Ripple remained silent for a long moment, watching the flickering candlelight dance in his eyes. "For someone who is so vehemently against her actions," she said softly, "I noticed you haven’t actually denied the marriage proposal yet."

Wulv shook his head dismissively, a sharp exhale escaping his nostrils. "Because I never considered it a serious option to begin with. I plan on sending their envoy back empty-handed in a few days. There is nothing to discuss."

He was met only with Ripple’s knowing smile. She leaned back, her eyes twinkling with a soft, teasing light. "You won’t do that," she murmured. "Because as much as you try to deny it, you love your little sister. You saw the light in her eyes and the way her face transformed when she read that proposal, didn’t you?"

She tilted her head, her voice softening with affection. "I know you, Wulv. In the end, you will do what makes her happy."

"I may have to disappoint you on that," Wulv replied, his voice hardening as he regained his kingly composure. He shook his head slowly. "This is a matter of state, not a matter of the heart. For once, what she wants must be cast aside. The stakes are far too high for sentiment."

A heavy silence followed his declaration. Ripple watched him for a long moment, then gave a slow, graceful nod.

"It seems someone else would like to have a word with you, then," she said, rising from the sofa. "See you later, darling." Just as she had manifested, her form began to blur into a soft blue haze before she vanished into thin air, leaving him alone in the quiet shadows of the office.

Just as Ripple vanished, the heavy office doors creaked open once more. A woman stepped through the threshold, her presence so commanding and her features so similar to the Princess that she looked like a more seasoned, lethal version of Lunara herself.

"Stepmother," Wulv said, standing immediately to acknowledge her.

Amethyst didn’t respond at first. Much like her daughter had earlier, she took a subtle, sharp sniff of the air. She inhaled the lingering, sweet, and potent elemental scent Ripple had left behind, her eyes tracking the faint blue shimmer still fading in the corners of the room. She turned her cool gaze toward Wulv.

"Lady Ripple is a part of this family now," Amethyst stated firmly. She crossed the room and claimed the very sofa Ripple had just vacated. "She has no need to make herself scarce when conversations concerning the livelihood of this entire house are being brought to light."

Wulv lowered himself back into his seat, inclined his head respectfully. "I will inform her of your words. I know it would please her deeply to hear such an endorsement come from you."

Amethyst rolled her eyes, a gesture of informality. "This wasn’t the first time I have said such words, and it certainly wasn’t the first time I received that exact, rehearsed response from you."

"My apologies then, my lady. I shall ensure she is truly informed this time," Wulv replied, his face remaining a stoic, unreadable mask.

Amethyst sighed,"This attitude of yours... it is exactly why your sister turned out the way she has."

Wulv’s brow twitched, the only sign that the words had hit a nerve. "I digress. My attitude is the reason she has reached the Fifth Tier today. Without my intervention, she would likely still be wandering aimlessly, never having found her path."

The room grew quiet as Amethyst absorbed his words. Finally, she broke the silence. "You are indeed right about that," she admitted, her voice tinged with a hint of bitterness. "But both you and your father are to be blamed for her behavior. I remember quite clearly being labeled the bad person whenever I suggested she was being too pampered."

A flash of memory flickered behind Wulv’s eyes, causing his expression to darken into a deep frown. Amethyst saw the shift instantly, the sharp edge of her critique softening as she realized the old wound she had accidentally brushed against.

"I am sorry," Amethyst said, her tone hushed and genuinely saddened. "I never meant to reawaken such memories."

Wulv remained still for a long moment. Finally, he waved a hand dismissively, as if brushing away the shadows. "There is no need for apologies. You were right. Father and I let the past define us for far too long. Back then, we were powerless, we couldn’t protect anyone, nor could we offer the comfort our family deserved."

He looked down at his desk, his voice growing distant. "Lunara was an opportunity, a chance to correct those past mistakes. We wanted to give her the life we couldn’t have. It worked for a while, until we realized that our protection was becoming her cage. Father never had the heart to act on it before his ascension, but I am not him. I have the heart to do what is necessary."

The room fell into a heavy silence before Amethyst broke it. "What is this I hear about a marriage proposal? And does it have anything to do with the human presence currently lingering in our home?"

Wulv nodded and began to recount the situation in detail. It was no surprise to him that she was largely in the dark regarding the kingdom’s finer political machinations, as a Dragon, she was bound by ancient pacts to remain neutral and distant from the affairs of the world’s major powers even if she had married into the heart of one.

After Wulv finished explaining the Silver Kingdom’s play and Lunara’s involvement, Amethyst let out a long, weary sigh. "Oh, my foolish daughter."

She looked at Wulv, her eyes sharp with maternal concern. "Does she not realize the impossible position she has placed you in? Worse yet, does she understand what she is doing to herself? Did you make it clear to her that by choosing one prince, she effectively makes herself a sworn enemy of the other? In the world of humans, such a slight is rarely forgiven."

Wulv sighed, the weight of the evening finally settling in his shoulders. "No, I didn’t. I was too angry, I threw her out. I couldn’t bring myself to entertain her foolish thoughts and fantasies for another second."

"But I suspect she believes her friendship alone is enough of a shield," he continued, a grim amusement touching his voice. "She likely thinks that whoever she chooses, the other will simply accept it out of affection. Or perhaps..." He paused, and despite his fury, a faint, disbelief-laden smile tugged at his lips. "Perhaps she thinks she can simply have both." Even as the words left his mouth, Wulv couldn’t help but chuckle at how utterly unreasonable it sounded.

Amethyst shook her head in exasperation, her fingers drumming against the sofa arm. "And how do you plan on responding to the Silver Kingdom?"

Wulv fell silent, his gaze drifting to the letter still lying where Lunara had dropped it. "Honestly? I am waiting for a letter from the People of Björn. They should be arriving with a proposal of their own any moment now. My hope was to let this resolve itself through them, once the envoys from both kingdoms inevitably cross paths in my halls, the reality of their rivalry will do the explaining for me."

"It would have given me all the excuse I needed to send them both packing, but that is unlikely to be the case now," Wulv said, his voice grim. With a flick of his wrist, a shimmering pane of glass manifested in the air, a localized scrying mirror.

He waved his hand across the surface, and the image stabilized to show a grand estate within the neutral zones. Two distinct flags snapped in the wind: the polished chrome of the Silver Kingdom and the rugged, fur-lined crest of the People of Björn. Below the banners, diplomats and guards from both nations could be seen entering the same building with practiced, tense formality.

"The Silver Kingdom played this hand perfectly," he said, gesturing toward the image. "Our spies within both courts just delivered the context. The Silver Kingdom suddenly proposed a high-level summit regarding national borders, but simultaneously filed a formal grievance demanding the return of an artifact they claim was stolen by the Björn."

He let out a sharp, frustrated breath. "By dragging the Björn into a diplomatic quagmire on their own soil, the Silver Kingdom has effectively blindsided them. They’ve pinned the Björn’s down in negotiations while their own envoy sprinted here to make first contact. Because they arrived first and with such a high-tier representative, they’ve stripped me of an excuse. I am now forced to give a direct answer to a proposal that hasn’t even been countered yet."

Wulv began massaging his forehead again, the headache clearly returning with a vengeance. "They’ve turned a marriage proposal into a strategic ambush." 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Amethyst watched the shifting images in the mirror for a moment, her eyes reflecting the cold strategic light of the scene. "Since this is a problem caused by Lunara’s meddling," she said, her voice steady and unsentimental, "I believe it should be resolved and taken care of by her."