Page 65 of The White King's Favorite

“He won’t eat them,” scoffed Tessandra, “but he’ll bring them back to us and then we can make them pay... I wish I meant that literally, for once. Looking at this, it looks like they didn’t spare anything. Of all the outfits and fabrics we brought, they ruined most of them... or stole the whole thing. What do we do, Cessi?”

Indeed, the end result was a bit disheartening, and Nana almost felt like crying again, looking at all the ruined dresses. Many had the skirts ripped open, the fabric torn apart, and the little gems broken or smashed out of their spots. It was clear they hadn’t just stolen the gold jewelry, but even the precious gems sewed into the dresses and the piece of clothing itself, if they couldn’t take it out, probably to disassemble it elsewhere.

Strangely, though, Cessilia’s eyes on the pile didn’t look upset at all. Much to Naptunie’s shock, she even had an enigmatic smile on while staring at all her ruined belongings.

“We have a b-bit of t-time left before the b-banquet,” she said. “Let’s g-get t-to work.”

Chapter 8

The banquet hall had been prepared with the utmost attention. This event was bound to bring a lot of nervousness for everyone present. The long, rectangular room had high walls and large, glass windows, and a magnificent ceiling with a unique mosaic made of a myriad of polished nacre. The chamberlain had picked each curtain, each rug, and each chair cushion so nothing would be out of place, all in dark shades of blue to enlighten the white and light wood furniture. The highlight, though, came from the dozens of beautiful glass bowls, hanging from the ceiling, on the walls, or decorating the tables, each containing a candle on a little bed of sand. Each was glowing with the color of the glass surrounding it, but there were so many that it felt like the night could fall and the room would remain as bright as during the daytime. In fact, it wasn’t late, but it was already quite dark outside. The sun had been covered by dark, heavy clouds that carried a promise of a storm; there would be no sunset viewing that day. Indeed, it was humid and hot inside, and the rain was just beginning to fall against the glass windows. The servants, who were running left and right to bring the first dishes and pour drinks into the guests’ cups, were frequently sending worried glances toward the large doors on the side, hoping the wind wouldn’t blow them open.

None of the already present guests seemed concerned about the upcoming storm. The sounds of their polite chatters and chuckles were somehow louder than the first rumbles of thunder outside. A lot of those laughs and smiles were forced and fake, though. It was hard to remain joyous and enthusiastic, locked up in a room with a monster.

Sitting alone on his throne, at the end of the room, the King’s eyes were sending daggers. Even the ladies who had been waiting off to the side for their chance were a bit too scared to approach. Ashen the White hadn’t even bothered to change his usual outfit. In fact, he was half-naked, with a thick, black, fur cape on his shoulders for decoration only. He didn’t wear a crown or any jewelry, and even his pants and boots were completely dark and plain. Yet, his imposing figure allowed no mistake as to who was the alpha in the room. He was sitting, but it felt as if he was standing taller than anybody else. He wasn’t moving, but his piercing glare was circling the room as if ready to set on its prey and hunt it down. The only human being daring enough to stay by his side was a red-haired woman. She was even sitting on one of the arms of the throne as if it was a stool. While the King leaned on the other one, not glancing in her direction at all, his hand slowly making his wine swirl in his cup. Jisel was the one to regularly pour wine into his cup instead of the frightened servants, and from time to time, she would lean in to whisper something in his ear. He never responded to her, but she didn’t seem to mind at all, a faint and confident smile stuck on her red lips.

That woman’s red dress was surprisingly simple, compared to that of the other women in the room. Especially the young women, who all looked dazzlingly beautiful. They all wore jewelry of white nacre, silver, or seashells on their dark skin, and had complex hairstyles, with braids and white pearls, or wild curls let loose. Even more dashing were their gorgeous, long dresses. Despite those having long skirts and sleeves, they subtly exposed their shoulders, collarbone, cleavage, or back, each adapted to the lady’s best asset. They all were in cool colors such as purple, blue, green, or darker shades of red. Each dress was prim but close-fitting, tailored to complement the beauty of the lady wearing it. The most extravagant ones included feathers, fur, white pearls, or embroideries for details.

The candidates for the Queen’s title were the easiest to spot, each more beautiful than the last, and the center of attention where they stood.

In one corner, Counselors Yamino and Yassim were both equally nervous, their glances going alternately from the King to the entrance door of the hall, where people came and went in regular intervals.

“Our ladies are late...” sighed Yassim behind his cup.

The old man was the main target of the King’s glares, and an invisible circle was formed around him that no one would dare approach, except for Counselor Yamino. It was as if he was carrying some deadly disease or a target on his back that no one wanted to block...

