The Crown's Seduction
Chapter 162: To Hold Out

Chapter 162: To Hold Out

Mineah almost fell on her knees the moment they arrived inside their tent in the encampment. If it wasn’t for Nikolai who quickly held and supported her with his arms, she probably would’ve collapsed right then and there.

"Are you alright, Mine?" Nikolai asked as he quickly carried and gently put her on their bed.

"Yes, just a bit exhausted," Mineah reassured him with a faint smile. "Also, can you please get my Mother? She’s probably still worried."

"Right, I’ll go get Mother," Nikolai nodded.

"Thank you so much, Lai," Mineah murmured, filled with love as she gently squeezed Nikolai’s hand. He had furrowed forehead, looking perplexed as he hesitantly got up.

"I’ll get Mother now," he informed her before walking out of the tent.

Mineah followed her husband’s trail, all the while, her mind was already running with how much she had in her thoughts. Keeping secrets from her husband was starting to weigh heavy on her mind as the days passed by.

Raising her palm, she stared at the glowing bluebell flower that glowed on her skin. It was where she had hastily fused Ezekiel’s spirit and sealed it, and it was a constant reminder of what she had to do to keep Nikolai from knowing the truth.

"Brother, you have to stay alive and well, alright?" she murmured with a sigh, acting as if her brother’s spirit could respond to her. "I’ve lied more than enough to my husband and even grabbed a significant amount of energy from him just to save your ass..."

She didn’t know if what she did was going to go smoothly, but the least she wanted was for it to work. She had lied more than enough to Nikolai for this to all blow up in her face, and she most definitely didn’t want her husband to be mad at her for keeping this behind his back for so long.

Letting out a sigh, she blinked as she quickly hid her brother’s spirit. Nikolai was approaching, and his familiar and comforting energy was getting nearer.

"Mine," he addressed her as he carried a tray of good meals with him. Beside him was her mother who looked just as worried as he was.

"Welcome back," Mineah greeted him back before giving her mother a half-smile. She then turned her attention back to Nikolai, specifically, to the tray he was carrying. "What’s that?"

"Oh, you’ve been working hard with your spells a while ago. I thought you might need some replenishment to fuel your physical body," he commented as he put the tray down on the table near the bed. "We weren’t able to have food during the search, so this should do the trick for now."

Mineah smiled, but she couldn’t help but bite her inner lip at her husband’s gesture. The more her husband treated her well, the more the guilt was starting to eat her alive.

"I’ll go give you some privacy with Mother," Nikolai remarked. "In the meantime, I’ll go check on our reinforcements that just arrived in the encampment."

"Thank you, Lai," Mineah lovingly hummed, to which her husband’s face blushed immediately before he politely excused himself to her mother as well.

"I can see that he’s in love with you, dear," Dana commented just as soon as Nikolai left.

Mineah gave her mother a timid smile. "Mother, I succeeded," she reported. "I have Ezekiel’s spirit with me."

Gasping, Dana covered her mouth with her palm as tears suddenly ran down her cheeks. Seeing her mother’s reaction, Mineah started sobbing as well, her palm shaking as she released the glowing bluebell flower from her possession.

"I sealed him here, Mother," Mineah sobbed. "You should keep him safe for now."

Nodding, her mother gently touched and grabbed it from Mineah’s palm. "Thank you so much, dear," she sincerely stated. "Oh, I should hurry and return him his spirit now."

Mineah eagerly nodded. Wizard Lurio and her mother already knew Ezekiel’s location, and from there, the two of them could teleport to quickly return his spirit to his body.

"Go now, Mother," she reminded as she wiped away her tears. "We shouldn’t waste time."

"Thank you, dear," Dana smiled as she hugged and kissed her daughter’s cheeks. "You did well..."

Still smiling, Mineah watched as her mother got up. But before the older woman could leave, she couldn’t help but reach out and grab her by the wrist. There was just something that she couldn’t help but ask, and hopefully, the answer she’d get was something that she could work with.

"Mother, can I please tell Nikolai everything already?"

Blinking, her mother held her hand and gently squeezed it. "Just a little bit more, Daughter," she all but pleaded. "Give Ezekiel more time. I know it’s hard keeping secrets from your husband, but it’s the only thing we know we can do to ensure that everything goes smoothly."

Mineah sighed as she wilted. "I-I know... But it’s just... The guilt is getting too much..."

She honestly didn’t know how much more she could take. While she knew that what she was doing now was the correct move, perhaps there was something else that she could’ve done that would somehow work to save her brother while also freeing her from the guilt of keeping secrets from Nikolai. Perhaps there was a magical solution that would make things easier for her, but unfortunately, it would seem that wasn’t the case.

"You can do it, dear," her mother reassured her as she leaned in to give her a warm embrace. "I’m sure that we’re nearing the end as well. Before long, you’ll be able to share everything with the one you hold dear and be free from your burden."

Mineah could only nod, her hope blooming despite the guilt that was slowly trying to crush it. Perhaps her mother was right. She only had to hold out. Surely, everything would be over soon.

Yes... As soon as she got the signal from her mother that everything was alright, she’d tell Nikolai the truth about everything that just happened.

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