《The Devil's Temptation!》


 Chapter 1

    Chapter 1: Strange Sea Storm


    ¡°Mother! No!¡± The tiny shrill voice of a little girl echoed desperately through the waves of the ocean, their ship kept jiggling forcefully due to the pressure of the water below as the thunderstorm cracked loudly above the threatening dark sky.


    ¡°Anna ! Go back inside! Right now!¡± Her mother, who was shocked to see her seven-year-old daughter stepping out of the hiding room and onto the deck couldn¡¯t help but panic.


    ¡°But mother...¡±


    ¡°Go now!¡± She ordered with pleading eyes and immediately returned to work. Despite noticing her mother¡¯s queer reaction, Anna couldn¡¯t go back like she was told to, it felt like her feets were glued to the ground and she was unable to take even a single step.


    The heavy force of the water kept tumbling their ships and the dark clouds weren¡¯t helping matters at all, it sent quite a lot of troupes rolling from one edge to the other and some even falling off the ship and into the water.


    This was practically unlike any other sea storm they¡¯ve encountered, one would actually think the Gods were angry and trying to pour the anger out on its people.


    ¡°Pull at the storm sails! The second storm ising in heavier this time around.¡±


    The captain ordered loudly to the remaining troupes while Anna¡¯s mom immediately got to work with the rest of them. Meanwhile, Anna could do nothing but observe the traumatizing scene before her, despite being quite far away from where the captain of the ship was standing, Anna could clearly hear him whisper something cynical to her mother.


    .....


    ¡°This has never happened before,¡± he said, ¡°until you decided to bring that daughter of yours on this trip!¡± The captain cursed without any form of remorse, which made the colors on her mom¡¯s face drain a bit. She said nothing and only lowered her head in disdain, causing Anna to fearfully wonder if her own mother was starting to have the same mentality as the rest of them.


    Another terrifying lightning crackled loudly above the sky, forcing Anna to quickly move from her spot. This was her first time sailing through a ship before but she had never imagined it¡¯d turn out to be so scary and full of lightning. It made adrenaline rush through her system as she headed into the hiding room.


    The force of the ocean beneath the ship made it tumble heavily to the left, causing Anna to lose her bnce just before she could grab hold of the door knob.


    ¡°Ahh!!¡±


    She fell to her feet, coarsely rolling to the edge of the ship due to its unstable movement.


    ¡°Ah! Mother!¡± She cried out in fear, gaining the attention of her mom who was busy adjusting the sails so it wouldn¡¯t get blown away by the harsh wind.


    ¡°Anna!¡± She felt her heart seize momentarily at the sight of her daughter struggling to get up on her two feet and immediately left the sails to go attend to her.


    ¡°My child!¡± She reached for the edge and immediately crouched before her little girl, helping her get up to her feet while cross-checking her body to make sure she wasn¡¯t hurt by the fall.


    ¡°Are you alright my dear? Were you hurt?¡± The worry was clearly visible in her beautiful eyes while Anna could only shake her head despite the tears which threatened to fall from the brim of her big round eyes.


    ¡°Forgive your mother for bringing you on this trip, you¡¯ll be safe alright? Come here.¡± She carried her daughter in her arms while leading her to the hiding room.


    The storm only grew stronger like the captain had predicted it¡¯d be, its harsh wind increased further and the waves kept getting higher than thest, the young woman safely helped her daughter get into the hiding room.


    ¡°Stay here, you¡¯ll be safe alright? Don¡¯te out no matter what, you¡¯ll be a good girl and listen to mommy okay?¡± She assured her daughter despite the tears which equally filled her eyes.


    The captain was right, this storm was definitely one she has nevere across and there was a very low percent chance that they¡¯d survive the next storm, but her daughter has to be safe. Even if she doesn¡¯t survive she¡¯d do anything to protect her only daughter from this strange storm.


    ¡°Promise me you won¡¯te out no matter what, stay here.¡±


    Before Anna could respond or say anything to her mother, the woman had already closed the door, leaving Anna¡¯s voice to hang in her throat as she was instantly epassed by the darkness of the room.


    She could still hear the rumbling of thunder outside and covered her ears with her palm, it scared the daylights out of her and made her shiver within.


    ¡°Please go away..... please go away.¡± Her tiny soft voice kept begging because her mother was still out there, the only person who still loved her, she couldn¡¯t afford to lose her mother, never !


    Unable to bear the suspense of what¡¯s happening outside, her sharp eyes immediately scanned the dark room she was in and thanks to the little light prating from the window at her door, she found a barrelying at a corner.


    Instinctively, she reached for the barrel, using her tiny hands to push it to the door so she could climb on it and see what was happening through the window.


    Making it to the top of the barrel, she peeped out while covering her ears and all she saw was people running from one ce to the other, the captain giving out orders while handling the steering wheel.


    Gazing up at the dark cloud above, the thunder immediately shed its heavenly light, a light so powerful and disastrous, that¡¯s when she saw it or maybe it was just the trick of light but she saw something.


    Something that made her small body tremble at the sight, her eyes dted horrifically as whatever she saw got hidden by the darkness of the clouds once again.


    A quick short gasp escaped from her throat and that¡¯s when she instantly banged on the window, trying to alert her mother about what she just saw but instead, a huge heavy wave came,a wave big enough to swallow hundreds of people.


    Anna¡¯s big eyes unknowingly dted, her pupils contrasting further after seeing the wave grow bigger before her and within a sh, it had enveloped the ship.


    ¡°Mother!!¡±


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª


    hello old/new readers ??


    Wee to my newest book on WN as this story is based on a historical setting, it¡¯s a dark romance but it won¡¯t contain much of it as there will be interesting dialogue, enough spicy treats and sweet banters.;-)


    But like i said, it¡¯s dark so expect Gore, Angst, betrayal and bloodshed, including strongnguages. I deal with slow burns which will improve into something more as the story moves on.


    For my old readers I won¡¯t be dropping this particr nvl if u¡¯re insecure about it, I¡¯ve nned on taking my time on it and not rush into anything concerning this nvl like I did with the rest.


    For my new readers, thank you for reading and I hope the book reaches your expectation. (^^)


    Please leave ament and reviews too, let¡¯s keep an open mind <3

 Chapter 2

    Chapter 2: Unexpected Push


    The sharp pain in her chest and the crackling sound of thunder outside the Euphrasia kingdom was enough to awaken Anna from her deep slumbers.


    With a gasp escaping her parted lips, her eyes snapped open as she hurriedly sat up on her bed, staring nkly at the darkness which epassed the room and leaving her staring at its emptiness.


    Her heart thundered repeatedly against her chest while her breathing came short, she was sweating all over, her nightgown already clung to her skin due to the wetness of her body. She focused on calming herself down after realizing it was the same nightmare again, giving her chest a gentle pat.


    The nightmare which had refused to let her be ever since she survived the terrible incident.


    The whoosh! Sound of air swiftly invaded her room like an unwee breeze, cooling her system which made the terrified Anna shiver impulsively as it hit the sweat which ran across her back.


    She turned her head to the direction of her window and a soft sigh escaped her lips, she found it open due to the force of the heavy wind outside. Not only that, it was raining quite heavily too. The sttering sound of the rain hitting the ground could be heard faintly. No wonder her candles had gone out, it was no one else but the winds doing.


    Relieving her heart from the earlier ache, she wiped the tears which had uncontrobly rolled down to her face before getting out of bed and hurriedly going over to close the window.


    .....


    With the quick lighting of matches, she had lit up the candles in her room again, feeling it with the yellow brightness it had lost due to the wind outside.


    Staring at the burning me, her chocte brown eyes couldn¡¯t look any prettier despite the tears which lingered on hershes, they looked distant, filled with longing and neverending pain which she had no time exining to people anymore.


    It¡¯s funny how easily the candle defy and define darkness, just like her life, she had learned to be a ve of darkness and get ustomed to it. Falling asleep was out of the question cause she¡¯d only go back to dreaming about that night which haunts her till this day.


    She had lost everything in the blink of an eye that night, yet she was the only person who survived the awful incident.


    Another unstoppable tear rolled from the brim of her eyes and down her smooth cheek like a piece of velvet, her tears glistened against the light of the candle. Her heart felt heavy the more she kept recalling the incident, but her saddened recollection got disrupted when a loud bang from outside her door grabbed her attention, like something had fallen.


    She hurriedly got to her feet with another gasp escaping her lips the moment she heard that sound, she stared out through her window and it was stillte. Who could be wandering around the pce at this hour? And sote at night?


    Wanting to satisfy her curiosity and convince herself that no one has broken into the pce, she grabbed one of the candles in her room and cautiously headed towards the door with silent steps. Holding onto the doorknob with a firm grip, it slowly creaked open.


    She popped her head out at first, staring at the dark passageway before bringing her candle out in case there was someone there. To her surprise, the passageway was quiet and empty, nothing seemed to have fallen or broken. It was just oddly quiet.


    ¡°Strange, I thought I heard...¡± she paused for a few seconds the moment her sensitive ears grasped the sound of light footsteps fading into the distance. From her childhood, she had the gift of being able to hear things which were quite farther from her, it had saved her from getting into too many troubles while staying in the pce, because it gave her a chance to eavesdrop on the ns of most of the maidens in the pce.


    Gathering enough courage, she stepped out of her room and followed the sound of those footsteps she kept hearing, quite bothered about the person who would wander around sote at night.


    With only her candle as her source of light, she shielded it carefully so the wind wouldn¡¯t blow it out again, hastily making her way past the passageway. Her heart drummed nevertheless when the footsteps were starting to get closer and closer with each stride she took.


    She was afraid, but her willingness to know who it was drove her to keep walking. After making it to the stairway where shest heard the footsteps, there was no one at sight, even the guards were nowhere to be seen. The footsteps couldn¡¯t be heard either like it just.... Disappeared.


    ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± Her songbird voice echoed softly through the stairway as she continuously nced around, shing her candle to each direction her eyes were fixated on, but there was no one at sight.


    Finding the situation to be nothing but strange and bizarre, she decided to retreat to her chamber¡¯s when an unexpected push behind her back made her stumble forward.


    ¡°Ahhh!!¡±


    She lost her bnce due to the force of the push and the next second, she found herself rolling through the neverending hard stairs.

 Chapter 3

    Chapter 3: Creatures Of The Night


    The door to Annalise bedroom was bursted open at the break of dawn, a charmingdy stood at the entrance with two to three maidens following her trail. She worriedly stared at Anna who was busy wrapping the wound on her knees with a bandage.


    The girl had stopped after sighting the beautiful princess of Euphrasia in her chamber¡¯s and tried to get up to her feet.


    ¡°No don¡¯t, it¡¯s not necessary.¡± The princess hurriedly stopped her with the sound of her voice before hurrying to her side at the dressing table.


    ¡°Forgive me princess,¡± Anna guiltily lowered her head, ¡°because of my injury I couldn¡¯t give you a proper greeting, also I couldn¡¯t make your usual morning tea due to this, I hope...¡±


    ¡°Anna...¡± The princess softly interjected while cing a hand on Anna¡¯s shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to exin anything to me, the guards already informed me about what happenedst night so I came to check on you.¡± She exined her sudden visit which brought a smile to Anna¡¯s face.


    Her whole body was sore due to the fall and each time the princess touched her, she forced herself not to wince from the pain, it had been horrifying and torturing since the stairs happened to be a pretty long one.


    .....


    Whoever it was that pushed her down the stairs really had the intention of killing her, if it wasn¡¯t for a body guard who came to her aid on time, she doubts she¡¯d still be sitting here right now.


    ¡°Thank you for being so generous princess.¡±


    ¡°Is it something serious? Were you badly hurt?¡± She asked while studying the knee which Anna was almost done wrapping with a bandage, she wasn¡¯t even done and it was already starting to soak with her blood.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing serious princess, it will heal with time.¡±


    ¡°You should have the physician look into your wound silly girl, this is even more serious than I had expected, what if it¡¯s dislocated and you end up having a fractured knee?¡± She thoughtfully inquired, ¡°let the physician take a look, then you can exin to me how all of this happened and who caused it.¡± Calista kept insisting and seeing she had no other choice here, Anna could only nod her head in agreement, earning a smile from the princess herself.


    ¡°Good, I¡¯ll send a maid to get the physician, you should stay here and.....¡± her eyes indubitably diverted to the silver meteor mark on Anna¡¯s forehead, causing her to pause on her words.


    She stole a quick nce at her maids who remained at the door, whispering to themselves with a look of disdain and she already knew why, which really didn¡¯t appeal to her at all.


    ¡°You three.¡± She called, startling them and gaining their attention immediately as they bowed their heads.


    ¡°Go, get the royal physician so he can attend to Anna¡¯s wounds.¡± She ordered, they nodded immediately and left the doorstep, relieving Calista that they were out of sight before she retracted her gaze to Annalise.


    ¡°You aren¡¯t putting on your headband?¡± She asked, gaining Anna¡¯s attention as she seemed to have cked out a bit.


    ¡°Hmm??¡±


    ¡°Your headband.¡± Calista pointed at her forehead, implying that her meteor mark was visible. Anna touched her forehead and could feel the meteor birthmark herself. It always broke her heart each time she¡¯s reminded of it.


    ¡°I... I got lost in treating myself that I..... I¡¯ll put it on now.¡±


    She opened her drawer and brought out a beautiful headband, wearing it above her head so the crystal would cover the meteor mark.


    Calista finally smiled again after seeing the mark was hidden, ¡°you do understand why I brought this idea in the first ce right? At least no one will bad-mouth you now that its hidden.¡±


    Anna could sense the genuineness in her tone which made her nod in agreement, she understood perfectly cause she equally heard the maids whispering about her birthmark, she knew exactly what the princess had done and she felt grateful for sending them away. Even she herself derives joy when she sees it¡¯s hidden.


    The mark has been nothing but a curse to her existence, she¡¯d rather fool herself with this headband than stare at that mark on her forehead.


    The pain she had to pass through all because of that mark made her hate it with every fiber inside of her, yet she couldn¡¯t get rid of it, despite knowing she has very little time to live.


    ¡°Good, don¡¯t move from here, a maid will bring the physician to you, okay?¡±


    Anna could only nod her head gratefully and watched as the beautiful princess exited her room.


    She owes a lot to that princess, she still remembered the first day she showed up at Euphrasia pce, she had survived the crash and was brought to the pce when no one outside the kingdom was willing to ept her, ming her for the deaths of the people who died in the ship.


    ¡°She¡¯s different!¡± They said.


    ¡°She isn¡¯t one of us!¡± They said.


    ¡°If she didn¡¯t kill them, howe she was the only one who survived?¡± They said.


    ¡°I can¡¯t ept a girl who bears such unknown mark, what if my family dies too?¡± They said.


    She was avoided like a gue at such a tender age, she had no one, her father died a long time ago and she was lucky enough to havee from a family like his cause the King of Euphrasia felt he owed it to her father who used to be a powerful warrior of this kingdom.


    Sir Mateo Hunter, he was the bravest and strongest warrior of the Euphrasia n, also known to be the king¡¯s right-hand man. The human races had a fatal war with what they called ¡®the creatures of the night¡¯ and they had killed her father during thest battle, she wasn¡¯t even born by then but her mother told her stories about his heroic act and how he saved everyone from those beasts.


    However, there had been rumors spreading across the vige that the beast who killed her father wasn¡¯t actually dead but sealed.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-


    Do leavements! Interaction is key <3

 Chapter 4

    Chapter 4: The Forbidden Temple


    A maid finally brought the royal physician to Anna¡¯s chamber as requested by the princess earlier. Meanwhile the woundeddy just sat on her seat like an unmoved mannequin, staring nkly at the mirror before her.


    Her chocte brown eyes remained void of any emotion, she was no more than a dead soul in a living body.


    Annalise didn¡¯t turn or even bother to look at the direction of the door since she already knew who it was that walked in.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave now.¡± The maiden politely said to the old white-haired physician who nodded without a word. She immediately excused herself, feeling lessfortable staying under the room of a certain maid who wrecked with bad luck. She wondered why the princess cared so much about a lone girl like her.


    Even calling the royal physician to attend to her wounds? Goodness knows why the King chose to let her stay in the first ce.


    Keeping those thoughts to herself and closing the door after exiting the room, the old physician finally took a step towards the cked outdy who still hasn¡¯t shifted her gaze or moved from her position.


    The tears in her eyes kept swimming as she had no intention of letting them drop to her cheeks again. She was stronger than that and won¡¯t let herself cry into despair.


    .....


    ¡°Annalise, crying has never been the right way to solve the problem, which is exactly what you¡¯ve been doing.¡± The old physician neutrally spoke as he grabbed a chair from her bedside and sat beside her.


    ¡°How are you feeling?¡± He asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Her voice was faint, almost like a whisper as the lump in her throat seemed to have gotten bigger due to her state of trauma, ¡°paralyzed?¡±


    That was the only thing she felt actually, the pain on her body right now couldn¡¯t bepared to what she felt in her heart, she lost everything and it had been unbearable to the point she wished tomit suicide, but right now, she could barely feel it, almost like her body had gone numb all of a sudden.


    Was it a good sign or a bad sign?


    ¡°Let me see your wound?¡± The physician proceeded to do his work as he examined her knee which had changed color from its usual paleness to a blushy red. Whenever she gets injured, he was the only one who the princess would assign to check on her health and take care of her wounds.


    ¡°And who hurt you this time around?¡± He knew and treated Anna that much to know this wasn¡¯t the first time such incident has been uring, she had been wise enough to avoid most of the attacks but this particr one told him she must have had a really bad fall.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± She responded with a sigh while pinching the skin in between her brows, ¡°Whoever it was got away the moment I fell off.¡± She briefly exined as he continued to examine her red knee, she had hit that specific knee hard on the stairs and the pain was one she doubts even words could exin.


    ¡°You¡¯ve fractured it.¡± He pointed out.


    ¡°I expected it.¡±


    The old physician said nothing in response and brought out a small jar from his sack bag, opening the lid and revealing the green creamy substance inside of it.


    ¡°This will reduce the pain and help with the inmmation, I¡¯ll inform the king and the princess not to let you partake in any sort of work that might add pressure to your knee, at least for the meantime till the pain subsides.¡±


    Annalise chewed on the skin in her cheeks while nodding politely. The old physician has equally been nice to her ever since she came into the pce as well, he had been her physician right from her tender age and not only that, he equally helped her in uncovering a tiny secret which the mark possessed, the secret that she wasn¡¯t going to live long ording to the little history he found in a book, except, he hasn¡¯t told her which book he found it on.


    To simply put it, he was unwilling to share it with her, iming she was too young back then to hold such an important possession.


    ¡°How¡¯s your meteor mark?¡± The physician finally broke her from her reverie, noticing she had worn the Jewelry headband on her head again. He had been totally against her wearing the headband but it seems the stubborn girl has made up her mind.


    ¡°You know how much I detest that topic.¡± Anna¡¯s face scrunched into one of annoyance, seeing how at ease he was bringing such topics up, to be honest, she really isn¡¯t ready to speak about it now.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine to detest it, but that doesn¡¯t mean you should ignore the fact that it never happened. It¡¯s all fate.¡± He theoretically exined which only seemed to get on Anna¡¯s nerves.


    What did he say? Fate??


    ¡°Fate has never been faithful to me,¡± she poured it out as a bitter truth, ¡°I was born with a mark which ruined me, it killed my mother and painted me a culprit in the eyes of my own people.¡±


    ¡°That was fate taking its course.¡± His elderly tone remained calm and understanding, no matter how she tries to put it, it all ends with fate.


    ¡°Does its course also revolve around making my life a living hell? It¡¯s a good thing I¡¯m not destined to live long, at least I¡¯ll gain peace.¡±


    She blinked her tears away and covered her knee with the length of her dress.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, it¡¯ll get better.¡± She stubbornly said while the old physician just stared at her for a while, as though he was silently contemting on something in his head before speaking.


    ¡°Are you really desperate to have it removed?¡± He popped a question which Anna had asked herself a thousand times, she could only smile sadly. It was her one wish, to get rid of the meteor mark and be free from all the usations uringtely, except it has been nothing but wishful thinking.


    ¡°But it can¡¯t be removed, you said it yourself.¡± She replied in a tone that showed she had forgotten about it.


    ¡°What if I told you there¡¯s only one way to get rid of the meteor mark?¡± He whispered softly with an unusual, yet serious look in his eyes, causing Anna to blink in half disbelief as those words continuously sang in her head.


    ¡°There is??¡±


    He nodded but there was this look in his eyes which told her it¡¯s not going to be an easy task. Like he had thought really hard about it before bringing up the conversation with her.


    ¡°Tell me, what?¡± Anna immediately prompted with an expectant look in her eyes.


    If there was really a way she could get rid of the mark, she doesn¡¯t care about the obstacles she might face along the way and was fully willing to risk it.


    ¡°Tell me.¡±


    ¡°Ever heard of the forbidden temple?¡±

 Chapter 5

    Chapter 5: Somewhere Far From Euphrasia


    Deep in the woods outside the vicinity of the whole Euphrasia itself, also known to be called the dark wood due to the fact no light ever prates into that particr forest, lies an ancient, eroding ruins of stone structures scattered throughout the in, almost looking destroyed yet still standing tall due to it¡¯s hard thickened walls.


    One could frantically sense the incredible power emanating from that particr temple, the power that threatens to plunge the world into a terrible and inescapable dark void if whateverid inside is released to the world.


    Inside this great chaos known as the forbidden temple, an unconscious being was trapped inside a dark small cubicle known as the sealing chamber. His hands and legs were held by sharp triangr shackles which was meant to torture him till the rest of his eternity as trickles of blood escaped from them.


    His head fell forward in a small bow, causing his midnight ck hair to fall at his face, obstructing anyone from seeing the features of his visage.


    His back was stained with dried blood, he had marks, cuts and tears, both old and freshly new cuts in almost every part of his bare skin that would make one shiver at the horrifying sight! Showing just how much wounds have been inflicted on him after being sealed for more than a decade in this ce. He barely moved, one would even picture him dead if he was ever seen but he was a creature which was meant to never be seen by humans.


    A creature that had remained unmoved for more than a decade suddenly let his long darkshes, which must have grown tired resting on his cheeks, quiver slightly in an impulsive manner, his fingers equally twitching slowly as the being was starting to regain his consciousness once again.


    His body trembled slightly as his expression grew tight, his eyes flickering open only to reveal the sight of his angry crimson colored eyes which was visible between the strands of his hair.


    .....


    A low animalistic growl escaped from his perched lips as those numb hands of his forcefully balled into tight fist, his body trembled with insatiable anger like he wanted to kill anyone at sight. He was weak, thirsty, impatient, yet, was unable to do anything to escape the pain he was going through. Those fools knew his wound would end up healing at some point and hooked him to all these sharp objects that were bound to wound him constantly.


    As angry as he was, he dared not try to break free, knowing the amount of pain he would inflict on himself if he acted stubborn so he remained still, but the look in his crimson red eyes was enough to make a soul leave once body.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t fair!¡± He said through gritted teeth, staring at thepletely dark sealing room which seemed to be held by great magical energies, strong enough to deny him freedom from leaving this ce even if he, although impossible, manages to break from the extremely sharp chains.


    ¡°Such injustice!!¡± How dare such worthless scums lock him up here??!! He was being punished unjustly, this is a disgrace to his lineage and he wasn¡¯t going to stand for something as disgusting as this.


    He groaned painfully as the tears in his back tended to have opened up and that¡¯s when he felt something move with quick lightning speed past his direction, immediately catching his attention but it was aplete darkness, he couldn¡¯t see a thing talk more of the strange bizarre wind which blew past him but he knew there was something here.


    That was enough to make him realize exactly where he was and it made his eyes widen in utter disbelief, those humans had him locked in the sealing room, the most scariest ce of all the punishable chambers in the forbidden temple, he knew he wasn¡¯t alone and that exins the renewed wounds on his back, how could he forget? And it seems he just awoke the spirit that guards the sealing room.


    Before he got a chance to react, something sharp was pierced into his back, stinging him deeply as more blood escaped from his pierced back. It made him convulse as the piercing went deeper and before he realized it himself, he had cked out again.


    ~


    Back in the Euphrasia pce, King Olis was done having breakfast, alongside his beautiful daughter who neutrally instructed her maids to clear the wide rectangle table before them.


    Wiping the corner of his lips with a napkin, he turned his attention to Calista who was elegantly sipping her ss of juice.


    ¡°Callie dear, how¡¯s Anna doing?¡± He asked, the news about her fall only got to him this morning, and he had been very busy with political issues which made it impossible for him to check on her.


