Tales of a Seductress

TOAD – Chapter 83

“What are your thoughts about this?” Oberon asked, his fingers crossed in front of his lips as he watched me carefully.

“You wish for my opinion now?” I asked with amusement.

“If we continue, within two days, you will be the queen of this realm,” Oberon spoke. “You should have an opinion.”

The woman who had been called Isabelle let out a snort. She had an axe to grind. The other man seemed to have a more pitying look. I preferred the open disdain. I had no problem being disdained, but I wouldn’t tolerate being pitied.

“Fine,” I responded, straightening my dress casually. “If you think Lord Tigon is just going to give up on usurping the throne because you adhere to his demands, you’re a damned fool. If anything, he will become bolder if he gets his way. He’s just looking for an opportunity, and you can either force his hand now when he’s just cocky enough to think he might succeed, or you can wait until he gathers even more power, and at that point, the fate of the realm will have already been decided without your input.”

“Lord Tigon is loyal to the realm. He won’t betray the demon people.” The man spoke in a voice like he was speaking to a foolish girl who didn’t know any better. “Any opportunity he took would only be in the best interests of the realm.”

“It sounds like you’re giving up already.” I chuckled. “Are you even on King Oberon’s side?”

“You dare…”

“Lord Pait, every man thinks he alone has the knowledge and ability to work in the interest of the realm. In my experience, most can’t see much farther than their third leg.”

“Third leg?” He made a face. “Is this a human idea? Even demons that come from four-legged monsters have two legs.”

“Oh, it has nothing to do with demons,” I smirked. “I find all men think with their third leg. They also are their most embarrassing when they try to walk with it.”

He still looked for a second, but as realization struck his mind his mouth opened and his face started to turn red. Before he could speak his outrate, the woman stepped forward. She was wearing a slightly hidden smirk. She had seemed to understand my colloquialisms without needing them explained to her.

“It isn’t just Lord Tigon that is the problem. There is also the human army. Rather, it is only because of the human army demanding your arrest that Lord Tigon can move at all.” Although she was initially hostile, my words toward Pait had seemingly eased her opinion of me and she spoke with just a bit more respect.

Was this the so-called bonding between women when versing the opposite sex? I didn’t feel much from the support. I had already used to being on my own. When women weren’t being in direct opposition to me, they were hardly the supportive types. Although, I did seem to recall a few good ones from my time in Nidia. Perhaps, I shouldn’t write off female friendship so quickly.

“So, the humans are after me,” I spoke self-reflectively. “This has to be Devon.”

“Prince Devon?” King Oberon asked. “The man who was speaking with Lord Tigon?”

“Who else?” I grimaced. “You said you already know our history. Well, I wouldn’t put it past him to try to get his clutches on me, and with the help of Mi- ah… Hero Bryson, he might be able to raise an army.”

Pait responded. “This Prince Devon seems to have a personal grudge against you. Perhaps the young miss could explain the situation so we can better prepare?”

“There isn’t much to explain.” I shrugged. “Some men don’t take rejection well.”

“Ridiculous.” He growled. “There had to be something you did that prompted such extreme actions.”

I raised a lip. “I’m sure in your world, all women are just asking for it. My crime is being a woman in a world that hates women.”

“You…” He sputtered, his face turning red again.

“Leave it.” Isabelle unexpectedly spoke up in my defense.

“What is this?” He shot her a look of disbelief.

“Men often chase beauty like dogs. I have an impression of this human Devon. He watched Aria the entire festival. His expression was one of possessiveness as if he had lost a toy.” She explained, giving an apologetic nod to Oberon.

Oberon gave a dismissive snort. I glanced at Isabelle’s way in surprise. I had mostly been antagonizing Lord Pait for dun. I would have even thrown words like patriarchy had I thought he would have understood and been annoyed by them. The reality was that I had killed Devon’s entire family and sent his kingdom into ruin. It had all been well deserved, but I understood his unwillingness to let bygones be bygones. King Oberon likely already knew this, as did the rest of them, so I didn’t care about omitting it. That said, I hadn’t expected my lukewarm answers would have somehow moved Isabelle in switching her position on me. We shared a quick look, while Pait continued to sputter.

“Th-then, what about Bryson?” Lord Pait managed to recover his voice a bit. “I seem to recall you had some kind of relationship with that Bryson fellow. To think, an elf would join forces with the humans. Even though elves aren’t considered demons, we allowed them to travel through the demon realm unmolested for years, and this is the appreciation we get.”

“Bryson is an elvish outcast…” I responded flatly. “And he’s not someone you need to worry about. He’s just a fool with a pointy sword.”

“As most men are.” Isabelle declared, the pair of us sharing a nod.

King Oberon cleared his throat while his Truthsayer looked embarrassed and Pait was looking between the pair of us as if trying to get a feel for the sudden shift in allegiances.

