Restraint like that wasn’t common among kings.
"Then allow to prove how genuine I am," I said.
And for the first ti since we t, his expression didn’t look entirely dismissive.
Not convinced.
But not dismissive either.
Which, honestly, felt like a victory in itself.
"How so?" he asked, his voice calm but carrying that subtle weight that made it clear he wasn’t just asking out of curiosity.
"I will win this tournant," I said, plainly, without dressing it up.
For a mont, he didn’t respond. Instead, his gaze locked onto , as if he were peeling apart layer by layer. It wasn’t the kind of look that tried to intimidate. It was worse. It was the look of a man who had spent decades judging people’s worth and had gotten very good at it.
"Winning this tournant doesn’t prove anything," he finally said. Then he continued, his tone asured but firm. "And considering how easily you overpowered my knights back then, it’s only natural to assu that you’re going to win. Frankly, it would be more surprising if you didn’t." He paused, eyes narrowing slightly. "That said, I still haven’t seen everything you’re capable of. But based on how you fought earlier, I’d say you’re more than capable of defeating anyone here."
He took a step closer.
"You showed your opponent a weakness on purpose. You let him believe he had the advantage. And the mont he took the bait, you ended it before he even realized what he’d done wrong." His lips curled just slightly. "Soone who can manage that deserves to be called a fighter of high caliber."
I let out a quiet breath, scratching the back of my head. "You’re giving too much credit, Your Highness. I’m really not that great."
"Bullshit," he snapped. His glare sharpened, cutting straight through the casual deflection. "Now tell sothing important. What exactly are you planning to do in this tournant to prove that you genuinely love my daughter? Winning alone isn’t going to cut it."
Yeah. I figured as much.
From the start, it was obvious he wasn’t the kind of man who’d be satisfied with surface-level results. The way he looked at made it clear he’d already placed in a category of "dangerous but useful," which honestly wasn’t the worst place to be. Still, the expectations hanging over were heavy. The kind that crushed people who tried to bullshit their way through.
"By telling the world my secret," I said.
The words hung there, and it was deliberately vague.
He raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "And what is that supposed to an?"
Fair. I’d walked right into that one.
"I don’t think it’ll make you appreciate as your daughter’s lover," I said, choosing my words carefully, "but you’ll appreciate more as a person. You’ll see my value. My importance. Enough that you’ll think it’s fine if Nia is with soone like ."
For a few seconds, he didn’t move. He didn’t blink. Just stared.
Then his expression darkened slightly. "Are you telling you’re going to reveal the secret that made Nia fall in love with you?"
"One or two things," I said, lifting a shoulder. "So... yeah. Pretty much."
That didn’t seem to help my case.
He looked unconvinced, and honestly, I couldn’t bla him. I could almost see the gears grinding in his head, trying to map out every possible angle, like trying to think of sches, manipulation, and half-baked heroics. Whatever he was imagining, it clearly didn’t line up with whatever I was planning. And at this point, that was kind of the point.
"Well," he said after a mont, his voice cooling. "I suppose I’ll look forward to seeing what you’re planning." He turned slightly, then stopped. "But understand this." His eyes flicked back to , sharp and cold. "If it turns out that you’re manipulating Nia’s feelings for so personal vendetta, you will regret it. I will haunt you to the ends of the world."
There was no exaggeration and no empty threat as well.
Just a promise.
Well, he clearly loved his daughter. That made sense. I an, Titania was his only child. If a man had only one daughter, the center of his life, then of course he’d be fiercely protective.
Honestly, it would’ve been strange if he weren’t.
I nodded. "I’ll keep that in mind."
And with that, he turned and walked away.
Even the way he did it was different. Controlled. Clean. No hesitation, no wasted motion. It wasn’t dramatic, but it didn’t need to be.
That was a king.
The knight, however, was another story. He remained where he was, staring at like he was one bad thought away from drawing steel. I figured he still wanted a piece of , probably felt like his pride hadn’t recovered from last ti. But orders were orders, and whatever command he’d been given was clearly keeping him in check.
At least for now.
Honestly, if he’d asked for a duel right there, I would’ve taken it. Just to see if it would ease whatever was eating at him. Whether that would’ve satisfied him or just made things worse, though, was anyone’s guess.
After a short while, he finally turned around and followed after his king, their figures moving in sync as they disappeared down the corridor.
I stood there for a mont longer, watching their backs until they were out of sight.
Then I headed back to the tournant venue.
The rest of the day passed quickly. I did two more matches, which ans I gained two more wins. It was almost boring now, if I was being honest. My opponents put up a fight, sure, but nothing that really pushed . The crowd cheered, the officials nodded, and everything went exactly the way people expected it to.
What stood out, though, was what didn’t happen.
Even though I half-expected him to be watching from sowhere—so balcony or so shadowed corner—the King never showed himself again.
Maybe he was waiting.
Or maybe he’d already decided that whatever I was planning, he’d rather not see it until it was unavoidable.
User Comments
0 comments from readers