    ¡°I already called the royal physician to attend to her wounds, father, she¡¯ll be alright.¡± Calista smoothly informed her father who in return, gave a nod to her response.


    If her father studied her clearly, he would notice how hesitant his daughter looked concerning something, like she had something on her mind that she wanted to say but was unsure of how she¡¯d put it.


    Calista¡¯s bliss blue eyes slowly traveled back to her father who was preparing to get up to his feet when she finally found enough courage to speak up.


    ¡°Uhm.. Father, before you leave, I have a suggestion to make.¡± She ventured while meeting the half amused and quizzical gaze of her father who remained on his seat.


    ¡°What type of suggestion could that be?¡± He asked, finding it quite rare to have his daughter speak up about something like this. Calista had expected that look on his face but if she doesn¡¯t speak up now, goodness knows where she¡¯ll gather another courage from.


    ¡°We¡¯ve tried our best in catching whoever it is that puts Anna¡¯s life in danger but strangely, something always seems to be off.¡± She took a deep breath and continued further. ¡°It¡¯s not safe to have Anna here father, I see her more like a sister than a maid so for her safety I was thinking.... Maybe we should take Anna somewhere far from Euphrasia.¡±


    With a worried look shing before her bliss blue eyes, she added, ¡°Or maybe find Anna a prospective groom that¡¯ll take her away from Euphrasia and get her married to him.¡±

 Chapter 6

    Chapter 6: A Devil


    King Olis opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly paused before he could actually let the words he nned on saying slip out from his already parted lips. He couldn¡¯t resist contemting over his daughter¡¯s unexpected suggestion, based on the issue concerning Annately.


    He had chosen to bring Annalise into his kingdom after being notified that no one in Euphrasia was willing to adopt a child who bears an unknown mark.


    In addition, her father has done a lot for his kingdom and the only reason he agreed to keep Anna wasn¡¯t out of pity, but for the fact he owed that much to her father who remained loyal to the kingdom when he was still alive.


    Calista on the other hand, carefully observed her father¡¯s reaction without saying a word, knowing how he hates being disrupted most especially after bringing up a topic as fragile as this. So with that thought in mind, she patiently waited for his approval or even a nod of his head.


    Something to signify that he agrees with her. Afterall, they¡¯ll be doing this for Anna¡¯s well-being, if not more.


    Just as he was about to give his response, a royal guard hurriedly marched into the dining table, bowing before his highness who instantly averted his gaze from Calista and turned his attention to the guard who showed up out of the blue.


    It literally caused a little frown of disappointment to appear on Calista¡¯s face, knowing her father would give her no response to the suggestion she brought earlier due to the guards intervention. What does the guard want now??


    .....


    As annoyed as she was, it didn¡¯t stop her from noticing the grim look on the guard¡¯s face, a look he always seemed to carry when he had something serious or crucial to report to her father, thus ruining the whole conversation as well as changing the mood.


    ¡°Forgive me for the interruption my King,¡± the guard politely apologized while keeping his head bowed, ¡°but I have some important news to disclose to you, if his majesty permits.¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t it wait until after our discussion?¡± Calista lightly inquired, indirectly insinuating that she was having a conversation with her father before they got interrupted, but the guard shook his head in response, still keeping them in a low bow.


    ¡°Forgive me princess, but it¡¯s something that needs the king¡¯s urgent attention.¡±


    ¡°But...¡±


    ¡°Go ahead Bryan.¡± The king permitted in a prompting manner, causing Calista to give up due to the finality she sensed in her father¡¯s tone and drinking her juice with the same annoyed look lingering on her expression.


    The guard slowly raised his head at the king¡¯s permission but didn¡¯t dare to look him in the eyes.


    ¡°My king, something unfortunate has been happeningtely in Euphrasia..... and it seems the chaos is only starting to get even worse by the day¡± he informed, causing the King to knit his brow at the guard¡¯s quick rming tone.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Seven more people were killedst night, close to the river bank. It happened again.¡±


    He sadly broke the news, causing the king¡¯s eyes to unknowingly dte as the information became clearer to his ears, how is that possible??


    ¡°Seven people?¡±


    ¡°Yes my King, they seemed to be severely stabbed by something and some....¡± He paused midway, the dreading look in his eyes was enough for the king to guess just how horrifying the scene must have been.


    Immediately getting to his feet with a look of seriousness shing before his eyes, he announced, ¡°Inform the people to avoid stepping out of Euphrasia for the meantime, as for the dead bodies, I want to see it for myself.¡±


    ¡°Sure thing your highness.¡±


    With that, he walked out of the dining room with his second trustee following his trail. Calista¡¯s expression remained frozen, clearly taken aback as she pondered on the guards word. Her mouth suddenly felt bitter just thinking about the dead bodies. First it started with two, then three, then five and now six??


    The number of deaths uring in Euphrasia keeps increasing day by day, it got her really worried about what the mysterious deaths happening could actually signify. sping her palms together, she closed her eyes and said a prayer.


    ¡°Dear lord, please keep my family and the people of Euphrasia safe from the dangers ahead.¡±


    ~


    ¡°What¡¯s a forbidden temple?¡± Annalise curiously asked while watching the old physician who stood before her window, nkly gazing at the outside scenery of the pce.


    She¡¯s heard of the forbidden temple before but barely knows the history behind it or its name. People always ignored the topic and would shush the rest of the people who had enough courage to speak up. Even her mother refused to tell her what the forbidden temple was and what brought about the name.


    To be honest, Annalise metaphorically saw herself as the temple cause just like it, she was equally being avoided like some dangerous disease.


    ¡°The temples,¡± the old physician finally began, ¡°statues and walls were built long ago as defensive bulwarks in the eternal conflict between humanity and the beasts often referred to as the creature of night.¡± He shook his head with a pitiful gaze, a gaze which Anna barely understood. ¡°Although many people may have forgotten or chose to ignore the main purpose of thesendmarks, those who dwell in it have already sensed its terrifying power.¡±


    Annalise nodded slowly to his remark about the temple but still had one important question in mind, ¡°Then why is it forbidden?¡±


    ¡°The temple holds a secret, a forbidden secret that mustn¡¯t be let out to the world, some called him a beast, a vampire, some called him a demon and while some even called him.... A devil.¡±


    Annalise could feel the hairs on her back stand at the way the physician described this forbidden being. She finally understood why the temple was said to be Forbidden. So the temple is Forbidden because it holds someone within it?


    ¡°Who is it?¡± She pried further in full anticipation, ¡°who is this beast?¡±


    The physician looked at her, he was actually expecting to see fear in her eyes, just like the rest he was expecting to see her tremble but instead, this girl seems to be even more interested in figuring out everything.


    He wanted to say something when a knock on the door stopped him, cutting their conversation short as their gazes traveled to the door. Annalise found it pretty strange cause people from the pce barelye near her doorstep.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± She asked.


    ¡°Annalise, your presence is needed at the main hall, orders are from the King himself.¡± he informed, causing a little dread to settle in Anna¡¯s chest as the situation didn¡¯t seem right. Why would the King request her presence.


    ¡°My presence?¡±


    ¡°Make yourself avable and don¡¯t keep the king waiting.¡±

 Chapter 7

    Chapter 7: You Murderer!


    ¡°Why would the king request for my presence? And so urgently?¡± Annalise couldn¡¯t help but find the situation pretty strange, meeting the gaze of the physician who also looked rather confused and unsettled about everything.


    ¡°Don¡¯t keep him waiting,¡± the physician camly reminded while letting his hand out for her. ¡°Can you walk?¡±


    Anna immediately responded with a nod of her head. Well, she had rested the leg for a while and thanks to his unique medicines, it always reduces the amount of pain she feels. She might not be able to fully walk well with it but she can always limp with it.


    ¡°Yes yes, you¡¯re right, I really shouldn¡¯t keep his majesty waiting.¡± She epted the physician¡¯s proffered hand and cautiously got up to her feet, shing the half-worried physician a smile that meant she was alright.


    ¡°I have to go now, thank you for your help...and we¡¯ll talk more about this forbidden being another day.¡±


    She bowed in appreciation, causing a little smile to tug at the corner of his lips as he watched her limp her way to the door. The moment she was out of sight, his smile slowly faded like it had been blown away by the soft breeze which suddenly filled her room.


    The king knew she was injured and still insists on calling her presence, as much as he tried to avoid it, he couldn¡¯t deflect the unsettled feeling crawling up to his chest and could only hope Anna was alright.


    .....


    Making her way to the spacious and elegantly designed main hall, Annalise could sight the King and princess Calista sitting on their thrones while awaiting her presence, but what she wasn¡¯t expecting was to find the main hall crowded with the crying people of Euphrasia.


    The mournful sight of her people had left her speechless for a split second, but once the people of Euphrasia took notice of her presence, their expression changed into one of hostility and startedying curses on the clueless neen-year-old girl.


    ¡°You murderer!¡± They yelled painfully.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been caught up with your evil deeds today!¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s the cursed girl!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re such a wicked soul!¡± And more curses were thrown at her, leaving Anna to stare in confusion and puzzlement at the same time. She had gotten used to their curses to let it break her heart but calling her a murderer, who did she kill???


    ¡°Silence!¡± The king¡¯s deep voice rang out orderly in the main hall which expressed his power and authority, immediately silencing his people who wouldn¡¯t stop making a ruckus and the hall became quiet again.


    Anna, who felt grateful for the king¡¯s intervention continued to limp her way forward and stopping before the altar, she was obviously confused and due to her sensitive ears, she could still hear some of the crowds wishing her bad luck, yet chose to ignore it since it was a normal thing.


    ¡°G_greetings my king.¡± She bowed politely despite having an injured knee, she had to deal with the pain and keep her head bowed since she wasn¡¯t allowed to look the King in the eye, afterall, she was nothing but amon maid.


    ¡°You can rise.¡± He permitted Anna to raise her head up but when she stole a quick nce at Calista, wanting to get a hint of what the situation was, even Calista looked broken down and that left her even more perplexed, what happened??


    ¡°Are you aware of the reason why I sent for you?¡± The king asked with a serious gaze, causing Anna to shake her head in all honesty.


    ¡°No my King, I¡¯m aware of nothing.¡±


    She kept her gaze low while feeling her heart drum heavily in her chest, as clueless as she was, she couldn¡¯t dissipate the feeling in her chest that she was in trouble. Due to the spiteful gaze of the maids, guards and people of Euphrasia, it felt like they wanted to set her on fire with just their gazes alone. Except for Calista who only had a look of pity in her crystal blue eyes..


    But what for??


    ¡°Six people were murdered mercilessly, close to the river bankst night, are you aware?¡± The king questioned while keeping his study gaze locked on the clueless Annalise whose eyes unknowingly dted at the news.


    Six people???


    ¡°No my King, I wasn¡¯t!¡± She truthfully responded, the shock obvious in her gaze but her response seemed to irk the King¡¯s second trusty guard whose name was Arlow.


    ¡°Lying before the presence of the King? How shameless can you be??¡± He spatted in fury, causing Annalise to return her gaze back to the King, looking directly at him out of impulse.


    ¡°How can I lie about something as heartbreaking as this? How could I have known such??¡±


    ¡°Cause you¡¯re the one who killed them!¡± Sir Arlow responded yet again with utmost fury. The crowd, to Anna¡¯s teary gaze, supported his statement with a nod and that only gave him more courage to speak up, ¡°you killed themst night you murderer!¡±


    ¡°Silence Arlow.¡± King Olis finally spoke up, shutting his trusty guard up who immediately bowed his head in guilt.


    ¡°Forgive me your majesty, I was out of control.¡± He immediately exined but the King had his gaze on Annalise. The cluelessness in her eyes really confused him but yet again, he couldn¡¯t tell if she was just acting it out or if they were really genuine as they came out to be.


    ¡°Annalise.¡± The King began, his voice audible to the crowd as they seemed to be soaked in silence. ¡°Last night, six of our people were murdered close to the river bank, the devastating news reached the pce as early as dawn and being there to witness the crime myself, a certain man was still alive but it was only for a few minutes....¡± His gaze suddenly turned pitiful, his expression showed he was greatly saddened by what he witnessed but found the strength to continue.


    ¡°...during those few minutes, he mentioned your name Anna.¡±


    ¡°My name???¡± Her eyes widened in shock after hearing the king¡¯s words, shaking her head in confusion.


    ¡°Father...¡±


    ¡°This is a serious matter Callie, do not interfere!¡± Her father warned before she got a chance to speak, causing Calista to keep quiet after sensing the finality in her father¡¯s tone.


    She feared him more when he was this angry.


    ¡°Did you or did you not murder those peoplest night?¡± He asked, yes he did Anna a favor by letting her live in his pce and repaying her father¡¯s favor, but that doesn¡¯t mean he would ignore the rules of his ownnd, be it his most trusted warrior¡¯s daughter.


    Annalise fell to her knees, finding every matter of this usation to bepletely false.


    ¡°I swear on my life your majesty, I have no hands in the death of those people.¡± She voiced out while holding herself not to tremble in despair, it was more like the people of Euphrasia were mocking her with their silence.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to swear on your life, you¡¯ll be dead anyways!¡± Sir Arlow wickedly pointed out, his eyes filled with disdain for the girl who was on her knees. He¡¯s hated her right from the very day she was brought to the pce, the hate only heightened after figuring out she was Sir Mateo¡¯s daughter.


    ¡°But father, how could she have done it?¡± Calista equally voiced out, ¡°she was injuredst night, you can see the wound yourself, so how could she have done something like that??¡± Calista refuses to believe Anna was capable of doing something as unimaginable as even killing?


    She was older than Anna by just a year, that made her eight years old while Anna was seven and Anna has been her maid right from childhood, they spent quality times together so she knows her too well to believe such usation.


    ¡°You¡¯re too naive my princess, she¡¯s only ying smart.¡± Sir Arlow also spoke out, ¡°She must have done it and faked an ident to hide her crimes, she deserves to die formitting such an atrocity!¡±

 Chapter 8

    Chapter 8: Another Act


    Annalise could barely believe the words of sir Arlow as her eyes blinked at him in disbelief, his words coarsing through her brain like a sharp knife been pierced into her skull. Faked her injury?? How could she possibly fake something that was so obvious to the eyes of everyone?


    ¡°Pardon me but I don¡¯t understand that statement.¡± Annalise spoke up with a look of seriousness glistening in her eyes, despite feeling so helpless in this unwarranted situation.


    She is innocent of this usation Sir Arlow is obviously trying to frame her for and she won¡¯t stand for something she knows not.


    ¡°Show your true disgusting self Annalise, you¡¯ve brought shame to the name of your father, and he was such a good man, the king¡¯s most trusted warrior in the whole of Euphrasia.¡± Sir Arlow faked empathy while saying a silent prayer, like the death of her father really touched him which Anna knew was nothing but a pretense to everyone present in the hall.


    Annalise returned her gaze to the king who hasn¡¯t uttered a word but silently watched the scene before him like a hawk. It made her wonder what his mindset would be concerning all of this. He wasn¡¯t someone who¡¯d believe words without any sort of proof.


    ¡°I¡¯m speaking the truth, I murdered no one. What reason would I have to take the life of my own people?¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious?¡± Sir Arlow butted in once again with his arms folded behind his back, ¡°the people of Euphrasia does not wish to mingle with an outcast, you might have nned your revenge and decided to cause an onught at the middle of the night.¡± He pointed out, turning to look at the King who was hearing from both sides.


    .....


    ¡°Your majesty, you heard the already dead man yourself, he mentioned her name right before he kicked the bucket, why would a dying man lie about such? I don¡¯t think we should waste any more time on this.¡±


    The people of Euphrasia nodded in agreement while uneven whispers flowed through the crowd. To Annalise gaze only, the man dared to sh a sinister smirk her way which caused her hands to ball into a tight fist, furiously digging her nails into her palm till it made her bleed.


    She was fully aware of his hatred towards her and her father cause he always made it obvious to no one else but her.


    She said nothing concerning his hatred towards the both of them but she was starting to regret never speaking up cause here he was, having the greater advantage and being the king¡¯s second trusty men, she was nothingpared to his rank in the royal home.


    ¡°But father...¡±


    ¡°Do not speak Callie.¡± Her father silenced her yet again, causing a little bit of dread to prate into Anna¡¯s heart. Sir Arlow is very cunning with his words and now he¡¯s using it to brainwash his majesty. Who knows how many more victims hadnded in the hands of such a sly being.


    And yet they call others the beast when they¡¯re actually the real beasts!


    ¡°Or rather, she should defend herself and exin in details exactly where she wasing fromst night that led to her fall.¡± Sir Arlow secretly hinted to the King like he was trying to imply something.


    King Olis expression changed slightly as he recalled a little information from his men. The death of those people ured an hour before Annalise had her fall at the stairs_ which coincidentally leads to the entrance of the pce and that made King Olis crack his brain at the puzzles. It couldn¡¯t be that she was sneaking back into the pce.... could it??


    ¡°Annalise.¡± The king called, gaining her attention as she kept her head bowed once again while remaining on her knees.


    ¡°What really happenedst night?¡± He questioned, watching her carefully in case he noticed any hesitation in her movement but she remained where she was, her nails digging into her palm like she really wanted to hurt herself.


    Her head was spinning from all the words and constant usations that it made her dizzy, yet she found enough courage to speak.


    ¡°I exined what happened,¡± her voice came out soft and polite, ¡°I heard footsteps your majesty, so I stepped out to survey and ended up being pushed.¡±


    ¡°But why were you the only one who heard the footsteps? There were guards strictly assigned to patrol the castle every night, yet they imed to have seen no one or heard anything, how do you exin that?¡±


    Annalise remained quiet as she shook her dizziness away, finding his statement to be strangely true while the people who had gathered nodded in agreement to Sir Arlow¡¯s words once again, why was she the only one who heard the footsteps and no one else?


    ¡°Besides, the stairs were pretty long and yet you survived, anyone would have died after falling from such a long stairway but just like the crash you had in the ship, you survived.¡± He uttered cryptically which caused Anna to pause for a while.


    She was innocent of this usation, true, but the stairs were pretty long, although she didn¡¯t roll all the way to the end of the stairs cause a guard had showed up at the nick of time to stop the fall, she already assumed it was never going toe to an end. How did she survive her death yet again??


    ¡°See that your majesty? She¡¯s ran out of lies to hide her nefarious act!¡±


    As much as Annalise wished to defend herself, she was trapped in the words of this evil man! No matter what she says, he always manages to twist her words and in such a perfect way that she was starting to think that maybe.....


    Was this actually nned??


    Her vision was starting to be blurry as she stared at the floor, it didn¡¯t look vivid, she could barely see her palm clearly and her dizziness became extra worse. Was it happening again??


    ¡°Your majesty...¡± She wanted to speak, to fight for her justice but this unexpected dizziness was making things difficult for her. Her throat became dry and bitter which made her cough in reaction.


    ¡°Is this another act? To escape your death punishment after being exposed?¡± Sir Arlow added after sensing something was wrong with her behavior but she could barely respond.


    sping her hand over her head to stop the uneasiness she felt, she ended up cking out in front of the crowd when her breath hitched. Her eyes closed shut as she sprawled to the ground.


    ¡°Anna!¡±

 Chapter 9

    Chapter 9: The Execution I


    ¡°This is unfairly wrong to Anna father, it¡¯s undeserving!¡± Calista sadlyined after everyone had exited the gathering, leaving her to stand before her father in the royal hall.


    The fact her father had openly dered for Anna to be executed by Dawn tomorrow really made her restless as she nervously toyed with her fingers. Such punishment shouldn¡¯t be served to a youngdy who is finally starting toe out of her shell.


    Despite knowing her father¡¯s second most trusted general in Euphrasia, Calista couldn¡¯t bring herself to ept the fact that Anna would stoop so low as to kill her own people.


    She instantly shook her head in skepticism. No, Sir Arlow has to be wrong in this one, she¡¯s known Anna since they were kids and the Anna she knows would never take the life of another.


    ¡°I wish mother was around at this chaotic moment in time,¡± Calista muttered before letting out a disappointed sigh, ¡°when she returns from her pilgrimage she won¡¯t be happy with the decision you chose to make father.¡±


    She continuously spoke with the worry etching to her tone while her father, King Olis stood up from his royal seat and made his way down to the altar. His expression was one Calista found difficult to falter with as he equally went over everything that happened just a few minutes ago, it still felt like a dream which he found nearly impossible to wake up from.


    ¡°I am not happy with the decision I chose to make Callie.¡± He breathed, ¡°and if your mother was really here, she¡¯d understand how helpless I was, you witnessed it yourself.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Then withhold her punishment,¡± Calista hopefully suggested while reaching towards her father, ¡°investigate the issue further, she doesn¡¯t have to be executed for something she didn¡¯t do.¡±


    As much as all the evidence and witnesses points to Anna being the killer, she has a strong feeling that whatever happenedst night was actually connected to Annalise, but it was perfectly set to frame her.


    What she couldn¡¯t figure out was who did it? That made her brows knit into puzzlement as she went over the thousand suggestions in her head. Could it possibly be the unknown person who pushed Anna from the stairs??


    Meanwhile her father, hearing his daughter strongly defend Annalise made him turn his head her way, which made Calista lower her gaze while holding her tongue like a little girl who got scolded with just the look in his eyes. She wanted to prove Anna¡¯s innocence but at the same time, couldn¡¯t risk angering her father over the issue as well.


    ¡°I am not happy, but that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯ll break the rules of Euphrasia for the sake of her safety. ording to the witnesses and thest word of the dead people, it clearly proves Anna¡¯s guilt for the crimemitted.¡±


    ¡°But it could have been anyone, it could have been me, would you execute me otherwise?¡± She questioned, knowing her father would actually investigate the matter properly if she happened to fall victimst night.


    King Olis on the other hand was rendered speechless by his daughter¡¯s sudden questioning, she was his daughter, so of course he¡¯d do a better investigation cause it¡¯ll bring shame to his kingdom. His expression softened a bit as he gave Calista a gentle pat on her shoulder.


    ¡°I¡¯m not only a father but a king, Callie, I have to set an example for the kingdom and can¡¯t choose favor over the well being of my people.¡±


    ¡°But father.... Anna couldn¡¯t..¡±


    ¡°I understand your point, but if truly, Anna isn¡¯t guilty of this crime, she¡¯ll survive.¡± He assured her, which of course Calista wasn¡¯t ready to buy.


    ¡°How?? She¡¯s meant to be executed tomorrow!¡±


    Calista still wasn¡¯t willing to agree but before she got a chance to protest or remind him properly of his own words, her father walked out of the hall, leaving Calista to her own frustration as she paced back and forth in the quiet hall.


    Anna has only a day to prove herself innocent or else she¡¯d be executed by hanging tomorrow. Biting at her nails, Calista chooses to find a way out for Anna before it reaches Dawn.


    ~


    Inside the kingdom of Euphrasia, the rest of the day hastily went by with the pce drowning in an ufortable silence. Sir Arlow had specifically taken the job of getting everything ready for Anna¡¯s execution tomorrow.


    Clearly, everyone was affected either positively or negatively with the punishment given to Annalise.


    Deep In the barely lit dungeon below the castle walls. Annalise was sitting quietly in one of the cells while resting her back against the wall, staring into space while hugging her knees to her chest, gloomily resting her chin on it.


    The rows of candles along the entrance of the dungeon were their only source of light, casting a shadowy figure of Anna on the wall, opposite where she sat.


    She had passed out earlier in front of everyone and was still dealing with the strange dizziness even after waking up, but chose to keep herself together and fight through it.


    Those disturbing nightmares had awoken her from her uneasy slumbers but she soon realized she was in the dungeon, they had her locked in the dungeon like an actual prisoner, for a crime she knew nothing of. But now she¡¯s meant to be executed tomorrow morning.


    A quick shiver ran down her spine but it was due to how cold the dungeon was, it¡¯s her first time actuallying to one or rather, being locked in one and it was freezing cold.


    Her stomach ached due to the fact she hadn¡¯t eaten anything all day and her throat still remained dry fromck of water. She was extremely thirsty but knew if she asked for water, those guards would rudely ignore her.


    Just thinking about her predicament and the unexpected turn of events made unstoppable tears roll from the brim of her eyes, down to her cheek and chin. Her heart ached like someone who had been stabbed with a thousand arrows to the point it left her suffocated. She could barely do anything to ease herself of the pain as her own people chose to never support her.