“Naptunie did mention she wanted to stay behind and help the Princess and Lady Tessa,” muttered Yamino. “I hope this is just them being fashionably late...”

“Or perhaps they have nothing decent to wear,” chuckled a high-pitched voice.

Both Counselors turned their heads at the same moment. Just a few steps away from them, a little group of young people was smirking and laughing at the duo. Lady Safia, who had spoken, was wearing a dashing, off-the-shoulder, burgundy dress, her long braids tied in an updo to show her large golden earrings. She was obviously the center of attention of the little group, with four young men having eyes only for her, and the two other ladies looking pretty bland in comparison. Her haughty expression had her chin slightly upwards and her full lips pouting, but it only enhanced her long neck and beautiful lines.

“Lady Safia,” said Yassim, bowing. “You seem very aware of the incident. Do you have anything to report?”

“A jailbreak is what should be reported,” she retorted. “You have guts to dare show your face after His Majesty had you jailed, old man. Or could it be the Princess’ authority takes precedence over our King’s? Quick as ever to change your loyalty, I see. You should be careful, Yassim. Traitors don’t get to keep their necks long...”

“Thank you for the warning, Lady Safia, but I’ll gladly offer my neck for the peace of our Kingdom. This old man is already grateful for all the years I’ve been given to live and serve my King.”

He had subtly ignored her implicit accusations about Princess Cessilia and kept his faint smile on, which annoyed the young woman even more. She glared back at him without adding anything, but her followers were quick to take over.

“Who cares about that Princess,” scoffed one of the girls. “From what I’ve heard, she’s very ordinary, and her skin is so pale, she looks sick. The only thing she has is that gold she brought, and now, it appears it’s been stolen. She really has everything to lose by coming here. I bet she won’t even dare show herself! I’m sure there is no one more beautiful than our Lady Safia.”

However, her flattery was lost on Safia; the haughty young lady already had her eyes elsewhere, and more precisely, on one woman who was already a step ahead in the race to the King’s heart... Jisel. The truth was, that woman was also pale-skinned, and she didn’t need much to stand out. Her red hair made her shine like a dangerous flame in the room, and unlike her rivals, her dress was much more revealing and daring. She wasn’t trying to hide her status as the King’s mistress at all, and it worked to piss off her rivals.

“...Let’s not mind the prostitute,” hissed the other girl next to Safia, glaring her way as well.

Safia shrugged her shoulders and walked away. Other than Jisel, another woman could be said to be standing out because of her unique beauty. It was made even more obvious by the number of young men gathered around her, who barely blinked while staring at this dashing dark beauty. She wasn’t very tall, but Lady Axelane, the rumored gem of the Nahaf Family, was living up to her legend in a beautiful, light blue dress. In fact, the color of her dress seemed to have been picked to contrast the exceptional darkness of her skin, so dark it seemed to almost have blue highlights in it. She had purposely chosen only white nacre jewelry and pearls too, as if to make it even more obvious. Her long curls were pulled back to enhance her facial features, feminine and delicate. The lady herself acted as if she were some precious doll, with shy smiles and gracious movements, politely answering the men courting her and ignoring the glares from her rivals.

Although the banquet had officially started, there was some faint tension in the room as they all waited for the real action to begin: the candidates’ performances. However, it would only begin once all of them were present, and for now, two of them were still missing, making the Counselors grow more and more worried as time passed. The storm getting a bit louder outside was like a drum reminding everyone of the tension growing stronger in the room. All the candidates were staring at one another, silently evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of their rivals. They had all invested a lot in their outer appearance, but they knew the real deal was yet to come. For now, they were putting on an act of friendliness and politeness until they could all show their claws...

Then, one of the older servants walked up to the King, bowing politely and muttering something most people didn’t get to hear. Ashen answered briefly, and the servant turned around.

“My ladies, my lords, the first banquet will officially begin now! First, His Majesty hopes everyone can have fun and dance, and then get to enjoy the Queen Candidates’ talents!”

A little orchestra on the side began playing, and in a perfectly calculated choreography, several young people also stepped forward to dance. Yassim took another deep breath in, glancing at the door once again. Obviously, Lady Cessilia wouldn’t know much of the rituals and dances popular in the Kingdom, but it didn’t matter much, as long as the Princess could demonstrate other talents... The only real way to fail this first banquet, or first trial, was to not do anything at all, or not show up.

As he thought this, the Counselor suddenly got even more worried.

“...Surely nothing would have happened to Lady Cessilia, would it?” he mumbled.

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