Betrayed By The Hero, Loved By The Lord-Chapter 274: Candidate for king (3)

Juliana caught up to Michael and grabbed his hand. "I will not have you make it look like I made another big mistake. You told me that I could speak freely. One would assume you have a magic stone."

Michael pried Juliana’s hand off of him. "You may speak freely here. I wouldn’t bother myself to silence you, and next time you believe someone has a stone, ask to see it before you speak. I thought you were smart."

Juliana closed her right hand into a ball. "I am getting tired of all of you laughing at me. I am not a fool."

"You should think before you speak if you don’t want to be called a fool. It was clear as day what you wanted to approach me for. I will offer some advice to you since I pity you," said Michael.

Juliana didn’t want any pity. "Save it for someone else."

"No, I will give it to you so when I am king, you will be grateful for it. Leave the palace," Michael advised Juliana. "If you stay, you will die."

Michael had seen and heard so little from Juliana, but it was enough for him to believe she would not be alive for much longer.

"Ha," Juliana laughed. "I see you have already picked a side. What has Vivienne told you?"

Juliana knew a trick when she heard it. Michael had just arrived in the palace, so what could he know about her or how she could be killed?

Juliana believed Natalie’s theory even more now that Vivienne might have a holy weapon.

"Vivienne? I am not a fan of the queen, and I have not picked any sides. I do hear things, so I know you should watch your back. If you were as smart as you want to be called, you would leave the palace soon," said Michael.

Being a former mistress to Darius placed a target on Juliana’s back from anyone who wanted to get rid of who was once loyal to Darius. Then there was Vivienne’s, whose actions had reached even Michael.

Juliana wasn’t safe in the palace, but like many others, she was so concerned about staying that she missed the dangers.

Juliana wasn’t ready to leave when she only recently found her place here. Since she could not seduce Michael, she would find someone else. Plenty of others were eyeing the throne and seeing how Michael acted, Juliana thought it was very unlikely he would be the next king.

"You should take your advice. You’ve come here to take something that Darius cherishes. Your last name won’t mean anything to him. He just might kill you and everyone else eyeing the throne. You should leave the palace before then," Juliana suggested.

Juliana didn’t want Michael to let it slip to Darius that she had offered herself to him. She would be doomed once again.

Michael laughed at Juliana’s advice: "I think I have a good chance since you were trying to latch onto me a moment ago. Listen to what I said, and leave the palace if you want to live."

"If you heard someone is trying to kill me, you should just tell me instead of going around in circles," said Juliana.

"I don’t have to tell you what I know since we aren’t close. Use your head to put two and two together. Why isn’t it safe for you to be here?" Michael said, leaving the question for Juliana to find answers.

Michael didn’t want to spend the rest of his day convincing Juliana to leave before it was too late. If she was as smart as she wanted others to believe she was, then she would leave, but Michael knew she wouldn’t.

Juliana wasn’t the first woman to be blinded by the power of the palace, and she wouldn’t be the last. If she did survive, Michael would send her out if he was voted as king.

Michael smiled when he stumbled upon the king. "King Darius."

Darius narrowed his eyes, upset by the sight of Michael. "What are you doing inside my palace?"

"Your palace?" Michael laughed. "I remember the five families coming together to build it. This is my home as well, which is why I entered it without asking for permission first. You must have gotten mistaken since I rarely visit."

"Who is the bastard who woke you up?" Darius asked, wanting to punish that person.

"Don’t be concerned about that. Focus on how you’re going to try fixing the town in so little time. You were ignoring the attacks for so long, and now you have a sudden interest in them. Good luck," Michael said, enjoying Darius’s panic. "Hurry up and fail like you always do."

Darius gritted his teeth. His right hand closed, ready to hit Michael "You should head back home now since I won’t be giving up my seat as king. You’ve made the long journey here all for nothing."

"You’re still as delusional as I remember you. To think they wasted time letting you be king in the first place. Then again, I remember the pathetic speech you made. It was full of so much emotion, all because you didn’t want to miss the chance to be king while Xaxier was only a lord," said Michael.

Michael was well aware of the one-sided rivalry and enjoyed watching it. Seeing Darius fail each time never got boring.

"I haven’t visited Xavier yet, but something tells me that you are still losing to him. I should go visit him since he got married recently. What would be a good wedding gift for him? Your head on a spear?" Michael joked.

Michael understood now why Juliana was one of Darius’s lovers. They were both so easy to tease.

"Xavier won’t vote for you," Darius informed Michael.

"Oh. Why are you so concerned about who will vote for me? I thought you were certain you wouldn’t be replaced. Time is ticking down fast, Darius. Do something to amaze the others or at least watch your back. You never know who is aiming for it," Michael said, patting Darius’s back as he walked by.

Daris turned around to watch Micahel off. "A threat to the king won’t go unpunished here."

"Tell that to the ones who want to kill you. I’m a peaceful man unless provoked. And Darius." Michael stopped, sparing one last glance at Darius. "Killing you would be no fun. It’s not that you are so powerful we can’t kill you. Dealing with the elders over your death is just troublesome."

Darius wished he had something at hand to throw at Michael.

Michael’s meeting with Xavier couldn’t be good, so Darius waited for Michael to be out of reach so he could send more spies to Xavier’s home.