Page 14 of Sinner
“You must graduate from university before ascending,” Kori reminded. “It’s important for the emperor to keep up appearances, and a strong intellectual background is paramount.”
“I’m aware.” It worked in his favor that the mourning period fell within those guidelines. He’d have just graduated by the time he was crowned. They’d come here to discuss the details of the ceremony, even though it wouldn’t take place for months yet, which was good.
It meant they were on the right track. Once the I.C. had been informed he was next in line, his fate was as good as sealed. No one would dare put a hit on him then. Even if he didn’t yet bear the crown, he would embody it, even without the coronation. Lake would be emperor in all sense of the word, only he’d have to operate behind the scenes to maintain the illusion of following custom.
They all knew it, had talked about it at length this morning, taking up his precious time with the obvious.
“I want a separate ceremony added to the end of my coronation, but we all know that doesn’t take away from following custom, correct?” Lake wouldn’t leave until he was certain.
“It will be announced to the public at the same time,” Zabs reassured, following his meaning. “They’ll know you as their new emperor, and Phoenix Monroe will be titled Royal Consort, effective immediately, as per your desire.”
The Royal Consort wasn’t restricted in the same ways as the emperor. They didn’t have to wait for mourning to end for Nix to gain his position. Technically, as an Imperial, Lake could name a consort at any given moment, he’d simply chosen to wait until he knew without a shadow of a doubt there was no escape for his Songbird.
What did that say about him? That he was still thinking in terms of ownership where Nix was concerned? That he still felt this unbridled urge to chain the younger man to his side, permanently. Nix had given himself over, and yet it wasn’t enough to soothe Lake’s doubts. Just the idea of Nix one day trying to leave him, of him changing his mind, terrified Lake in a way he’d never experienced before.
So he’d bind him to him officially now, before the final celebration of Demons Passing. It was a good way to mesh the two events together, would forever serve as a reminder of the day Nix truly became his.
It also meant he’d still get to chase a masked Nix through the Roost, a thing he’d been fantasizing about since the moment he’d entered the Enigma app and saw Nix presenting on his bed. That felt both like a lifetime ago and just last week. Their meeting had felt kismet then, and still did now.
Lake wanted to honor that by dressing his Songbird in silk and ordering him to don the silver mask he’d worn. They’d spend the entire celebration the way it was meant, carnally,viciously. He had a feeling Yejun would reject the idea, since he’d been working hard on crafting outfits for them already, but he didn’t have a say over Lake’s fantasies.
Perhaps, instead of staying at the Roost, they’d join in on the official festivities and attend the party hosted by Foxglove on campus. What better place to flaunt his new Royal Consort than at a public event such as that one? It would be safe enough, even without his coronation; a report made to the Intergalactic Conference was nearly the same. Lake would basically have the crown on his head and power in hand. The goal of their attacker had obviously been to prevent him from ascending the throne, once he’d done that, they’d be shit out of luck.
He'd covered his ass just in case anyway. They’d discussed moving the line of succession, a topic that hadn’t gone over easily, but eventually, he’d gotten his way.
No one was foolish enough to risk the wrath of the emperor.
At least, not when the emperor was him.
“The sooner the better, I say,” Kori hummed. “Wasn’t that the point of this meeting in the first place? To come to an understanding regarding this matter that worked for all of us and didn’t break any customs?”
“You’ll have to take on your duties while continuing your schooling,” Kild told Lake. “On the outside, you’d still be honoring mourning, so you won’t be able to move into the palace until the coronation. But you would be emperor in all other sense of the word. Do you understand and accept this, Lake Zyair? You won’t try to force your way in until the time is right?”
“I understand,” he replied. “I’ll remain on campus, at the Roost, the next two and a half months. It’ll give me a chance to develop a stronger foothold in the Club as well. This way, once I do move into the palace, I’ll already have full control.”
“Allowing all of that power to rest under a single ruler is…dangerous,” Franz muttered, but one cold look from Lake had him dropping his gaze.
“I assure you, I want what’s best for Tulniri,” Lake said.
“And he isn’t alone,” Kori reminded them all. “He’s the first ruler in a long time to come with a pack. There are three others to help keep him in line. He won’t just have to rely on the Order or this council.”
“He’s the strongest candidate we’ve had in centuries,” Kild agreed.
“What about Hendrix and Demitrious?” Zabs asked.
“They’re problems of the Club,” Kild stated, and the challenging glint in his eye, as though he was silently daring Lake to say otherwise, irked Lake.
But not enough to do anything about it. For now.
“We’ll take care of business on that end,” Lake ended up saying. Now that he, West, and June had seats at the Order table, he had sway there as well. “You just make sure everything here is settled in time.”
He supposed, in part, he had Juri to thank for how smoothly this was all going. If he hadn’t tossed Dew aside, they never would have had a false identity to present as the “hacker”. Doing that, passing that test, was what’d gained them leverage in the Club. And now this? With Juri’s asinine paternity claim, the High Council was more eager than ever to fast-track things and finally give Lake the coronation that was rightfully his.
A nation without leadership was weak, and Lake had placed himself in the prime position to lead. For the first time in a long time, he’d be the bridge between the planet’s two governing forces.
The last emperor, while holding a high seat at the Order, couldn’t make that same claim because they’d been alone. Lake had been smarter than her. He’d kept his friendships to heart,had genuinely cherished the connection between himself and West and June. Strength came in numbers, no matter what anyone else said.
Lake had worked to keep his pride from overshadowing their end goals, even when West was a jealous nightmare over his father’s attention, and Yejun questioned his place in their mix. And it was about to pay off.
