Chapter 60: Battle For The Throne

Samantha could still remember the first time she had used a dagger to stab him straight in the heart, burying the whole blade deep into his chest till she was left with the hilt, her movement back then was swift and clearly not up to what he had been expecting, but she received the shock of her life when he only smiled at her assault without showing any signs of pain, not even the slightest hint of it.

Musing over his reaction with a clear head, she wondered how many deaths he had died to be so insanely strong.... Strong enough that the piercing of a dagger leaves not a teeny-weeny bit of reaction on his face, but rather a slow, sadistic smile that could send his enemies dropping to their knees in defeat. She assumed it felt this way cause presently, she felt compelled to drop to her knees since she was still under his mercy.

The vision she had seen, the strange menacing purple glow that emitted from the orb. What was that all about? And who was that woman standing behind those soldiers?? In an atmosphere so sinister, she seemed oddly relaxed compared to the clamor and havoc that reigned in the Palace that night.

The secrets kept within the Palace walls, how many are there?? What is the actual truth of that night?? Somehow, she had managed to guess Lord Ivan’s reasons for bringing her here, was he also having the same questions as her? Was he in need of answers and is he aware she saw those visions?

With her brows furrowed gently, she glanced at Lord Ivan who patiently waited for her response, and since this was a deal where she could not hide her intentions, she quietly asked.

"Aren’t you concerned that I might stab you in the back and flee?"

"And aren’t you being considerate, letting me in on all your cute plans?" He effortlessly bit back as he stepped closer, stretching his hand forward and tucking a strand of her golden-blonde locks behind her ear. At first, Samantha had flinched back in retreat when she feared he wanted to hurt her, but she gradually dropped her guard when she felt his hand upon the side of her cheek, and his index finger harmlessly brushed her hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear so he could look into her clear green eyes.

"In order to kill an enemy, Little Lamb, you need to learn to keep them closer.... in the dark." He advised sinfully, his long fingers still lingering on her smooth face as he caressed her cheek. "As long as you’re on my side, you’ll only have me to be afraid of, so calm your fragile heart, I don’t bite without a reason."

His whispering tone sounded velvety, quite unusual from his malevolent way of speaking. The way he smiled after uttering the word ’I don’t bite.’ it sent chills down Samantha’s spine, and she moved away from his uncomfortable touch.

"Do I have a choice?"

"I’m not a hundred percent cold to the bones, little lamb, I kind-heartedly gave you two choices." He shoved his hands into the trouser of his pocket, emanating a devil-may-care aura. "The only difference is, your choices you make will warrant certain consequences, and one of the consequences, you may not like."

"Like dying?"

"Exactly!" He snapped his fingers like she just uttered something brilliant for the first time, "you still have so much to accomplish, and you’re quite a sneaky little lamb, you won’t die until you’ve accomplished them. Isn’t that why you’ve chosen to work with me?"

"I haven’t agreed."

"Are you sure?" He arched a perceptive eyebrow at her. "The answer is quite obvious, don’t you think?"

Samantha opened her mouth to oppose him, but the words she wanted to say betrayed her at the last minute. The Vampire Lord flashed a knowing smile, and he cocked his head at her. "Welcome to my dark side, little lamb." And the lights in the orb room mysteriously went off.

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SLAP! "What did I say about disrupting my peace when I am alone? How dare you interrupt my moment of quiescence! You dirty low-life imbecile!" Claire simply glared at her personal servant whom she had mercilessly slapped hard in the face, and the female servant had been caught off guard by the sharp ache that the elderberry juice she brought for Claire dropped from her grip, thus, the glass shattered into pieces on the ground.

Some of the juice had splashed on the hem of Claire’s nightgown, and one could literally see the angry smoke fuming from her head as she glowered unkindly at the trembling servant.

"My dress! Did you do this on purpose?"

"No!" The servant shook her head with immediate effect, tears welling up in her eyes as she tried to explain.

"You clumsy twat!"

"Claire!" Ivy’s voice had stopped Claire from landing another hard slap at the servant who was quietly sobbing before the princess. Noticing Ivy who had stepped into her room unannounced, Claire quickly dismissed the servant who hurried off.

"Hey! Better come back and clean this mess you made!"

"Yes My Princess." The servant bowed her head in fear and quickly left the room to get the cleaning materials.

