IN THE KINGDOM OF ORODEN, WESTWARD OF DRAKENWELL

Judah Locke, eldest and first acknowledged bastard son of King Drokah Rhakys of Oroden and the first part-Shade to ever reside in the Royal Oroden Palace, stood half-naked in his bedchamber, staring at his reflection.

Lord, he was fat.

Not fat, but just...fat. He really hadn't realised how much of himself he had let go. Even though his tall height made up for most of it, he still looked and felt way heavier than usual.

How this had happened so quickly, Judah had absolutely no idea. He had only spent four months in the palace since he'd been taken in by his father. And now, the man standing before him was one he could hardly recognise.

Intense light brown eyes stared back at him. That same colour dominated his skin, but his hair contrasted with a black hue. He would've been the perfect image, the glorious image, if he didn't constantly struggle with the burden of holding in his stomach to avoid looking like a pregnant goblin.

But of course, there was no way he could've prevented it. It wasn't his fault. To have at your service a vast amount of servants—people who would run across hallways just to scrape your teeth or feed you every morning—it would be insane not to take advantage of that. He was just being normal, so it was their fault this had happened to him.

Shouldn't they have known from the first week that he was so weak when it came to food? Why didn't his valet warn him earlier? The bastard. He had wanted this to happen. Probably to get Judah back for calling him a skinny beetle.

Regardless, Judah knew that one day he was going to have to lose all that weight and get back in shape.

One day.

Or maybe just someday.

Probably when he'd mastered his magic, so that he'd just snap himself back into shape. That would surely save him the stress of doing it the hard way.

Still staring at his figure, Judah moulded his belly fat with his fingers and shook his head in disappointment, thinking about how easy it had been to destroy the poor thing.

But when he looked up to assess his facial features, his disappointment quickly evaporated and gave way to a proud demeanour.

"Nobody's going to dare separate you from me, darling," he murmured, turning side to side to see more of his body. "Sure, your friends have got a bit of extra flesh, but don't let them intimidate you. Look at me now, you are gorgeous."

He pointed at his reflection and pursed his lips, narrowing his eyes while he was at it. "You...are a Shade worthy of death. Wait, no. Death is worthy of—no, that's not right either."

He paused to think on it for a moment.

"You, handsome one, are to die for. Yes, that's it." He grinned, satisfied. "You are to die for."

Judah knew he might appear insane, but he felt that he had to reassure his body lest it didn't have the encouragement to move on in life. Sure he had gained a few, but he also knew that when he smiled, it managed to absorb all the negative parts of his face and accentuate the attractive. The bastard prince might have lost his original and completely to-die-for physique, but his manly looks hadn't forsaken him. And that was something he had always gratefully thanked the sweet Supreme for.

It had also gotten most of the witches and other females in the kingdom casting some really dirty eyes his way, which was something he didn't fully understand. Sure he was a natural tempter, but it didn't change the fact that he was still a Shade inside all that exterior.

To be specific, a half-Shade and a half-wizard. Oh yes, he was a wizard. Judah didn't bear the mark of Gregon, but damn it if he didn't have some magic to show off. Even if by magic he meant he could make a leaf fly without touching it.

That was still cool, right?

Well, in Ravencorff, it had been a huge deal for him. But in Oroden? Needless to say, he was labelled "The Pathetic Bastard".

But it didn't affect him—not really. It was only a little tease that had him wishing just the teeniest tiny bit that he had known who he truly was way before his mother had died.

Judah knew, from the deep pure depths of his soul, that that Shade had intentionally waited until her deathbed to tell him that she'd had a thing with a certain wizard who had no business being in Ravencorff. A king with whom she'd willingly had an affair with, yet had not had the decency to accept his offer to reside in the palace.

Already starting to get frustrated, Judah cast all thoughts of his mother aside and focused on himself. But when his stomach began to rumble, he couldn't take the torment anymore.

