“Who are as thick as thieves!” King Magnar bent down to her level.
Scowling, Stafford wrapped a protective arm around Evolene. “I’ve always thought of Albert as a boy. We’re just friends, and I’ve never seen his true face close up.”
I sprang off my seat, fists clenched. “I know what you’re doing. You want me to give you something in exchange for keeping my best friend safe. Stop messing around and tell me what you want?”
King Magnar’s nostrils flared, and he reached into his cloak and pulled out his golden crown. My heart plummeted, and I tried to keep the disappointment off my face. After everything, we had failed to get the gold to Master Jesper.
“Why did you steal my crown?” his voice was whisper-soft but all menace.
“Gold is the missing ingredient to awaken the witches,” the words tumbled out of my mouth, as they were mostly true. “The alchemists burned down all the Golden Callisti apples, and King Midas pears don’t contain gold pure enough to work with their magic.”
“Why didn’t you ask for gold?” snarled Master Fosco.
My mind went blank. I swallowed hard. That was an excellent question, but I couldn’t tell them we didn’t want the witches to pull down the wards and let everyone go to war. And while gold was the missing ingredient in the witches’ version of the alkahest, we really needed the gold to create the antidote to the loyalty elixir. “I-I don’t know.”
“We want to heal the witches for our war effort, too,” said King Magnar.
I sucked in a breath. Keeping them comatose was the only thing stopping the dragons from flying to Savannah and getting caught by spriggans. Perhaps I should have kept my mouth shut because now I’d given them everything they needed to force Master Jesper to awaken the witches.
King Magnar shook his head. “You’re leaving something out. How about you tell me about the parchment you stole? Let’s send for the torturer and get the truth out of Cadet Perrault.”
“N-no!” cried Evolene. “I’ll tell you whatever you want.”
“Don’t!” said Stafford.
I lowered myself into the seat opposite and folded my arms. “You may as well, Evolene. He’s beaten us.”
King Magnar grinned. “Evolene, is it?”
She nodded.
“Tell me everything you know about why my bothersome betrothed needs the gold.”
Evolene turned watery eyes to me as though pleading for forgiveness. I raised my shoulders and gave her a tight smile. If she hadn’t been in the room, it would be me begging for Stafford’s safety. The only reason I left it to her to plead on his behalf was so that King Magnar would get it into his thick head that they were courting.
She licked her lips. “Well… I can only tell you what I know for a fact.”
“Out with it,” he spat.
Stafford shook his head. “Please don’t.”
“It’s all right,” I said to Stafford. “Just let her say it.”
King Magnar gave her what he probably thought was a benevolent nod.
“It all started when the dragons got sick.” She ducked her head. “We went to see General Thornicroft, and someone put an arrow through his chest.”
His brows drew together. It was as though he was trying to work out the relationship between the assassination attempt and our attempt to steal his crown. “Go on…”
“The alchemists were actually aiming for Master Jesper because it was the only person who could work out what was really happening.”
Master Fosco stepped forward. “What do you mean?”
King Magnar waved his hands. “We don’t need to go into too much detail! Skip ahead to this morning. What is Cadet Bluford not telling me about the attempt on my crown?”
I ground my teeth. King Magnar didn’t want Evolene to reveal the truth behind the plague in earshot of Master Fosco! So, I said at the top of my voice, “There’s no such thing as clearscale for dragons. The alchemists put a group of elixirs in the largomorphus rex to hide their true purpose.”
His marron eyes widened. “Purpose?”
“Cadet Bluford,” King Magnar snapped.
“To dose the dragons and everyone else in Mount Fornax with a loyalty elixir!”
King Magnar froze.
As did Stafford and Evolene.
Master Fosco stared at me for what felt like an eternity. His eyes blanked. It was the kind of expression Stafford had told me I would make when deep in conversation with Fyrian. Perhaps he was sharing what I’d told him with the other dragon masters.
