"What was I thinking?" Kira rubbed her temple in frustration. "Was I just thinking about settling down? Crazy!"
She scoffed to herself and continued her journey, going into town. She went to the tavern in the middle of the city and looked for some thugs that she could pay to help her do some work.
She explained to them quickly what she wanted and they were only happy to make some extra money without committing a crime, for once.
***
When Kira arrived at the palace, she was welcomed by a wholesome sight of the royal family who was relaxing on the terrace, watching their beautiful garden.
Mars was sitting on a lounge chair with Harlow on his lap, while Emmelyn sat leisurely with her head rested on his shoulder. She was munching on fruit slices. The family was talking in a low voice and smiles were evident on their faces.
For a moment, Kira was standing rooted in her place, feeling in awe. She thought the family looked so good together. She was happy for Emmelyn. Finally, after going through so much, she could find her happily ever after.
This made Kira think about her own life. Suddenly, the image of Lord Gewen Athibaud flashed in her mind. She furrowed her brows. Could she see herself in the situation Emmelyn was in now?
Could she settle down, get married, and have children?
Kira was moved from her reverie when Emmelyn suddenly saw her and waved at Kira to come near.
"Hey! How was your vacation?" Emmelyn asked with a big smile. "I thought you will be away for a week?"
Mars told Emmelyn that Gewen planned to take Kira to Southberry for one week. So, with the trip, back and forth, she should only be back after ten days. However, this was only the seventh day and she was already here?
That must mean they cut their vacation short because something urgent happened. Emmelyn was wondering if it was good or bad.
Kira just shrugged nonchalantly. "Ah... you can only look at vineyards for so long."
"Really?" Emmelyn remembered even during spring, when there wasn't much to see in the vineyards, she considered the view was gorgeous. So, she imagined it would look really nice and beautiful during this time of the year.
But maybe Kira had a different taste and couldn't appreciate such beauty that normal people would enjoy? Emmelyn could only guess.
She did hope it didn't have anything to do with the fact that Gewen didn't come back with Kira. She thought the man would at least take her back to the royal palace, subtly showing his success of wooing the pirate princess.
Well... where was he, by the way?
"Yeah," Kira replied. "I mean, it's nice and all, but there was literally nothing to see but grapes and grapes everywhere."
"Isn't that the point?" Emmelyn raised a brow, not understanding.
She actually would LOVE to go to Southberry in Kira's place, but also with Mars in Gewen's place, because she really wanted to see how beautiful the vineyards were when they were still filled by bunches of grapes.
There was a reason why her husband considered that place as his favorite place in the world.
However, she understood why Mars asked her to let Gewen and Kira have their moment together. So, Emmelyn relented and welcomed her husband's initiative to take her on holiday to another place.
So, seeing how nonchalant Kira was about the place, made Emmelyn feel bad. She also felt sorry for Gewen. Did this mean, Gewen didn't manage to impress Kira? They didn't do anything sexy in Southberry?
Hmm... suspicious.
"Where is Gewen?" Mars asked Kira. "I thought he would take you back here."
"Oh, he went directly to his parents' home. We went our separate ways at the city gates," Kira replied. "That's fine. I had something to do, anyway. I went to see some people before I came here."
She gave Mars a meaningful gaze and the king immediately understood that Kira had done some of her plans to punish the Prestons.
He nodded in understanding and changed the subject. "Sounds good. You should join us for dinner. I have some things to tell Emmelyn."
"Huh? What is it?" Emmelyn turned to her husband. "Regarding what?"
Mars cleared his throat. "It's about Ellena and her punishment."
***
After the family had sumptuous dinner, Harlow's nanny took the little girl to her chamber, while Mars and Emmelyn stayed behind with Kira to enjoy glow wine. This was Emmelyn's favorite drink that was usually made during autumn and winter.
It was already the time of the year to enjoy this specialty and Emmelyn demanded that she could get her half a cup of wine daily as suggested by Mr. Vitas.
She was beaming with happiness when she took a slow sip of her wine, like a child given candy after being a good girl for the whole day. Mars smiled dotingly when he saw her happy face.
