Chapter 38 Chapter 38

Chapter 38 Chapter 38
Liora’s POV

I did not go to her immediately.
I told myself I would but apparently, I was not a woman of my words.
I even walked halfway to the receiving wing twice before turning back both times, my steps slowing the closer I got, until my feet simply refused to move any further.

It wasn’t fear, not exactly.
It was the memory of the things she said, and not knowing how to respond.

I kept telling myself I needed to do it for the sake of seeing Kysen.
Whether good or bad, I needed answers from him. Desperately.
And I knew my mother. She would not ever bend against her will.

Just like Caelum said, if I did not say anything about it, she wouldn’t either. She would just go alone and give some official excuse for my absence. She was the queen anyway, who would question her?

I had more to lose.

By the time I finally forced myself down the corridor toward her private chamber, my jaw ached from how tightly I’d been clenching it.
Okay Liora, this is not about your pride.

Tomorrow’s meeting and him…
I repeated that in my head like a mantra. The thought alone pushed me forward.

The guards outside her doors straightened the moment they saw me, their expressions carefully neutral.
One of them knocked once before opening the door.
“Your Majesty,”

I stepped inside before I could change my mind.
The room was warm, the large hearth burning steadily despite the mild evening. My mother stood near a long table covered in documents, her back to me, posture perfectly straight.
She didn’t turn but I knew she was aware of my presence.

“I wondered how long it would take,” she said coolly.
The statement was not dangerous, yet just hearing her voice sent chills down my back.

Of course she knew I would come. I mean, she knew everything.
I especially hated that she knew me that well. Even with the obvious factor that we were not close.

“I didn’t come to argue,” I said, keeping my voice even.

She turned, her eyes scanning my face quickly, as if measuring my emotional state in a single glance.

“Then you came for a reason,” she replied.
Always straight to the point. Typical.

I took a slow breath.
“I want to attend the meeting tomorrow.”

I was adamant about not apologizing.
Her expression did not change.

“Give me one good reason I should allow that” She did not miss a beat.

My throat tightened, as my hands curled into fists by my side.

There were a thousand answers in my head, none of which I could actually say out loud. They all sounded weak.

Because I need to see him.
Because I miss him.
Because I need to know if he chose me or them.

None of those were reasons a queen would accept.
So I forced myself to think like her instead, like a ruler.
Like someone who understood what she valued most.

“Because my absence would look suspicious,” I said finally, steadying my voice.
“The Dravons already believe there is something happening behind their backs. If I don’t attend, it will only confirm that we are hiding something.”

Her gaze sharpened slightly.
Good.

“And,” I continued, before my courage failed me, “If this concerns their heir and the Crown Princess, then it is not just your political matter. It is mine as well.”

Calculating silence settled over the room again.
She walked slowly around the table, each step measured, her eyes never leaving my face.
“You think this meeting is about clarity,” she said. “It is not. It is about leverage.”
I didn’t respond.
Because I knew that was all she was thinking about already.

“They are testing boundaries,” she continued. “They want to see how much influence their son has gained over you. They want to see how much control I have over my own heir.”
Her words pressed heavily into my chest.

“And if I do not attend,” I said quietly, “They will assume I am either weak… or defiant.”

“Or both,” she corrected without hesitation.
That stung more than I cared to admit.
One would think after basically spending my whole life receiving demeaning statements from her, I'd be used to it, but that couldn't be more wrong.

I forced myself not to react.
“If I am there,” I said instead, “They cannot speak about me as though I am a piece on a board. They will have to speak to me. Directly.”

She stopped walking.
That was the closest I had come to saying what truly mattered.
Not just the politics, but the fact that I refused to be discussed like an object.

Her eyes searched my face carefully.
“You are asking for a seat at a negotiation table,” she said slowly, “while your judgment is already under question.”

“I am asking,” I replied, keeping my voice steady, despite the pounding of my heart, “for the chance to prove that it should not be.”

For a long moment, she said nothing, and as usual, I could not tell what she was thinking.

The fire crackled softly in the hearth.
The sound felt far too loud in the silence between us.

Then finally, she spoke.
“You always think in terms of fairness,” she said, her tone quieter now. “Of what should be right. That is not how power works, Liora.”

Her words were not cruel this time.
Just coldly factual, almost like she was lecturing me.

“You believe I am not fit to be a ruler, to take over your throne. And yet, you still raised me to rule” I said before I could stop myself, laying emphasis on ‘me’.

Something flickered in her expression. It was gone almost immediately, but I definitely knew what I saw.

“That remains to be proven” she said, her voice returning to its usual steel.

My fingers curled slightly at my sides.
“I am capable of doing my duty,” I said.

“Prove it then” she said casually, and I swallowed. Dear Green, what was she going to say?

“How?” I asked.

“I will allow you to attend tomorrow’s meeting,” she said, “But you must behave exactly as the Crown Princess should.”

“And what does that mean to you?” I asked carefully.

“It means you listen, you observe, you speak only when necessary. And you do not allow personal attachment to cloud your judgment.” she said, laying emphasis on ‘personal attachment’.

I knew exactly what she meant.
I forced myself to nod, “I can do that.”

She studied me for a while, while I managed to school my expression.
“Very well,” she finally said.

Relief rushed through me so quickly it almost made my knees weak.
“You will attend,” she continued. “But understand this, Liora. Tomorrow is not about you, or him”

“If you forget that, you will not be allowed near him again.”

Her words hit like a quiet threat, or maybe a promise.
I wasn’t sure which.

“I understand,” I said.
It was only partially true.
Because no matter how much I told myself tomorrow was political, I knew exactly what I would be looking for the moment I walked into that room. Or rather… who I would be looking for.
Him.
Whether he would meet my eyes.
Whether the distance of the past three days had changed anything between us.

My mother turned back toward her documents, already dismissing me.
“You may go.”
I didn’t linger.
I couldn’t.

The moment I stepped out into the corridor, the breath I’d been holding escaped in a shaky exhale.

It was done. I did it.
I would see him tomorrow. I still was not sure yet, whether to be happy or scared.

That thought followed me all the way back to my chambers.
Sleep came even less easily that night.

Every time I closed my eyes, my mind ran ahead to tomorrow.
To walking into that room.
To seeing his family.
To seeing him.
To knowing where he stood with all this.

What if he looked distant?
What if he avoided my eyes?
What if he had already chosen his side?
The thoughts spiraled until my chest felt tight and my pulse wouldn’t slow.

I threw the covers aside with a frustrated sigh and sat up.
The room was dim, lit only by the faint glow of moonlight filtering through the tall windows.
I swung my legs over the side of the bed, another sigh following suit.

And then I froze.
Something felt off.
My wings tensed instinctively, as I held my breath.
My ears perked up, listening for a sound I had heard.

There.
A soft scrape.
Near the balcony window.

Every muscle in my body went rigid, my body now on high alert.
My hand moved automatically toward the dagger on my bedside table, and my fingers wrapped around the familiar hilt.