I clasped my hands, hoping Master Fosco would be less susceptible to the loyalty elixir than the lesser-developed dragons. If he could snap out of this subservient role and take back control of his own territory, he would save us all.
He blinked back into focus. “Where are these alchemists?”
I gulped. “One of them was the librarian. He escaped through an underground hole in the wards on the back of a glacier wolf.”
“And the other?”
“Henri Bacon. He was Master Jesper’s assistant. Right now, Master Jesper has him captive in the laboratory and is trying to get him to give it the ingredients to the antidote.”
“We will execute this…” He growled. “Henri Bacon for his affront to dragon kind. When Master Jesper has successfully awoken the witches, we will execute it for harboring a fugitive!”
Evolene clapped her hands over her mouth to suppress a cry.
King Magnar clapped the dragon master on the back. “Well done, Fosco. I couldn’t agree more.”
I curled my lip. Our last hope was the flying cat. But that was only if it managed to reach laboratory with the piece of parchment containing the antidote, and if the final ingredient was something Master Jesper could obtain.
King Magnar turned to me, teeth clenched, eyes burning with hatred. “Giving you freedom has backfired. Time and time again you plot against me. I see that you need a firm hand.”
Although my heart jumped into my throat, I raised my chin and met him squarely in the eye.
“Send for Master Roopal and tell him to bring the vows of marrital obedience!”
Chapter 15
King Magnar paced the room, ranting about spriggans and ungrateful Princesses. Stafford and Evolene huddled together, both white-faced, tracking his movements. I shifted in my seat and pulled my glance away from them. There was no telling what would happen to them if the damsel denial forced me to repeat the vows of obedience. King Magnar might even order me to hurt them… or worse.
Master Fosco leaned against the wall, arms folded over his sleeveless, burgundy tunic, his face a mask of grim satisfaction. He probably thought having me married off and under a vow of obedience was his big chance to get me expelled from the Academy.
“I don’t know why you’re so pleased,” I muttered under my breath. “If you allow this forced marriage to go through, I’ll become your Queen.”
His face dropped, and he pushed himself off the wall. “S-sire, I would beg of you to reconsider your actions.”
King Magnar stopped pacing. “What do you mean?”
“Of all the spouses in the Known World, surely you could choose one more… worthy?”
He shook his head. “I will accept none other than Princess Alba.”
“But you hate me!” The words exploded out of my chest.
A muscle twitched in his jaw, and he pressed his lips together as though holding back a vicious retort. He turned his glower to Evolene. “Remove her glamor. Now.”
Evolene’s features twisted, and she cringed further into Stafford’s side. “B-but… I-I couldn’t.”
“Just do it,” I said with a sigh. “He’ll probably threaten Stafford if you refuse.”
Evolene raised her shoulders. “Y-you took my staff away.”
Master Fosco headed out of the door. As soon as it clicked shut, the atmosphere turned cold. I suppressed a shudder and held my tongue. Moments later, he returned holding Evolene’s staff.
He held it out to he
r and snarled, “Do not try to escape.”
I bowed my head and closed my eyes, readying myself for the transformation. White light seeped through my eyelids, making me shudder. Long hair tumbled down my shoulders, and I opened my eyes and sighed down at my feminine form.
“Much better.” King Magnar’s voice softened. “Could you create a gown more befitting to her status? Something as smooth as silk and the exact shade of moonlight, but retaining the fireproof qualities?”
Anger struck my gut like a punch, and my head snapped up. He was describing the dress I had demanded as a condition for marrying him. I sucked in a breath, a protest on my lips.
He raised his finger. “The only thing keeping me from punishing your accomplices to the full extent of the law is my goodwill.”
I jerked my head away. A hundred insults bubbled up from the pit of my gut, but I couldn’t voice a single one. Not with my friends at his mercy.
“I-I can try,” whispered Evolene.
King Magnar chuckled. “If you can get it right the first time, I will release you and Cadet Perrault on the condition that you do not speak of anything you saw or heard in this room.”
