Gasps rippled through the room at the severity of Mortimer's words. All eyes swung to Damon, waiting for his reply.
Damon frowned. "Kill Nyssa?"
"Yes," Mortimer said without a flicker of remorse. "You killed her family in no time, so what's stopping you from killing her too?"
Damon's jaw clenched. "You speak so confidently, forgetting she is my wife."
The councilmen stared at Mortimer again, hungry for his response. Wulric shook his head. They were enjoying this far too much.
"And you didn't consider her being your wife before you murdered her family?" Mortimer asked, puffing smoke into the air as if discussing something trivial.
The councilmen's jaws dropped. Mortimer looked utterly unbothered, despite the fact Damon could order his execution with a single word.
Damon's eyes blazed. "So… what are you implying?" His voice iced over.
Mortimer sighed. "Yes, the princess is your wife. But she never performed the rituals to become Queen. As far as I'm concerned, she has no relevance in the Askye Empire."
Gasps and murmured shock filled the throne room.
Damon leaned back into the throne, his thoughts swirling. Yes, he planned to end Nyssa eventually, but not yet. He still intended for her to fulfill her duties as his wife.
He shook his head slowly. "No. I won't kill her."
The councilmen stared, stunned. Every one of them had agreed with Mortimer.
"My Lord," Fausto said, "I do agree with Elder Mortimer."
Damon's eyes snapped to him in surprise.
"Yes. I don't see a reason why she's still alive." He shrugged.
Vitmus seconded. "My Lord, Fausto is right. You have three queens, and there are lots of women who would be willing to be by your side. I don't see what she has that you won't find in another woman."
"Exactly!" Mortimer chimed in.
Fausto nodded, while Wulric stood trapped between agreeing with his master or the councilmen.
"Or… don't tell me you're catching feelings for her." Mortimer eyed Damon, earning a sharp glare in return.
"Feelings or no feelings, I'm not in support of this. If her magic cannot function, she's as weak as anyone."
"Tsk. Quite disappointing." Mortimer clicked his tongue, and Damon's glare darkened.
Damon's advisor, Gaius, who had been silent at his side, gave him a narrow, amused look. A quiet chuckle escaped him.
"Still ignorant, I see," he muttered, brushing a hand through his jet-black hair.
He struck his walking stick once against the floor. The sound cut through the murmurings, and the room fell still. All eyes turned to him. His grey eyes gleamed with suspicious mirth.
"Your Majesty," his eyes went to Damon, calm, steady and commanding.
"Yes?" Damon answered with a furrow of his brows.
Gaius lifted his gloved-hand and touched him on his arm, his pupils dilating.
"You will kill the princess, for she is an obstacle in your reign as emperor." He muttered to only Damon's hearing.
Damon's blue eyes glowed as his brows straightened. "Yes, the princess will be killed."
Gaius smiled, retreating his hand back and facing the councilmen again.
Damon's eyes went back to the men, with a calm, collected expression.
"You are right."
Gasps flared around the room, shock stamped onto every face. How had Gaius made the Emperor agree so quickly?
"Since my advisor approves of the princess' execution, so shall it be."
Mortimer hummed in satisfaction. "A great decision, My Lord."
Wulric shot Gaius a venomous glare. That unhinged advisor. He had agreed for the princess's death, and the Emperor always listened to him!
"The execution," Emperor Damon continued, and every councilman leaned in with rigid attention, "shall be in three days' time. That is my decree."
All the men bowed. "Yes, My Lord!"
…
Nyssa watched as the man named Oren sat beside her. Still holding the suspended ball of fire, she shifted away a little. His brow arched in question.
"Are you scared of me?"
"I'm just being careful."
He chuckled.
"Don't you think you owe me an explanation for why you're here?" She asked, drawing her knees closer to her chest.
He tilted his head. "For someone who is locked up, you're quite unbothered."
Nyssa frowned. "What do you mean by that?"
He shrugged. "Well, I thought you would be begging me to help you escape."
Nyssa gasped. "Y… you can do that?"
A small smile tugged at his lips. "I told you I could teleport, didn't I?"
Nyssa's eyes lit with hope. "Oh, thank the Heavens. But… Why? Why would you help me? And how did you know where to find me?" She asked the pending questions.
He sighed, stood up, and began pacing around the cell.
"I'm Oren. From the family of Shur."
Nyssa's eyes widened. "I knew you were from Trontine!" Her gaze softened. "You come from a noble family. But I've never seen you before."
"Yes. I'm an illegitimate son."
Nyssa blinked. "Oh.."
He turned, his back facing her. "Normally, I don't really care about the kingdom, because it didn't care about me either."
Nyssa cast a quick glance at him.
"But I had one friend who saw me beyond the circumstances of my existence."
He turned his head to look at her. "Your knight."
Nyssa's eyes flew open. "Eu… Eugene?"
He turned fully to face her now. "Yes. Eugene and I were friends since childhood, and although becoming your knight took most of his time, he never stopped asking about my well-being. He was a man with a big heart."
Nyssa smiled as a tear slid down her cheek.
A harsh cough then tore through the moment.
Nyssa's body jolted at the sudden sound. She looked up to find him crouching, coughing uncontrollably.
"Oren!" She rushed toward him, but he pulled back.
"It's okay… I'm fine," he said between coughs. When he drew his hand away from his mouth, a dark smear of red stained his palm. Nyssa's frown deepened.
"Oren?"
"I said I'm fine." His gaze sharpened, and she swallowed.
"I'm actually here because of Eugene's last wish. Left to me, it's not really my business."
"You were with him when he…" Nyssa's voice trailed, unable to complete the sentence.
He nodded. "He was attacked violently in the palace, and when he saw you being dragged away, he tried everything he could to run after them, to try and do something to save you."
Nyssa clutched her gown tighter.
"During the siege, I was running from place to place, trying to find children I could help, when I saw him. He was lying flat on the ground, in his own pool of blood."
Nyssa took a deep, shuddering breath as her tears poured freely.
"His last words were, 'Save the princess. Save Nyssa.' That was all."
Nyssa sobbed harder. He gave a small, sad smile.
"It was such a drag, honestly. But I knew I had to fulfill this one wish he asked of me."
His eyes shifted to the crying girl. "And that's why I will save you."