The Alpha King's Nemesis-Chapter 106: The Plan ()

The Sea King seemed at a loss, on one end, his pride as a ruler made him hesitant to apologize to someone he considered to be of lower rank than himself.

On the other end, King Askel clearly had been controlling his anger while waiting for this moment for too long, he was not going to back down or consider the Sea King’s ego.

Zariah quirked a brow, curious to see if the Sea King would actually apologize.

It was not as though Zariah was unwilling to offer her aid or expected benefits in return, but the thing about the supernatural realm was that, the clear line of dominance and superiority always needed to be established.

The moment the Crimson Moon took a submissive stance to any of the domains, they would never be able to recover from that.

"Very well then, I am willing to apologize for this misunderstanding. I hope Lady Zariah can forgive this so we may move past it." The Sea King relented.

King Askel released a low growl, but the Sea King’s expression was blank, holding his ground.

Zariah’s brows twitched slightly, the Sea King’s words were not exactly an apology but she decided it was not the time to insist.

Zariah shook her head to dissuade King Askel who was angered by the Sea King’s sorry excuse of an apology.

Zariah felt it was good enough that she got to see the Sea King for who he truly was, just as she suspected,

The rulers of the supernatural realm were all the same, each had their own agenda...not one was better than the other.

As Zariah thought of this, she found her gaze moving to King Askel who had a steely expression on before she quickly shook her head.

’Him included...they are all the same.’ Zariah affirmed, squashing the guilt stirred in her heart as she placed King Askel in the same category as the rest.

"It is enlightening to see that you place your ego above the well being of your people...it is no wonder someone would want to overthrow your rule." Zariah stated.

"Lady Zariah..." Prince Treyton began to intervene and Zariah passed him a glare.

"I do favor you, but do not patronize me Treyton. The Crimson Moon does not really care to whom the throne of the Sea belongs, so long as the merfolk are protected."

"The Sea Kingdom is not entitled to the aid of the Crimson Moon to sort out your power tussles, this is the first thing you must understand." Zariah clarified in a chilling cold tone.

Whether it was Lord Imain or King Himan, what did the Crimson Moon care?

Their oath remained to keep the domains safe and protected from the darkness and the creatures of darkness... nothing less and most certainly, nothing more.

"However what we will never tolerate is the return of the darkness to the realms and if this Lord Imain has dabbled with the darkness, then he is an enemy to Crimson Moon and enemies of Crimson Moon must be eradicated." Zariah decided.

"The fate of Lord Imain will be left to the decision of the Sea Kingdom, Lady Zariah must also understand this." The Sea King countered.

"Unbelievable." King Askel said with a shake of his head.

Prince Treyton winced at his father’s words knowing fully well Zariah would not appreciate it.

Zariah’s brows twitched, her gaze darkening at the Sea King’s words.

She could not believe the Sea King had come to her seeking advice and then was giving her his own rules of how he wanted things to play out.

If he was so resourceful, Zariah wondered why he did not just take care of it on his own but had come to bother her?

"If you are still yet to see that this is already far bigger than just the Sea Kingdom, then I have been mistaken about you all this while."

"Do you really think the Floral Domain laid false accusations when they said Princess Eloneth was abducted by mermen? Or should I assume you gave the order? Because if you didn’t, someone else did... and we both know who that someone is."

"Between the Crimson Moon and the Floral Domain, Lord Imain’s fate is already a done deal."

"If this was a matter the Sea Kingdom could handle on your own, you would not have come to me."

"Your domain is on the verge of falling apart both internally and externally, my warriors are out there doing all they can to restrain the Floral Domain, but it seems the Sea King is yet to understand the terms of this relationship."

"The Sea Kingdom needs the Crimson Moon, not the other way around. Now I do not favor wasting my words, if I am to sort this out... I will be completely and absolutely in charge."

"That means I will not be having a battle of dominance and status with you at every turn, if you cannot agree to my terms... the Sea Kingdom may sort out your difficulties yourself." Zariah stated clearly.

The Sea King and Prince Treyton were visibly taken aback by the deadly aura that poured off of Zariah as she spoke but quickly recovered their composure.

"It was not my intention to anger you, you are right, this situation is already beyond the Sea Kingdom." The Sea King agreed with a heavy sigh.

Zariah’s glare remained intact, she had just realized the Sea King who was rumoured to be calm and collected was just as egotistical as every other ruler.

The fairy queen had been right, the world did not truly know the nature of the Sea King, they only made their own assumptions since he had decided to live a life dissociated from the affairs of the other domains.

Zariah wondered if it was something that came with the title as ruler of a domain, that they found it hard to admit their wrong even when they sought the help of another.

"Lady Zariah, you were the first to realize Lord Imain’s intentions, I know you have already made plans. The Sea Kingdom will comply with all your arrangements, you have my word." Prince Treyton again eased the tense situation.

Zariah calmed herself, deciding to focus on the situation at hand.

Either ways, this was as much her problem as it was a problem to the Sea Kingdom, this was after all the very first lead in uncovering the mystery behind the fate of the Crimson Moon.

If Caedmon had gone through all the effort to snatch the message from the Sea King containing the drawing of the shadow mark and news of the Sea Dome,

It could only mean the Sea Dome was a significant part of the mastermind’s plan and if Zariah could not get to the mastermind immediately, Zariah would severe his limbs one by one... beginning with his associates in the Sea Kingdom.

"What is the present status?" Zariah asked,

"The battle forces of the Sea Kingdom are spread thin between the seven seas and the seven sea lords, the main city single handedly does not possess enough military force to take down the army of the Northern Sea." The Sea King relayed.

"Furthermore, if we declare war against the Northern Sea first without proof of Lord Imain’s shady dealings, it would just be our accusation alone."

"Lord Imain holds great influence and is highly respected in all seven seas, attacking him without justification would anger the other Sea lords and we cannot count on their support, they may even side with Lord Imain being ignorant of his treasonous intents." Prince Treyton said grimly.

"Indeed, the seven sea lords may be under King Himan’s authority but they each rule their seas autonomously. An attack on one of the seven sea lords with no explanation will rouse dissatisfaction." King Askel said in agreement.

"What do you suggest we do now, Lady Zariah?" Prince Treyton asked,

"A battle cannot be avoided if that is what you are asking, but the casualties can be kept at a minimum."

"If Lord Imain realizes we are unto him, all evidence from the Sea Dome will be cleared out and the wards of the Northern Seas will be activated."

"We cannot let that happen. We must infiltrate the Sea Dome first and launch an attack from within." Zariah murmured thoughtfully.

"How is that possible? Lord Imain lords over the Northern Seas, we cannot move an army to the Northern Seas without Lord Imain taking notice." The Sea King said.

"Not just that, we must isolate all six sea lords so they do not have the time to muster their armies till Lord Imain is taken down." Zariah added,

"That is even more impossible. The six sea lords hardly ever leave their seas. I ordered for it to be so." The Sea King said with a sigh.

"It is not impossible...so long as we can get everyone in one place at the same time. Leave them to me and all six will remain seated for centuries, they can’t get past me." King Askel murmured with a casual shrug.

Zariah chuckled quietly as she ran a hand through her hair, the wheels turning in her head before her eyes lit up.

"That’s it Askel, you’re a genius!" Zariah suddenly exclaimed as she rose to her feet and pushed open the door to her cell.