Page 46 of The Chains You Defy

“Basically, yes.”

“If you askme—”

“Yes?”

“I don’t know. Traveling to Galanta sounds dangerous.”

“Oh yes, very much so. My world isn’t an easy or safe place for a human to be these days. Most nobles only look down on your kind, but others are downright hostile. Nevertheless, no one would dare to lay even a single finger on you.”

“You can’t know that.”

“Of course I can. I simply won’t allow them.”

“That’s maybe true about your underlings, but what about the king?”

“Granted, he’s a special kind of evil. However, harming you isn’t in his interest. And yes, I hate him, but he’s predictable because everything boils down to his ambitions. So, in his opinion, you have one thing going for you. Your existence and our binding will have him convinced that he has even more power at hand.”

“Because he’s controlling you? Why is that, by the way? It’s obvious you’d rather kill him than follow his orders. Not that I want to encourage your violent tendencies, I’m just curious.”

“Another day, Nayana.”

She clenched her fists in the fabric of her skirts, but I simply shrugged.

Nothing in the two worlds and beyond would make me open up about the fucking leash my grandfather held me on. That she sensed that such a thing existed in the first place was bad enough.

“Well then, riddle me this. Do you assume we can find out more about the Wild Rift situation in Galanta? More than in Ivreia?”

This was one of the core questions I and my soldiers had discussed to death, and I regarded Naya contemplatively, weighing my thoughts and words.

Antas answered quicker than I, though. “Most likely, yes.”

Nayana nodded at my uncle, then drilled her eyes into me and gave me a brief grin that held a surprisingly cruel edge. “Then feel free to decide, princeling. This time, I’ll go with your decree as well.”

I glowered at her. Concluding from her demeanor and the way she kept her lips frozen in that infuriating smirk, she’d heard a lot more of Antas’ and my earlier conversation, at least considering the way she’d enjoyed avoiding giving me her own conclusion. Oh, she’d get that back, and soon.

“Fine.” Another sigh left my lips. “Antas, forward my decision to the others. We’re departing for Galanta in four days, following Galrach’s summons. But we’ll stay alert and be prepared to leave Alaiann at any time.”

Antas withdrew from our suite, and once the door had closed, I turned to Dion. “So, princeling, you haven’t considered including my opinions in your decision-making?”

“You were hardly in a good enough condition most of the time.”

“Or did you assume I’d simply accept what you decided?”

“Come on, you can’t blame me for that. You always followed us in the past few months without giving your approval.”

“Yes, but I agreed to be a member of your travel group and ride with you people throughIvreia.Last time I checked, Galanta was not a part of this world.”

“This is splitting hairs now, isn’t it?”

“No. This is called setting boundaries. You aren’t good with those, but if you want this partnership and friendship to work out, you have to include me in the big decisions. Aren’t we a team, according to your own words? And maybe sharing what goes on in that pretty head of yours would help you sometimes.”

“You think I’m pretty?”

“Ugh. That’s not the point here.”

I was fully aware that one discussion like this wouldn’t change Dion’s ways. He wasn’t used to revealing his thoughts, and to be honest, I strongly assumed that his mind was a terrifying place to visit, but he needed to learn to open up if this partnership—if we were supposed to work out. Hopefully, Immaru would grant me enough patience while I tried to support him in altering his behavior. That we were born as two different species didn’t help either.

Also, who was I kidding? He was a prince, and I was a commoner, another major feature that set us apart. And that wasn’t even considering how many more winters he’d seen, even if Dion was the prime example that age wasn’t necessarily a guarantee for maturity.