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Chapter 17 - When Tables Turn also posted on Radish today! Download the app on Android and iOS now and read more chapters there! Chapter 14 and 15 can already be read for free on Radish while Chapter 16 and 17 can be bought for 3 coins each!

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CHAPTER 13 – COMPETITION



Castle Xanthe City of Aphelion, Wolfen Territory The Realm of Xathos



"Have you gone mad?!" Argus cried as he swung his fist towards Dimitrios. The king ducked and sidestepped the attack. He jabbed and the punch landed on Argus' side which knocked the breath out of his lungs.

"Mad?" Dimitrios repeated.

"Yes! Completely mad!" Argus shouted. This time, he kicked and his leg landed on Dimitri's middle. Dimitri fell but rolled out of the way before Argus' foot can land on his chest.

"Why?" he asked. Dimitrios was breathing harder now and blood flowed on the side of his face due to a small cut.

"You cannot give a Vampyr your blood! You cannot bond with her!"

Dimitrios sighed and lowered his fist. "It must be done."

Argus snorted. "No. And you know it. You can bond her with anyone else so she will be dependent on that person. Threaten to kill that person and the little Vampyr will spill all her secrets. You know it, Dimitri."

"Maybe she deserves even a little bit of respect. She did save the children and the elders from the Cerran attack."

"Respect? For all I know, this is a ploy! She might be messing with our minds. She might be trying to get us to trust her and then when we do, she'll plunge a sword deep in our chests!"

"Trust me, Argus. I have a plan."

"Right now, I don't think you have a plan. You seem to be thinking with your cock rather than your head."

With a roar, Dimitri charged. He was done playing defense in this little sparring session. Argus tried to evade the attack but Dimitri already anticipated his next move. He swung his leg to the left and Argus tripped.

Dimitri quickly swung his fist and it connected with Argus' jaw. His general spat out blood and with another roar, charged. Dimitri aimed another punch and when it connected, Argus fell and didn't get up.

Dimitri wrapped his hand around Argus' neck.

"Do you yield?" he asked.

With a deadly glare and a pained groan, Argus nodded. Dimitri smiled and helped his friend get up.

"What is it about this Vampyr anyway?" Argus asked after he reached for the towel that a waiting servant handed him.

"Careful, Argus. In the eyes of the law and of the gods, she is still your queen."

"What about in your eyes, Dimitri?"

He refused to reply.

"She is no queen," Argus spat. "When she betrayed the agreement, she ceased to be queen and instead became a fugitive."

"Argus. We are still bonded under the goddess Selene's law," Dimitri replied tersely.

Argus was silent for a long time. Dimitri knew his friend was letting his words sink in. Though no one recognized his bonding with Ailara because it was a political marriage, in the eyes of the gods, they were still bound as mates.

"What then, Dimitrios?"

Good question, Dimitrios thought. He thought he had everything planned. He would bond Ailara to him by blood and then she will tell him what he needed to know. Maybe she even knew how to defeat the Cerran. Through her, he would have all that knowledge.

But to bond her to him, he had to give her blood. Every time he gives her blood, his body goes up in flames. He wanted her so bad that his cock aches at the mere thought of her sinking her fangs into his skin once more.

This was why he was here in the training grounds with Argus right now. He needed to release some pent-up agression or he might go crazy.

Or you can just bed her and get this out of your system.

"Dimitri?" Argus called out.

He was lost in his own thoughts that he did not hear what his friend was saying. Argus shook his head. "I said I'm going to go ahead and wash all this blood off of me."

Dimitrios nodded. Argus turned back after he walked several paces.

"What will you be up to for the rest of the day?"

"I'm thinking of touring Ailara around the castle."

"What?" Argus snarled. Dimitrios held up a hand. "I won't reveal any of our secrets, my friend. Worry not. Maybe being even a little bit accomodating to our guest would make her feel that she can tell us her secrets."

Argus walked away muttering. Dimitrios suppressed a laugh and then turned to the attendant next to him. "Summon Ailara. Tell her to meet me at the throne room in an hour. Give her two attendants to see to her needs."

