68.2. A Golden Cage - Part 2

I feel back at my full strength on the third day after the incident. The maids dress me in royal attire as usual and I have breakfast with my partners as usual. Luviael comes in to read aloud our itinerary for the day as usual. I try to act normal but I feel anxious inside. Liana was supposed to scold my subjects about the incident, did it work?

"It won't happen again, Your Majesty," the Guard Captain Vermiel assures me because he notices my unease when I enter the elevator. "Precautions have been made."

"Will I be allowed my regular flying session in the afternoon?" I ask, worried.

"Of course, Your Majesty, why wouldn't you?" Vermiel answers matter-of-factly.

"Why indeed," I murmur under my breath, but I feel much better about my prospects now. Flying always helps to alleviate my mood.

"Don't worry, love, it'll be business as usual," Gotrid clutches my hand and looks at me encouragingly. "Nobody will act weird, I promise."

"Okay," I nod and try to collect myself just in time before the doors open again.

The first task of the day on the agenda is a video call with our future ministers so we head to the media conference room. The Celestials I'm passing in the hall are seemingly behaving as always—they bow and greet me as any other day—but I can feel they are dying to touch my wings and receive my 'blessing' to get a taste of the magical divinity I presumably possess.

"Good morning, Your Majesty," Taranah is waiting for me in the conference room. "The ministers are waiting just for you, we can start anytime."

He's trying to act nonchalant, even though he's anything but that. It seems not even my close co-worker is unaffected by the discovery. I sit down by the window and I look longingly outside for a moment. I haven't flown for three days and that is probably my mental limit.

"In the afternoon, my love," Gotrid assures me and pets my wings to calm me down. "And Liana will join us for sure. She has some important dealings with the EU delegates until then."

"Put the ministers through," I force myself to face the screen.

Work is good. Work takes my mind off thinking too much. Taranah presents me with the final list of ministers and I'm supposed to get to know them before they arrive. They'll be moving to Prague within a few days, coming from all parts of the world. The only minister that isn't coming right away is Gavreel who's preparing for my upcoming visit to Japan.

"That would be all, thank you for participating and we're looking forward to meeting you in person soon," Taranah concludes the call after two long hours.

I'm quite content with the ministers we chose. I was hoping for more diversity but, in the end, I can be glad that it won't be only Celestials.

"What's next?" I ask Luviael who rarely leaves my side when we're at work because she's my personal adjutant, meaning assistant. She's the only Celestial not fussing over my new ability and I can't love her more for that. Is it because she's with me almost non-stop apart from our personal free time?

"Meeting Rien," she informs me. "He's finally ready to join our inner government."

"Right, I should probably tell him about my telepathy, so that I don't have to hide it in front of him," I bite my lip.

"What? Absolutely not!" Luvi is horrified by that idea. "Rien isn't a race ruler, nor a Celestial."

"But...," I oppose because I got used to not having to hide it all the time.

"She's right," Erik agrees. "The more people know, the harder is to keep it secret. The race rulers are trustworthy and Celestials are totally devoted to you but telling your secret to a random Clawfang is a huge risk."

"Don't worry, Your Majesty, Rien won't be sitting in the Royal office that often," Luviael says. "The Clawfang embassy occupies floors 16 and 17."

I realise that I've never actually been there. When Emi was still here, she was always visiting me, not vice versa. What does the Clawfang embassy look like I wonder? Clawfangs aren't generally keen on administrative work. Are there more Clawfangs like Rien who don't mind office jobs?

"I'd like to visit the Clawfang embassy," I tell Luviael. "Can you find a slot in my schedule this week?"

"No need, Your Majesty, Rien will be visiting you," she shakes her head.

"Because I don't have that extra time or because the Clawfang embassy isn't deemed safe for me by your standards?" I ask and want an honest answer.

"Both," she doesn't dare to lie to me. I sigh, but, at least, I got my honest answer.

It happens when I'm leaving the conference room. Taranah offers to hold the door for me, but as I'm passing him, he uses the fact that the door frame is rather narrow for two Celestials, doesn't step aside in time and our wings inevitably brush.

It was no accident, he planned for this to happen. Does it qualify as groping? Because I know Taranah quite well after months of working together, I intend to overlook it and just let it go. Even though, admittedly, I feel uncomfortable about it.

"So what do we...?" I turn to Luvi to ask about my follow-up agenda.

But I don't get to finish that sentence. Before I can even grasp what's going on, Erik is suddenly holding Taranah by his robe and pinning him to the wall. Taranah cries out in pain because Erik doesn't bother to take into account that he's constraining a Celestial.

"You...!" Gotrid isn't as quick, but his rage is just as fierce.

"Did you think we wouldn't notice, you pervert?!" Erik yells at him.

"I... I'm... not a p-pervert... I just... b-blessing...," Taranah stutters and is trembling. Only now he's starting to realise the gravity of what he has done.

