Serpent Emperor's Bride

Chapter 238: A Most Unfortunate Entrance

[Silthara Palace — Sarytharn City — Before Dawn]

The night had not yet ended, yet the capital of Zahryssar no longer slept. Alarm bells echoed from distant towers. Knights rushed through marble streets. Search parties spread throughout the city and above everything...the moon watched silently.

Cold, ancient, and unmoved.

Meanwhile...Varesh ran, his cloak billowed behind him, boots struck stone pathways, and his hand never left the hilt of his sword. The captain moved quickly through the High Mage residency.

Every second mattered; every moment lost brought sunrise closer, and sunrise...could mean war. The residence of High Mage Arkhazunn came into view. Unlike the Imperial Palace, the estate remained eerily quiet.

No shouting, no running soldiers, only lanterns and trees illuminated by moonlight. Varesh didn’t even slow down; he pushed through the gates.

Startling several servants. One servant nearly dropped the tray in his hands.

"Captain Varesh?!" The servant immediately bowed. "What—"

"Where is the High Mage?"

The question came so quickly the poor servant nearly forgot how to speak. "He... he is in his chamber, Captain."

Before the servant could say another word, Varesh was already gone; the servant blinked and then looked toward another servant.

"...Should we warn Lord Arkhazunn?"

The second servant winced. "Too late."

Meanwhile...Varesh stormed through corridors, past enchanted halls, past the crystal lights, and the most expensive decorations that probably cost more than entire villages.

Then finally he reached the chamber door and, without thinking, knocked—

SLAM!

The door flew open.

"High Mage—!"

The words died instantly, completely, and absolutely. His brain stopped functioning because inside the room... Arkhazunn had been sleeping peacefully...very peacefully.

Unfortunately...

Being one of the most powerful mages on the continent meant his instincts reacted before his brain did.

The moment the door burst open, ancient magic exploded around the room; golden runes illuminated the walls. Arcane circles appeared beneath the bed, and Arkhazunn immediately sat upright, ready to defend himself.

The problem was...his sleeping robes had been loosely tied...very loosely tied...far too loosely tied, and during his extremely dramatic awakening...the robe untied itself completely, revealing his naked body.

Silence, an absolutely embarrassing silence.

Varesh froze. Arkhazunn froze. Time itself froze.

The captain stared, and unfortunately...not at Arkhazunn’s face. His brain had completely abandoned him for several very painful seconds, and then Varesh gulped hard.

Meanwhile, Arkhazunn blinked once and then twice and then frowned as his sleepy voice echoed through the room.

"Captain Varesh...What are you doing—"

He stopped because he realized Varesh was not looking at his face. The High Mage slowly followed the captain’s gaze and looked downward and paused.

Looked back at Varesh, then downward again.

Silence, a horrifying silence.

Then—

WHOOSH!

Arkhazunn grabbed the robe and wrapped it around himself so quickly that even magic would have struggled to keep up. The robe became tighter than a fortress wall. Meanwhile...both men’s faces immediately turned red...dangerously red.

The kind of red usually associated with ripe tomatoes neither spoke nor moved nor breathed properly. The silence became unbearable. Finally, Arkhazunn cleared his throat three times.

"What..." Another cough. "...is Captain Varesh doing here?"

Varesh immediately looked at the ceiling, the floor, the curtains, and the moon outside the window. Anywhere except Arkhazunn.

"I—"

His voice cracked wonderfully. Now his voice had betrayed him too; he cleared his throat repeatedly.

Then he somehow forced himself to speak. "We need to send an urgent summons to the Thalryn border."

Arkhazunn blinked; the embarrassment vanished immediately, replaced by confusion. "The border?"

Varesh nodded, still refusing to make eye contact. "Prince Sarash approached me."

Immediately Arkhazunn frowned, and that caught his attention. "What did he say?"

Varesh finally managed to regain some professionalism, barely. "He claims the Malik has ordered the armies to withdraw."

Silence.

The high mage froze, and his eyes narrowed. "Withdraw?"

"Yes."

Arkhazunn became thoughtful, very thoughtful, because that made no sense. Not a single bit. Slyvarakh threatening Thalryn one day...then withdrawing the next? Impossible.

Unless something happened, something significant that nobody else knew. Then Arkhazunn slowly stood from the bed, thankfully fully dressed now. Which greatly improved Varesh’s ability to think and breathe.

And function as a living being.

The High Mage adjusted his sleeves, then quietly said, "That’s strange of Malik. But I shall open a portal immediately."

Varesh nodded, relieved finally, and then silence returned.

An awkward and painful silence. A silence neither man knew how to escape. Eventually Arkhazunn pointed toward the door.

"We...should go downstairs."

Varesh immediately nodded. "Yes."

Then he turned toward the door, almost escaping, and he paused as his shoulders stiffened and then quietly he said—

"I apologize." Arkhazunn blinked. Varesh stared at the wall very intensely. "For intruding and entering your chamber without knocking."

Another pause, a much longer pause. Then Arkhazunn sighed, and the sound held equal parts exhaustion and embarrassment.

"It is fine." His ears were still slightly red. "So long as this never becomes a habit."

Varesh immediately nodded. "It won’t, definitely won’t."

The High Mage looked at him. Varesh looked at the floor; neither trusted themselves to continue the conversation. So both immediately exited the chamber as quickly as possible.

Because somewhere at the border...a war needed to be stopped and neither of them intended to discuss what had just happened ever again.

