This was different. I could feel it in the air and in my magic. Something was different here as I climbed the stairs and came to another long hallway. At the end of the white hallway was a golden door. That could only lead to one place.
With a quick fist, I pulled my skirts up over my ankles and rushed down the hall as fast as I could. When I got to the door my chest heaved and my hands shook. The door handle was cold beneath my fingers. I expected some kind of lock or even a stuck door. But neither of those things happened, the door swung open easily and I was met with a room that couldn’t compete with a dragon’s hoard. The room was painted a light blue with a huge crystal chandelier in the center of it.
Small golden coins stacked to perfection littered the plush carpeted floor everywhere I looked. I closed the door behind me and tried my best to not gape at the riches literally spread out before me. The army would be more than taken care of. Thepeople of this kingdom wouldn’t have to worry about anything. Beside the stacks of golden coins were piles of precious gems. Every kind of gem imaginable. Sparkling diamonds, blood red rubies, the deepest blue of sapphires, the list went on and on. Even emeralds that reminded me of Ryven’s eyes. I ran my hands down my face to prevent growing emotions from turning into a tidal wave.
Relief slammed into my chest as I realized the bars behind the stacks of coins were solid gold, as well. I could easily take care of my people with this. My legs gave out from beneath me as I gazed at all the riches spread out around me. On my knees, I was able to see even more hidden treasures. There were necklaces in velvet boxes, earrings scattered about the floor, rings thrown about. I thought I saw one hanging from the chandelier but I wasn’t so sure from where I was sitting on the floor. It seemed like the gold and silver went on for miles.
Was this what the last Mage Queen felt when she saw the coffers? Or was she the one who ensured all of this for her people? I ran my hands down either side of my face and shook my head. I would have to hire someone to go through all of this. Someone who was good with numbers and could give me an estimate on just what I was looking at. But how would I know I could trust them?
The magic in this castle won’t let something like that happen. If someone were to come into this room, it would be because the magic allowed them with their pure heart. The magic will deny entry to anyone unworthy of it.
The gods were back, it seemed.
“Thank you,” I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “Now what?”
Rest easy, Queen. You’ve done everything required of you, now you wait.
But waiting seemedimpossible and not something I could do. I explored the treasury and combed over everything I was to rule. In the back corner of the room, I found my crown. It looked too heavy for my head, but it was magnificent. I’d never laid eyes on anything more precious. Eventually, I decided Alric and Reva could come up and there was no point in having them wait at the bottom of the stairs. Nothing could get up the stairs that wasn’t permitted, at least that’s what the gods said, so I trusted it about as much as I had to.
Reva’s eyes rounded to a size I never thought possible while Alric stared at the room in awe. There hadn’t been any issues getting them up the stairs or through the door and I never thought there would be. I trusted them both with my life and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I could trust them with this too. It wasn’t like they could get up here without me anyway.
“This is insanity,” Reva breathed.
“What did you expect?” Alric snorted.
“Not this,” we said at the same time. When I imagined a treasury, it seemed boring. There was a desk and some stacks of coins on it, but nothing like this. Nothing could have prepared me for this room. Seven hells, nothing could have prepared me for any of it. The magic, my subjects, this island.
“These remind me of the symbol on your back,” Reva bent down and retrieved a pair of earrings from the carpet. They were crescent moons but each point reached upward with little diamonds that dripped from the bottom of the curve.
I tucked them into my palm but didn’t know what I would wear them with. There weren’t any celebrations coming up, or none that we’d planned. There was almost no reason for me to dress up besides my day-to-day activities but these pieces were almost too much for anything I wore daily.
“Is this something you would inform your advisors on?”
I knew immediately who Alric was hinting at. “I don’t think so.”
“I always thought they gave insight on financial matters too,” Reva tapped her chin with her pointer finger.
“I mean, he can give me insight on those matters but that doesn’t mean he needs to know just how well the coffers are doing.”
My gaze slid to Alric and he nodded thoughtfully. “Eventually you’ll have a whole table of advisors and they won’t all have your best interest at heart. You can hire someone to crunch numbers and let the rest lie. You will have reports and so can your advisors but you shouldn’t let just anyone up here.”
I twirled my finger around. “That’s what the magic is for. Apparently, it vets everyone that comes here.”
Alric nodded. “Good.
“I think you should have advisors appointed to different things,” Reva rubbed her chin with her pointer finger and her thumb this time. “One to oversee events and major holidays, one to oversee the castle and royal visitors-”
I held my hand up and stopped her there. “Royal visitors?”
She shrugged. “Someday you might have royalty come from distant lands. Why would they want to visit this cursed, blight-filled wasteland now? When it’s flourishing, they will come. They will want to know about your magic and your resources.”
I couldn’t argue with her there, but that meant marriage proposals, as well. I honestly thought the only dignitaries I would have to deny were locals like Jesper. A new kind of anxiety unrolled within my chest.
“Maybe,” I stopped the conversation. I didn’t want to talk about other dignitaries or royalty or what that meant for the future. There was still a blight to conquer and a war to be won. I couldn’t think of any of those things until we got to that point. Even then, I didn’t know if I would be ready to think about whatthat meant for my future. I didn’t want to marry for my kingdom but everything was different now. It wasn’t like I had a love match now.
I rubbed a tender spot in the center of my chest and took a deep breath. I would get through this one step at a time. There was no point in trying to run before you could even walk.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
