The Castle of the Central (Arch-) Amirate of Deimos
Valtazar’s Office, Arch-Amir of Saironar
Valtazar
How dare he touch her?
I barely hold myself back from shifting into my true form. Flames spark across my skin, and my fangs elongate. It takes every ounce of willpower not to lunge at Darius, who stands behind me.
But… HOW DARE HE TOUCH HER!?
“I thought you’d long outgrown your teenage phase,” I hear his mocking voice, “but now I see you’ve got less self-control than a kid. I didn’t push you hard enough back then. Looks like we’ll need a refresher.”
To my surprise, though, it’s this familiar tone from my childhood that snaps me out of it and calms the inner demon raging inside me.
I turn around and meet the taunting smirk of my mentor. He’s even grinning!
I take two steps forward, closing the distance between us.
“Never touch her again,” I say, staring into the familiar gray eyes of the demon I’d trust with my life—and my son’s. The demon who became a father to me and helped me reclaim the throne of the Arch-Amirate. But no one gets to touch my wife!
“Never, Darius,” I repeat, holding his gaze until he looks away first.
“Of course, Arch-Amir. I apologize for touching the Arch-Amira without her permission and causing her… discomfort. I’ll also apologize to her in person.”
Was she really uncomfortable when Darius touched her?
I was so consumed by rage that I couldn’t even process the situation. All my self-control went into holding back and not making a mess of things again.
All I can remember are her blue eyes, etched into my memory. What was in those eyes? Fear? Hatred? Irritation? Maybe even a tiny spark of joy?
I turn away and sink into my chair. Darius silently takes the seat across from me.
“How is she?” The question slips out, even though this isn’t the conversation I called Darius here for.
My question catches my mentor off guard, but he doesn’t test my patience further and answers right away.
“Hmm… She takes walks in the morning, we train with swords in the afternoon, and in the evening, we focus on studying Deimosian and reading the laws. By the way, she’s a quick learner. She’s already pretty decent at conversational topics. And everything seems fine. At first glance, anyway.”
“And at second glance?” I ask, already knowing I probably won’t like the answer.
“At second glance—she’s unhappy. No matter how hard she tries to hide it.”
“Do you think she… hates me?”
“Worse,” Darius snorts. “She doesn’t trust you. And you’re going to have to work hard to earn that trust back. Though, the move with the letters wasn’t a bad start. I’m right in assuming those were the letters, aren’t I?”
“Yeah,” I reply curtly, staring darkly ahead.
During our last meeting, Darius mentioned that Emilia had been asking about her aunt and another girl. Tamila, I think. I thought delivering letters from them would be a good idea. Maybe it could help… smooth things over and give us a chance to talk.
But everything went sideways the moment I saw Darius holding her hand. Talking was the last thing on my mind. I barely kept myself from losing it in front of her.
I’ve had two whole months to analyze recent events and look at everything from a different angle. Without a doubt, it still infuriates me that she was so devoted to saving “another” demon and confessing her love to him. On the other hand, that demon was me, and the situation became a stalemate because of my initial deception.
Darius also got me thinking about my behavior and the situation as a whole.
He couldn’t understand my harsh actions at the wedding. He couldn’t fathom why I didn’t meet my future wife halfway on the rocky path, as is customary.
But my mentor knows me well enough not to interfere or push me into a conversation right away.
A couple of weeks later, when I started to realize I’d acted rashly, he showed up to report on the situation in the forty-eighth amirate. As if I believed that was his real reason. Still, I needed someone to talk to.
Azamat and I had fallen out even before the wedding. He wasn’t as cautious as Darius and dared to contradict me, refusing to be a witness and trying to dissuade me from rushing into the marriage. Now I see he was right. But back then, Emilia’s last words burned so badly, and I was so desperate to throw it in her face who she’d really confessed her love to and offered to overthrow “that idiot Valtazar,” that I didn’t want to wait a single day. I just ordered Azamat to return to the first amirate and deal with his own fiancée.
So, I told Darius almost everything without hesitation, including Emilia’s “betrayal” in falling for another demon.
The first thing that sobered me up was the familiar smirk in my mentor’s eyes and hearing my own thoughts spoken aloud for the first time.
And Darius’s question finally helped me sort myself out: “What would you have done if you found out that Emilia wasn’t really Emilia? Not the Nimerian princess, but some completely different girl? But this girl was the one by your side all this time, saving your life more than once? By the way, it’s strange the mages didn’t do that. Back in the day, it was a common practice to use doubles to maintain the anonymity of noble families, especially during travel.”
What would I have done? I would’ve done everything in my power to bypass the terms of the blood contract and marry the woman I wanted. I wouldn’t have cared if she was a princess or a common servant.
That realization clarified a lot for me. But is it too late?
“Is this why you called me here? So I could admire your brooding face?” Darius asks, slipping back into his condescending, mocking tone.
How have I not killed him yet?
He’s probably the only demon I allow such insolence from. Though, knowing me inside and out, he understands when he can joke like this and when he can’t. So when I snap back to the present and look at him seriously, he immediately drops the smirk.
“In a week, there’ll be a general assembly of all the amirates at the central castle. The Amirs are invited along with their wives. The assembly wants to meet the new Amiras.”
“I take it Zarex is stirring the pot again?”
“If it’s him, he’s not acting directly. It started with the amirates who have daughters of marriageable age: the eighth, tenth, thirteenth, twentieth… I won’t list them all. Obviously, it’ll be harder for them to manipulate through their daughters once everyone realizes that mage women are also compatible with demons, and their little princesses aren’t such a unique commodity anymore. But I think the discontent was sparked by his influence. All these ridiculous rumors about the mage women didn’t come out of nowhere. Someone’s definitely behind it.”
“And you want to gather them all in one place, at a time when we don’t know who orchestrated the attack on the brides? And who will likely try again when they’re all here? I’ve got to admit, it’s not a bad plan. But can you ensure the safety of all the mage women?”
“I’ve warned the Amirs. Everyone will be on high alert. And Darius… you’re personally responsible for Emilia’s safety.”
“Got it. I’ve already figured that out. Guard her, but under no circumstances touch her,” he says with an ironic grin.
“You’ve got that right,” I reply, and I’m not joking.