    The floor was cold, including the walls and there was not a tiny piece of warmth found in the underground dungeon. So this is how it feels like to be locked in one, tortured slowly in the freezing cold, with no food, water or anything till you eventually beg for death itself.


    It didn¡¯t bother her that she was going to die, but what hurt her most was the fact she was going to die for a crime she knew nothing about.


    Silently crying over her despair, the sudden footsteps approaching the direction of her cell made her wipe her tears immediately. She might be heartbroken and weak, but she won¡¯t let anyone else see the pain in her eyes.


    Adjusting herself properly in a morefortable position, the owner of those footsteps finally stepped out of the shadows and came into view.


    The seriousness in Anna¡¯s eyes slowly faded after realizing the person was no one else but Calista. To be honest, she was more than stunned.


    ¡°Ca_calista?¡± Those were the first words that escaped from her dried lips after regaining consciousness. Calista¡¯s worried blue eyes slowly raked over her.


    Despite being thin already she felt Annalise had gone even thinner, her skin looked a lot paler than usual and her dress was all messed up from the dirts on the floor, yet, her eyes looked different in contrast to her situation.


    ¡°Annalise.¡± Calista reached for the irons of the cell, causing Anna to crawl over as well while holding onto the irons.


    ¡°My princess, you shouldn¡¯t be here, it¡¯s cold and not suitable for you to be in.¡± Annalise reprimanded softly but Calista shoved it away.


    ¡°And you think you¡¯re the one suitable to be in a cell that¡¯s meant for criminals? I won¡¯t allow it.¡± She shook her head while trying her best not to get angry, she felt like breaking the irons herself but shook the thought away, knowing she wasn¡¯t strong enough to do something like that even if she tried.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, you don¡¯t have to worry about me, I guess this is just my fate.¡±


    ¡°This isn¡¯t your fate.¡± Calista corrected while wiping the tears which Anna didn¡¯t know was starting to crawl down her cheeks.


    ¡°Fate doesn¡¯t decide for us, we¡¯re the ones who decide how we want our fate to be and how we choose to run it.¡±


    ¡°But...¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry, earlier this morning, I sent a letter to Adryan, and informed him what¡¯s been going on.¡± Calista secretly disclosed information, causing Annalise to look her way in disbelief.


    ¡°Adryan??¡±


    Calista nodded with a smile forming at her lips, ¡°he said he¡¯d be here as early as he can and in the meantime, I¡¯ll try to slow down the execution before he arrives, he might be our only chance of stopping this execution.¡±

 Chapter 10

    Chapter 10: The Execution II


    A ray of hope suddenly glistened in the eyes of Annalise as her thoughts wandered on Adryan. Ah yes! Adryan! The thought of Adryan shocked her a bit too quickly, how could she possibly have skipped someone special from her mind??


    In spite of feeling a little guilty about forgetting someone as important as the prince of Euphrasia, it didn¡¯t stop a slow revealing smile from tugging at the corner of her lips as she met Calista¡¯s gaze with an expectant one.


    ¡°Did he.....did he say he¡¯sing for me?¡± She asked in a rather shy tone, causing a relieved smile to form on Calista¡¯s lips as she happily nodded, holding onto Anna¡¯s cold hands as a tear glistened in her big brown eyes.


    She knew mentioning her brother¡¯s name would be enough to lighten the mood of Annalise, it always worked!


    ¡°Yes, he¡¯sing so you don¡¯t have to feel bad about anything, I have a lot of faith in my brother and I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be able to convince father to withdraw the execution.¡±


    She reassured in a convincing tone, which made Anna¡¯s heart flutter in response as she looked away. King Olis had a son and he was the closest to Annalise, he helped her escape from most situations in the pce and always stood up for her, but he left the kingdom three years ago due to some important events his father wanted him to handle in the neighboring kingdom.


    Adryan always showed more affection towards her and gifted her with stuff, it made her grow extremely cautious of him back then so she always refused his gifts, that was until he confessed his feelings for her. Although she never epted his request, Adryan would force her to secretly meet him in the garden and being the prince of Euphrasia, she couldn¡¯t refuse and they would always end up spending quality time together.


    .....


    He even promised her marriage once he returned from the quest assigned to him by his father.


    No one else knew about this except for Calista. Since she hasn¡¯t epted his request yet, they decided to let it remain hidden and agreed to wait for the right time before disclosing it to the King.


    ¡°I told you, all hope isn¡¯t lost.¡± Calista assured her once again while Anna tried to keep her smile intact.


    Yes, she liked Adryan but despite being with him, she couldn¡¯t get rid of the void which told her something was missing. She assumed it was due to his absence but strangely, that empty void in her heart has been there since she was a child, like there was something missing, except she couldn¡¯t figure out what.


    ¡°Now stop worrying,¡± Calista¡¯s voice immediately pulled Anna from her strain of thoughts, ¡°you¡¯ve grown so thin and I¡¯m sure you wouldn¡¯t want my brother to meet you in such a state.¡± She half teased, wanting to cheer up the dark atmosphere in the dungeon and once again, a smile returned to Anna¡¯s lips.


    ¡°You¡¯re right.¡±


    With a p of her hands, two maidens made their way into the chamber, holding a tray of fresh fruits along with some poached eggs and avocado.


    Calista ordered one of the guards to open the cell door, which he obediently did while the maids proceeded to drop the food inside.


    ¡°Make sure to eat them, you need to regain your strength okay?¡±


    Annalise stared at the delicious meal presented before her, the sweet aroma made its way into her nostril, tempting her to eat it right here and now but instead, she sped her hands together while looking at the princess with a grateful gaze.


    ¡°I owe you my life for the kindness you have shown me, I¡¯ll never forget it.¡±


    She wholeheartedly showed her appreciation, causing Calista to shook her head with a look of disapproval, ¡°you¡¯re like a sister to me, so there¡¯s no need to thank me for it, you¡¯ve equally been very helpful to me while growing up and I won¡¯t forget that either, if you really want to show some appreciation, make sure to eat everything on this te okay?¡±


    Anna nodded politely with a smile.


    ¡°Sadly, I¡¯ll have to leave now, I¡¯lle by tomorrow along with the physician. Goodnight.¡±


    ¡°Goodnight princess.¡±


    Calista walked out after that along with her maids while Anna smiled relentlessly and shifted her happy gaze to her meal.


    ~


    The night was unbearably slow, most especially for Anna who was scared of going back to sleep but once it hit Dawn, Annalise was already out of the dungeon, standing before the King in the royal hall who surprisingly called for her attention.


    ¡°Greetings your majesty.¡± She bowed politely, giving her respect to the King who tried not to show any emotions due to the situation at hand and spoke up.


    ¡°Annalise, your execution is almost near, I called for you in case you have anyst wish that you have in mind to fulfill.¡±


    Annalise raised her head up a bit before enunciating clearly, ¡°I appreciate your kindness, his majesty is indeed kind although yes, I do have one wish to fulfill if truly, you don¡¯t mind at all.¡±


    ¡°As long as it is something within my limit, then speak.¡±


    ¡°I wish to visit my parents¡¯ tablet.¡± She announced softly, meeting the gaze of the King who was rather amused by her request. He hadn¡¯t even expected that but yet again, wasn¡¯tpletely surprised.


    ¡°Your parents tablet?¡±


    She nodded, ¡°yes, I¡¯d like to see it one more time before facing the death which awaits me.¡±


    There was no fear or guilt in her voice as she spoke, rather he found it difficult to sense her emotion and it confused him greatly.


    ¡°Anna...¡±


    ¡°Hold on.¡± The deep voice which resonated behind her made Anna¡¯s eyes pop out slightly as the voice sounded familiar. Not just familiar, but too familiar.


    She swirled around, turning to look at the person who had that voice and to her surprise, someone stood at the entrance way, hiding himself under the shadows, dressed in a warrior outfit while folding his hand behind his back. His neutral gaze locked on Annalise.


    ¡°I¡¯ll escort thedy to go see her family¡¯s tablet.¡±

 Chapter 11

    Chapter 11: The Execution III


    *I really appreciate the s I¡¯ve gotten so far ?? thank you and please do leave ament :3*


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-


    Annalise found that to only be a tale of her imagination because when she turned around, sir Arlow was the one who stood at the entrance way with his arm folded behind his back, erasing the smile which was starting to form on her lips and causing her fist to clench in fury.


    Could she hate this man more than she already did?


    Meeting her gaze, a silent scoff escaped from sir Arlow¡¯s lips as he proudly made his way to stand before the altar, bowing his head before the King to show hisplete loyalty.


    ¡°Your majesty, only an hour left before her execution is carried out, she must be looking for opportunities to escape and it wouldn¡¯t be wise to let her fulfill a certain wish, afterall she¡¯d meet them in the afterlife.¡±


    ¡°You monster!¡± Those words finally escaped from Anna¡¯s mouth as she walked up to sir Arlow, finding his tone to be very disrespectful and cynical, most especially when he¡¯s indirectly mentioning her parents and bringing them up in a conversation which certainly has nothing to do with him.


    .....


    ¡°You¡¯re nothing more than an evil man! Stop pretending like you actually consider caring for my parents when we know it¡¯s nothing but a basic lie!¡± The anger fumed in her big brown eyes that it got the guards rmed, making them point their weapons directly at her in case she tries something in defiance to her words.


    Seeing the weapons which were pointed right at her, the fear which normally overwhelmed her heart was no longer there, almost like her days of sulking had erased that fear and faded away like smoke. Her fiery gaze remained locked on sir Arlow who finally met her gaze with a sigh.


    ¡°You dare speak maiden!?¡±


    ¡°Everyone has the right to voice out their opinion, either a maid or general and mine isn¡¯t different.¡± She shot back, surprising sir Arlow who never expected her to speak up with such atrocity, but that look was immediately masked with a glimpse of anger which only Anna was able to notice.


    ¡°I have nothing to say to a murderer.¡±


    ¡°But I have something to say to you.¡± She stood her ground, stealing a nce at the King who was rather amused by the scene being disyed before him. Annalise had always been respectful, even before the King but right now, she wasn¡¯t going to bother about what anyone thinks of her, if she¡¯s seen as a viin, then so be it.


    ¡°You imed I¡¯m the murderer of those people, you ced every word correctly and leaving me trapped, but you weren¡¯t even there when the murder took ce, you knew everything, does that equally mean you¡¯ve been monitoring my movements in the pce?¡± She questioned, causing a glint of fury to sh past his eyes but he said nothing in response, which satisfied Anna to some extent.


    ¡°Okay let¡¯s assume I¡¯m the killer,¡± she suggested with folded arms, looking optimistic like she was actually thinking about something but what everyone didn¡¯t expect at all was for her to snatch the sword of a certain guard, pushing him down to the floor by skillfully giving him a kick in the abs and pointing the tip of the sword at sir Arlow¡¯s face.


    ¡°Then I might as well kill you right here! At least then your usations will be proven right.¡± Clearly she had been ovees by the anger which sir Arlow had manage to stir inside of her but he was back to being the pretentious being that he was, faking himself as the victim in all of this while Anna really moved with the intent to kill him but was stopped halfway by the king¡¯s orders.


    ¡°Annalise! What has gotten into you!¡± The king uttered in disbelief by her uneptable actions and Anna had expected it, sir Arlow was one of the king¡¯s trusted warrior, and here she was pointing a sword at his face, shemitted another crime and right in front of the King, this was what sir Arlow wanted and she gave it to him.


    ¡°What did I tell you, your majesty, she¡¯s a maniac! A slow poison that threatens to rip the kingdom of its peace. She shouldn¡¯t be let into the streets of Euphrasia, who knows she might cause another bloodshed.¡±


    ¡°Not until I kill you first!¡±


    ¡°Anna!¡±


    Once again, Annalise came to a sudden halt due to the king¡¯s tone. She really wanted to kill this man who was standing and using her wrongly for something she never did and her anger took over her will to thinkpletely.


    ¡°I thought of fulfilling yourst wish since I owe you that much for being faithfully helpful to my daughter but you present me with this side of you?¡±


    Clearly, the king was offended by her actions as more guards surrounded Annalise, seizing the sword from her grip and handcuffing her hands with the chain. She barely resisted and let them do as they pleased, she had epted this fate already but that doesn¡¯t mean she was ready to die over something she was clueless about.


    ¡°Take her back to the dungeons and keep her under surveince until it¡¯s time for the execution.¡± The king strongly dered his order but Anna¡¯s gaze never shifted from sir Arlow who secretly dashed a triumphant smile along her direction.


    ¡°You risked your chance of surviving to a very low percentage, what will you do now?¡± He mouthed but a bitter smile formed at the corner of Anna¡¯s lips which stunned sir Arlow.


    He wanted to see her suffer, he wanted to see the pain in her eyes but instead she was smiling at him, the pain he wanted to see in her eyes wasn¡¯t there at all. Instead they held a silent promise which didn¡¯t fit properly to his system.


    ¡°My chances of surviving and your chances of dying, we¡¯ll see who has the low percentage at the end of this war.¡±


    With that, the guards took her away, sending her back to the cold dungeon while sir Arlow pondered on herst words. He shook her thoughts away, finding her statement rather impossible to believe. She¡¯s a fool and his wish of finally getting rid of her after so many failed attempts throughout the years will finallye true today.


    ~


    Annalise quietly remained in her cell while peeling at the skin in her fingers, staring at the wall opposite her but in reality, she was staring at nothing at all. Her expression was one who felt she deserved justice from all these usations being ced on her head like a bunch of firewood.


    Ever since she was little, she has been used of so many things. Even when the kingdom of Euphrasia was facing a serious drought due tock of water, she got med as the people imed it was her mark that caused the droughts to strike Euphrasia so heavily.


    All her life she has been used of so many things that it made her wonder if there was anyone out there who was suffering just as much as she was. If there was someone who¡¯d understand her pain and see her for who she really was?


    Was there really someone out there who¡¯d ept her despite bearing a mark she barely understands??


    As the questions came, so were the negative answers that followed it as she shook her head with a sad smile. She doubts there was and her expression immediately looked saddened, she¡¯d be dead anyways so what¡¯s the use of thinking if there was really someone like that out there.


    While rampaging on her thoughts, the shadowy figure of someone standing before her cell caught her attention as she studied it while tilting her head to the side.


    It made her look up when she figured out it wasn¡¯t her imagination and to her surprise, it was the physician, he stood before her cell while ncing back and forth in case someone saw him.


    ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± Annalise couldn¡¯t hide her exmation as she finally realized it was actually the old physician but he looked rather rmed about something and kept his expression serious.


    ¡°No time to exin, you have to leave Euphrasia now before the guards get here.¡±


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 12

    Chapter 12: The Escape


    Annalise¡¯s eyes unknowingly dted after hearing his quick and abrupt suggestion, while his gaze remained fixated on the path he suspects the guard would use to make an entrance.


    Run away? How can she?


    She abruptly got to her feet, looking into the eyes of the physician like she could actually read them, curiously wondering if he was being serious right now and to her shock, he was, making a quick gasp escape from her lips.


    ¡°Run away? What about Adryan and the princess?¡± She seriously whispered while holding onto the irons, Adryan hadn¡¯t returned yet and it was already dawn. Plus, how can she run without informing the princess about it?


    ¡°No time to think about all of that, within a minute those guards would heavily barge in and take you away for the execution,e with me before it¡¯s toote.¡±


    He let his hand out for her, prompting the reluctant Annalise to take them before the guards arrive but to his surprise, she shook her head in refusal while looking away with a stubborn expression.


    ¡°I can¡¯t do that, Euphrasia is my home, just cause I¡¯m guiltily med for something I have no conspiracy of doesn¡¯t mean I have to run away. It would be a disappointment to the princess and Adryan, what if she thinks I don¡¯t trust their judgements?¡± She finally turned around to look at him, hoping he understood her point. Even if she ns on running away, she can¡¯t do it without informing the princess at least.


    .....


    The old physician could only shake his head silently, implying he doesn¡¯t understand. He knew Anna would always be stubborn headed and difficult to convince so he is obviously left with no choice here.¡±


    ¡°Everytime Anna, I have to force you into making the right decision.¡± He sighed and turned his gaze to the youngdy who folded her arms, her gaze looked final, which clearly said she wasn¡¯t going anywhere.


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s time then.¡± He cryptically uttered, causing Annalise to release her folded arm in defiance to his words.


    ¡°Time?¡± Time for what exactly?


    Before she got a chance to ask that question, he ced his hand on her shoulder and before Anna realized exactly what just took ce, a white light enveloped the both of them, it¡¯s powerful light immediately epassed the both of them and right before Anna¡¯s eyes, they were standing right outside the kingdom of Euphrasia when the lights slowly died down.


    ¡°Huh?¡± She impulsively pulled back from the physician while blinking at him in disbelief, the cool morning air hit her skin, causing her to shiver a bit as the natural scent of nature made its way to her nostril.


    The sun was slowly making its way out, leaving the sky in a light blue shade while the day looked hazy with dewdrops lingering over flowers.


    She¡¯s really outside the kingdom of Euphrasia!


    ¡°You...¡±


    ¡°Shhhh.¡± He silenced her up immediately and at that spur of a moment, Calista hurried towards them while holding unto the rope of the horse. Silently hurrying towards them and was rather surprised to find Anna and the physician outside, how did he get here so fast?


    ¡°Well that was quick.¡± She uttered, finding it surprising that the old physician was able to get Anna out of the dungeon, and so quickly too, something she couldn¡¯t possibly do herself.


    ¡°P_princess??¡± Anna found the situation to be very confusing, first she was in the dungeon, and now she¡¯s outside, then Calista is equally here and with a ck horse too, what¡¯s going on?


    Calista saw the neverending questions in her eyes, she knew Anna would have so many questions to ask considering what just happened but sadly, she doesn¡¯t have enough time to exin it to her and instead, proceeded to the reason why they¡¯re actually out here.


    ¡°Anna, you have to leave Euphrasia right now, you have to run!¡± Calista immediately handed her the horse, which Anna was hesitant to take. So the princess already knew??


    ¡°But...but what about Adryan?¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t wait for him.¡± Calista exined, ¡°he¡¯s meant to be here already but I don¡¯t know what¡¯s taking his time. Like they say, desperate time calls for desperate measures, you have to leave.¡±


    Seeing her hands which nervously held unto her dress, Calista grabbed it and gave her the rope of the horse to hold.


    ¡°Princess_¡±


    ¡°The guards must have been notified by now that you¡¯re missing, you have to leave now! Come on, get on the horse.¡±


    Calista moved Anna towards the side of the horse, urging her to get on it while Anna exchanged nces between the old physician and Calista. To be honest, she waspletely speechless by all of this and barely knew the words to say.


    Her heart thumped incredulously as she was about to make a decision she never even thought of. Should she be appreciative? Should she express her thanks and tell them how grateful she really is???


    ¡°I¡¯ll miss you guys.¡± Those were the words which escaped her lips as the same uncontroble tears sadly rolled down to her cheeks. She found those words suitable to express every emotion she was feeling at the moment.


    Calista easily sensed the sadness in Anna¡¯s tone and could tell she didn¡¯t want to leave, but unfortunately she¡¯s left with no option but to follow this particr one, that¡¯s the only way she can be safe from the wrath of sir Arlow.


    So instead, she gave her a hug, wanting Anna to know that she¡¯d miss her most of all, she has never hugged her maid before, which makes Calista the first person she ever hugged and with so much emotion too.


    The old physician watched as the twodies expressed genuine affection and couldn¡¯t help but feel sad about everything. At the same time, his expression lightened a bit like he just remembered something.


    ¡°Here.¡±


    The old physician let out his hand for her, revealing the Euphrasia badge which he held in his grasp. It was a unique badge made from fine gold that belonged to her father. It was a very precious artifact her father cherished and wished to hand to his daughter himself the moment she was born.


    Sadly, he couldn¡¯t fulfill that wish.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± She asked, unwilling to take the badge while looking straight at the physician who instead, gently ced the badge on her fair palm.


    ¡°It¡¯s something your father wanted to give you himself, it was a reward from the kingdom but your father was more than happy to give it to his daughter instead, it¡¯s yours.¡±


    Those words of his made more tears escape from Anna¡¯s eyes as she held the unique badge tightly in her grasp, staring at the beautiful artifact before hugging it to her chest while staring appreciatively at the physician.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± She bowed politely, ¡°I¡¯ll cherish this gift with all my heart.¡± She promised and for the first time as well, a slow smile appeared on the physician¡¯s lips as he nodded to her words.


    He was fully aware of her journey, there¡¯s still so much she has to endure and ovee that he questioned if she was really up for it or not. Nevertheless, he will pray daily for her so she bes strong enough to handle the fights ahead.


    ¡°Here, you¡¯ll need this too.¡± Calista handed Anna a sack and a cloak. ¡°There¡¯s clothes and foodstuffs in it which shouldst you for about a week, and a few of the headbands in case you n on hiding the mark.¡±


    She hurriedly exined, opening the bag and bringing out a silver sword. With a smile, she handed it to Anna.


    ¡°And you¡¯ll need this too for protection.¡± She brought the bag closer to show Anna the crossbow which was kept inside.


    ¡°It used to be my favorite, but I want you to have it, at least something you can use to remember me by.¡±


    ¡°All of this..¡± Annalise stared at everything which was handed to her, her mouth was open but there were no words that escaped from them. How on Earth did she get this amount of love from the both of them??


    It was too much and it made her journey even harder, she didn¡¯t want to leave them.


    The rm sound of the bell ringing caught their attention, before the words her brain finally processed could escape from her lips.


    ¡°Oh no!¡± Calista¡¯s eyes widened at the sound of the bell and immediately ushered Anna to get on the horse.


    ¡°You have to go now! Hurry!¡±


    ¡°You should equally go back princess,¡± the physician uttered, ¡°so you won¡¯t be suspected since you¡¯re the closest to Anna.¡± He thoughtfully enunciated.


    Calista doubts she¡¯d ever be suspected, she was the king¡¯s daughter so that idea was fairly impossible, but at the same time, he was right. She has to go.


    Nodding her head in agreement, she turned to look at Annalise, giving her onest hug as she doesn¡¯t have a clue when she¡¯d see Annalise again. She made her way into the castle, following the secret path she had used in getting out unnoticed.


    Annalise immediately got on the horse, turning to look at the physician who gave her a reassuring nod, with that, she rode off after putting the cloak above her head.


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 13

    Chapter 13: Dead Or Alive


    The royal guards heavily marched towards the hall as the bell continuously rang in a very rming manner, notifying everyone in the castle that there had been an escape by a prisoner.


    That alone left the hall with a very tense atmosphere, like a really bad omen would befall on the castle after losing a prisoner and not just any prisoner. it felt rather suffocating, even for the King himself as he tapped his fingers on the arm of his royal chair.


    Sir Arlow was already with the king, whose expression had turned grim after figuring out the maiden actually escaped from the dungeon. His eyes were filled with disappointment as he never expected Annalise to take that extraordinary step.


    ¡°How she did it, it still baffles me.¡± Sir Arlow cryptically muttered as he paced back and forth before the guards who stood at attention adjacent his direction.


    When the guards came to inform him about her escape, he didn¡¯t believe it because he made sure she was locked in one of the most secured cells in the pce. He couldn¡¯t torture her due to the king¡¯s order and kept her in a secured cell instead, only to go witness it himself and what surprised him more, it was still locked.


    ¡°How did she escape? Even with the lock, she managed to escape without leaving a single trace..¡±


    ¡°Maybe the heavens finally decided to save a maiden from the cruelty of Euphrasia.¡± Calista firmly spoke as she elegantly made her way to the royal hall, catching the attention of both sir Arlow, her father and the rest of the high generals present in the royal hall.


    .....


    It was never in her nature to intrude in her father¡¯s affairs, most especially in such a very sensitive topic as this but something told her she had to be here. Gathering enough courage and keeping her face straight, she proudly stepped past Sir Arlow to stand before the altar, warmly meeting the gaze of her father who hasn¡¯t uttered a word since he got the information.


    ¡°Father.¡± She bowed politely in greeting, rising up a few seconds after receiving a nod from her father.


    Sir Arlow half red at the princess who barely paid any sort of attention to his side, he knew exactly why she showed up here and knowing he couldn¡¯t say anything rude to the king¡¯s daughter only aggravated his mood.


    ¡°What are you implying, princess?¡± He asked in a very polite manner as he met her gaze, but Calista already knew that politeness was nothing but forced.


