The Guardian gods Chapter 852

Long before Yuki even reached the entrance to the prince’s chambers, a resonant, rhythmic moaning could be heard, its echoes filling the passageway. Shortly after, a heavy, unmistakable scent of smoke and sweat permeated the air.

Bracing herself for the scene, Yuki inhaled deeply and pushed open the grand doors to Leiko’s private rooms. It was precisely as she had envisioned: a rampant orgy. Her son sat ensconced amidst a sea of bodies, all women. Many appeared utterly exhausted, discarded once their usefulness waned or their strength failed.

"Enough," Yuki's voice sliced through the thick atmosphere like a shard of ice. The command resonated throughout the expansive chamber, instantly stilling every movement. Even under the influence of the "Grace" that muddled their minds and dulled their senses, the women froze. They possessed enough awareness to recognize their Queen and the wisdom to understand she was not to be provoked.

Yuki uttered just one more word: "Out." The command acted with tangible force. The women scrambled, clutching at scattered silks and half-worn garments as they fled towards the exit. Even in their haste, they moved with a desperate elegance, careful not to so much as brush against Yuki’s royal attire.

Soon, only mother and son remained in the abrupt, resonating silence. Leiko, his face flushed with a blend of interrupted desire and mounting rage, blurted out, "Woman, what is this insolence now?"

He did not manage to complete his thought.

In a flash of movement too swift for the eye to follow, Leiko was violently thrown backward. He struck the wall with a dull thud, his vision blurring as his mother’s hand seized his throat. His eyes widened, his pupils contracting to mere pinpricks as his airway constricted. Yet, the physical strangulation was not the main peril; it was the intense, localized heat radiating from her palm, threatening to incinerate the very core of his being should he dare to struggle.

He gazed into Yuki’s eyes and perceived it: the cold, flickering embers of a patience that had finally been extinguished. Something had fundamentally shifted. The familiar maternal indulgence, which she had once employed to conceal her contempt, was absent, replaced by a lethal seriousness she seldom directed toward him.

She released her grip, and Leiko collapsed onto the floor, gasping for breath. With a sharp flick of her wrist, a shimmering distortion resembling a human form flowed over him, instantly covering his nakedness with a formal robe that settled upon his trembling body.

"Sit up, Leiko," she commanded, her voice perfectly calm. "The time for games has concluded."

A defiant spark remained in his eyes as he looked up at her, but the lingering sting on his neck was sufficient to keep his lips sealed.

Yuki flicked her wrist, and a scroll descended through the air towards him. Leiko caught it with practiced ease, yet his haughty demeanor crumbled the instant he recognized the seal. The emblem of the Godlings stared back at him, a symbol carrying enough gravitas to finally elicit a genuine expression on his face.

He unrolled the parchment with deliberate care, his gaze tracing the lines of script. Upon reaching the final sentence, a sneering smirk twisted his lips. "Nonsense," he spat, releasing the scroll. It did not fall but rather floated upwards, held aloft by a thread of Yuki’s power as it returned to her awaiting hand.

Yuki glanced at the seal, then back at her son, her expression inscrutable. "And what of the Princess?" she inquired, her voice lowering to a mere whisper. "Have you ever considered her as someone you truly wished to wed?"

At her question, Leiko’s mind drifted back to his initial encounter with the Princess. He recalled her celestial beauty and, more sharply, the distinct sensation she had evoked within him at that precise moment.

It had been an agreeable feeling, but ultimately, it was an emotion Leiko had come to regard as an inconvenience. The mere notion of pursuing her, or lowering himself to seek her capricious favor, struck him as an affront to his own esteemed position. He was, after all, a prince, blessed with the power and status to claim any woman he desired. Why should Lunara be an exception, were it not for the influence of her inherited station and the might bolstering her?

The silence stretched as he pondered, until a cold smirk touched his lips. He had long since concluded that Lunara was not essential to him; if anything, she was the one who required a match of his standing. He had only engaged in the pursuit to entertain himself, specifically to vex Magnus, who was so pathetically infatuated with the Princess that he became an easy target for Leiko’s machinations.

