The Courtesan

Chapter 100

Third Person POV

“Mother, I thought I told you not to come.”

“Since when did you get to dictate what I should do?! You’ve been hiding so much from me that I cannot trust you any longer.”

“Mother, I don’t have to tell you everything. I’m a grown man now.”

“Grown man my arse! You’re just getting your facial hairs and you think you can talk to your mother any way you like?! Huh?!”

“Mother, why exactly are you upset? I have a lot to do and you barging in like this would not help.”

“You are hiding a lover from me. I’m here to find her.”

“Unfortunately, the only female here is Susanne. No, there’s also the old maids from Salem and the female guards…”

Kalvin jumped back to avoid his mother’s hand aiming to slap him. He looked offended but she didn’t look like she cared.

“Mother, who told you that I had a lover?”

“I didn’t need anyone to tell me. The way you had been sneaking off to Salem and that wide grin on your face everytime you did it gave me all the answers I needed to know.”

“Wow… mothers are scary.”

“I have great intuition!” she said, raising a hand again. He moved even further away. She folded her arms.

“Talk! Where is she?”

“Back in Salem.”

“So she exists!”

“If you want to see her here, she exists in my heart…”

“Shut up stupid son. I demand you bring her here right now!”

“No.”

“What do you mean ‘No’? You don’t want me to meet her?”

“Exactly. You’re acting insane right now and I don’t want her to think badly of me and my family. You might chase her away and then I’ll be upset.”

When Kalvin said he would be upset, fear flashed in the Queen’s eyes for a moment. She regained her senses and glared at her son.

“Kalvin, you are the crown prince and this is inappropriate.”

“Well then, since a lot of people have been telling me this lately and it seems it would stop me from doing what I want, I want to step down.”

“What?! You can’t just do that!”

“Why not? Anyone can literally replace me.”

“Kalvin, this is your birthright and so, it is yours. Don’t tell me you’re giving this up because of a woman?”

“Yes, that is correct. I am doing this because of the woman I love.”

“Are you trying to piss me off?”

“That too. I don’t think I need to try harder though.”

She sighed and shook her head.

“... There is no need to give up being crown prince. I’m doing this for your own good…”

“Mother, I am a grown man. Shouldn’t I know what is good for me?”

“I understand that but as I am still alive, I need to guide you…”

“And force me into a marriage I don’t want and make both me, her and the children we would have very miserable for the rest of our lives? We would curse your grave and you would be miserable and unable to cross into the afterlife. You see where I’m going with this?”

“Kalvin, I am afraid! I’m scared of what would happen if your heart is broken one more time.”

“Mother, I can deal with rejection perfectly fine…”

“Oh no, no, no, no you can’t. You spent five years lamenting the loss of your dead wife. Who knows what’ll happen when something happens to this one?”

“Are you insinuating you’ll hurt her?”

“Of course I’m not. I’m scared for her more than I am for you.”

“I mean, you’re not wrong… but she isn’t weak.”

“Even if she has the power of all the gods, being with you, there are many things she cannot avoid. Especially since you have many holes in your brain.”

“Mother!”

“I’ll be leaving now but I’ll be back. Your insistence to fight the church has gotten me into a mess with the noble ladies.”

“You can have fun with that and hopefully not return soon.”

“It’s cute that you think you can keep me away for much longer.”

Kalvin and his mother bickered all the way to the entrance of the house. When she got into her carriage, he bolted the door and sighed in relief.

“That woman is too bloody persistent,” he muttered, rolling his eyes. He set out to find Elayne and soon found her chatting away with Lion and Tyler.

“What are we talking about?”

“Oh, she already left?” Elayne said, turning back after she heard his voice. He nodded and stood beside her. Lion and Tyler looked mildly amused but they said nothing.

“We were just arguing about who targeted me during the first match. Tyler’s bet is on the church’s loyalist, which is very strange while Lion’s bet is on the street children in Rhonda. I bet on Susanne and yes, I mean every offense.”

“I’m not really sure Susanne would… I mean, she’s the one who saved you.”

“At your command. I’m sure if she’s that proficient in using a needle under the watchful eyes of the crowd, she must be capable of many other things. She’s likely just covering up her tracks.”

“It sounds like you don’t like her very much.”

“I don’t.”

“That’s very… honest.”

“Thank you. Who are you betting on?”

“I’m not sure. Have you made any other enemies since arriving here?”

“I’m not sure if they count as enemies but there’s the men I told you about.”

“... I think I would bet on them.”

“Wonderful. Hand over your coin purse.”

“Okay?” Kalvin replied with confusion, giving Elayne his purse. She smirked and dangled it in front of their eyes.

“I win.”

“Huh?”

“My lady, that was actually clever.”

“No Tyler, it was easy. You two had too much faith in your master whereas I know what he’s capable of. And so, I win.”

“What’s going on?”

“The bet was fake, your highness. The real bet was predicting your next few actions when you came here. It was pretty much rigged though. The prize is your coin purse by the way,” Tyler replied with a shrug.