Crownless Reincarnation: New World? Nah I'd win-Chapter 37: Engagement [4]

Akamir let out a low breath, almost a scoff, but not unkind.

"That's not how it works," he said. "You don't lose the right to be taken seriously just because you're breaking."

She finally turned to him, just slightly, her eyes hollow. "Is that what I am? Broken?"

"I'm not sure," Akamir replied, glancing back at her. "I don't know you enough to come to any conclusion."

"..."

Inara slowly sat on the railing, her legs now freely dangling. Akamir kept a hand hovering near her, just in case.

'Can't have her die under my watch.'

"My marriage was arranged to a man twice my age," she murmured, looking down. "I tried to stop it, but no one listened."

"So...." Akamir began, looking at her side profile. "You want to die because things didn't go as you wanted them?"

She shook her head, her voice shaking. "It's not about dying. It's about stopping. Just... stopping everything."

Akamir let out a tired sigh once again, staring at the night sky.

"I get that," he said. "I've wished for silence too. Real silence. The kind that feels like sleep, not an ending."

Being a king since a young age, Akamir had been through countless difficulties.

One of them being the need to keep himself alive.

An existential crisis in which he didn't know why or for whom he was living.

Until he met her.

Inara blinked at him, surprise clear on her face. "So what stopped you?"

Akamir looked away, a low chuckle escaped his lips.

"Someone told me they hated me so much, they wanted me to live a long life and suffer through every second. I figured, if I'm going to be miserable, I might as well make it interesting."

She turned silent, a breeze stirred her silver hair, brushing it across her face.

Once again, her face turned towards the ground.

After a moment, Akamir glanced sideways at her.

"Ever heard the phrase 'throwing someone under the bus'?"

Inara blinked. "What does that mean?"

"It means saving yourself at someone else's expense," he said. "Like pushing someone off a cliff so you can climb out."

"...Why are you telling me that?" she asked, confusion flickered on her beautiful face.

"To give you an idea," Akamir replied, looking into her eyes. "Don't give up now. You still have time."

He tapped on the railing a few times before he pushed himself back. "Who knows, you might be able to live free because of it."

Inara stared at him, stunned into silence for a few heartbeats.

"You're suggesting I... throw someone under the bus?" she asked slowly, voice uncertain.

"I'm saying," Akamir corrected, "that sometimes survival isn't about playing fair. It's about doing what they never expected you to do."

He smiled softly, remembering his own time as a royal. "You've spent your whole life following rules written by people who never cared what they cost you."

She looked back at him. "And if I fail?"

"Then fail interestingly," Akamir replied, walking away from her. "And if you are going to jump, do a backflip."

That startled a laugh out of her.

Akamir walked down the stairs without looking back.

"Was it necessary?" Nayomi asked, floating closer to him. "She wouldn't have jumped anyway."

Akamir shrugged. "I just talked to her. There won't be any problem because of it."

Nayomi nodded without a word.

After walking for a few minutes, they returned to the banquet hall, nobles parting as Akamir walked in.

He took a glass of wine from a tray and settled into a corner.

'I want to go home now.'

He sighed, taking the sip of the wine, which was surprisingly good.

'By now, they would have already set up the company.'

Akamir thought about the mimickers he sent to the Lythanis kingdom.

He had quite a few plans with them, and Akamir was eager to implement them.

'If everything goes as I want, then I can start collecting rare materials.'

Things that will help him create useful items from his old world.

'Come to think of it...'

Akamir stole a glance at Nayomi, who floated beside him with a bored expression.

'...Isn't she one of the few beings who can make grade zero Artifacts?'

From what he knew, grade zero Artifacts are the pinnacle of items that even gods desire.

They are as rare as things could get.

'Makes me wonder what I need to do for her to teach me how to make one.'

It won't be a small price, and Akamir was sure of it.

Fifteen minutes later, a sharp horn sounded across the palace.

'They have arrived.'

Akamir thought, glancing at the gate that slowly creaked open.

'Aure kingdom.'

Their sigils bore the image of a twin-headed serpent coiled around a burning rose, the first to come in.

Four guards marched next, clad in sleek obsidian armor, each one wearing a mirrored mask.

The next to enter was the royal family.

The king of the Aure kingdom was broad-shouldered and wearing robes etched with blood-red embroidery, a crown resting atop graying black curls.

His eyes were sharp and sunken, looking around.

On his left walked Queen Lioren, draped in flowing violet silks that whispered with every step.

Her beauty was porcelain, preserved unnaturally, her smile the sort that never reached her cold green eyes.

But it was the one on his right who stole the attention.

Princess Sylari Aure.

She was slender, poised, and undeniably beautiful.

Her presence was not loud, but it was felt clearly with long blue hair flowing behind her.

She wore a midnight gown laced with golden ash threads, and her eyes, deep amber, scanned the room without blinking.

The last to enter was Prince Torin and the one Inara was going to engage with.

He was a middle-aged man with long black hair, trimmed beard, and a handsome face.

The horn blew again as the Krivos royal family entered.

---

'Is this how it ends?'

Inara blinked quietly as she walked towards the elevated stage where the Aure prince was already standing.

She made no sound against the polished marble, each step a silent surrender to her fate.

Torin waited at the center, smiling the way a man does when receiving a prized object.

Inara kept her gaze on the floor as she approached him.

'Do it. Say something. Run. Scream.'

But her body moved like it no longer belonged to her.

She stood in front of him without a word.

At one glance, she could see his father—King Aldirc staring down at her.

'...Why would he do that?'

She wondered, looking at him.

'Why would he throw me away?'

Was it because she was a girl? Because he thought she was worthless?

Inara could never be sure about it.

The priest stepped forward, lifting a scroll as the ceremonial bell tolled once, then twice.

"On this day, under the watch of gods and kin, we unite the bloodlines of Aure and Krivos in sacred bond..."

The words drifted over her, meaningless and distant.

'I can't just give up now.'

She closed her eyes, trying to take control of her body.

'If I don't do anything now, then I will regret it the rest of my life.'

Her eyes flicked to the side, briefly catching Akamir seated in the far corner.

He raised a brow, sipping his wine.

Nothing in his face said encouragement—but he wasn't stopping her either.

'To throw someone under the bus, huh?'

Akamir's words echoed through her mind.

...At first, she wasn't so sure about it, but the more she thought, the more she felt.

The need to throw someone...

'I am sorry for doing this.'

She gave him a silent apology before she turned towards Aldirc, making the priest stop.

"I can't do this, father," she said, her voice echoing within the hall. "I can't marry him."

Aldirc's expression turned cold. "What are you saying?"

Inara drew in a deep breath.

She was sure her reputation would be destroyed after this, but... what choice did she have?

"I already have someone I love dearly."

She said, making everyone stunned.

"..W-who?"

Someone from the crowd stammered.

Inara turned, lifting her hand to point across the hall.

"It's Asher."