?

　　“Did I perhaps offend you by agreeing with your ambition?”

　　His face twisted into one of annoyance. “What does an omega know anything about ambition?” he spat. I clenched my hands onto my thighs, forcing myself to stand my ground as I refused to look away from his murderous gaze.

　　“Isaiah, watch what your words.” Gideon warned.

　　“Oh? Are we supposed to not address the princess’ second gender? Is it a taboo or something?” he asked in a mocking tone.

　　“You are mad that I agreed with you because I’m an omega?” I questioned, not really understanding his logic.

　　“It is because you are pretending to understand. You know nothing about ambition nor about the real world. A sheltered little girl like you should gain experience first before spewing out empty words.”

　　“Excuse me?”

　　“Would you like me to repeat myself?”

　　“Are you forgetting that you came here to marry me? You read my letter and you agreed to my terms and yet you deem I do not have ambition?”

　　Isaiah leaned forward as he scanned over the plates of desserts and refreshments on the table. He picked up a small piece of sponge cake and tossed it into his mouth. He munched on it quietly.

　　“You are willing to get married to a complete stranger just to claim the throne, right?” he asked suddenly, as his hand was busy picking some fruit as it popped those into his mouth as well.

　　“Yes.” I nodded.

　　“Why?” he asked, mouth full.

　　“Because it is my father’s wish.”

　　“Hah! See? My point exactly!” he exclaimed proudly, as though he was waiting and expecting me to say those exact words to him. “Can you truly say that is your own ambition? You are merely fulfilling a dead man’s wish.”

　　“Lord Isaiah!” Gideon firmly called out. “You best watch your words before I escort you out of this palace. Do not belittle our late emperor’s final will.”

　　Isaiah did not bother to pay his attention to Gideon, his intense gaze was focused on me and me alone. “But your little princess over here agrees with me, yes? I do not believe for a second that you are willing to throw away your freedom just to become an empress.”

　　“What are you trying to achieve by saying these things to me?” I asked.

　　“I’m just proving a point that someone as unambitious as you should not dare to relate to me.” He said with a proud smirk on his lips. He leaned back once more, clearly happy that he spoke his mind.

　　“Is this your way of motivating me to seek for my own aspirations?”

　　“Don’t misunderstand me, princess. I’m not that nice of a person. I do not care about you. I only care for what you have to offer me.”

　　“If power is something you desperately seek for, why not try to become the fully-fledged emperor of your kingdom instead of just settling for the position of regent?”

　　“What?” he snapped.

　　“By the way I see it, you are capable of following your brother’s footsteps. You are able to ascend the throne because of your royal heritage and yet you do not because of your loyalty to him.” I continued, staring directly at him as I watched his smug expression crumble into fury.

　　“Princess…” It was Gideon’s turn to warn me to stop this time but I have had it with these men assuming they know me, assuming they know my beliefs. If they can continue to make assumptions about me, then I do not see why I could not.

　　“And why’s that, Lord Regent Isaiah?” I purposefully used his full title, watching the corner of his eye twist at words I uttered. “You have loyal followers who would agree with you if you said you wanted to claim the throne to yourself but you refuse to do so, willing to step aside once your nephew comes of age and that’s only because of your brother’s wishes is it not? We particularly have the same circumstances.” I added, fully aware that the last sentence would probably infuriate him.

　　But to my surprise, instead of degrading or acting violent, Isaiah merely smiled. Although there was no ounce of friendliness behind his expression.

　　“Are you done?” he asked. I stayed silent. “Seems like there isn’t a leash on you after all.” He mocked.

　　“I could say the same about you.”

　　“Watch yourself, princess. Do not think that you are untouchable just because of the position you are in.”

　　“Isaiah!” Gideon fumed.

　　“Don’t worry Gideon. He is not the first to threaten me.”

　　Gideon’s eyes snapped to me but I could not make myself acknowledge his worry.

　　Isaiah laughed. “If you are already butting heads with all three of your potential suitors then I’m curious to see how you will pick one. Because either way, your head’s on the line.”

　　Before Gideon could stop him once more, I quickly held my hand out to stop him. “You are a truly amusing individual, Lord Regent.”

　　“I told you not to call me that, princess.” He said through gritted teeth.

　　“But as royalty, should we not abide by formalities?” I smiled, noticing how his hands were in tight fists on his thighs. He then stood up, causing Gideon to stand up as well. He took a step towards me, shielding me from Isaiah.

　　But Isaiah merely shrugged as he turned to the door. “We’re done here, right? No more questions?” he asked. I stared at his back, noting how his top clung to his muscular frame in a rather obscene manner. He did not wait for us to say anything as he kicked the door open effortlessly and left the room.

　　“What was that?” Gideon asked as he turned to look down at me. “Were you trying to pick a fight?”

　　“He clearly started it.” I said.

　　“Even then, there was no reason for you to provoke him! And what do you mean he was not the first to threaten you?”

　　“It doesn’t matter now.”

　　“What happened with Cassian?” he pressed.

　　“It doesn't matter!” I yelled, allowing my frustrations to get the better of me. I let out a loud sigh as I stood up and started pacing the room to clear my mind and calm the anger inside of me.

　　“Cassian and Isaiah were hostile towards you, we can rule them out. If you agree with it then Augustus is the best option-”

　　“Augustus wasn’t any better than Cassian and Isaiah.” I muttered. “He is but a wolf in sheep’s clothing.”

　　Gideon stayed silent as he continued to watch me. I then approached the window, staring out at the sky. All three of them would be great options for spouses if the conditions were just based on the benefits I could gain from them. Land, power, resources, everything that a kingdom needed to flourish. But at the same time, the three of them would be horrible options to be tied to.

　　Augustus may have appeared to be the better choice between the three but he seemed to be hiding something and that irking feeling never went away, it only grew by how he showcased his indifference. I was starting to wonder what his true personality was like behind his fa?ade. Cassian was one who had completely taken me by surprise with his sudden reveal of his second identity but just like Isaiah, the both of them openly threatened me. Both of them were truly capable of making those threats into reality if they chose to do so.

　　A harsh shudder ran through my spine at the mere thought of meeting my end by these men who came to accept my proposal. How ironic. This simple idea of Gideon’s was now turning into something much more complex. I did not only have to choose a husband who was tolerable and would benefit me but now I had to think about who would most likely not kill me once we were married and they gained the title of Emperor of the Southern Kingdom.

　　“It is getting late. I shall prepare the rooms for our guests to stay here for the night. As for who to pick as your husband…I will let you ponder about this matter a little longer, princess. If you decide to choose any of them, I would not force you to reconsider.”

　　I watched as the clouds above slowly shifted. “Who do you think I should pick?” I asked him.

　　“I am in no place to tell you what to do.”

　　I turned my body to look at him, leaning back against the window. “You are going to be my royal advisor when I am empress, right? So advise me, Gideon.”

　　“…maybe this was a mistake.”

　　“What do you mean?”

　　“I never considered the reality of the situation. These men are unpredictable and for you to marry any one of them will put you in jeopardy.”

　　“Is this where you tell me to not marry any of them? Start over?” I pressed. Gideon stayed silent as he pondered but after a while, he just shook his head. For the first time in my life, Gideon appeared to be out of ideas.

　　I closed my eyes, desperately wanting to sleep. Desperately wanting to run away. Isaiah’s words came back to haunt me. Do I really want to throw away my freedom to become empress? What was the point anymore?