Arceus drew a shaky breath and explained, "I thought everything was over after I apologized to Father. I knew he would be angry. I knew his pride had been wounded. I knew that it was difficult for him to swallow it. I just underestimated my father a lot. His hatred for his damaged pride far exceeded the love for his son."
His voice trembled as he further said, "The Elders can't marry me off to House Drake and make a Matrilocal son-in-law, because of great-grandpa's orders. So, they called for my execution instead. When the guards came to drag me away, he said nothing."
He swallowed hard.
"My mother tried to stop them."
His shoulders shook more violently.
"They locked her up."
The final words came out as a broken whisper.
"They wanted to kill me."
A fierce heat surged through Kiara. For an instant, the memory of her own mother, who had sacrificed her without hesitation to keep her position stable, rose from the ashes of her past.
Her jaw tightened.
Her teeth ground together.
