Chapter 49 His Spirit warriors
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” Lyn was poisoned?” He banged his hands on the table at the news from the Hornet. His eyes flashed red but went back to normal immediately the Hornet flew in a circle with a loud buzz. They had made a camp at a place very close to the Silk Valley. The sun was setting already and he was getting ready to attack the Aransas fortress at dawn before the hornet flew in.
” She didn’t eat the poison?” He asked and the Hornet stayed still for a while before buzzing around again. ” You stung her maid? That was reassuring at least.” He took a deep breath but his mind was already in shambles at the thought of someone attempting to kill his Queen in his absence. He knows the person, it was the same person that tried to poison him at the inn the first time he met his Queen. It was the same person that was giving the Barbarians a failed hope.
The Hornet flew around for a while again with a loud buzz and Treven almost broke the table angrily. How dare that lowly piece of scum? His eyes turned red again and his breathing became ragged.
” Your majesty, we are done with the traps” General Kim entered the king’s tent without a knock, the king looked up and the general was scared to see the red colour of the king’s eyes. He has heard rumors of how Nayak kings are capable of changing their eye colors but he has never witnessed it. The king looked so scary that if he wasn’t a high-ranking general with much battle experience, he would be shitting his pants at that moment.
Immediately he noticed his general, his eyes returned to their normal grey colour. He sat up straight and placed his left hand on his chin.
” Good! Hope they are strong enough to capture the wolves?” He asked and the general bowed his head and nodded. He could feel a little sweat under his chin.
” Yes, your majesty! We made it according to your description.”
” Good. Go and find a safe place for all the horses, We match at Dawn” The king said, and the general bowed his head to receive the order. He needs to end things quickly so he can go back to his Queen as soon as possible. He left enough protection for her but he can’t protect her against poison. He was so lucky with the hornet that prevented the unfortunate but he wasn’t so sure if they try to do it the next time.
He stood and went out of the camp, he headed toward the thick part of the forest surrounding them as swiftly as possible without anyone noticing his absence. On his back was a special bow and a single golden arrow. If his enemies want to play dirty with their dark magic, who is to stop him from involving his magic too?
Placing the arrow on the string carefully, he aimed it at the sky and shot the arrow. The whistle of the arrow was loud and satisfying to his ears. He only saw his father do this during the one battle they fought together. At Holcomb Bridge, His father had taught him about the secrets of his ancestors that no one knew about.
People knew they had unimaginable strength as Nati’s blessed, but never knew the secret of all their victories. The first secret was the wraith army, if a Nayak king was driven to a corner, with defeat flashing through his eyes. He can take Nati’s bow and a golden arrow and shoot it into the sky, Nati’s army would respond to him and fight the war with him. The soldiers of this army are wraiths, they look like normal Nayaki soldiers but they are undead, they match the strength of the king and they cannot be killed.
The second secret is the warrior hornets, they are always summoned at the last minute. They were mostly left at the palace during the war to protect the Queen. Since Treven knew the identity of the person wielding Hwaja’s magic, he left all of the hornets at home, they are the one thing Hwaja fears the most. If His aunt manages to attack his Queen alone, the hornets will sting her to death. Besides he trusts the power that Natalí blessed his Queen with.
The forest leaves started trembling as the sound of horse hooves reached his ears. Nati has responded to his request and he sent his armies to him. He muttered a little prayer to Nati as the warriors assembled in front of him. They were clad in heavy armor similar to his human soldiers and all of them rode closer to him. The ears of the horses they rode were blocked which them immune to dark magic that puts normal horses to sleep. The warriors got down from the horses and bowed in front of him. He nodded and turned around, they followed him back to the camp and since they were invisible, no one noticed their presence.
….
I couldn’t stop worrying as I cradled the little Estella close to my chest. The poor baby just lost her mother and she doesn’t even have an idea at all. The walls of my chamber felt like a prison, I wished Treven was around to offer me some comfort. I have never felt so lonely in my life. So many emotions were bubbly inside me and I don’t know if it was the pregnancy hormones or something else.
” Your majesty. You have to come with me now!” Annalise suddenly entered my chamber, there was urgency in her tone as she moved closer. After I raised my head to look at her, I started hearing sword clashes outside my Chambers. Did they send assassins after me this time? After boldly killing a royal consort, Cixi sent assassins after me.
Before I could react, Annalise opened a door I didn’t even know existed in my chamber. Well, I never really noticed anything in the chamber, I only woke up and slept in the room. I cuddled the baby closer to my chest and followed her. It was an entrance to a secret tunnel that passed the underground leading to the outside of the palace. She closed the door and we ran out, she offered to carry the baby but I refused. I want her close to me.
She opened the door and I almost fainted at the sight of the figure waiting for me. It was Lord Talin in all his glory, waiting for us to come out of the tunnel while holding a single torch.
” surprised?” he smirked at the shock on our faces. He must be working with his mother. They want to kill me so they can weaken Treven on the battlefield which will end up leading to his downfall.
” You are not the only one who knows about secret tunnels you see?”
” Do you think the king will spare you for this? He might forgive you if you let us go right now” Annalise raised her voice glaring at the pompous Lord in front of us. Talin only laughed out loud.
” That is if he comes back alive, and I don’t appreciate you raising your voice at me, you are just a glorified servant,” He said.
” Enough! If you want to kill me, be fast with it” I swallowed hard seeing the glint in his eyes. It just has to be the time that I do not have any jewelry on or any piece of the years on my body.
” You see, this is why I like you. You are smart, you seem to know the situation you are in right now. Yes whatever you are thinking about is right, my mother wants your head” He said and I replied with a chuckle.
” And why are you not doing what she asks?” I asked.
” Unlike my mother, I quite like you a lot and I think you will be the perfect Queen for me when I finally become the king. So I’m giving you a choice now, Break the bond between you and my cousin and Marry me then I will save your life”
“There must be just air in that head of yours. I can’t marry you and besides the bond is unbreakable” I patted the baby gently as she was starting to stir in her sleep.
” It can be broken! My mother will break it, you only need to say yes” He said and I nodded trying to play along with him as an idea came to me.
” Can you allow me to go to the temple for a while? I will give you my answer after then” I said softly and he burst into laughter again. He must have done sort of illness that makes him laugh every time.
” No! You have to decide here”
” I will marry you if you allow me to go to the temple safely” I gritted my teeth together as I got the words out, they tasted like the dryest sand in the desert on my tongue and I want nothing more but to retch in disgust.
” your wish is my command,” He said with a cheery smile but I chuckled inwardly. He and his traitorous mother won’t know what hits them once I get my hands on the fountain of tears.