    ¡°I thought you were smart,¡± she half teased and immediately faked her expression with a look of thoughtfulness, ¡°I meant, an innocent soul shouldn¡¯t be punished for something she hasn¡¯tmitted, who knows, the heavens above must have heard her prayer and freed her from the bondage you kept her in.¡±


    ¡°That is impossible!¡±


    ¡°Nothing is impossible for the Lord.¡± She shot back with a look of seriousness, causing sir Arlow to keep mute as he lowered his head. This princess! How could he not have seen that responseing, she¡¯s trying to make him look as though he¡¯s defying the Lord¡¯s name.


    ¡°Your majesty,¡± he turned his attention to the King instead, ¡°the choice is yours to make, but I suggest we go after her before she leaves Euphrasia, we shouldn¡¯t let her escape, if she¡¯s as innocent as she imed to be, she wouldn¡¯t have escaped in the first ce. Her conscience must have caught up with her.¡±


    King Olis remained quiet after listening to sir Arlow¡¯s words, obviously he was pondering over everything and this time around, he chose to believe his trusty guard. Arlow had already warned him that Annalise would escape when she gets the tiny bit of chance but he didn¡¯t believe it.


    He knew Anna to always stay back and fight for her rights cause she had always done that while living in the pce, he even came to terms with it that if she doesn¡¯t make any ns of escaping, he¡¯d release her from the crimemitted and investigate the situation further, but to his bafflement, she escaped which means she actually caused the death of those people, that proves it!


    ¡°Search every corner of Euphrasia and make sure to bring her back to the castle. Dead or alive.¡± He dered, causing Calista¡¯s eyes to widen in disbelief as she whipped her head to her father¡¯s direction, dead or alive????


    ¡°Father!_¡±


    ¡°My words are final Callie!¡±


    Her lips sealed almost immediately at the sound of her father¡¯s tone, instead, she darted an angry re at Sir Arlow who mockingly smiled in a way only she would take notice of.


    ¡°As you wish, your majesty.¡± Sir Arlow turned to leave while ordering.


    ¡°You heard the king, search every corner of Euphrasia until you find her!¡±


    ¡°Yes sir!!¡± The guards chorused.


    ~


    Along the forest path of Euphrasia, Annalise rode faster while hiding her face under the cloak she wore, hurrying through the narrow path whose sides were covered with Green bushes, and with only one aim in mind, to make it out of Euphrasia before she gets caught by those guards.


    Knowing fully well they¡¯d be at her tail now.


    The forest path was the easiest route she could take to avoid being seen by the people of Euphrasia and to avoid the sight of guards who normally patrol the streets. If the people of this n ever gets to spot her, she¡¯d be reported to the King before she counts to ten.


    The fatigue was starting to hit her greatly and her body was still a bit sore from staying in that cold bloody cell. That dizziness she felt disturbed her greatly, but she shook it off, pping the ropes of the horse to encourage it to ride faster.


    Even if she ns on passing out, she doesn¡¯t wish to pass out at this particr spot. The forest might be the easiest, but it was equally the most dangerous because you never know what might be lurking in between the thick bushes that silently whispered danger to her ears. Which is why she tries her best to make it out of the forest and hopefully burst out to an open ce where she might not be recognized.


    Taking a deep breath to strengthen herself up, she continued on her journey but that was until a sudden feeling rushed through her nerves and her heart uncontrobly sped up at the feeling. More like she sensed it and it wasn¡¯t a good sign ording to her knowledge.


    Adhering to the strange intent she felt, she immediately stopped the horse, forcing it toe to a forced halt and at that moment, an arrow shed by before her eyes, an arrow so close that if she had taken even a tiny step forward, it would have pierced through the side of her head.


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 14

    Chapter 14: Masked Stranger


    A shocking gasp tore from her lips as what happened spiralled in her head, almost like her heart had inadvertently taken a minute pause after witnessing an arrow sh a tiny centimeter past her eyes with such lightning speed and into the bushes by her left.


    ¡°Ah¡± she had taken that narrow miss to be nothing but pure luck as she took a quick step backwards while directing her horse to take another route.


    Judging from how perfect the arrow was aimed at her, she could tell whoever shot that arrow was extremely skilled, but it also led her to a conclusion that she wasn¡¯t alone in this forest.


    This time around, she chose not to make a run for it, but the shock was still clearly visible on her pale stricken face as she slowed the steps of her horse, quietly wandering through the dense forest while scathing the area with her sharp eyes.


    That arrow..... where did ite from??


    Her senses were triggered as she waited patiently to hear the slight rustle of the bushes or even a sign to know which particr area the arrow was shot from. Something that would lead her to the dangerous intent she was starting to feel.


    With a sigh, she looked up, staring at the light rays above which casted a luminescent golden light over the shade of leaves, forming polka dots on the ground while the giant trees shielded her from the sun using their canopies, but that alone left the forest to look even more austere as she wandered deeper.


    .....


    The forest became even more quiet than she had expected, as though there was something stopping her from going deeper since she¡¯s never had to follow through the forest in order to leave Euphrasia before. Slowing down even more, she heard the sharp snap of a twig, causing the already rmed Annalise to turn her head to the direction of the sound.


    It came from the bushes at her right, but she didn¡¯t dare drop from her horse like she could tell something or maybe someone was following her, but who??


    Squinting her eyes to see deeper through the other side of bushes, her watery brown eyes finally caught something making her ears twitch at the sight.


    It was another path, there was another narrow path behind those bushes and when she observed further, she noticed it and that¡¯s when she saw her attacker, but the person had his face covered with a mask, leaving his deep brown eyes exposed to her gaze and when she stared longer into those eyes, she couldn¡¯t decipher where she had seen such eyes before or why they looked familiar.


    But that thought was short-lived when the attacker suddenly pointed another arrow in her direction, aiming to shoot her which she didn¡¯t miss at all. The stranger already knew she had seen him.


    ¡°They found me already?¡± Confirming her suspicion in the end, she gave the stranger a look of no surrender and immediately sped up with her horse, narrowly escaping being pierced by another arrow yet again as it flew into the bushes.


    A look of disappointment shed in the eyes of that stranger, seeing her run off on her horse but that only aggravated him to the point he went after her .


    No matter what, her days of living has toe to an end today.


    Anna rode faster than she ever did as they hurried through the forest and from the corner of her eyes, the masked stranger was at her tail, following her despite being in another path, who in the heavens name is that??


    ¡°Hyah!¡± She gave the horse a gentle squeeze with her feet, hurrying through the earthly path while unsheathing her sword which hung on her waist as she sensed another iing arrow. Like she had predicted, two arrows came at her but she swiftly turned around with her horse, colliding her sword with the arrow and skillfully flinging them aside. Once again, she met the intense gaze of the masked stranger before turning around to ride past the narrowly strips of naked earth but it felt like the deeper she ran, the more her heart sped up like she was unknowingly leading herself to an even more dangerous ce.


    The stranger suddenly noticed the route she had taken, causing his eyes to dte even further as he slowed down on his horse like his impulse had taken control of his goal, refusing to go after her and entering the woods he¡¯d never see himself in.


    How can she still run ahead even after knowing what lies in that direction??


    Looking away with an expression that was half visible in his eyes, he snapped his fingers and within a few seconds, more royal guards showed up at the scene with their horses galloping to his direction and stopping behind him.


    His eyes never left the figure which ran ahead into the Forbidden zone and he cooly uttered.


    ¡°Come what may, I want to see her dead body.¡± The bitterness in his tone could be matched with the hostility in his eyes, he wished to go for her himself but wasn¡¯t ready to risk it. Giving his order, the guards immediately went after the fading figure ahead.


    Annalise barely turned to see if the stranger was after her or not, her sole aim was to make it out of Euphrasia and she wasn¡¯t going to stop until she¡¯s out of this ce.


    Looking ahead, her vision was starting to turn blurry and the path wasn¡¯t vivid to her eyes anymore, she had to rest her head on the body of the horse to regain her sight even if it¡¯s little of it, she can¡¯t go weak now.


    Raising her head once more, she finally found the courage to turn around and to her biggest surprise, royal guards were after her but the stranger was nowhere to be seen at all which made her face scrunch into confusion.


    How did_where did he go??


    ¡°Stop your horse, order from the pce!¡± The guards dered loudly, bringing Anna back to the present.


    Shaking off her dizziness, she realized the masked stranger was nowhere to be seen but now, she was being chased by royal guards to make her situation even more critical. She¡¯d kill herself first before letting them grab hold of her.


    Galloping ahead, another entirely different forest was starting toe in sight, something she couldn¡¯t understand and thought it was the trick of light but staring deeper, she realized it was not actually her eyes that were deceiving her.


    The forest she was seeing ahead had no source of light, it was covered in darkness and separated from the midday sun, looking like an entirely different world that only seemed to be drowned in shadows of towering mdy-brown trees.


    The closer she got to it, the more she heard sounds of a plethora of nocturnal ghosts that sent the hairs on her back standing at attention.


    She stopped her horse immediately.


    What is this??

 Chapter 15

    Chapter 15: Dead


    ******


    I really appreciate the love and support I¡¯ve gotten so far :3333


    So I¡¯d like to say thank you! Means a lot to me <33


    *************


    Perplexed by the sight in front of her, Annalise also figured how hesitant her horse was in taking a step further into this dark forest as it neighed while moving back, unwilling to go in.


    If she wasn''t mistaken, there was a time when the people of Euphrasia told scary tales of the dark woods, using it to frighten their children and make them do their bidding, but she never expected that such tale would turn out to be true.


    Struck by the curiosity of it, she dismounted from her horse and gave it a gentle pat on it''s side, if the horse is frightened by the mystery of the dark woods, then she''ll have to hide it somewhere and quick too before those guards make it here.


    .....


    Pinning her lips together, she nced at the forest while thinking of a better route to keep her horse, leaving it out here would only make those guards seize it, which is something she can''t risk letting it happen.


    Mustering enough courage, she directed her horse to the bushy path of the forest, entering through the bushes and going deeper. Once she was sure she had gone deep enough, she tied the horse to a tree and gave it one more pat before hurrying out of the bush while lifting her dress up.


    There were many twigs and weeds which were threatening to make her lose her bnce so she had to be extra careful on her step.


    Sessfully making her way out of the bush, she found herself standing in front of the dark woods once again and that alone made her heart speed up in response the more she stared at it. As eerie and forbidden as it might look, it had all the cheerlessfort of a dying me. There was this unknown sadness she felt lingering deep inside, a sadness that wasn''t very different from hers to the point she couldn''t help but feel like there was something calling out to her.


    "The dark woods." She whispered, reaching to touch the tree when another unexpected intent struck through her system, causing her to spun around quickly and not so much to her surprise, the royal guards were right before her as they dismounted from their horses, including Sir Arlow whose expression had turned triumphant as a cunning smile formed at the corner of his lips.


    How she wished to be the one to wipe that ugly smile off his pathetic face!


    "Nowhere to run?" He asked in a mocking tone, wanting to intimidate the girl he felt assured was helpless at the moment, but Anna''s re still remained locked on him as she stood firm in her position.


    He knew no one in their right minds would actually think of running into the dark woods and expect toe out alive, that thought was just too silly and impossible, so she''s left with no choice but to kneel in defeat.


    "Surrender yourself ande back to the pce to face your execution, or you leave me with no choice but to execute you myself!" He ordered loudly, causing Anna''s hands to ball into a tight fist as many ideas went rampant in her head, she''d rather die in the hands of wild animals than to die in the hands of people like him.


    "Watch me." There was this unusual glow in her eyes the moment she uttered that word, so she did the unthinkable and turned around once more, running into the dark woods which many have feared to this day and that left a look of disbelief crossing Sir Arlow''s face as he watched her go.


    "Annalise!"


    She didn''t turn around and just kept running like her heart told her to until she was finally epassed by the sunless curtains of chaos-ck. She could still hear the voice of sir Arlow but that wasn''t the issue anymore as she had escaped dying in the hands of him, she doubts they''d actually enter the dark forest since they were so frightened by it, but after entering it herself, she finally understood why.


    The floor of the forest spewed with a mixture of putrid odor that smells like sickly excrement the moment it made its way to her nostril. It felt like a constipated beam of hopelessness as she wandered aimlessly through the unknown woods. The more she walked, the more deformed the trees were starting to be.


    The sight was too much for Annalise as she hadn''t expected it to look this.... dead.


    She was even afraid to make even the tiniest bit of noise, as though they were creatures hiding in the corner of these deformed trees, waiting for their victims to take just one wrong step before jumping out to devour what was left of them.


    Shivering at the thought of it, she continued to make her way forward, hoping there was another exit that would lead her out of this ce but that thought of escaping quickly was short-lived when something pulled at her dress, causing the already terrified Anna to fall face first on the ground, identally hitting her right knee on a branch.


    "Ahh!!_" She covered her mouth almost immediately as the pain circted around her right leg, making it grow weak at that instant, she found it difficult to get up to her two feet.


    Struck by the intensity of the pain, she helped herself into a sitting position after that awful fall, pulling her dress up to examine the knee she had hit hard on the huge branch on the ground. Staring at her red knee, she realized it was the same knee she had hit on the stairs and it wasn''t fully healed yet.


    "Are my days really cursed?" She thought aloud in frustration while holding her tears in, could this day really get any worse??


    "I heard her voiceing from that direction!"


    "Hurry before she escapes!"


    A quick horrifying gasp escaped from Anna''s lips as those familiar voices were starting to be clearer, they''re really heading towards her direction which means...


    She shook her head in disbelief, unwilling to agree with the terms her mind had concluded on, it can''t be!


    New Book Out! Do check it out


    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 16

    Chapter 16: Die With Her!


    Realizing at the spur of a moment that she could get absolutely cornered by the guards if they somehow get to her, then all her efforts of escaping would surely be in vain. She shook her head in demurral, there¡¯s still so many unanswered questions that she couldn¡¯t risk dying without getting to figure out the truth to each one of them.


    First she wants to know what a meteor mark is and why it came as a tiny crystal birthmark on her forehead, it¡¯s unlike any birthmark she has seen before and painfully rare, she also wants to figure out why having the mark meant her days would be short-lived, she was actually desperate for this answers and the physician would have given her theplete details if the whole murder interference didn¡¯t ruin it all.


    Balling her fist at her unfortunate crisis all through the week, she was in the mood to smite someone but had a quick rethink about that idea which told her this wasn¡¯t the right time to aplish all of that, she had to run.


    Forcing herself to get up once more despite feeling the intensity of the pain that stupid branch had caused her knee, she limped her way through the forest which seemed to have no paths, only making her through the thickened bushes that it got to a point, she had to slice her way through using her sword, wanting to escape from the sight of the guards before they arrive.


    Her knee hurt terribly the more she kept adding pressure to it that she couldn¡¯t count how many times she must have fallen on the way here already, but she would look into it after confirming she¡¯s in a much safer zone.


    Taking in a deep breath, she continued to limp her way through the path, which seemed to take constant hours of walking, she felt like the heavens were punishing her for her past deeds or probably the deeds she might done in her past life to encounter such suffering, but that idea was disrupted when she unknowingly arrived at the center of the deep woods which made her stop in her tracks, the forest opens up to reveal a prehistoric temple that left Anna¡¯s eyes growing horrifically wide at the sight of a temple in a dark wood.


    ¡°A temple?¡±


    .....


    Her pupils contrasted as she took a step back, the aura surrounding that particr temple was vicious, too dark, as though it was warning one of the impending doom which lurked inside if they dared to take a step further in. A gasp escaped her lips the moment the physician¡¯s question rang in her head.


    ¡®Ever heard of the forbidden temple?¡¯


    ¡°Could this be the forbidden temple?¡± She whispered to herself, she looked too pale and her mind was too disconcerted for her to think properly, her clothes were messed up with dirt and her hair was scattered above her head. She was just starting to realize how dry her throat was the moment it started to burn, eating at her throat and it finally crossed her mind that she hasn¡¯t had any water since this morning.


    ¡°Need... water.¡± She held onto a tree for support, she nced around but doubts she¡¯d find water in a sickly forest as this, even if she does find it, she bets it would be poisoned so she can¡¯t drink anything even if she sees one.


    ¡°There she is!¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s over there!¡±


    ¡°Catch her!¡±


    The same voices which Anna wanted to be thest thing she heard echoed behind her, the moment she turned around, an arrow was immediately shot at her, brushing past her right shoulder and giving her a cut in her arm.


    ¡°Ah!¡± The sharp pain stung through her skin that she immediately sped her other hand over it, closing her eyes tight to deal with the pain as her breathing came heavier than before, she had no idea how long she could possibly run, she didn¡¯t have the strength anymore.


    Releasing her hand from her injured shoulder, she stared at the crimson color which had painted her fair hands, she was bleeding!


    ¡°Don¡¯t let her escape!¡±


    ¡°Kill her!¡±


    Biting at her lower lip, the look in Anna¡¯s eyes changed as she balled her hands into a tight fist till her knuckles turned white, hitting the tree by her right using her injured arm. If they wanted to kill her that bad, they might as well die with her!


    Turning around, she stared at the temple with a sudden glow in those fiery eyes of hers before limping her way into the temple, clutching once more to her wounded shoulder as she hurried her way through the steps of the temple.


    ¡°We order you to stop!¡± Said the guards behind her but instead, Annalise only pushed the door to the temple open and hurried her way in, making the guards stop right in front of the temple, obviously taken aback by the ordersity she had despite their warnings.


    ¡°She went in, what do we do?¡± A guard questioned.


    ¡°The high general, sir Arlow told us not toe back without killing her, we have no choice but to go in as well.¡±


    Despite their fears, they swallowed it and immediately hurried in.


    Annalise made her way through the cells, using the walls to support her as she kept falling to her feet countless times, she was tired. The temple on the inside was lit up by torches, but they were very few which gave it a dim look. The best thing she could do now was hide, she has to find a ce where she can hide, a temple like this is bound to have many rooms, she¡¯ll just find one and hide herself in it till those guards leave.


    ¡®Yes, I think that¡¯s the best thing I can do right now.¡¯ nodding to her own thoughts, she limped through the inner way, looking for a ce to hide, the temple is quite big so it¡¯s possible to lose the guards at a certain moment. Using that to reassure herself, she kept moving and after surveying the strange temple, she came across a door.


    With a look of relief shing before her tired eyes, shezily limped towards the iron door except there was no handle, it looked more like a steering wheel which she had to spin if she wanted to open it up.


    Gathering enough strength, she reached for the steering wheel thingy and tried to turn it so it¡¯d spin but she couldn¡¯t, it made her wonder if it was herck of strength or if the door was extremely hard to open.


    Stopping before she loses her breath, she nced around quickly for a stick or even a rod to aid her and fortunately, she spotted one at a corner, which made her wonder what a rod could be finding here in the first ce but nevertheless, she reached for it and ced it at the tip of the steering knob, using thest strength left in her to make the it spin and after so much effort, it finally paid off as the door finally opened.


    ¡°Yes!¡± Was thest statement which escaped from her lips when an unexpected arrow brutally shot her straight from the back, causing her eyes to widen as she immediately went still before the door which continuously opened before her eyes, revealing a darkness she had never seen before but the pain coercing through her back due to the arrow which was shot at her, made a trace of blood escape from her lips as the metallic scent engulfed her nostril.


    She fidgeted, as though a very cold air had sank through the depths of her system as more blood escaped from her wounded back.


    Was this really the end for her?


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 17

    Chapter 17: Hazel-Green Eyes


    *A bonus chp dedicated to my supportive readers <333


    ****************


    Her vision became extremely indistinct due to the fact she was about to pass out but there was a sharp glint in her watery brown eyes the moment she noticed something deep in the shadows of the door she just opened. She saw a figure, she couldn''t tell if she was actually seeing one or if it was her imagination but the figure seemed to be heading towards her direction.


    Seeing the unknown figure head her way, she couldn''t help but stretch her hands out towards it, wanting it to reach for her shaky hands and seeing her gesture, the figure stopped moving.


    "Help me." She whispered without giving her choice of word a second thought, she was clueless about who it was that lurked in the shadow, as much as she felt the deadly aura emanating from the being who just stood silently in the shadows, she knew only this stranger was capable of helping her.


    The being who stood still inside the darkness of the door she had forcefully opened barely moved, in fact he had his arm folded across his chest while boringly watching the strangedy call for his help with her arms stretched out towards him. That only caused his red eyes to glow in the simple, yet cold manner.


    Seeing he wasn''t going to take any further steps near her, her eyelids grew heavier and finally dropped close as she sprawled to the ground, but before she lost consciousness, she felt herself fall into the strong protective arms of someone before passing outpletely.


    .....


    The guards who had sessfully shot their victim with an arrow suddenly noticed for the first time that the door which had been sealed for more than a decade was strangely opened, causing a horrifying gasp to escape from their lips at the mere sight of the figure who lingered in the darkness and not only that, he was carrying someone in his arms.


    Stepping out of the shadows, the figure finally came into full view to the eyes of the guards as his crimson eyes burned with insatiable vengeance, dropping the body of the girl while letting her rest on the pir before turning his attention back to the guards.


    His knuckles clenched hard, erupting a thousand fright from the guards who were slowly starting to make a retreat.


    "He''s free! Everyone one, retreat! Now!" A guard immediately alerted the rest of his mates, causing them to turn around and make a run for it but that alone happened to be a big mistake cause within a second, the angry being was already at the doorstep, locking it while flexing his muscles which were starting to heal and leaving his skin spotless once again.


    A satisfied sigh escaped from his lips the moment those wounds finally closed up, he had been waiting for this internal injury to recover for years and now was indeed the perfect time.


    "Leaving so soon? It''s been a while since I had visitors." His deep, yet frightening tone resounded along the quiet ce, like a devil who had finally made his way out of hell and into the world of mortals.


    He smirked, exposing his sharp fangs that made them shiver at the sight, knowing just what a tear from those fangs could do to their skin. Regardless, they chose to point their weapons at him, feigning bravery which was only a dangerous step that amused the being further.


    "You weren''t meant to be freed!"


    "Neither were you." He cocked his head to the side, giving them the go ahead.


    "Attack!"


    "Pathetic!" He hissed out and just like that, countless of arrows came rushing to his direction which he easily avoided with a speed that was difficult to see with the normal eyes and before the guards realized it themselves, a fellow guards head had been cut off as blood profusely gushed out from it like a bursted tap.


    One by one they all died in the most brutal and most painful way as their necks were slit by the sharp fingers of an invisible being, hands were caught off and the others even had their skins torn by the dangerously sharp teeths of Roshan.


    With the anger he had been savoring inside of him for many years, he was more than ready to vanquish it out on the peasants whose screams of pain only left him with a half satisfaction, but he wasn''t done yet.


    He threw their bodies into the sealing room and locked it tight after taking off the clothes of a certain guard, leaving them for the spirits to feed on whatever was left of them.


    Turning around, his cold bloody eyesnded on the slim figure he had rested against the pir and that cold look immediately turned into something that was unreadable as he made his way towards her body.


    Her milky colored dress was stained with blood, running down to the edges and giving her dress a very odd mixture of red and milky color. Her face looked pale, but that didn''t hide the beauty she possessed, staring at the long yet scanty darkshes which rested on her cheeks, down to her dainty nose and those faintly pink colored lips.


    Crouching beside her, he could still hear her heartbeat due to his keen sense of hearing which meant she isn''t dead yet. Obviously he never had the intention of sparing her life from the beginning but the moment she called out to him, his instinct had prompted him to do so without any warning.


    His gaze finally shifted to the mark on her forehead, her headband had moved a bit, revealing the crystal meteor birthmark which could be visibly seen on her forehead and something struck him at that moment.


    "What is this mark?" His expression turned sour at the thought of it, as much as he wanted to kill her, something told him not to let the girl out of his sight so instead, he carried her in his arms and led her out of the temple.


    He sensed something fishy and she''s going to exin everything to him.


    ~


    The moment Anna awoke from her subconsciousness, her eyes flickered open only to be met by the intense sun rays of the clear blue sky, making a slow smile form on her lips but that smile suddenly freezed on her face the moment she realized she wasn''t actually meant to be seeing sunlight, wasn''t she in the dark woods?


    "Why is there sunlight?" She muttered in a half sleepy tone, finding it very queer to see normal trees surround her once again, not until a deep voice sounded right behind her.


    "Cause it''s midday, you overslept!"


    Hearing a deep cold voice that wasn''t familiar to her ears at all, made Annalise sprang up quickly as she sat upright, instantly drawing her sword which hung in her waist and pointing it at the person who dared to speak unannounced and sneak up on a woman like that.


    But to her surprise, the stranger was actually sitting on a rock, his eyes closed and his body in full concentration as he seemed to be... meditating?


