Twisted Reign | 𝔐𝔞𝔤𝔫𝔦𝔣𝔦𝔠𝔢𝔫𝔱 ℭ𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔲𝔯𝔶

𝟐𝟔

|Victoria's POV|

-Two Weeks Later-

Hümaşah Sultan and I headed to the Tower of Justice, where we found Halime Sultan and Dilruba Sultan already waiting.

Today was incredibly important, especially for Mustafa, and all I wanted was to support him because he had the potential to carve his name in history in golden letters.

Without exchanging any words, we stood in our places, eagerly anticipating Mustafa's appearance in silence.. I knew Hümaşah and I were happy about what Mustafa was about to do, but I was certain the others were very angry.

⟨Destur! Sultan Mustafa Khan Hazretleri⟩

I placed my hands over my heart, feeling a wave of both excitement and anxiety.. The massive doors swung open, and Mustafa entered, walking confidently toward his throne.. He sat down and gestured for everyone to straighten up after bowing.

Silence filled the room, and I could see the curiosity in their eyes ...Mustafa took a deep breath, then stood up, taking a few steps forward and placing his hands behind his back.

"My subjects, just as you spread rumors, also spread what I will say and decide here" he declared, his voice booming and capturing everyone's attention.

"Look around you... This empire belongs to me alone, forged by blood and sacrifice.. Your loyalty must rest with the one who owns the throne... And... there is no word above my word except for the word of the Lord... not a word from those you choose to serve" Each word resonated, perhaps only in our ears, but it was happening.. I was sure hearts were trembling; this was not what they expected to see or hear.

He paused for a moment, then added as he moved slightly "Those who challenge my authority will find themselves crushed beneath the weight of their treachery"

He raised a finger "Stand with me, and we shall carve our names into history, united as one... Defy me, and you will feel the wrath of a Sultan who knows no mercy" He stood tall once more before his throne and continued "Remember this day, for it marks the dawn of a new era... my era! I will not share my power with anyone"

⟨Long live Sultan Mustafa⟩ someone shouted loudly, and soon everyone was doing the same.

I felt immense pride in Mustafa's transformation.. Now they would fear him, take him seriously, and know that their ruler was Mustafa, not those trying to steal his position.

As I turned to leave, Halime Sultan's voice stopped me "You must be happy now that you've played with his mind and turned him against those who helped him"

"I haven't done anything wrong" I replied calmly, looking her in the eye "Mustafa deserves to rule his empire with his own mind"

"You will regret this very much, Victoria" she said, her eyes looking terrifying "You've placed yourself in a very bad position"

"Are you threatening her in front of me, Halime?" Hümaşah Sultan raised an eyebrow, glaring at Halime "Know your place before you think of doing anything"

I smiled slightly, then we left the Tower of Justice... Hümaşah Sultan headed to her room, while I made my way to Mustafa's chamber.

I wanted to be the first to greet him and congratulate him on this significant step.. But before I reached there, I encountered Sedef Hatun, who had her servant with her carrying little Hümaşah.. She must have just returned from the garden.

"Sultana" she bowed before me "How are you?"

"I'm well, and you?" I replied with a smile "How is the baby?"

"I'm fine, she is fine too... She's growing so fast each week" she smiled as she looked at her daughter.

Sedef was truly a composed and kind girl.. She was grateful to have a daughter to care for and seemed to enjoy it without ever getting involved in problems.. She even congratulated me on my marriage to Mustafa and said her only wish was to stay with her daughter happily for the rest of her life.

"She's very beautiful" I smiled and leaned closer to the servant, kissing the baby on her forehead "She will grow to be a beautiful Sultana"

"Inshallah" Sedef replied, then added "I don't want to delay you, so I'll go breastfeed Hümaşah; she must be hungry"

"Of course" I responded, then continued my way to Mustafa's room.

I occupied myself by looking through Mustafa's documents and works until the door opened, and he appeared.

"Here comes the Sultan of the world" I stood with a smile "What happened there was iconic!"

"It better be, as I spent an hour rehearsing what I was going to say" he joked, then took off his crown and placed it on the bed before coming closer to hug me "Um, you smell really nice"

I smiled, wrapping my arms around him "Did you miss me? Because I missed you" I teased, stepping back to unbutton his shirt.

"If that's the kind of missing you're talking about, then I really missed you a lot" he said in an attractive way but laughed at the end, pulling me close to his waist.

"Oh" My eyes widened "So you didn't miss me?" I stopped unbuttoning his shirt "That was harsh, Mustafa"

"I was just joking" he said, planting a kiss on my lips "I miss your voice and laughter every minute"

"Well" I placed my hands on his shoulders, looking directly into his eyes "After lunch today, I'll tell you my conditions.. I know what I want"

"That sounds interesting" he said in a calm tone, then leaned in to kiss my lips again.

After some playful moments and lunch, we decided to sit on the balcony.

"So, tell me your conditions, Victoria Sultan" he said, playing with my hair.

"Okay..." I adjusted my seating, looking straight into his eyes "Actually, there aren't many"

"You can ask for anything, and I'll fulfill it" he said, intertwining his fingers with mine and placing a kiss on my hand.

"I don't want you to have a harem anymore" I said quickly, as that sentence had been circling in my mind for a long time.

"But I already have no one but you" he said, looking confused as I made it sound like he was seeing other girls.

"I know that, but I don't want there to be anything called a harem here, no concubines or anything like that" I looked at his hand, sliding my fingers over it "You can send them away or assign the girls who excel in sewing, embroidery, and cooking to other tasks in the palace, but there will be no concubines in Sultan Mustafa's palace... It's just me and only me"

"Listen, Victoria" he pulled me closer until our faces were almost touching "My eyes see no one but you, so I'll leave that task for you..You can do whatever you want with the harem"

I breathed a sigh of relief, feeling more than happy.. I planted a long kiss on his lips and then looked back into his eyes.

"What are the other conditions?" he raised his hand and began tucking my hair behind my ear.

"Nothing else" I smiled slightly "That's it"

"You're crazy; out of all that you could ask for, you chose just this?" He laughed and placed his hand on my waist, pulling me into a strong hug "I love you"

"I love you too" I said, laughing as I placed my hand over his chest.