Chapter 164

FELIX

It was time for me and Mila to travel to Aberenathy. We could delay it no longer–although the magic across the kingdoms was safe and protected, time was still of the essence when it came to the civilians in Abernathy.

We were concerned about what the King was doing to his citizens. Based on Isabella’s report, things were certainly taking a turn for the worse for our enigmatic neighbor.

We sent word ahead that we would be entering the kingdom, knowing that if we entered their airspace without warning there would be warfare. Still, I made sure to take Ignatius and several other dragons with us, and Mila was already preparing several protection charms for us.

I shuddered at the thought of bringing my wife into Abernathy with no real idea what we were facing, but we were a team. We were going to face whatever awaited us, together.

The lie sent ahead was simple enough: we wanted to have a formal introduction as the new Fresonian royals and discuss trade with the King of Abernathy. A harmless enough request, one that would hopefully not raise any eyebrows.

We arrived at the castle of Abernathy as dusk was setting, the last rays of the sun bathing the kingdom in a soft golden light. It looked beautiful and picturesque, right out of a fairytale.

The second I stepped off Ignatius, however, I knew something was wrong.

The air should have been crackling with magic, just as it was in Fresonia. Here, however, it was dull and still, not a hint of magic anywhere.

Mila’s face was pale as she surveyed the scene in front of us.

“He’s keeping it all for himself,” she whispered. “That’s why the air is so dead.”

I squeezed my wife’s hand and felt her skin grow cold as the King of Abernathy stepped out of his castle and onto the grounds ahead of us.

He could not have been that much older than my father, but his aura crackled with a deep, ancient, greedy evil. It was as if the magic he was hoarding was rotting his very soul.

Mila sucked in a sharp breath.

“We got this,” I murmured to her.

The King strode towards us, eyes glinting. “Felix! It’s been so long since I’ve seen you. You were just a boy then!”

“Apologies for the short notice,” I said smoothly. “We’re here on a rather urgent matter.”

The King frowned. “What, no introduction to that beautiful wife of yours? My dear, I just have to hear your story.”

Mila extended a tentative hand. “A pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty.”

He kissed the back of her hand, his lips lingering far too long for my liking. “The pleasure is all mine.”

His tone made my stomach tighten, but I knew better than to start a fight right now.

“Thank you for your hospitality,” I said sharply.

The King drew back, smirking. He extended an arm towards his foreboding castle. “Shall we?”

And with that, we walked into the lion’s den.

The King gave us a grand tour, clearly intending to show off his acres of land and silent, obedient servants. Mila said very little throughout the tour, and I knew she was quietly using her magic to poke and prod at the defenses around the castle.

“We keep things very orderly here in Abernathy,” the King bragged. “Everything and everyone is in their proper place.”

“Except the magic,” Mila said softly.

We both turned to her in shock.

“What?” The King said.

Mila smiled sweetly. “Isn’t that the true appeal of Abernathy? That magic flows freely here?”

A clever play.

“Of course,” the King spluttered.

We carried on through the castle, the crease between Mila’s brows only deepening further. My wife was concerned, and that was a bad sign.

Eventually, the King invited us to dinner. The cache of guards I had brought with us were forced to stand outside the dining room, and I made a mental note to make sure they received food later.

Having a wife who was also the most powerful enchantress alive was certainly handy in times like these. Mila subtly checked each dish served to us to make sure it was not poisoned in some way, giving me tiny nods once she cleared each round of food.

“What brings you to Abernathy after all these years?” The King asked finally. “Surely it cannot be for setting up a trade deal.”

I shifted in my seat. “I’m sure you’ve heard by now that there are issues with magic in the other kingdoms. Truthfully, we wanted to see if whatever plague was causing ours to fade was also affecting you.”

A carefully manufactured lie, to keep in line with Isbaella’s cover and to lure the King of Abernathy in with a false sense of trust. He was far enough out of the loop to not know that the magic had been restored, and whatever forcefield he had placed around Abernathy had blocked out that original restorative wave.

Sure enough, the King nodded. “So I’ve heard. And no updates?”

“We have some leads,” I said slowly. “But nothing concrete?”

“Do you have any ideas?” Mila was practically batting her eyelashes.

The King shook his head. “Nope. Sorry. The magic here is fine, as you can see. In fact, we’re doing better than ever. Clearly there’s something wrong with that fancy kingdom of yours.”

He was lying through his teeth.

“Well, thank you anyway,” I said finally. “I know that you and my father did not always have the best relationship, but now that I am King, I hope to restore relations between Fresonia and Abernathy.”

A partial truth.

“Your father was very uptight,” the King said through a mouthful of food. “Last time I was here, I offered him everything–food, drink, women, you name it. He seemed disgusted by the whole thing. Real stick up his ass.”

“Where is your court?” Mila asked politely.

The King waved a dismissive hand. “They’re all off doing important work for me. Can’t say for sure when they will be back.”

Mila shot me an alarmed glance at that. The nobility was clearly being locked up somewhere, forced to watch as their magic was drained from them at the whims of this awful man.

“So why are you really here?” The King asked abruptly.

I took a deep breath. Showtime.

“I heard a rumor,” I said softly.

The King laughed. “About what?”

“That you were hoarding all the magic for your kingdom and draining your citizens of their very lifeblood,” I said boldly. “That taking the power from your civilians will only kill them in the long term.”

The King sighed heavily. “So that little slut last week wasn’t actually from the South Smythe Islands, was she?”

Mila frowned at the passing mention of Isabella, but said nothing.

“So what if I’m choosing to do this?” The King continued. “It’s none of your business.”

“We are sworn protectors of the magic in all the kingdoms,” I declared. “That makes it exactly our business.”

That caught the King off-guard. Clearly, the news of our newly-established roles had not yet made it through the borders of Abernathy.

“And what are you going to do about it?” The King purred.

I leaned back in my chair, staring down the King. “What about a duel?”