Chapter 158
Have you ever imagined voluntarily offering yourself to a crocodile with its jaws wide open after not having eaten for a week?
Well, that was exactly how I felt.
I stood outside the massive doors of the cathedral, taking deep breaths while Martha stood beside me, squeezing my hand reassuringly.
The veil covered my face perfectly, and Martha had, as usual, done a fantastic job, so unless someone lifted it, there was no way anyone would realize who was underneath.
I was nervous. Obviously.
This was my first wedding as the bride, and there was enough nervous energy in the air to make even breathing feel suspicious.
Not to mention that I was about to walk into a cathedral filled with some of the most dangerous people in this world while pretending to be a bride who was perfectly happy about marrying one of its greatest monsters.
The bells struck.
The massive doors to the cathedral opened, and soldiers announced my arrival.
The cathedral was unnaturally silent.
Rows upon rows of nobles stood perfectly still, wearing vacant smiles while their eyes glowed faintly under the influence of dark magic. Nobody spoke unless they were prompted to, and that included King Alaric Eryndor.
My father.
At the far end of the cathedral stood the man I could only assume was the groom. Behind him stood the Veiled Thorn's leader, Silas, alongside Vivienne, exactly as Lysenne had described them.
Oh. Vivienne. The annoying voice lady.
Wonderful. Just what I needed.
And they were guarding the machine.
I slowly walked down the aisle, doing my best to keep my expression neutral while every instinct in my body screamed that this was a terrible idea.
Well... this was definitely not how I had imagined crashing a royal wedding.
The bridal gown felt as though someone had decided to sew an entire building onto my body. Every step was an effort, and if I survived this, I was seriously considering burning the dress.
When I finally reached the altar, Malakor took my hand.
Eww. Up close, he looked even worse.
He looked as though a villain had made love to a mushed brinjal and somehow decided that was a suitable appearance for a king.
I'm so sorry, Rhaevan.
I forced myself to look toward the officiant who was supposed to conduct the ceremony.
He stood beside the enormous device with his back turned toward us. His robes were ridiculously long, almost dragging across the floor, and something about the way he stood looked strangely familiar.
I narrowed my eyes.
Wait. Was that...?
"Mmhmm." Malakor cleared his throat impatiently.
"Officiant. Begin the vows."
The man finally turned around.
Oh. My. God.
Lysenne and Lucien, you absolute geniuses.
I'd told them to somehow get Benedict closer to the machine so he could help me figure out its cores and conduits. Instead, these two had come up with a foolproof plan to get him close to me without raising the enemy's suspicions.
Benedict stood there looking remarkably professional, as though he had spent his entire life conducting royal weddings instead of being a retired arch-scholar who had apparently decided that impersonating an officiant was an appropriate use of his time.
He cleared his throat and looked at the gathered crowd.
"Dear... brave King of Varynthar, Malakor Claude Dravenor, Your Highness, respected Princess of the Kingdom of Eryndor, Lysenne Alaric Eryndor, esteemed nobles and ladies, you two-"
He turned toward Silas and Vivienne.
"-extremely important people, and, of course, the enormous machine."
I bit the inside of my cheek.
Was this man buying time? He absolutely was.
"We are gathered here today to bless the union of two royals and to witness the joining of their noble destinies, their responsibilities, their kingdoms, and..." He glanced toward the machine. "...their rather impressive magical infrastructure."
I nearly choked.
Malakor's eyebrow twitched.
Benedict continued as though nothing had happened.
"Marriage is, as we all know, a sacred union. It requires trust, commitment, cooperation, and, most importantly, a strong connection between two individuals."
He paused before deliberately glancing toward me.
"Much like the proper functioning of a magical system requires a stable connection between its core and its surrounding conduits."
My eyes flicked toward him.
There it was.
A clue. My attention shifted to the machine.
Benedict continued speaking in the same solemn tone.
"Every component must remain properly connected for the system to function. Even the smallest interruption in the correct place can affect the entire structure."
My heart began to race.
I looked at the Heartforge Core, then at the network of conduits surrounding it.
Aha.
You clever old man.
