As I turned my back to leave, his voice struck like a blade against bone.
"You will take your seat at this very moment."
My body obeyed before my pride could protest. My heels stilled against the marble, the echo of my halted steps ringing far louder than the command itself.
For a heartbeat, I almost laughed.
Ah… is he truly speaking to me?
I turned slowly, deliberately, as though any sudden movement might fracture what little control I had left. Disbelief burned hot behind my eyes. I exhaled sharply through my nose, steadying myself.
"My sweet," I began, forcing a softness into my voice, "it will only be for a—"
"I said take your seat… my queen."
The title landed wrong.
Not reverent.
Not loving.
Not equal.
It was a reminder.
The warmth that usually lived behind his eyes was gone, replaced by something colder—calculating. My mouth tightened. I felt my jaw lock as anger coiled viciously in my chest.
My breath grew heavier.
I could feel the nobles beginning to watch, feel their curiosity prickling like insects against my skin. Let them look. I was not here to entertain them.
I clenched my teeth, fighting the fire rising in my veins.
In Asérivah, when a man speaks, a woman obeys.
A law carved by cowards and enforced by fear.
If only I had ever believed it.
If Astro does not survive this—
If he dies beneath their laughter—
I will turn this land into a grave.
The rivers will choke on blood.
History will remember me the way it remembers storms.
My hands trembled despite myself.
I needed to leave.
Now.
Before the arena devoured what little mercy remained in me.
"My sovereign—"
"I did not give you permission to speak."
The interruption was sharp. Final.
King Zerpet finally turned his head toward me fully, his gaze heavy, irritated—as if I were the inconvenience.
"It seems," he said calmly, "you have yet to learn the culture of Asérivah."
The irony almost made me choke.
"You will do as I please," he continued, leaning closer. "And you will respect me. Not only because I am a man—"
His voice dropped.
"—but because I am king."
Silence swallowed us whole.
My fingers curled inward, nails biting into flesh. I could barely draw breath now. Disrespect had never been something I tolerated—but this was worse. This was deliberate. Public. Designed to remind me exactly where I stood.
I looked at him.
Really looked.
And for the first time, I wondered which of us had truly become the enemy.
My chest burned. It took every fragment of restraint I had left to speak.
"…Of course, my king," I said quietly. "Your wish is my command."
The smile I forced felt brittle, exhausted—on the verge of shattering.
I lowered myself into my seat, my mouth dry, my pulse hammering so loudly I feared others might hear it. The weight in my chest grew heavier with every second I sat there, staring straight ahead, refusing to look down into the sand pits.
Because once I did—
There would be no turning back.
I swallowed hard.
"You despise me, don't you?" I whispered, so softly it barely existed.
I turned my head toward him, anger swirling violently behind my eyes, my breathing no longer steady.
He smiled.
But there was no warmth in it. No affection. Just satisfaction.
"You do as you please," I murmured, my voice low and trembling with restrained venom. "You take whoever you wish into your bed… yet you hunt down mine."
He laughed.
A full, unashamed laugh.
"It brings me great pleasure," he said, leaning in, "to see you finally understand how small your position truly is."
His hand lifted toward my face.
I turned away sharply.
The next moment, his grip closed around me—tight, punishing. He forced my head forward, fingers digging into my jaw as he snapped my gaze downward.
"Look," he hissed.
And there—
Astro.
He staggered, swayed… and collapsed again into the sand.
Weak.
Broken.
Alive—but barely.
Something inside me cracked.
Lord Tahkar's laughter rang out, sharp and cruel.
"How has this filth not died yet?" he bellowed. "Brother, this is getting boring!"
Then he screamed, voice echoing across the arena—
"FINISH HIM OFF, SER DUNKEN STRONG!"
The crowd erupted.
The Battle — Love Reduced to Blood>>
Ser Dunken Strong stepped forward.
He was enormous—built like something carved from stone and hatred. Scars webbed his arms, his chest, his face—trophies of men who had begged and died beneath him.
His weapon dragged through the sand, its edge already slick with red.
Astro tried to rise.
His hands slipped. His knee buckled. He fell again, coughing violently as blood spilled from his mouth, darkening the sand beneath him.
The crowd roared louder.
Ser Dunken kicked him.
Hard.
Astro's body jerked, a broken cry tearing free before he could stop it. My heart clenched so violently I thought it might tear itself apart.
He crawled.
Gods—he crawled.
Dragging himself through the sand like a wounded animal, leaving behind a crimson trail. Every movement was agony. Every breath a fight.
Ser Dunken laughed.
He grabbed Astro by the hair and yanked his head back.
Astro looked at me.
Not with fear.
Not with anger.
But with sorrow.
And apology.
As if he were the one who had failed me.
My throat burned. My vision blurred. I wanted to scream his name, to tear the sky open with it—but my body remained still, frozen in royal composure.
Queens did not scream.
Ser Dunken slammed him back into the ground, his knee crushing Astro's spine. Astro gasped, choking on blood, his body shaking uncontrollably.
The cheers became deafening.
They loved this.
I hated them all.
Ser Dunken lifted his weapon high.
The sun caught the blade.
Astro raised one trembling hand—not to beg.
To shield me.
That was when something inside me died.
And something far worse took its place.
I sat unmoving, my face carved from ice, while vengeance rooted itself deep within my soul.
This world has chosen cruelty, I thought.
And I will become its reckoning.