"You need to calm down Claire," Ivy softly began as she approached the angry Vampiress who was now sitting on her bed. "I was the one who sent the servant to bring you some juice. Look at what you’ve done." Ivy’s gaze lowered to the juice that had been spilled, and she tsked hopelessly before joining the agitated Claire on her bed.

"What troubles your mind at this hour of the day? Is anything the matter?"

"Anything the matter? Nothing ever goes fine in this sickening Palace, Ivy, and you know that." Claire retorted sharply before looking away from Ivy’s gentle, but concerned demeanor. "Nevertheless, the troubles won’t matter in due time. My brothers sent me a secret letter, I informed them about Grandmother’s death and it won’t be long before they return and take the throne as King." She blurted out.

"I beg your pardon?" Ivy simply blinked as it seemed she might have misheard Claire’s statement. "Your brothers will be returning?"

Glancing at the shock-stricken Ivy, a playful smirk graced Claire’s red lips, and she rose from the bed, crossing her arms under her chest before answering. "What do you think? My brothers will be returning soon, and I got a note from the eldest that he has a plan on how to ascend the throne in Ivan’s place when he arrives. I had asked him how he plans to accomplish something so wilful, but he said it’s a surprise. He knows I love surprises."

Reaching for the vanity table, Claire poured herself some fermented red blood juice as she became thirsty for one, and when she took a sip from her glass cup, her jittery nerves seemed to relax a bit. The servant had returned to clear the broken glasses and she flawlessly wiped off the juice smeared on the floor. As she turned to take her leave, she heard Claire say.

"Did you deliver the letter like I had asked?"

"Yes I did, My Princess." She responded immediately.

"And no one saw you deliver it?"

"I made sure of it."

"Good." Claire answered with satisfaction before waving her hand in a dismissing gesture, "you can leave, but next time, work on your maladroit."

"I will." Answering out of fear, the servant quickly left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

"Poor girl." Murmured Ivy.

"Oh where were we?" Claire simply diverted Ivy’s attention to their earlier discussion. "Like I said, the battle for the Throne is just beginning, and with Ivan’s quick change in personality, it’s going to be a lot tougher to navigate his mind from the Throne. Most especially now that Grandmother’s gone too."

"But the orb chose Ivan to rule." Ivy clearly interpreted what her Father had told her concerning the mystic orb before its disappearance. "Won’t changing the fate of the Mystic Orb lead to more problems?"

"We won’t know until we test it? What could be worse than this?" Claire shrugged as she dropped her empty cup on the table. "When Father passed away on that awful night, my brothers could not accept Ivan as King since he was the last bloodline of the Chevalier family, even I couldn’t accept it since the laws of all Kingdoms don’t even work that way. The argument had been a tough one during the royal court meeting, but my brother’s claimed they had proof. They didn’t tell the royal court what it was since they feared someone might go after the vital evidence if they had, so they made a journey to the Castle of Vesunard, approximately six kingdoms from here, and after six years to be exact, they’re returning back to the Chevalier Palace, their home."

"And they’re bringing the evidence?"

"Certainly." Claire smiled as she moved to her window, staring out at the moon that shone bright upon the lonely dark sky. "Once my brother becomes King, I am sure he’d pick you for a bride to rule beside him."

"Me??" Ivy’s eyes snapped wide as she pointed at herself, and Claire sedately turned around to look at the dumb-stricken Ivy. "Yes, I shall introduce you to him the day after he arrives, and I am sure he will find you likable. You have been my good friend for a long time now, and I would like it very much if our Kingdoms could unite as one."

"But Ivan-"

"Ivan is dangerous." Claire cut her off with a sharp retort, almost forgetting that her silly friend has a thing for Ivan. "You should be grateful to yourself that you refused his proposal. I am afraid of what he will do if he ends up getting crowned before my brothers arrive, and it is something I must avoid."

"Ivan is not as bad as you assume him to be, and he is still your brother." Ivy tried to reason with Claire. "Why are you against his leadership? Getting on his good side wouldn’t be a problem for you, so your denial makes no sense to me at all."

"It’s not supposed to make sense, after Ivan was chosen as King by the Mystic orb, something terrible happened the night after, and it has been a secret kept between Ivan, me, my brothers, and my useless cousins. I am doing this for Ivan’s sake too!" Claire blurted out as the thought of what her brothers had mercilessly done to Ivan still sent shivers down her spine till this very day.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read