“Why are you just telling me about this?” Elena scolded the girl. Mona was still recovering from the bruises inflicted by the whips and as a result, her family skipped the coronation.Elena was cleaning her wounds when Mona told her about Cedric's offer. “Because I already declined, mother. I didn't think there was a need to mention it,” Mona responded with gritted teeth. Elena flicked her forehead, “You stupid, stupid child! What were you thinking? Someone offered you the opportunity to be an empress and you declined? Were you drunk?” “Why are you scolding me? You were the one who told me I could win back Styles,” Mona whined. Elena smacked her temple with a groan. When would the girl ever be smart? Of course, she said that, but that was only because she felt that Styles was doing this to make them grovel. From what they could see, it was obvious the Prince was really interested in the lowly maid. He had to go as far as ordering his guards to whip her daughter!This couldn't be

“Why do you take this so lightly? It was an assassination attempt. They are not going to stop until you are ten feet under,” Ivory complained.Since the news about the poison arrow reached her, she had been terrified and unsettled. She didn't want her husband dying as a result of any power tussle. They were just newlyweds. She couldn't afford to lose him yet. Styles understood her plight but he didn't know how to explain to her that it was worth worrying about.He had everything under control and in no time, they would catch the intruder. “Honey, you need to calm down,” he pleaded but she didn't want to hear it. Nothing of what was happening was safe. It proved to be dangerous!“Nothing will happen to me, I promise,” he assured her.“How do you know that? Have you caught the assassin? Do you know if they have accomplices? Are you immune to poison? How exactly are you safe?” Ivory asked. It warmed his heart to see her so worried about him. Wrapping his arms around her, he assured h

The more Malk thought of this place, the crazier it became. He was supposed to unalive the question and believe that the cunning Lord Cedric would save him.Was it too late to back down? Probably. He picked up the operating knife, eying his colleagues suspiciously. They didn't seem to take notice of anything as they focused on her daily check-up. Now was a perfect time to strike. So without hesitation, he plunged the knife into her stomach and the doctors burst out a yelp. He pulled it out, attempting to stab her again but this time, he was pulled back by soldiers. Malk prayed to the heavens that he hadn't made a mistake trusting Cedric even though everything in him told him that he did. The doctors sprang into action immediately. They couldn't afford to lose the queen now that she was recovering. The strike was deep so the bleeding was a bit harder to control.Meanwhile, the guards led Malk to the prison, waiting for the King to arrive. Styles didn't waste a minute when he was

A few days went by and Styles didn't leave Ivory's side. Ragi made sure to tighten security and all pieces of equipment and doctors were double-checked. They couldn't take the risk of another accident. The Empress was slipping in and out of unconsciousness but it was better than being dead and Styles was happy with the development. Cedric didn't like this one bit. He went around the Elders's houses trying to convince them that Styles was neglecting the affairs of the kingdom because of a woman.The visits were unsuccessful, of course. Unlike he hoped, the Lords understood the feeling of loss and decided to support the Emperor until his wife was back in good health. They also reminded him that Ragi was filling in for him even though there were no pressing matters in the empire. Cedric’s annoyance only grew. It seemed like his nephew had the entire council of Lords wrapped around his fingers. So he decided to pay the Empress a visit. As expected Ragi was the first person he came a

Cedric and Mona froze at the sight of Ragi. Mona was visibly consumed by fear. Was he here to arrest them? Cedric quickly regained his composure. Ragi was the last person they needed to mess with at this point.“Did you want something?” Cedric asked. “Want something? No, nothing at all,” Ragi shrugged. “Then why are you here?” Cedric asked him. “To inform you that the assassin has been caught and your presence is required at the council meeting,” Ragi answered in a monotone, betraying nothing of his thoughts.Mona swallowed thickly, forcing herself to remain calm. The situation couldn't be as bad as Ragi was making it seem. The man was probably trying to scare them.“And why did they send you to deliver this message? They usually don't care if I attend a meeting or not,” Cedric’s suspicion echoed in his voice but Ragi didn't seem bothered by it at all.“Because you must attend this meeting. They sent me to drag you to the palace if I have to, which is why I am here.”Cedric and Mo