“Do it, Evolene,” I said.
Even though I’d spent most of my life sheltered in Mount Bluebeard, I knew that people with little money and status, like Evolene and Stafford, survived on the generosity of others. Those like Niger fared better, as he had the backing of a Noble House, but I still worried about his plight. King Magnar would easily make an example of Evolene and Stafford.
“W-will you be all right?” she asked.
I swallowed. “Please, do it.”
King Magnar clipped off his red cloak and smirked. “You may use this to shield the modesty of my betrothed while you fashion her gown.”
“Or you could leave the room and give us some privacy,” I snapped.
“Then I would have to take Cadet Perrault.” The corner of his mouth rose into a half-smirk. “And I would hate to misplace him in a place as large as Mount Fornax.”
“Come on.” I strode past King Magnar, snatching the red cloak hard enough to jostle him.
Evolene followed me to the corner of the room and turned the cloak into a screen that stretched across both walls and from floor to ceiling. She lined it with a barrier of shimmering silk and turned to me, eyes wide.
“This is a one-way silencing spell. What should we do?”
“Make the dress.” I fumbled with the buttons of my flying jacket. “Do I need to take anything off?”
Her arms dropped to her sides. “You’re just going to give in? What about the vows of obedience?”
“Father has a plan. King Magnar promised to duel him before the marriage is consummated. I don’t think the obedience vows will work until then.”
Her eyes turned as round as buttons. “The Prince Regent wants to kill King Magnar?”
“It might be our only hope.”
Evolene stared at the ground and shuffled her feet.
“I don’t want things to go that far, either, but think of what will happen if King Magnar carries out his plans. He’s going to lead those dragons to Savannah, and they’ll get captured by the spriggans. Then the spriggans will use the dragons to free the Forgotten King.”
“Didn’t the spriggan say he wanted you, too?”
“He’ll probably hand me over if he or his sisters are under any threat.”
“I suppose…” She wouldn’t lift her head.
“Evolene,” I snapped. “Who will suffer if you don’t make this dress?”
Her shoulders shook. “S-Stafford.”
“Exactly. Let’s get this gown made.”
Evolene directed me to remove my breeches, flying jacket, and leather tunic, leaving me in my long underwear. She tilted her head to the side and squinted. “We can lower the neckline, so it doesn’t show through the bodice.”
“How do you even know clothing alteration magic?”
She shrugged. “We didn’t have much before Father got his job at Mount Fornax.”
An idea shot into my head, and I screwed my eyes shut. The mention of Evolene’s father had triggered something helpful. A memory. Something that could help Mount Fornax out of its predicament. But what was it?
I let Evolene lower the neckline of my silk undershirt, but I refused to let her turn my silk under-breeches into a petticoat. She turned my leather breeches into a full skirt, my tunic into a fitted bodice, and my flying jacket into a floor-length cloak. Then she widened my gauntlets into flowing sleeves and colored them the same silver as the rest of my outfit.
“What should I do with your knapsack?” she laced the bodice around my torso.
I winced. “Not so tight! Turn it into a headdress, I suppose.”
“All right.” She loosened the laces, restoring my breathing space. “I’ll leave it so that you can still reach inside and pull things out.”
“Thanks.” I stepped into the long skirt. “At least it’s not swishing around my ankles.”
“And you can still ride Fyrian side-saddle.”
I fastened it around my waist. “Thanks. Can I have some pockets for this skirt, please?”
She made the enchantment and stared up at me, lips trembling, eyes shimmering. “Y-you look really pretty. Do you have a family necklace?”
“I left it at the palace when I ran away. Actually, I don’t have any jewel—” My eyes bulged as the idea rolled back to the forefront of my mind. “Gold! You can give it to Master Jesper.”
She chewed her bottom lip. “Ummm?”
“When you took us through the hidden passageway, we passed chests containing your Father’s treasure.”
