Beast Gacha System: All Mine

Angela had made it clear that the favor she wanted from Bessa was for her to accept the noble name.

And Bessa Sonder was not a joke of a name, either. The Sonder family was as old as the empire itself, one of the old houses that had witnessed the founder’s oath with the Dragon Lord, their name etched into the very foundation stones of the capital.

Giving Bessa that name was not merely an honor, but a declaration. A banner raised over her head for all the world to see.

Now, standing before the full-length mirror, Bessa finally, objectively understood where the "beauty" Angela had spoken of had been hiding all along.

The reflection that stared back at her was a stranger. She was almost like a woman she had never met or imagined.

Dressed in a gown of soft yellow, the color of spring’s first light, she looked like something from a storybook. The fabric cascaded around her in gentle waves, silk and gossamer layered to catch the light with every breath. Golden embroidery traced the neckline and sleeves, delicate patterns of flowers and thorns.

Her dark hair had been pinned up in an elegant twist, a few strands left loose to frame her face, and her eyes, normally so wary, now gleamed strangely.

The makeup softened the hard edges life had carved into her, not hiding them, but making them look like they belonged to a painting.

She was beautiful.

She didn’t know she could be this beautiful. Ever.

"Excellent."

A man entered the frame of the mirror, standing behind her. The Emperor of Iondora smiled gently.

"T-thank you," Bessa curtsied, her voice steadier than she felt.

"You’re welcome. Though this much is expected from the Sonder family," Damon said, nodding toward the man standing on the opposite side of the room.

Yadriel Sonder, head of the Sonder household, bowed deeply at the compliment. "Thank you for gracing us with this opportunity, Your Majesty."

"Marquis, please take good care of my bride. Don’t forget, she is also your new, beloved adopted daughter, after all," Damon smiled.

Yadriel flinched.

In all the years he had served the Iondora family, he had never seen Damon smile gently like that. Truly, not once. Usually, there was a madness behind it!

The words ’new, beloved adopted daughter’ had been pronounced with each syllable full of weight. ’Treat her carefully. Protect her. Or else.’

It was a threat.

Who was she? She had come out of nowhere!

Before, she looked like a nobody, by all appearances. Not only that she had lost a leg! A woman with a prosthetic leg and calloused hands, wearing one of the most revered names in the empire, it felt like she was borrowing a luxurious silk cloak.

This morning, Damon had announced to the world that he had allowed his full-blood sister, Angela, to walk free from the dungeon.

Of course, with the princess’s notorious reputation, opposition had flooded in from every direction like rivers to the sea.

People had predicted this, naturally. The Emperor wouldn’t leave his own blood to rot in that hole while he sat on the throne. But he still needed a justifiable reason. Thankfully, he had found one.

"Only my sister can find who killed our Father. Now, whoever can deny it, step forward."

That was how Angela had walked out of that hole. And Yadriel, along with many others, hadn’t been surprised at all.

Actually, Yadriel especially, wouldn’t be surprised.

After all, he was none other than Angel’s Kitty, one of the many people who owed a great favor to Angela.

The favor he had received from her had been the stepping stone that allowed him to rise as Marquis, replacing his old, senile father and defeating the former heir, his elder brother.

But even though he was one of Angela’s people, he still didn’t know the details of this plan. He surely didn’t know where this young lady the Emperor called his bride had come from!

"Since my schedule for today is complete, I’ll accompany you back to your place. It’s best we start packing your belongings and move your garden and farm onto palace grounds," Damon said gently.

Bessa looked at him and blinked. "Y-yes, Your Majesty."

Damon smiled, before turning away and offered the other man, "Marquis, how about you join us as our chaperone?"

"M-me, Your Majesty?" Yadriel widened his eyes. This... the Emperor was surprisingly... courteous.

It was a small thing, being a chaperone. A gesture of propriety at best. But from the rumors that had always surrounded the imperial family, he had expected cold commands and sharp dismissals. Not this.

Not this almost tender attentiveness.

Even Bessa was startled again.

Bessa had arrived at the palace only yesterday. The shock she had felt then was second only to the shock of meeting the Dragon Lord for the first time.

She truly wished she could just go home and put everything behind her. But she couldn’t, right?

The favor bound her. And now that she had sat with it for a day, turning it over and over in her mind, she couldn’t help but be enchanted by the dream, too.

Saving those children.

Giving them a dignified future.

All that, and all she needed to do was become this man’s wife and appear at a few events each month.

She could still cultivate the land. She could live a safe, respectable life without worrying about a thing. What more could she ask for?

She knew, with Angela and Damon at the helm, she wouldn’t need to worry about politics or governing. Even if she were asked to birth an heir, the responsibility of raising him wouldn’t fall entirely on her shoulders. Surely they wouldn’t trust her with something she truly couldn’t do.

And in the end, who was she?

How could she ever have dared to dream of any kind of life with a dragon?

Jenggala was a god. The Green Dragon of Earth.

She had simply accepted his favor a few times, a leg built with his own hands, flights across the world, laughter in fields of sea lavender. That was all. That would ever be all.

She was a speck of dust in his long, esteemed life. She would at most be one of his amusing little friends he picked up along the way.

Yes, becoming Empress was still outrageous by any measure. But becoming the mate of a dragon? That was the truly impossible one.

So she would take the path that was offered. She would become Lady Bessa Sonder, she would become the Empress, and she would let the dream carry her forward.

Because the alternative, returning to her quiet farm and pretending none of this had happened, was no longer an option.

If someone like Angela Iondora told her that she was the only one who could help with that dream, then she was the only one.

The children were waiting.

***

High above the palace grounds, where the wind bit cold and the clouds hung low and gray, two figures stood on the ledge of a tall tower.

The man was striking in an otherworldly way, pale as freshly fallen snow, with feathers of white and silver scattered across his temple and arms like a cloak of winter made flesh.

The woman in his embrace was blonde, her hair gleamed like spun gold, and her eyes, pale blue and clear, held the cold, shifting light of shallow tropical water.

His wings folded around her, blending them both into the clouds, their colors smearing into the gray until they were nearly indistinguishable from the sky itself.

They were looking down.

Below, in the palace courtyard, a carriage waited. The Emperor of Iondora stood beside it, one hand outstretched, guiding a young woman in a soft yellow dress up the steps.

He was smiling gently, carefully tending to her. Yes, like he had all the time in the world, and she was worth every second of it. The young woman said something, and he answered. Only then did he climb in after her, and the carriage rolled away.

Magnus watched Ivy from the corner of his eye. Her face was still. Unreadable. He had expected something. Jealousy, perhaps, or sorrow, or even that particular brittle sharpness she wore like armor.

But there was nothing. Just the usual assessing gaze of a woman watching a piece move across a board.

He still didn’t understand how Ivy’s heart truly operated. He doubted anyone ever had.

"She’s an Alchemist," Ivy said at last.

Magnus widened his eyes, the red of them flashing with genuine surprise. "Is that true?!"

Ivy nodded, her gaze still fixed on the departing carriage.

Then he saw it, the slow curve of a smile spreading across her lips.

"Angela Iondora..." Ivy whispered, her voice carrying on the wind. "Such an impressive plan. I love it."

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