Alcaeus Indrath

Queen

Priscilla Glayder

I was going up alone against the first Asuras that we've met since when the artifacts were bestowed upon our ancestors.

My husband is no longer here. 

The crown on my head, the jewelry on my neck, the lavish lime green dress - all of them meant nothing.

"What's your name?" I flinched when Lord Alcaeus asked me a question.

"I-It's...P-P-Priscilla...Your Highness, Priscilla Glayder" a trembling voice escaped my lips.

"You don't have to be so afraid, I'm not going to hurt you." 

I thought I was always a good judge of character. Spotting people's intentions when Blaine couldn't.

Whether it was the fear, that I don't know.

But I couldn't discern anything about the man in front of me.

He gave me a few seconds to catch my breath, which I did.

"You were at the scene. You saw and heard everything. You knew exactly what was going on. I have a question for you, what were you doing during that?" 

"I was standing still, Your Highness..."

"Standing still, exactly." He sighed. "You should understand why I'm not going to apologize for what I did."

I meekly nodded my head. 

"The reason I'm not going to hurt you isn't because you are innocent." I held back a flinch. "It's because if your species loses both their leaders at once, they will rebel against the new council. The dwarf's case was special, like I told you earlier, they were traitors."

"I-I understand, Your Highness."

He wasn't raising his voice, but the pressure was still there.

This was an Asura...

Even their words were heavier than our strongest attacks.

"You're not crying, Priscilla."

Wh-What?

Huh? He's right...

I touched my cheek and sure enough, it was dry.

I just lost my husband...the man I had two kids with...

So, why am I not crying?

"I'm not going to ask about your past, as it doesn't matter to me. What matters to me, is that you can handle being the sole representative of the Humans, and not get pushed around in the council."

His words were ringing in my ears.

"You are confused right now, and sad. But not distraught. Which tells me you can handle it. But do you  think you can handle it, Priscilla?"

I was a prodigy since birth. 

Having above average talent in mana, I was pampered with beast cores and sent to the best Academy on the continent.

I rose to dark yellow quicker than everyone else. 

But once I was old enough, I was sold like livestock.

Apparently, everything I had worked hard to achieve as a mage were just qualifications to be put on my resume.

I was selected as the future King's wife, and there it ended. 

My life as Priscilla had ended.

I endured it, thinking I had no choice. 

After all, I did live a Queen's life.

But...

I was stronger, much stronger than my husband. And smarter too.

He couldn't even break out of the red stage, and made decisions that were questionable by all standards.

Yet, I was subject to his abuse. Everywhere we went, he made an effort to show he was superior to me.

He regularly participated in infidelity. The maids and guards of the castle knew, and looked at me with pity. 

His insecurities became my vale of tears.

With time, people stopped looking at me altogether.

And even when they did, they eyed my body like meat on a stick.

When Kathyln was born, I swore she would never have to live the same life I did. She was going to have a chance to become a strong woman. The strongest and most powerful woman in Dicathen.

I was going to give her that chance.

I am the Queen, after all.

Even if its just a title...

Right now, Lord Alcaeus is giving me the chance to become an actual Queen.

To take decisions, not influence them.

Why should I spend my time mourning over a man I didn't even love?

Yes, my children lost their father. But they will learn to live without him. And in doing so, they will grow to become better than he ever was.

I stood up from my seat and bowed to him, deeply.

There was no longer any confusion on my face. My expression was, like my heart, full of resolve.

"Thank you for sparing me and my children. There was nothing wrong for what you did, and I admire you for it. I would be glad to sit on the council as the human representative." Standing back up, I looked him in the eye.

Then I noticed that I couldn't.

No matter how much confidence I built up, I could never stare into his eyes as an equal.

So I looked at his chin while talking.

"I hope I don't disappoint you, Lord Alcaeus."

With an approving nod, he dismissed me. 

I wasn't mad about the lack of acknowledgement.

I was too busy thinking...

...about how I'm going to prove myself a better ruler than Blaine ever was.

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(A/N: I'm still uploading chapters in advance on Patreon, but only until next month. Someone told me this isn't legal, so I'm just scratching the entire idea. Which also means that my upload schedule will deteriorate.)