Mated To The Cruel Prince
Chapter 232: Collect The Favour

Chapter 232: Collect The Favour

Fire and Ice clashed, the collision sounding like a clap of thunder as the jolt of energy sent Valerie landing on his ass on the ground. He brought a hand to his ribs, rolling over as the air escaped his lungs in a startled groan of protest.

Valerie had been busy sorting through court affairs when he got the message that his father, the king, demanded his presence. The errand Fae simply omitted the fact that it wasn’t just a simple meeting, rather the king requested a duel with him.

It wasn’t uncommon for the king to battle with him. As his heir, the fights were a chance for his father to test and assess his ability - and in this situation, beat the life out of him. It was also a bonding moment for father and son. Yes, it was kind of twisted, but the royal family was not big on publicly showing affection to their offspring.

No, most high-fae children were separated from their parents from young and honed. It wasn’t that Faeries weren’t capable of showing affection to their young ones, however, the children developed faster, not just physically, but mentally, hence, too many emotions were considered "humanly" and problematic.

Although they claimed humans were irrational and emotional, Fae’s were intense creatures and their feelings were simply off the charts. It was just their nature and every Fae child eventually fits into their role and position with time.

And right now, Valerie had to lift his bruised bottom off the ground with a grunt, staggering a bit but straightening in the end, staring into his father’s fierce eyes. Valerie spat out blood, his eyes widening slightly at the sight. His father was being super aggressive today, and sneaking suspicion crept into his mind.

It couldn’t be that King Oberon caught wind of his activity and kept quiet, choosing to punish him this way. Or he was simply out of shape. Since his return from the human realm, this was the first duel with his father and his performance was nothing to write home about. Not to mention his attention was divided. He had to get his head back in the game. How could he defeat Aldric if he can’t beat his father?

So he brought his ability to the surface, a bust of flames licking across his arms as he charged at his father. The energy brought along anticipation that flowed through him, charging through his veins and making the flames burn brighter. He threw his fist burning with fire Oberon’s way but the king expertly parried the blow, and Valerie followed up a quick punch with his other palm, the first move being a distraction.

The king grabbed the fist in his palm with a grim face and resolve in his eyes as the flame burned him. However, a thick layer of ice quickly crawled up his arms and heated steam rose, shrouding and limiting their vision as his ice doused Valerie’s flames.

Valerie gritted his teeth and amplified the intensity of his flames, trying to melt off his father’s ice, until a hard stomp on his feet broke his concentration, and the next, his father uppercut him so hard he swore he saw stars.

His bone cracked and blood spurt from his lips, he found himself unceremoniously on the ground once more. And trust him, his body wasn’t the only thing that was hurting. Consider his ego as well.

"You are distracted and slackened behind in your training by a lot," King Oberon noted and he didn’t seem pleased about it.

Valerie grimaced at the assessment before leaping up to his feet with feline grace, wiping the blood off his lips with the back of his hand. His ribs hurt with each deep breath he took, and he could tell two or three bones were broken. Although he could feel his regenerative ability kicking in.

"I did singe your hair though," He announced, his nose scrunching as he smelled the distinct and unpleasant sulfuric smell.

"You could have done better," King Oberon retorted, while running his hand through his hair, "Burning your enemies’ hair would not deter them from attacking you. Valerie, you have to be stronger than this if you want to be king," He said, eyes boring into his.

Valerie felt like he was being buried six feet under all these pressures, but this was a role he was born into. He had no other choice. At once, he stood ramrod straight, saying gracefully, "Of course, Father, this is a total flunk and would not repeat itself."

"Good to hear that. Although that better be actions, not words, the next time we duel," The king said, accepting a towel from a servant and using it to wipe his sweaty body.

"I would not disappoint you, Father," Valerie repeated the same gesture of wiping his body with the provided towel.

Both men were bare chested and it was quite a sight to behold. Although King Oberon has lived for hundreds of years, he could pass off as an under-forty-year-old man in the human realm. He looked more like an older brother than a father to Valerie.

It was at that moment that a Fae servant came to Valerie’s side and whispered something into his ears that caused his eyes to light up with joy.

Andre was back. Finally.

He was about to open his mouth and ask for permission to leave when his father beat him to it, "You must be busy and I should not keep you anymore. So go." He waved him off.

"Thank you, Father," Valerie bowed his head and let the servant lead him away.

Andre was indeed waiting in his study when he arrived and Valerie breathed in relief, "By the gods where have you been? I thought Aldric did something to you and was already thinking of how to barge into his home and retrieve your body." He engulfed him in a hurry.

Andre’s mouth twitched, "Funny."

He leaned back from the hug, "It’s not a joke."

"Oh." Andre nodded his head in understanding before slowly extracting himself from the smothering embrace, "Well, in case it calms you, then you should know that Aldric did no such thing, although we had a bit of an argument which is not surprising since our brother is paranoid and does have a foul temper."

"Then where were you all through the day? You kept me on tenterhooks, brother," Valerie asked, studying his expression with worry on his face.

"I was busy with things such as finding out where the witch’s body disappeared to?"

Valerie tensed, "What do you mean?"

"Witches bury their dead within a day, that’s their rite, any more than that and they believe their magic wouldn’t return to the earth for the generation to come to use. Now, we have to hope that whatever coven our dearly departed witch belongs to isn’t powerful enough to track her death down to you. " Andre told him.

" No, " Valerie shook his head, saying definitely," Aldric killed her, not me. "

But Andre clicked his tongue," Sorry to announce this to you, brother, but if you were killed," He added immediately seeing the way Valerie’s eyes widened," Not that you are going to die, yet. Dearest brother, you won’t live forever, will you?"

"Just get it over with, " Valerie was not comfortable with the conversation about his death. He was still young by Fae’s standard and was not intent on dying soon.

"If you were to be killed, and I needed to get justice for you, do you think I would care who was directly and indirectly responsible for it? Aldric might have killed the witch but you doomed the witch’s fate by getting her involved in the first place. In one word, I would get rid of everyone responsible. So I suggest you watch your back from now on, brother. You don’t know where an attack might come from.’’ He gave him a word of advice and patted him on the back.

Valerie was silent for a while, trying to digest the information Andre fed him, only for the biggest question to hit him. He looked at Andre, "And Aldric?"

"He sent me a message this morning, promising to keep his mouth shut, however, I now owe him a favor he can collect at any time," Andre stared him dead in the eyes, and said, "You can’t trust me anymore, Valerie. Aldric would use me against you when you least expect it."