The Uninvited Princess ✔

Chapter 74

Chapter 74

There weren't a lot of people that were willing to join Tanet's army. Only seven of them were present. Pranee, Shashi, Kiet, Tanet, Anuman, and two other men that Pranee vaguely recognized. The two men probably were there when Tanet got injured.

The group sat in the vacant basement room with a map of the palace in front of them. No one dared to speak as spirits were low.

"This was all because of me, wasn't it?" Anuman was trying to keep a neutral face but Pranee could see guilt in his eyes.

"No, this was about... me missing his birthday." Tanet didn't seem to see Anuman's expression and his hand twitched over the map. "Back to business. We know that the wedding is coming up and that there were been uproars lately in the country. Apparently, they've grown to the point of it not being ignorable any longer. Our brother should be deploying troops and magicians to quell them."

"So, what's the rough estimate of people we have to face?" Pranee asked.

"Since the wedding will have a lot of guests, we can assume we'll have a lot of non-fighters but we shouldn't ignore them completely. People will act if they feel threatened."

"They shouldn't have any special training, right?" Kiet tapped the table with his hand, his anxiety seeping into the room.

"Not sure. The men most likely will have taken some private classes but in actual practice it's murky." Tanet pressed his lips together in thought.

"You know who we should use?"

The words fell out of Pranee's mouth without a second thought and all eyes were on her. Even Shashi who hadn't been able to look at her a couple of days ago now had the same intensity as when they had first met. Instead of a look of anger, it was one of determination and despair.

Her mouth moved soundlessly and she needed a moment to regain her composure. She pushed her shoulders, making her stand taller. She needed to be confident. They were putting everything on the line for this.

"Ubol," she finally said.

A chill went through the room as if a spirit had come to haunt them. Anuman looked to Tanet with hesitancy in his eyes and Tanet continued to stare at Pranee, as if he was processing what she just said.

"What made you suddenly think she would be on our side?" Kiet asked. His elbows were propped on the table as he leaned forward. "She was willing to kill us. Did everyone just forget that?"

"Didn't you hear her at the trial?" Pranee's voice raised higher with each word. "We don't even know when the wedding will be."

"It should be at nine, shouldn't it? I swore I've been to so many weddings that started around that time," Anuman said.

"As if Ritthirong is a romantic," Kiet snorted. "Judging from the prince and princess, the king is more into familial extermination than any form of affection."

"We're getting off-topic." Pranee put a hand to her forehead and her frown deepened. They won't get anywhere at this point.

"P'Tanet has been quiet for some time." Shashi's sudden interjection broke the fight and silence filled the room once more.

"Funny, coming from you." Tanet crossed his arms and tilted his head to the side.

Shashi ignored his remarked and directed their gaze to Pranee once more. "I agree with Pranee. It's a risk but I was there during the attacks. The wizard doesn't like the king from the looks of it and it's in our best interest to gain as many allies we can."

"She was also deemed to be the best wizard in the country by father," Pranee said. Her fingers tapped her thigh. "She definitely has more power than any of in the room as well. All of us attacking her at once didn't seem difficult for her."

"Which would make it easier for her to backstab us," Kiet interjected.

"I know how that wizard feels." Shashi's foot was rolling their staff on the floor. Pranee wasn't sure if it was their way of fidgeting or if they were doing it as a form of massage. Maybe a combination of both. Their eyes were back on the floor again and were now a murky brown colour.

"You're nothing like that wizard." Kiet's scowl grew.

Shashi glanced at Kiet. "We both lost our towers."

"That's nothing."

"It's everything." Shashi's head shot up and anger burned in their eyes. "What is a king without their laws? A fisher without any fishing nets? A master wizard losing their tower means losing their life work. Tools necessary to do their job properly."

Pranee shrunk away from the heated argument. Kiet visibly grew more and more upset while Shashi's comparatively calm composure was beginning to break.

Tanet held up a hand and hung his head. "That's enough you two."

Kiet didn't look pleased and Shashi's anger still seemed to boil beneath the surface of their eyes but the two listened to Tanet.

"I get the final say here," Tanet continued. "My sister has a point, and despite the many concerns, I'm willing to take the risk."

Pranee didn't have time to be surprised and just nodded. "Good. We don't have much time left."

Tanet returned the nod. "We don't have much time left. We better hurry with this plan."