Tales of a Seductress

TOAD – Chapter 65

“When do I get to start?” I asked, unable to keep the eagerness from my voice.

“Hmmm…” King Oberon grunted. “When we return to my castle, I will make arrangements.”

“That long…” I whimpered.

“Do not test my patience anymore, woman. You very nearly started an international incident here. If I didn’t need you to complete my plans, then you would have already been removed from my presence.”

“Oh, but you do need me though.” I purred, putting an arm on his chest and gazing up at him lovingly. “Don’t forget that it doesn’t go both ways. I have nothing holding me here, other than you.”

“You are quite bold for a former slave.”

“And you’re quite soft… for a King,” I responded.

“Hmph, one day, I’ll show you how hard I can be!” He growled.

“I look forward to it.”

He only then realized the double entendre of those words, and although his facial expressions didn’t change, even his cheeks turned slightly pink. I wasn’t able to tease him more though, as the volume of mumbling since our announcement dropped off again, and when we looked forward, Lord Tigon was standing up and getting the attention of the room.

“I wish to respectfully congratulate my King on his betrothal.” Lord Tigon gave a little bow.

“Accepted,” Oberon responded with a nod.

However, if someone as slimy as Lord Tigon would just leave it at that, I’d eat my ass.

“Of course, my lord should recall that to officially take on a future queen, the demon king must gain a 2/3^rds approval from the council.” Lord Tigon gave an apologetic smile as if this was an unnecessary evil he must do. “This is why it is only prudent that we council members ask some questions and clarifications.”

This was something that I hadn’t been told before. I had to gain the approval of the council to get married to King Oberon? He was the king! Why did he have such a small amount of power? He couldn’t even marry who he wanted? It was no wonder he was keeping me hidden for so long. He had to get the approval of the demon council before we could officially be wed. It would have been nice if he had told me any of that though.

“Ask your questions, Lord Tigon,” Oberon responded directly to Lord Tigon’s challenge.

I could read the room pretty well. Oberon wouldn’t just be able to ignore Lord Tigon or throw him off. It was clear by the expressions and behavior of the other lords that Oberon didn’t have a 2/3^rd vote of the senate. Lord Tigon seemed to be speaking for a majority, and his acceptance or denial would ultimately decide things for the rest of them as well.

“Yes, well, I ultimately must voice three concerns regarding this union. First of all, I must respectfully put her bloodline into question. She exhibits no demonic expressions. The future Demon King must be rich in demonic blood, and a human woman would dilute our bloodline. Secondly, her background is unknown. My research has shown me that she is not part of any of the main family lines. Where does she come from? Finally, I worry about her status. A demon queen would represent our entire realm, and a person unfit for the role would only bring embarrassment to the entire realm.”

Lord Tigon brought up each point with a rehearsed feel to it. Many of the people listening nodded along with his words or even gave out nonverbal noises of agreement. The one who was most displeased with his words was me. He questioned every aspect of my character and made it sound like I was unfit to be their queen. I already was a demon queen. That was my job title. If there was anyone more suited to the position, I’d want to see them.

His words were also slippery and filled with falsehoods. He was traveling with Devon and Min. He damn well knew my history. He might even know I came from another world. I didn’t know if Min would have told him that. Min probably didn’t, but who knew with that elf? He also probably knew my status was sufficient, but he was calling it into question anyway. That left me feeling very annoyed. However, I was surprised to feel a hand grab mine and squeeze it. I looked up to see that the Demon King had a steady expression as he watched Lord Tigon. Of course, he would have been expecting this from the beginning. This had all been part of his calculations. For a brief moment, I felt somewhat comforted that I was on his side, however turbulent our current arrangement happened to be.

“Since you have asked these questions, I’d assume that if I can alleviate your concerns, then you would approve my union?”

Lord Tigon smiled and lowered his head with his arms outstretched. “Of course, my lord. Why would I try to deny my lord’s happiness and future?”

I already didn’t like Lord Tigon, but this only cemented those feelings. Given the choice, I probably wouldn’t fuck him. That was the level of dislike I had for him, and I would fuck almost anyone. I had noticed that Lord Tigon kept calling Oberon my lord instead of my king. It was a small thing, but it did show how he saw himself next to Oberon. They were equals, not a subordinate and his king.

However, I didn’t doubt his words either. He had no reason to have any issues with me. If anything, he might think I’d provide a chance for him to get ahead. If he believed any of the points he had just asked about, considering he wanted to diminish King Oberon’s power, he should have been delighted in such a weak queen being offered up for the slaughter. That meant that all of this was just to feel out the situation and see how King Oberon reacted. I allowed myself to relax. I was also a little curious about how my future husband would react.

King Oberon nodded at Lord Tigon’s words. They were said in front of the other council members and the entire aristocracy. If he went back on them after, it would only be a major embarrassment that would lose him power. Lord Tigon didn’t seem worried by King Oberon’s confidence though. He stood with a small smile on his face, waiting as everyone else did.

