

"Oh my poor princess! They tried to get you drunk didn’t you? How could those guards do this to you! I’m going to-" freёwebnoѵel.com

She knew what Ida was insinuating, Sierra quickly shook her head. She could see Myra’s eyes widening as she covered her mouth with her hand.

"No, no, you got it all wrong! Let me explain," she pleaded as she wriggled herself out of Ida’s grasp.

Taking in a deep breath, Sierra recounted what happened after she left the lodge. She told them about her encounter with the King and how he led her to his quarters.

"You got to enter the King’s Quarters?!" Ida exclaimed loudly.

Sierra winced as she reached her hands out to cover Ida’s mouth.

"Sssshhhh! Do you want everyone to know that?" Sierra exclaimed in a loud whisper.

Realizing where she had done wrong, Ida immediately piped down and apologized profusely. She promised to listen quietly while Sierra continued recounting what happened.

She continued to tell them about how the King had offered her wine and asked her what happened. She carefully left out the final part of their conversation but revealed that she had left abruptly.

Sierra planted her face in her hands once more while the others processed the information. This time, it was Myra who got it first. She was deep in thought, then upon the realization, she slowly looked up to Sierra.

"You... you left the King’s Quarters on your own?"

Sierra nodded, too embarrassed to give a verbal answer.

"With... without the King dismissing you?"

She nodded again.

Everyone gasped audibly.

"How are you still alive?" Myra asked in a whisper, filled with shock.

What Sierra did was punishable by death. Yet she was able to walk away scot-free, it was unheard of. Sierra buried her face in her hands once more.

At first, she was worried about what would happen to her if her real identity was revealed. Now, she was worried if she would live to see the sunrise.

"Well, if this is it, it’s been really nice getting to know all of you," Sierra joked bitterly.

"Don’t say that, Princess Sierra! I’m... I’m sure the King would be lenient. I hope so," Ida gulped.

Despite what had happened that night, Sierra did not get called away to be punished. Nor did she ever hear from the King again. Relaxing a little, Sierra found herself becoming the talk of the castle.

It did not take long for everyone to find out she was taken to the King’s Quarters. Even some of the most high-ranking government officials had never been in there before, let alone a princess from a foreign kingdom. freēwēbηovel.c૦m

Even the Queen was surprised.

"Is that so?" she remarked when her maid informed her.

Queen Roxine was enjoying her afternoon tea when she heard of the news. She could not help but smile. It was clear Alistair took an interest in Sierra and Roxine was rooting for him. But Sierra’s mysterious background, coupled with the recent attack she received did raise some alarm.

Why would anyone target Sierra?

As the Queen, such a matter was usually not under her jurisdiction. She was in charge of the inner palace affairs, managing the staff and ensuring things were running as they should. But Sierra was a potential concubine candidate.

Furthermore, it was found that the two men who attacked Sierra in her room were not native to Drakin. To make matters worst, neither of them has revealed who instigated them to do what they did.

"There has to be more to this," Roxine muttered to herself as she took another sip of her tea, "Marionne."

She came forward at once, "Yes, Your Highness?"

"Any updates on what I asked for?"

She had asked Marionne to find any information that was available about Sierra. The mysterious Princess Sierra seemed to have popped out of nowhere.

No one had heard or seen her before her appearance in Drakin.

"I’m afraid not, Your Highness. The only information we have at the moment is based on what is already known. She is the illegitimate daughter of King Frederick."

"Any rumors?"

"There’s one," Marionne bit her lip, "Just a bit of gossip, I don’t think..."

"What is it," Roxine wanted to know.

Anything and everything could be a clue. It could provide more insight.

"Some say the skills she’s displayed so far do not match the description of what a princess should be like."

Roxine snorted, "Is that so? Well, I think those people don’t know what a real princess is capable of then."

Most people, no matter what class they were expect princesses to be damsels in distress. While that still applied to some, it did not apply to all of them. A princess does not always need someone else to save her.

She most certainly could do more than look pretty and speak eloquently.

"Some said the archery skills of the princess seemed as if she had been trained in combat. As if..." Marionne hesitated to continue.

"As if what? Speak your mind, Marionne. You know I hate it when you stutter like this. "

"My apologies, Your Highness," she quickly continued, "As if she’s a knight."

Marionne’s words echoed in her mind. She had never considered that before. She recalled her observations of Sierra during the Ball. A sense of dread overcame Roxine as she placed her teacup on the table.

"Could she be a threat?" she wondered softly to herself.

What if Sierra was an assassin? Sent to Drakin specifically under the guise of a princess to assassinate Alistair. Roxine shook her head. This was merely a guess based on information she inferred from.

There was no proof or evidence to support this.

"Marionne,"

"Yes?"

"I want you to send someone to keep a close eye on Princess Sierra in secret. They are to report to me daily of all her comings and goings. I want her watched like a hawk. But do not alert her, is that clear?"

"Yes, Your Highness. I will do as you ask."

Marionne left shortly after to carry out Queen Roxine’s orders. As the Queen looked out at the open sky, she could not help but let out a sigh.

"For everyone’s sake, I hope I’m overthinking this."