    "Huh?" She cocked her head slightly to the side while observing the stranger before her, her head was hurting badly that it affected her memories, she just remembered that she wasn''t meant to be seeing light but now...


    The stranger suddenly moved, grabbing her attention as she pointed her de at his direction once again, but was instantly left speechless the moment his eyes fluttered open, revealing a pair of Hazel-Green eyes that were so beautiful, she lost all the threats her mind had managed to pick up.


    "Well..." he started in that remarkable tone despite seeing a de being pointed at his face.


    "Aren''t you in pain?"


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 18

    Chapter 18: You¡¯re Coming With Me


    ¡°Are you in pain?¡±


    His question had paused her from taking the first initiative as she stared confusingly at the man who remained oddlyposed on a rock, dressed in a ck outfit which she recalled to be from a guard who had followed her into the dark forest.


    They weren¡¯tpletely out yet but based on how the trees had split up and the canopies feathering themselves high above to the point of light pration, she could tell they were already reaching the outskirts of another vige.


    Squinting her eyes suspiciously at the good-looking being in front of her, she doubts he was among those guards. His looks were enough to make her doubt cause truth be told, the man before her was neither handsome nor ugly.


    His looks was one that reminded her of those fairytale prince¡¯s she once read in storybooks during her childhood but she never believed such men with that amount of beauty existed.....well, she never believed until now.


    His skin was so spotless, smooth and naturally pale, but what mesmerized her more was the eyes she was staring into while trying not to break her resolve, they looked so rare, so beautiful and yet so familiar, almost like a strange sense of deja Vu had hit her.


    Those feminine longshes she noticed the moment he closed his eyes earlier made her jealous. They looked so thick, so dark and extremely long she secretly wished she could pull them out and give it to her ownshes instead.


    .....


    His hair plunged over his shoulder in a midnight ck, looking soft and silky to the touch. He looked attractively lean with broad shoulders and lean muscles. If she were to count to a hundred men in Euphrasia who were handsome, with all of thembined, their charms were nowhere close to this stranger sitting before her.


    As handsome as he looked, the dark energy emanating from him and the icy expression in his eyes scared her weak soul as she kept up with the pretense of being brave, she tried not to forget his question while keeping her own expression fierce as well.


    Was she meant to be in pain before?


    Cracking her brain further, she faintly remembered her knee was hurt while trying to leave the dark forest and vivid images of her being shot with an arrow yed in her head, reminding her of her earlier actions when she opened an unknown door and called for help.


    The moment she got a chance to recall everything that happened, she was distracted, giving the being a chance to steal the opportunity and snatch her sword right from her grip, with such quick movements that Annalise never saw iting.


    ¡°You_¡±


    Without enough time to react to his unexpected advances, he was already on his feet, pointing the tip of her own de directly at her face instead. She stared into those hazel-green eyes as she slowly retreated backwards. As beautiful as they might look, she has nevere across such eyes that looked as cold as this one to the point it made her shiver. So unreadable, expressionless......lifeless.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± She didn¡¯t even realize she was already out of breath until she uttered that question, feeling the cold sharp de being threateningly ced at the nape of her neck, reminding her he could kill her like a bug with just a little movement of his hand if she dared to act smarter than this.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see how that actually holds any importance to you.¡± He sneered bitterly, he was a man filled with a thousand burning rage that couldn¡¯t be quenched until he was done with the people of Euphrasia.


    ¡°I can bring back the pain, the same way I took them away.¡± He emphasized while Annalise red in response, feeling her back hit a tree as it stopped her movement. Truly, she was shot, so she was meant to be in pain, but strangely she wasn¡¯t.


    ¡°That didn¡¯t answer my question. What happened to the guards?¡± Her heart raced at the thought of what she might have done. The physician warned her about the devil which was sealed inside the forbidden temple and in reference to that, she came across a seal door which she had stupidly opened up due to her state. Then the figure in the shadows, was it just her imagination or was there actually someone in it?


    Despite her heart already knowing the truth, she couldn¡¯t ept it, she couldn¡¯t possibly have freed something she knew nothing about.


    ¡°I killed them.¡± He took a step closer, ¡°and I¡¯m going to do the same to you if you keep standing here in the next five minutes.¡±


    He drew the de back, giving her some space to make a run for it before he changes his mind at any moment. A look of relief expressed in her eyes but before she got a chance to run out, she stopped.


    Almost like a thought had hit her and her expression changed. She immediately went on her knees and clutched onto his leg, holding it tight and leaving the being baffled by her act.


    ¡°Forgive me for my unruly act, you¡¯re indeed a savior and I thank you for it, but I promise I¡¯ll leave if you give a response to my one important que_¡±


    She wasn¡¯t even done speaking when he crouched before her, startling Anna to her wits, afraid she might have angered the unknown stranger and truly, she did after sensing the building rage glinting in those gorgeous eyes of his, causing a shocking gasp to escape from her lips cause it looked like he was serious about that five minutes.


    What was he? A killer? And why does he look so upset?


    ¡°You barely know me.¡± He started off with a very strange, yet calm voice as he looked her petite body over before meeting her gaze, ¡°what response do you possibly think I can offer? Aren¡¯t you afraid that I can kill you?¡±


    The thought of dying frightened Annalise as she looked away, most especially when it reminded her that even if he doesn¡¯t kill her, she¡¯d end up dying anyway if this birthmark isn¡¯t removed soon, and she doesn¡¯t want to die just yet.


    ¡°If you wanted to, you¡¯d have done that even before I woke up. Why didn¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m with the sword, so I get to ask the questions here.¡± He silenced her up with the sword hanging on her neck once again. But something fell from her waist at that moment as it cluttered to the ground, catching both their attention but Annalise didn¡¯t dare to move as it could risk her throat to be easily slit.


    She watched the devilishly handsome being eye whatever it was that dropped from her dress and when he picked it up, it was the golden badge her physician gave to her before she left Euphrasia, the badge which belonged to her father and before she got a chance to speak, the stranger¡¯s expression seemed to have darkened further in a way she couldn¡¯t understand.


    ¡°You¡¯re from Euphrasia?¡± He asked without looking at her, the anger in his eyes was bing visible the more he stared at the badge, surprising her that it made her wonder if he recognized it, but before she knew it, he grabbed her arm and roughly made her stand up to her feet.


    ¡°Ah! You¡¯re hurting me!¡± Annained the more his hold around her arm tightened, like he wanted to crush her bone and she looked at him with ring eyes. She couldn¡¯t understand why seeing the badge added fire to his mood but he suddenly stopped and whispered.


    ¡°You¡¯reing with me.¡±


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 19

    Chapter 19: It¡¯s Just Lightning


    Scampering through the refined hallway with her maids trailing behind her, Calista worriedly searched for her brother whom she heard has returned to the pce without informing her, she got to hear the news from none other than her maids.


    Frowning at the thought of it, she nned on giving him a scolding of his life but soon dropped the idea the moment a guard delivered the message which Sir Arlow had brought after hunting Anna down.


    Reaching the first terrace which was just at the side of the upstairs corridor, she finally saw him, standing there with his back facing her but he wasn¡¯t alone, he was having a private conversation with her father on something she suspected to be very important as they both stared at the clouds.


    Standing unnoticed behind the both of them, her blue eyes widened after noticing the blue sky had grown a bit dark and it had turned unnaturally windy again as a wind blew past her, signifying a heavy rainstorm was about to befall on Euphrasia.


    Composing herself immediately, she dismissed her maids with just the flick of her wrist before taking any further step towards the two men whose gazes were fixated on the sky.


    ¡°Father.¡± She called his name instead as her steps quickened, gaining his attention without sparing her brother a single nce, acting like she never noticed his presence in the first ce.


    Seeing the worried look genuinely carved on his daughter¡¯s face, King Olis knew she must have heard the news already and had expected her to rush to him.


    .....


    ¡°Father, is it true?¡± She asked after reaching his side, ¡°Is Annalise really in some kind of trouble?¡±


    ¡°She ran into the dark woods which was clearly forbidden for humans to enter,¡± her father theoretically stated, ¡°if she awakens whateverys trapped and sealed in that forest, then a huge doom is to be expected, not just to the kingdom but the people too.¡±


    He knew that much at least, it was a bloody battle between the humans and the night creatures but sealing the main leader equally meant keeping them hidden. If he ever breaks free, so will his people and that should probably signify why the clouds are getting unusually dark. Could it mean something?


    ¡°Well, what do we do?¡± Calista had heard of different tales of the dark woods by her parents, it holds a demon within it¡¯s district and it¡¯s a demon that must never be freed. She doesn¡¯t know how true the saying or prophesy was but she only felt worse the more she thought of poor Anna, what if she gets hurt?


    ¡°Isn¡¯t there something we can do?¡± She pushed on, turning to her brother this time around but his distant gaze remained locked on the dark sky, rubbing his chin lightly while equally going over the situation in his head.


    ¡°It¡¯s about to rain, and it¡¯s going to be a heavy one, I¡¯d advise we all remain indoors tonight.¡±


    ¡°But Anna_¡±


    ¡°Callie!¡±


    A gasp fell from her lips as she stifled like someone who had received an electric shock, knowing exactly how her father would react if she opened her mouth to utter anything else again.


    ¡°Annalise is guilty and she made the mistake of running off right from the beginning.¡± Her father reminded her with a look of seriousness shing across his face.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be best if you forget about her and think of your people¡¯s wellbeing, that¡¯s what matters more.¡±


    Calista scoffed silently at that phrase, is it the people who chose not to show a little mercy to their own n just because of some birthmark?


    ¡°Also don¡¯t move around too much or breach any vige outside Euphrasia, demons could be lurking so we need to be extra careful.¡±


    Tapping her shoulders lightly, he walked out, leaving Calista to stand alone before her brother who had barely uttered a word.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to say anything as well?¡±


    ¡°Get some rest Callie.¡± He walked out but Calista was even more worried, Anna is extremely terrified of lightning and she¡¯s all alone in the dark woods.


    ¡°Please be safe.¡±


    ~


    ¡°You¡¯reing with me.¡± He said it with such authority that she would think he was someone who came from a royal home. Based on his appearance, he looked more of a warrior and a noble. Something she ns to be if she escaped the fate of the mark, a true warrior.


    ¡°Wha_¡± Annalise finally blinked at him, discernibly caught off guard by his words and the next minute, she was being dragged by the hand across the dry bushy path.


    ¡°Hey!....Wait!....Stop!..¡± The insistence of his actions were not to her likings at all, she weirdly felt like a bull being dragged by the horn. Doesn¡¯t he have any idea how to treat ady?


    ¡°Mr! Slow down or you¡¯ll cut my legs!¡±


    Herstint finally reached his ears and he came to a halt, to Anna¡¯s relief. He was taller and had long legs so it was difficult for her to keep up. The being finally turned around to look at the human who red non-stop in his direction. Of course, she¡¯s the one with the short legs and it¡¯s his fault.


    ¡°What gave you the idea that I¡¯d want to go anywhere with you?¡± His actions were making her grow extra cautious of him as she freed her wrist and took a few inches step back away from him.


    Who is he? What was he doing in the temple and the strangest part was, why did he look and feel familiar? Most especially those eyes. She gets a feeling she¡¯s seen them before despite it being her first time.


    Averting her ring gaze to the badge in his grasp, she snatched it back while meeting his gaze yet again, ¡°you don¡¯t know me.¡±


    ¡°But I know you¡¯re an Euphrasia.¡± He started while taking a single step towards her.


    ¡°So?¡± She asked.


    ¡°And you were chased by Euphrasia guard.¡± He hinted. Seeing that badge and finding her at the temple, chased and shot by Euphrasia guards, he had jumped into a conclusion. Anna lost her resolve a bit as she met his twinkling gaze, but it looked mocking.


    ¡°Did you murder someone?¡±


    ¡°Mind your words!¡±


    The sound of quick lightning erupted from the sky, startling Annalise and ruining the heated argument that was about to transcend between the two of them.


    ¡°It¡¯s just lightning.¡± He tly pointed out after noticing how her body shook at the sound, finding it silly that it scared her up to that extent.


    ¡°I¡¯m not blind!¡± She immediatelyposed herself, reluctant to let her fears ruin her courageous moment but it finally made her realize that the once clear blue sky had darkened, alerting her that it¡¯s about to rain heavily soon.


    ¡°Looks like a heavy rainstorm ising.¡± She stared at the handsome being once more who equally looked up with folded arms.


    He could stand the rain and from the looks of it, it¡¯s going to be a heavy one but a tiny spark above caught his eyes, something which didn¡¯t seem to rte to lightning at all and that made his already stoic expression turn dark.


    ¡°Find somewhere to hide until the storm is over.¡± He warned, but Annalise only found it strange that the same person who wanted to kill her, was informing her to hide. Regardless of it, she wasn¡¯t going to trust him anyways.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have to listen to you,¡± she snorted, ¡°I¡¯ll find myself a ce to stay since there¡¯s a vige nearby.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t make it there on time, find a ce to hide and now, it¡¯s a warning.¡±


    She finally met his gaze due to the seriousness in his masculine tone, why was he being so serious? Did he know she was equally afraid of lightning? She shook the thought away, what is she thinking? How could he possibly have known since she never told him.


    Before she got a chance to speak, he had turned around and walked away, tossing her sword back to her which she involuntarily caught without uttering anything else to her.


    ¡°He¡¯s leaving?¡± She muttered with her face half contorted in surprise, watching him go until his back view was no longer in sight. The lightning above crackled softly, causing her heart to jump as she slowly hesitated.


    ¡°He can leave for all I care! I need to save myself first!¡±


    With that, she hurried through the woods, following a different direction so the stranger wouldn¡¯t think she was following him. Scampering her way through the woods, she could sight the vige from up a hill, but she¡¯d never make it on time and get to her horse before the rain started.


    Pinning her lips together with her brow slightly narrowed, a thought came to her mind. If she ns on bing a true warrior like her father, she¡¯ll have to get rid of the fears in her heart first and by doing that, she has to be more positive.


    Her eyes shed with determination as she made up her mind to make it out of this forest and back to her horse so she could head to the vige.


    Agreeing with herself, she hurried through the woods once again, telling herself she wouldn¡¯t get any rest along the way but the sight seeing of lightning made her startle at her feet as she froze again. The rain was already starting to drizzle as it touched her dress.


    After what she experienced during her childhood, the sight of thunder and lightning frightened her till this day. Reasons why she never goes out when it¡¯s raining but now, she was alone and trapped in the woods.


    She could feel her hair getting wet already and finally chose to continue on her mission, she needs to find shelter and fast!

 Chapter 20

    Chapter 20: Close Your Eyes


    The storm seemed to be approaching heavier from north-east as she wandered further, looking up at the sky which had turned increasingly gray and gloomier than before.


    ¡°This is terrible!¡± She outwardly grimaced with her hands on her hips, finding the condition of the sky to be a little intense.


    The night was starting to close in and the cold blistering winds weren¡¯t showing any mercy to her fragile body as it rustled through the forest like an angry whisper, before leaving the woods to grow hauntingly quiet once again.


    Her heart sped up in response and her mind, body would react to the tiniest sound she heard, most especially the lightning which sent heavens light transcending through the dark sky.


    Remembering that she wasn¡¯t fully out of the dark woods yet, it gave her goosebumps. Her steps quickened and she chose to fight off the cold and hurry to any shelter she can find but that thought alone was starting to feel impossible as the forest never seemed to want toe to an end.


    Before she realized it, the drizzling was starting to add pressure and after a short time, the rain got a lot heavier, leaving Annalise to stare as beads of water ckened down the ceilings of treetops made by thick, dense trees.


    ¡°It¡¯s already raining!¡± The frustration could be heard in her voice, giving her the expression of someone who was afraid, confused and lost on which route to take next.


    .....


    Her mind was suddenly preupied with some deep thoughts, the trees were farther apart the minute she approached the outskirt of the forest. Annalise suddenly realized that the more she progressed deeper into the woods, it only got darker and the forest got increasingly denser.


    The rumbling sound of a lightning bolt brought her to the present as a gasp fell from her lips. She hated the sound of thunder and lightning to her very core because it only brought back the treacherous memories she¡¯s been trying to let go for so long.


    The boom sound came heavier the second time to the point she sped her hands over both her ears while shaking her head, looking like a little girl in fright as she tightly sealed her eyes shut.


    Images of that day flooded into her small head, the ship wreck, the painful screams of her mother who kept trying to reach her as the ship sank, the figure in the clouds. They were disturbing her.


    ¡°Go away!¡± She took to her heels instead, as though she would be able to escape from the sounds of the thunder and unbeknownst to her, there was a sparkling light above the clouds which followed her movement.


    Running across the woods which turned darker than usual, she suddenly felt like she had been running in circles cause each route seemed to look even more familiar each time she wandered by, like she had taken this particr route and was suddenly taking it again.


    Which wasn¡¯t supposed to be that way.


    ¡°How could this be?¡± She shook her head in demure as her heart sped up even more due to her confusion, she wasn¡¯t going to let this dark forest mess with her mind. Already soaked from head to toe with her dress clinging to her skin, she was too preupied to feel the cold anymore.


    She hurried through the same path again and before her eyes, the moon was starting to shine through thettice of the leaves, the sky was painted ck with not even a single star appearing, only the signs of lightning and the more she ran, the more she felt she was running in circles, like someone who was trapped and finding it impossible to get out.


    ¡°I_I have to leave this ce, I...I can¡¯t be trapped!¡± The moment she took a step forward, she felt the earth below her feet crumble slightly, causing her to lose her bnce as she stumbled forward but had sessfully managed to avoid letting her head m first to a rock before her.


    The shaking stopped but the proximity of her situation made her choose to remain in her position, in case it happens again but after a few minutes ticked by with the earth unshaken, she finally moved.


    *SNAP!*


    She nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard the sound of a twig snap right in the forest, her body froze and her breath stilled at the sound. It came from behind her but she didn¡¯t have the ordersity to turn around and see what it was. It was dark and raining heavily, she thought she could be strong enough to deal with this but maybe she isn¡¯t as ready as she proimed to be.


    She could hear footsteps behind her, followed by the sound of a threatening thunder and she jumped. Stopping herself from letting a tear roll from her eyes, she forced her stiff body to finally move, slowly turning around to see what it was but a hand had stopped her immediately by covering her eyes and obstructing her view.


    rmed, she quickly turned around to see who had stopped her from looking, only to see the handsome stranger was standing in front of her, except he had her in his arms, holding her close with her palms pressed against his chest.


    Her eyes dted as she stood unmoving but the being who held her close was more focused on what was behind her than their current position.


    ¡°Close your eyes.¡± He whispered in a warning tone, but his eyes held dominance, which was something she couldn¡¯t understand.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Now.¡±


    She fidgeted, all the while he spoke, his gaze never shifted from what was behind her and she wasn¡¯t actually dumb to not figure it out herself. She knew there was something behind her, she sensed its aura and it felt demonic.


    For the first time, she finally decided to listen and closed her eyes like the being had told her to.


    She felt him release his hold on her and take the sword which hung at the side of her waist. His touch felt familiar and the minute she felt them no more, it saddened her for some unknown reason.


    The fierce shing and piercing of swords under the heavy rain caught her attention, she could hear voices and a painful growl as though someone had been stabbed.


    Who was he fighting? She was curious but didn¡¯t let that curiosity force her to open her eyes.


    Within a few minutes, the shing stopped and all she could hear was the pouring rain which she got soaked under even more.


    ¡°You can open your eyes.¡± His voice brought her back and when she flung her eyes open, he was the only one standing there with her sword in his grasp, he looked untouched, causing her to blink in obviousplexity of the situation. But she swore she heard the sound of two people viciously fighting.


    ¡°You_¡±


    ¡°I thought I told you to find a ce to hide.¡± He nagged, causing the half dazed Annalise to think back to his words.


    ¡°I thought I could make it back to the vige.¡± She countered back.


    ¡°And I told you it was impossible.¡±


    ¡°Well I believe that now.¡±


    He tsked with the same annoyance etching to his face. Yes, she was wrong this time around and she admitted, he doesn¡¯t have to make her feel like a burden when she never asked for his help in the first ce.


    ¡°Come.¡± He suddenly uttered.


    ¡°Where to?¡±


    ¡°Found the exit, there¡¯s a small cottage closeby once we leave, except you n on sleeping here.¡±


    He walked out after that, causing Anna to think about how horrible it¡¯d be to spend a night in the bushes, she would rather spend a night with this stranger than stay here.


    His presence had made her fear lessen without her even realizing it.


    ¡°I¡¯ming!¡± She immediately went after him.


    New Book Out! Do check it out


    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 21

    Chapter 21: We¡¯re Siblings


    Quietly walking alongside the mysterious being, Annalise couldn¡¯t help but steal a nce at his direction, making a face like she had something important on her mind which she wanted to say but he barely looked at her to even notice it, staring ahead as though he was preupied with his own thoughts.


    She had a lot of questions to ask him, she wanted to know exactly what he fought with and why he came back to get her, but judging from the look on his face, she could tell he didn¡¯t want to be disturbed and she had learned to give people that privacy.


    However, the preupied being had his thoughts surrounded on how he ns on getting his revenge on the kingdom of Euphrasia, once he leaves this damned forest and makes it back to his own kingdom unnoticed.


    He could barely recall everything that happened during the past years, all he remembered was piercing the most strongest warrior of the Euphrasia n with a sword during the bloody battle, he equally got stabbed by something that had brought him down, something magical that had knocked him outpletely.


    The sealing chamber was were he found himself next and it had been torture after torture, from those painful chains and handcuffs to the spirit which had mercilessly knocked him out and left him weak.


    Slipping out of those sharp handcuffs was the most horrible experience he could say he went through cause he had his whole body covered in blood and wounds just to escape those chains.


    The sealing chamber was specifically made for torture and once thrown in, the sealing spell is immediately activated, leaving you trapped to the point even he himself couldn¡¯t break the sealing spell.


    .....


    Yet, this confused mere mortal beside him had somehow managed to open the doors, identally freeing him and barely realized it herself.


    She seemed clueless about the chamber, but was the only one capable of opening it. Why did the mark on her forehead stun him and why couldn¡¯t he push aside the feeling that he¡¯s met her before, despite knowing it was impossible.


    She had been chased earlier by a storm Demon but those Demon¡¯s only hunt after special souls that are capable of strengthening their demonic core, could it be she wasn¡¯t as ordinary as she portrayed to be.


    ¡°Look! The rains are starting to reduce greatly!¡± Her songbird voice brought him back to the present, allowing his gaze tond on the girl who looked excited about the fact the rain had dropped to a rtively low rate.


    ¡°Strange, with the way it kept raining, I thought it¡¯d rain heavily all night!¡± She eximed as the rain only drizzled now, but the cold air still remained unflinching, she was a bit too overwhelmed by all of it to even realize the pair of hazel-green eyes which were curiously fixated on her.


    She waspletely drenched, her chocte brown hair was wet and still dripped water, her soaked dress tightly hugged her slim body, revealing her delicate features to the eyes which she didn¡¯t know were studying her.


    She looked young and fragile, but from her body structure, one could tell shecked proper nutrition. She had several little cuts on her skin that if it wasn¡¯t for her bright eyes and the relieved smile lingering on her lips, she would have probably looked sick and helpless.


    He suddenly remembered that she was actually chased into the dark woods by Euphrasia guards that wanted to end her life, thus, making her stumble into the temple where she found him.


    Was she..... suffering?


    He averted his gaze from her with a look of disapproval shing before his mesmerizing eyes, if she was alright or not, why did it bother him? She was still an Euphrasia and to make it even moreplicated, he was currently helping the enemy.


    He was finding it difficult to end her himself.


    ¡°Look! We¡¯ve reached the exit!¡± She happily pointed at a path ahead, oblivious to the dreadful aura emanating from the mysterious being before her.


    The stranger was forced to return his gaze back to her. His gaze followed her outstretched hand, only to see they had arrived at a route where trees were now further apart, indicating that the forest was ending.


    When she finally met his gaze, she appeared calm and content, as if she had figured out all the intricacies andplexities that were bothering her.


    ¡°Come on.¡± Her face beamed as she took a step forward, but suddenly paused when that unexpected dizziness struck her once again, causing her to stagger backwards and she would have fallen if it wasn¡¯t for the being who had firmly ced his hand around her shoulder, holding her in ce without even looking at her.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± He asked, despite telling himself he wouldn¡¯t be bothered about her anymore.


    Annalise ced a hand on her forehead, moving the headband aside and feeling the meteor mark which made a slight frown appear on her pretty face. It¡¯s disturbing her again.


