Living As the Villainess Queen

’s happening?’

He didn’t expect anything bad to happen inside the castle, but sensing Abu’s call for him had him worried since he never did that before.
He laid the papers down onto his desk and stood up hastily, the chair making a screeching sound as it scratched the flooring.
His servant approached him the moment he got to his feet, but the king shooed him away with his hands.

Kasser opened the balcony window, looking down from above as his eyes met with Eugene’s, who was watching from below.

***

While she was walking with Abu, Eugene wondered where the king’s office balcony would be from the countless balconies that were protruding out of the castle walls.
Although she had already memorized the castle by now, seeing it from the outside is altogether different, since one won’t be able to make out the inner parts of the Palace just by looking from the outside.

When she asked Abu where his master is, Abu led her under the terrace of the office, positive of the king’s location.
The balcony was pretty high up, and he wouldn’t be able to hear her voice if she calls for him.
Not that Eugene was planning to anyway, since doing so wouldn’t be appropriate.

Eugene asked Abu to call his master and waited.
Abu didn’t growl or anything of that sort.
He just stared at the office terrace intently, and after a few moments, the balcony window opened and Kasser peeked his head out of the opening.

“Abu, that was amazing.” Eugene praised Abu and waved her hands towards the king.
He stared at Eugene for a short moment then went back inside his office without saying anything.
“He must be very busy.” Eugene said, smiling down at Abu.
She looked up once again, her eyes widening at the sight above her.

Kasser was standing on the balcony railing as a blue snake slithered around his body, which guided him down from where they stood at the railing.
They went down gracefully, and Kasser didn’t seem fazed by the pull downwards.
He landed on the floor with a soft thud, barely making any sound.

Eugene was awestruck with the sight, despite having seen this for a couple of times already.
The blue snake unwrapped itself around Kasser’s body and rushed to Eugene’s space quickly, making her step back as the snake faded and disappeared before reaching her completely.

“Are you okay?” Kasser asked the worried-looking Eugene.

“Yes, I’m fine.
Why did it do that so suddenly though? Does your Praz not like my presence.” Eugene asked.

“No, it does that sometimes.
Don’t let it bother you, alright?” Kasser assured her.
‘Not like her presence? Probably the opposite.’ Kasser recalled how Praz swam and played with the illusion of water she had created, clearly enjoying himself.

Ever since he became king, he had never lost control of Praz, until recently.
He was frequently uncontrollable these days, but oddly enough, he didn’t feel any danger.
He knew that he couldn’t blame Praz for jumping down here, since he was the one who’s excited to see her, even putting off the meeting that was already scheduled yesterday.

“Is there something wrong?” Kasser asked,

Eugene shook her head no.

“I heard Abu calling for me, though.”

“I made Abu call you, Your Majesty.” Eugene said sheepishly.

Kasser moved his gaze towards the wild beast in front of him.
He looked at him attentively, as if trying to communicate with him through his eyes.
He really thought that Abu would only call him if he were in danger or in a dying state, since Abu is pretty independent.

When he was a child, Kasser had seen another king’s Hwansu.
The Hwansu didn’t leave the king’s side at all.
The beast followed the king closely, refusing to leave his side even just for a second.
With that thought in mind, he thought that he would be able to share a close bond with such a beast when the day comes that he gets one.

But the Hwansu he received maintained a set distance, only coming to him when called.
It didn’t bother Kasser as much as he thought it would, and he realized that the distance served them well, since he knew that it would annoy him if the Hwansu were constantly by his side.

“I’m sorry.” Eugene said.
Kasser shifted his gaze from Abu to Eugene.

“Because I made Abu do that.
Hwansus only calls their masters for certain circumstances, right?” Eugene continued.

“It doesn’t matter.
He does what he wants anyway.” Kasser said.

“Well, not only that.” Eugene muttered, turning her head to the side as she continued, “Since Abu is Your Majesty’s Hwansu, I wonder if I should treat it as such and keep my distance?”

Kasser laughed softheartedly at Eugene’s plight.
He leaned in to her space and stole a quick peck at Eugene’s lips, making her feel flustered at the unexpected kiss.
“I like the fact that you get along with Abu.
You don’t have to overthink it.
Just do what you normally do.” Kasser said with a shrug.

Eugene smiled at Kasser’s indifference.
It seemed like it didn’t bother him at all.

After a short while, Eugene’s smiling face turned into a serious one as she pondered on her thoughts.
She was trying to put her thoughts in order, trusting Kasser’s judgment more than anything else.
“Molly came to me after meeting with Rodrigo.”

Eugene had already discussed with Kasser all the necessary steps and planning to meet up with Rodrigo, making sure to inform him of everything he needed to know.

“He wants to meet me as soon as possible.” Eugene said.

“When?”

“In three days.”

“Three days..
Isn’t that too early?” Kasser asked, worry etching his voice.
It bothered him that Eugene would go meet with Rodrigo without an escort.
His mind shifted on its gears, trying to think of a way to keep his wife safe without hindering her from her agendas.
There were no useful escorts for now since the warriors he had were entirely excluded.
He wasn’t interested in what Eugene and Rodrigo would be talking about.
All he really wanted was for her to return safe and sound.

Looking down, he spotted the black leopard lying with its paws under his chin, his mind coming to a full stop as realization crept in.
He had a great idea.