"Yes, my King."

☾ - ☾ - ☾ - ☾ - ☾

"My lady, my name is Lisa and this is Keira. The King sent us to be your attendants."

Two young Wolfen females bowed before her. "What?" she spat. The girls look alarmed. "He summons you to the throne room less than an hour from now. We have to prepare you, my lady," Lisa answered.

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door and then servants entered. A large tub was placed near the fireplace and then filled with buckets of steaming water.

"Your bath awaits, my lady."

Ailara tried hard to keep her expression blank. But, what was all this? She was Dimitrios' prisoner and now she was suddenly being treated as a lady of the castle? She almost snorted at the thought but decided to play along.

Who didn't want a comfortable life—even though the said person was a prisoner? And so, Ailara removed her tattered dress and sunk into the tub.

"My lady... I wish to thank you for saving our elders and children last night. One of them was my grandfather. He is ill and therefore weak. You saved him from an early death," Lisa told her as she scrubbed Ailara's back.

"Thank you, my lady, for saving my brother," Keira added. Fragrant oils and soaps were poured into the water. Ailara closed her eyes and sighed with bliss.

How long has it been since she last felt this small luxury?

Keira and Lisa scrubbed her limbs and her back and also massaged oils into her hair. For what seemed to be a century, this was the first time Ailara truly felt clean. The process also made her feel a bit nostalgic because when she was still a princess of the Vampyr, this was her life.

After the bath, her body and hair was dried. Then, she was given a new gown to wear. This one was the exact color of the sky. The bodice had an intricate design embroidered with gold and silver thread. It was of the sun and the moon together in the pale blue sky—a symbol of Aiken and Selene.

Ailara's hair was braided and held together by a sapphire clip. Then, a mirror was held before her. Ailara gazed at it and couldn't believe that the reflection standing there was truly her.

The woman in the mirror looked vibrant. There were no bruises marring her skin and no dark circles under her eyes. Her skin looked radiant and glowing and her cheeks weren't pale but a light pink. Her lips were slightly pink as well. And her sky blue eyes were perfectly enhanced by the dress she wore.

"You look beautiful, my lady!" Keira exclaimed. Lisa nodded and clapped her hands as Ailara slowly turned around for them to inspect her.

"We are just right on time. Let us escort you to the throne room, my lady," Lisa told her.

And off they went.

They walked along what seemed to be a maxe of corridors before they finally stopped before a set of large, double doors. They were announced and then the doors opened and revealed the grand throme room of the Wolfen Castle.

Ailara briefly noticed the grandeur and the beauty of the throne room for her eyes immediately went towards Dimitrios.

He stood in the middle of the throne room and was having a discussion with an elder. Today, he did not wear his usual tunic, breeches and boots. Today, he wore a robe which was the exact same color of his eyes – blue as the ocean. His robe had the same embroidery hers had but his was more regal... fit for a king.

And as always, he took her breath away.

He lifted his head and their eyes met. Ailara saw him close the book he was holding and handed it back to the elder who bowed and left. Dimitri waved his hand and all the guards in the throne room left as well.

"Ailara..." Dimitrios called.

Overcoming her initial shock at his appearance, Ailara remembered her manners. She bowed before him and moved closer.

"You summoned me, your majesty?"

The corner of his lips lifted in a smile. It was breathtaking. She never knew that a smile could make one's heart stop.

"Now you remember all the formalities?" Dimitrios teased. Ailara just kept her eyes down and did not respond. And for the first time since she saw him again, she heard Dimitrios laugh.

"Shall we?" Dimitrios motioned with his hand and indicated the doors.

"Where to, your highness?"

"Today, I'd give you a tour of the castle."

And for the second time today, Ailara's heart stopped. A tour? Of the Wolfen castle? Even when she was young and visited this castle, she was confined to her rooms or to the throne room and the forest. Never was she given a tour of the estate.

Perhaps they didn't trust her then. What changed?

Dimitrios walked ahead and Ailara followed. It was taught to her when she was young that ladies, even queens, never walked beside a king. But the Wolfen culture was not so strict. They revered their women and their mates and were allowed to walk side by side.

