Chapter 61: The Shrewdest Merman In The Sea

Aila had been waiting to hear from Prince Zale again for weeks and didn't until a royal guard came looking for her as a witness. It was then that she realized that he had lied. 

He knew the merking was going to be killed. This was his version of handling it. 

It was plain from her perspective that he allowed his father to be killed so he could get rid of his true enemies. That was far too cold-blooded! She shuddered at the very thought. She could never do such a thing to her own father. 

But she didn't know what Prince Zale's relationship with his father was like, what he had been through, or why he had done any of this. Did she truly have a right to judge him? 

Aila and Yuval had thought they were using him but it appeared that he had been using them all along. It was safer to go along with it so she could get the reward she had been promised before. 

Besides, if Prince Zale became the merking, he was more likely to care about the state of the ocean considering what he had been trying to do with the jewelry. The kingdom would benefit from them lying here and when she exchanged a glance with her father it was clear that he knew it too. 

They both had to improvise on the spot but it worked. Everyone believed them. 

Prince Zale was officially released and was able to perform the executions himself. Former Crown Prince Merrick struggled more than his mother had but was subdued easily with his half-brother's skill level. 

There were hushed whispers all around. It seemed the nobles were shocked by the unusual behavior of the idiot prince. 

He didn't look like an idiot now. He carried himself differently and spoke with authority. "Wrap their wounds so the blood doesn't get into the water until they're far enough away from the kingdom that the sharks coming for them won't hurt anyone."

Several royal guards bowed their heads and rushed off to do what they were told. He then addressed everyone else gathered here. 

"I am sure you have all suffered a great shock. I apologize on behalf of the royal family for being forced to witness such a thing. Rest assured that I will take my role as merking seriously and pay attention to all problems great and small that affect our kingdom. 

"I plan to work with the witches and other fae on the surface to reduce the problem of their waste ending up in our waters so we can continue to live cleanly and peacefully for centuries to come."

A black and white merman floating nearby had retrieved the merking's crown when no one was paying attention. He had the hint of a smile on his stoic face when he held it out to the new Crown Prince. It was tradition for the personal guard of the crown prince to do the crowning after the old king passed with all of the nobility present. 

Aila was surprised they weren't scheduling a proper coronation but supposed everyone needed was here. That was rather efficient. Efficient and cold. 

"I will ever serve you, my king," the merman said before swimming upward to place the crown on Zale's head. 

"I will ever serve you, my king," everyone else in the room echoed as they placed a hand on their hearts and bowed their heads, still too stunned by what happened to even protest. 

What could they protest though? The coronation may have been abrupt but Zale was the rightful merking. There was nothing anyone could do at this point but try and process what had happened. 

"Raise your heads, my subjects," Zale said regally. "We will now proceed to the cemetery to send off the late King Ren properly." 

Everyone followed, still whispering madly but not daring to do anything more. The somberness of the funeral was tempered only by the shock that remained over the crowd. Aila didn't know what she was supposed to do or say.

She had yet to figure out how to react when she and her father were summoned by the new merking. She didn't know what she was supposed to say to him either because he hadn't been aware of what had happened that day in the main palace until he heard her testimony. All he had done was rather brilliantly back her up without prompting. She was sure she was in for a world of trouble later. 

Suddenly the only merfolk in the throne room were the three of them and that merman from before who had to be King Zale's personal guard. Other guards remained outside the doors. 

"Thank you for your assistance today," he said quite formally. "I wish to bestow the highest honor I can in return for your help."

"I am honored, Your Majesty," Yuval replied.

You are reading story MerMade For Each Other at novel35.com

"Indeed," Aila added with a nod. 

What was the highest honor he could bestow in return for their help? They already had one of the grandest estates in the kingdom. She couldn't think of anything else that could be better.

"Lady Aila, I owe you more than I could ever repay. The best I can do is giving you the most prestigious title in the kingdom after my own. I wish to take you as my queen," the merking said in such a way that she nearly choked. 

Her, the merqueen?! No way! She had only talked to him three times and she had absolutely no idea what he was truly like aside from being cunning and cold. She didn't want to marry him! But there was no refusing royalty. This was more like a punishment than a reward!

"I am honored by your offer, my king," Aila managed to get out demurely. "But surely there is someone more suitable than I to be merqueen? I am barely out in society."

"Nonsense. I need someone like you," he said dismissively.

Someone like her? What, someone willing to lie for him? What on earth was going through that merman's head?!

"I'm flattered," she lied.

"We are both incredibly flattered, Your Majesty," Yuval said faintly. "When shall this happy event take place?"

"As soon as a special guest of mine manages to make it back home. It shouldn't be more than a few weeks now. The preparations should be able to be taken care of by then, if you have no objections."

Aila had a lot of objections but could voice none of them. She and her father spoke in unison as they bowed again. "Yes, Your Majesty."

When the black and white merman showed them out Aila slumped over. She was done for. Absolutely done for! She had never wanted to be the merqueen! She knew as a noble it was her prerogative to marry for the advantage of her house but she never expected anything like this. 

Neither of them spoke until they were back at their estate and all of the servants had been dismissed. Her father seemed too stunned to put all of his thoughts into words. 

"What just happened?" he asked faintly.

Aila let out a slightly hysterical laugh. "I was proposed to by the shrewdest merman in the sea. I thought there was more to him than met the eye but never would have anticipated this."

"What, that everything we all saw for centuries was an act? How did you guess?"

"The jewelry. He had an agenda with it. He was trying to get the nobility to take note of the problems with surface items ended up in the ocean by using his reputation to his advantage. Incredibly clever if you really think about it."

Yuval shook his head. "Unbelievable. Why didn't you tell me that Sir Nerio was sent here for your protection?"

"What was I supposed to say?" Aila asked helplessly. "I overheard there would be a murder plot! You never would have believed me and I was too afraid to say anything regardless. Thank you for backing me up in there, by the way."

"Of course. Having a clever monarch is better than having none and everything falling into chaos. Even if I don't approve of his methods. I'm not even going to ask for details about what actually happened because I don't want to know. Never speak of them to anyone if you know what is good for you."

She hadn't been planning to. The terrible thing was that her father suspected what King Zale had done but had to send her off to him anyway. 

Considering all of the death due to the former merqueen's schemes, the palace seemed like a terrible place to be. But Yuval didn't have a choice if he didn't want to be executed for treason himself. What the merking wanted, the merking got. 

Aila knew why he wanted her. To keep her mouth shut. He would give her the most prestigious title and any material item she wanted in exchange for being able to keep a close eye on her and make sure she didn't betray him. 

What was her life going to be like from here on out? Eventually she would have to share her space with other concubines. Hadn't harem infighting been what drove Nerida to commit her terrible deeds? She would never do something like that but there was no guarantee no one else would do it against her.. She was doomed.

You can find story with these keywords: MerMade For Each Other, Read MerMade For Each Other, MerMade For Each Other novel, MerMade For Each Other book, MerMade For Each Other story, MerMade For Each Other full, MerMade For Each Other Latest Chapter