All eyes in the room go wide at her ultimatum. For a while, the room hangs in silence as I study everyone's shocked and tense expressions, waiting for shit to hit the fan. To my surprise, though, Tessa lets out a bark of laughter. When she stops long enough to respond, she seems to have forgotten about me, and her voice oozes disdain.
"Oh, we'll all dance to your tune, will we? Pray tell, why would I do that?" (Tessa)
Ilina's eyes turn cold, and a small, vicious smile spreads across her face.
"Two reasons. First, because all of your other choices are terrible.
"If you refuse to bless our marriage in the Kingdom, we'll get married by Zara. Even if you refuse to acknowledge it, our 'unofficial' marriage will be public knowledge in the kingdom. I will have Mizuki accompany me most places, I will be clearly affectionate with him in public, and I will insist to anyone that asks that we are married.
"If that causes me to fall out of favor with our people, then so be it. If you want to take action against me because of it, then that's fine, too. But what can you do, exactly? You can treat me like Alara – strip me of my royal status – but then you'd have no heir. You could reinstate Alara, I guess. I'll happily swap places with her and take over Eden in her stead, but you'd still have a noble and former heir married to Mizuki.
"You could make me into a commoner instead, or even banish me from the kingdom entirely, but that would only cause even more mayhem. In addition, if you do that, who will run Eden? Surely you don't think that any of you can do it? Almost all of the things that make Eden a viable city were provided by Mizuki, and I'm sure he'd take them away the minute that they're no longer under the control of an elf he trusts sufficiently. As you've recently learned, that's only me, Alara, and Alto.
"So, Eden would effectively collapse. You'd also alienate Lady Nedonera and Mizuki as allies, in case you've forgotten that I'm both the only reason that either of them is here in the first place, and the one among our ranks who they trust the most. Without me, I'm sure that all the common elves would soon learn that their nobles and royal family are to blame for all these disastrous losses for our kingdom. I can only imagine how much mayhem would ensue then.
"But who knows...maybe I'm wrong. Does anyone here see things going better?" (Ilina)
Ilina finishes her rant with that flippant question, then sweeps her gaze over those in the now deathly silent room. Even Elira and Dargo are speechless. On some level, I think they always knew how serious Ilina was – that everything she said was a possibility. But assuming and seeing her resolve are two different things. I'm sure the experience is just as shocking for them.
I'm in the same boat. I've never heard Ilina speak so venomously to other elves, and I can't imagine that she enjoys it, despite how cold she may seem right now. I feel a wave of guilt wash over me as I try and work through my feelings. Is this the right way to handle this? Is Ilina going to regret it later? Will she blame me?
Burying my worries, I glance at Tessa, whose face seems to be cycling between bewilderment and rage. Her fists are clenched so hard that they're turning white. After a moment's pause, she responds in a low voice through gritted teeth, her words almost a whisper.
"You'd really do all that? Threaten your own people...just for him?" (Tessa)
Ilina rolls her eyes and scoffs, seemingly unfazed by the accusation.
"Tch...don't try and twist this on me. What you're calling threats are nothing more than my predictions about the consequences of your own potential actions. If the possibilities you heard scare you, look in the mirror for someone to blame. The only thing I've threatened to 'do' is marry Mizuki, and you're damn right that I'll really do that." (Ilina)
Complete disbelief overtakes Tessa's face for a moment, before it dissolves into an unnervingly calm expression. Her eyes and voice suddenly become cold.
"If you're so flippant about those outcomes, then you have confessed a willingness to abandon our people for an outsider...you're a traitor. If you want to know what I think we should do, I suggest that we arrest and detain you within the palace until you see reason. Your mother is young, so there's no rush for your succession or marriage. At worst, we'll release you in a few decades...this would all be a moot point by then." (Tessa)
My eyes go wide at her words. The leap in logic, her sudden loss of civility, calling Ilina a traitor, the suggestion to imprison Ilina until I die of old age...it's ridiculous at every level. I'm angered by the hatefulness of it, indignant about her implication that Ilina doesn't care for her people, and shocked by the pure stupidity of her voicing all of these things in front of me. Especially now that she knows the truth about me.
The more I absorb Tessa's words, the more infuriated I become, until I can almost hear my blood pounding in my ears. If I were to look at Ilina, I'd notice that she's relatively unfazed by the declaration, but I'm not calm enough to register that.
Apparently, I'm not alone.
"Do you have brain damage, cousin? Or perhaps I didn't hear you right, because it sounded like you just suggested imprisoning your Princess and defamed her as a traitor. Since I didn't forbid her marriage, there's nothing technically illegal about what she discussed, and she has yet to actually marry Mizuki. So, the only traitor here would be you, for your mutinous proposal." (Elira)
Elira's voice has the warmth and reach of a blizzard as she stares down Tessa, leaning over the table. Small sparks of electricity can be faintly seen dancing between her fingers as her muscles seem to tense in anticipation of a conflict.