Absolutely never again, not even once. Unfortunately...both already knew they would remember it for the rest of their lives.

***

[High Mage Residency — Garden — Before Dawn]

The portal shimmered; ancient runes rotated within the circle like miniature stars. Silver and gold light intertwined.

Then finally—

WHOOSH!

A fully armored knight stepped through; the knight immediately dropped to one knee.

"My Lord."

Arkhazunn nodded; his robes moved gently beneath the cold night wind. "Take this order directly to the commanders stationed at the Thalryn border."

The knight immediately straightened. Arkhazunn’s eyes narrowed. "The armies are to withdraw immediately, and tell them not to delay because if they ignore the Malik’s newest command...they may discover exactly how terrifying his temper can be."

The knight immediately nodded, then bowed. "As you command."

The portal opened once more, the knight disappeared, and moments later...the magical gate closed. Silence returned to the garden.

Only the wind remained. Only the moon remained. Only questions remained. Arkhazunn stared at the place where the portal had vanished, thinking and calculating and understanding that something wasn’t right.

Something felt wrong...very wrong. Then finally he spoke. "Why?"

Varesh glanced toward him; the High Mage folded his arms. "Why would Slyvarakh suddenly order a withdrawal?"

The question lingered between them; neither possessed an answer. Then Varesh slowly spoke. "It was strange."

Arkhazunn nodded. "Extremely strange."

The captain looked toward the distant silhouette of the Imperial Palace. "The palace was in chaos; there was talk of an assassin."

Immediately Arkhazunn’s expression changed. The High Mage frowned deeply. Then quietly he asked, "An assassin?"

Varesh nodded. "The Malik personally ordered the palace sealed."

The wind moved through the flowers, and then Arkhazunn slowly shook his head. "No."

Varesh blinked. "What?"

The High Mage looked toward the distant palace, his eyes narrowing. "No outsider entered that palace, every gate, every corridor, and every hidden entrance was sealed using my magic."

Silence.

Then Arkhazunn continued. "Only approved nobles. Approved servants and approved officials can enter without triggering the barriers."

Varesh immediately frowned because he forgot, and then if that was true... How had an assassin entered?

The question hung heavily between them. Then suddenly Varesh remembered something; his eyes narrowed.

"The Inner Sanctum."

Arkhazunn immediately looked toward him. "What about it?"

The captain hesitated. "The servants kept mentioning it and the Malik seemed particularly disturbed."

The High Mage’s expression darkened. "Which Inner Sanctum?"

Varesh immediately shook his head. "I do not know."

Silence and Arkhazunn became thoughtful. The kind of thought that usually preceded discoveries people regretted, then quietly he murmured—

"Something happened." The moonlight reflected within his eyes. "Something happened beneath that palace, and whatever happened..."

His gaze drifted toward the distant Imperial Palace.

"...it frightened Slyvarakh."

The garden became silent because that possibility alone was alarming. Slyvarakh wasn’t a man easily frightened, not after death, yet somehow...something had unsettled him.

Then Varesh crossed his arms. "Perhaps whatever happened may save our empire from him."

Arkhazunn looked toward the horizon, toward the approaching dawn, and then slowly nodded as his voice became distant and thoughtful.

"Perhaps. I shall investigate quietly when I return tomorrow."

The captain nodded; that sounded wise, especially when dealing with emperors and whatever secrets emperors buried beneath their palaces.

Then finally Varesh nodded. "Thank you for opening the portal, High Mage."

Arkhazunn waved a hand dismissively. "It was necessary."

The captain nodded and was ready to leave, ready to return to the palace, and ready to continue dealing with assassins, panicking nobles, and an increasingly unstable emperor.

Then he bowed, saying, "I shall leave now—"

He paused completely and was absolutely frozen.

Arkhazunn blinked. "...Captain?"

No response. Varesh remained bowing like a statue because his eyes landed on his dick and recalled the embarrassing moment. Then very slowly...very mechanically...his eyes were still downward. The garden became deathly quiet. Arkhazunn immediately realized what had happened.

And for the first time in many years...the mighty High Mage wished the earth would simply open and swallow him.

Both men’s faces turned red again immediately. A spectacular achievement considering neither thought it was possible after the first incident.

Varesh instantly straightened like a soldier facing execution.

"I...I shall leave." Then somehow he made it worse. "I mean...I was already leaving."

The High Mage stared. The captain stared at the moon. The moon wisely refused involvement, and then finally Varesh bowed so quickly he nearly injured himself.

"Good night or morning...whichever it currently is."

And then he fled, absolutely fled. The feared captain of the Imperial Guard vanished down the garden pathway like a man escaping a battlefield or perhaps something even more dangerous.

Embarrassment.

Arkhazunn watched him disappear, and there was huge silence. Then suddenly...a faint smile appeared, small, amused, and unexpected.

"Cute."

The word escaped before he could stop it; the High Mage froze immediately. The smile vanished, his eyes widened slightly, and then he looked around the garden.

Just to make sure nobody had heard that.

Thankfully...nobody had.

Arkhazunn stared into the distance, then at himself, then toward the path Varesh had taken and finally frowned deeply.

"Did I just say cute?"

Silence.

The wind offered no answers. The flowers offered no answers. The moon certainly offered no answers, and the High Mage narrowed his eyes suspiciously at himself.

Then immediately turned around and marched back toward the mansion. "No, absolutely not."

Then much quieter, "...Probably."

And somewhere ahead...a certain captain was still running through the streets with a face red enough to challenge the sunrise itself.