This reminded him that exactly two years ago around this same time, Emmelyn was pregnant with Harlow and she loved sitting by their window, enjoying a slow sip of her favorite wine.
It was like Deja Vu. Only this time, he would make sure that everything would go well and Emmelyn would enjoy the easiest and most relaxing pregnancy ever.
That's why he thought it would be better if he told Emmelyn about what the judges would decide on the punishment for Ellena. Emmelyn needed to know once and for all and then move on with their life, leaving Ellena behind in the past.
If he didn't update her on Ellena's situation, Emmelyn would think about the wicked woman from time to time and she would be stressed because she was asked to decide on the punishment but she couldn't bring herself to do it.
"I know I said I will wait for you to decide on the proper punishment for Ellena Greystorm," Mars said carefully. He looked at Emmelyn with a smile and squeezed her hand.
He continued, "However, I can see that you feel burdened by the request and you became unwell after you saw her in prison. That's why I decided to ask the judges to immediately hold a trial and announce her punishment publicly. So, we can be done with it and move on with our life."
"I see..." Emmelyn nodded. She felt slightly relieved when she heard Mars talk about the matter. She honestly wasn't keen to think about cruel punishment for Ellena.
She was pregnant and the thought of Ellena being tortured turned her off. Also, seeing how much Ellena had changed while she was in prison made Emmelyn feel sick to her stomach.
Gone was all the beauty and power Ellena had when Emmelyn saw her the last time before she fled Draec. Ellena now had looked so pitiful and pathetic. No longer a worthy opponent.
She was now far, far beneath Emmelyn, that the queen felt bad about handing out the punishment to her, even though Ellena truly deserved every single of it.
"I just wanted to let you know about it beforehand, so when the judges announce the punishment, you won't feel surprised and think I keep things from you," Mars explained.
"I understand," Emmelyn said with a smile. "What punishment do they think fit her crime?"
Mars glanced at Kira and, seeing the pirate princess smile, he felt reassured and said, "She will be paraded around the city center and her crimes would be announced publicly. This way, she would be made an example to deter people from going against the royal family."
"Oh..." Emmelyn thought it was a good punishment. The arrogant Ellena must be so embarrassed with this punishment. But Emmelyn had no pity for her whatsoever. "And then?"
"And then, she will be sent to a forced labor camp and made to pay for her crime by working in there her whole life," Mars said. "I was thinking that we will be wasting valuable resources if we kept her in prison for decades. She must at least earn her keep."
Emmelyn didn't know such a forced labor camp existed. But if Mars said so, she would just believe him.
"What do you think?" Mars asked Emmelyn, asking her opinion. "Again, I will do as you say. If you think the punishment is not good enough, or if you want a different punishment for her, just let me know."
Emmelyn was deep in thoughts when she heard the question. Being paraded and shamed in public was already a bad enough punishment, but she agreed that it would be too easy for Ellena to complete her punishment by being locked up for the rest of her life.
Finally, she nodded. "It's okay. I think they are good."
Mars let out a sigh of relief. This is good, he thought. Initially, he was worried that Emmelyn would be against the punishment and he couldn't find an excuse to let Ellena out of the prison. Because, in order for Kira's plan to work, Ellena must be out first.
Fortunately, Emmelyn agreed and she looked happy with the outcome.
"That's great! Now, you can just forget about her entirely and focus on your pregnancy," Mars coaxed her dotingly. "We have Ellena taken care of."
Kira smiled faintly when she heard Mars's last words. Once Ellena was out of the prison cell, she would never return. Kira already had things planned for her.
***
Three days later, the judge announced that according to witnesses' testimonials and evidence collected, Lady Ellena Greystrom was convicted guilty of treason and attempted assassination.
Her punishment was forced labor for forty years and she would be paraded across town to give an example for other people who thought of trying to go against the royal family.
.
.
___________________
From Missrealitybites:
I am so stoked! I commissioned 16 pages of comic for "The Cursed Prince" (that would cover chapters 1-2) and I got the sketch for one of the pages. It looks amazing!
You can see it in the comment. Check it out and let me know what you think!
PS: Thank you, Despina, for gifting a dragon to "The Cursed Prince" yesterday.. You are so sweet. It was such a hectic day and I forgot to thank you :(