The Crown's Entrapment

At the vast waters of the Miran Ocean, Xenia’s training continued as the Lucian sailed towards Valcor Island. The ship would only stop and drift occasionally if the need arises, but overall, their journey had been rather smooth.

“Isn’t this enough? I mean, I’m afraid she will lose her breath soon,” Darius impatiently hissed at Osman as the both of them waited by the railing of the ship. They stared at the spot where Xenia was submerged underwater, possibly meditating on how she could hold her breath for so long.

“Your Majesty, this is why I suggested that you don’t tag along in the first place,” Osman mumbled with a frown. It hadn’t been long since the Princess went under the water, and yet the King was already worried sick for her anyway.

“Look, she needs to practice holding her breath under the water for a decent amount of time… Hopefully to the maximum that she could,” Osman reasoned. “Trust me, those mermaids won’t spare her if she can’t keep up with them under the water. They might just find her boring, and will simply end her life before she resurfaced.”

It had to be done as well. The admiral could recall many horrendous experiences he had just to keep up with those crazy mermaids, leaving them entertained enough for them to let him out of their damn lake.

At his words, Darius let out another heavy sigh as he mumbled, “I should have asked Jayra for a potion that can suppress emotions. Watching all this is killing me.”

“It’s not too late, Your Majesty. We can always just get you to Valcrez first so you can have a good time with King Nikolai,” Osman snorted. “From there, you can wait for us to arrive at Valcor island.”_.

They had the means anyway. He had made sure that two of his best warships were behind them, and their King could use one of them to make the journey towards Valcrez alone.

Frowning, Darius grumbled, “No, I won’t leave. I’ll stay where my mate is. I’ll try to endure this. It’s not like this is the first time I had to endure some torment and torture around Xen.”

“How about you keep yourself busy then, Your Majesty?” Osman suggested. “You can play the flute like you used to while we’re sailing.”

Darius’s face contorted at the suggestion. He was completely aware of why Osman suggested it in the first place. Indeed, it would keep him busy, but he would always get frustrated whenever he couldn’t simply play a simple perfect tune like he always wanted.

“Do you think it would be better if I simply turned her just like you?” Darius asked instead. If anything, talking with Osman would probably do the desired effect of keeping him busy anyway.

“That’s a long process, Your Majesty. Didn’t I take a month off just to learn how to manage and control myself after you turned me into a Lycan?” Osman reminded him with a scoff. “Are you planning on delaying your own marriage ceremony?”

“It was an idea. And no, it wasn’t an option because Xen didn’t want to become one,” Darius lamented in jest. “She wanted to stay the way she is, and I respect that. Still, there could be some other way to make her stronger, and that could possibly be us completing the Mate Bond between one another. And even still, it’s just a possibility, and we don’t even know if it will all work out in the end.”

“Hmm, I believe it’s for the best that you still train her without completing the Mate Bond then, Your Majesty,” Osman offered his advice. “It’ll be best if we can condition her body to fight with the way it is right now, just in case the Mate Bond won’t work on her.”

“That’s what I thought of too, Osman,” Darius nodded. “If all else, I’ll just feed her with my blood so that she can heal faster whenever she gets a major injury during training.”

Looking into the water, Darius sighed as he patiently waited. Osman was still not giving out the signal to lift Xen’s cage, he was already getting too worried about if his mate would still be able to hold her breath deep in the water.

After a few more agonizing minutes, he almost rejoiced when Osman finally gave out the signal to lift the cage. As if slowly emerged from the water, seeing how Xen coughed hard while she gasped for air almost broke Darius’s heart.

“Why do I feel like killing you after this training, Osman?” Darius grunted out with a growl.

Osman chuckled, “You can just throw me in the Element Forest with Princess Xenia if you want me dead, Your Majesty.”

Ignoring Osman’s quip, Darius quickly ran to Xen’s side the moment the cage was lifted back onto the deck. Immediately, he swooped his mate into his arms, caressing her as if she was a newborn babe.

“You’re so warm, hehe…” Xen chuckled, still gasping for air as she smiled.

Wordlessly, Darius was just about to walk towards their cabin when a small cough stopped him in his tracks.

“Unfortunately, Your Majesty, we’re still not done,” Osman reminded.

“Put me down. I’m feeling better now,” Xen reassured with a smile.

Darius sighed, his expression dimmed as he wordlessly turned around and walked back to where Osman was standing.

“What’s next then?” Darius growled.

Osman gulped and murmured, “She still needs to swim her way to us as we sail. She’ll only be allowed to board the ship once the sun sets.”

“Do you really want to die, Osman?” Darius hissed with lifter brows. He was about to do so, even, when Xen suddenly chuckled at his words, wriggling her body in his arms as she attempted to free herself.

“Goodness, my King. Let Osman do his work,” Xen pleaded with a warm smile on her face despite her body trembling from the cold. “Don’t interrupt our training, please.”

Blinking, Darius let out another sigh in resignation. With a heavy heart, he put Xen down and immediately turned around to walk inside his cabin. There was no way that he could stand watching Xen swim on the ocean alone while also keeping track of their ship.

Seeing her beloved leave, Xenia turned to Osman with a sigh and said, “Let’s proceed.”

“Tell me if things are getting too unbearable then, Princess,” Osman said. It wasn’t the first time he asked her of that though. Thankfully, he was thoughtful enough to check on her condition every once in a while.

“I still can manage. I’m only guessing that I need this much tolerance for me to survive the forest,” Xenia shrugged with a smirk. “I trust you, Osman, so let’s continue with the training. And don’t mind our King. He’s just being a worrywart.”

Seeing her wink, Osman nodded before leading her to the side of the ship where she could safely jump overboard.

“Always remember that there are creatures of the water inside that forest that would quickly end your life if they sense the slightest hesitation in you,” Osman reminded. “They feed off your energy through your doubt, and panicking will only seal your fate…”

Xenia nodded in understanding. With that, she turned to face the vast ocean and jumped off, swimming her way to follow the Lucian as they sailed. She would have to train hard because there was no way that she would let any other woman have their way with claiming her man.

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August 9, 2022 AN: Hooray and thank you for reaching another hundred golden tickets (200)! And because of that, we just had a total of five chapters today released at random hours. Keep voting for another hundred golden tickets my lovely and generous readers for another 5 chapters released. Also, let me hear your thoughts by commenting and reviewing our book. *Kisses and hugs* PS. We’ll have Bonus and Extra chapters too for super gifts -haha *shy mode* Thank you and always keep safe everyone. God bless!