Chapter Thirty-Two – Kalon
Master of Illusion
“You have to know that Mother hasn’t given up on making her my wife, and I’m not sure I have, either.”
Torin’s words whispered in my mind like a curse.
That bastard had never been able to stand losing to me, whether it’d been in the line of succession for the throne or in a simple game of chess.
He’d already stolen my place as the heir, and the only reason he never tried to take over my role in the military was because he was too weak to go to war.
He liked to say it was because the Crown Prince shouldn’t go to war, but everyone knew that was bullshit. After all, that position had been mine when I’d been sent to the front lines of the Great War, and nobody had held such a weak sentiment then.
In fact, they’d told me it was my duty.
I’d known he and his mother were cowards the moment I returned and was informed he was going to be named the new Crown Prince over me.
My father had been lucky to avoid a civil war over that decision.
Despite Eudocia’s lobbying of the nobles in my absence, many of them still backed me as the next Emperor.
Not only was I the descendent of two royal families, but in their eyes, I was a war hero.
I’d fought alongside them and their sons and their armies, and I’d done my best to ensure the bodies of those who fell in battle were returned as quickly as possible.
While I’d been out there risking my life on the battlefield and commanding thousands of soldiers, Torin had been prancing about the capital at balls and banquets.
That was why I had to have Alicia Vermillion for myself.
Getting under the skin of Torin and Eudocia had been my only objective when I’d approached her at the spring ball two months ago.
I knew Torin would have a difficult time dancing with her if I got there first because of his inferiority complex, and nothing brought me more pleasure than pissing them off.
At least that’d been the case before I’d danced with her.
She’d accepted my request despite her strong desire not to, and perhaps that was the moment my cold heart first wavered.
She couldn’t hide her emotions, and her distaste of me had only grown with every fiery word she’d shot my way during our too-short time together.
If she’d feared me then, she hadn’t let it show.
By the time I walked out of that ballroom, I knew I had to make her mine. There was no way I could allow a strong woman like her to fall into the clutches of Eudocia, not knowing how my father favoured Alicia.
And after Ezra Alansia told me Alicia had instructed him to send her a list of eligible bachelors to marry, I knew I had to exploit my father’s weakness and claim her for myself.
Because everyone was right. She was the perfect candidate to be Crown Princess, and when the time came where I had to take back what was rightfully mine, she would be my Crown Princess. Nobody else’s.
Ultimately, though, I’d only ever wanted her as a trophy to lord over my brother and stepmother.
So, when had that changed?
When had she become so important to me that the mere thought of Torin wanting her made me want to rip him limb from limb? Who was she to have so expertly intertwined herself within every facet of my life?
When did the thought of losing her cut me to my very core?
Why did I feel like she was a piece of me I hadn’t known was missing?
Was this love? Was this obsession? Was there a difference between the two?
I didn’t know. I knew I needed her in a way I couldn’t begin to explain, that nobody else would ever invoke such strong feelings within me. It was like a deep-rooted compulsion to keep her close to me, even if it meant locking her away from the rest of the world.
Allie was the only person in this world who could wander into my office on her own whim, interrupt my meetings, and get away with it.
There was nobody else who could talk back to me the way she did—there was nobody who would dare to, yet she did it as easily as breathing.
She was the only one who could calm my rage with a mere touch.
With one touch of her hand, everything ceased to exist except her.
I feared I was coming to rely on her too much. She awoke every protective instinct inside me, yet I was becoming all too accustomed to stepping back and letting her protect me in her own way.
Like she’d done with Torin and Lady Lillia before we set off on the hunt.
I’d never expected Allie to speak to Torin that way—fiancée or not, she wouldn’t hold the position of the second highest woman in the empire until we were officially married, and she knew that. Yet she hadn’t held back.
She’d made her position clear.
He’d lost.
She didn’t seem to care that he’d outright said he wanted her as his wife and so did the Empress. She’d told him where he stood with her in no uncertain terms, but I knew that didn’t mean they’d give up.
In fact, she’d probably just spurred them on.
Which made Lady Lillia’s interest in me problematic. I had no doubt that Torin had noticed, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he and Eudocia roped her into whatever they were currently scheming to get Allie on their side. I needed to avoid that at all costs.
