Lord of the Wicked [✔ COMPLETE]

Chapter 8: A Lamb Turns Wolf

Once the wave of chaos died down and the servants stopped running back and forth while yelling orders and tossing around luggage, and gathered behind the royal pair, there was a long moment of utter silence.

King Clarke looked nothing like Valek had expected. He was a short and chubby man with long, greying hair. The woman standing next to him, however, Queen Rosella, was his opposite; tall and slim with a delicate stature that reminded him of a swan, a bird one should only admire from afar. Even their faces were the very opposite, where King Clarke wasn't very pleasant to look at, and that wasn't just because of his bulbous red nose or due to his almost white eyes but rather the fact that he appeared malicious and annoyed, in contrast Queen Rosella had a gentle face with warm brown eyes and wavy hair in the same auburn shade as Ysella's, a woman appearing so motherly that Valek yearned for her embrace.

Little did Valek know that it was his duty to receive and welcome the guests of Brimstone, seeing as he was the Lord, and so to save him from any further embarrassment Ysella walked towards her parents and dropped a curtsy for the royal pair. "Father." Then she made a slight turn towards her mother and gave another curtsy. "Mother. I hope your journey went well."

King Clarke stepped forward and pushed his daughter aside with a swing of his arm. "Yes, yes. Where is he?"

A shiver crawled down Valek's spine upon hearing that thundering deep voice, sounding as furious as the man himself looked. But then the most peculiar thing happened. It disappeared. All that fear and despair the boy had felt ever since he'd entered this strange realm vanished in an instant. Why or how he did not know, but all of a sudden Valek felt himself at the top of the world, even far above the King, with an unfamiliar strength pumping through his veins.

And so he went and stood in front of the king and gazed deep into his eyes with a smile. "I am Lord Valek, I assume, by he, you mean me? Pleased to meet you, King Clarke." He gripped the king's hand and squeezed it as hard as his muscles could handle, and shook it wildly. "It's quite an honor to be in your presence, my king." He stepped back and looked the king over from top to toe with the widest grin. "Oh my, don't you look quite dashing! For a king."

As Valek touched the necklace embedded with diamonds and rubies dangling on the king's chest, the old man's eyes grew large of shock and he took a step back. "What on earth..."

"That's a very nice piece of jewelry. Must've cost a fortune." With his eyes gliding over the king's body, he studied the marine blue costume he wore. "Love your outfit. What fabric is that, polyester?"

Behind him, everyone was snorting and giggling. Everyone except for Ysella. The girl's lips were pressed tight and her hands balled into fists. Right then she wondered about Valek, just what kind of an idiot she was dealing with. Because, to make fun of a king like that, he had to be an idiot. If it didn't involve her life and future she wouldn't have cared, most likely she would've even laughed along, but right now it was anything but funny to her.

"It's... wool," the king managed to mumble.

If anything, Valek was very well aware that he came off as a lunatic, but he didn't care. In some way he hoped it'd made the king realize that he wasn't a fit suitor for his daughter, that perhaps he should have Ysella make her own decision regarding her future husband. Besides, Brimstone was his realm now, and this king was merely a temporary guest who had come to pawn off his daughter. Maybe Valek was indeed a lunatic, but in that moment he knew that he was superior to this king.

Queen Rosella frowned for a moment, then cleared her throat and forced a smile. "How about we stop standing here and go inside and get to know each other?" She looked around the crowd with a worried expression and the most awkward smile. "Shall we? Go... inside?"

"Sounds like a great idea, my queen," Valek said, and motioned his hands towards the entrance. "After you."

As they walked inside, Ysella grabbed Valek's arm and held him tight enough to slow him down until they were at the end of the line, and then waited until everyone had disappeared to drag him along through the hallways. Valek stumbled as he was being pulled forward, occasionally tripping, but he didn't dare to object or question it. Even though she had softened down since that confrontation on the day they first met, he was still a little scared of her.

She hauled him inside a round room in one of the towers and slammed the door shut. "What on earth was that back there, Lord Valek?"

"I don't know," he said with a shrug. "I just... don't like him. And, if he hates me then he can't marry you off, so what's the point in pretending I like him?"

With a deep sigh, Ysella's shoulders dropped and the furious look on her face cleared. "He won't marry me off to you, no." She gently took Valek's hand and gave him a warm smile. "I appreciate what you're trying to do, but you have to understand that he'll just go on and arrange a marriage to someone else. Someone who may not be as decent of a man as you are. Someone who may abuse me, and then I'll be stuck with that person forever."

"Oh, I didn't think of that."

Releasing his hand, she let out a dry laugh and shook her head. "Because you never think, do you?"

Valek tilted his head aside. "Not really, no."

"Also, do not forget that we need my father's army to defeat King Jerrik's reign of terror." Then, Ysella burst out in laughter, leaving him confused and unsure of what to say or do. "But, you were brilliant! That horrified look on my father's face was classic." In-between chuckles, she shook her head. "God, I was this close to losing it, I almost chewed my tongue off holding back!" She placed her hands on her mouth and continued laughing, and her laugh was such a contagious and delightful one that it caused Valek to grin from ear to ear. "Is that polyester? God, you're unbelievable."

"But, now what?" Valek asked, still grinning. "Are we in trouble? Is there any way to undo that horrible first impression?"

Her laughter vanished and she took a deep breath. "We're going to need some serious damage control."