I Choose The Queen As My Wife!

Wolf De' Didact–a helpless child of a dead witch, left to rot in the streets with his shoulder branded by his mother. Nobody could've imagined him standing inside the royal arena, being cheered on by the entirety of Aestonia. And his rival? The queen's true son, William De' Didact–a hybrid dark warrior.

After slaying a stream of champions, the best of the best Aestonia had to offer, all so that they may prove to be worthy of the new king's title. The kingdom being a pure-blooded meritocracy, every man and woman was given the same chance to prove themselves worthy but only a handful took the mantle, for the price was their lives being on the line throughout the tournament. And their reward? To be the next king and take for themselves anyone from the crowd as their trophy king or queen. But alas, the brothers emerged victorious and their battle was just about to begin.

Just as the queen raised her sceptre to commence the battle, however, Wolf laid down his long axe and turned to address her. Casting his gaze up at her dazzling figure, the elemental barbarian stretched his right hand towards her, forcing her to set the sceptre to rest. Shimmering like the sun dazzling everyone from up above, the queen cast a sharp glance down at her adoptive son. 

Bemused, the crowd echoed with whispers, and what Wolf had to say left the queen aghast.

"I choose you to be my queen!" He declared with a smile.

The crowd roared at his shocking words, and the queen's jaw dropped open as well. She was the last person anyone expected him to pick, but with his declaration, there could be no going back, not even for the queen. And while everyone tried to wrap their heads around what just happened, the only person not to say anything was William, his stepbrother. 

Although just as shocked as everyone, his anger towards such a profane declaration snapped him into immediate action. Even so, as he approached Wolf from the back, the barbarian didn't budge and instead looking into his stepmother's eyes, said the following words…

"I'm gonna win this not for the seat, but for you!" The queen's cheeks flushed a pink glow, she was baffled, bemused, shocked, embarrassed, all at the same time–and yet deep in her heart, she held a distant hope, that it would not be her son who wins this tournament but the adoptive genius that she'd nursed into a real man.

But the result of the battle was a whole week in the future, for the quarrel between the brothers was much older. The competition itself was only announced a week prior, not long after the proper burial of the Aestonian king. 

Having just heard the news, Wolf knew it was time for someone new to take his place. The competition had been announced by his stepmother already, and the prize was the seat of the king as well as anyone he desired to be his queen. Perhaps it was the only way he could get with the woman who saved him from a life full of misery. 

The memory of her radiant figure extending her hand to him on that thunderous night, was as fresh as yesterday, along with the taste of iron in his mouth from being beaten up by a bunch of grown men as a child. With the flash of thunder casting her figure in shadow, the men around him disappeared–almost as if they had never been there in the first place. His wounds and the scent of burnt hair, however, served as proof of their existence. 

'Why would you pick me out of all the children in Aestonia?' He asked her again and again and every single year, and yet her answer remained unchanged.

'I saw hope in your eyes, most people in your place would've submitted themselves to fate, but not you, you were different and I could see it as clear as day, even though it was a thundering night.' She would always chuckle at the last part, the only time Wolf ever saw her flash a genuine smile.

Picking himself up from the rock-hard mattress, the young prince turned to the bookshelves lining every wall around him. A scholar of magic in his teenage years and a fierce barbarian in adulthood, Wolf made use of both his body and his mind. Given such an exceptional chance by the queen to live a life of privilege inside the castle, he took upon himself suffering, and it came in the form of reading, understanding, and eventually training his body through grand efforts.

"It's finally time, huh…time to prove that I'm worthy of her to be my queen," he whispered to himself. That idea had bounced in his head ever since his body grew attracted to the opposite-sex, but even before that he wanted to be with her forever for she was the kindest woman he'd ever known. And what better way than to crown her his queen and live a fulfilling life alongside her?

But no stranger to the gossip that echoed throughout the castle, he kept his thoughts to himself instead of declaring them just yet. Instead, picking himself up he made his way to the training ground with just his martial shorts on.

Emerging from the servant's quarters, he was instantly met with judging glances from all over. Not even the servants–mostly the men, who lived next door wanted him as a neighbour, for in their eyes he was still the five-year-old child picked up by the queen like a lost puppy. But as Wolf looked around, his upper body; a marvel of masculine physique laid bare for the glaring eyes, doubt grew in those bystanders and although reluctantly, they stopped underestimating the worth of the adoptive prince, who also happened to be an ex-adventurer. 