Her mouth formed an ‘O’ and clapped her hands over her cheeks. “I-I’d forgotten about that!”
“Doesn’t matter. King Magnar thinks he’s safe. He’s probably ordered the warrior to seize all sources of gold and hidden them away from us by now, so no one can make that antidote until he’s gotten his sisters and country back. Your gold can help free everyone.”
“What should we do?”
“I’ll walk out happy with the dress and resign myself to marrying him.” She opened her mouth to protest, but I spoke over her. “I’ll do what I can to delay the ceremony, but you and Stafford have to sneak underground and get that gold to Master Jesper.”
I was so energized by the new plan, I didn’t notice the pallor of Evolene’s skin until now. “What’s wrong?”
She shook her head. “I’m being selfish.”
“No, what?”
“It’s all I have left of Father.” She blinked, and two tears rolled down her cheeks. “He saved all that so we could have a better life, and…”
My shoulders slumped. Donating a fortune in gold was easy for someone like me who could dip into the royal treasury or Father’s bottomless Bluebeard coffers. Not only was that treasure her last source of financial security, but it was her last connection to her father. I understood her reservations, but there were bigger issues at play.
I placed both hands on her shoulders. “I have some money I can give you if you’re worried about survival. Also, speak to Master Jesper and ask him to calculate the minimum you can hand over. You’ll still have the gemstones and other valuables, but if the Forgotten King gets loose, no amount of gold will keep any of us safe.”
“A-all right.”
Moments later, Evolene removed the silencing enchantment and restored the curtain into a cloak, exposing me to the males in the room. I forced my hands to my sides and clenched my teeth. Being the center of attention made my insides churn. I shifted on my feet, shoulders curling into themselves.
Stafford gaped.
Master Fosco snorted and turned his head. He probably wished it was Aunt Cendrilla in this dress instead of me.
King Magnar gasped. “Princess Alba, you are a vision.”
“Stand up straight,” whispered Evolene.
Pulling back my shoulders, I lifted my chin and met King Magnar’s gaze. His us
ually pinched features had melted into a mask of awe. The kind of expression a person would make when seeing a dragon perform an amazing feat. The unease in my stomach settled, and I exhaled a long breath. Since he was no longer glaring at Stafford or commanding Evolene, that had to be a good thing.
Holding the leather fabric of my skirt in my clammy hands, I dipped into an awkward curtsey. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”
His brows drew together. “Princess Alba?”
“Yes?” I stretched my lips into what I hoped was a demure smile.
“Would you do me the honor of accompanying me to the rest of the tournament?” He crossed the room and offered his arm.
“W-what will happen to my friends?”
He gave me a tight smile. “That depends entirely on your good behavior. I will hold them here for two days, after which, they may return to Master Jesper’s laboratory, where their movements and actions will be supervised, or if you misbehave, the whipping post.”
In the corner of my eye, Evolene gave me a tight nod. Hopefully, she would be able to slip away to get her father’s gold.
“All right.” I took his arm and walked out of the room.
Ascending the stairs leading to the royal box was a strange kind of torture. Each step added an extra boulder of panic into my gut, and by the time I reached the door, I wanted to double over and vomit. The only thing keeping me upright was Evolene’s underground stash of gold and the hope that the cat had given Master Jesper the final ingredient for the antidote.
King Magnar turned to me. “You will comport yourself like a consort befitting the monarch of the Savannah Empire. No last-minute tricks or attacks.”
I nodded. “Yes, Your Majesty.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Why are you being so obedient?”
“You’ll hurt my friends if I do anything wrong.”
His features fell, but he covered up the expression with a blank mask. I clenched my teeth. King Magnar was probably the type of person who hated to be reminded of his ill deeds.
He pushed the door open to a round of cheers and applause so loud it made my bones rattle. A gust of cool wind chilled my sweat-dampened skin, giving me the jolt I needed to step inside.
Dragon Mage Academy Box Set Page 79