Perhaps noticing the rising tension, or just finally registering Tessa's lunacy, Darak's face goes pale as he quietly speaks.
"Princess Ilina might have been heavy-handed, but...Tessa...you've gone too far..." (Darak)
Helena wears a grave expression, her voice barely a whisper.
"He's right, Tessa..." (Helena)
Meanwhile, Cara, Alara, Dargo, and several others are focused on me with terrified expressions, not that I notice. I'm too busy trying to restrain myself from throttling Tessa, but thankfully nobody has actually made a move towards Ilina.
Tessa snorts as she glances at Elira, Darak, and Helena.
"Nonsense, she clearly ha-" (Tessa)
"Shut up, it doesn't matter." (Mizuki)
I cut her off, my voice practically a snarl, and everyone in the room turns to me with an incredulous expression. Tessa's face is initially twisted in anger, but when she sees that I'm staring at her with unrestrained malice, her expression falters as she seems to recall what she's learned about me. Her face pales slightly as she calms herself, and her eyes become slightly fearful, but she responds with a firm voice nonetheless.
"I beg your pardon?" (Tessa)
My demeanor only grows colder as my eyes narrow at her.
"I told you to shut up with your threats, because they don't matter. Let me clarify something for you, since you had the audacity – in my presence, no less – to threaten my fiancé over our engagement. While I take my promise of minimal interference with your kingdom quite seriously, don't think for a second that I care about that more than Ilina herself.
"I'll let you strip her of her titles, fine her as much money as you want, and even banish her from the country. Hell, if you want to banish me from the country, I'll willingly leave and stay away. If it was what Ilina asked of me, I'd even leave the country while she remains here, and never see her again.
"However, under no circumstances will I allow anyone to harm a single hair on her head, or to keep her from me against her will. I don't care if it's a commoner, a noble, or a king, a person, a country, or this whole planet – you lack the power to circumvent me.
"Never forget that I'm only harmless to the people I care about. So, don't threaten someone I love for shitty reasons, because then we won't be allies. Are we clear?" (Mizuki)
A cold, stifling quiet blankets the room following my very clear threat, but I don't care. I just maintain my glare at Tessa, who has gone completely pale. As she seems to whither under my gaze, she finally manages to let out a soft, raspy response, as though her throat has been parched by fear.
"Y-yes..." (Tessa)
I let out a deep sigh of relief, as my anger slowly fades away.
"Good." (Mizuki)
I finally take a calmer look around the room, and notice that everyone is a bit shaken from my outburst. Several nobles and their escorts are watching me nervously, though they avoid eye contact when I look their way. Elira is wearing a conflicted expression, probably due to my threatening an elven noble, while Dargo is staring straight at me with a face that's almost...appreciative.
When my eyes settle on Ilina, I'm expecting her to look surprised or disappointed...or both. Instead, however, her face is completely unreadable. As if sensing my concerns, as our gazes meet she gives me the slightest nod, which I interpret as her reassurance that she's not upset. Though, I suppose that could just be wishful thinking.
After a while, as the awkward silence begins to drag in the room, Cara clears her throat pointedly, clearly hoping to change the subject.
"Ehem...uhm, well then. Princess, I believe you promised two reasons why we would support your marriage to Mizuki, but you only mentioned one. What was the second?" (Cara)
Ilina glances at Cara and nods.
"Yes...you're right." (Ilina)
Seeing that everyone in the room is still tense, Ilina pauses as she sweeps her eyes around, waiting for the others' attention. After a few moments, most gazes are directed at her again, and she nods before continuing.
"The second reason should be obvious, if you set your prejudice aside. Mizuki's presence and influence is beneficial to our people, and even if he has no interest in it, I'm sure that he'd make a good king. Just look at how much has changed for the better in the short time since his arrival.
"Trains, flourishing cities developing in weeks, devices called MMCs that allow instantaneous communication anywhere in the country, a potential source of high-quality enchanted items, and a rich influx of entertainment and recreational opportunities. And that's saying nothing of his critical role in solving the demon crisis, his rescue of our people from human slavery, his unique relationship with both an Elder Dragon and the Greater Spirits of the Delmura Forest, and his ongoing willingness to protect us.
"His presence has offered all that, and he's not even a citizen of our country. In fact, until recently our people universally met him with scorn, and many of you still do. Despite that hostility, and the power he wields, he's been nothing but friendly to the elves in return. So, just imagine how much good he could do here if we actually accepted him and treated him like he belonged. If we gave him a reason to trust us." (Ilina)
Ilina looks between the faces present, seemingly gauging their reactions to her appeal. She's met with mostly stunned expressions and silence, and for good reason. She just revealed a number of things that weren't common knowledge. Namely, the MMCs and my new 'relationship' with the Greater Spirits. If I had to guess, it's also the first confirmation for many here that I'm the source of all the new entertainment in Eden.