Chapter 194: Nora Seeks Lysandra
{Third Person}
King Sebastian remained alone in his study for a long time. The corridors outside his quarters were nearly deserted, the silence broken only by the occasional footsteps of passing guards. Still, despite the calm around him, his mind remained unsettled.
Ever since Alexander had informed him of his decision to leave the palace, an unease had settled deep within him.
He understood Alexander’s reasons. In truth, he could not even argue against them. The one place he had always believed to be safest for Alexander nearly took him out.
That truth weighed heavily on him. Even now, the thought made his chest tighten.
After sitting in silence for several minutes, Sebastian finally rose from his chair and rang the bell beside his desk.
A guard entered almost immediately. "Your Majesty."
Sebastian’s expression hardened. "Summon them."
The guard immediately understood who the King meant. Without wasting another second, he bowed and left.
Not long after, six men entered the study. Each of them wore dark uniforms with no visible royal insignia, but anyone who knew the palace well would recognize them immediately.
These were not ordinary royal guards.
They were Sebastian’s personal shadow guards. His most trusted warriors. Men who answered only to him. Men who had served him loyally for years.
They knelt before him in complete silence.
Sebastian studied each of them carefully before speaking. "There is an assignment. In a few days, the Alpha Prince will be moving out of the palace."
Though none of the men reacted outwardly, every single one of them registered the weight of those words.
Sebastian continued. "You will be stationed in the city. And your duty is simple." His expression darkened. "You will protect the Alpha Prince and his political bride. I do not care what happens."
His voice dropped lower. "You will protect them from every threat. Visible or hidden." His hands slowly clenched behind his back.
"I want constant surveillance around their residence. Watch everyone. Anyone suspicious. Anyone unusual. Anyone who gets too close."
A heavy silence followed. Then Sebastian delivered the order that mattered most. "If danger appears... Eliminate it."
The room felt colder after those words. One of the men finally spoke. "Yes, Your Majesty."
Sebastian nodded slowly. He knew Alexander had likely already made arrangements of his own. His son was not careless. But that did not matter.
Even if Alexander had doubled the city’s security himself, Sebastian would still not feel at peace unless his own men were there. Only then could he breathe and sleep.
After a moment, he dismissed them. The six men bowed and vanished as quietly as they had arrived.
Though the heaviness in the Alpha King’s chest had not disappeared, giving those orders brought him a small measure of relief.
It was not enough, but it was something.
---
Meanwhile, at the back residence of the Alpha Prince’s quarters, another person had just received devastating news.
The concubine.
She had spent years living in quiet obscurity within Alexander’s residence, rarely acknowledged and never visited. Though she held the title of concubine, everyone knew the truth.
She had never truly been accepted by Alexander. She existed in name alone.
Still, over the months, she had held on to one hope she had allowed to stray into her heart: that one day things might change and Alexander might finally look at her, even if only once.
That hope was shattered the moment her maid returned with the latest news.
The maid stood nervously in front of her, clearly uncomfortable. "Miss..."
Nora frowned. "What is it?"
The maid hesitated for a moment before speaking. "His Highness will be leaving the palace in a few days."
Two lines appeared on Nora’s forehead. At first, she did not understand, so she asked, "Leaving?"
The maid nodded. "Yes."
Then, after another painful hesitation, she added the part that truly mattered. "There are also rumours that... not everyone from this residence will be going with him."
Silence filled the room.
Nora’s face slowly lost colour. Her fingers tightened around the teacup in her hand. "What do you mean?" she asked, already getting a little agitated.
Her maid lowered her head. "It appears... His Highness may not take you with him."
The cup slipped from Nora’s hand and shattered on the floor, but she did not even notice. Her mind had gone blank.
Not take her? No. That was impossible.
Her breathing became uneven. Panic quickly rose inside her.
No.
No.
No.
He could not leave her behind. Not here in this palace.
The fear came swiftly and violently. If Alexander left without her, what would become of her? What place would she have? What future would remain?
Her thoughts spiralled. She rose abruptly from her seat and began pacing. Her breathing grew heavier.
