Pampered by the Villainous Tyrant King

Chapter 24

A/N: I own nothing but plot. Enjoy!

STOP! Before you read this: If you missed the surprise update of chapter 23 on Wednesday October 6, go back a chapter!

********************************

Arc 2 Begins

The music swelled from the orchestra, signaling the start of the dance. Were it not for the fact that she knew there were possible assassins mixed in with the dancers, Annabeth might have dropped her guard as she watched the dancers perform.

The dancers were truly superb in their talent as they circled around each other in complicated yet graceful choreography consisting of leaps and flips. Thinking wryly as she sipped her wine, Annabeth could tell how the limberness and athleticism of the dancers could contribute to skills of murder.

As the music seemed to build up to a climax, one single female dancer was left in the middle of the circle of dancers. This dancer was veiled with silk scarves around her face, adding to a layer of mysteriousness. Far above on her throne, Annabeth couldn't tell what this dancer's expression was. But from the dancer's caramel colored hair, this was the dancer that the king had told her to pay particular attention to.

The lights in the hall began to dim except for the lights above the solo female dancer. She swung her arms around as her feet lifted high up in the air in joyful circles. Many of the guests at the birthday banquet were enthralled by this seductive dance. But to Annabeth, the dancer's dark eyes were not full of concentration on the dance so much as they held the fear of messing up. The dowager queen's lips curled up in a genuine smile of satisfaction. The king only gave a smile that belied his true emotions.

********************************

When the dance finished, the dowager queen called upon the solo female dancer.

"What a beautiful dance you gifted us, my child," the dowager queen praised.

She had one of the ladies-in-waiting bestow a pair of gold anklets to the solo dancer. Percy sipped his tea. Those anklets seemed like a pair of gilded chains.

"I shall reward you once more, graceful one," dowager queen Amphitrite continued. "What do you think of this young woman, Your Majesty? If you like her, I'll give her to you. You work so hard for Eldoris, surely you can find the time to relax with her dance."

The dowager queen's words were pretty on the surface, but everyone in the banquet hall knew that the dowager queen was trying to stuff the king's bedchamber. Whether it succeeded or not, the nobles were far more interested in seeing the queen's reaction and whether the king would accept other women. But the queen's expression didn't change from her simple smile.

"Thank you for your kind thoughts. But I am afraid I am a rough man who is unable to appreciate the arts. You'll have to forgive me if I decline." Percy smoothly refused.

"Is that so? You," the dowager queen spat at the dancer. "What have you done to displease the king? You shameless, vulgar woman!"

Those were the same words that the dowager queen had said in the king's past life. In order to save this innocent woman, the king had accepted her, planning to never touch her.

The dancer's shoulders trembled. Whether she was accepted or not, either route would end in death.

"Your Majesty," the queen cooed. She intentionally encircled her arms around Percy's arms. "It would be a pity to refuse the dowager queen's good intentions. I see that this dancer has some talent."