    Realizing she was still in the arms of the stranger, she pushed herself forward while regaining her sight once again.


    ¡°Yes, but we should hurry and get to the cottage before it¡¯s toote.¡± Something told her she could pass out any minute now and before that happens, she wants to find shelter first. Like her skin cells had finally begun to work again, the unflinching cold finally prated through her wet clothes and met her skin, causing her to shiver relentlessly as she hugged herself.


    ¡°It¡¯s so cold out here.¡± She muttered, surprised that she was only starting to feel the harshness of the cold now.


    ¡°I¡¯ll lead the way.¡±


    He walked off, leaving Anna to stare at the pulchritudinous being as he walked ahead, barely feeling affected by the cold or rain. His ck hair equally dripped water as they fell behind his back. He was definitely no ordinary man and he¡¯ll have to answer every one of her burning questions when they find a safer ce to stay.


    He led the way while Annalise sluggishly followed him from behind, trying her best to keep her resolve and she couldn¡¯t dare to pass out just yet.


    They made it out of the dark forest, stumbling into another premises, after what felt like a journey of a thousand walks, they came across a quietndscape. A relieved look washed down on both their faces as though they had lost tales of whatever obstacle that was chasing them for a long time.


    The house before them looked pretty in its true colors as the moonlight casted its silvery white light over the structures of the beautiful cottage.


    Annalise knew they weren¡¯t out of Euphrasia just yet, but they were far from the kingdom and this was just another small part of the Euphrasia n viges that they hade upon, the good thing out of it was, they wouldn¡¯t be recognized.


    Sprinting towards the stairs and reaching for the wooden door, she gently knocked on it.


    Knock! Knock! Knock!


    There was no response, so she tried again, thinking the people living in the cottage would have fallen asleep by now since it¡¯s already midnight.


    The moment she heard a click sounding from the inside, she backed away and stood next to the quiet being, waiting for the door to open up.


    A middle aged woman finally stepped out after letting her door creak open, holding herntern out to see who would have disturbed her sote at night.


    Before her stood two young fellows, drenched with only one of them shivering from the blistering cold outside.


    ¡°Good evening Miss.¡± Annalise was the first to speak, drawing the woman¡¯s attention to her side.


    ¡°Good evening.¡± She responded, still baffled and taken aback by the sight of two strangers at her doorstep.


    ¡°How may I help you?¡± She finally questioned.


    ¡°My brother and I were on a journey from the kingdom of Euphrasia when the terrible storm ruined our carriage and left us stranded in the forest. We¡¯re in need of an urgent ce to stay for the night and were hoping you¡¯d render us a bit of your help please.¡± She pleaded politely,pletely aware of the pair of ring eyes which were secretly casted her way.


    When did they be siblings? The being silently scoffed at the thought, they aren¡¯t even friends to begin with talk more of being a sibling.


    The middle-ageddy wasn¡¯t totally convinced with Anna¡¯s words alone and turned the direction of herntern towards the being instead.


    ¡°What do you have to say? Are you two siblings?¡± She asked while the being remained mute.


    Annalise secretly prayed in her head for the stranger to just admit it and not let them lose the chance of finding a ce to sleep tonight, after all they aren¡¯t actually siblings, this is all just a pretense.


    Bottling up his actual response, he finally uttered through gritted teeths, ¡°Yes, we¡¯re siblings.¡±


    The middle-ageddy finally looked relieved at his response and ushered them in.


    ¡°Come inside, it¡¯s freezing out there.¡±


    New Book Out! Do check it out


    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 22

    Chapter 22: Night Of Survival


    ¡°Don¡¯t you know? There are Demon¡¯s recently lurking around the forest and it¡¯s by the Lord¡¯s mercy you two arepletely fine.¡± The middle aged woman candidly exined to the both of them while handing them a cup of hot tea.


    The being who was sitting beside Annalise suddenly raised a brow in an inquiring manner but it was rhetoric. What did she mean recently? Did they stop before?


    It¡¯s been a long time and he barely knew how the world evolved now, but he was sure of one thing, more Demon traps would have been made because the ancient rulers made it clear before he lost consciousness that every weapon had to be repolished.


    Annalise smiled in appreciation to the kind woman before receiving the hot cup of tea. They both sat on the mat, close to the firece which had dry woods burning in an orange-yellowish me and leaving the living room at the mercy of its warmth.


    ¡°So you see..¡± she continued, ¡°this was the reason why I had to be cautious before letting anyone into my home, most especially at the dead of night.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to exin.¡± Annalise politely interjected, ¡°we appreciate the fact you showed us this much hospitality and we can¡¯t thank you enough for it.¡±


    She casted a side nce at the stranger who calmly sipped his tea without uttering a word and her expression changed. She didn¡¯t notice it until now but this mysterious being was intentionally letting her do all the talking while enjoying his cup of tea.


    .....


    And she was here wasting her saliva for the both of them.


    Such an ungrateful being! Even a thank you hasn¡¯t escaped from his lips, he should at least show a little gratitude to the woman who had warmly invited them to her home. He doesn¡¯t even look like someone whocks morals.


    ¡°What is your name?¡± The woman unceremoniously asked, drawing Anna¡¯s attention back to her and she smiled, not wanting the thoughts of the stranger to spoil her mood.


    ¡°Annalise.¡±


    The ignorant being who barely said a word throughout the discussion suddenly paused as her name made its way into his ear, like a sweet luby which only irritated him further. So her name¡¯s Annalise.


    ¡°What about your brother?¡± She questioned while diverting her gaze to the mysterious handsome young man who was equally staring at her. Annalise already opened her mouth to speak but inadvertently left them hanging when she realized she didn¡¯t know the name of the stranger sitting beside her.


    That¡¯s right, he never told her.


    She awkwardly sealed her lips while lowering her gaze, looking hesitant but immediately regained her posture to avoid the woman noticing. If only he had told her his name earlier this wouldn¡¯t_


    ¡°Roshan.¡± He finally spoke, gaining both Annalise and the woman¡¯s attention, ¡°the name¡¯s Roshan.¡±


    Thedy finally smiled and felt content with the fact he had said something, she was starting to worry if he was a silent person or a loner.


    ¡°Okay, but you need to hurry up and get changed, your clothes are still wet and you need toe out of it before you catch a cold.¡± She heartily suggested.


    ~


    ¡°You just had to tell her we¡¯re siblings.¡± Roshan finally got a chance toy out theints he had been bottling inside of him the moment they were left alone in a room.


    Annalise who was pacing back and forth while thinking about their predicament suddenly paused after hearing hisints, turning around to meet his unreadable, yet cold gaze.


    ¡°It was a hasty decision I had to make without thinking it through, at least I didn¡¯t go mute like someone with a zipper on their lips.¡± She countered back, and wanted to say more but immediately held her tongue when she noticed a pair of deadly beams ring her way.


    He suddenly got up to his feet, causing the baffled Anna to take a quick step back, keeping as much distance as she could from him.


    ¡°Look where your brilliant idea hasnded us,¡± he sarcasticallymented, ¡°now we¡¯re meant to share a room together!¡± Clearly he was pissed, he didn¡¯t want to be around this young woman for even a second and now he¡¯s meant to stay with her, in the same room, all night.


    Annalise, who was finding hisints to be a little too much, equally stood her ground, ¡°we¡¯ll survive, we survived in the bushes without killing ourselves, we¡¯ll do the same tonight.¡±


    He scoffed bitterly before nodding his head in approval. ¡°Fine then, let¡¯s have it your way, but we¡¯ll see who gets to survive the night, me or you.¡± He sounded calm, but there was a tiny trace of dread in his tone which made Anna gulp in full uncertainty.


    What does he mean by that phrase?


    Before her eyes, she watched as he took off his cmys before proceeding to undo the knots which held his armor vest together. He took them off and was left in his brown tunic which he started to undo as well.


    With horrific eyes, she watched him undo one knot after another, exposing the fair skin that was hidden inside and her pupils finally dted.


    ¡°What are you doing??¡± She questioned in vexation while balling her hands at her side, but the evil being only smirked in response, a smirk she depicted to bring her nothing but absolute troubles tonight.


    ¡°Surviving.¡± And he continued until all the knots were undone, leaving a tantalizing glimpse of his bare upper body to her gaze. She gasped, immediately turning away with her face contorted in half rage.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you have any shame? Undressing before a woman who isn¡¯t your wife?¡± She snapped, unwilling to deal with his immorality but she only heard him chuckle in response.


    A chuckle that sounded so hypnotic and enticing, yet held some sort of deadly tone which she found difficult toprehend with, who was this man??


    ¡°I have no shame,¡± he responded while taking a single step towards her, ¡°but if you¡¯re worried about that, then I can make you my concubine to say the least.¡± He suggested in a nonchnt manner but that response only made the fire inside of her burst excruciatingly as she spun around to look at him.


    He just crossed the line and she wasn¡¯t going to take any of it this time around.


    ¡°What did you say to me?¡± She demanded, taking a step towards him as well while looking up to meet his bored gaze, ¡°a concubine? Do I look that cheap? What do you take me for? Forget about being a concubine, I won¡¯t even be a maid to an immorally nostalgic being like you!¡± She shot back, hoping to hit a nerve inside of him but instead, his hazel-green eyes glinted in amusement, adding to her fury.


    Roshan couldn¡¯t hide the glint of amusement which shed in his eyes at her sudden courage, he never expected her to turn incredibly feisty all of a sudden.


    He was tempted to crush it.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t even started, and you¡¯re already proving to be a viscous cat.¡± he mocked while tilting his head slightly to the side, but Anna wasn¡¯t caught out for his ill words tonight.


    She already has enough on her te.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know me, so watch the venoms you spit out of that mouth of yours next time.¡± She strictly warned, half of what triggered her anger was the fact she won¡¯t even be alive to hold the wedding she had dreamed of having, and here he was, making fun of her by calling her his concubine.


    They held gazes for a few minutes as the room grew tense, with only the sound of rain pattering against the window. Calming her racing heart and regaining herself once more, she realized she was still staring at a half-dressed man.


    Roshan noticed her gaze had suddenly lowered but he wasn¡¯t done yet. Never in his life had he been challenged by a woman and it hurt his pride to see that it was none other than this mere mortal standing in front of him.


    He grabbed her arm the minute she nned on walking away and before Anna could realize his n, her back was already against the wall and he trapped her right in his middle, towering over her and dering full dominance, but her res remained intact.


    ¡°Let me go!¡± She warned, lowering her voice this time around since they were in someone else¡¯s home, but his hold around her arms tightened instead as he pinned them against the wall above her head.


    ¡°You_¡±


    ¡°You im that I don¡¯t know you when you barely have the slightest idea of who I am. Yet you dare to challenge me!¡±


    ¡°Who you are holds no sort of importance to me.¡± She enunciated without a trace of fear in her tone, he only sensed pain which sort of confused him.


    Her words were affecting him to the deepest part of his system, he was so sure that if he had a heart, he would be heartbroken by now but fortunately, he didn¡¯t have one.


    ¡°It¡¯s a night of survival, is it not?¡± His eyes suddenly glimmered in a beautiful, yet seductive way as he looked her over, to the point it made her shiver relentlessly. Her heart sped due to how tempting his deep baritone voice became, like an alluring whisper that was meant to drown her into its depth.


    ¡°And what do you mean by that?¡± She forced herself to ask when he promptly leaned even closer, bringing his lips to her ear as he whispered.


    ¡°That it¡¯s your turn to undress.¡±

 Chapter 23

    Chapter 23: Save Me


    Her pupils slowly constricted as she stared straight into his eyes, as mesmerizing and seductive as they looked, she wasn¡¯t going to let herself fall stupidly into his antics.


    ¡°Why? Could it be.... you¡¯ve fallen for me already?¡± She teasingly inquired, ¡°or do I look so good that you can¡¯t wait to im me?¡±


    She knew how horrible of a state she was at the moment, dirty, drenched, a bit sticky and wasn¡¯t entirely oblivious to that, so this was just a way of indirectly telling him he had a very low taste.


    To her surprise, his lips curled slightly into an unreadable smirk, unable to seal the bitterness hidden within them. He was tempted to grab her neck and squeeze every living breath out of her tiny lungs, that way, she wouldn¡¯t even be alive to dare him to this extent.


    But he couldn¡¯t do it, despite being sopelled by his rage, he found it difficult toy a hand on her.


    Just as he was about to spit another venom, he abruptly paused like someone who had been controlled by a remote, noticing the daring woman was staring at him, not in the same hateful way but it looked simple, almost like she was trying to see through him and the darkness evolving around his circles.


    He felt strange the more he gazed into her big brown eyes, he sensed her emotion¡¯s and couldn¡¯t ignore the familiarity of all of it.


    .....


    Her eyes, her name, her annoying attitude.


    ¡°Have we met before?¡± She suddenly popped the question that has been rampaging in his mind as well, bringing him back to the present as he met her simple, yet questionable gaze.


    ¡°What?¡±


    Annalise finally blinked, thinking over the question she had identally slipped from her mouth and a wave of embarrassment filled her whole.


    ¡®How could she have asked something like that?¡¯


    It was too impossible, here he was trying to frighten her and she¡¯s basically asking an irrelevant question that has nothing to do with it.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± She hesitantly averted her gaze before he noticed the colors painting her cheeks, wanting to move away but when she couldn¡¯t move, it finally dawned on her that he still had her trapped against the wall.


    ¡°Let me go, I need to freshen up, we should be grateful that the kind woman gave us extra clothings else we would be stuck on this.¡± She thoughtfully pointed out.


    As much as she kept trying to hold it in, her eyes were bound to turn her sooner orter so before that, she¡¯d rather make use of her precious time than waste it on apletely immoral being who goes by the name Roshan.


    Even his name sounds evil to her ears, or so she thought.


    Roshan couldn¡¯t help but contemte on her words and even if he hated to admit it, she was right. He equally had a lot of important things to focus on as well so why waste it on an annoying stranger?


    It actually felt like he was finding it difficult to stop himself from reacting whenever she spoke which was clearly unlike him.


    Releasing his hold on her before she made him lose his mind, he reached for the outfit which was neatlyid on the bed for both of them.


    ¡°You wait here, I¡¯ll take the first bath.¡± He wasn¡¯t suggesting, he was making it clear to her and that only stirred her mood once again, doesn¡¯t he know how to talk politely without making it sound like an order?


    ¡°And if I refuse?¡± She asked with folded arms but he barely reacted as he stood at the doorway of the bathroom, adjacent to the barely spacious room.


    ¡°You might as well join me.¡± He shrugged, knowing she wouldn¡¯t even dare to do something like that and as expected, her feisty demeanor slowly faded as her hands dropped.


    ¡°You_¡±


    He went into the bathroom without giving her a chance to rant about how ¡®immoral¡¯ his words were, mming the door in her face and leaving her stupefied by his actions.


    She gaped at the door for a few unblinking seconds before masking her expression with a look of anger and disgust.


    Her hands balled into a tight fist by her side, if she hadn¡¯t brought the idea of taking a bath in the first ce, she doubts he would be so enigmatic about it.


    Later that night, Anna sat down on the cool floor while resting her back against the wall, staring into space while Roshan leaned against the wall opposite where Anna was staying.


    They had both freshened up and changed into warmer clothes, and with no further arguments taking ce, the room became awkwardly quiet and only the sounds of crickets chirping their disturbing noises could be heard.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you asleep?¡± Roshan proceeded to break the ufortable silence, folding his arms above his chest while staring at the talkative who had grown unusually quiet.


    Another empty silence fell in the room, making things moreplicated for Roshan and just when he was about to give up, he saw her move, adjusting her sitting position into a morefortable one before meeting his gaze.


    ¡°What were you fighting at the forest?¡± She had been meaning to ask this question because he wouldn¡¯t be able to deceive her that he fought nothing.


    She heard the fierce shing of swords and she sensed its presence, but he had refused to let her see what he was fighting.


    ¡°A storm Demon.¡±


    His response jolted her out of her deep thinking and she met his gaze. Roshan had expected her to ask that particr question sooner orter and he had no intention of hiding it in the first ce, he just didn¡¯t want her to see it.


    ¡°A storm Demon?¡±


    He nodded, but it only added to her worry at the thoughts of Demon lurking around Euphrasia, her brows knitted into contemtion as she remembered the words of the woman who took them in. A look of exmation crossed her face, that means she was right! Demon¡¯s are really lurking around the paths of Euphrasia!


    Could they also be the ones responsible for the death of those people at the river bank??


    Roshan, who stood against the wall looking like a handsome devil, didn¡¯t fail to notice the multiple expressions crossing her face as she went mute again. What was she seriously thinking about?


    ¡°Storm Demon¡¯s..... do they have anything to do with the weather as well?¡± She asked again, thinking back to the incident which ured when she was a child that led to the death of not just her mother, but a lot of people who were on that ship.


    Not only that, the rain also calmed after Roshan fought with the demon.


    ¡°Possibly.¡± He casually responded and to his unexpected surprise, he noticed a look of pain sh before her watery eyes.


    Demons! She silently cursed with hatred in her head, how could she not have guessed that those unforgiving, heartless creatures were behind it??


    Slowly getting up to her feet when the floor was starting to feel lessfortable and wanting to keep her resolve, her dizziness which she had been trying so hard to tame finally struck her with a much greater force this time around, causing her to stagger back once again and it didn¡¯t miss the sight of Roshan.


    He didn¡¯t utter a word but his eyes dted slightly at the unexpected behavior, why was she feeling constantly dizzy all the time??


    ¡°Are you alright?¡±


    Annalise, who had her back against the wall frantically felt the birthmark on her forehead, she looked up to see Roshan heading her way but he looked vague. Her vision had be too blurry, extremely blurry and her knees suddenly gave in.


    ¡°Anna!¡±


    Just like in the temple, she felt herself fall in the arms of someone instead of finding herself on the cold floor. Her eyelids grew heavier by each passing second and when she looked at the hazy figure who had her in his arms. She remembered when he was the only one capable of helping her and getting her out of the forest.


    When he called her name, why did it feel like it wasn¡¯t the first time hearing him call her in that manner?


    A tiny smile formed on her lips, she must be hallucinating due to the effects of her birthmark but it kept draining her energy and causing the speed of her heart to negatively deteriorate.


    ording to the old physician, the more she goes unconscious, the slower her heartbeat bes and the it¡¯ll keep deteriorating until they eventually stop permanently.


    She didn¡¯t want to die, at least not yet and being in his arms, it brought an unknown feeling like he was the one capable of getting rid of her pain.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± She whispered, leaving the confused being who was clueless on what to do look at the face of thedy he had in his arms and he noticed how pale her face had suddenly be.


    ¡°S_save me.¡± Those sensitive words escaped from her lips in a very weak whisper, but it sounded like a desperate call for help before she got enveloped by the darkness which had been pulling her in, causing her to pass out right in his arms.


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 24

    Chapter 24: A Dream Or Nightmare?


    ¡°It¡¯ste at night and you¡¯re still out here, shouldn¡¯t you be in your room instead?¡± Adryan suspiciously questioned his sister who modishly sat on one of the chairs in the dining room, idly staring at who knows what while remaining deep in thoughts.


    She felt she needed a private moment to herself, even excusing her maids so she wouldn¡¯t be disturbed by anyone but unfortunately, that thought had been disrupted by her brother¡¯s irrelevant question and unwee presence.


    Meeting his ill-lit gaze as he stood a few steps away from where she sat, a soft sigh left her lips and she stole a deep breath. She had been thinking a little too much recently and since the moment Anna left, nothing seemed to be going right like everyone had expected it¡¯d be.


    ¡°More strange deaths has recently ured in Euphrasia.¡± She pointed out, knowing fully well her brother was already aware of the news before bringing it up.


    Rising to her feet, she walked past her brother without giving him as much of a nce, folding her arms above her chest as a silly logic found its way into her head.


    ¡°Now that Annalise is out of the picture, I wonder who is left to me for this incident.¡±


    ¡°Callie_¡±


    .....


    ¡°You¡¯re the future king to the throne of Euphrasia.¡± She strongly interjected with a look of displeasure crossing her pretty face, ¡°father has done his part and it wouldn¡¯t be too long before you equally ascend the throne and be king, right brother?¡±


    The answers to her inquiries were too obvious for him to bother himself with responding, on the other hand, he was more concerned about where his sister was leading this discussion to, not like it¡¯d matter but he was curious regardless.


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it time you start acting like one?¡± She swirled around to look at him. ¡°An injustice had taken ce under the kingdom and the woman you im to love was med for it, strange deaths have been uring and we keep losing the lives of our people, despite all of this, nothing is yet to be done.¡±


    The groundless idea of it all was really eating her up like a spider to a fly, obviously this was a sign of an iing danger but her brother, who she was basically trying to knock some sense into, remained unfazed by everything she just said and his attitude has been like this ever since he returned.


    What she found difficult to grasp was why everyone else remained oblivious to it except her?


    ¡°Then it seems like I haven¡¯t broken the news to you just yet.¡± Adryan finally said something, causing Calista¡¯s ideal expression to fade within a noticeable rate. What news was he talking about?


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± She asked, the addling tone in her voice only made Adryan turn away from her, pausing for a few ufortable seconds before speaking.


    ¡°I¡¯ve found myself another woman that I wish to spend the rest of my eternities with.¡± His deep tenor voice firmly amplified in the quiet dinning, causing Calista¡¯s bliss-blue eyes to dte, like a ticking bomb had suddenly went off in her head, leading to an explosion that she found difficult to recover from.


    Another woman??


    ¡°Wha_what did you say?¡±


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t bring her over due to themotion uring in the kingdom as of now, Sir Arlow and I will investigate the death of those people by Dawn and as for Annalise..¡± he suddenly paused after letting her name slip through his lips, a tiny glint of distaste crossing his brown eyes as he looked at his sister over his shoulder.


    ¡°She¡¯s dead to me.¡± He tsked, ¡°That¡¯ll be if she isn¡¯t even dead by now, you know the tales of the dark woods, don¡¯t you? It¡¯s impossible to step out alive.¡±


    A shocked Calista solidly remained rooted to her spot, dejectedly remembering the tales which sounded more like a terrifying poem to her ears back when she was a kid till this day.


    ¡®the woods plunged in an unshaken darkness, bound by a boundless singrity¡¯


    ¡®The creatures are never asleep¡¯


    ¡®They wander through the windows of the unknown, waiting for the perfect ambush¡¯


    ¡®Seizing the light of day, a barrier was made¡¯


    ¡®A soul is trapped, and never to be released¡¯


    ¡®For a walk in the forest, could lead to an inescapable doom¡¯


    She stopped her mind from recalling more of those poetic tales, meeting the unreadable gaze of her brother and that¡¯s when something snapped inside her head, like a quick bolt dashing through to her senses.


    Hastily turning away from her brother, she hurried towards the stairs like someone who had lost her missing puppy, her eyes searching with the hopes that she might spot him around.


    She has to find the physician.


    ~


    Roshan¡¯s hazel-green orbs forcefully snapped open like someone who had been struck with a hot cane, immediately rising up from the uneventful slumber that caused a painful dread to re-awaken inside his system.


    With a painful groan escaping his thin parted lips, he forced his body to move into a sitting position, gently rubbing the back of his neck to ease the pain he was currently feeling, his body felt sore as though someone had actually beaten him up in his sleep, but suddenly paused when he took notice of his environment, causing his eyes to widen in a fraction.


    ¡°What the_¡± he realized he was actually sitting in the middle of an unusual symbol that was drawn with a ck chalk on the ground, making him squint his eyes into one of trepidation as it emanated a very bizarre energy.


    Quickly averting his gaze from the symbol, his eyes finally chose to scan the area, hoping to see the end of this strange abyss he unknowingly found himself in but he only ended up staring into the total darkness ahead.


    Ignoring the aches and difort he was starting to feel in his body, he forced his limbs to work as he got up to his feet.


    The ce was dark, like a deep pool of murkiness that triggered his five senses to the iing primal chaos. Only with the help of the rows of lit-up candles which surrounded the end of the symbols he was currently standing upon, provided a little bit of light but apart from where he was standing, the rest of the ce was epassed inplete darkness.


    rmed by the familiar dread he felt in this ce, he tried to move, but realized he couldn¡¯t leave the symbol like there was an unknown force which held him back, restricting his movements.


    What is this??


    Rather than scared, he looked half irked by the situation. It wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯s actuallynded in a ce like this and he should have expected it, he always shows up at this unusual ce whenever he falls asleep.


    A dream or a nightmare? He didn¡¯t know where to ce it.


