“Here we go, Your Majesty,” he jests, and I return the smile, though I imagine it doesn’t reach my eyes. The wounds of the war have scabbed over, but that doesn’t mean I enjoy being forced to make nice with the male who invaded my kingdom and the leaders who did nothing to stop him. Admon’s eyes suddenly harden, and I know who’s entered behind my back. I steel myself, turning cold eyes upon Mazus Vicant.

He hasn’t aged a day since the Battle of Moormyr, that perfectly crafted appearance still as flawless as ever. None but his closest circle know his true age. He was born centuries before even my parents, potentially even before Admon. And yet—he looks as if he could be just out of his adolescence. Yet another mystery of the Golden King.

“Laurel, it is always such a rare pleasure to see you,” he says with a plastered-on smile. I tense for an instant before recovering, noticing his use of my given name and not my title.

Not allowing him to get under my skin, I respond smoothly and cooly. “I wish I could say the same, Mazus.” Now he stills, clearly irked by my own lack of formality and groveling. One of his advisors, an ancient graying male who looks as old as the Four Kingdoms, glances between us, then quickly looks to Admon, before returning his gaze to his King.

“How is Thayaria?” Mazus asks with fake interest. “Still shrouded in mist? Are you ever going to let anyone in or do you intend to isolate yourself for the rest of your long life?”

I bare my teeth in a contemptuous smile. “Why don’t you try to cross the barrier and find out?”

Mazus eyes me coldly, tension roiling in the air between us. Before it can snap, the Queen of Delsar enters, chortling at the scene before her and cutting through the strain instantly. Lobelia Bantsum’s tall frame matches those of the Delsarian warrior women. Her hair is fully gray, though the rest of her bronze body remains strong and toned, the muscles of her arms and abdomen on display in the turquoise cropped, sleeveless top she wears with matching flowing pants. “It’s only been five minutes, and the Witch Queen and Golden King are already at odds. What a surprise,” she says with a twinkle in her eye.