So this machine followed the same basic structure as the previous ones designed by these dark mages.
The Heartforge was the central power source, while the surrounding mechanisms drew their energy from it through the connected conduits.
If I could detach one of those connections...
I might be able to disrupt the entire system.
Benedict cleared his throat and continued.
"And now, before we proceed with the vows, it is customary to reflect upon the importance of ensuring that every connection is properly examined before the union is made permanent."
I almost smiled.
He was practically handing me instructions.
I just needed to find the right wire.
I pretended to wipe away a nervous tear as I discreetly let thin threads of magic snake beneath the altar.
The Heartforge sat at the centre of the machine, encased within an elaborate Solithium frame that made it look almost like some sacred relic. The Veiled Thorn siblings stood on either side of it like devoted priests worshipping their greatest achievement.
A faint creak came from beneath the altar.
One of the crystals shifted slightly.
Malakor immediately looked toward the machine. Benedict stopped whatever nonsense he had been enthusiastically spewing and turned in its direction.
Silas frowned and approached the machine.
I immediately withdrew my magic.
"Fear not," Vivienne said with a smile. "The Heartforge is merely resonating."
Her smile widened.
"The ascension has begun."
Exactly what I wanted them to believe.
Benedict cleared his throat.
"Yes. Quite. Very... reassuring."
He straightened his ridiculous robes.
"Now, where were we? Ah, yes. We shall continue. Everyone, please bow your heads for a prayer to the Almighty."
The nobles obediently lowered their heads.
So did Malakor.
So did the Veiled Thorn, although Vivienne looked mildly annoyed at having to participate.
I lowered my head as well, keeping my expression as innocent as possible.
Then, beneath the altar, I quietly muttered another spell.
My magic slipped through the machinery.
Tiny cracks spread across one of the conduit channels.
The machine groaned.
This time, the sound was louder.
The Veiled Thorn siblings immediately looked toward it.
Silas narrowed his eyes.
Vivienne's expression changed.
"...Odd."
She slowly looked around the cathedral, suspicion creeping into her eyes.
Silas moved toward the machine again.
I kept my head bowed, maintaining the perfect posture of an innocent bride who was apparently terrified of her wedding.
Don't look at me. I'm just getting married against my will. Nothing suspicious happening here.
I carefully continued manipulating the machine.
Silas stepped closer to the Heartforge.
Benedict immediately cleared his throat.
"Excuse me."
Silas stopped.
Benedict adjusted his robes with exaggerated dignity.
"You are interfering with my valuable speech."
Silas stared at him.
Benedict gestured vaguely toward the machine.
"There is already far too much noise coming from that thing. Could you please stop fiddling with it while I am speaking? We are, after all, in the presence of the wedding of a very powerful king."
Silas's expression darkened.
He looked as though he was seriously considering blasting Benedict into the nearest wall.
Then Malakor glanced at him.
Just once.
Silas clenched his jaw but stepped back.
Benedict smiled politely.
"Thank you."
He turned back toward the crowd and continued as though absolutely nothing had happened.
I almost smiled.
That old man was magnificent.
I could almost feel the Core beginning to detach from the machine as I worked my way through the conduits. I carefully redirected my magic, searching for the last connection holding it in place.
One final burst.
Almost there.
I was just about to give Benedict a tiny nod when he caught my eye and smiled before smoothly resuming his speech.
And then-
"Stop!"
Everyone turned toward the entrance.
Two men stood in the doorway.
One of them was the general I recognized from before, the unfortunate man who had been under my love spell, looking both outrageous and delirious. The other, judging by his ceremonial robes and the sheer horror on his face, was presumably the original officiant.
Both were dishevelled.
Both looked absolutely furious.
And both were staring directly at Malakor with a mixture of sheer terror and outrage.
The officiant pointed toward me.
"She's not the princess!"
I was distracted by the new commotion and my magic accidentally struck the wrong wire, and a heavy noise came from the device.
CRAAACK!
The entire machine shuddered.
THUD!
Something inside the altar gave way.
BOOM!
The Heartforge Core tore violently free from its restraints.
I stared at the exploding machine.
Crap. I really should have kept my focus steady.