Princess Willowyn's Arc

Chapter 68 of 70

The three of them walked toward the throne room together. Both royal houses waited inside to hear Willowyn's claim. She knew Cora would not give up the betrothal without a fight. If Willowyn pressed too hard, the two houses would turn on each other, and her dream of peace would end in a feud. She had come to bind kingdoms, not break them. She searched for words that would win Cora, not wound her. Kai stopped short of the door. He turned to Willowyn and reached into his cloak. Then he dropped to one knee. In his hand lay a silver ring, its small gems catching the light. "This is sudden. I know that," Kai said. His voice did not shake. "We have known each other nearly two years. I can find no reason I would not be yours for the rest of my life." Willowyn's breath caught. This was the proof no clause could deny. A true bond, offered in the open, before both crowns. Behind them, Cora gasped. Her hand rose to her mouth. Tears spilled down her cheeks. Willowyn opened her mouth to answer. But before a word came, Cora stepped forward and took Willowyn's hand. Willowyn froze, unsure what the princess meant to do. "Do not think me cruel," Cora said, her voice breaking. "The betrothal was never mine to want. My parents pinned their hopes on it. I have watched him grieve for you since I arrived." She pressed Willowyn's hand between both of hers. "I could feel him waiting for someone. Now I see who." Willowyn looked at their joined hands, then at Cora's wet eyes. "You would release it? Truly?" "I would." Cora wiped her cheek. "But my parents will not hear it from me alone. They fear insult more than they fear war. If they think this ends in shame, our houses will quarrel over pride for years." Willowyn understood at last. The threat was never Cora. It was the crowns behind her. "Then we walk in together," Willowyn said. "Not as rivals. You will stand with us and name Kai free with your own voice. No insult. A gift given, not a prize lost." Cora nodded slowly. She let go of Willowyn's hand and turned toward the door. "Rise, Kai," she said. "Save the knee for her." Kai stood and slid the ring onto Willowyn's finger. She curled her fingers around it. Then the three of them pushed open the doors. Inside, both families waited on either side of the hall. Cora crossed the floor to her parents and spoke before anyone else could. "I release the betrothal freely," she said, clear and steady. "The prince is bound to another. I ask no quarrel." The room stilled. The feud died before it began. But her parents' faces had gone hard, and Willowyn saw a new question rising in their eyes. If not their daughter, then what would they claim in her place?