The Lycan King's Puppet-Chapter 56: Upcoming Marriage

He stared after her.

She was crying.

He clenched his fists. He shouldn’t have touched her.

Yeren ran a hand through his hair. The council didn’t spare their targets - and as long as she remained as his Cupbearer, she would constantly suffer emotional damage.

His chest was heaving now. She kept blaming him for everything.

Why couldn’t she see that he never meant any harm? It wasn’t his fault that he was attracted to her.

And the rumours targeted her.

"From now on, I should keep my hands to myself."

Footsteps crunched the leveled gravel behind him.

"Don’t tell me it happened again - she just ran past me." Andon’s voice sounded.

Yeren didn’t look at him even when he took the seat she had just evacuated.

Andon’s eyes were bright with curiosity.

Then, he picked up the fork and continued from where Miss Stenly had stopped.

"What are you doing?"

Andon glanced up, raising a brow like he’d just been asked why bees make honey. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"Eating?" His gaze darted around before returning to Yeren’s.

"Leave. Just leave me."

"Yeren?"

Yeren rose up from the chair.

"Leave! Get out!"

Andon stood as well but didn’t go anywhere.

"What did she say to you?"

Yeren rubbed his face.

"She keeps blaming me for everything. The law clearly wasn’t on her family’s side. I am supposed to be the law."

Andon rested his arms on the back of the chair.

"You are the law. Is she asking you to be biased?"

Yeren wheeled around to face him.

"I’m already biased. If I wasn’t, my whole council would be dismissed, her father would be alive, Bronan will still be alive, Jarren won’t be a free man, she won’t be serving as my Cupbearer..." He trailed off.

Andon lowered his gaze.

"Many people want you dead, it’s not your fault. You’re doing what you can to maintain your father’s legacy... and keep yourself alive - if you stirred up the dragon in the name of justice, Reden won’t be what it is. One wrong move from you could cost you your life, and the future of this Kingdom will die with you."

"But I’m a slave to the system. I can’t do the right thing even if I wanted to."

Andon patted his shoulder.

"I’ve never seen you now - not even to politics. Every single peer of the realm is afraid of standing close to you. Just because you didn’t stop one woman from suffering doesn’t mean you haven’t saved many others."

Then, Andon pulled him into a tight embrace.

"Your father would be so proud of you if he could see everything you’ve accomplished."

Yeren allowed Andon to hold him, surrendering to a few minutes weakness.

They stayed like that for a while before he pulled away.

"Don’t do that again." He tried to sound stern but smiled despite himself.

Andon smiled as well.

"Now, what would you do with her?"

Yeren looked up at the sky as if searching for answers.

"Nothing."

Andon punched him playfully on the shoulder.

Yeren shot him a warning glance.

"I still need a Cupbearer. My thirst for wine will never abate until I’m dead."

Andon’s eyes started to dance

"Well, I’ll get into the business of finding you a new Cupbearer - she’ll have to leave when you get married."

The word ’married’ made his blood run cold.

He sank back into his chair.

"A bride has already been chosen."

"Chosen." He repeated the word like it was more vile than vinegar.

"Yes, Your Grace. They claim she was chosen by the High Priest himself, and that she’s your fated mate."

Yeren scoffed.

"High priest?"

Andon chuckled. "They showed me a letter. I just spoke with Falstaff before coming to find you."

Yeren stuffed a piece of meat into his mouth.

"It was probably one of their daughters that was coincidentally announced by the High Priest."

Both of them laughed, clinking their glasses in celebration of the bizarre situation.

"What amount of creativity spurred them to bring the High Priest into the matter? You’ve never had a mate, have you?"

Yeren paused, his hand halfway to his lips.

"I didn’t tell you?"

Andon leaned forward. "Who is she?"

Yeren cleared his throat, taking a drink from his goblet to give himself time to think.

"It doesn’t matter - she rejected me."

Andon’s brows drew together.

"She rejected you? What woman in her right mind will reject you..." Comprehension finally dawned on him. "It’s her, isn’t it?"

Yeren’s silence was answer enough.

Andon let out a loud sigh.

"This web is very complicated. Why are the gods so cruel?"

Yeren returned to his eating while Andon kept muttering things to himself.

"The Mighty Lycan King fated to the wolfless peasant girl? How ironic is that? The gods must have had a good laugh. What did you do to offend them, Your Grace." Then, holding back laughter, he said, "Maybe, they’re punishing you for your devastating handsomeness. And for all the marriages you have probably destroyed by just existing."

Yeren smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes.

Whatever the reason for the whole madness was, one thing was clear - there was still something between them.

"It’s not unheard of for a King to keep a mistress, though. I feel like this whole escalation is because she’s a Stenly. Her family’s name still carries weight even when they’re trying to snuff it out." Andon said, taking another piece of meat from her plate.

The sight of Andon using the qQ fork she had just been using made him want to snatch the blasted thing out of grip.

And the bloody man knew - yet he kept using it.

"You haven’t said a word about your upcoming marriage, neither do you seem pleased by it."

Yeren picked up his goblet and stared at the content.

"When you’re King, nothing ever pleases you - it’s a duty, just like everything else I do."

Then he emptied the cup into his mouth.

"Do you see her the same way? I mean Miss Stenly?"

"What way?"

"As a duty to be taken care of?"

He saw her as something to be...

"I don’t know."