Volume 2 Chapter 45 – Uncertain Future (Patreon)

The carriage tracks clattered as its badger mount pulled it forward, occasionally swiping at the obstacle in front of it. Morrigan sat, cradled in her father's lap, his hands gently stroking her hair. She felt so utterly exhausted. Not physically, her body was still strong and was actually itching for some movement. No, she was exhausted mentally.

There was a small vial in her hands within which sat a lone drop of her blood. The whole reason why she now was officially betrothed to the Prince of the Fallen Kingdom. It was then she realized that she didn't even know his name, it just never came up during the discussion as the Prince sat quietly throughout the whole ordeal without saying a single word.

"It'll be alright, Morrigan. I'll think of something," her father consoled her, pulling her closer into his embrace. It felt warm and safe, and she leaned her head against his shoulder, closing her eyes.

"Mmm," she mumbled, and wished she could forget it all. The Kingdom, the fallen, her own inescapable future. And in that moment, she was able to do that. It was just her and her father. His large strong hand on her head only solidified this feeling and before long, she had fallen asleep in his arms.

Once Morrigan woke up, she was back in her bed in the Demon Castle. Gunna was snoozing on a chair next to the bed, and judging from how her shoulders sagged, it appeared that she'd been there for a long time.

How long did I sleep? My body feels so stiff.

She slowly slid out of her bed, while rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. Despite how much she slept, the gloomy feeling still lingered. She still remembered the triumphant look on King Uriel's face once the magical contract was signed. It was like he had gotten exactly what he wanted.

As Morrigan clambered out of the bed, Gunna began to stir and her eyes soon opened. The nanny looked confused for a moment, but she saw Morrigan and instantly pulled her into a deep hug.

"Oh, poor child. I heard everything that happened to you. It is just awful what those fallen have done. You know I'm never quick to judge the races as a whole, but in this case, all the demons were right. The fallen truly are scum – forcing such a young child into marriage," the dwarfish woman huffed, her eyebrows scrunched up in anger. This was probably the angriest Morrigan had ever seen her nanny.

"It's alright, Gunna. It's not like it's going to happen anytime soon. Perhaps there is a way to break the contract…" she said hopefully. 

"Even so, it is absolutely barbaric. This practice of arranging marriages for children as a whole should be forbidden both in the Overworld and in the Underworld. But do not worry, even if there isn't a single case of magical contract being broken, I am sure Master Alphegor will find a way," Gunna said encouragingly.

Not even a single case? But the civilization in this world is so old, far older than the one on Earth. If nobody has discovered how to break a magical contract until now, then what are the chances of it ever happening? Maybe it's like dividing by zero – plain impossible.

Gunna noticed that Morrigan's mood had become even gloomier and instead began rummaging through her wardrobe in order to find her clothes to wear.

"Do not dwell on it, Lady Morrigan. I am sure that there is a way. How about we forget all about that unpleasant matter and instead get ready for the day ahead? Today it is scheduled that the whole royal family is going to eat breakfast together," Gunna chimed. Morrigan barely managed to suppress a groan. Seeing all the concubines and her sisters was the last thing she wanted right now. But it's not like she had a choice, so she nodded and allowed Gunna to get her ready.

***

This is the worst.

All of the concubines and princesses were gathered at the large dining table in the main hall, chattering and happily enjoying their meal. However, their gazes would constantly travel to Morrigan, occasionally hidden sneers appearing on the corners of their lips. Nobody dared to say anything openly, but what they were thinking was clear – she was a demon engaged to a fallen prince. An utter disgrace!

The reason behind it didn't matter. She could have done it to stop the world from imploding or something like that. They would still sneer and point their fingers at her behind her back. But Rosalie, Miriam and a few other of the oldest princesses as well as their mother looked awfully satisfied with this outcome. It was clear that this was a golden opportunity for them. A chance to claim the title of the Crown Princess for themselves. 

Viana, however, didn't appear pleased in the slightest. Her expression was glum while her mother chattered happily with the other concubines, her spirits as high as they could be. Morrigan looked at her eldest sister who looked back at her. She looked forlorn and even somewhat guilty and soon lowered her gaze to the still full-plate in front of her.

"Morrigan, I am sure it'll be alright. Father will surely come up with something. Won't you, Father?" Deziara said, looking hopefully at Alphegor.

"Of course," he replied curtly, but there was no conviction behind his words. After all, breaking a magical contract was something nobody had ever done before. 

"I have to say, Your Majesty, this is truly a golden opportunity. Thanks to Princess Morrigan we won't have to waste resources on getting rid of those fallen barbarians. The matter is basically settled," Lady Viviane said, the wine clearly getting to her head already.

"Silence," Alphegor growled, and the whole room went deadly silent as he glared at Viviane.

"It's alright, Father. There is no reason to get angry," Morrigan said and then got up from her seat. "It was most pleasant having breakfast with you, but I am afraid I have to excuse myself. I want to check on Haku's well-being."

