Chapter 3

"I knew it involved us!" Cielo said

"Hush!" I whispered

We were nearing the royal meeting room where mom and dad held special conferences. They hardly ever use it.

I knocked on the door and waited for mom to open the door. But instead of mom, it was dad who opened the door.

"Hey. What's going on?" I asked him

He held his finger to his lips and motioned us inside.

"My son and daughter! Please introduce yourselves to our guests" mom said with the fakest smile ever. And what was up with the whole "son and daughter"? It was creepy.

I looked over the three guest who wore black from head to toe. Just like Cielo said.

I held my head high and straightened my back. And with a loud and clear voice I introduced myself.

"My name is Estrella Ecstine from the Kingdom of Kardas. It is a pleasure to greet you"

My brother a few steps behind me followed my lead and introduced himself as well.

"My name is Cielo Ecstine from the Kingdom of Kardas. A pleasure"

I decided to be a bit bold and asked "And you are…?"

I could see mom flinch from my question.

"Would it be alright if we uncloaked ourselves?" One of the figures asked with a deep male voice.

"Of course. This place is safe from spying eyes and ears" Dad said

All three of the figures reached for their veils and uncovered their faces.

There were two females and one male. One of the females was older than the other and stood closer to the male who looked to be the same age. The younger female looked really familiar. But from where?

They soon took the covering from their hair. Pink. Fucking pink.

I know exactly where I recognize the girl from.

She and I used to attend the same school together a few years back.

I hated her guts.

She looked at me with intense light green eyes. As if she were memorizing my face with all her might. She looked back at my mom without a second glance at me. It pissed me off.

"I would like to introduce ourselves" the man said "I am the king of Kalkan. This is my wife, the queen of Kalkan. This is our daughter, Luna. Princess of Kalkan"

That was weird. Why didn't his wife and daughter introduce themselves? And why are they…-WAIT! What?!

"Kalkan? The kingdom of the shield?" Cielo asked in awe

"Yes. The one and only" the king said proudly

"What are you doing here?" I asked

The king didn't even spare a glance in my direction. Instead, he looked over at my dad and said "We are here because we have agreed to your conditions to combine both kingdoms and make one."

So he did hear me, he just didn't want to answer me directly. Bastard.

"This is great!" Mom said "How about we-"

The king interrupted her. "I have decided on how we will combine the kingdoms"

My mothers fake smile just got even faker "...How exactly?"

"I will have my daughter marry your son. The child that they reproduce will be a sign of peace for both sides. The old fashioned way" The king said

"...I'm sorry. What?" Mom said. Her smile was completely gone.

"This is my condition. Either we do it my way or we don't do it at all"

"Why can't we just announce to the kingdom that we are joining together? Why involve the children in such a manner? My son doesn't even have the sword. My daughter does." Mom asked

The king smirked and said "Do you really think that they will listen to a woman who's arm can turn pointy? Or will they listen to a man who has muscles that can protect millions?"

I will fucken rip your tongue out you piece of sh-!

"Why must it be my son? Why not our daughter?" Dad asked

"How would they have children? It makes no sense! Anyways, no kingdom of mine will have women in charge! There should be at least one man to keep them in check. Am I right?" The bastard said

I lifted my arm on instinct. Cielo saw and pushed it back down.

Mom looked over at us. Specifically, Cielo. They had a weird conversation just by looking at each other. Then, mom looked back at the bastard.

"How does your daughter feel about this arrangement?" She asked

"Her? She would do anything for her kingdom. She also wouldn't disobey her father. Right?" He asked her

She simply nodded her head but her eyes were cold and held no emotion.

"See? Everything is as it should!"

Mom sighed and said "Then it's settled"

"This is great! I will handle all the preparations. You can sit there and look pretty but if your husband wants to help in any way, he is always welcome" the king said as he put his veil and head garment on.

Dad called in a couple of guards to escort them out. After they were gone, the room was quiet.

"We should explain things, shouldn't we?" dad said

"Yep"