"Vermiel, take him to the Viceroy for punishment," Gotrid hisses.

"I... p-please, n-no!" Taranah starts crying hysterically because he can't count on Liana being forgiving.

"Wait, it wasn't such a big deal," I try to defend him because I don't like to see my subject crying. I don't like it at all.

"Taranah to the Viceroy, our Emperor to Zetraya," Erik sighs and lets go of Taranah only when two of the patrolling guards seize him and take him away.

"The psychologist? Why? I'm fine!" I don't understand.

"Exactly because you're claiming that you're fine," Erik looks at me with a pained expression.

"Hon, why wouldn't you say anything?" Gotrid takes my hand and kisses it.

I look at Gotrid, then at Erik. I feel their love and concern. And I realise that I don't feel anything for myself. I don't allow myself to feel anything. All I see is the mountain of work I have to get through today and emotions would only get in the way and make me less efficient. I have to work for the benefit of my people, I have to...

A single tear is suddenly dropping from my right eye and pouring all the way down. I try to turn my head and quickly dry it into my sleeve, but everyone noticed, of course.

"Get Zetraya, now!" Erik orders Vermiel and I can feel everyone getting all panicky.

Another tear drops down my cheek and I don't understand it at all. It wasn't a big deal, nothing serious happened. Taranah just touched my wing with his, that's all. It's not like it was erotic. He just wanted... a blessing.

I want to say something, but Gotrid envelops me in his wings and slowly leads me back to our apartment. Before I can put myself together, I'm sitting on our sofa in the living room and I'm told that Zetraya will be here any minute. Gotrid keeps me enveloped in his feathers, knowing well that it calms me down.

"We totally underestimated it," I hear Erik talking to Cien because my early return surprised the maids. "Celestials are still crazed about the newest discovery and Ryuu is obviously traumatised, but he's suppressing it."

I want to oppose that it's not true. I can't be traumatised by my own people, can I? Yet, I can't find the strength to speak up. I'm snuggling to Gotrid, looking for comfort in his soft feathers.

"Good, you're here!" Erik greets Zetraya and I hear the psychologist sitting in the armchair in front of me.

"Love, I'm opening up," Gotrid warns me and slowly folds his wings.

Zetraya is analysing me with deep concern and tenderness. I notice he's not wearing glasses and his skin looks less wrinkly somehow. When was the last time I had a sitting with him?

"You're wearing contact lenses?" I blurt out because I don't know how to start.

"I don't need glasses anymore, Your Majesty," he smiles at me softly. "My eyesight was gradually getting better and better and now it's 20/20. By the way, the same happened to every Celestial who used to wear glasses as a human."

"Oh, I didn't know," I mumble, embarrassed that this information eluded me.

"That's only understandable, Your Majesty don't have time to keep up with all scientific discoveries," he says. "As you can see, the ageing process is also being slowly reversed thanks to my mana circuit. After all, Celestials are supposed to look no older than thirty."

"Neat," Gotrid smirks and is overjoyed about the finding.

So are the maids and the guards, only Erik panics in his mind. I don't usually let myself think about it, but, naturally, it does bug me a lot that Erik is ageing while I'm not. I'm sure nothing about my love towards him will change but I don't want him to die long before me.

"You're not focusing on what's the topic now, hon," Gotrid says because he knows what I'm thinking about right now. Erik sits down to us and caresses my left wing, so he gets the gist as well.

"So," Zetraya coughs to clear his throat. "Vermiel told me what happened."

"It wasn't that serious," I say quickly. "Please, tell Liana not to be too harsh on Taranah. Some scolding will do."

Zetraya raises his eyebrows and does an automatic gesture to adjust his glasses, only a second later realising that he doesn't wear them anymore. Habit is a hard thing to break.

"I'm not here because of what Taranah did, Your Majesty, that's the Viceroy's responsibility to deal with," Zetraya corrects me. "I'm here because of how you reacted to it. That's the main problem here."

"I... what?" I'm lost.

"You wouldn't say anything," Gotrid reminds me. "If we didn't notice, you'd let it go. And that's why we're sitting here now with Zetraya."

"You had every right to get angry and defend yourself. Or at least speak up," Erik adds. "Why didn't you smash him with telekinesis? We saw you do it when that Earthborn accidentally plucked your feather."

"I... I couldn't," I lower my gaze and nervously crumple my robe.

"You're too kind for your own good," Erik sighs and kisses my hair.

"N-no," I shake my head violently because he didn't understand me. "I mean... I really can't as in I'm mentally incapable of it. I tried to free myself when those Celestials mobbed me in the cafeteria but I couldn't conjure anything. The idea of using force against my people is just unthinkable to me."

"Oh?"

"Ah!"

"What?!"

Everyone is taken aback and needs a few moments to digest this new information.