The Crown's Entrapment

At Miran Ocean

It was another dawn for Xenia and Darius as they sailed out to the open sea. The weather was really cold for her, but Darius’s warmth was always around her whenever she needed it. Currently, her mate was sleeping soundly. While she, for some reason, had already woken up and seemingly had a hard time going back to sleep.

‘I might as well have a walk around or something…’

Carefully and quietly, she moved out of Darius’s embrace, deftly putting on her fur cloak before moving to move out of the cabin. Reaching the deck, she smiled upon seeing Osman standing by the rear of the deck. He had a steaming cup of hot coffee… or at least, that was what she expected it to be, having noticed how the admiral loved drinking the beverage.

Looking around, she knew it was already morning, even though there was still no sun to be found on the horizon. Xenia closed her eyes as she inhaled the aroma of the calm ocean. Letting out a deep breath, she opened her eyes, once again admiring the natural beauty of the clear waters below.

From there, she turned to walk to Osman, the admiral having noticed her approaching him as he turned.

“Good morning,” Xenia greeted with a wide smile.

“You’re in a good mood, Your Majesty,” Osman addressed, making Xenia lift an eyebrow in suspicion. It was the first time he had addressed her in such a way, having usually called her using milady or princess.

“What’s with the formal way of addressing me?” she snorted.

Osman chuckled and said, “You’re soon to be our Queen, and I want to be the first to address you accordingly.”

Xenia blushed at the unexpected answer. She hadn’t thought he would say such things.

“It has been my honor to handle your training, Your Majesty,” Osman slightly bowed, curtsying as he addressed her. “And like our King believes, I too, believe in you…”

“Thank you, Lord Osman,” Xenia smiled before she suddenly had a sudden thought. “Ah, why do I have a feeling that you’re about to torture me again despite those compliments?”

“Well, I’m sure it’s not something you can handle yet,” Osman musingly pondered. “Maybe we can find out later during the day. In the meantime, would you like to have some coffee with me?”

Xenia nodded. At her confirmation, Osman then walked to the nearest area where a chair and table were affixed to the deck. Behind him, Xenia followed.

Sitting down, Xenia found herself taking another look out at sea. The ship was swaying against the waves, but it wasn’t as rough as before, the ocean having calmed on that particular day.

“I’ll probably freeze if you asked me to swim right now,” Xenia murmured, absently looking at the waters below. She was pretty sure that the waves below were freezing cold at that point in time.

“No,” Osman chuckled. “Don’t worry, Your Majesty. It won’t be like that.”

“Thank Heavens!”

Xenia jokingly sighed, making Osman chuckle even more before handing her a cup of coffee. Taking a sip, the princess raised her brows at the peculiar taste of the beverage. It was her first time trying out coffee, being more used to drinking tea than imbibing the bitter drink.

Although, surprisingly enough…

“This is quite good,” she found herself commenting, partially inhaling the robust aroma before taking another sip. She found that the action only enhanced the flavor, and since she saw Osman doing it often she realized that it was probably the correct way to drink such a beverage. “My compliments.”

“Much obliged,” Osman absently replied.

She creased her forehead at his change of tone. Her notice was only piqued further when Osman touched his necklace. He would lovingly touch it between his fingers, rolling it in between his knuckles with a sigh that he probably thought would be hidden from her.

“You’re longing for her…” she casually commented.

“I do, but I’ve already accepted that we’re simply not meant to be,” Osman admitted with a long smile, letting out a breath of reminiscence as he continued. “I will do as she wants, which is to move forward and continue on with my life, but she will always be in my heart. She wanted me to live a happy life, and I shall do so for her sake…”

“Hmm, I can’t wait to see and meet her then,” Xenia beamed. “She seems to be a great woman.”

“That she is,” Osman nodded. “Though, I’m sure that by now, she already has someone else; most probably someone else of her kind as her king. She probably even has her own offspring by now…” He murmured with a sigh, “Those inside the Element Forest aren’t immortals, but they still have long lives to live. Helena was already in her hundred years of living when I first met her, and even then she still looked so young.”

