"Remember, this is for the good of the kingdom. You are a necessary sacrifice to the beast. Surely, you want to be useful at least once for me and for your sister, right?" Queen Anastasia warned Swan for the last time.
Swan bit her lower lip, holding her tears. She nodded again, sealing her fate entirely.
*
Swan followed the sure steps of Anastasia with difficulty. She walked slowly because of the crutches, but also because Aria kept on getting in her way, tormenting her for every step she made with the crutches.
It was until the point where Swan couldn't help but warn her, "Be careful Aria. I don't want to step on your shoes with the crutch."
"Well, that's your fault for being stupid," Aria giggled. She circled Swan, which made the latter stop on her track entirely. "Come on, step on my shoes, I will ask the guards to take your crutches, so you can just drag your feet across the hall."
"Aria. We don't have time," Anastasia finally reprimanded her daughter. "That beast…"
Aria pouted again and nodded, "I just want to play with her before she dies."
"I think you should hide in your room. You are our gorgeous golden princess, that beast might've taken fancy of you once he sees you," Anastasia advised out of her love for her daughter. "There are a lot of frightening tales about him, I don't want you to be taken away."
Aria knew the risk, but she found the idea of fascinating a monster to the point that he would abandon this cripple far more tempting.
Thus, she ignored her mother's advice and strutted straight to the main hall where the beast was waiting for his bride.
"Aria! Guards, take her back to her room! Don't let that beast see her!" Anastasia ordered, and the guards who followed them from behind quickly rushed towards Aria.
Yet, the gleeful golden princess ran as fast as she could just to play with them, and her face suddenly hit with what felt like a brick wall.
"Ouch!"
The guards halted their steps immediately as they were frozen in fear. Aria rubbed her nose and looked up when she saw a firm chest in front of her.
She gasped when she witnessed the handsome man whom she had just bumped into. He was rugged and muscular, with slightly bronzed skin akin to a warrior. He had short, jet-black hair, and a chiseled jaw that gave him a strong aura.
Unfortunately, Aria couldn't see the color of his eyes, because he covered it with a black blindfold. But it didn't seem that he was blind, because he looked down on her briefly before turning back at the guards, and then at Queen Anastasia behind them.
"I am here for my bride."
Aria was too stunned by this handsome man until she snapped out of it when he spoke in his deep voice. She realized this was the beast that wreaked havoc in the palace two days ago. So, she quickly took a step back.
Although she was impressed by this man's physique and appearance, she was smart enough not to entice him, making him think that she wasn't an easy target to be wedded to.
"I'm not your bride! Don't even think about it!" Aria exclaimed.
Aria expected this man to flatter her, just like many men out there, who would go on their way to court her.
…
Unfortunately, the beast didn't react. He ignored Aria completely. He kept waiting for Queen Anastasia to give him an answer, and it took a while for Anastasia to ward off her fear, and put up a perfunctory smile.
"Pardon us, Your Majesty, but your bride is slow and a tad lazy. It took her too long to get prepared," Anastasia explained. She looked over her shoulder and said, "Now go, meet your husband, Swan."
Swan stared at the man standing tall at the end of the corridor. She swallowed her saliva, knowing this man was the one who killed her father in cold blood.
But she could not blame him, since it was her late father who invaded their territory. It was a legitimate self-defense, a terrifyingly grotesque one at that.
Swan tried to hasten her steps using her crutches. She was afraid that her slow pace would anger the beast. She lowered her head as she was so ashamed of being watched by everyone, especially by her new husband.
It took five minutes just for Swan to reach the beast. She kept her head lowered. She knew it was impossible to perform a proper curtsy with her condition. In exchange, she quickly greeted with a humble courtesy, "T-this one's name is Swan. The first princess of Holy Achate Kingdom."
She dared not to give herself another title, except for the one given by Queen Mother last night. She also dared not to give herself a surname, because her shameful birth forbade her to do so.
No peasant in this kingdom knew her existence anyway, so it didn't matter.
Aria was upset because this man dared to ignore her after she gave him her attention. So, Aria wanted to play a little prank to make it difficult for her sister. She quickly interrupted by raising her voice, "By the way, do you see her crutches? She slipped and fell from the second floor when she was a kid, so she broke her leg permanently! Sorry for letting you see this~."
Aria wanted to see the disgust or at least a scowl on the beast's face. To her surprise, he simply nodded and muttered, "I see. Then, it's faster if I carry you."
"Wha—ah!" Swan had a mini heart attack when the beast suddenly lifted her body effortlessly, carrying her in a bridal style. Swan was forced to drop her crutches, and one of them hit Aria's toe until she screamed.
"Aw! Ouch! Swan, you hurt me!"
"S-sorry…"
Aria pouted again, but she quickly fixed her posture once she realized the handsome beast was checking on her.
"It's okay. I will always forgive you even though you bullied me often."
Swan said nothing, but she spontaneously clutched the beast's shirt. She always clutched something as a response whenever Aria bullied her because she could not fight back.
The beast paused for a moment, before he looked at Queen Anastasia again, and said, "Our deal has been sealed. This woman will be the payment for Holy Achate's foolish invasion of my territory. This will be my last mercy, if I see another invasion, then I will ruin your kingdom to the ground."
Anastasia shivered, her face paled instantly as she nodded.
"We love our first princess. But she knows her duty and knows the necessity in her situation. Please bring her to your territory, you can do anything to her."