You Were My Sl*ve - Chapter 63

“King Kalima had seven princes but made no effort to manage the succession. He indulged in debauchery, disregarded royal protocols, and brought all sorts of women into the main palace. As a result, he was poisoned by a toxin someone smuggled in and fell gravely ill at a young age. No one contributed more to the Ashatra Civil War than he did.”

“Was it a poison that even the Temple of Ru couldn’t treat? Like the treatments I’m undergoing now?”

“No, absolutely not. That wouldn’t have been possible. The divine will did not allow it,” Aslan replied coldly, shaking his head. After a long pause, he added with a bitter tone,

“King Kalima took a woman chosen by the god of Ru as his fifth wife. She was supposed to become the High Priestess of Ru, but because she was taken, I ended up becoming the High Priest instead. She was truly a remarkable and beautiful person….”

Elona detected a deep emotion in Aslan’s voice, which startled her. He had held profound reverence for the woman stolen by King Kalima. His eyes shimmered with a quiet longing as he murmured,

“Her name was Rite. The woman who was meant to become the High Priestess of Ru… she was also the mother of Prince Sindar.”

Elona was shocked by this revelation. Kazan’s mother had not been a noblewoman—she was meant to be a priestess of Ru.

Could Kazan’s disdain for Aslan be connected to his mother?

Sensing that this might be her only chance, Elona cautiously asked, “Aslan, can you tell me more about Lady Rite? His Majesty would never share anything about her with me.”

Aslan stared intently at the extinguished candle before him. There would be no treatment today anyway, so after a moment of deliberation, he began to speak.

“Lady Rite was an incredibly powerful priestess. From a very young age, she was chosen by the god of Ru and entrusted to the temple. She had the ability to see the ‘Path of Water.’”

“The Path of Water? Is that like a clairvoyant power?”

“No, not exactly,” Aslan replied, shaking his head. “She could sense the vast currents of water that exist throughout the world. You know how water can be found everywhere—clouds, oases, underground springs? She could sense where all those paths flowed and even predict when and where rain would fall. Truly extraordinary, wasn’t it?”

In this barren desert, Rite’s abilities would have been unimaginably valuable. As Elona tried to picture such a mysterious power, Aslan continued.

“Everyone who served the god of Ru pinned their hopes on her. I did too. ‘The Eternal Flowing Water’—if anyone could find Ru’s Sacred Water buried in the desert, it was Lady Rite.”

Elona thought of the desert scenery she saw every day. Even in her visions of the mystical world, she had yet to discover a single drop of water. But Kazan’s mother, Rite, could have found the Sacred Water of Ru hidden in the real desert with unparalleled ease.

However, Aslan spoke again, his tone heavy with sadness.

“But all those dreams turned to nothing. Lady Rite lost all her powers when she left the temple to become the king’s consort. And so, I had no choice but to take her place as the High Priest.”

“No choice? Aslan, I think you’re an extraordinary person in your own right….”

“Thank you, Elona,” he said with a faint smile, “but my abilities pale in comparison to hers. Recovering the Sacred Water in our generation is probably impossible.”

Elona wanted to comfort him but knew it would be presumptuous. Instead, she asked one final question, her voice quiet.

“What happened to Lady Rite?”

Aslan hesitated, his expression conflicted. Furrowing his brow in evident pain, he let out a long sigh.

“She passed away during the civil war. That’s all you need to know. And please, never ask anyone else about her. Especially His Majesty—don’t ever bring her up to him.”

Elona nodded silently. Kazan must have his reasons for keeping his mother’s story from her. With a heavy heart, she rose from her seat.

“Thank you for sharing something so difficult. I promise I’ll keep it a secret.”

“Take care, Elona,” Aslan said softly, watching her go.

Unlike usual, Aslan did not rise to see her off. Feeling awkward, Elona passed him and stepped out of the small chamber first.

As she turned to close the door, she caught a glimpse of the High Priest, his hands clasped together in prayer.

From behind, his figure almost seemed as though he were crying.

*

Contrary to Elona’s concerns, the main palace was remarkably peaceful that day.

King Sindar, as usual, spent the morning discussing state affairs with his advisors and sharing a midday meal with several generals. In the afternoon, he planned to make a brief trip to inspect the harvest near Ferma.

He wondered if he might cross paths with Elona on her way back from the temple. That thought lingered in his mind as he walked through the palace corridors with a faint sense of anticipation.