"So you've seen the throne room. The castle is mostly simple and plain throughout—except for the throne room. It's the most luxurious and extravagant room," Dimitri told me with a small shake of his head.

She could feel that there was more to this story but I dared not ask.

We exited the room and Dimitrios pointed at various paintings that decorated the narrow corridor. I was so engrossed in the beauty of the artwork that I almost bumped into someone.

"My apologies... Are you alright?" Ailara asked the woman.

She had jet-black hair and brown eyes that looked so innocent and beguiling at first glance—yet dark and full of secrets when you look closer.

Over the years, she has seen her fair share of eyes. She has seen them in their most vulnerable moment—before the light in them was completely snuffed out forever by death. It's because of this she knows that this woman was not who she appeared to be.

Nayah bared her fangs. "Don't touch me, Vampyr," she hissed.

Ailara quickly took a step back. "Nayah!" Dimitri called out. Immediately, she bowed her head. But that wasn't before Ailaea recalled where she saw the other woman first: it was on the night of the full moon. She was the woman who danced with Dimitrios.

Immediately, the emotion that was roused in her that night went back full force. Ailara wanted to grab a sword from the wall and run it through Nayah's heart. But she tamped it down. It was irrational and insane.

Dimitrios wasn't hers. At least not in the real sense.

"I'm sorry, your majesty," the woman called Nayah said in a soft voice. Ailara saw tears form in her eyes as she gazed at Dimitri. That was the moment she knew she was one of those women who used their wiles to make men do their bidding. And for that, Ailara wanted to claw her eyes out.

"Don't worry about it, Nayah," Dimitrios replied in a tender tone. He approached her and wiped away her tears with his thumb. Dimitri also withdrew a handkerchief from the folds of his robes and handed it to her.

Ailara watched the scene play out

"My apologies, lady. I can't erase years of prejudice in one day. But I thank you for saving our children and elders last night," Nayah told her with a small bow.

"Where are you off to, your majesty?" she asked Dimitrios.

"I'm giving Ailara a tour of the castle."

"May I come with you? I can help tour her around the castle."

A flash of irritation went through Ailara. Would it be so rude now if she were to feign illness and go back to her room?

"Ah... I'm sorry, Nayah. Ailara and I have some things we need to discuss today. Some other time, perhaps?" Dimitrios told her with a smile.

Then, he turned around and went towards the other side of the corridor. He stopped a few steps away and inclined his head as though willing her to come. Then, he walked away in a slow, leisurely pace.

Ailara was about to follow him when she felt a hand clamp down her arm.

Nayah's previously tear-stained face was now filled with contempt. "He's mine, you know," she hissed.

Ailara chose to keep silent.

"If he wasn't mated to you because of an agreement, I would be mated to him and crowned queen. It's because of you that he cannot find his true mate anymore," she spat.

Ailara's eyes narrowed. Her heart started to beat faster but she tried to not let her emotions show. Clearly, this was a game. One that she did not want to play yet somehow, found herself in the middle of the field.

And since she's already here, she will play to win.

"The agreement is not in place anymore," Ailara answered.

"You are still his wife in the eyes of the gods."

She shrugged. It seemed to increase Naya's irritation further.

"If you are his true mate, then please feel free to chase after him if you wish," Ailara said in a bored tone.

Her claws dug into Ailara's skin. "Do not challenge me, Vampyr. Your impertinence will get you killed."

"Is that a threat?"

She smiled and tilted her head to the side. "Not a threat. A warning."

The two women gazed at each other for a long time—each one sizing up the opposition. Ailara found herself thinking: if she fought Nayah, she would probably win.

But then again... what was she fighting for exactly?

Dimitrios may be her mate in the eyes of the gods and of the law. But laws always had loopholes. Dimitrios is a king and kings can make and break laws. Their mating with can be dissolved quicker than the blink of an eye should he wish.

And the gods? If Nayah was his true mate, then fate will not be so cruel as to separate them. There will be a way and they will be together.

And what about her? Maybe she'd finally have the freedom she sought.



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