Tyranny of Steel

Immediately after Berengar had concluded his business with Adela, he sought out Ava, who was still sitting in the spot she was previously been in. The woman was in disbelief. No matter how much she abused Adela in the past, the girl had never said the words "I hate you!" so seriously before. She was beginning to question every decision she had ever made. Berengar noticed the depressed expression on the woman's face, but was unmoved. He sat down beside his sister-in-law and immediately gained her attention.

"Ava, we need to talk..."

Ava gazed over at Berengar, and immediately tried to hug him, believing he would be a shoulder to cry on. However, the man pushed her away with a stern reaction on his face. This initially shocked her, but she did not give it any thought, and instead nodded her head obediently, signalling the man to speak.

"Wolfgang will be given a stay of execution for the time being. Though he is still guilty of assaulting a member of the Royal Family, and by extension treason. I will not have him executed until after I have received permission from his younger brother, Adelbrand. The last thing I need is one of my most capable Generals to turn against me.

I will send word to Adelbrand, and have him visit me personally before I decide on how to proceed with Wolfgang. If Adelbrand begs me to spare Wolfgang's life, I will exile the man to the Colonies, to start anew and live a life of backbreaking labor. If this is the case, then your marriage shall be annulled on the grounds of your infidelity, and you will be granted custody over your children."

All the grief Ava had felt in her heart since Adela had spurned her instantly vanished. It was all worth it if she could get away from Wolfgang and enter Berengar's good graces. She immediately tried to hug and kiss Berengar but was stopped before she could do so. He did not wait for her response and immediately continued on his speech.

"As for what happened between you and me, it was a mistake. I will not continue our relationship until Adela comes to accept it. For now, I will politely ask you to remove yourself and your family from my Palace. I will not, however, send you to the streets, even if Adela was to insist. Instead, I will allow you and your children to stay in my family's old castle. You and your offspring will be looked after appropriately, and you shall not want for anything.

If Adela comes to accept our relationship, then I will not mind visiting you once in a while, and having intimate relations with you. However, I will not be the father that your children need. I already have my own family, and your children with Wolfgang will never be mine. If you do not desire such a relationship, then you can look for another man to marry, and whatever relationship we have will come to an end. The choice is entirely yours to make."

Ava was stunned when she heard this news. She thought that she had finally gotten into Berengar's good graces, when in reality she was merely used on a whim, and was being discarded afterward. Ava could not believe the man was being so shameless after what he said to her at their intimate moment. She immediately questioned his integrity.

"What if I become pregnant with your child? Are you so heartless to toss me, and our child, away?"

In response to this, Berengar had a stoic expression on his face as he gave the woman an answer. He did not like her attitude and was close to backhanding her.

"If you bear my child, then I will be a semi-active part in its life. I will not, however, recognize it as my own. It will have no claim to my throne and will be nothing more than a bastard. As for your other children, I have already made my stance clear on that."

The mature beauty had a complicated expression on her face. This was not at all what she was expecting after she had slept with the Kaiser. Why was she the odd one out? Though she did not expect to be married to the man, she at least anticipated the same treatment that Henrietta received.

Instead, she cast away like a leper. Ava's vindictive nature took hold of her as she thought about Berengar's relationship with his sister, and immediately threatened to expose his secret if he did not take her and her children in.

"I know what goes on between you and your sister. I wouldn't doubt if one of your so-called heirs is really hers. If you don't take care of me properly, then maybe I'll just tell somebody about the taboo relationship you have with your sister!"

Though Berengar was being threatened by the woman, he did not immediately lash out at her, and instead chided her for her naivety.

"Henrietta is my aunt by blood. From a consanguineous standpoint, our relationship is no different from the one I have with your sister. If it were not because of political importance tied to my last marriage slot, I would have made this knowledge public, and married her.

Go ahead and tell others. I will simply make the truth available to everyone. The voice of the crown is much larger than yours. You have no power over me, and to think that you do just shows how foolish you are. If I were a more heartless man, I would have you join your husband for making that threat to me just now.

You really are your husband's wife. You know what I do to those who threaten me, and yet you so boldly try to blackmail me in my house, under my supervision, with no witnesses. Sometimes I wonder if you are really Otto's daughter. You lack both the brains and grace that most of your family has."

Ava immediately realized how foolish she was and bowed her head in apology.

"Please, forgive me, my Kaiser..."

Berengar sighed heavily as he thought about whether he should entertain such a boorish woman. Then again, he remembered how good it felt to stick his shaft between her legs, and decided to show mercy to the fool.

"I suppose I now have at least one fond memory of you. Because of that, I will spare you, and pretend like this minor incident had never occurred. However, threaten me again and you will see how merciless I can truly be."

Ava did not question Berengar anymore after this. She accepted her fate. After all, life in a lavish castle was still better than what awaited her with Wolfgang. Perhaps she could convince her sister to approve of her relationship with Berengar. If she could, her days would be filled with luxury and pleasure, even if there was no love between her and the Kaiser.

After all, she couldn't get the feeling she had when she was physically joined together with Berengar out of her mind. It was always lingering there, reminding her of what could be. Once the woman was more docile, Berengar sighed and stood up from his seat. He departed from the room with one final bit of advice.

"I will give you a week to inform your children about the changes that are about to occur in their lives. This gives me time to find a trustworthy staff to look after you and your family in the old castle. After that, I will have your things moved, and you will no longer be welcome in the palace as a guest of your sister's. Do not show up at my gates unannounced, or you will be turned away.

As for whether or not our fun can continue, that is up for your sister to decide. Normally I would just do as I please in pursuit of a woman I'm fond of. However, you are not a woman that I love and to call you a mistress would be an insult to my sister. Whether our relationship involves into anything more than a passing fancy is up for you and Adela to decide."

With that said, Berengar turned away from Ava and went on his own path. Ava would try to reconcile with her sister shortly after, but would ultimately be turned away by the girl. For the time being, she would not be able to remotely convince Adela of accepting her affair with Berengar.