I needed to avoid her.
This Lillia. Whoever the hell she was.
There was something about that woman that had bothered Allie ever since Baroness Kilgard had introduced her to us. No matter what Allie said to me, I wasn’t stupid, nor was I blind.
She’d been shaken at the mere sight of Lady Lillia.
I didn’t believe the story about knowing someone who looked like her. Allie was a terrible liar, and she’d been far too interested in how I felt about Lady Lillia for it to be a fleeting thought of hers.
What was it that upset her so much?
Was it as simple as she said, or did it have to do with her drunken mumblings? At that time, she’d been adamant that I would fall in love with Lillia and leave her, but the very idea of that was reprehensible.
Where had she even gotten that idea? She’d rambled on about a book, but none of it had made sense. I’d written it off as alcohol-induced rambling, but now, it bugged me in a way I couldn’t pinpoint.
Somehow, she knew Lillia de Armand. For some strange reason, she was adamant I would fall in love with that woman and, worse, lead Allie herself to her death.
Why?
How did she know her?
What made her think those things?
And what the hell did a book have to do with it?
The only thing that remotely pleased me about her drunken ramblings was her insistence that Alicia Vermillion would fall in love with me.
The sooner the better, as far as I was concerned.
If she fell in love with me, then perhaps she’d dismiss her ridiculous idea of delaying our marriage.
Was the reason for that—settling in in Stein—even the truth?
Or had she lied? If her insistence that I’d fall for Lillia came from a place of premonition thanks to her ability to wield divine power, I couldn’t deny the possibility that she’d walked into this engagement having already set an end date for it.
What did Allie know that I didn’t?
I rode into the small clearing and dismounted, then grabbed my bow and loaded an arrow, aiming ahead. I pulled back the string and released it, and the arrow whooshed through the air, slamming into the tree trunk a mere half inch above Ezra’s head.
“What the—” He woke with a start and grabbed his head, throwing himself to the side. “What was that for, you bastard?”
“Is that how you speak to your superior?” I put my bow back and glared down at him. “That was only half an inch above your head, you know.”
“You could have woken me up like a normal person.”
“That’s what you get for sleeping on a hunt.”
“Pfft.” Ezra got to his feet and stretched his arms up, yawning. “What did you want to see me here for? I thought you said it was too risky.”
“My head mage has an impenetrable privacy barrier erected. We’re fine here.”
“I could have done that.”
“I told you to come and work for me in Stein.” I shrugged. “You’re the one who refused.”
“Oh, come on. I can’t go anywhere as the heir. Especially not while my father is publicly neutral on House Alansia’s position over who the next Emperor should be.” Ezra rubbed the back of his neck. “You know how tense things are getting amongst the nobles.”
Mm. He wasn’t wrong. Not only had my achievements on the battlefield gained me a great deal of support despite my reputation but so had my position as Grand Duke of Stein.
The changes I’d implemented had already made big differences, and those who supported my succession to the throne were convinced that such political successes only strengthened the argument that I should be heir to the throne.
After all, the position of the Grand Duke was akin to that of a king, and I’d already shown I was a more than capable ruler.
“Is that why those rumours about Allie are going around?” I asked, folding my arms as I leant against a tree.
“Allie?” Ezra raised his eyebrows. “My, aren’t we affectionate, Your Highness?”
“Shut up and answer the question before I take her your hand as a trophy instead of a bearwolf.”
He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Yes. I’m sure you’ve already figured it out, but they started from Marchioness Vermillion. From what I can deduce, it originated with one of the errand boys, but they covered their tracks well.”
“Not well enough if you found out that easily. What purpose does it serve the marchioness to spread such rumours?”
“Nothing but spite. She’s furious that Marquess Vermillion has put his foot down and taken control of some of the household affairs to bring her and Lady Sophia in line, so she’s seeking to discredit Lady Alicia’s work. The nobles supporting Torin have latched onto it.”
“What good does it do them? Her policy has been lauded across the empire as a good thing, so why would his faction seek to accredit it to me? Surely, they can see it only strengthens my side’s position.”