The Dragon King's Heart

The rest of the gala went smoothly, everyone had a good time. Laina played it off as if nothing had happened to begin with. Though Lord Ethan was curious as to why Laina's bodyguards had asked to speak to her in private, he did not question further. 

However, he did notice something strange about Lord Rengal's behavior. After Laina excused herself and returned shortly after, he had a strange look on his face. 

When the night came to an end, Laina asked to speak with Ethan in private. Though it caught him off guard, he obliged. They moved to Ethan's office to have their conversation over some wine. 

Laina took a seat on the sofa opposite Ethan, while Florin and Kol stood by her side. 

"How may I be of assistance, Crown Princess Laina? Were you not satisfied with the gala?"

Laina shook her head, "I am not here to speak about that, Lord Ethan. You've done well with the planning of the gala."

"Oh?" Lord Ethan arched his eyebrow as he leaned back in his seat, "Then to what do I owe the pleasure of having this late-night conversation with you, Your Highness?"

He had always been blunt with his replies to the princess. Perhaps Lord Ethan saw Laina as someone beneath him. While his arrogance angered the princess, a part of her admired his bravery. Even in the face of royalty, he never knelt easily. 

Laina clasped her hands together as she looked over to Lord Ethan with a smile. She informed him of the poisoned wine she had been served during the gala. 

Lord Ethan widened his eyes in shock. But he did not act as surprised as she expected him to be. 

"Is that so?" Lord Ethan asked. 

The potential culprit immediately came to mind. He furrowed his eyebrows as he let out a sigh. 

"My sincerest apologies, Your Highness.  I will investigate this matter thoroughly and give you a satisfactory answer as soon as possible."

Laina smiled, "I trust you to do so, Lord Ethan. But I do have a question."

"Ask anything of me, Your Highness."

"Is it safe for me to assume this was done by one of your loyal supporters?" she asked with a smile. 

Laina's straightforward question caught him off-guard. But he was not about to shy away from it either. His dislike for Laina was known amongst the nobility, it was an open secret. 

"The chances are high," he replied calmly. 

He could see from the corner of his eye that the princess's bodyguards were glaring at him. The vampire looked as if he was ready to snap his neck in a heartbeat. 

"Your Highness, may I speak?" Florin asked. 

"Ask away," Laina gave him the floor. 

She already knew what Florin was going to ask. 

"Thank you, Your Highness," Florin turned to Lord Ethan, "How can we be certain that this assassination attempt was not orchestrated by Lord Ethan himself."

Ethan clenched his jaw as he glared at the vampire, "Are you accusing me of treason? That is a serious accusation you've made, Florin."

The vampire folded his arms as he continued, "Your calm, nonchalant reply makes you look even more suspicious, Lord Ethan. I would watch what I say if I were you."

Ethan grinned as he shook his head. Laina watched his every move. She wanted to see how he would defend himself. Hopefully, he did not disappoint. 

"My disdain for you is well known, that is true. But this is not my doing," he defended himself. 

"How do we know you're not lying?" Florin asked. 

"We don't," Laina replied for him.

She had trusted her gut in the past and it proved to be a wrong choice. But something told her, the poison was not placed by Ethan. From his reaction and his replies, Laina felt like she could trust him. 

"I'll take your word for it and leave it at that," Laina declared as she got up from her seat, "Perhaps you might want to remind them to be a little more discrete and effective, should they try something like this in the future."

"I will be sure to let them know." 

"Good night, Lord Ethan. Hopefully, I'll see you in the morning," Laina teased before she left. 

Lord Ethan bowed and remained as such until Laina and her bodyguards left his office. He slammed his hand down the table before him. The crown princess had laid her cards out carefully. 

She trapped him from the get-go. He poured himself a glass of whiskey and downed it all at one go. His words of caution had fallen on deaf ears. If Laina was harmed under his roof, the people would view him as a Queenslayer. 

He would never be able to become a worthy ruler in their eyes. That was not what he wanted. 

"I'm surprised it wasn't you, given how much you seem to dislike Crown Princess Laina," a voice echoed in the office. 

Ethan did not bother to respond, he already knew who it was. 

"I should say the same for you," he said, as the owner of the voice revealed herself to him.

It was Cordelia the witch. 

"You and I made a plan together, such a great one too. I'm not about to ruin it after all the effort we've put in," she said as she sat down opposite him. 

Seeing how troubled he looked, she offered him her assistance, "If you want, I can tell you who's the fool who attempted to poison her."

He folded his arms as he asked in disbelief, "So you already knew about this? And you did not care to warn me?" 

Cordelia burst out in laughter. She never warned him because she did not expect the plan to succeed. Even if it did, she would have prevented it. Laina was hers to toy with. 

Now that Laina was here in the Suun Hall, Cordelia was eager to mess with the Crown Princess. That night, she cast a spell of invisibility to avoid detection as she snuck into Laina's room. 

She watched her chest rise and fall as Laina slept. 

"Sleep well while you still can, princess," Cordelia whispered beneath her breath. 

She snuck up close to the sleeping princess. The witch hovered her hand over Laina and cast a spell. Her eyes glowed bright purple as she recited an incantation. 

Laina fidgeted in her sleep. She began to break out in cold sweat as her pupils darted from side to side beneath her eyelids. Cordelia chuckled as she disappeared into the shadows, leaving Laina to battle her own demons.