Where the hell was his valet? Or more importantly, the maid with his breakfast?

Jonan hadn't returned since a flying orb had been sent to summon him on behalf of the king, for whatever reason.

That of course, still surprised Judah. But what shocked him more was that it seemed as if the maids had also abandoned him. He still couldn't believe that he had been forgotten. Today of all da—

A sudden loud bang cut him out of his reverie, followed by a haughty, "Don't be expecting anyone to arrive. No one's stepping in until I'm finished with you."

Judah hadn't even heard the door open, so to say he was surprised that the maid and his valet weren't the ones who walked in would be an understatement. What made it even worse was that he was definitely not mentally prepared to hear that voice that morning.

What the hell did she want?

Not even waiting to be acknowledged, the intruder walked in with her pet griffin trotting behind her. Judah always caught himself staring at her light silver hair and similar eye colour, and he continued to do so through the mirror he was still facing.

There was no doubt, she was a pretty little thing, but Judah would catch himself dead before he ever told her that.

So as usual, he just settled with a scowl. "You again."

"Judah," the little witch replied as she proceeded to walk in with an air of confidence.

Judah almost rolled his eyes when she arrogantly lifted her chin. That meager twelve year old always addressed him as if she were a century older.

What a shoe-mould, Judah thought with a mental scoff.

For someone who couldn't see, Princess Kora Rhakys had always managed to know what anyone was doing and how they were doing it, finding her own way everywhere she went. That always succeeded in creeping Judah out, although he supposed that was part of the benefits of being a high-grade witch.

"Your Highness, thank you once again for reminding me that you're still alive." He gestured towards the door. "You're free to leave."

Ignoring his words, the royal commented instead, the sound of her voice never ceasing to irritate Judah's ears. "Stop fooling. I need to talk to you about something important."

"Kora, please." Judah pinched the bridge of his nose, shutting his eyes in silent prayer. "I'm hungry, okay? I am dying of starvation, which means that my brain isn't functioning normally. So the last thing I need right now is for you to take advantage of my inability to say no to the very stupid proposals you always have for me."

"My proposals are never stupid," Kora insisted. "This one especially, is very important. Now dress up and listen to me. It isn't proper to be naked in front of a princess. Your scent is overwhelming."

"My scent is glorifying," Judah corrected, finally spinning away from his reflection to jab a warning finger towards where she stood. "But you'll keep smelling the worst of it if you don't stop stressing me out. And I'm not naked, you little pervert."

At that, the little griffin that had accompanied the princess suddenly stopped fidgeting with its wings and focused its bright and threatening silver gaze on Judah's finger.

Immediately recognising that look, he quickly retracted the digit and instead shot a glare at the creature.

Stupid pet. "One day that monster of yours is going to wind up dead, and no one will know the cause."

"Griffin has a name."

"A stupid one," Judah retorted, striding to his bed to snatch his tunic from where it lay, all the while maintaining eye contact with the princess' pesky griffin.

"So, Your Royal Highness," Judah drawled as he struggled to fully wear his garment. "Now that you've got me doing your bidding, are you going to tell me why you chose this morning to violate me?"

Kora replied nonchalantly, moving to settle herself comfortably in one of the armchairs by the fireplace. Her eyes remained emotionless and forever forward. "It's simple. Mikah's betrothed is on her way here for the wedding ceremony, bringing half of Drakonwell with her."

"So?" Judah gritted out, trying to get his hands to fit into the tunic's armholes. "What does that have to do with you?"

"My concern is that she's bringing something along with her, something that might tear not only this kingdom, but others apart. I can feel it." She frowned deeply as she reached down to pet her griffin.

When he didn't say anything—because truthfully his mind was blank—Kora twisted her head towards his scent and spoke with finality.

"Judah, I want you to go and find out what it is before it reaches the palace. Now."

*~~~*

Thoughts? ƪ(˘⌣˘)┐