Non-Heir (The Black Mage 0.5)(23)

“You are.” The princess was far too observant for her own good. “You didn’t mean what you said to her. You were just doing it to hurt your brother.”

Darren’s gaze shot to the princess. His brother was a fool for leaving her side.

“Would you care to dance with a non-heir?” The title gritted his mouth; he hated it, but he was mocking his brother’s earlier words. “Your highness?”

Shinako gave him a small smile. “Only if you call me Shina.”



It was an hour later when Darren left the Borean princess’s side.

Blayne and Ella had left for a stroll through the gardens. Hot anger burned Darren’s lungs. His older brother wasn’t just content to steal the girl for a dance, now he was determined to make her like his other… conquests.

And Darren wasn’t about to just stand by.

Ever since that day in the forest, there was a gap between the brothers, and it had only continued to grow. Everything had become a test. Blayne was still charming among others; but with Darren, he’d grown cold. Everything was a rivalry, and Blayne almost always won.

Darren had never cared. He had his magic and his group of… friends. He knew Blayne had their father, and as much as he might pretend it was all privilege, there was also pain. There were times Darren had seen it hiding behind the crown prince’s easy courtier smile.

Darren knew there was a part of Blayne that lashed out because he wanted what the non-heir had.

But that didn’t mean the boy wouldn’t fight. And something told him he would be a fool if he let that girl fall under his brother’s spell. Someday Blayne would be marrying a Borean Isle princess and this girl, Ella, well, maybe someday Darren would like to win her for himself. His father was in talks with Baron Langli, but all these years and the king had yet to set a betrothal between Priscilla and himself.

But maybe would never come if he didn’t apologize first.

It took a while for the boy to find them. By the time he did, they had left the gardens, and the girl was clutching a glass of wine and laughing a little too loudly. Her face was a little too red as the prince drew her toward an empty hall.

If Darren thought he was angry before, it was nothing next to his reaction now. Blayne had more than once boasted about what transpired here.

The prince lost any semblance of indifference as his brother pulled the stumbling girl into the nearest chamber door.

Darren wasn’t sure who he was more furious with, his brother or himself. How could he be such a fool? Of course the girl was just like the rest. She had chosen the heir. How many more times would it take before Darren learned the rule.

Why had he thought Ella was any different?

Why did he still care?

Darren wasn’t sure why he was still standing there in that hall, staring at that door. He should leave. There was nothing left for him here. He needed to leave.

He stood there another minute telling himself it didn’t matter. He was better off for discovering this now, before he felt something more.

The boy turned to leave. He was halfway to the next corridor when he heard a muffled shout.

And then a girl’s scream.

It was coming from the chamber. No one else was in the hall. They were in an abandoned wing of the palace.

Darren spun.

And Ella screamed again. It was followed by a crash.

The prince took off running. He kept hearing her scream in his head. Or perhaps it was aloud. He wasn’t sure.

When he twisted the handle, the door swung open.

Darren’s eyes shot to the scene before him. Blayne was wrestling the girl onto the ground. Her dress was ripped.

Ella’s fingernails were dripping blood as she clawed at his brother’s neck. Her gaze immediately shot to the door. To Darren.

He stood there for a moment, his body frozen in place. There was no mistaking this scene.

Walk away. There was a rule screaming in his head. Walk away. He’s the heir. This doesn’t concern you. Blayne is to be king; he can do whatever he wants.

Blayne still hadn’t seen him; he was too busy raising a fist.

Everything inside him was telling Darren this was wrong, that he needed to help.

But the rule wouldn’t let him go. He was to be his brother’s savior; the girl was nothing. No one. It wasn’t a matter of life or death.

Loyalty to the Crown was the only thing that mattered.

Darren turned and left the room.

Ella screamed again, and Darren slammed a fist to his mouth to stifle his own. His back was to the wall, just seconds from the door. His fingernails drew blood in his palms. He bit down so hard on his tongue he tasted hot coppery blood.

He couldn’t just walk away.

The kitten with the broken neck. That knight in the woods. Ella.

This was their father. This was the monster rearing its ugly head.

And Darren was tired of letting the darkness win.

His magic shot out. The projection had been building in his head since the moment he heard her scream.

Darren stood just long enough to watch his brother collapse.

Something snapped in his chest as his brother fell, unconscious, to the ground.

I betrayed him.

The girl was hobbling to her feet, staring at her hands. She was doing something with her fingers as she stared at the fallen prince at her feet, and then she started to turn.

Darren had two choices.