Blood Contract (1)
"Not a word, Aaran."
Amara cut him off. She was aware of Aaran's relationship with the nannies. Despite having nannies at his beck and call, he rarely relied on them. He insisted on feeding, bathing, and dressing himself.
While others thought it was a good thing, Amara was worried about her son. She had seen the pampered children of other noble families during her adventures with the Hero's party, and Aaran was nothing like them.
Capable women always surrounded them, tending to their every whim. But Aaran behaved as if women repulsed him. While it didn't affect her love for him, she was worried about the family's lineage.
To make things worse, Aaran already had a fiance, the Hero's only daughter, as they had a prior agreement. It would be terrible if they met, and Aaran did something strange. The thought made Amara uneasy.
Amara suspected Aaran's behavior was because of Dread's influence, but she couldn't rebuke them in front of others.
Regardless, she planned to help Aaran grow comfortable around women.
Analeis was the perfect candidate for the job. Nearly an adult, she was responsible and beautiful. Despite her rugged appearance of a barbarian, Amara was confident that with some guidance, the girl could shine like a diamond.
Not to mention… she is strong.
Amara had her reasons for believing Aaran needed someone like her. Someone strong and dependable to protect him.
Someone had tried to harm Aaran while he was vulnerable.
The soldiers believed the intruders wanted to perfect their plan and hence drugged everyone, supposedly to prepare for a later intrusion. But Amara knew the intruders had already attacked and failed.
As she thought that, her eyes drifted to the lifeless teddy bear in the corner. She silently thanked Dread for saving Aaran.
A moment later, the teddy's head drooped over by the wind, as if accepting her gratitude.
Meanwhile, Aaran could only stare at his mother. The reason he didn't want any help was his discomfort. He might be a toddler physically, but his mind was of an adult.
Having the nannies wipe my butt for a year was humiliating enough. I don't want them to keep watching me naked for god knows how long!
That's why he acted independently. He thought Amara would praise him for his independence, but it seems his plan backfired spectacularly.
And that wasn't even the worst part.
Analeis's presence would hinder his necromancy training.
She was like an extra set of eyes for Amara. Just thinking about what his mother might do if she found out he had tamed a spirit behind her back was enough to make him shudder.
Before he could think of any excuse, a maid rushed in, looking for Amara.
"Your Highness—"
She began, but Amara raised her hand, stopping her.
"I'm aware. Let them wait in the hall. I'll be there after cleaning up."
With that, Amara patted Aaran's head before leaving. Analeis stood there awkwardly until the head nanny called her.
"I didn't know the barbarians had such beauties among them. Else I would have subdued them ages ago."
Darius smiled, stroking his beard.
"Having a hundred wives wasn't enough for you?" Aaran retorted, rolling his eyes.
Darius wasn't just famous as the Shield of Aurelia; he was also known by another name—the Playboy Patriarch.
It was a title well-earned after marrying a hundred women and having countless affairs with many others, never bothering to put a name to those relationships.
Unfortunately, his successors only inherited traits of the latter title. Thus, after Darius's death, the empire quickly absorbed the kingdom.
"Having more wives isn't a bad thing, little liege."
"I'm not interested."
The thought of having a harem was exciting in his earlier incarnations. While sleeping around was fun, managing the relationship without offending everyone was difficult.
As someone who had to worry about the perfect ending, the headache of maintaining a harem wasn't worth it.
Not to mention the energy drain… nope, I'm good with my hand.
With that, Aaran stepped onto the balcony, drawn by the commotion outside.
A massive crowd had gathered in front of the castle, raising slogans and expressing their discomfort. Aaran sighed, already knowing what it was about.
Aurelia was a small kingdom, where most families sent their men to join the army, while the females took care of the businesses and households.
As such, most people had lost their loved ones at the hands of the barbarians. But instead of killing them, the queen brought them over to treat their wounds and even offered them jobs.
