Chapter 2. Wicked thing
****
Leaving her dress on the floor, Trisha met the king's gaze, clad only in her skimpy undergarments. Her bare thighs trembled, but she held herself together.
Her breath caught in her throat under Kalos's steady gaze, whether hardened or surprised. The breath that escaped between her parted lips wafted like white smoke into the cold air before disappearing.
You'd think she'd be shivering in this cold, naked as she was, but the lack of her usual trembling seemed to astonish Kalos even more. This couldn’t be happening. She shouldn't even be able to stand upright in this cold. And he didn't think it was possible to do it with just undergarments.
Even in this state, she stood tall and proud. There were people to protect. She'd do anything for them.
In retrospect, it didn't feel so bad to have surprised the hell out of that big northern king.
She just had to accept the situation and do the best she could. Shame and disgrace could wait. She gritted her teeth. The cold air against her naked skin was biting, like it would tear through her flesh.
"Why are you wearing shoes?"
Kalos's hardened gaze never left her as he commanded again.
Trisha slipped off her thick, furry boots, down to her woolen socks, and set her bare feet in the snow. Kalos was more than surprised, he was intrigued.
Thud.
One step at a time, she moved through the cold, unable to stand still in this state of dress. Slowly, through clenched teeth, she walked toward the king.
Her ankles sank deep into the ice-cold snow. Her feet, her face, and her bare arms and legs were all red from the frigid temperature, but she didn't stop. Her gait never faltered.
No one but the king could see her, so the more she panted, the more silent the room grew with curiosity and wonder. When no sound, let alone a scream, erupted from her, they just stared at each other. He was itching to see what happened.
A normal person would not have been able to move more than three or four steps. But not if it was princess Flora. Her lips would have turned blue and she would have been on the verge of collapsing. Like the princess of Alta, frozen in the cold and sent back to her homeland to collapse in the snow.
The king's gaze traveled over her body as she approached. His gaze traveled up her body, starting with her cold cheeks and moving down her entire body. Cruel as it was, his gaze lingered for a moment on her ample breasts and slender waist. How barbaric, when one could freeze to death.
Finally, with a few steps between them, she stopped in front of the king.
The look in Kalos's eyes as he stared at her was indescribable. The King of the North, Kalos, could not believe what he was seeing. Well-trained soldiers might be able to do this, but they wouldn't be able to walk in such a disheveled fashion.
There was no hint of deception as she stood there in nothing but a thin pair of undergarments. Upon closer inspection, her lips were trembling slightly. In this cold, only her lips were moving, and yet the color of her lips was pale pink. What a bizarre situation.
Even if you had a lot of patience, even if you had great courage, there was nothing you could do about this cold. He was going to be even more ruthless in his capture because the queen of the kingdom of Izef, a woman he wanted to kill, and her own daughter, was coming.
Well, it was a stab in the back, not to mention amusing.
She's a strange woman. He needed to observe her a bit more.
"May I put on my cloak now?"
Look at this. Her voice doesn't tremble. This can't be happening.
Whoosh.
In a flash, his arm outstretched, he pulled her roughly toward him.
Shuffle.
Trisha was dragged helplessly, and before she knew it, she was sitting on his lap. Embarrassment and surprise were now her turn.
He ran his hands down her back, suspecting she was wearing some sort of pouch. A pouch that held something warm and comforting. That's how she could do such a ridiculous thing. He tried to see if there were any tricks.
Though there was nothing on her back. Only the softness of her flesh through her thin undergarments. Softer than he expected, so... still.
There was still warmth in her body that should have been cold. Involuntarily, his eyes locked on her brown eyes as he pressed his body against hers.
Up close, her face was serene and.................. elegant. Even her eyelashes, which were slightly fluttered, were graceful, as if she were a fairy princess. Her straight nose and tightly pressed lips gave her an air of majesty.
But her eyes fluttered in surprise at his behavior. Her lips trembled. Even in his arms, she shivered, more so than when she stood alone in the bitter cold.
His eyes grew darker and darker as he watched her eyes flicker between his own and her twitching lips. In an instant, the air between them grew tighter, pressing in on her.
Trisha felt her breath quicken. The king's face was right in front of her, and not only that, but her body was held tightly in his arms, and he wasn't letting go. His enormity frightened her, as if she were being held by a black bear instead of a man.
Hah... Her lips opened slightly to breathe. His gaze slowly lowered, following her slightest movement, and then he stood still, as if nailed to the wall. It frightened her even more.
Her pupils grew wider and wider, her face more frightened than when she'd walked through the freezing snow.
"May I put on my cloak now?"
She opened her mouth to repeat the words in a rush.
Gulp, gulp. Twice his eyes moved slowly, then all at once his brow furrowed and his eyes darkened to a deeper black.
Suddenly, with a harsh breath that bordered on anger, he finally released her.
Her chest rose and fell rapidly as she finally let out a breath. She scrambled off his lap and reached for her cloak. Ha... It was still hard to breathe after how long she'd been holding her breath.
His eyes narrowed again as he watched her.
She calmly bent down and picked up the cloak. She didn't rush to put it on. Bending down, Trisha realized that the cleavage of her breasts was clearly visible through the gap in her undergarments. His gaze was fixed there again.
Whether his reaction would be beneficial or poisonous was yet to be determined.
Wrapping her thick cloak around herself, she slipped back into the fur boots that had been lying there. This was much better. Still, she was surprised at her own body's ability to stay warm in this cold.
"Remove your shields."
The king's stern words were spoken, and in an instant, the shields that had made up the wall were back in place. But all the soldiers and ministers were dumbfounded to see the cloaked figure of the princess near the king. What... what happened?
In an instant, everyone was stunned.
Regardless, she finally made her way into the palace, guided by a servant who approached. She strode gracefully out of the snow, leaving behind a stunned and disbelieving crowd.
***
King Kalos of Tasar entered the throne room and sat down, unmoving. He watched the fire crackle and roar in the great fireplace against one wall.
It's said that the princess’s mother bewitched the king and sewed herself into the queen's seat. This was no ordinary skill.
She must have already planned to use him to fulfill some purpose. Working with her wicked mother.
The same thing.
Her mother, the evil Queen Catherine, will never sleep easy again, not even for a single night. How his father had died at her hands. She must live in agony every day of her life. She should never, ever be at peace.
So never fall for their schemes. It's impossible.
Kalos’s late father also sternly warned him to beware of the evil queen of the Kingdom of Izef. She was the one who tried to poison him at a meeting between kingdoms that had signed a peace treaty. She was a master of poison, he would say harshly, with evil written all over her face. But her daughter was even worse. She wore her wickedness on her face. She's a natural at seducing men, which was something to be very wary of. But.
How she could stand the cold was a mystery.
Suddenly, Kalos was even more puzzled. He'd been thinking about her for over an hour now. In a good way, of course.
But still, this couldn't be happening. A waste of time. That stupid woman.
Turning his head toward the window, he saw her graceful face again. The way she'd walked up to him in her undergarments and not a hint of humiliation. And the way her brown eyes glowed a pale pink, even in the cold, as she swayed in his arms. ....
Kalos scrambled to his feet, running a hand through his hair ferociously.
He had to go out there with the soldiers in the snow.
Bang.
The sound of the door being kicked open echoed louder than ever.
***
To donate for extra chapters for my series or to tip me visit my personal kofi page
Write a comment
Toti (Friday, 26 July 2024 14:58)
The queen has been blacklisted√