"Does he really use magic and physical skills?" Whispered a distant guard while clicking his tongue out of jealousy.

"Nonsense! As if a commoner blood can master such a feat and also climb up to rank b!"

"Isn't the true prince the same rank and a hybrid?"

"I heard he wasn't but then he was, who knows? Maybe he's just trying not to be overshadowed by this brute!"

Rumours echoed through the walls of castle Aestonia. It wasn't the first time this had happened, for William–the prince, was known for lambasting his brother with baseless rumours. But today that would come to an end as Wolf marched towards the training ground to confront him.

Toned yet not overly muscular, the sight of his chiseled body breezing through the corridors drew the attention of the female servants, along with a few hushed groans. Feeling a knot fastened at the base of their bellies, they bit down on their lower lips. A flood of warm gasps followed soon after and the already steaming pantries began burning like an oven.

"How could you hate a man like that?" One such maid gossiped with the other.

"True, compared to him, the prince looks like a twig that you bend on the knee…" Dazed while still glancing out the window, her partner didn't realize the gravity of what she'd said, and although a surprised gasp left everyone's lips, it quickly turned to giggling which pulled her out of her head. "O-oh shit, I didn't mean that! Don't tell Miss Hestia I said that!"

While she continued to plead with her companions, the man they were talking about had finally arrived at the training ground. Sparring with his master whose one hand was tied on the back, William was clashing iron with iron and sparks flew about as the two ignored Wolf's presence. The rest of the soldiers, however, knew what was about to happen the moment the competition was announced, and thus, nudging each other to leave the ground, they left it in William's hands to get rid of the orphan prince before the competition even starts.

"AGHH!" Pushing his master away with his dagger, the hybrid mage finally turned to look at his brother. With scorn resting on his nose and an expression ghastlier than any ghost, he clicked his tongue in frustration.

"Great job, William!" Letting out a hearty laugh by his side, Robert the white-bearded master patted his student on the back. However, the moment his eyes landed on Wolf, his expression soured in an instant. Spitting next to his feet, he decided to question the orphan prince "What do you want?"

Only Robert could've asked such a question as his arrogance wouldn't let him see Wolf as his apprentice's equal. But with a crowd of servants slowly gathering around, along with the maids and the in-house night candies for the true prince, everything became a lot more apparent, to at least William–the true prince.

"I wanna challenge your student in a sparring match, and if I win I want him to admit to the lies that he's been spreading about me!"

"What lies!?" William shot back without wasting a second.

To his surprise, a rebellious voice came from the crowd.

"That prince Wolf has forged his ranking papers by bribing the adventurer's guild!"

Clenching his teeth, William's violet eyes turned to the crowd, but fortunately for the brave woman, the girls in front of her, kept her hidden behind themselves.

"Of course he has! That's not a lie! As if a commoner can achieve b rank so easily, do you have any idea how long it took for me to achieve that rank?! William complained, swinging his dagger through the air before letting his hand rest on his side.

"Then why don't we settle it," walking into the field while William was still screaming, Wolf ran his hands over his own arms. In a flash, they burst into a pair of two flames. One a bright orange and the other, a deep ocean blue. Smirking at his mage brother, Wolf looked him in the eye and let the rush of battle consume him whole "Come on then! Show me, brother! Show me that I'm your lesser! I'll back down from the competition if you win, but if I win, you don't even have to tell them the truth, they'll just know by witnessing it right here!"

Enraged, the sound of William crushing his own teeth put a smile on Wolf's face. He knew that arrogance in the prince wouldn't let him back down–especially not after his paid playthings and servants had come out to watch.

"Fine! We'll settle this here!" William announced, in the meantime, his master standing behind him began sweating through the palms. 

'Tck…Why did this numb skull agree!' He cursed, for he was the only man who knew which one of the princes had truly earned their rank. 'Too fucking late, I'll just have to see how this goes…'

A fight between two hybrid users, not something you get to see every day, and that drew an even bigger crowd as the princes readied themselves for the spar. To the disappointment of the crowd, however, the battle was short-lived with the victor being decided in just a single strike to the opponent's chest. Needless to say, the result placed a smile on the victor's face.