    He was sweating, but could barely make out why he was sweating or why the sight of this empty lonely ce with no destination gave his questing mind a color red.


    They were the darkness that had followed him till this very day and no matter how much he fought with them, he couldn¡¯t escape their evil grasp.


    Despite being freed, he felt trapped and that only messed with his mind. This ce wanted him to surrender to the pain, the despair, the aches which were rampaging and bottling inside of him but that was the least thing he nned on doing.


    ¡°I¡¯ll never surrender!¡± His words echoed deeply in the strange dark ce as he shook his head in demurral.


    He felt a hollow emptiness at the depth of him, and he wasn¡¯t going to let anyone fill that void until his revenge was aplished.


    Holding such thoughts inside of him, the symbol he was currently standing on suddenly discharged a ck smoke, gaining his attention and before he got a chance to react, the symbol jumbled themselves into a sticky ink-like form, bing a ck pool that was starting to pull Roshan into its depth like a quicksand.


    Although he had realized exactly what was happening, it was already toote and when he resisted the pull, many hands stuck out of the ck pool, grabbing him and forcefully pulling him into the seemingly bottomless chasm, more like they were plunging him into the brinks of an abyss that he couldn¡¯t escape from.


    His fears.

 Chapter 25

    Chapter 25: His Scar


    His eyes immediately snapped open as he sprang upright from the bed, inadvertently getting himself into a sitting position, only to find himself back in the room where he was actually meant to be beforending in that terrible chasm.


    He felt a terrible ache at the left side of his chest, as though he was being shot with a thousand arrows but having faced a lot more pains which were much worse than this, he ignored it and brought his mind back to his environment.


    The room surprisingly looked much brighter than it didst night, letting his eyes feast more clearly on the structure of the room. It had a simple and sheltered structure but was barely spacious, which didn¡¯t surprise him since it was a small cottage. Hiszy gaze finally fell on the open window.


    The sun was already out, proudly showing off it¡¯s golden light which prated into the vast room, and despite the weather being cool and calm from the rain that drizzledst night, he was sweating, his ck ink-like hair fell on his face, making him look even more bewitching and dangerously alluring like a daredevil sculpted into perfection.


    But the overwhelming, bloodthirsty aura surrounding him at the moment was enough to tell one he wasn¡¯t the type of person to be trifled with.


    Only when the cool breeze met with his skin did he regain himself back.


    He has woken up from his abyss.


    .....


    Like a quick jolt to his memories, he abruptly nced beside the barely big bed he was sitting upon, only to find the space beside him empty and the slim figure which wasying upon itst night was nowhere to be seen.


    ¡°Where did that annoyingdy go?¡± He questioned with his pretty brows furrowing into a look of disconcert, remembering she had, without any sort of warning, fallen unconscious in his arms.


    Heid her on the bed and watched her face for a while, trying to process why she suddenly passed out and that must be when he fell asleep as well.


    Did they end up sleeping on the same bed?


    Sighing to himself that he was starting to have her mentality despite not spending up to a week with her yet, he cascaded the thought away.


    He wanted to get out of bed when he noticed another person¡¯s presence in the room, except it was a very harmless presence. Turning his eagle-like gaze to the door, a little head popped in, staring at the stranger with innocent Amber brown eyes like a shy puppy.


    Roshan paused in his movement, meeting the stare of the little girl who was currently peeping through the door and he cocked his head slightly at her unannounced presence.


    And where did shee from??


    Ignoring her stare and getting out of bed, he rose to his feet,zily brushing his fingers through the softness of his hair, letting out a soft groan while turning his head from left to right until he felt a gentle stretch.


    He stood before the window but to his obvious surprise, the little girl still remained rooted to the door, watching him with a yful look in her eyes.


    Strange, why was she staring at him??


    ¡°Can I...help you?¡± Roshan chose to get rid of the awkward silence and popped a question to the little girl, who looked no lower than a six year old and her ck hair tied in a cute ponytail.


    ¡°Mr, are you from Euphrasia?¡± Her sweet, eager-filled voice asked him a question in return, leaving Roshan to go mute for a few seconds before turning his whole attention to the little girl.


    ¡°Why do you ask?¡±


    ¡°Cause I think you¡¯re too handsome to be from Euphrasia.¡± She innocently added, causing Roshan¡¯s firm demeanor to fade a bit, with a look that totally showed he wasn¡¯t expecting such a response.


    ¡°Aviva.¡±


    The dulcet, familiar feminine voiceing from the door stole his attention and before he knew it, Annalise was standing before the little girl who looked up to smile at her.


    A relief look crossed Anna¡¯s face before a sweet smile appeared on her luscious lips as well, ¡°What are you doing here? You shouldn¡¯t step into people¡¯s rooms without knocking first or receiving their permission toe in.¡± She softly queried the little one who giggled guiltily.


    ¡°I did knock, but he was asleep.¡± She exined before darting her gaze back to half confused Roshan whose eyes were only fixed on Annalise.


    Judging from her situationst night, she looked like someone whose soul was about to leave their body, he felt her heartbeat and it slowed at a negatively low rate.


    But right now, she looks like someone who barely passed out, her face looked bright and those big expressive chocte brown eyes looked filled with life again. Her hair swooped in curls over her swan neck, before cascading over her shoulders to her back in cinnamon brown.


    In other words, she sort of looks pretty.


    Annalise equally met his devilish pretty stare and that smile on her lips slowly faded, she felt a tinge of embarrassment hit her deep, which she was unwilling to show as her neck strained in reaction.


    She could barely remember what she had said before passing outst night but deep down, something told her she must have uttered something embarrassing.


    Clearing her throat, she kept her expression firm again, ¡°Thedy who took us in, this is her daughter, Aviva.¡± She quickly introduced while holding the little one¡¯s hand in hers.


    Standing before the being who looked even more attractive despite having his shoulder length hair disheveled on his head, only made her feel more ufortable cause when she woke up this morning, she found him asleep beside her on the bed.


    Her heart nearly left her chest after waking up to find him beside her that she cross-checked herself to make sure they hadn¡¯t done anything.


    With the way he actedst night, she thanked the heavens he didn¡¯ty a im on her.


    ¡°Come have breakfast with us once you¡¯re ready.¡± She finally said what had brought her here in the first ce before turning away from him and leaving the room with Aviva following her trail.


    The moment they left, a sudden sharp pain struck the left side of his chest again, causing him to clutch tightly to it as the pain felt unbearably painful for a few minutes.


    ¡°Not again.¡± He hissed out, shocked at the fact the pain had suddenly started again.


    Quickly losing the knot in his shirt, he left his chest exposed to the radiating sunlight falling into the room, feeling d Annalise had left before the pain started, else he wouldn¡¯t know how to exin his predicament.


    Clutching his hand tightly to the mark on the left side of his chest, the pain was bing visible on his handsome face as he closed his eyes for a few seconds. The pain felt as though his heart was continuously being stabbed with a knife and when he turned towards the door, Annalise stood right there.


    Her pupils shockingly dted as she froze in her spot, finding his shirt loose and his upper bare body exposed to her gaze, it left a tantalizing glimpse of his chiseled chest and delicious abs that it¡¯d leave one wanting to see the whole view of his upper body.


    She nearly forgot what she came here for and immediately cleared away the sinful thoughts invading her mind. She had to keep her resolve before she ended up dropping the tray in her hand.


    ¡°Why are you....!?¡± Just when she was about to scold him for acting improper in front of her yet again, her eyes indubitablynded on the visible scar on his chest, but he immediately covered up in an attempt to hide it.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± He demanded while holding onto the pain which worsened. For some reason, the fact she had seen his scar offended him, but Annalise was too dumbstruck by the sight of the scar to hear the anger in his tone.


    ¡°You¡¯re hurt!¡± Her brain finally worked and she quickly dropped the tray of food on the bed, taking a step closer to him.


    ¡°Let me see, maybe I can be of help¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need your help!¡± He coldly rejected her genuine offer, he didn¡¯t need the help of an Euphrasia to treat his wound and never mind that, no one has been able to treat it talk more of a mere mortal like this annoying woman.


    ¡°At least let me see.¡± She inched forward, ignoring his protest and forgetting the fact that she would end up seeing his bare body. She was too focused on seeing his scar instead, oblivious to the genuine worryced in her own tone.


    Reaching closer despite his retreat, she moved his shirt aside so she could take a look at the wound and a short gasp fell from her lips, her pupils dting horrifically after realizing it was straight at his heart region.


    How is he still alive with such scars?


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 26

    Chapter 26: A Noble Suitor


    ¡°This scar.... It looks recent.¡± She thoughtfully conversed after noticing some areas of his wound had a lighter shade of pink and some darker, apparently showing the scar had healed but lighter parts were still healing. It looked like a continuous healing process that could never fadepletely and it only, strangely, surrounded his heart area, did it mean his heart was also wounded?


    Truth be told, his heart medically has to be affected by this, she wondered if he was in any sort of pain right now or if he has even felt the word pain before.


    She knew Roshan to be very strange and unpredictable, for someone who had the courage to fight a storm Demon that killed almost hundreds of people on a ship without any ounce of fear and unscathed, who knows what else he¡¯s capable of doing.


    Noticing how hesitant his deep scar made her feel, she could only lie to herself that her worries were based on nothing else but pure curiosity.


    Acting without enough conscious control and oblivious to the burning eyes fixed on her, her dainty fingers slowly reached to touch the scar on his smooth chest, softly grazing her fingers over it.


    It felt rough like a kitten¡¯s sandpaper against her touch, the only error he seemed to have on his wless body.


    It made her heart sad for some unidentified reasons and unbeknownst to her, that sympathetic expression was visible on her face.


    .....


    What type of a non-healing scar is this? In her neen years of living she has never seen anything like it and to top it off, it was directly at his heart region. The thought made her purse her lips in cogitation.


    What could he possibly have done to get such a painful affliction??


    ¡°Are you done now?¡± Roshan¡¯s deep hypnotic voice jolted her out of her thinking, leading her to identally look up and for a few heart stopping seconds, their eyes shed.


    Hazel-green eyes against chestnut brown.


    She soon regretted taking that action because his eyes became closer and clearer to her view, with their faces only centimeters apart. It felt like she was staring into a deep imprable sea that glistened with only her reflection. She couldn¡¯t help but gulp in restraint.


    Why did they have to look so spellbinding?


    Roshan, on the other hand found her tactics to be a little too innocent despite knowing already how strong-headed the youngdy was. She wanted to see his scar.... If she wanted to touch him she could have outrightly said it without pretending to show care.


    Besides, she was nothing more than a stranger and why would a stranger suddenly care about his scar? Most especially when they¡¯re secretly nning to get physical with one another someday and just tolerating each other¡¯s presence.


    The pain in his chest had stopped, but it left a very unusual feeling the moment she touched his scar, which didn¡¯t sit right with him and having her face this close, only made it worse.


    ¡°Move.¡±


    His ordering tone startled her to her wits and she quickly took a step back like someone who was being controlled, but she already nned on moving away before he even uttered thoseced words of his.


    Her eyes evidently disyed a look of dibobtion as she didn¡¯t sense it before, but standing so close to him made her feel as though she would be clouded by the fog, darkness and forbidden air he emanated. It was somewhat inhuman and dangerously mystifying.


    How can one be filled with such dread and severity at the same time??


    Swallowing that question like she already knew remaining clueless was the safer choice, she finally met his gaze.


    ¡°H_how did you get so seriously hurt?¡± She finally found the voice to ask clearly, but he indolently avoided her stare and turned to the window, shoving both hands in the pocket of his pants.


    ¡°I don¡¯t need to tell you,¡± he frankly responded, ¡°same way you don¡¯t need to tell me about the jewelry headband on your forehead.¡±


    He indirectly rified, causing Anna¡¯s already big eyes to widen a bit in utter shock and he turned his gaze to her direction, which clearly had the ¡®I know¡¯ expression written all over it.


    ¡°You¡¯re hiding it,¡± he enunciated before making his pretty brows knit in half puzzlement, ¡°I had my suspicions at first but now it makes perfect sense as to the reasons why you haven¡¯t taken off that headband ever since we arrived here.¡± Despite sounding so calm andposed, every word of his felt like a wound trying to tear at her flesh.


    ¡°Or could it be...¡±


    ¡°You said you wouldn¡¯t pry!¡± Annalise immediately caught him off with a look of seriousness and when he slightly lowered his gaze, he could see her fist clench, but she was unaware that her antagonizing look only gave him satisfaction.


    ¡°It hurts?¡± He scoffed silently before the dark look in his eyes dismissed itself and was instantly reced with a teasing gaze as both his hands went up the air in surrender.


    ¡°Okay, my apologies.¡± His mood immediately changed to one of contempt, meanwhile Annalise was expecting a lot more only to end up receiving his capricious attitude.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°But at least try to be more genuine, you go around chastising me for acting ¡®improper¡¯ but here you are touching me for the same reason which you reprimand me off.¡± He outwardly vented, finally drawing Anna¡¯s attention to the fact that she had forced a man¡¯s shirt apart.


    Recalling another embarrassing action of hers made both her hands fly to her mouth like she hadmitted some sort of terrible misdeed, she looked like a ghost caught under the moonlight that it took Roshan a lot of constraint to avoid chuckling.


    Feeling even worse by Roshan¡¯s demeanor, she immediately turned around to avoid him noticing the blush colors she was sure had disyed on her cheeks already.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t intentional.¡± She defended herself regardless, knowing she carried no scandalous thoughts in her head before reaching towards him but soon enough, she felt a familiar presence behind her which made her heart rise in response.


    ¡°Then why did you look away?¡± He sexily whispered into her ears, like an enticing maniption which she was oddly starting to find difficult to resist, despite sensing the iing danger that would follow if she dared to turn around.


    She shook that thought away, letting her sweaty hands swiftly grab the length of her ocean blue dress. She felt his close presence behind her and yet, she was unable to run from it and remained rooted like a tree to her spot.


    It couldn¡¯t be she was starting to get fond of his presence, could it??


    ¡°You asked if I had fallen in love with you.¡± His alluring tone brought her back to the present, ¡°but apparently, you¡¯re the one who has fallen.¡± He rified, feeling the thundering sound of her heart beat in his ears and that only amused him further.


    He was enjoying this, but what he enjoyed more was how the repulsive look on her face right now was aplete contrast to her heartbeat.


    ¡°In case you haven¡¯t realized,¡± she unwaveringly forced herself to speak, ¡°I already found myself a noble suitor who I¡¯m going to get married to so falling in love with you is unquestionably out of the question.¡±


    Her lips suddenly curled into a thin line as a thought crossed her mind, e to think of it, I possibly can¡¯t fall for my brother now, can I?¡±


    He didn¡¯t utter a single word behind her anymore, not even a response and it was a silence so intense, it made the atmosphere feel like there was a third person in the room.


    Ignoring his ambient silence, Anna felt she had won the battle this time around which caused him to go mute. With victory eyes, she nced at the tray of food she had left on the bed and instantly remembered what had actually made her step into the room in the first ce, causing her pupils to dte in reaction.


    ¡°Ahh, it slipped my mind, I actually came here to...¡±


    She hadn¡¯t even uttered her wordspletely when a hand unceremoniously grabbed hers, swirling her around to look at him and causing a quick gasp to escape from her lips.


    Stunned by his actions, there was a little bit of dread in those eyes she was currently staring into, causing her to shiver at the weight it carried on her and they no longer looked teasing.


    ¡°Who is this... noble suitor?¡±


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 27

    Chapter 27: The Demon King


    Annalise could barely hold in the shock and bewilderment which took over her due to his unexpected seriousness. She was literally forced to reveal it when he shamelessly imed her love for himself, to the extent she was tempted to crush that uneptable fantasy of his.


    ¡°Who is he?¡± He asked again and there was something different about his expression which turned out to be true, but she couldn¡¯t tell if he was upset or just being neutral.


    However, she wouldn¡¯t let herself look weak in the eyes of him, nor would she let herself fall into the likes of him.


    ¡°Someone who isn¡¯t you.¡± Was her calm and befitting response, she felt he had no right to meddle in her personal affairs and question her so abruptly, on the contrary they were even meant to part ways once they leave today, so telling him or not wouldn¡¯t basically matter, yet something dared her not to try it.


    ¡°Why? Are you ashamed?¡±


    ¡°No, but curiosity always kills the cat.¡± She freed her wrist from his hold and took two steps back, keeping a safe distance before meeting those gaze that always caused her heart to thump relentlessly.


    It made her sick!


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯ll give you some time to yourself now since you refused my help in treating your scar, anyways I brought you breakfast, so eat up, get dressed and then, we can leave.¡±


    Her simple smile remained intact, it only made him fantasize on how many ways he could easily get rid of that smile on her face but he didn¡¯t utter a word, neither did he let his distaste show, knowing his next word mighte out to be a little hurtful. Anna swiftly turned around to leave the room, escaping the treacherous air it had and only when she was out of his sight did her resolve break.


    Letting out a relieved breath, she felt thankful he didn¡¯t ughter her yet for her words but if looks could kill, the daggers he had been constantly using to look at her would have sucked every bit of her soul.


    Meanwhile, Roshan still stood in his position once the door had closed in front of him, looking displeased as the thought of her having a suitor already didn¡¯t go well with him. In order to aplish his n he can¡¯t let her have a suitor, it¡¯d ruin everything and not just that, he would find it even more difficult to lure her into his trap.


    Getting to his kingdom wouldn¡¯t be much of a problem, but facing those people called family and failing at his quest for revenge would leave him ashamed. He wanted to kill someone, to break something or just anything that could ease him off the anger he had bottled up, but yet again, he had to be patient.


    His main goal was getting insights about the Euphrasia kingdom itself and this annoying woman might just be the ticket he needed to aplish that.


    But first, he needs to know about this suitor, although he made it clear to himself that it only triggered half of his anger due to his mission, he suddenly felt like having a personal beef with this unknown suitor and snapping his head right off his neck.


    ¡°A suitor? Soon enough you¡¯ll be left with no suitor at all.¡± It sounded more like a deadly promise before a sinister smirk formed on his thin pink colored lips.


    After having a wonderful breakfast along with some interesting conversation with thedy and her daughter, Annalise and Roshan finally proceeded to take their leave as nned, unwilling to let themselves be of any burden to the kinddy.


    ¡°Be careful out there, they might be creatures of the night but they harbor in the daytime too, so be very attentive.¡± She cautiously reminded them which Annalise nodded to with an understanding smile.


    ¡°We will.¡±


    Waving them goodbye and leaving the warm cottage, their journey continued with the both of them following the same direction, quietly wandering through a lonely path surrounded by more scanty houses across thendmark. The sun was fully out now, bathing them in it¡¯s warmth but the empty and lonely sight only made Anna cock her eyes in befuddlement, wondering if everyone had locked themselves in due to Demon¡¯s suddenlying out at daytime.


    ¡°It¡¯s no longer safe since Demon¡¯s are patrolling the streets now,¡± she broke the silence, ¡°luckily I have my sword with me, but you¡¯re unarmed.¡± She hinted while turning her gaze towards the unpultrichidunous being walking beside her, but he only folded his arms with a botherless look crossing his stoic face without meeting her gaze.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter.¡±


    He barely cared, those Demon¡¯s couldn¡¯t even stand in the same spot he was stepping, he was a thousand times stronger and more powerful than those filthy Demon¡¯s which makes it very difficult for them to be in the same ce that had his aura.


    They were scared of him.


    ¡°Where are you heading from here?¡± Annalise¡¯s dulcet voice broke him from his train of thoughts. She had been meaning to ask that particr question but it continuously skipped her mind. If he wasn¡¯t an Euphrasia then what kingdom or n could he possibly havee from?


    ¡°Viscarrian Kingdom.¡± He curtly responded, causing Annalise to confusingly raise a brow as she interrogatively searched her brain for any kingdom bearing that name, and as expected, that kingdom didn¡¯t sound familiar to her ears at all.


    ¡°Where¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t tell.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Cause curiosity killed the cat.¡± He heartlessly shot back without any ounce of sympathy. This time around, Anna was the one to go mute as his words finally sank in, realizing he just used her own phrase to heartlessly tear her apart. It made her wonder if he never gets tired of verbally fighting with her


    ¡°Must you take revenge all the time?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it satisfies me.¡± Was his odd response and she didn¡¯t bother to question him on that topic again. Apart from giving her a well deserved response, he wasn¡¯t actually wrong either.


    For a human to step into the Viscarrian Kingdom was more like getting into a death trap, but that¡¯s exactly what he wanted, to take her with him to Viscarrian.


    ¡°I assume you¡¯re heading to your suitor, am I right?¡± He conversed which brought Anna¡¯s thoughts to Adryan once again and a slow smile made its way to her lips.


    She had no intention of leaving Euphrasia, she had been wrongly used for something she never did, so she intends on going back and secretly finding out who was responsible for the death of those innocent people.


    ¡°Yes.¡± She responded.


    ¡°An Euphrasia as well?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Roshan slightly nodded after noticing the faint smile appearing on her lips but he didn¡¯t let his annoyance be visible, that¡¯s good, this suitor will end up being the first gender he gets rid of.


    The look in his eyes showed one that couldn¡¯t wait to tear him into pieces. With him out of the picture, then luring this equally annoying woman so he can get more information would be easier too.


    And if that doesn¡¯t work, he¡¯ll just have to kidnap her. Willingly or unwillingly.


    ¡°If you¡¯re from this... Viscarrian Kingdom, how did you end up in the dark woods?¡± Annalise targeted another question at him, casting him her suspicious re cause she did not trust this man one bit.


    ¡°Curious?¡± He stopped walking the moment he asked, making Anna to equally stop moving as she met his deep stare. Looking into those eyes made her feel as though he could see through the depths of her hidden soul. The fact that she doesn¡¯t even trust him either.


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll tell you.¡± A bewitching smirk appeared on his no longer stoic face, yet it carried the deadliest of aura she¡¯s ever felt from him. It made her take a quick step back like she was avoiding those clouds which tried to suck her in earlier.


    ¡°I¡¯m the Demon King,¡± he revealed with his gaze turning cier, ¡°and I¡¯m here to take my revenge.¡±


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C


    *This chapter is dedicated to Ariana_Sawyer, Jenifer_Goliah, sNoWiessahottie, Beauty San, and Rose*


    Thank you so much for the PS <3


    New Book Out! Do check it out


    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 28

    Chapter 28: The Viin


    ¡°W_what?¡± Her shocking voice trembled the mere moment he said them, leading Anna to take a few more cautious steps back with a look of disbelief revealing itself in her brown eyes. It made Roshan conclusively understand the half fear she had for him based on her unstable demeanor and he tried not to chuckle.


    How cute.


    Being a demon it was rather easy to sense fear, if one wasn¡¯t careful at handling it but despite sensing her fears, he equally sensed something more intense which distracted him.


    Was it the continuous thumping of her heart, or the mysteries behind the small crystal mark she was hiding on her forehead?


    He felt there was certainly more to this girl than meets the eye, in addition to the fact he¡¯s so forcefully drawn to her despite not wanting to breathe the same air as her.


    ¡°Wasn¡¯t that the response you expected?¡± The cier look in his eyes had changed in that capricious manner yet again as he cascaded his unanswered curiosity, making it increasingly difficult to read his true emotion as she continuously stared at him.


    The viscous air could no longer be felt around him either, giving Anna a chance to eventually blink at his question.


    .....


    ¡°Do I really look that scary? To the point I can be seen as the demon King?¡± He enunciated further while tilting his head with the same teasing look she was used to seeing y in his glimmering irises, only then did Anna take her time to register his words.


    He was only messing with her.


    ¡°That wasn¡¯t funny at all.¡± Her displeased tone gave away the enmity she felt, but at the same time, he was right. She weirdly expected that response because ever since she woke up in the dark woods and stepped out alive with him by her side, she had her assumptions, but always prayed they were wrong.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know I was making a joke.¡± He added with a crooked smile, but Annalise has had enough of him trying to confuse her state of mind with his words, looks and most especially those eyes of his. She was slightly afraid but even more drawn to those things she had mentioned.


    Gathering herself once more while stealing a deep breath, a small smile formed at the corner of her lips the moment her racing heart finally calmed.


    ¡°Joke or not, you shouldn¡¯t say such things, no one in their right mind would take themselves as such.¡± Roshan was strictly reprimanded like a mother who was reprimanding her stubborn child from going out to y.


    ¡°Why? Are you starting to worry about me? Sorry but I have no interest in receiving the care of another man¡¯s woman.¡± He haughtily turned down her affection and that made Anna lose her tongue at his response.