If it were feasible, he would have taken Lunara as his consort, but solely for the calculated, strategic advantages such an alliance would confer upon his people. For himself, he perceived no personal benefit. He was acutely aware that genuine accord could never arise from their union.

Leiko harbored desires, darker leanings, and habits that Lunara would surely detest. To wed her would necessitate a life of perpetual concession; he would be compelled to stifle his innate disposition simply to appease her, a requirement enforced by her exalted standing amongst the Godlings. For Leiko, such a union would not be a marriage, but rather a self-imposed confinement.

Meeting his mother's gaze directly, his expression was impassive and resolute. "No," he replied.

Yuki observed her son, a complex tapestry of emotions constricting her chest. She struggled to articulate the blend of disappointment and relief that washed over her, yet she wasn't taken aback. Deep within, she had always anticipated his response.

Leiko bore a greater resemblance to a pure-blooded demon than Yuki ever could. As the offspring of Björn and herself, a half-demon, the corrupted blood coursed powerfully through his veins.

This heritage was evident not merely in his strength and appearance; it molded his very essence. He embodied the quintessential demonic traits: an inherent ruthlessness and the chilling capacity to experience emotions only to discard them entirely when they ceased to serve a purpose.

"You comprehend the significance of a proposal to your father," Yuki stated, her eyes scanning his features for any sign of obligation. "He has openly expressed a desire for a steadfast alliance with the Godlings. What more effective method exists to solidify that bond than through an intermarriage?"

She voiced these words clinging to the faint hope that political aspiration might sway him where emotional appeals had faltered.

Leiko's frown deepened. "I am acutely aware of that, Mother. But that is precisely the reason this would never succeed. I might be able to maintain the facade of a devoted suitor for a period. However, eventually, my true nature would surface. If Lunara were to be mistreated—and she would be—it wouldn't merely result in a failed marriage. It would irrevocably damage the relationship between our kingdoms, far more than a simple rejection of an alliance ever could."

Yuki released a heavy exhalation. "Do you truly grasp the magnitude of what's at stake, Leiko? This signifies the Silver Kingdom having the unwavering military might of the Godlings backing them in the impending conflict."

Leiko remained unfazed. Instead, he deliberately moistened his lips, a predatory spark reigniting in his eyes. "Were that genuinely the case, Mother, it might indeed spell our doom. But we both acknowledge that the world does not operate in such a straightforward manner."

He advanced toward her. "The Godling army is not a mere bargaining chip. They would never commit their entire force to the Silver Kingdom based solely on a marriage contract. Should the Godlings intervene in this war, it would only be those few individuals personally devoted to Lunara herself."

Moving towards the window with an air of swaggering confidence, Leiko surveyed the vast cityscape that stretched out below their capital. "We emerged victorious in the last war, and we shall triumph in this one as well. Furthermore," he added, a cold, sharp smile gracing his lips, "even if the Godlings do elect to make a move, I am convinced we will still prevail."

Yuki's brow furrowed at the sheer, unshakeable conviction behind his assertion. "You exhibit remarkable certainty in that regard," she murmured, her gaze intensifying as she scrutinized him. "Is there knowledge you possess that eludes me?"

A hint of apprehension tinged her voice, but Leiko's sole reply was a slow, enigmatic smile. "I merely understand that we are never truly isolated, Mother. There are forces within existence that are not yet prepared to witness our downfall."

The disquiet within Yuki's chest solidified into a tight knot. She recognized that particular expression in his eyes, mirroring the resolute, unyielding stare of his father. She understood that this was the extent of the information he intended to reveal. With a somber frown and the "Grace" still unsettlingly potent within her, she turned and began to exit the chamber.

Just as she reached the doorway, Leiko's voice arrested her departure one final time.

"Lunara is a woman driven by ambition, pursuing her own objectives," he stated. "Objectives for which she requires human leverage to achieve."