“Either way… we still must discuss our options. If we give her over…”

“Handing over the woman in line to be queen? It would be the same as throwing the demon realm’s respect away. If we hand the humans Aria, we might as well hand them everything.” It wasn’t Isabelle, but the Truthsayer who spoke up.

As soon as he spoke, he lowered his head and stepped back, looking a bit embarrassed. I thought I had not managed to have any effect on him, but perhaps my charm had rubbed off on him a bit more than I had realized. I smirked until I noticed King Oberon frowning, and then I quickly hid it.

“Even so…” Pait stubbornly held on even as he realized he was not being backed up by anyone anymore.

“There is another thing you must consider,” I spoke up. “The cost of betraying me.”

Isabelle blinked while Pait narrowed his eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

I gave a deliberate shrug. “Why would I march willingly to my death? If you choose to make me an enemy, I would use all of my power to resist.”

“Is that a threat?”

“It’s common sense.” I laughed. “You forget that I’m human. I have no attachment to this realm. This marriage and the promise of being queen and mother to the future prince is the promise that has tied my interests with yours. If you throw away my reasons for playing nice, you should be prepared for the consequences.”

“You dare make such bold threats, and in the center of…”

“The wedding will go on.” A voice broke through the argument.

“My King… the humans…”

“I will worry about the human threat and Lord Tigon.” He waved his hand. “This is my decision. If you wish to help, get as much security as possible to ensure the wedding continues without a hitch.”

“Eh… As my King commands.” Pait bowed.

“My king.” Isabelle also curtsied.

“Now, leave my presence. There is much to get done in two days.”

“Yes.”

“Of course.”

The two of them each glanced at me. Pait gave a hard look while Isabelle gave a friendly one, which was nearly the exact opposite of what they had shown when I had first come. It was terrifying how quickly allegiances could shift with a few words. Of course, I could have probably won Pait over had I wanted to, but that wasn’t my goal. In an argument such as this, there needed to be one enemy. The flaws need to be pointed out, or they’d be allowed to fester in the back of people’s minds, and that’s how you truly got betrayal.

“They will do as they are asked,” Oberon stated as he noticed me staring at them.

“I know… I made sure of it.” I answered lightly.

“Perhaps, you will make a proper Queen one day.” Oberon continued to watch me.

“Was there any doubt?” I finally turned away from them and gave him a coy look.

“It eases my mind, knowing that you are competent.” Oberon suddenly sounded years older as he slouched in the chair.

“May I ask what that was about? You set up that display for me.”

His lip twitched slightly. “Perhaps, you are too competent sometimes.”

“Then, let me think about it. You wanted me to encounter the pair of them because you want me to lean on them in the future. If I’m leaning on them, it’s because I won’t be able to lean on you. That means, after our wedding, you’re going to be indisposed for a time. Does that sound about right?”

“Master, I didn’t tell her anything!” The Truthsayer spoke up in shock.

“You just did.” I laughed, causing him to cock his head.

Oberon rubbed his forehead while shaking it. “I’ve already said…”

“Yes, you said you’d explain it once we’re married.” I waved my hand. “I eagerly await, but that doesn’t mean I won’t make guesses. Should I try another? I would say that you want a war. Is that your plan? Once you wed me, you plan to go out and bring down the rebellion, finally reuniting the kingdom? At the very least, it’s no accident. You plan to deal with the humans, the demon decenters, and our wedding in a single strike. Is it related to some kind of special skill? Perhaps, you unlock some kind of power when you get married, or when you impregnant a woman?”

“Does such a strange skill exist?” The Truthsayer asked, an amazed look on his face.

I shrugged. “There are stranger skills out there. I have a few of them.”

“You’re correct,” Oberon stated, causing the Truthsayer to shoot him a stunned look this time. “I plan to unlock my powers after our wedding and take care of the rebellion and the human threat in a single swipe. In a single move, I will tell the world that the demon world can no longer be messed with. They will be made examples.”

I nodded my head. “I understand.”

“Will you help me achieve my goal, now that you know?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” I smirked, but my smile faltered slightly. “There is one issue though. I wasn’t expecting you to pull me out a bit early.”

“You mean, the fact that you’re level 89.” He stood up from his throne finally, walking up to me.

I winced. “I still have a day. If you just send me more men, I can…”

He put his hand gently on my shoulder. “You’ve already done enough. In truth, even if you were level 80 it should be enough. In all likelihood, the very act of us… together… will allow you to reach level 90.”

I looked up at him. He was a muscular man, a true devil with red skin and horns. I hadn’t thought of it much, but the devil at the bottom of the labyrinth I had once claimed as my toy shared similarities with this man. He was more robust and more handsome, but it was almost like I had always been heading for this moment.

His eyes had always been cold, but this time they looked calm and powerful. Soon, he would be my husband, and I would be the mother of his child. My body shook, and for just the briefest moment I felt a true emotion. I felt excitement, fear, and most unexpectedly, hope. This was going to happen. We were to marry, and the world would never be the same.