King Oberon made a small gesture with his hand, and a nearby servant nodded and walked out the door and into the hallway. A few moments later, there was a roar, and then the sounds of a slight struggle. King Oberon didn’t react, but many of the other nobles frowned and watched the exit uneasily where growls, cries, and banging could be heard. Finally, a group entered the room. Ten men appeared to be guards for a single creature in the middle.

The creature in the middle was the most alarming because he was completely naked and completely covered in fur. He was humanoid in appearance, with two arms and two legs, but that was where the similarities ended. His face had the appearance of a cat. He had two tall sharp ears on his head, whiskers, and a tail lashing behind him. His thick fur was striped orange and black, giving him the appearance of a tiger.

The creature let out a roar, and then suddenly flexed. It had been confined by a dozen chains, containing its arms, legs, and neck. However, its strength was able to overcome the guards holding it, and the four guards controlling its arms ended up flying toward the beast. It lashed out with its clawing. Blood flew as it gashed the face of one of the guards. As he stumbled back, the other guards were pulling out weapons. They appeared to be some kind of magical stun baton, but they only appeared to enrage the creature further.

Min had drawn his sword and taken a step forward, while many of the other nobles were stepping back in fear. Other than King Oberon, only one other person wasn’t looking on in shock or anger. That was me.

“Baby…” I spoke that single word, and the beast stiffened before its eyes snapped to me.

It stopped fighting, even while the guards stabbed it with their stun batons. However, they quickly realized it had stopped attacking them, and other than the mauled guard who was dragged away, the others quickly regained their formation. I stepped away from the Oberon and continued forward toward the beast. My steps were slow at first, but they grew faster. One of the guards tried to block me, but a roar from behind caused him to jump to the side.  

“Baby!” I threw my arms around the beast, but my head only came to its chest. “You’ve gotten so big!”

The monster that had been roaring and savagely attacking others suddenly whimpered as I wrapped my arms around it. It then started to purr, closing its eyes and rubbing its chin on the top of my head. This was of course one of my babies. This was birthed by a Gwazi, some kind of catlike monster responsible for the demons with catlike features in this world. I had only seen him twice, and I hadn’t even had a chance to name him, so I only could call him baby.

After finding out that they had been killing my babies, there had been a cold lump in my heart that I hadn’t even realized was there. However, for all of the babies that they had eliminated because they were a waste, there were just as many that had been saved. This Gwazi demon was one of them. The cat demon line had been dwindling. There were a lot of cat demons, but because they bred so much their bloodline had thinned to the point that they were barely demons. Most didn’t even have cat ears or a tail anymore, and those that did otherwise looked completely human with no cat features at all.

Either way, although Oberon told me he had saved those of my babies he could, I had never expected to see them again. He hadn’t been in the facility when I had taken it over, although he had been one of the ones they had shown me after being born, so I still felt a bit of a connection to him.

“Oh, look at you, you’re so messy. You have blood on your claws.” I pouted as I grabbed his hand.

“Grrr…” The Gweni retracted his claws, pulling back his hand like an obstinate child. I held out my hand sternly.

“Show me,” I ordered.

The Gweni reluctantly held out his paw, and I pushed down on the paw to bring the claw out like one would do with a cat when they were clipping his nails.

“What is this?” Lord Tigon had finally found his voice and asked.

“Tsk, you broke a nail.” I ignored the noble, and then guided my baby back with me while chastising my baby for acting recklessly.

To his benefit, he looked sufficiently chastised. The rest of the room was awkwardly silent. The guards nervously followed us, especially as I approached the Demon King. However, he didn’t comment on it, and they just moved awkwardly to the side, making sure not to pull on the reigns less they disturb the cat demon in my arms. I sat and started cleaning his paws while my baby sat there looking embarrassed.

“If it isn’t obvious to you…” Demon King Oberon spoke in a bored voice. “This is her child.”

Lord Tigon opened his mouth as if wanting to refute that, but it was impossible given how timid the beast was acting around me. He seemed to come up with something different to say.

“She may have been able to successfully make the first-generation demon, but even so, that doesn’t mean her blood is demonic.”

“Have you seen such a purebred demon before?” King Oberon asked.

“Even if this demon is pure, that doesn’t mean the same thing can be accomplished twice.” Someone else shouted.

“Some of you may have been hearing rumors lately…” King Oberon said. “There has been a sudden resurgence of first-generation demons appearing across various families.”

A few nobles acted surprised, but others fidgeted uncomfortably. There had been rumors of several families suddenly gaining a first-gen unexpectantly. A small percentage knew this was part of some horrific experiment, although their knowledge of the rape farm was that a large group of unfortunate women was wasted until there was a successful merging. That’s how it was originally run, and despite their sudden success, those running the facility wouldn’t have revealed it was a result of a single woman, making all of the previous sacrifices pointless. Oberon didn’t have such qualms.

“All of those children are hers.” He announced. “Aria is the mother of monsters.”