The Wolf's Queen Vows

Chapter 188: The Fox King

"I understand," Aelira managed to say, her voice barely above a whisper.

"You will understand better now." Velkynara pointed at each of them. "I have assigned each of you duties for my absence. Real duties. The kind that leave no time for tea and gossip and petty fights." She held out the scroll in her other hand.

Nymera stepped forward and took it with trembling fingers.

"That is the schedule. Morning reports. Inventory of the eastern stores. Rotating oversights of the servant quarters. You will follow everything on that scroll. You all will be diligent and useful while I’m gone."

They all bowed their heads.

"Maelis, you are in charge here," Velkynara said.

Their heads snapped up at the same time. Maelis was the most confused. It was unexpected.

"You don’t want to?" Velkynara asked.

"I feel honored by your generosity, Your Highness." Maelis bowed.

"You have to report to me consistently. And if I return to find this palace in chaos, I will keep all of you locked in this room with nothing but each other to feed on."

Then Velkynara turned towards the door. It closed behind her with a soft click.

For a long moment, no one moved. Then Aelira stared at Maelis, as if her eyes could bore into her forehead. Maelis stared back, a small smile on her face. She walked closer to Nymera and took the scroll from her. Sylira sank onto the chair and straightened her hair.

The other women flocked to Maelis to see which duties had been assigned to them. Aelira scoffed, clenched her fists, and stormed out of the room.

**********************

"Doran?" Zuri called out in a tight whisper.

A hooded figure stepped from the shadow of the Magnolia tree and wrapped his arms around Zuri before she could say another word. She hugged him back quickly, then pulled away.

"Did you bring it? Or the healer?" She asked.

Doran pulled his hood down. He was an old friend of hers. He shook his head. "I could not get a healer with the plant."

Zuri felt her stomach drop. "Why? What about Seliora?"

Doran glanced around the gardens to make sure no one was listening. "Seliora said the plant only grows in the Herbary. And it’s under strict supervision. You need the king’s permission to have it."

Zuri had known this. Some part of her had known from the beginning that it would be difficult to get the plant. But hearing it said out loud made it real, in a way she had been trying to avoid.

Zuri ran a hand through her hair. "What do I do, Doran?"

"Why do you even need this plant?" He asked.

"To save a friend’s life." She answered.

Doran studied her face for a long moment. She looked scared. "Then you need to meet the king."

"I cannot. If I meet him, he will try to stop me. My time as a hunter would come to an end."

Doran reached out to hold her hands. "Listen, Zuri, the king is in a good mood today. I saw him myself at the council meeting before I came to find you. He granted permission to three different requests. You could take advantage of this."

Zuri considered this. Her father was not an easy man to predict, but Doran was right about one thing. When the king was in a good mood, he often said he would do things he would normally refuse. She had seen it happen many times before.

"You should meet him before the mood passes."

Zuri swallowed hard. She didn’t have a choice. Lucien’s life was at stake. Each minute in delay drew him closer to the pit of death.

"Alright. I’ll meet him," she mumbled.

She followed Doran through the gardens. They crossed several corridors and stairs to the area where her father’s study was located. The guards outside the door bowed to her immediately. She opened the door and went in while Doran waited outside.

Her father sat behind his desk with stacks of scrolls in front of him. He looked up when she entered. His expression shifted from concentration to surprise.

"Zuri, I did not expect to see you." He said.

"Father." Zuri walked to the center of the room and lowered herself to her knees.

"What’s going on?" He asked.

"I need a plant from the Herbary to save a friend’s life." She answered.

King Cadno set down his quill. "Perhaps, is this friend a hunter?"

"Yes." She replied.

"So you came all the way home to beg for a plant for a hunter? How long has it been, Zuri? One? Two years?"

Zuri looked up at him. "He’s not just a hunter. He is the prince of Aurewulf Land."

The king scoffed. The sound was sharp and dismissive. "A bloody rogue? You want me to waste a plant that grows once in one hundred years on a damn rogue?"

"Please, father. His life depends on it."

Cadno studied her before standing up from his chair and walking to the window. He stood with his back to her for a moment.

"Please, father. I beg you. Save him." She pleaded.

Cadno turned around. "I have never heard you sound so desperate. Do you have feelings for this rogue?"

Zuri hesitated. She thought about lying. She considered saying no to save herself the argument. But she couldn’t hide the truth. Not anymore.

"Yes." She admitted.

King Cadno laughed. It was the kind of laugh that came from disbelief mixed with contempt.

"Your feelings are irrelevant." freēwebnovel.com

Her forehead creased. "What?"

"Wake up, Zuri. Stop being delusional. A rogue and a fox? The union is ridiculous. It would never work."

"I know we cannot work." She said, her voice rising a bit. "He is mated to someone else." Tears pooled in her eyes. She sniffed. "But I am not asking for too much. I am only asking for a plant to save his life."

King Cadno walked back to his desk and placed both hands on the wood. He leaned forward, his eyes still on her.

"Here is my offer." He said calmly. "Return to the castle, renounce your title as a hunter, and marry your betrothed. Do those things, and I will give you the plant."

The tears she tried fighting back spilled down her cheeks.

"What if I say no?" freēwēbηovel.c૦m

"Then you can watch your beloved rogue die. Those are your choices." He replied.

Zuri felt something break open inside her chest at his words. It was sadness mixed with hot, sharp, and long-overdue anger.

"You are selfish," she muttered.

His expression did not change.

"You have been demanding and controlling over my life for as long as I can remember. Every choice I have ever made, you tried to make for me. Every path I have taken, you have always tried to block it."

"Because you are my daughter, and I want the best for you."

"I don’t want your best! I want to be me! Is it that hard?"

"You don’t have a choice, Zuri. You belong here. Right in FiraEmber."

She wiped her cheeks with the back of her palm. "I am disappointed in you. Someone is dying. A person with a name and a family and people who love him. Someone who saved my life. And you are making demands. You are turning a life into a bargain."

King Cadno opened his mouth to respond, but Zuri was already standing up. She turned and walked to the door. Her hands were on the handle when he spoke again.

"Zuri. Think carefully about what you are walking away from." He said.

She pulled the door open and stepped into the corridor. Doran pushed away from the wall.

"What did he say?"

Zuri didn’t respond. She just walked past him. Doran followed her immediately.