The Selection: Bride Of The Dark Dragon

LARA

To the Emperor of the Gerdian Empire Demir the First Darmerion Derwood,

While pretending to be on a peaceful mission, five of your subject visited our capital and were welcomed by our people as dear guests. However, they relayed our kindness with a gruesome crime and kidnapped one of our own. They claimed that the girl in question was chosen to be your bride yet we regretfully have to inform you that she was already engaged years ago. Moreover, the future marriage was blessed at the shrine of the Goddess of Light Brighta, meaning that Larissa Artess would never be able to marry anyone else but me, Gideon Artes. She was taken to our family as my bride and will remain a part of it until the day she dies. Our family is one of the five High families of the White Archipelago hence we are not intending to let it go. You have ten days to return Larissa back to us, otherwise, we will have no choice but to announce war.

The Commander of the White Archipelago Army,

Duke Gideon Artes.

With trembling fingers, I looked at the next piece of paper and gasped when I saw the monogram of the temple of Light. Silver L with rays coming out of it…

On the day of Summer Solstice 5432 Gideon Artes, future Duke Artes accepts lady Larissa Artes as his future wife and promises to share her wings and heart with her… The Goddess of Light Brighta blessed their future union with the K**s of the Sun and promised them a prosperous and happy marriage. Larissa Artes is an adoptive daughter of the family and Duke Adrian Artesconfirms that she is not b***d-related to Gideon Artes, so the Temple of Light approves the union as well…

There was no point to continue reading and I put my hands down, dropping to the nearby chair.

The K**s of the Sun was the kind of an unbreakable blessing that was given once in a lifetime for one union only… If it was already given to me and Gideon, none of us would ever be able marry anyone else under the laws of the White Archipelago… Father and brother… Just why did they do it?

“Lara,” Demir called my name and I remembered that I was not alone here, quickly wiping away tears that were forming in my eyes, “I didn’t want you to find out like this…”

“It’s fine,” I lied. I wasn’t fine at all. “I am sure there is an explanation to all of this.”

“Seriously?” he looked disappointed, and I bit my l*p, “He asked for the “K**s of the Sun” for you two! What more prove do you want?!”

“That wasn’t him,” I shook my head, “There’s our father’s signature and name. I was around twelve by then…”

“Do many girls of that age get engaged at the White Archipelago?” he crossed his hands on his chest and lean on the rail of the balcony we were at, pretending to admire the view.

“No,” I admitted, accidentally dropping the pieces of paper to the floor. The wind caught them up and started playing with them, taking them outside, tossing and turning, dancing in the air. And I did not care because I did not want to see that letter and that document ever again…

“So, what now?” he asked me and I looked away, not really knowing what to respond. I didn’t know what to do next.

“I think I need to talk to Gideon,” I said, not quite sure of it myself, “He’ll explain…”

“He’ll close you in that room of yours until the day of your marriage,” the Gerdian Emperor snorted, “For Gods’ sake, he is ready to start a war for you!”

“And are you?” I raised my brow with a challenge in an attempt to make him feel silly. But the determination in his eyes made me shut my mouth. He was thinking about it, considering it…

“I could,” he said after careful consideration, “If you gave me a reason to.”

“I will not give you the reason to kill my people”, I snorted and stood up, coming closer to him, “Don’t even think about it.”

“Fine,” he agreed, “But if they attack us first, I’ll kill every single one who dares cross my borders.”

His words made me shudder slightly. If Gideon was to bring Warriors of Light here… That would be terrible. But he wasn’t reckless like this! He’d never do it!

“It will never happen,” I shrugged my shoulders and met with two eyes glowing dark magic.

“It’s fine,” I lied. I wasn’t fine at all. “I am sure there is an explanation to all of this.”

“Your crazy sibling could do it,” he said spitefully.

“You don’t know that!” I snapped at him, “You don’t know Gideon at all!”

“Oh yeah? And you do?” he smirked, “All those times that he was looking at you, touching you, spending time with you… You didn’t know his true intentions! How stupid are you?!”

“Apparently, very!” I exhaled through my nostrils loudly, “I decided to talk about my feeling with you, and look what happened!”

“Lara!” he tried to calm himself down but, by the looks of it, wasn’t very successful, “You have no idea what even thinking about him touching you make me feel! Chaos, my b***d is boiling!”

“So, take a cold bath,” I turned away, wishing for nothing but staying absolutely alone.

“As you wish!” I hear the sound of receding steps yet somehow it didn’t bring me relief. If anything, staying without Demir made me feel lonely and sad.

I was thinking about thousands of options of why Father and brother would do that to me. The most obvious reason could be in me being a foreigner at the White Archipelago. I knew very well that they didn’t want me there in the first place and Father had to ask them to test me for the power of Light to let me stay. But what if he also had to promise them that I’ll stay in the family forever? Could that be the case? And Gideon sacrificed himself willingly to protect me?

That made sense. Or at least I wanted it to make sense… I wanted to believe that this was it. All that everything was done for my protection.

Stressing all day, I was completely exhausted by the time the night came. And when I was lying in my bed that night it wasn’t Gideon that I was thinking about. It was Demir. He stopped coming to my dreams so I had nothing to be afraid of anymore. Now my dreams were free from certain emperors… And I wasn’t disappointed at all! Not a bit!

I closed my eyes and remembered that cave and his eyes…

The eyes that were looking at me once again as we stood neck-deep in the water in the subterranean river… Naked…