Page 21 of Vicious Princess (The Trials of Death and Honor #1)

CHAPTER TWENTY

T he king is right next to Axel Dukas, his gold-embroidered robes flowing down his meager frame like a waterfall. His crown and his gown are overkill here, and his attire doesn’t make him look any more powerful when he’s next to the Ezkai General or the dwarves.

My feet are moving before I know it.

Roman’s voice is surprised. “Hey, Phoenix! Where are you going?”

Over my shoulder, I say, “I’ll be back in a moment. Bathroom.”

With a racing heart, I make my way through the crowd as quickly as I can without drawing attention to myself.

I need to find a place where I won’t be noticed.

King Francis might not recognize me—I’m not sure if he knows my face—but his damn Royal Commander, who’s flanking him at all times, will surely remember.

Considering he torched my home with my family inside, I don’t think he’ll be happy to see I survived.

When I reach the edge of the room, I find shelter behind one of the massive columns framing the space. I press my back to the cold, hard stone and hold a palm over my chest as I wait for my heart to stop racing.

I didn’t expect to see King Francis nor his commander. Not tonight. Not so soon. Not before I have become a worthy opponent. An opponent who makes theirs knees weak as fear seizes their muscles.

My hands tremble. The need to scream, thrash, and tear through the crowd until I have King Francis’s neck between my fingers overwhelms me. I want to watch his eyes widen as life dims in them.

That corrupt bastard betrayed my family, my dad and mom, who both spent their lives serving as two of his most loyal soldiers. All because he needed someone to sacrifice, someone to blame for the rebellion that threatens his throne.

If they see me and recognize me…I have no clue what King Francis will do. Until I’m an Ezkai, under the protection of the Order, I have no desire to find out.

“What are you doing here?”

Daegel’s voice makes me flinch. He stands a few feet away from me, a glass of plum blossom wine in hand.

From his cold gaze and passive facial expression, I can’t tell who’s asking me this question: the Ezkai Major who loves to emphasize I’m a mere human, or the man I had sex with who was desperately panting in my ear, wanting to see me again.

I blink, then clear my throat. “I’m here with Ezkai Gavriel and the rest of the cadet group. It’s part of our history and politics lecture.”

“I’m aware. That’s not what I’m asking.”

I bristle. “Then what are you asking?”

“I’m asking why are you hiding behind a column in the middle of a soiree while hyperventilating?”

“I was not hyperventilating.”

A corner of his lips twitches upwards. “My bad. You were on the verge of hyperventilating.”

I press my lips into a thin line. I don’t want to tell him the truth. I don’t think I can. But if I tell him a half-truth, one about me being overwhelmed with Ezkai Academy and what it truly means to be one of the Ezkai and how intricate this world of Ekios politics is…

When I don’t answer, his voice drops a few octaves, and he says, “You should have told me you were about to join Ezkai Academy as a cadet that night at the bar.”

Anger flares back to life.

“ Seriously? Maybe you should have told me you were an Ezkai Major and an instructor at Ezkai Academy.”

“You knew I was an Ezkai. I gave you my first name and my family name. I wasn’t hiding anything.”

“I wasn’t hiding anything either,” I snap.

I was just lost in the reckless joy of finally being on the right path to my goal. I was looking for a way to blow off steam, a way to forget all that I left behind to pursue this .

I’m careful with my next words. “Will you…turn me in? Let the administration know I had sex with you without telling you I’d joined the academy?”

His eyebrows rise all the way to his hairline. “Don’t you think if that were my intention, I would have done it already?”

“I thought about it.”

“Clearly not enough.”

His arrogance drives me wild.

“What the fuck do you want?” I cross my arms over my chest. “In your lectures, you treat me like I’m beneath you, just like the rest of the fae, by the way.

” I glance around to make sure nobody is listening and drop my voice.

“But that night at the bar, if I remember correctly, you were more than eager to not only fuck me but also see me again. Is this asshole treatment your revenge for hurt ego and pride? Like, ‘How dare this filthy yrathi refuse to have sex with me again?’”

“Damn, you really put some thought into this. Yet still missed the mark like you so often do during my training.”

I grind my teeth, heat creeping up from my chest towards my neck and face.

Ouch.

