The witches' kingdom - TOG series

Chapter 15 | Manon

I wasn't nervous about the humans, but it was the first time I appeared as the Queen of Witches in front of a court. It's not that I cared much about these people, but considering that night in the tent, if Dorian had said yes, they would also be my people right now.

I wanted to be kind and appear as a worthy queen, but I couldn't help it; I wanted them to know who I really was, so I let my claws gleam. The iron teeth seemed excessive to me, but the mental image of me entering with a silver smile seemed charming, although perhaps too aggressive. No, these people weren't my people, and I doubted they ever would be, but they were Dorian's people, and the time to be the White Demon was over; now, I was the Queen of Witches, and I had to act accordingly, even though I hated it with all my might.

I glanced at Yrene, who was by my side at the door before entering the grand hall, smiling with satisfaction at her work. God, there was even some poor fool playing the trumpet. All this pomp and circumstance made me want to vomit, but it had all been so improvised that they followed the usual protocol. When I flew to Rifthold, I had imagined a discreet visit, but a giant wyvern on a balcony in the early hours of the morning doesn't seem like something you can easily overlook, so now I had to face the consequences of my lack of foresight.
The time came to enter the hall, and I watched as everyone turned curiously to look at me as I entered. Well, I looked quite impressive in this dress, and it seemed that, after the last battle, the witches had become something like a legend for much of Erilea. I could smell the excitement of many of the guests and the accelerated heartbeat of most of them. They were lucky that now I was a new person, much more peaceful and cooperative, more diplomatic, if you could call it that.

At the back of the hall, I met Dorian's gaze. He looked like an idiot, which I have to admit, I liked. As he watched me walk toward him, I suddenly sensed a new scent, that of a woman. Right behind him was that girl who always followed him, talking to Dorian's mother, apparently about me. I couldn't say that I was jealous or that I really cared, but I knew she would cause trouble, and I didn't know if I could control myself forever. Did Dorian know that she was infatuated with him? Did he realize that she was always hovering around him? Did he notice how she smelled every time they were close? Yes, I was sure he did.

We sat down after a couple of speeches praising the Witch Kingdom by some of its emissaries, and we began to eat. The food was truly exquisite, and I noticed the gigantic cheese plate conveniently placed next to me. I looked at Dorian as I smiled to myself. At the head table, Yrene and Chaol joined us, with him keeping a close eye on her all the time, and when he wasn't, he was looking at me inquisitively.

On the other side, there was the Count of Olbia and his wife, who, despite their irritating daughters, were quite polite. Dorian's mother and his brother sat on the other side of the King. I couldn't determine if Hollin amused me or irritated me. The boy couldn't take his eyes off me, and although I wanted to overlook that detail, I was about to rip his head off when Dorian, who was sitting next to me, politely asked him what was wrong.

"Is it true that you eat human flesh?" Hollin asked me directly. I almost choked on the fifteenth piece of cheese I was eating, and it made me laugh.
"Mmmm, do you want to find out?" Dorian made a feigned attempt to laugh, but he looked at me urgently, as if begging me not to continue in that direction. However, Hollin's face turned red; I couldn't tell if from anger or laughter.
"What do humans taste like" I wasn't going to say that even though some witches had eaten human flesh, I found it repulsive. I wanted to leave some suspense; maybe that way, they would fear me more, although I doubted this boy feared anything.
"Of course, not as well as this cheese," I said, winking at Dorian, indicating that I would continue to behave like the queen I was. Dorian's mother's expression, however, said something else.
It was clear that this woman despised me with all her heart and that she knew there was something more between her son and me, and she clearly didn't approve of it.