CHAPTER 229: SCANDALOUS

Meanwhile...

The ceremony had concluded with all the gravitas and spectacle that centuries of tradition demanded. The fused Star-Shard sat in its place of honor, guards positioned around it with the solemnity of those protecting sacred relics, priests still murmuring prayers that would continue until the wedding itself transformed potential into reality.

But the formal ritual had ended, and what remained was celebration, the kind of cautious festivity that came when nobles gathered in cold places and tried to pretend they were having a wonderful time despite frozen extremities and the general discomfort of being anywhere that wasn’t their warm chambers.

Servants moved through the crowd with refreshments, offering warming drinks laced with spices and alcohol, small foods designed to be eaten while standing, everything portable and practical because tables weren’t an option at this elevation and temperature.

Soren had positioned himself at Eris’s side with the determination of a man who’d been separated from her for hours and intended to make up for lost time through sheer proximity.

His hand rested at the small of her back, ostensibly a supportive gesture, completely appropriate for an Emperor standing beside his future Empress, except his thumb moved in small circles against her spine, creating sensation that traveled up her vertebrae and made concentration difficult.

"So," he said, his tone conversational and innocent, as though he weren’t currently making her entirely too aware of exactly where and how he was touching her, "tell me about your hunt Your Majesty. More details. I want to know everything."

Eris maintained her composure through willpower alone, keeping her expression neutral despite the fact that her heart had kicked into a rhythm that had nothing to do with the hunt she was supposed to be describing.

"There’s not much to tell. I tracked a Frostfang Lynx, found it trapped, freed it, retrieved the shard."

"That’s the abbreviated version." His hand shifted slightly lower, still technically appropriate but testing boundaries in ways that made heat crawl up her neck. "I want the full story. Every detail."

"Soren..."

"Yes, future empress?" The picture of innocence, if innocence had ice-blue eyes that gleamed with mischief and entirely too much satisfaction at her discomfort.

"You’re being inappropriate again."

"I’m being attentive. There’s a difference." His hand moved higher now, fingers splaying across her back, thumb brushing the edge of her shoulder blade through the fabric.

As he leaned close to her ear, his voice dropped to a whisper. "Besides, we’re celebrating. Everyone’s distracted. No one’s paying attention to what I’m doing."

That was blatantly false, at least three nobles were watching them with poorly concealed interest, and one of the priestesses had a small smile that suggested she found the Emperor’s obvious infatuation charming rather than scandalous.

"I’m paying attention to what you’re doing," Eris informed him, her voice low and dangerous in a way that should have warned him to stop.

Instead, it made his smile widen. "Good. That’s the point."

Before she could respond, before she could make good on the various threats of violence currently cataloging themselves in her mind, servants approached with platters bearing what looked like actual food rather than the finger-foods that had been circulating.

Steam rose from dishes that must have been prepared at camp and carefully insulated for transport, because hot meals at this elevation were minor miracles of logistics.

Soren’s attention shifted instantly, his eyes lighting up with the enthusiasm of someone who’d just burned enormous amounts of energy and was prepared to refuel accordingly. "Finally. I’m starving."

"You’re always starving."

"Hunting Elder Elks builds an appetite." He selected something that looked like spiced meat in pastry, examined it critically, then turned to Eris with clear intent. "Open."

She stared at him. "I’m capable of feeding myself."

"I know. But I want to feed you." When she didn’t immediately comply, he added, "Please? Consider it compensation for me being inappropriate earlier."

"That’s not how compensation works."

"Isn’t it? I thought doing nice things after annoying you was standard protocol of our wonderful relationship."

"Soren..."

"Just one bite Your Majesty" he coaxed, holding the pastry closer, his expression shifting into something that could almost be called pleading if emperors were capable of pleading. "Then you can feed yourself for the rest of the evening. I promise."

Against her better judgment, against every instinct that screamed this was undignified and inappropriate and exactly the kind of behavior that would fuel gossip for weeks, Eris opened her mouth.

His smile could have lit the darkening sky. He placed the pastry between her lips with exaggerated care, his fingers lingering just slightly too long, his attention focused on her face with intensity that made her acutely aware of exactly how many people were probably watching this exchange.

The food was good, genuinely good, spiced perfectly, still warm despite the journey from camp. She chewed, swallowed, and was about to tell him that was quite enough feeding when,

Pain.

Sharp, sudden, originating from somewhere deep in her chest, radiating outward with force that stole breath and balance simultaneously.

Eris gasped, her hand flying to her chest instinctively, pressing against her breastbone as though external pressure could somehow contain what was happening internally.

Soren’s entire demeanor transformed in a heartbeat. The playfulness vanished, replaced by laser focus and immediate alarm. His hands caught her shoulders, steadying her, his eyes scanning her face with practiced assessment. "What’s wrong?"

"Something..." She struggled to articulate what she was feeling, struggled to understand it herself. "The seal..."

The seal her father had placed inside her. The magical binding that contained Pyronox, that kept the dragon god’s power from consuming her from the inside out...

It was pulsing.

She could feel it, something spreading through the magical structure like ice breaking under pressure, each line releasing a little more of the fire that had been compressed and contained for decades.

The dragon’s power pushed against weakening barriers, testing for escape routes, finding purchase where none should exist.

Heat built in her core. Not the comfortable warmth she generated to maintain body temperature or the controlled flames she wielded in combat. This was something else, volcanic, ancient, divine power that remembered when it had been free and wanted desperately to return to that state.

"Eris." Soren’s voice cut through the rising panic. "Look at me. Focus."