Chapter 161: Nearly The First Kiss, And A Traitor?

Rael had finally finished explaining his plans to Zafira.

Not because he needed Zafira’s approval, but because he didn’t want this to become one of those secrets that tore people apart.

Some things he’d still keep to himself, sure. But not this. Not something that could divide them.

And her reaction was something he totally expected.

“You can’t be serious…” Zafira muttered, clutching her head in disbelief. “You agreed to help his father… and then you also want to make the barbarians our allies…?”

“Yep.” Rael nodded. “That’s the gist of it, I guess.”

“And you don’t see anything wrong with that?”

He shrugged. “I’ve only crossed a few lines, Zafira. We’re not even a full-fledged country yet. Just imagine what we’ll have to do when more people start coming in—when more kingdoms are out to get us.”

Zafira stood up from her throne and approached him, stopping right in front of his face.

“Rael…” Zafira grabbed his cheeks and pinched them. “I know you want to learn how to be a King. However, do remember I’m right beside you as the Queen. You don’t have to do everything by yourself, especially drastic actions such as these.”

Rael nodded, and then, while Zafira was preoccupied with pinching his cheeks, he brought his hands around her waist and began tickling her.

“H-Hey!” she jumped up in surprise and held back her laughter. “What’s that for!?”

“You’re too stiff,” Rael said with a smirk, and stopped tickling her.

Instead, he hugged her tight, surprising her.

“There are blind risks, and calculated risks, Zafira,” Rael whispered in her ear. “I’m taking what you might call a calculated risk. I know the variables now, and I’m aware of the other party’s strength. There are a few things that can go wrong, but I’ve already covered them.”

Zafira listened and burrowed her face in his chest before returning the hug.

“Do you promise to not be reckless?” Zafira asked, muffled. “Also… when you go to kill the king, I’ll be coming with you. It’s non-negotiable.”

Rael flinched and pulled away from her slightly.

He gazed into her eyes, which were full of determination, and he could only let out a sigh.

“Okay. I’ll tell you when…” Rael trailed off. “And about that summit…”

“We’re both going,” Zafira affirmed, hugging him tighter. “I haven’t gone to one yet, and neither have you. So it’s a first for both of us. Non-negotiable, of course.”

Rael chuckled and, out of instinct, began brushing his fingers through her hair.

The atmosphere was growing a little… fuzzy.

Her eyes were darting between his eyes and his lips, until finally stopping on his lips.

Rael felt the tension in the air rise, but he didn’t hate it.

Instead, he wrapped one of his hands around her waist, and then with the other, tilted her chin up and leaned in.

She closed her eyes, puckered her lips, and Rael did the same.

His heart was practically beating out of his chest, and just as their lips were about to touch, the throne room’s doors opened abruptly.

They immediately separated with giant blushes on their faces and stared at the one responsible for the interruption.

“I-I have urgent news!” a soldier yelled. “We’ve caught a spy! He was trying to send out a letter with the Sutekh royal family’s crest… and the letter was directed to the Holy Kingdom.”

Rael frowned, but just as he was about to speak up, Zafira did instead.

“What are the contents of the letter?” she asked.

The moment she did, the soldier bowed and approached before handing over a letter.

To his surprise, Rael recognized the letter. It was the same one Zareth had given him back in the auction.

It was supposed to be the Holy Kingdom’s demands.

“You may go.” Zafira dismissed the soldier and then turned to Rael. “You look like you know what this is.”

Rael sighed. “Yeah. I heard it’s the demands the Holy Kingdom might ask of us. I’m not sure how that spy got the letter, if I’m being honest. I’ve yet to read it though.”

“I see…” Zafira trailed off and ripped open the letter before giving it a quick read.

With each passing second, her frown deepened until she was left with a look of disgust.

Noticing her reaction, Rael walked over, took the letter from her hands, and read it himself.

And of course, after reading the last two lines, he shared the same expression as Zafira.

After all, these were actually official documents, and not what Zareth had given him. They just looked very, very similar.

4. You will publicly denounce the Sutekh royal family and acknowledge the Holy Kingdom as the only divine authority.

5. You agree to hand over Queen Zafira Sutekh to the Holy Cathedral for “cleansing and indoctrination,” so she may return as a proper example of a pure queen.

So they want to remove the Sutekh royal family from Celestara and replace it with their own… Rael thought with a frown.

But that was not all.

They also wanted to imprison Zafira in the cathedral and practically make her a nun. Maybe even a Saint candidate, given her status.

But those who usually undergo such procedures never come out the same. Their memories might be wiped, or they would be subject to mental manipulation.

Either way, no fucking way are they getting anywhere near her…

“This is just fucking disgusting,” Rael muttered. “To think they’d want us to follow through with their demands.”

“If that spy had gotten the letter out, then we’d have been in trouble,” Zafira added. “But now that it’s been exposed, I’m going to personally deal with the one responsible.”

With that, she began walking away toward the exit of the throne room.

And of course, Rael followed as well.

She didn’t protest against him going, so the two of them simply walked in silence.

After a few minutes, they finally reached the palace’s dungeons, went down the stairs, and found the one responsible.

It wasn’t anyone Rael recognized, and from Zafira’s confusion, he could tell she didn’t know him either.

However, instead of making some small talk, Zafira summoned a lustrous white blade out from her inventory, then opened the prison cell.

The man didn’t even bat an eye at her behavior.

“Why, hello there, Queen Zafira Sutekh. To what do I owe this pleasant visit—AAAAAH!”

His peaceful moments didn’t last long, since Zafira simply thrust her sword forward and pierced him clean through the neck.

She missed the major arteries that would have instantly killed him.

Nonetheless, she leaned in and put on an innocent-looking smile.

“Tell me everything you know.”

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