Pointing a finger at me, he lifts a glass. “Have you maybe considered that my behavior is to protect you?” I blink and purse my lips. “I don’t think you understand how serious Ezkai take our sacred, honorable laws.”

“In that case, I don’t think it’s smart for us to be seen talking.”

A corner of his sensuous mouth curls. “Talking won’t do us harm. It might even do us some good. Especially considering we might need to do more of it moving forwards.”

I arch an eyebrow. “And why’s that?” After a beat, I add, “If you plan on always referring to me as ‘human’ instead of my name, I’d rather we didn’t.”

He ignores my comment. “You have an affinity, yet your weapon doesn’t bow to you.

You have the strength of an exceptional human Decarios, yet at the current state, it’s no match against that of a fae Decarios, or even a dwarf Decarios.

You speak Ekiosh fluently enough, yet you have no understanding of our culture, politics, or what it means to be part of all this. ”

I glower at him through my eyelashes. “If I wanted someone to list out all my disadvantages for me, I would have asked Kata Nightingale to do it.”

“How do you expect to graduate the academy?”

Daegel’s words are like a stab to my stomach. He took my greatest fear, my biggest insecurity, and put it into words.

“I still have time to train,” I say. “I’m not dropping out or leaving, if that’s what you’re about to suggest.”

“Not at all. What I’m trying to say, princess , is that you’re a diamond in the rough. A little bit more pressure and polish, and you have the potential to be the brightest one in the bunch.”

I’m so surprised to hear that, my mouth drops.

“But you need help to reach your full potential if you want to graduate,” Daegel says, amusement dancing in his dark gaze. “I can help.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “And what does your help entail?”

“It means I’ll take you on as my personal mentee. We’ll train outside your lectures. It’s going to be ruthless and hard, nothing like you’ve experienced before, but it will help prepare you for what’s to come.”

Keeping his gaze, I pull up my sleeve to reveal some of my Decarios scars. “I doubt it’ll be harder than what I’ve experienced before.”

His expression doesn’t waver. No pity, no disgust.

“Even better, then. It’ll be like a walk in a park for you,” he says.

I pull my sleeve down. “Why would you do that? Offer to be my mentor and help me? Especially when it puts us in danger?”

Daegel wets his lips and averts his gaze to the soiree on the other side of the column. So close to us, yet in this moment, all of it feels distant.

“I’ll be honest, I’m not doing this solely out of the goodness of my heart,” he says, looking at me again.

“I have high ambitions. I sense you do, too. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be where you are.

It’s something we have in common.” I don’t confirm or deny.

“You have the Ezkai General’s curiosity.

He’s an unconventional man, with unconventional thoughts, which is a good and a bad thing at once.

One of his unconventional ideas is to bring more humans and dwarves to Ekios, to create a thriving mixture of cultures like Emera has, and a good place to begin is with the Order of Ezkai, to make it more welcoming to other Decarios, not only fae. ”

I snort. “Hate to break it to you, but you’ve got a long way to go.”

He smirks. “I’m aware, and so is the General. But the change has to start somewhere, and it might start with you, if you allow it.”

“I see. So you want to train me so I’ll be the human the Ezkai General can parade around and entice more humans and dwarves to come to Ekios and build a new culture with friendly and welcoming fae.”

“Pretty much.”

“How does that benefit you , again?”

“I’ll be your mentor, which is an honorable position to hold. Especially if you, as my mentee, go on to play a significant role in the eyes of our General.”

Political games . And I haven’t even graduated the academy and joined the Order.

Daegel wants to use me. I appreciate the honesty, though. That he doesn’t hide his ambition and the reason he wants to help me. It’s refreshing.

I can use him, too.

While becoming the General’s pet human soldier wasn’t my plan, if it gets me protection, power and resources I need…

Having the Ezkai General of Ekios on my side when the time comes to destroy King Francis may be invaluable. His interest in me could change things for me.

Daegel takes a step closer and turns his face sideways as if he’s not speaking to me when he says, “Besides, if you become an Ezkai, I might get to enjoy your tight heat wrapped around my cock as you come with that pretty sound, which has been haunting me for days now, once again.” Without missing a beat, he adds, “Meet me in the training hall at three in the morning tomorrow if you want my help.”

Daegel doesn’t wait for my reply before he walks away.