“Your Majesty!”

A sharp voice, echoing through the main palace, broke his thoughts. He resisted the urge to sigh and turned around, carefully maintaining his composure.

Irrith Padisha, her face flushed with anger, was striding toward him, her steps quick and determined. Without even a thought to formality, she demanded,

“Your Majesty, why is it that Miriam has suddenly been put in charge of managing the main palace? I am the appointed court steward of this palace, personally assigned by you! She’s the steward of the Manor Palace, so why on earth—”

“Who decided there should be such limitations?” Kazan interrupted her calmly, his expression impassive.

She blinked, stunned, and stared up at him in disbelief. His voice dropped slightly as he continued.

“Just as I appointed you to your position, I have appointed Miriam to hers. There is no rule stating that I can only have one steward, is there? What exactly is your complaint, Irrith?”

“The main palace is the heart of the kingdom! You know that better than anyone. How could you entrust such an important place to a commoner woman, someone who hasn’t even been in service for long?”

Kazan said nothing more, simply staring down at her in silence. The lack of response only seemed to enrage her further. She snapped, her tone sharp,

“And furthermore, I can’t understand the High Priest Aslan’s behavior either! Even if you personally requested his assistance, it’s outrageous how freely he gives gifts to that woman, or how openly they have such long conversations in front of others—”

“Ah,” Kazan murmured dryly, cutting her off. “So now the court steward sees fit to reprimand the High Priest as well.”

His sardonic tone caused Irrith’s face to flush an even deeper red. She finally let out the true concern that had been gnawing at her.

“Is this about that Parsion girl? Surely, you don’t intend to make that woman your queen?”

Her voice cracked, and her face was filled with a mixture of despair and disbelief. Kazan, who had been silently watching her up to this point, finally spoke with an unflinching expression.

“Is Harnuk Padisha keeping himself busy these days? He seems to be more focused on his personal business ventures than his duties as chancellor. I wonder if he’s still spending his time gambling on horse races with his associates.”

“Y-Your Majesty, what are you—”

“And the gladiator you hired for the tournament—Batoum, was it? Backed by the chancellor, no one dared to raise an objection. Was the Padisha family trying to buy its honor with coin? It’s a miracle you weren’t publicly disgraced.”

With each pointed remark, Irrith’s face grew paler. As she stood there, at a loss for words, Kazan added one final blow.

“Now that I think of it, you were probably the one who ordered Kiraeli flowers to be brought into the Manor Palace. I imagine even while persecuting the slave princess, you still wanted to decorate her chambers to your liking.”

At this, Irrith’s complexion turned ghostly white. She broke out into a cold sweat and stammered desperately,

“Y-Your Majesty, you misunderstand! That was all the work of a maid, not me—”

“Irrith Padisha.”

Kazan’s icy voice cut through her excuses, sharp and precise.

“There will be no next time. For you or your father.”

Tears welled up in Irrith’s eyes and finally spilled over. Trembling, she bowed her head, then turned and fled the corridor without another word.

Kazan clicked his tongue softly, irritated. It was already too late to wait for Elona now. Resigned, he left the corridor to prepare for his outing.

At that same moment, Elona was returning alone to the main palace after parting ways with Miriam at the entrance.

“Oh!”

She nearly stumbled backward as she collided with someone running toward her. Looking up, she saw a tall woman wiping her tears and glaring down at her.

“I-Irrith? Why are you crying?”

When Elona, startled, reached out a hand toward her, Irrith harshly shoved her away. The noblewoman’s reddish-brown eyes burned with hatred and resentment.

“You… someone like you…!”

Irrith raised her hand to strike Elona, but before she could, palace guards stationed nearby came running and immediately restrained her.

“Lady Irrith, stop this at once! This is the royal palace!”

“His Majesty has issued an order: you are barred from entering the palace until summoned!”

“You dare lay a hand on me, you lowly creatures!”

Irrith snapped angrily at the guards surrounding her and finally lowered her hand. Her expression was devoid of any decorum, her face twisted in rage as she glared fiercely at Elona.

“Don’t delude yourself! We will never forgive Parsions!”

With those venomous words, she stormed out of the palace, her heavy footsteps echoing in the corridor.

Elona clutched her chest, trying to calm her racing heart, and hurried deeper into the palace.

What just happened? she wondered. Why did she lash out like that? There’s hardly anyone in the palace right now… why take her anger out on me all of a sudden?