The Dragon King's Substitute Bride

Chapter 122

CH122 Tsuneo

"With them? Yes. You? No... But Pyra and Morgan do. He shook his head. "Those that have their own agendas will

be looking to exploit your doubts. You must be ready."

I nodded, though the weight of his words settled heavily on my shoulders.

"And what about... Siora?" | asked, my voice quiet. The nhad been hauntingever since Morgan told me

about her. "Does she have something to do with... this uneasiness you feel?"

Tarofu's eyes darkened, a flicker of pain crossing his face. "Siora... was our daughter," he admitted, his voice

tinged with sorrow. "She was our youngest and the only iridescent dragon. She cof age in the midst of the

war between the dragon and tiger kingdoms and died merely three days: after her birthday."

| remained silent, letting him continue.

"She was... such a gentle soul," Tarofu said, his voice growing heavy with emotion. "Beautiful, powerful... and a

beacon of hope for our people. But the war... it took everything from us. Sioral wasn't a warrior by any means,

but the tigers were out for blood and conquest. She was killed. The loss was... devastating."

| felt a chill run throughas | listened, the weight of his words pressing down on my chest. I could see the pain

etched into his features, the memory of their daughter's death still raw, even after all this time.

"Pyra... Pyra couldn't bear the loss," Tarofu continued, his voice barely more than a whisper now. "It sent her into

a madness... a rage that consumed her. She blamed herself, blamed me, blamed the entire world. The pain of

losing Siora twisted her into something unrecognizable. She becconsumed by her anger, her grief, and she

lashed out at anyone who dared cnear her. The fight raged for several more weeks, nearly reducing all of

the realms to ashes."

The image of Pyra, the phoenix, destroying the realm was difficult to process. Unheard of, but | could see that

ruthlessness in Morgan, | could believe that it had happened.

"I'm sorry

"I don't know if Pyra thinks | remember or not, but she cannot fall to her rage, he grief, again. There will be no

rekindling her. | rose the veil between the realms to try and contain the damage and force her to be reborn."

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My heart sank. "You... You had to kill her?"

He closed his eyes and gave one nod. "She would have killed everyone, her children and in the end herself when

she'd realized what she'd done. And now, | fear that history may repeat itself if we are not careful."

| shuddered at the thought. "What can be done?"

"No enemy can be given quarter," he said. "And the rest is... up to fate."

I didn't like that idea.

"Neither do I, but... | have hope." Tarofu's gaze softened, his ancient eyes gleaming with a flicker of pride. "You

have grown stronger than | could have ever imagined, Tsuneo... You remindof our eldest son in that way."

I blinked. "Your eldest?"

He nodded. "The one for which you were named. He was a golden dragon and ruled after our daughter as she

had no interest in children."

I hadn't known that | was named for an ancestor,

"Try not to lose sleep over it," He said, the hall grew hazy around us. "Sleep well."

| let my mind drift away, and slowly, | started to wake. | looked up at the ceiling, taking in the silence of the

morning. Morgan was still asleep beside me. | swallowed, turning over everything. The road ahead had never

seemed so uncertain, yet | felt as though it was not something to fear.

My mother was alive.

My father was no longer teetereing on the edge of collapse.

I had found my phoenix, and everything else seemed so in consequential. Tarofu chuckled from the back of my

mind. His amusement was warm and settling. He seemed happy. The gloom that had hung over his mind had

faded. Morgan stirred beside me, her hand finding mine as she blinked awake.

"Tsuneo?" she asked groggily, her voice laced with concern. "You okay?"

| nodded. "Just thinking."

"Too early."

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| chuckled and turned over, kissing her cheek. "Go back to sleep. You're probably still recovering,

hm?"

She shook her head but made no move to get up. | didn't either, deciding it would be worth. staying in bed for a

little longer. As | lay there beside her, | wondered what she'd spoken to Pyra about, if she'd gotten any answers.

Did she know that Pyra had lost her mind? Morning light streamed through the windows of our chambers, slowly

brightening the room. I slipped from bed, leaving Morgan there. | dressed and headed out, running into Maya and

Anya in the hallway. | couldn't help but smile at how healthy she looked. There wasn't even a scar left.

"Good morning, ladies." | nodded back toward the door. "The queen hasn't risen yet."

Maya grinned. "Kept her busy all night, hm?"

Anya turned bright red. | smirked at Maya. "Noy just yet, Lady Maya. Though I'm sure you'll be the first to ask for

details, as invasive as you are."

She pulled a face. "No. | have no interest in what you get up to."

| laughed. "That's good to know."

| pinched her cheek and headed toward my office. | got there and saw the stack of files on the table. | sighed and

opened, them flipping through them, growing more on edge every time.

They were all rejections. | left my office to find the palace stewards.

"You cannot mean that they have all refused."

It was impossible. The group of them winced, bowing their heads, shaking their heads.

"I'm afraid so, Your Highness."

I looked down at the files.

"Start from the beginning."

Morgan

Maya and Anya had breakfast withand helpedget the rest of the records for all the risen in the sky, | had

worked through most of the accounts. By the tthe sun had full documentation available. | sat at my desk,

staring at the ledgers in front of me. As | delved deeper into the palace accounts, a disturbing pattern began to

emerge. Lady Maro, one of the most prominent figures in the royal court, seemed to be indulging in a lifestyle of

extravagant luxury,

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CH122

completely oblivious to the kingdom's financial constraints. Given that the expenditures were so large and

outlandish, | had a good feeling that she was working with Elia. "Where's Tsuneo?"

"| think he was supposed to be meeting with the palace steward."

| hummed. | could wait for him, but that felt silly. | was queen, and | had decided to take a closer look at the

palace accounts myself. Besides he was already on edge. | flipped through the pages, the numbers didn't lie, and

the list was pretty long, | wonder if Haruka knew how long the list had been, or if it had grown over the years. |

tutted, seeing sof the invoices. Silks, perfumes, rare wines, and jewels-enough to supply a royal family three

times over, but | could bet that half of the goods on the invoice were no longer in their possessions.

| grabbed the records and stood. "How do | get to the harem?"

Chapter Comments

Visitor

this seems to be dragging on now.