THE SHIELD THAT HURTS

CHAPTER.14

As the evening wore on, the atmosphere in the palace grew more festive. Everyone was drinking and smiling, chatting amiably with one another. Crown Prince Zoe was full of excitement, his eyes shining brightly as he gazed at Naehi, who stood nearby.

Naehi, too, was smiling, her eyes fixed on the prince. She was thinking to herself, "Finally, my Prince Zoe is becoming King sooner or later... but I still don't know what is racing my heart."

Just then, Crown Prince Zoe thought of announcing his love for Naehi in the presence of everyone. He stood up to talk, but as he did, he felt an uncontrollable dizzy spell wash over him. He began to vomit blood, and the room fell silent.

Everyone was shocked, and the maids rushed to his side. Before they could carry him away, Crown Prince Zoe collapsed to the ground. The entire palace erupted into chaos, with everyone wandering around in a state of panic.

Hurriedly, the palace physician was summoned to attend to Prince Zoe. As soon as the physician and his assistant maid arrived, Naehi rushed forward, shivering and sweating profusely.

"Sir, please allow me to go in with you," she begged, her voice trembling. "Please, I'm one of the Crown Prince Zoe's maids. Please let me join you in treating him."

The physician looked at Naehi with disdain. "I'm sure you must be out of your senses," he hissed. "If you knew how to treat him, you should have done so before I arrived, rather than waiting for me. You foolish maid!"

The physician pushed Naehi away and entered Crown Prince Zoe's room to attend to him. Naehi was left standing at the entrance, her eyes wide with worry.

"What's happening right now?" she cried out, her voice echoing through the hallway. "It's almost done... why did this have to happen to my love, Crown Prince Zoe? Please, I must not lose you. Please, you cannot die now, when the fight is almost..." Naehi's voice trailed off as she burst into tears.

Meanwhile, in the king's quarter, the king was pacing back and forth, his face etched with worry. The ministers and ambassadors were present, trying to come up with words to console the king.

Finally, Minister of Rites, Minister Akemh, stepped forward. "Your Majesty, the King, please... you have to calm down. Please, you have to consider your bad health and relax. I pray for a speedy recovery for Crown Prince Zoe."

But the king was beyond consolation. His face was red with rage, and tears streamed down his face. "What's going on in this palace?" he thundered. "What has made Crown Prince Zoe collapse all of a sudden after his selection? What is going on here? Must there definitely be someone working against the selection?"

Just then, the arrival of Queen Ghoifaes was announced. She walked in hurriedly and bowed low. "My king, I'm sure you must be thinking about the palace mastermind... and yes, there is a mastermind who is working against the princes. That person is Maid Naehi from the Crown Prince Zoe's quarter."

Minister Akemh's face turned red with anger. "Queen Ghoifaes, please... do not bring boring and nuisance cases here to the inner court again."

But Queen Ghoifaes just smiled. "This time, I'm very sure of it," she said. "Naehi is a slave from the Akua Slaves camp... and yes, she has grudges in her heart. Her mission here is to eliminate the princes... and what happened today was very clear. According to the physician treating Crown Prince Zoe, the prince was poisoned."

The entire court erupted into chaos, with everyone exclaiming, "The Crown Prince was poisoned!" Queen Ghoifaes nodded, a sly smile spreading across her face. "Yes, he was poisoned."

The king's face turned even redder with rage. "Bring that maid to me!" he thundered. "Tell everyone that nobody should dare interfere in her case."

Naehi was dragged before the palace court, her eyes wide with fear. The king glared at her, his face twisted with anger.

"What have you done again?" he spat, his voice venomous.

Naehi bowed her head, tears streaming down her face. "Your Majesty, please... I didn't know anything about this."

But the king was beyond reason. He slapped Naehi across the face, his eyes blazing with fury. "Shut up, you useless and devilish maid! You dare touch my son again? How dare you? Well, it's not your fault... it was my fault for yielding to Queen Khieyan's protective words for you. The king's face twisted with rage. "But trust me, you can never escape today's death execution," he spat, his voice venomous.

Naehi bowed her face down low, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Your Majesty, please... I didn't know anything about this," she begged, her voice shaking.

The king's expression didn't change. "Two guards, take this devil to the market square," he ordered, his voice cold. "Announce to everyone that she killed Prince Zemha and now she has poisoned the Crown Prince. Execute her by beheading and give her flesh to the dogs to eat."

Naehi's eyes widened in horror as the guards grabbed her arms, dragging her away.