How were the commoners supposed to digest that fact? They couldn't and that's why they were protesting.
"A protest?" Darius said, shaking his head. "The throne has grown soft. In my day, I'd have silenced them by cutting out their tongues for speaking such blasphemous words."
"Times change," Aaran replied. "Iron-fist governance breeds resentment, eventually leading to betrayal or rebellion."
He continued, "Good governance requires one to be patient and kind, but not too much. My mother understands that balance. You'll see what happens if they step out of line."
Darius didn't agree with that sentiment but didn't argue. But there was some truth in his words. After all, might often triumph over words.
***
After freshening up, Amara stepped into the hall where the representatives of the commoners had gathered. She wasn't alone. Analeis followed closely behind, dressed in a maid's uniform.
The room fell silent as soon as they saw the barbarian acting so timidly. Her new refined and beautiful appearance had something to do with it as well.
But there was something else that caught their attention… a black choker around Analeis's neck.
The public understood the queen's intentions after seeing the choker.
The barbarians were there as slaves, not invaders or parasites.
A few who wanted to use the situation to cause a ruckus could only click their tongue in frustration.
As the Queen, Amara had made some decisions that the rich and well-off families weren't happy with.
Ever since then, they had been looking for an excuse to undermine her authority and tarnish her image before the public.
They thought this would be one such opportunity, but failed.
Even so, not everyone was ready to give up. Since they couldn't target Amara, they merely had to change the target.
No matter how timid or refined the barbarian might look, as long as she was a barbarian, they believed she could be used to their advantage.
"Slave or not, we cannot let those parasites live among us!"
Someone yelled from the crowd while analyzing Analeis's expressions.
No one enjoyed being insulted, especially the barbarians.
The plan was simple: provoke Analeis till she lost her composure, and then use her reaction to confront Amara. A simple, yet effective plan.
However, no matter how much the crowd cursed the barbarians, Analeis showed no anger. Mirroring Amara, she remained quiet, calmly staring at those who insulted her people.
Unbeknownst to them, Darius watched on from above.
He wanted to see the new way of governance Aaran talked about. But so far, it didn't look interesting. One side was trash-talking the queen indirectly and yet she refused to react.
Amara's lack of reaction infuriated Darius more than the words of those commoners. He wanted nothing more than to materialize and slap the queen for her passiveness.
But then she raised her hand, silencing the crowd.
"Now that you all have let out your frustrations," she said. "I would like to invite you all for a sincere discussion regarding the future."
"Your Highness, with all due respect, shouldn't the barbarian be free to express their opinions on the matter as well?"
Tiba Simmons, the first wife of Aurelia's biggest landowner, spoke first. At first, people raised an eyebrow at her words but soon understood what she was after.
After the insults they had hurled at the barbarians, it would take a saint to remain silent. Yet the so-called barbarian remained quiet. How was that possible?
Their minds immediately went to the slave collar. Amara could have instructed the barbarian to not react, and the collar compelled Analeis to obey.
But if the collar were removed, surely the barbarian's true feelings would surface.
That's what Tiba was aiming for.
"Of course," Amara smiled, turning towards Analeis. "She can speak for the barbarians whenever she pleases."
"But the collar—?" Tiba asked, only to be cut off.
"What collar?" Amara asked, acting surprised.
The next moment, Analeis reached for the choker and ripped it off. Had it been a slave collar, even touching it would have caused her unimaginable pain.
But at that moment, a few people in the crowd received a shock for a lifetime.
"Did you think I would bring over a slave here?" Amara asked, crossing her arms. "Analeis is a member of this household. Not some beast I have to keep in check."
Amara and Analeis glared at those who were eagerly making degenerate comments against the barbarians as if burning their images into their head.
While the latter could only curse them silently. Their entire plan was based on triggering the slave into doing something. But now that Analeis wasn't a slave as they thought their plans got derailed yet again.
"Now then, let's begin the discussion."