She needed to do something. She had to stop this, but how? She could not directly approach Alexander. That was impossible. He barely tolerated her existence.
Then her thoughts shifted to Amara. Almost immediately, she dismissed that option.
The memory of her last encounter with Amara remained painfully clear. The younger woman had made it obvious that she wanted nothing to do with her.
No. That path was closed.
She continued pacing. Her panic grew with every passing second. Then suddenly, she stopped as a name surfaced in her mind.
Only one person was left—someone who could still help her, someone powerful enough to step in.
Queen Lysandra.
The very woman who had sent her into the Alpha Prince’s residence in the first place.
Slowly, hope returned to her eyes. Yes. The Queen. If anyone could help her now, it was Queen Lysandra.
With that self-assurance, she turned sharply toward her maid. "Prepare me."
The maid looked startled. "Miss?"
Her voice became urgent as she clenched her fists. "I am going to see Her Majesty," she stated.
At this point, she no longer cared about pride or dignity. It’s not like she had any in the first place, so she would beg if necessary.
She refused to be abandoned.
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Queen Lysandra was in no mood to entertain foolishness.
After everything that had happened over the past day, and though she already had a few tricks up her sleeve, the humiliation from her conversation with King Sebastian still burned beneath her carefully maintained composure.
Though outwardly she appeared calm again, inwardly she was still furious. Every time she remembered Sebastian’s warning and the cold certainty in his voice, anger tightened in her chest all over again.
She was seated in her private sitting room, slowly drinking tea while trying to settle her thoughts, when her maid-in-waiting entered and bowed.
"Your Majesty."
Lysandra barely looked up. "What is it?"
The maid hesitated for a moment before speaking. "There is someone requesting an audience with Your Majesty."
Lysandra frowned slightly. At this hour, she had no patience for visitors. "Who?"
The maid lowered her head further. "It is Nora, Your Majesty."
Lysandra’s expression changed instantly as she slowly lifted her gaze. "Nora?"
The maid nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty."
Lysandra stared at her in disbelief. Then irritation rose almost immediately as she recognized who that was.
Nora? That woman had actually dared request an audience with her?
The audacity alone was offensive.
Lysandra placed her teacup down with controlled precision, though the sharpness in her expression made her displeasure obvious.
To everyone else, Nora might be regarded as the woman residing in the Alpha Prince’s residence. Some even loosely referred to her as Alexander’s concubine
But in Lysandra’s eyes, Nora was still exactly what she had always been. A servant. Nothing more.
She had been an ordinary maid before Lysandra pushed her into Alexander’s residence a year ago. That change in location did not change what she fundamentally was.
Once a servant, always a servant.
Lysandra felt insulted that such a woman would even think herself worthy of seeking her out directly.
"She requested to see me?" Her voice had grown colder.
The maid answered carefully. "Yes, Your Majesty."
Lysandra almost dismissed the request immediately, but then a thought crossed her mind. Nora lived in Alexander’s residence, and Alexander was preparing to leave the palace.
Lysandra’s irritation cooled slightly as curiosity replaced it. Why would Nora come to her now? What had happened?
After a few moments of silence, Lysandra leaned back in her seat. "Bring her in."
The maid bowed and left. Not long after, Nora entered the room. The moment she stepped inside, she dropped to her knees and lowered her head.
"This servant greets Your Majesty."
Lysandra studied her in silence.
Nora looked terrible. Her face was pale, her expression strained, and even from where she sat, Lysandra could sense the fear and desperation radiating from her.
’Interesting.’ Lysandra thought to herself briefly, then sharpened her voice.
"Well?" She did not bother hiding her impatience. "What is so important that you dared request my presence?"
Nora visibly flinched. When she finally spoke, her voice trembled. "This servant came to seek Your Majesty’s help."
Lysandra narrowed her eyes but said nothing.
"I heard that His Highness will be leaving the palace in a few days." Nora swallowed hard before continuing. "I also heard... that I may not be taken with him."
The words came out with painful difficulty.