The king turned to Minister Akemh. "Where's the Head Maid Nahum? Why is she not here?" he demanded.

A maid from Lady Nahum's quarter stepped forward. "Your Majesty, Lady Nahum was not feeling well," she explained.

Minister Akemh fell to his knees, begging for Naehi's life. "Your Majesty, please... you have to reconsider. Please, take back your judgment and let's do a thorough investigation before executing her."

But Queen Ghoifaes was adamant. "No, I refuse," she spat, her eyes flashing with anger. "Naehi is a criminal, and right now, she must be killed."

Naehi looked up at Queen Ghoifaes, her eyes filled with tears and her face pale with fear. She whispered to herself, "Queen Ghoifaes, I'm sure this is your doing. You'll definitely regret it."

The king ordered Naehi to be put into a prison cell until the next day. "If I don't see any genuine evidence that claims her innocence, I personally will behead her in the palace court," he declared.

Two guards carried Naehi away, locking her in a cold, dark cell.

As Queen Ghoifaes walked out of the palace court, she encountered Queen Khieyan. Queen Ghoifaes smiled wickedly. "Queen Khieyan, you're late this time around to protect that Naehi. Now I've earned the king's trust, and definitely, tomorrow she will be executed."

Queen Khieyan's eyes flashed with anger. "Do not think you can get what you want," she warned. "I'll do everything in my power to protect her, because I know she can't do it."

Queen Ghoifaes smiled even more brightly. "Queen Khieyan, you're free to do as you wish. I'm sure you'll definitely want to protect her, but let's see who will win this time around. You should be grateful it wasn't you and your son I poisoned."

Queen Khieyan's face turned red with rage, but Queen Ghoifaes just smiled and walked away.

Meanwhile, Queen Khieyan rushed to the king's quarter, determined to plead Naehi's case. When her arrival was announced, the king said, "Queen Khieyan, please... I didn't want to see you here. Queen Khieyan, please do not implicate yourself."

But Queen Khieyan fell to her knees, begging for Naehi's life. "Please, Your Majesty... Naehi knows nothing about what she's been accused of. Please, my king..." she cried, her voice shaking with emotion.

Despite her pleas, the king remained unmoved. Queen Khieyan finally gave up and returned to her chamber, defeated.

In Crown Prince Zoe's quarter, the prince finally regained consciousness. The physician was overjoyed to see him awake. "My Crown Prince, you're finally awake. Please, how are you feeling now? Hope you're feeling better."

Prince Zoe nodded, his eyes scanning the room. "Please, call me Naehi," he said, his voice weak.

The physician's expression turned somber. "My king, Naehi is now in prison. She was accused in the palace court today of being responsible for poisoning you."

Prince Zoe's face turned red with anger. He tried to rise from his bed, but a wave of dizziness washed over him, and he fell back, his stomach churning with nausea.

The physician rushed to his side, holding him down. "Crown Prince Zoe, please... you have to be strong. Although I can see it in Naehi's eyes that she loves you, and that she must be innocent, you have to rest now and be strong so that you can try to protect her tomorrow."

Just then, the arrival of Lady Nahum was announced. She burst into the room, her face etched with worry.

The physician's eyes widened in surprise as Lady Nahum burst into the room, her face etched with worry. Crown Prince Zoe quickly instructed the physician to retire for the day, and as soon as the physician gathered his belongings and departed, Lady Nahum's emotions erupted.

"Crown Prince Zoe, I warned you! I warned you this would be dangerous!" she thundered, her voice heavy with despair. "And now Naehi is in prison, with a hundred percent assurance that she will be executed tomorrow. You claim to love her with all your heart, you claim to love her affectionately, but you didn't consider the thorns that would hinder your love."

Lady Nahum's words were laced with anguish as she fell to the ground, her body shaking with sobs. "Now my Naehi is in prison... how do we save her from death? How will you save her?" she wailed, her cries echoing through the room.

Crown Prince Zoe knelt beside Lady Nahum, holding her leg as he wept bitter tears. "Lady Nahum, please... I'm so sorry," he begged, his voice cracking with emotion. "But I'm sure Naehi cannot die this time, because there's something you can do to save her."

Lady Nahum's eyes widened in awe, her face streaked with tears. "Crown Prince Zoe, what do you mean?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

As Lady Nahum looked up at Crown Prince Zoe, her eyes pleaded for a glimmer of hope, a chance to save the young woman she had grown to love like a daughter. The air was thick with tension, heavy with the weight of Naehi's impending doom.