The Cursed Prince's Strange Bride

The air in the entire palace was very chilly the next morning. As much as the noblemen would have all loved to not join the assembly, they knew that was not an option. Besides, they wanted to be done with this and return home as soon as possible, but on the other hand, the last time they gathered in Harold's presence... shit went down.

Damon stood in his spot beside the king's seat, looking ahead. Everyone expected him to at least say something, but he was mute. At this point, almost everyone had lost their respect for him. Not only had Harold humiliated him the last time they gathered, but he seemed to have lost relevance now.

As the noblemen all stood, too scared to even whisper among themselves, the door opened, and the queen entered.

All heads turned to look at her, many of them frowning in displeasure.

Normally, she was not supposed to get involved in their meetings, but they had let her the first few times because it had been important. This time, they didn't want her in, especially as she carried trouble everywhere.

Meanwhile, the queen could feel all the hostility they had towards her but kept her chin up and her hands fisted beside her, looking at Damon.

They had a meeting this morning, and everyone knew except for her! If she hadn't been informed that Prince Harold asked for her presence at the gathering, she wouldn't have known about this.

Damian was still recuperating, so he was not beside her, which made her a bit self-conscious, but she tried not to let it get to her.

"You are not supposed to be here," one of the noblemen said, voicing his displeasure at her presence.

Her steps faltered, but she decided to ignore him as she continued walking ahead to the other side of the throne, but another spoke up, "This assembly was called for noblemen and not for women who bring nothing but chaos!"

She stopped and slowly turned to look at him, recognizing him as the deputy governor of one of the measly villages in the kingdom.

His audacity stunned her. Yes, she was a woman. But she was the wife of the king. If only she had been born a man. None of them would dare speak to her brother the way they spoke to her. She was the queen!

But they valued the brother of the Queen even more than the queen herself.

If only the king had looked favourably on her. Would they have dared look down on her like this?

Would any of them dare speak to Princess Amber with such disrespect, even in Harold's absence?

She shook that silly thought out of her head. She couldn't compare herself to that poor, uncouth witch who wasn't given a proper upbringing.

Her anger rose as she looked at the man. When she noticed he was about to speak again, she spoke first.

"You must have a death wish."

She looked angry. He'd better thank the moon goddess she was not the one presiding over the palace affairs. She would have had his tongue by now.

"He is not wrong!" Her brother, whom she had been avoiding looking at, spoke in a loud voice.

"There is no place for you here." He added, stunning her as she turned in the opposite direction to face him.

Everyone else was suddenly silent as the siblings glared daggers at each other.

"I called for her," Harold announced as the door opened and he entered.

All eyes turned to him as soon as he entered. Everyone was suddenly still, and everywhere turned cold.

He wore a black robe and had his hair in a loose bun. His sword was firmly held in his right hand, and he kept his gaze ahead as he strode in majestically, tempting every one of them to fall at his feet.

Harvey looked at Harold, wondering why he asked for her to join when she was desperately trying to get rid of Alicia. Or was he planning something else?

The queen looked away from her brother and continued to walk ahead until she stood in her position.

As expected, no one objected or said a word about it again, which gave the queen a mixed feeling.

Most of the noblemen assumed Harold was going to sit on the throne, but he didn't. He stood at the front, facing all of them.

Silence filled the room as they all waited to know why this assembly was called for. They at least hoped that Harold was going to let them return to their homes so they could end this quickly and get to breathe freely outside the palace.

"I believe there is something you would all like to know about Princess Amber's identity."

"..."

"We also need to confirm that she killed Sir Rager's daughter and tried to kill Princess Tyra."

"..."

No one said a word.

"The queen will be in charge of questioning the suspects and witnesses." He announced, stunning everyone who looked at him in surprise and began to murmur among themselves while looking at the queen, who also seemed surprised by that.

She looked at his back suspiciously, wondering what he was up to. Not only had he asked her to come here, but he was also handing his wife over to her on a platter?

She looked at Damon, who obviously didn't look pleased by this. But seeing how displeased and humiliated Damon was at being ignored, she stopped reading meaning into Harold's intention. It was nice to see Damon like this.

Harold's eyes met Harvey's, who looked bothered by this. Everyone knew how the queen had been trying to get Alicia executed, so what was he thinking?

Meanwhile, Alicia was outside, trying to control her emotions. She only hoped things would turn out well. She had faith since Harold was at least involved now unlike the first time.

The door opened as her cue to enter, and she took a deep breath as she entered the room.