The Crown's Entrapment

Xenia shook her head as she composed herself. Looking up, it was Darius who she had bumped against. Almost instantly, he possessively snaked his arms around her, the princess quick to look around as she tried her best to get away from his grip. “Let go of me. Others will see us.”

Darius chuckled, letting her waist go only to hold her hand instead. He kept up with his affection, intertwining their fingers together as he faintly smiled at him.

“Would holding hands like this be better?” Darius teasingly asked. “Or would you prefer me to put my arm over your shoulders?”

“Tsk… You’re becoming clingy, my King. This seems so unlike you,” Xenia clicked her tongue, not bothering to pull her hand away from Darius since she didn’t want to make a scene. They stayed like that for a while, awkwardly standing in the middle of the camp like two idiots caught out in the rain.

“You look too beautiful in that dress of yours, Xen. I can’t help but imagine you without it…” Darius candidly blurted out, making Xenia blush in embarrassment.

“You’re making me uncomfortable,” Xenia complained with a frown. “Will you stop being blunt with your perverted words?!”

Darius only chuckled as he ignored her rant. With a teasing smirk, he continued, “Ah, but I simply want to be vocal about what I think of you. I’ve heard that women prefer honest men, so I’m being honest and sincere.”

“Fine,” Xenia gave in with a pout. “Suit yourself. It looks like you won’t be running out of answers to my words anytime soon.”

Darius chuckled and whispered, “So adorable. Come and walk with me for a while.”

Xenia simply let out a quiet sigh. She didn’t comment, but she started walking with Darius when he began moving. They walked at a slow pace, taking in the quiet of the night as they moved through the camp.

“This feels nice…” Darius whispered.

Again, Xenia remained quiet. She was assessing herself, and somehow, holding hands with Darius like that didn’t bother her. In fact, his palm actually felt comfortably warm against hers.

“A while ago, I had to control myself from acting out,” Darius suddenly began. “You should know that I’m quite a possessive man when it comes to my woman, and it bothers me whenever I see you have a positive interaction with that Atlas, Xen. I’m not telling you to avoid the man, of course. I’m just letting you know in advance that I can’t always control my temper like that.”

Xenia frowned at what she just heard. Stopping mid-step, her sudden inaction made it so that Darius stopped walking to match her.

She then turned to him with lifted brows and reasoned, “But Atlas is a good friend of mine. It’s only natural for me to have that kind of interaction with him. I’ve even known him long before you came into my life.”

Darius shrugged at her tone. He seemed to have conceded his point, but he still murmured in his low tone, just enough for her to hear. “I know that, but… Nevermind.”

Xenia stared at him, and Darius only gave her a smile.

“You’re acting weird,” she mumbled with a pout.

“I guess I am,” Darius agreed with her.

Xenia blinked her eyes at him in disbelief. “Tell me what’s really bothering you,” she almost practically ordered. She was curious as to what he was about to say before he cut himself off.

“Wow!!! Our Xen… truly is a beautiful Princess!”

The two suddenly had their attention taken away from one another. Turning around, it was Gideon who had suddenly popped up out of nowhere along with Bartos.

“Who would’ve thought? My… I’m honestly still in awe at seeing you in a female outfit and letting that long hair of yours loose like that,” Gideon added with a delighted smile.

Xenia’s face reddened as she said, “Stop that. You’re making me blush.”

“You two should head to your respective tents by now,” Darius pointed out with a serious expression. “Tomorrow will be a long day, so rest and save up as much energy as you can.”

Seemingly taking the hint, the two quickly left, leaving her alone with Darius once more. There was a tension between them, an awkward feel settling in the space between her and the king.

“Are you uncomfortable?” Darius suddenly asked her.

‘Am I?’ Xenia inwardly asked herself.

“I’m not used to this,” she genuinely replied. She had never been in a relationship before, so she didn’t know exactly what to do.

“Hmm, I hope you’ll get used to me soon then,” Darius casually stated as he began walking again. Quietly, Xenia followed suit. She knew how a few eyes were starting to linger on them, and she tried her best not to give them any more scenes to pay attention to.

“Are you bothered by being seen with me like this by your people?” Darius asked next.

“I’m bothered that I’m acting meek and obedient instead of being stubborn around you,” Xenia unknowingly voiced out.

Darius chuckled, “Isn’t that a good thing?”

‘No, I’m confused…’ Xenia wanted to say, but she couldn’t.

Having had enough of walking, she suddenly stopped and walked towards the nearest vacant bench. She then sat on it, patting on the empty space beside her as she offered, “Come and sit with me.”

Taking her offer, Darius took a seat next to her. They then looked out onto the camp. From where they were seated, they could see how busy the Ebodian soldiers currently were in their preparations.

After a while, Xenia let out a sigh and dishearteningly said, “Any day now… Many of them will become wounded. Or worse, die.” She let out another sigh, “I’m sure many of them have families waiting for them. I still don’t get it. Why can’t some kingdoms be satisfied with what they already have?”

“That’s just the harsh reality of this world…” Darius coolly commented “Not everyone has the same mind, beliefs, objectives, and goals. Sometimes, we even lose our loved ones… We can sacrifice so much for what we believe in…”

“Do you think your family will like a human like me as your mate then?” Xenia curiously asked. It was one of the many questions she wanted to ask Darius.

Darius grinned with a chuckle, “Hmm… I only have my mother and my little sister. Are you worried? I can always back you up if need be.”

Xenia hummed in thought. She wasn’t really worried about that because she was sure she could take care of herself just fine. It’s just that she didn’t exactly know what to expect once she was finally married and living with him at Cordon.

“My little sister Freya would be delighted to meet you,” Darius noted with a satisfied smile. “Right now, she’s still at Mount Sorel for her training, but she’ll be back in Cordon ten days from now. She’s also only a year younger than you, so I’m sure you two will get along.”

Xenia chuckled, “What about your mother then? I guess she’s against you having a human as your wife?” As much as Jayra was about to brief her more about Cordon and its customs, she was still curious to know from the man himself.

“Xen, you should know that I will fight against the whole world if it means I can stand by your side… just to be with you…”

She was speechless at what she had just heard. Inwardly, she thought, ‘Seriously? I can’t believe how this Mate Pull on werewolves is this strong.’