Claimed By The Tyrant King

What was once meant to be a wedding had now turned into a storm of accusations, revelations, hidden identities, and shocking truths that left everyone in the hall stunned, before ending with Alaric’s death as he now lay lifeless upon the ground.

Rama had finally pulled away and the floor was stained with blood.

The king had been killed by the very beast he had once paraded around as a trophy.

The hall descended into chaos almost immediately as people screamed at the sight and hurried away from the bloodshed, but amidst all the confusion, Rowan remained standing as the victor.

"Does this mean we’ll have to swear our loyalty to him as king?" one of the ministers asked uncertainly.

"What else are we supposed to do?" another replied. "He was the rightful king from the beginning and we’ve all been serving the wrong person. It would be wiser to stand with him now rather than lose everything later."

As soon as one minister stepped forward and knelt, swearing his loyalty, the others naturally followed.

Although some of them did so reluctantly, they still bowed because there was little room left for denial.

The guards shifted their allegiance as well, lowering their heads as their true king had returned after years of disappearance and the usurper had been exposed before everyone.

Cedric bowed too, and soon most of those present followed suit as the moment transformed into the acknowledgement of a king reclaiming his throne.

"You are the rightful king of Eryndor, therefore your place is upon that throne and we will stand by that truth," King Lionel declared with a respectful inclination of his head, and the other rulers followed his example.

Rowan acknowledged them in return.

He had arrived with nothing more than a succession letter and a desire to stop the wedding, yet everything had unfolded in ways he never expected. It had begun with Rosalind’s courage and then Cedric’s return from what he had believed was certain death.

None of this would have been possible without them, nor without the rulers who had chosen justice over convenience. For that, Rowan knew he owed them all a debt he could never fully repay.

Now that he had been acknowledged as the rightful king, the wedding was naturally cancelled, which had been his goal from the beginning.

Rosalind would no longer be forced to marry Alaric and suffer under him for the rest of her life.

It had all been for Rosalind.

His gaze found hers amidst the aftermath and for the first time in years, he felt as though the nightmare was finally over...

****

Later, after the wedding had been officially called off and the hall had begun to settle, Rosalind found herself standing before the Queen of Merovia, Crown Prince Marek, and Princess Hannah.

She looked at them, especially the woman before her, and suddenly found herself at a loss for words. The last time they had met, everything had been different, but now everything had changed.

The Queen had already confirmed the pendant, the letter, and the birthmark upon Rosalind’s neck that matched the one her daughter possessed. There was no doubt left in her heart.

This was Sophia.

This was her child.

And after all these years, she was finally standing before her.

The Queen’s eyes grew misty as she took in Rosalind’s appearance. She had grown into a beautiful young woman and now the Queen saw her completely differently from the girl she had briefly encountered in Merovia.

"Oh, Sophia..." she whispered before she could stop herself.

She stepped forward and pulled Rosalind into a tight embrace.

Rosalind instantly felt the warmth surrounding her, a warmth unlike anything she had ever known before. It filled something deep within her chest and for the first time in a long while, she felt safe.

Her arms wrapped around the Queen as well and they remained locked together for several moments.

Nearby, Hannah watched them quietly and although her heart ached for reasons she couldn’t explain aloud, she pushed those feelings aside because this moment was not about her. It belonged to the Queen and the daughter she had spent years searching for.

After they finally pulled apart, mother and daughter simply stared at one another.

"I... I thought you wouldn’t come," Rosalind admitted softly.

The Queen immediately shook her head. "Silly child. How could I not?" she asked. "The moment I saw that pendant, I knew it could only be you and we left for Eryndor immediately."

A fresh wave of emotion washed over Rosalind. "Thank you so much," she said as tears gathered in her eyes once again.

Because if they had not come, she would have married Alaric.

Rowan would have died.

Everything would have been lost.

"Oh, just look at you," the Queen said as she reached up to touch Rosalind’s face. "You’ve grown so tall and even more beautiful. But why aren’t you chubby anymore? Were they not feeding you properly?"

Rosalind couldn’t help noticing how different she seemed now.

The commanding queen who had stood against Alaric in front of an entire kingdom had vanished, replaced by an emotional mother fussing over her daughter.

Marek cleared his throat loudly. "Mother..." he called.

The Queen turned toward him. "We should probably greet her too?" he reminded her.

The Queen laughed softly. "Of course. Of course."

She turned back toward Rosalind. "Sophia, this is your elder brother, Marek," she said as she introduced him.

And at once, Rosalind’s hazel eyes shifted to meet the tall man and she pressed her lips together as she remembered that he was the same person who had dragged her across the streets of Merovia after she had been caught stealing.

It wasn’t exactly a pleasant thing to remember, she thought to herself. He had ordered that she be locked up and, as far as she was concerned, the Queen had been much kinder to her from the very beginning.

"Hello, little thief," Marek started with an amused look in his eyes.

The Queen’s gaze immediately sharpened at him, but Rosalind knew he was only teasing her and smiled back. "Hello, brother," she said softly. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"It’s good to see you," he replied as he started walking toward her. "I hope we can forget what happened last time and simply start over."

Rosalind nodded and soon he came forward to give her a brief hug before lightly patting her head.

Hannah looked at the family and felt a sting in her own eyes. They looked so complete and so perfect together that she suddenly felt out of place, and if she allowed herself to think about it any longer she might burst into tears, so she quietly planned to slip away.

"Sophia, you should greet your sister too. Hannah. You’ve met her before, haven’t you?" the Queen asked, causing Hannah to stop in her tracks.

She looked back and found Rosalind smiling softly at her. "It’s good to see you, sister," Rosalind said warmly.

Hannah pressed her lips together as she fought back her emotions. "... it’s good to see you too," she replied before stepping forward, and soon they found themselves sharing a large embrace together like one happy family.

"As soon as we return to Merovia, you should visit your father. He’s currently ill, but I’m sure he’ll feel much better once he sees you," the Queen said to Rosalind.

Her father?

Her real father?

Rosalind hadn’t exactly had the best experiences with fathers, so she wasn’t entirely sure what she was supposed to expect from this, but she simply nodded with a smile.