Chapter 31 - An Alliance

Aries remained silent as she listened to Conan's every word. She knew everything he said was truth and nothing but the truth. Not trying to alarm her? How ironic, but she couldn't disagree. Conan was doing her a favor by saying all this to her without a filter.

"My lady, aside from that, you're free." Conan cleared his throat, knowing he was contradicting his claims previously. "Just be yourself and not at the same time. What I mean by that is, His Majesty likes submissive people and not at the same time. He dislikes defiance, but sometimes he found it interesting. In short, if you are too submissive, he will get bored. But if you are too defiant, you will hasten your death."

Listening to his own words, Conan sported a complicated look. "My lady, do you now understand my struggles as well? Because I don't understand myself until now. It's a miracle how I survived this long without losing a limb."

'I pity him in a way,' she thought, seeing that he was on the verge of tears. 'So this is what he means by freestyle. He nags him when necessary and follows his orders without question when his mind knew he needed to be submissive. A habit he already mastered.'

"I think I'm getting a gist of it." Aries nodded ever so slowly. "I can be myself and not at the same time. Just stay in between. I salute you for not losing it, Sir Conan."

"My lady... finally... someone understands me."

"I think that's because we're on the same boat."

Conan rocked his head. "That's right. Since you and I understand each other, we should team up! What do you think, my lady?"

"Team up...?" she blinked countless times, studying the determination in his eyes.

"I will tell you everything you need to know to survive and even inform you about His Majesty's mood. In exchange, just do what you did yesterday and save me!" His eyes gleamed as what happened yesterday gave him a spark of hope. "What do you think, my lady?"

Aries remained silent as she pondered about his words. His offer was good — actually, it was the best. She needed someone to monitor Abel and his mood, so she knew how to deal with him beforehand. It was hard and exhausting to be put in a tricky situation on the spot. She was lucky yesterday, but she didn't know when her luck would run out.

"Deal." She nodded in agreement, watching Conan extend his arm over the table.

"Let's handshake to seal our agreement, my lady."

She raised her brows, a bit confused, but grasp his hand anyway. Conan grinned as he shook her hand, nodding reassuringly. Seeing his determined expression as if a thorn was plucked out of his throat, the fire beneath her eyes also blazed.

When they let each other's hand go, the corner of their lips stretched into an evil grin. Both thrilled to gain an ally — a reliable one — to resolve their own problem called Abel.

When they release each other hands, Conan proceeded to brief Aries about their lesson. Not the history of the empire and the powerhouse noble families, but his other lesson.

[How to appease His Majesty]

Aries was ten times more invested in this lesson. Before they knew it, their time together came to an end. Even so, she learned a thing or two from Conan. Just as expected, he was the best person to stand as her intel.

"My lady, I wish for this alliance to last forever." Conan raised a fist as he stood, holding a book in his arm. "If you don't have anything to do after this, you're free to roam the castle. Just don't approach the king's palace, since it's dangerous if you're alone."

"Thank you very much, Sir Conan." Aries also stood next to her chair to bid him goodbye. They smiled at each other, nodding encouragingly before he left her in the study.

Once the door closed behind him, Aries let out a deep exhale. She went back to her seat, leaning back as she looked up.

"In conclusion, he is crazy, no doubt," she muttered and closed her eyes, arms on the armrest. "And to deal with someone like him... being passive is the last of my options. I can be myself and not at the same time, huh? What a complicated person."

Aries stayed seated for a little while until she opened her eyes. As soon as she did, a glint flickered across her eyes. This was tougher than learning a different language for the first time. But she won't give up. Not now that she had an ally.

"I can do it." She nodded in determination, peeling her eyes away from the ceiling. "Let's give him the best show he will ever see."

*****

Meanwhile, in the emperor's office, Abel gazed at the poisoned tea in his hand. He had already consumed most of it but left an ample amount. He swirled the cup, leaning back against his chair.

"How potent," he commented, raising the slightly tilted cup to see the last drops of the tea. "If not a drug to make me hallucinate, a poison that will burn my insides. How amazing."

For someone who just drank poison, Abel laughed in amusement. "Although this one is a little bitter. Goodness. They didn't even try to conceal that it was poisoned." Another dry laugh slipped past his lips as he guided the teacup to his lips.

But before consuming it, he stopped. His brow slowly arched as an idea flashed in his head. Abel carefully withdrew his hand, gazing at the paltry amount in the cup.

The side of his lips curled up into a devious smirk. "Should I share a cup with her?" he wondered, and a dark chuckle escaped his mouth. His eyes glanced at the documents he had already finished working on whilst enjoying a cup of poisoned tea.

"Doing this for a long time, playing as an emperor, is getting boring every passing day. Can't they give me a problem that will keep me busy? At this rate, my Aries will suffer!" he intoned, but then laughed like a maniac and got up from the chair.

With the cup in his hand and a few documents, Abel marched outside the door to see Aries.. The oblivious Aries didn't have an idea of the new way he thought to kill her.