She walked out of the dinning hall with her head held high, however as soon as the doors closed behind her, she melted into shadows and rushed to the dragon stables outside. Much to her relief she found Haku chomping on a large piece of meat, unscatched and uninjured.

"Haku, you're alright!" she said and went to hug her dragon friend. He quickly swallowed the meat he was eating and cooed at her. He flicked his tongue in an attempt to lick her, but she dodged him.

"No licks. You stink like meat," she wagged her finger, and he whined. Morrigan scratched the scales underneath his chin, and Haku wagged his tail in satisfaction.

"I'm really glad you're okay," she whispered, truly feeling relieved.

"Dragons are not so easy to injure or kill," Galandir spoke, and Morrigan was startled. The boy was carrying a bucket of water, which he poured out into Haku's water bowl.

"Can you just walk around like that?" she asked. It wasn't like she wasn't happy to see the boy walking around freely. But it felt a bit odd, knowing that just a few days ago he was still imprisoned. Her sneaking him out of the prison felt like a lifetime ago.

"Of course I can. I am not a slave!" he retorted, setting the bucket down. 

"You're not?"

"Why are you so surprised? You're the one who demanded my freedom in the first place. I've been assigned to care for Haku by that annoying white-haired friend of yours," the elven boy explained and went up to the dragon, patting his shoulder affectionately. Haku blew a puff of smoke at the boy as if to confirm his words.

"Really? That's great! I mean… you're not really free to return to the Overworld but–" she stammered, wondering whether the boy was bitter by this outcome. 

"Maybe I am not free to go there yet, but in retrospect, this actually might be better. It's not like I have a home to return to, and who would even want to deal with some orphan kid? It is not too far-fetched to say that somebody there would discover my magical abilities and try to exploit me just like the fallen did," Galandir said, then sighed.

"I do miss the sun, but I'll be safer here. I have a job, warm food to eat every day, a safe place to sleep, and a giant debt to repay."

The boy chuckled, and Morrigan saw how there was a bit of hope in his eyes. If previously they seemed resigned to his grim fate, then now they shone with new determination. A warm feeling bloomed inside her chest. She had done something good. She had managed to save this child and that thought gave strength and also hope. Hope that perhaps there is a way to carve herself free of the bloody contract.

"It truly is a huge debt. I hope Azrael pays well for being a dragon keeper," Morrigan chuckled, but the smile on Galandir's face vanished.

"It pays well enough, but that is not the kind of debt I was talking about," he said, looking her in the eyes. She cocked her head in confusion when the door swung open and Azrael came into the stables, whistling and tossing something up and down in his hands.

At first she couldn't understand what it was that he was throwing – it looked like a red rock. But after a moment she realized that it HER Burmese Ruby that he was tossing.

"Hey, that's mine. Where'd you get it?" she grumbled.

"Took it from your room, of course. Where else would I get it?" he said nonchalantly, then threw the gem at her. She scrambled to catch it, barely avoiding dropping it on the floor.

"Hey, be careful with it," she reprimanded.

"Oh, calm down. It's not like it'll break. Magical gems are unbreakable. And it's about time you absorbed that thing," he commanded with a grin.

"Is now the right time for that?" she grumbled, not really wanting to deal with anything that reminded her of the fallen. 

"I've been waiting so long to find out what ability it could give you. Ideally, I would have wanted it for myself, but the King would have my head on the pike. So it falls upon you, Princess, to find out what ability it can bestow upon you."

"I am also curious," Galandir nodded.

"Grrr," Haku grumbled.

"Even you, Haku. I feel betrayed," she said, but chuckled.

I am curious what kind of ability it would give me. Lady Lily said I could gain the power to manipulate the shadows themselves just like Father can. It would certainly be a strong ability. Perhaps if I had it before the attack, I wouldn't have gotten injured and that whole mess with the fallen wouldn't have happened.

But there is no use dwelling on it now. Better absorb the gem and see what it'll do.

Morrigan closed her eyes and imagined the gem's energy flowing into her. Like cool water it flowed through her veins and spread all throughout her body. The feeling was a bit different from the other gems she had absorbed. It felt like this one reached deeper within her. Like it was part of her being that could not be taken away anymore. That the fact she didn't have it before was a mistake that was fixed.

She opened her eyes and looked down at her hands, "I've absorbed it."

Azrael and Galandir both looked at her with great interest while Haku was tiptoeing around her excitedly, waiting for her to display her power.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Show us what you can do," Azrael urged. Morrigan took a deep breath and extended her hand forward. But she felt nothing come from her body. No magical tingle or anything like that wanting to break free. She imagined creating the same dark tendrils her father had, how they would come out of the shadows and gain form.

But nothing happened. 

"What's wrong?" Galandir asked, noticing her confusion.

"I have no idea what ability I just got!" 

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