The Crown's Entrapment

“You’re getting a good grasp of the air around you,” Jayra commented with a deep frown. “I mean, this is a bit surprising, but you’re honestly getting quite good at this.”

The mage’s eyes never left Xenia as she cast some magic using the air inside the room. Her princess was making good progress, and she was honestly kind of irritated at how quickly she was progressing.

“Really?” Xenia beamed.

Jayra nodded. She was baffled at how Xenia was managing to do this kind of magic. Somehow, she could actually control the air with just enough concentration whenever she followed her instructions.

Like Darius had suggested, she had the princess focus more on the element of air so that it would be easier for them to practice and train inside the castle discreetly.

“That’s a bit weird. I mean, I understand that in using magic and spells, we also tend to use nature and the major elements. But before… I wasn’t able to do it properly even after numerous attempts at it with Ezekiel and Mineah,” Xenia frowned as she held a small force of wind inside the room in her hand.

“I still remember how frustrating it was for me to not be able to use the benefit of the angel blood within me. Now though, it feels so easy. I mean, I can even sense it like I’m just breathing…”_.

It was still weird to feel, really. It was as if something dormant inside her body had been activated all of a sudden.

If she recalled correctly, her mother was someone powerful, what with being a fallen angel herself. As such, the Queen of Ebodia could use all the elements around to her advantage. However, it wasn’t as powerful as before she fell from the grace of the heavens. There were restrictions on her power due to her being a fallen angel, and yet she alone was more than equivalent to a thousand powerful warriors on the battlefield. That was why their father was confident in sending almost the entirety of their army to aid her brother Ezekiel at war, leaving Ebodia Castle with just a few royal knights for its defense.

“What the…”

She was interrupted from her deep thoughts when she heard Jayra rushing towards the nearby window. From there, she saw Skyler, the royal pigeon Jayra used as her messenger between her and her parents.

‘A message from Ebodia then,’ Xenia thought, quickly releasing the power of the wind she held in her palm.

Rushing towards Jayra’s side, she peeked over her friend’s shoulder to read the letter. The more she read, the more lines formed on her forehead as she tried to understand what her mother was saying. As usual, after they were done, Jayra promptly burned the missive.

“So Mother thinks that it was Darius’s blood within me that will trigger my passive power?” Xenia asked with a frown.

“You drank Darius’s blood a while ago, right?” Jayra asked, ignoring her princess’s frown. “How much?”

“Hmm, just a few sips, I think. Like…” Xenia looked up as she tried to remember how many gulps she made this morning. “Three gulps,” she answered.

“Hmm… You should take note of this, Xenia. See how long it will last,” Jayra suggested with a hum. “Seeing as you managed to hold on to your power like this, the Queen might be right in her assumptions. Darius’s blood might be accelerating everything that was stagnant in your abilities as a fallen angel, and your body should be the one to confirm this.”

“So are you and my mother suggesting that I suck Darius dry of his blood then? Cause I’d definitely need a huge amount of it to make sure it won’t wear off as easily from my system,” Xenia burst out in disbelief.

She too had just read the message her mother sent. It was said that her blood sample that had Darius’s blood mixed in with it had positive reactions; fueling the angel blood to its fullest potential somehow. Well… It wasn’t just his blood, actually… Her mother even suggested something more based on her theories.

“No? She clearly stated that it wasn’t only blood that’s needed, Xenia,” Jayra reasoned. “You read it, right… She thinks that forming the bond between you and Darius would fully activate the angel blood within you…”

She stared at her and added, “Werewolf blood can only heal when ingested, but its effect of giving some of their owner’s powers to those who imbibed on them was only temporary and will easily wear off as you said. As such, I think that Queen Mother has a point. Maybe you should let Darius mark you just so you can have the permanent effects.”

“But that’s only a theory, Jayra,” Xenia cut her friend off with a rebuttal. “What if she’s wrong and we completed the Mate Bond only for me to end up failing and dying…”

She didn’t want to think of the worst-case scenario, but it was still something they should always consider, seeing as it could still happen despite their best efforts.

“You won’t die in this trial, Xenia. Don’t worry,” Jayra reminded her. “Beirut saw your future, remember? You’re gonna live for a long time yet.”

“You do know that I’m someone who doesn’t believe in that, right?” Xenia fired back with a reminder of her own. “I mean, yeah, I witnessed them happening, and yet for me, some of them were nothing but coincidences. Nobody really knows the future. Yes, Seers could foresee what is coming, but… isn’t it also true that we can alter the future by preparing for it?”

She reasoned, “Like how we manage to save those soldiers in the encampment when Tarah saw them dying and being poisoned by the water. No one could tell what would really happen unless it happened already. There could always be a change somewhere, in one way or another. Nothing is certain, Jayra.”

[0)ᴠʟ Xenia inhaled deeply and continued, “This is a risk… Questionable, whether I’d take it or not…”

Jayra let out a deep and heavy sigh, one that she repeated as the silence between them reigned. Xenia simply stared at her, waiting for her friend to respond.

“What now?” Jayra mumbled out with a frown.

“I know you’re frustrated. And I know that you’re thinking that I’m overreacting and paranoid, but I just can’t help it, Jayra,” Xenia admitted with a heavy heart.

“I just don’t want to compromise something with the uncertainty of life. None of us can guarantee that completing the Mate Bond by having Darius marking me will activate the power of the angel blood power in me. I just can’t take that risk…”

She then added, “Just… Please don’t mention this to Darius… Promise me…”

There was a pause before Jayra replied, “No, I won’t promise that. Be mad at me all you want, but I’ll definitely tell this to His Majesty. That way, you can directly talk to him about this matter.”

She then added, “He has the right to know of your decision since he’s the one you’re protecting. And I also think that you should hear what he says on this matter.”

“Fine then,” Xenia murmured in resignation “Let me talk to him about it…”

“Promise me first,” Jayra said, looking at her intently without batting an eye.

“I promise,” Xenia sighed. “I’ll discuss it with him during our training together…”

With that, another round of silence settled between them. Perhaps some change was in order, but she didn’t know what…

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AN: What do you think? Should Xenia let Darius mark her already or not?

EN: lol no xD