Chapter 16: Indulgent
Gloria finished combing Ren’s hair and smiled with a festive, blushing face while braiding the corners of her hair. "The women in this castle are green with envy, Milady. No matter how much I try to simplify you, you still shine like the moon on a cloudless night."
This maid was genuinely humble, otherwise, she would say it was just flattery, but she was constantly throwing pleasantries at her to give her confidence, but Ren grew more uncomfortable. She had long learned that beauty alone held no weight, no real worth. Nothing could change the fact that she was good up to no avail. So currently, without the magic blocker, they could consider her dangerous. She might hurt someone unintentionally, having no clue how to control her magic.
And yet, there was a constant reminder in her mind, a voice that told– her magic, the force that coiled within her like a silent fire beneath ash, might flare at any time and burn. Uncontrolled, raw, and unpredictable.
"Is it really necessary for me to attend this dinner?" Ren’s voice was colder than she intended, but she couldn’t help it. The idea of facing the pack again, feeling their eyes on her, like they were already judging the importance of her existence, was unbearable and wrong.
"Yes, my lady. Sooner or later, you have to get involved in the castle’s chores. If you don’t show yourself, they won’t trust you, or, even worse, they won’t obey you." The maid clarified, remarking on whatever she had kept in the back of her mind. She knew them all, but she tried so hard to admit that this place was her new home yet she failed.
Gloria reached up, securing the last braided lock with a delicate pin, and then handed Ren a small mirror. "Look at yourself. You possess a power that none of them have. Your kindness, Milady. The people here, the humans, they’ve never known someone like you. Your very existence brings them hope. It offers them safety."
Ren scowled at that. It was a huge responsibility, the one that she wasn’t sure she could carry, but she set it aside for the moment and noted, "You said shifters don’t hunt you."
She nodded. "They don’t. But I never said they don’t bully us. They look down on us."
Ren’s mind drifted to her husband. "How does the Alpha King treat you?"