“I saved my husband’s life,” she corrected. “There is a difference.”
She leaned her head against his shoulder. “You are still a savage.” hime kishi wa banzoku no yome
“The White Lioness of Astoria,” he rumbled, his voice a low vibration in the earth. “On her knees.” “I saved my husband’s life,” she corrected
The Barbarian King, Kaelen, was a mountain of a man. His skin was tanned leather by sun and wind, his hair a wild mane of black, and his eyes the color of a winter storm. He wore no armor, only furs and scarred leather, and he carried a greatsword that looked like it could split a horse in two. He stood over her now, not gloating, just… observing. “On her knees
The change came during the spring thaw. A rival chieftain, Gurik the Boneless, sought to usurp Kaelen. He attacked at dawn, not with honor, but with treachery. He set fire to the horse lines and sent his berserkers into the yurts to slaughter women and children.
“They answer to the pack leader,” he said, dismounting. “Not to me. I only asked them to watch.”
A roar erupted from the horde. Not of mockery, but of celebration.