DIANA
We enjoyed the view for a while before another thought occurred to me.
“What about Prince Cassian?”
Aeris arched an eyebrow.
“What about him?”
“He doesn’t seem interested either.” I said.
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s different.” He answered.
I frowned.
“Different how?”
“The same way the Princess is.”
I tilted my head to the back, saying, “The Princess?”
He looked at me and answered, “You haven’t met her.”
I shook my head.
“I didn’t even know there was a Princess.”
“There is.” He nodded.
“The King’s only daughter.”
My curiosity immediately piqued.
“Where is she?”
He pointed vaguely southward.
“Several thousand miles away.”
That wasn’t helpful, but I waited.
Eventually he sighed.
“She’s in the Water Kingdom.”
My eyes widened.
“The Merfolk?”
“Yeah. She’s married to the Crown Prince.” He looked at me.
“Exactly like you.”
I sat up in my chair.
I’d never even heard of a princess and I’d spent years reading about the Dragon kingdom.
Yet there was still so much I didn’t know.
The crowd erupted into cheers as another arrow struck a target, but I barely heard them.
All this time, a small part of me had believed I was uniquely unfortunate to have been chosen as a political sacrifice, but the Dragon Kingdom had done the same thing with their own daughter.
They had sent her across kingdoms, away from home to honor a treaty.
Perhaps this was simply what royal daughters were for.
Aeris’ voice unexpectedly softened.
“You know…” I glanced at him.
“The Princess never complained.”
I raised a brow, then asked, “How is that supposed to make me feel better?”
He grinned.
“It wasn’t.”
I rolled my eyes, which he found amusing because he laughed.
Then I looked at Prince Cassian.
Unlike his brothers, he wasn’t watching the competition with the desperate intensity of a man trying to win.
If anything, he looked entertained.
My lips twitched.
“Well.”
Aeris glanced at me.
“What?”
I nodded towards the forth Prince.
“If he isn’t interested in the throne, then why isn’t he mated already? I assume the noble ladies would have torn him to pieces by now.”
He gave me a side eye which made me shrug innocently.
“What?”
His silver eyes narrowed suspiciously.
“You’ve suddenly become very interested in the royal family.”
“I am trying to understand them.”
“You are gossiping.”
“I’m conducting research.” I countered.
He barked out a laugh.
“Research?”
I folded my arms, nodding.
“He’s a fine man.”
Aeris made a strangled sound.
“A fine man?”
I ignored him.
“He is handsome, polite and reasonably normal.”
“Reasonably normal?” He repeated, sounding personally offended.
“By dragon standards.” I added.
That only made him laugh harder.
Then he shook his head.
“Who told you he isn’t spoken for?”
My brows rose.
“He is?”
“Oh, yes.”
The amusement in his voice caught my attention so I turned to him.
“What do you mean, ‘oh yes’?”
His grin widened.
“Prince Cassian already chose his woman years ago.”
I stared.
“He did?”
He nodded.
“And he informed the royal court that he would mate no other.”
My mouth fell open.
“Wait. Then why isn’t he married?”
He looked delighted by my confusion.
“Because his mother hates her.”
I sighed.
That sounded a lot like the Queen.
“Why?”
“Because she’s not a noble.”
For several seconds I simply stared at him, then I blinked repeatedly.
“She’s what?”
“A commoner.” Aeris revealed, his eyes dancing.
The word hit me like a stone.
I looked at Cassian again.
He looked unaware that his life was currently being discussed.
To think that beneath that lazy and unbothered exterior was such a scandalous rebellion.
“A real commoner?” I mumbled.
Aeris rolled his eyes.
“No, Diana. A fake commoner.”
I swatted his arm and he released a deep laugh.
“You know what I mean.” I mumbled.
He nodded.
“The Queen is furious, but Cassian played a smart one on her. He has officially sworn a vow to the high court to remain single for the rest of his immortal life, which his mother absolutely cannot accept, as she needs his lineage for alliances. Well, unless she approves their union. So they are trapped in a stalemate.”
I sat there, utterly stunned.
A dragon prince…..deeply in love with a commoner.
That was the last thing I had expected to hear in this damned palace.
I found myself staring at Cassian differently now.
He wasn’t just a prince, but a man who has chosen someone and refused to let her go.
“Does the woman still wait for him?” I asked.
A genuine smile formed on Aeris’ lips.
“From what I hear? She’s just as stubborn as he is.”
I shook my head.
“Creator.”
He chuckled.
In a court where every smile was calculated and every marriage was a transaction, the Fourth Prince was actively jeopardizing his title for the sake of a common woman.
A newfound respect bloomed in my chest for him.
Aeris was still talking about how Cassian’s mother had once attempted to introduce six noble ladies to him in just one evening and somehow managed to get all six rejected before dessert.
I should have been listening, but a strange sensation crawled slowly to the back of my neck.
I didn’t need magic to tell me what was happening.
I was being watched.
My smile faded and slowly, I looked around the stadium.
Then my breath seized.
From that pavilion draped in black banners, Draven was staring directly at me.
As my eyes locked on his, a cold dread flooded my veins.
It wasn’t Draven.
His eyes were no longer the white ones I had grown accustomed to.
They were burning red.
Karl.
I knew the difference now.
Even from this distance, I could sense how furious he was.
The cup he was holding was melting in his hand, but he didn’t even seem to notice.
The warriors surrounding him remained perfectly still.
Nobody reacted, as though watching their commander melt iron with his bare hand was completely normal.
My heart skipped in panic.
Why?
What did I do?
I didn’t move from my designated seat.
I didn’t break any ridiculous dragon custom.
I quickly looked around my surroundings.
I glanced at Sarah and Mina who were standing behind me, then at the space beside me where Aeris was sitting cloaked.
Nothing had changed.
I snapped my gaze back to my furious husband.
His eyes were still pinned on me, tracking every movement I made.
The temperature in the stadium dropped even further.
What happened?
A moment ago he had been sitting there like a statue.
Now he looked ready to murder someone.
“What is his problem?” I muttered.
Beside me, Aeris followed my gaze.
The moment he saw Draven’s expression, he choked.
“Oh… oh no.” He mumbled beside me and abruptly rose to his feet.
“I must leave. Right now.”
My heart hammered in my chest as the cold got worse.
“What? Why? What is happening, Aeris?”
His head snapped between me and the distant pavilion.
“I need to leave.”
“What?”
“Immediately.”
I stared at him.
“What are you talking about?”
He pointed to Draven’s pavilion.
“The Commander can see me,” He whispered frantically, “And he is literally about to murder me.”
A wave of panic crashed over me.
“What?!” I hissed back, my hands gripping the armrests of my chair.
“I don’t understand! Didn’t you say no one could see you?”
“Nobody can.”
I pointed at Draven.
“Then explain that!”
“Diana, you are married to the most ruthless and powerful dragon of the century.” He snapped, his voice fading as he began to back away into the shadows of the pillar.
”
Karl’s eyes remained fixed in our direction.
The intensity of that stare made my chest ache so painfully.
“See you later, Princess….if I’m still alive!” Aeris said and vanished immediately.
Even with his absence, Karl still did not lift his gaze, and the ache I felt only became stronger.
Then I heard a voice echo in my head.
MINE!
I gasped.
It sounded like Draven, but thicker and rougher like the time at the waterfall.
It was Karl.
Again.