Chapter 7: A Side Piece?

The Northern Kingdom’s castle is massive.

The gray, stone walls are depressing, and as Sigrid guides me around, I find myself asking, “Why isn’t there anything colorful in this place?”

The question comes out before I can stop myself.

Sigrid gives me a small smile. “The North has always been this way. None of the previous queens cared much about decorating the castle. His Majesty’s parents were never concerned about appearances, either. As I’m sure you know, the North is responsible for protecting the Veil between the human world and ours.

The Veil has incredibly strong magic, and it affects the wildlife in that area, causing those creatures to mutate. The royal family is tasked with ensuring the resulting monsters don’t cross into the human world, so they are kept very busy protecting the Veil. They simply don’t think about things like having color in the castle. But if you wish to decorate, I can talk to the king about a budget—”

I shake my head. “I don’t want to change anything. I was just asking.”

I can feel her eyes on me, but she doesn’t press the issue. Instead, she says, “Miss Asher should be in her office right now. We can take her along with us while we look at the grounds and do a quick tour of the local villages.”

As we head to her office, I think about the Veil.

While the human world and the wolf kingdoms exist on the same Earth, a magic barrier was cast centuries ago, separating the two species.

The humans craved development, while the wolves wished to stay true to their traditions and their kind. Animosity had already begun to spread between the humans and the wolves, and the witches of that time decided to separate them to prevent any escalation.

It is not easy for a human to cross the Veil, but for beings with magical energy, such as us wolves, it is not hard.

Princess Ravenna hated history lessons, and I was often forced to double for her when she wanted to play truant.

While our education was mostly the same, the king didn’t want to give me too much advantage, but his daughter didn’t care. She wanted to use me in whatever way she saw fit.

So, I attended plenty of her lessons in her place, which is why I have so much knowledge about the placement of the various kingdoms. I also know about the existence of the wolf kingdom in the human world.

Unlike us, they have fully embraced the humans’ modern development, and they don’t live in castles. I visited them once, in the princess’s place. The world of humans fascinated me. There was no discrimination among classes. At least, none that I saw.

They didn’t whip those beneath them. They had their own problems, but from my point of view, those problems were trivial compared to what I faced daily.

The education systems were different. Several thousand students would learn in one building.

In the wolf kingdoms, children are taught individually by a select few, and most receive that education at home. And even that schooling is limited to their requirements. I had to meet the king there, Erik, and he must have sensed my fascination with the human education system because he gifted me several books on various subjects.

Princess Ravenna, when she saw the gifts on my return, was disgusted and tossed them aside. I kept those books and read them all. There were subjects that the princess considered boring, but I found interesting.

Bella Asher’s office is in a corner of the castle, and when we enter, I see towers and towers of books stacked from the ground upward.

There’s a desk near the window, and a man is standing by it, his back to me. His physique is slim, his hair a soft blonde and tied in a long, flowing ponytail.

When he turns around, I’m startled. It’s not a man but a woman. She’s wearing rimless spectacles, a plain white dress shirt, and dark pants—usually a man’s attire.

Bella is strikingly attractive, though, and I know in a heartbeat that Princess Ravenna would never have allowed such an individual anywhere near her husband.

Sigrid introduces us. “This is Bella Asher, Your Majesty.”

Bella’s voice is cool, reminding me of my mate. “Is this the queen?”

I’m used to disrespect, and I can sense it in her tone. She’s not addressing me, simply confirming my identity.

“This is Queen Ravenna,” Sigrid says, her voice sharp. “I’m giving her a tour of the castle and the villages—”

“Why?” Bella asks abruptly, snapping closed the book in her hands. “She’s not the real princess. She’s just a lowly maid of the actual—”

“Bella!” Sigrid’s tone is harsh, and the woman stops talking. “She is the queen. If you can’t show her the respect her status demands, then perhaps I should seek out another individual who will be more willing to look past their bias.”

Bella stiffens, and I look at Sigrid in wonder. I thought she was just the head maid. I didn’t know she had so much authority to make even the royal assistant look flustered. The latter looks at me. “My apologies.”

She doesn’t sound sorry, nor do I care.

“Now, will you accompany us on the tour?” Sigrid asks, her voice hard.

Bella nods. “Let me grab my coat.”

“That reminds me.” Sigrid glances at me. “I should get you something heavier to wear. The castle is warm inside, but—”

“This is warm?” I blurt the words, and Sigrid studies me with concern. “Are you feeling chilly?”

I look down at the simple green dress I’m wearing. The fabric isn’t very thick, but I thought I wasn’t allowed to wear anything on top of it, so I never asked.

When I don’t answer, Sigrid reaches out and touches my hand. Her expression grows horrified. “Why didn’t you tell me you were so cold?!”

“I didn’t notice,” I lie.

“I’ll get you a coat. Stay here.” She hurries off, leaving me alone with Bella.

The woman stares at me and finally says, “Don’t expect me to treat you like royalty. Locke has informed me about you. I am among his most loyal people.”

I study her. The possessive way she’s talking about my mate makes me wonder if there’s more between them than just loyalty. Not that I’m going to voice my concerns.

When I don’t react, she frowns. “What, you’re not going to say anything?”

“You’ve made your position clear. Would you like me to say something?” I ask politely.

She walks over to me, grabs my chin, and lifts my head. “I’ve met the real Princess Ravenna, you know. You don’t do her justice.”

This makes me smile, amusement a flitting emotion. I gently remove her hand. “There were several occasions when I stood in front of the king of the East, and he was not able to distinguish between his daughter and me. You don’t like me, and I understand that. You don’t need to say anything further. I understand my position in this kingdom quite well, Miss Asher. I’m not here to make enemies. I am simply trying to survive.”

Bella gives me a mocking smile. “Sure.”

I meet her gaze and realize that I’m tired. I’m just so tired of it all. In this constant battle for survival. Is this existence even worth fighting for?

“I’m going to wait outside, if it’s quite all right with you.” I turn around and head toward the door.

“If you think you will win Locke’s heart by acting all meek and shy, you don’t know the first thing about him,” Bella calls after me.

“Are you his lover?” I ask bluntly, pausing to look back over my shoulder at her.

Her eyes widen at my question, and then a small smile forms on her lips. “And what if I am?”

I stare at her, feeling my wolf howl in misery inside me. Hush, I comfort it. You’ve got me, don’t you?

No wonder the king is so cold to me. He already has a woman he loves.

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