“Well, fairies do have long life spans that usually range from a thousand years all the way up to a thousand and five hundred…” Xenia casually commented. Inwardly, she was glad that she studied enough about the creatures living and trapped inside the Element Forest.

“Indeed…” Osman answered with a faint smile.

There was a bout of silence as the two stared out into the vast ocean. The waves crashing against the ship made for a cool backdrop, one that made the silence soothing despite its coldness.

“Do you have any plans on having a family of your own?” Xenia suddenly asked. “Like marrying and having children?”

It was an honest question. She was simply curious, and Osman was a nice man, enough that she couldn’t help but hope for something good to happen for him.

Osman chuckled, “Of course… I’ve been conditioning myself well. I mean, I don’t want to be unfair to my future wife, so I’ve been preparing myself to be fully ready in committing myself to my would-be spouse.”

Xenia smiled and nodded in agreement. “You’re a great man, Osman, and I’m sure you’ll have someone out there who you could share your life and have a family with.”

“I hope so too, Your Highness…”

From there, their conversation was interrupted when a pigeon flew towards them, stopping to perch at Osman’s arm with a piece of paper on its leg. It was obviously a message, and Xenia could only wonder what it was about. But then, it would be improper of her to ask Osman about it.

Unfurling the piece of paper, Osman read the letter, only for him to tear it into pieces and throw it into the ocean. He looked at her and said, “It’s a report from the battlefield. There’s been another report regarding the dragon’s appearance.”

Xenia blinked at Osman with her questioning eyes. The latter probably understood her expression as she said, “His Majesty telepathically gave me instructions a while ago not to keep everything from you. Any reports coming in and out during our journey should be reported to you as well.”

“Oh…” Xenia murmured, forming an O shape with her mouth. That was quite fast. Her dear mate was truly showing her that he didn’t want to make the same mistake of hiding anything from her again.

“There’s also a report from Commander Zandro saying that Prince Ezekiel is still missing as of today,” Osman added.

Commander Zandro was the head of the chivalry army of Cordon whom His Majesty had entrusted to lead the Cordon soldiers aiding Ebodia during the war.

Xenia’s shoulders dropped. Ezekiel wasn’t missing. In fact, he was probably the dragon that had reappeared at the site. Mineah had told her before that there was a possibility that Ezekiel was still unable to control himself while shifting forms, so he was probably unable to go back to his human form whenever he pleased.

“Tell me, Osman, how was your experience as a Lycan? Was shifting forms a struggle?” Xenia asked. “How long did it take for you to master everything and get a hold of yourself?”

It was a valid question, one that she could use to get some information regarding her brother’s status. But then, she quickly realized that Ezekiel’s case might be a whole lot different from the Lycan’s. His brother had turned into a full dragon after all, while Osman was clearly unable to turn into a wolf since he didn’t have a wolf inside of him.

“Wait… Never mind…” Xenia quickly pulled back, her look becoming downcast as she turned towards the cabin. “I’ll be going back inside to relay the news to Darius instead… I’m sorry for the callous question.”

Turning around, Xenia left without another word, leaving the Lycan simply dumbfounded as he watched their future queen walk back inside the king’s cabin.

“Okay then?” Osman blinked, taking a sip from his cup before letting out a shrug. “Oh well… It wasn’t like I was offended or anything… I would’ve answered if she let me…”

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September 5, 2022 Important Note:

The author will undergo hysterectomy surgery on Wednesday/Sept. 7, 2022 due to the biopsy result of my recent D&C which is Atypical Complex Hyperplasia. The doctor advised removing my uterus since I am prone to cancer (family history). During operation, they will send the uterus to a frozen section to test for cancer. If has cancer cells then they will also remove my ovaries and lymph nodes, if none then it’s just the uterus. I will release all my stockpile chapters by scheduling them in advance which will automatically be uploaded by web… Hopefully, I will get better soon so we won’t miss our daily update in case the stockpile ran out. If there’s no more update then please be known that I’m probably still recovering and in no condition to write yet. Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding. Keep safe and Godbless *warm hugs everyone*

PS. Please continue to vote for our book and keep it in good ranking both on Golden Tickets and Power Stones. I will make it up to you guys as soon as I’m able… Thank you *kisses and hugs*