Heir of the Gods

Ch. 5: Disappointments

Cassia kept the medal in a small, clever pocket hidden in the skirts of her gown. A confection of sea-foam gauze, the dress was pleasantly loose and light. 

Bright blue ribbon, starting just under her breasts, wound around her stomach and waist before stopping at her hips, keeping the material pinned to show off her form. The square neck thankfully did not show any cleavage. The sheer sleeves ended just below her elbows, flaring into subtle trumpets, and the skirt just barely touched the ground. 

It was easy to move in and comfortable, but still pretty. Her hair was piled into a heavy braid atop her head because Claudia insisted it showed off the graceful line of her neck, which was highlighted by a light necklace of aquamarines set in silver.

Cassia had inquired who she was supposed to be showing her neck off to. Her lady-in-waiting had not been amused. Drusilla and Antonia had barely said two words to her as the servants had helped her dress this morning. The silence had begun to prickle, and she eventually dismissed them all.

Now she wandered the halls, thinking over her plans. Wondering if they were even remotely feasible. After all, sleeping with her was one thing, teaching her to fight... She wondered if Lord Julianus would think her mad. She herself was almost inclined to.

But her father hadn't given her much of a choice. Not after he'd banned the palace guards from so much as letting her watch them train and had threatened to kill anyone who would be "reckless with her safety". Even now she couldn't stop from rolling her eyes at the sheer absurdity of it all.

All because she refused to step down like the women before her always had.

She was staring blankly at a painting—a grand scene of war—standing in one of the castle's great halls, thinking about the best way to approach the lord.

Should she make it a game? Should she tell him the unflinching truth? That seemed to have worked well enough last night, but she simply didn't know the man well enough. 

What she did know was she had never seen anyone fight like he had. She also knew that he would not care for the risk, considering how he had lingered this morning.

"Princess?"

Cassia looked over to find one of her father's personal servants bowing before her. Her lips pressed into a thin line, dread seeping through her blood. "Yes?"

"The king requests your presence, Your Highness," the servant said, head still bowed.

She suppressed a snort. The king had never requested anything in his life. But she couldn't very well refuse him, request or otherwise, so Cassia gestured for the servant to lead on, even though she was perfectly capable of finding her way around the castle.

The silence pressed into a smothering bubble around them as they strode down sweeping staircases and along wide halls. Nobles and courtiers bowed and ladies curtsied, but Cassia couldn't spare them a glance.

It had barely been an hour since she had seen her father and who she suspected was Malitech leave on horseback, which meant one of two things. Either their hunt had been quickly successful, or something else had brought them back to the castle.

All she could do was pray to the gods that her father wasn't going to force her to consider another marriage proposal. She'd rejected four last month, another three the month before. 

She prayed for the day when the eligible men of the empire would run out.

The dark walls of the castle blurred around her as they walked, the servant not looking at her. Her stomach pulled tighter with every step approaching the large, pale ash doors that often sealed her father away from the rest of the world.