Page 301 of The War God’s Favorite

Phetra seemed scared, but she was unable to stop. She could barely breathe under her loud sobs.

“I... I only taught the young ones to follow orders! We had to! I didn’t...”

Kareen let out a long sigh.

“You’re just a pathetic little thing, aren’t you?”

As she said that, Kareen took a dagger out from the pocket of her dress, causing Phetra to go into absolute hysteria.

“No, no, no! Please! I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die!”

“No one wants to die,” retorted Kareen. “No one wants to kill either, but here we are, you and me. We all have things to protect, things we’d dirty our hands for.”

And in one swift movement, she killed Phetra. The Princess and her chair fell to the floor, her throat sliced open. Her eyes were still twitching, her face laying in the growing puddle of blood that would be her final vision. Kareen stepped back to avoid stepping in it, and slowly wiped the splatter from her dress. One final act, so that it could truly be over.

She simply walked out after that, closing the door behind her. Kareen took a deep breath and walked back into the Palace. She could already feel the winds of change that were overtaking this place’s filthy air. Her steps took her to another corridor. No one was there yet. Everyone was busy elsewhere, with whatever was going to come next. Kareen opened the door to the Emperor’s Chambers.

He was lying in his bed, his eyes closed. From afar, one would have thought he was simply sleeping. Kareen took a deep breath, trying to hold back her tears. She slowly walked up to the bed, looking at him from above.

“You really were selfish to the end,” she whispered. “Leaving me and your children with this mess... Was this what you wanted? To die and leave all the trouble you caused, you old man? You could never abandon a single one of them, and yet, look where it got you... Death and jealousy. Was it worth it trying to protect them all? You...”

She stopped. The sadness was growing like a knot of frustration in her throat. Kareen was too proud to cry, but she couldn’t simply stand in front of her deceased lover like a statue. She had once loved this man. She had given him many, many nights alone, before she had to put the lives of the children they had created together first.

She stepped back, closing her eyes. She was truly grateful he hadn’t died alone, although no one could say the Emperor had died in peace. She simply wished he could find some peace in the Gods’ Realm, and could watch what was to become of this Empire. Kareen took a deep breath, and as she averted her gaze elsewhere, her eyes fell on a large door. She frowned and turned to the wardrobe. She couldn’t remember what was behind those doors, but something felt nostalgic about it.

The concubine slowly walked up to the wardrobe, and as she came closer, she noticed her name carved into the wood above the handle. Kareen frowned, and slowly opened the door. There was a single piece of clothing inside.

A magnificent golden dress.

FinalChapter

It was a dark and quiet night at the Palace.

The moon was high in the sky, bright and white. The beautiful light was reflected on the surface of the wide, quiet Lake, and nearby, a magnificent Black Dragon lay, its scales shining in the moonlight too. It seemed to be sleeping, its head peacefully resting on its front paws. The dragon had been still there for a very long time, this was only one night of many others that it had been inside that garden. On the surface of the Lake, dozens of flowers were gently floating, as pure and as white as the moon. Water Lilies. A little ripple appeared in the middle of the lake, causing the flowers to drift slowly away.

It could have been a little gust of wind blowing over the surface of the Lake, or a fish tempted by a potential meal. It might have even been one of the delicate fireflies that had made a home there, and yet the Black Dragon raised its head. Its ruby eyes glowing in the dark of night, as it scanned over the surface, looking for something. And for a few seconds, nothing happened. It slowly stood up, moving closer to the water, and gently sniffed, a bit unsure. And then, its tail started swaying through the air gently.

More ripples appeared, over and over, and at the center of those ripples, some brown curls started appearing at the surface. Slowly, a woman emerged from the water, gasping for air, her pink lips shivering. The Black Dragon jumped into the water, throwing its surroundings into chaos as it ran to her. She welcomed it with open arms as soon as it arrived.

“There, there...You missed me, didn’t you?”

The Black Dragon growled softly, rubbing its head against her beautiful white skin. She smiled, feeling her heart warming up again as she brushed against its warm scales. She found the dragon’s favorite spot underneath its jaw and scratched it. The dragon growled softly, almost like a cat would purr.

“I missed you too... I missed you all.”

The Black Dragon kept growling happily and stayed right by her side as she slowly stepped out of the Lake. If it had any colors before, her dress had now lost them all and turned a beautiful white, with all the pink beads shining like little diamonds under the moonlight. With her pale skin and thin body, she almost looked like a ghost, albeit a beautiful one, coming out of the water. Leaning on the Black Dragon for support, she stepped barefoot onto the grass and looked around.

“Everything is so quiet. I wonder how long it has been...”

Even though it couldn’t answer, she smiled at the dragon as if it had. It was rubbing its head continuously against her, completely overjoyed, moving and more alive than it had been in months. She chuckled.

“Alright, alright... Shall we go now?”

The dragon growled softly, and she easily climbed up on its back. Krai barely waited until she was properly seated to take off. She felt the familiar thrill in her stomach as they got higher in the sky. It was a clear night, so clear she could see all the streets below. It ought to be late for everything to be so quiet in the Capital.

The time to observe the City was limited though. The dragon was in a hurry and flew high and fast through the sky. The beautiful woman on its back took a deep breath in. She didn’t feel the cold anymore, she just felt the fresh air filling her lungs, making her shudder. It was so nice to be able to breathe again. She closed her eyes, letting her senses overtake her. It felt amazing to be able to come back to this. She could feel the wind dancing on her skin and blowing her curls gently.

She didn’t even realize how long the trip really was. When Krai started descending, she just smiled happily. She recognized the lonely Shadelands so easily. Few things had changed - a few more trees sprouting and the snow was fresh. Was it winter here already? She could only imagine so. It felt strange to witness this all from above.

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