    Another man¡¯s woman?


    He couldn¡¯t be serious, if she didn¡¯t know him any better she would have misinterpreted his words for jealousy.


    She couldn¡¯t stand the familiarity she felt whenever he was around her and she had even more serious situations to worry about.


    Getting rid of her birthmark was one thing, but proving her innocence meant another, she was basically ced between a rock and a hard stone that even if she continuously acts oblivious and thinks everything was alright with her and the world.


    Nothing was.


    The physician made mention of the forbidden temple and she has never stopped wishing he got enough time to exin to her how the temple could be rted to getting rid of her birthmark.


    If only he revealed to her exactly which book he said he found the meteor mark sign on, then it would have taken half of her stress away.


    ¡°I think this would be where we pathways, I¡¯ve tolerated you long enough.¡± She admitted, whoever he was didn¡¯t matter now, but there was a red sign in her head currently telling her to make a run for it and not just stand here falling into the temptation of his gaze.


    His eyes glinted in response, before furtively shifting to study the lonely meadow and like a sly fox, he had a lethal look of mischief ying in his eyes.


    ¡°Don¡¯t die.¡±


    ¡°You too.¡± She briskly turned around and took a different route once they reached a crosspath, she didn¡¯t know if it¡¯d be possible to get her crossbow and things back, or if seeing Adryan was possible but one thing was certain.


    She had to get away from him.


    Roshan remained at his spot, watching her slim figure fade away into the distance as she hurried by, as though she was running away from someone and it was a good choice.


    The half smile on his face vanished once her presence could no longer be felt, returning to the cold cier expression he carried and with a snap of his fingers, a dark tiny light danced at the tip, drawing a powerful energy that caused a mystic dark cloud which looked worse than a storm cloud to gather in the sky.


    ¡°Guess I¡¯m going to be the viin in your story, Miss Anna.¡± He uttered with an even deeper meaning and within the blink of an eye, he was out of sight and the dark clouds immediately cleared away.


    ~


    Riding through the oddly calm streets of Euphrasia, Adryan appeared to be discernibly lost in thoughts while another soldier riding behind him, urged his horse to move forward so he could ride beside his prince.


    He understood the absence of the prince¡¯s mind from reality, who wouldn¡¯t when their people unknowingly die without leaving a trace of what happened, not even a disease.


    ¡°Prince Adryan, I don¡¯t think asking the neighboring people would help matters at all.¡± Sir Bryan thoughtfully disclosed as he trailed beside Adryan in his horse.


    ¡°Why would you think that? The death of those people urred during the day time, it¡¯s impossible that not even one of them living closeby can give a little information about what happened.¡± Adryan candidly disagreed with his words.


    ¡°That is not my point.¡± Sir Bryan rified, ¡°Indeed it sounds impossible but the bodies, it looked nothing like what humans could do or even have the courage to witness alive.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve arrived.¡± Sir Arlow quickly announced the moment they reached a square where the people of Euphrasia had gathered, disrupting the conversation between both men.


    Noticing the hurled up crowds in front of them, Adryan dismounted from his horse, same with Bryan and Arlow who stood behind him, but he flicked his wrist, informing the rest of his guards to stay put and not follow.


    Making his way into the gathered crowd ahead, the people immediately made a path once they sensed his approach and silence fell within the vige square.


    Curious as to what had caused the gathering, he approached the open space only to find indefinable dead bodies lying helplessly on the ground.


    It made his eyes widen horrifically at the appalling sight. What shocked him was the fact that they were neither of the dead bodies were wounded or touched, but their body had dried up as though every bit of blood in their system had been dynamically sucked away, leaving them to look like an espalier vine on a winter


    The agonizing look was sadly portrayed on their faces, their cheeks narrowed and their eye sockets were as white as ghost. It only made him shake his head in pity, unable to imagine the pain they must have passed through.


    Bryan immediately reached for his side, equally staring at the dead bodies on the ground with a look of pity.


    ¡°This is what I mean,¡± he proceeded to say, ¡°no human could cause this except....¡±


    ¡°Demons?¡± The question slipped out of Adryan¡¯s mouth in full animosity as his throat went bitter, unveiling the inextinguishable hatred he had for those creatures in particr.


    Bryan nodded regardless while letting out a concluding hum, ¡°My prince, the Demon¡¯s hid away due to the protective seal that had been intact for many years, prince Adryan, I think the fears of our kingdom might be true, the viins and ancient horrors are gradually awakening.¡±

 Chapter 29

    Chapter 29: A Special Soul


    *Bonus chapter as promised, Yay!! we crossed a hundred s! thank you for the support <3*


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C


    A ck gate with tall wooden doors suddenly bursts open in the quick of a frenzy, due to the heavy wind that dangerously seeped in from the outside.


    Roshan boldly stepped into the kingdom of Viscarrian, letting his feet touch the mosaic tiled floor and making his way past the entrance hallway that was magnificently lit up by candles, beautifully ced on the rows of stainless candle holder that was attached to the ceiling by its handle.


    A maid who was walking by had heard the sound of the main entrance door jolting open with force, and out of curiosity, she hurried toe check what it was, only to be met by the physically attractive being who seemed to be heading towards her direction.


    Her emerald green eyes dted in disbelief at the mere sight of someone she never expected in her whole existence toe back to Viscarrian again, to the point the tray she was currently holding with a ss of red wine on top of it dropped to the ground, spilling and shattering but she remained immobile to the sound, her mind ringing on only one thing.


    He''s alive!!


    .....


    "Y_your highness??"


    He was dressed in a royal ck attire that gracefully exuded the strength and power he had brought along with him, his crimson colored mantle fluttering to the hazardous call of the wind with each dominant step he took towards her.


    A sudden unidentified fear gripped her heart and she gulped, unable to take a single step forward or even backward as she remained frozen to her position like a statue.


    Roshan eventually halted once he made it to her spot and without having someone to tell her the next course of action to take, she immediately bowed her head.


    "Y_your highness!"


    "Where''s Azazel?" He asked instead, ignoring her greetings as he felt the maiden tremble in fear at his sight.


    "He''s..... He''s in the main hall." She politely responded with an equally trembling voice, causing Roshan''s face to turn a bit grim at the news and without uttering anything else, he headed for the main hall.


    The maiden slowly rose back properly and watched him exit the entrance hallway, hurriedly heading towards the main hall itself. His ink ck hair had grown even longer to what she remembered and despite being frighteningly scared by his unexpected presence, she was taken aback by his alluring charms.


    "I even forgot what his highness Roshan actually looked like?!" She eximed in shock but her mind was instantly drawn to the ss she had subconsciously shattered on the ground.


    Bending to her knees, she hurriedly picks them up so she can quickly inform the rest of the maidens about his highness''s return.


    Arriving directly at the Grand and majestic main hall, Roshan pushed the vast door open and within its domain was an equally strikingly handsome being who perfectly leaned against the easternmost part of the wall, sipping a ss of red wine with his gaze fixated on the grand windows.


    He didn''t need to turn back to know who had walked in for only one person was capable of having that amount of deadly aura inside of him.


    With a slow smile etching at the corner of his red lips, he turned to look at the cier who stood in the middle of the room, obviously ignoring his presence and searching for someone else instead.


    "Brother finally came back home after so many years and I''ve turned invisible to his gaze." Levi feigned sadness while giving the left side of his chest a pat, like someone who just had his heart broken into a million pieces by Roshan''splete ignorance of his presence.


    But as expected, the iceberg barely showed any sort of remorse and was more concerned about what brought him here.


    "Where''s Azazel?" Roshan asked regardless, equally ignoring Levi''sint but the handsome being also gave a reluctant gaze as he shrugged.


    "I don''t know, find him yourself." He low-key muttered in a very stubborn manner and despite it being a long time he was far away from home, Roshan still knew Levi''s annoying tricks.


    "Levi..." He growled in a low tone, wanting the stubborn headed being to sense he was serious but yet again, he just shrugged with an expressionless gaze, intentionally ignoring the daggers being casted his way.


    "You seem to miss Azazel so much, find him yourself."


    "What do you want me to do then? Kiss you?" Roshan couldn''t help but add sarcasm to his deep tone, unaware of how seductive it sounded in the grand quiet hall and that made Levi''s hazel eyes widen in full surprise.


    "You''re only permitted to make those options if I was a woman you heartless demon!" To be honest, he was starting to regret why he never came as a gorgeous woman rather than a man, sometimes the thought of it made him sick and he knew Roshan did that on purpose to irk him up.


    "Agreed, so where''s Azazel?"


    "Handling a few issues he''s currently dealing with for days," he firmly responded while staring at the wine ss in his grip, "but he should be back as of....." the moment he drawed thest word, a powerful sharp light suddenly shot through the open window,nding directly at the center of the main hall where Roshan stood.


    It glowed in a very tremendous red light and once it faded, another beautiful being was standing before the two of them, dressed in a fancy red robe and matching trousers, his silvery-white hair spilling across his back and shoulders as his blue eyeszily met the stare of Roshan.


    "Weed home brother." He casually uttered with an expressionless face, making it sound like it was a normal thing for one to disappear and appear when they feel like it in the Astaroth family.


    "They imed you were dead, unfortunately I knew you better." Azazelmented after studying the pulchritudinous being who stood before him, looking unscathed and full of illuminating darkness. He finally moved.


    "What is it? I''m busy and your presence is distracting, shouldn''t you be getting rid of those storm demons to ease your anger? I thought you hated them."


    Azazel quickly suggested after sensing the unsatisfied rage in his brother, it made him feel like pouring cold water on him and easing his temperance a little but then, he skipped the idea as it would only make him burn further.


    "I thought I was the only one who noticed it." Levi teasingly added while moving from the wall he was resting on.


    Roshan indeed hated them and every other useless Demon''s, but since those filthy Demon''s were helping him aplish a bit of his task for once in their miserable existence, why stop them??


    "The clouds." Roshan started with a look of seriousness, ignoring the words of both his brothers, "I sensed it for the first time today and something doesn''t feel right with it." He turned his questionable gaze towards Azazel who took a seat on one of the ornate chairs at the corners of the main hall.


    "Why so?"


    "Incase you''re suspecting something," Azazel began with his expression still stoic, giving him a slight resemnce to Roshan as he met his gaze," then yes, a soul has escaped from the limbo the moment you vanished during thest war and I''m still having troubles recovering it."


    "A soul?"


    "A special soul." His gaze darkened a bit, "and it''s causing a serious rift between the three realms."


    New Book Out! Do check it out


    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 30

    Chapter 30: Targeted


    ¡°What sort of rift?¡± Roshan delved further into the question as it didn¡¯t really make sense to him, he felt there was an unusual rity with the clouds and it didn¡¯t give a good sign ording to his knowledge. That was the only thing that brought him back into this underground pce, meanwhile Azazel just kept his demeanor calm and icy, justifying the oceanic blueness of his eyes but they remained distant.


    ¡°A limbo is more like anotherherworld between the three realms where souls dwell, though not condemned or anything of that sort but it¡¯s where souls normally go after leaving the earth, waiting to be either reincarnated or reborn.¡± He theoretically exined to the confused Roshan who finally had a look of understanding crossing his face, but then another question suddenly hit him.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t there be a barrier around it?¡±


    Azazel raised a brow in reaction, silently contemting on Roshan¡¯s next question before letting out a ¡®hmmm¡¯ in response, ¡°you¡¯re not wrong, but something even more unusual happened in your absence.¡±


    Getting up to his feet, he faced the window as though he was recalling the most unusual event that took ce, ¡°a terrible force struck the limbo in ordance to some ufortable predicament and a soul was identally freed due to its maic force.¡± His gaze was suddenly filled with curiosity as he continued, ¡°it was thest energy soul needed to make sure the chain of rebirth doesn¡¯t fluctuate, unfortunately, we lost it.¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t you just recover the soul back?¡±


    Azazel couldn¡¯t hold back a little snort, ¡°As far as I know the soul is probably residing in some human¡¯s body and getting it back is impossible, unless we kill the human or wait for that being to die.¡±


    .....


    ¡°A soul escaping before its actual time of rebirth, won¡¯t that cause the lifespan of this person to shorten to some extent?¡± Levi thoughtfully inquired, earning a slight nod from Azazel.


    ¡°It¡¯s the consequence of going against thew of rebirth. However, whoever has that soul must have probablye of age, many Demon¡¯s would have targeted that specific being already, since the soul would return soon enough.¡±


    ¡°Targeted?¡± Roshan suddenly inquired, meeting the stare of Azazel whose cold eyes glinted in response.


    ¡°I know there¡¯s been many deaths urringtely and it¡¯s due to those wild Demon¡¯s who can¡¯t control their bloodthirst, on the contrary, storm Demon¡¯s, shadow Demon and the rest higher demons who only feast on powerful energy souls, would have been an easy way for me to figure out who the being is, unfortunately I¡¯ve been too busy fixing the chain with something temporal to focus on that.¡±


    ¡°And you think this person with a special soul resides in Euphrasia?¡±


    Levi couldn¡¯t resist nodding his head to Roshan¡¯s third question this time around and he feigned a pitiful expression, ¡°you need to see the chaos being disyed in the Euphrasia kingdom, the war hasn¡¯t even started yet.¡±


    ¡°They should have thought about it before blindly trapping me in that temple,¡± Roshan outwardly cursed with a resentful gaze as the images of those spirits and sharp cuffs tearing at his flesh shed before his eyes, not only did they trap him, but they¡¯vebeled him as a beast, a devil and many other pretty names he could remember.


    If they really want to see a devil, he was going to make them experience the torture of being with one.


    ¡°They brought this iing misery upon themselves and soon enough, they¡¯ll all bow before me in defeat, pleading for mercy cause I¡¯ll make them experience what real pain feels like, to the point they¡¯d wish for death instead.¡±


    ¡°One could easily sense your vengeance brother.¡± Levi half-joked before his teasing smile equally faded, as though he just remembered a tragic event as well.


    ¡°I heard the new weaponry made for catching Demon¡¯s hasn¡¯t been tested yet but I can¡¯t tell as of now, we need insights about the main kingdom.¡±


    ¡°Another reason why I¡¯m here.¡± Roshan immediately uttered as Levi¡¯s words seemed to remind him about his second reason foring here. Turning his attention to Azazel, he didn¡¯t ask but straightforwardly demanded with a targeted gaze.


    ¡°I need one of your pills.¡±


    ¡°For?¡±


    ¡°Are you giving or not?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    Azazel refused without even batting an eye. Despite being locked away for years, his half-brother¡¯s attitude barely changed, rather it seemed to have only gotten worse, to the point he wondered how the rest of the Astaroth family would react once they see him, but that could be handledter, as of now, he was more curious as to what Roshan wanted to use his pills for.


    ¡°I¡¯m not giving.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I have no intention of using it on you.¡± Roshan assured him in a rified tone but that didn¡¯t convince him pretty much.


    ¡°Then who?¡±


    ¡°If you don¡¯t give them to me, you won¡¯t know, and it¡¯ll be our loss.¡± He stated the unseen aftermath, causing the reluctant Azazel to give in to his demand as he focused a bit of his power to his right middle finger, letting the crimson light dance along the tip with a magnifying power.


    He instantly caught the light in his grasp, only to open his palm and resting on it was a red colored pill which he handed to Roshan.


    ¡°You get only one as your wee gift, and because I do not trust you.¡±


    Nevertheless, Roshan took the pill and ced it inside his mouth. Without uttering anything else to the both of them, a dark powerful light soon enveloped him, causing a great gust of wind to epass the hall room and once the dark light faded, he was out of sight, leaving the room to fall in a quiet hush as both men exchanged nces.


    ¡°What¡¯s he nning on doing with the pill?¡± Levi rmingly chimed in but only got a nk stare from Azazel in return.


    ¡°I gave him the pill so he has no choice but to tell us, he knows I don¡¯t easily give out my things without a proper exchange.¡±


    New Book Out! Do check it out


    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 31

    Chapter 31: Shocking Revtion


    Annalise couldn¡¯t help but feel as tired as the wings of a bird as she came to a stop against an old tree, the fatigue of this unfruitful journey was starting to get to her system and the heat of the sun weren¡¯t helping her situation in a positive way as her heartbeat increased.


    She had been walking all day and barely gave herself even the tiniest of breaks along the way until now. Her energy waspletely drained and dried up, knowing that if she dared to continue further without getting even if it¡¯s a little bit of rest, she might end up passing out again.


    Sighing at the thought of what might happen, the idea of giving up on this journey was starting to creep into her head, not until a tiny sh of light shun directly into her eyes, gaining her attention immediately as she looked up.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Not too far from where she stood, a running river could be seen up ahead and it made Anna blink in full surprise, stunned that she didn¡¯t notice it earlier and she doubts she would have if it wasn¡¯t for the reflection of light that came from the water itself.


    The tiredness in her chocte brown eyes immediately dissipated, only to glint in relief at the mere sight of a running river that she couldn¡¯t stop her lips from curving into a wide grin. She suddenly looked as excited as a little brown puppy about to get their favorite snacks, feeling a bit of her energy return with the thought that she can finally drink some water.


    The turquoise blue stream gently flowed in a serene manner as it ran down the path, looking fresh and clean while glinting with little sparkles that she suddenly felt enchanted by the sight.


    .....


    Already thirsty from before, the water only seemed to pull Anna even closer, to the point she didn¡¯t even realize when she had bent down, scooping both hands through the water and drinking her fill.


    It was thirst quenching and super refreshing as it went down her dry throat, freeing her from its terrible aches and ufortable feeling. Sshing the cool water on her burning face and washing them up, a satisfied sigh fell from her lips as she¡¯s never felt more refreshed as she did now. Indeed, water is life and she has learned to appreciate nature¡¯s gift now.


    Laying t with her back to the ground, she stared up at the heated sky, the blueness of the sky looked calm and yet so still, she couldn¡¯t resist squinting her eyes a bit as the yellow sun mercilessly sent it¡¯s heated sun rays at her direction but still, she didn¡¯t look away.


    The thought of how she even ended up in this unfortunate position made its way into her head, she got used of something she never did, she had to run away from the only ce she considered home, she had no family and all those rted to her parents abandoned her as well, she was a lonely being who has to fight for herself despite how severe her situation might get, that is the story of her life.


    Swallowing the disturbing lump in her throat, her hands reached for the golden badge the physician had given to her, unhooking it from her waist and raising it up to the sun so she could look at it more properly.


    Her fingers gently caressed the Euphrasian logo that was beautifully crafted on it and a sharp pain stung her already weak heart. Did she reek with that much bad luck to the point she lost both parents in this unforgiving world?? Instead of her life being limited like this, why was she even born in the first ce? To suffer and then die without experiencing what true happiness felt like?


    She never met her father by the time they gave birth to her, but she felt more attached to him by heart than she did with her mother. Her mother would always talk about him all day and she was more than happy to listen to them. It got to a point when she wondered what receiving a fatherly hug felt like and she¡¯d always go into her parents room to hug his shirt which her mother has refused to get rid of.


    They missed him that much.


    Everyday under the moonlight, she¡¯d listen to the sweet tales her mother had to give and the sessful stories of her father¡¯s war which she was always so eager to hear. Despite not having enough, life felt much better then, they were contented and happy.


    A lone tear slowly escaped from her eyes but a smile which held a thousand emotions still lingered on her lips, she missed the both of them so much and still wondered if her life would turn out to be the way it was if she still had them with her.


    ¡®No, things would have been different¡¯ she concluded in her mind.


    ¡°I say I¡¯m okay but..... I don¡¯t think I can keep faking it for much long.¡± She admitted to the badge in her hand before a certain idea crossed her mind.


    As risky as it was, she ns on going back to that forest to get the things Calista had given to her when she left for the journey, apparently those were the only source of shelter she had so letting it slip from her grip just like that was unquestionable no.


    Recovering herself a bit at the thought of it, she quickly wiped the lone tear from her face and kept the badge back on her waist.


    What was she doing? Grieving won¡¯t help her situation at this moment, she has to keep moving so she can make it to the forest on time before those Demon¡¯s show up.


    Taking a deep breath to calm her emotions and feeling she¡¯s rested enough, she got to her feet and continued once again.


    It was nearing midday when she finally made it to the forest and to her great relief, the bushes where she had hid her stuff and the pine trees which helped to shelter it from the rain made her heart mellow down in great relief. Although her horse was nowhere to be seen, she felt grateful that what she needed most was still intact, now she has to get out of here.


    Getting to her feet and wanting to leave the bushes where she was hiding, a familiar figure ahead caught her attention and she stopped. Her pupils dted and her heartbeat increased at the sight of Adryan, standing before the dark woods as though he was studying it.


    He was dressed in royal armor as though he came prepared for a fight and his good-looks equally stood out, making him no different from a charming prince, strangely the sight of him made her think back to Roshan and her heartbeat increased further.


    She wondered if he had made it back to his kingdom or if it was another long journey ahead of him. His hazel-green eyes were still stuck to her memory and his looks was another whole level of temptation, aplete contrast to the prince.


    Roshan was clearly not a prince charming, but a dark prince whose presence affected her soul, a perfect bnce of danger and charm.


    Wait.... What has Adryan¡¯s presence got to do with Roshan??? Why was she thinking about someone she might never see again??


    Cascading Roshan from her mind with hope returning to her heart once again, her mind immediately wandered to Adryan and why is he suddenly standing in front of the dark woods? Did hee here to find her or...


    Happy about the fact he was here, she wanted to call out to him but immediately held her tongue at the nick of time when Sir Arlow and more royal guards approached him, equally carrying the seriousness in Adryan¡¯s gaze.


    ¡°Is it possible that the tale is true? Is there really a demon who has escaped from the dark woods?¡± Adryan candidly asked but Sir Arlow excused the guards from their presence, leaving only him and Adryan standing in front of the dark woods.


    ¡°It¡¯s bound to be true your highness, cause this time around, I had nothing to do with it.¡± He informed but his response left Anna who quietly hid in the bushes to eavesdrop on their conversation.


    Her brows furrowed into a half frown and half curiosity, what did he mean by he has nothing to do with it??


    ¡°Your highness,¡± he rmingly looked around to make sure no guards was close by before continuing, ¡°framing Anna and forcing one of the victims to say her name to his majesty was a sess, but right now, we have an even bigger issue to deal with.¡± He critically informed while Adryan¡¯s gaze darkened slowly.


    Meanwhile, time seemed to slow down for Anna as she heard the most shocking revtion of her life, a revtion that made her heart stop and her eyes turning round as it reyed in her head.


    ¡®framing Anna and forcing one of the victims to say her name was a sess¡¯


    That...That means...Sir....Sir Arlow killed those people! And Adryan¡¯s aware of it???

 Chapter 32

    Chapter 32: Venomous Kiss


    ¡°We saw the bodies of those people Arlow, I see no need for you to exin yourself to me.¡± Adryan critically warned in a calm tone, causing Sir Arlow to bow his head in apology as he had no idea his act of rity would end up displeasing his highness.


    It was their secret and he made the mistake of mentioning it, but he didn¡¯t want to be a suspect to his highness else he could be killed too.


    Annalise on the other hand tried not to gape at what she just heard, forcing her mind to be clear and not get overshadowed by the fog. Her gaze remained transfixed on the both of them as she remained at her spot, not caring if she would be seen or not as what rampaged in her mind took control of her senses.


    So... so all this was actually Adryan¡¯s and Sir Arlow¡¯s n? To get rid of her??


    Her expression was more like someone who just had the worst nightmares of her life, she didn¡¯t want to believe it and shook her head in skepticism, unwilling to believe that Adryan could be part of something as hypocritical as this.


    Sir Arlow¡¯s intention didn¡¯te as a surprise to her but Adryan did. She would never have suspected that Adryan would have a hand in this cause after Calista, he was the second person she trusted most in Euphrasia. He always sheltered her and was also the reason why she¡¯s alive till this day so seeing his mask being unveiled before her broke her heart in ways one couldn¡¯t possibly imagine.


    He was supposed to be her friend, how could he do this to her???


    .....


    Annalise couldn¡¯t help but feel betrayed by someone she trusted the most, but his reasons for doing this were still unknown to her. Why would he want to get rid of her? They didn¡¯t have any issues before he left so why would he do this? If he really nned all this then why did he respond to Calista¡¯s message when she told him about her predicament??


    With the anger boiling inside of her due to those unanswered questions, she was not only tempted to go out there and p him back to his senses in case he left it at the neighboring kingdom he visited, but she wanted to know why he did all this.


    He imed to love her, he cared for her and then betrayed her like this?? Was this the love he so imed to have for her?? Wasn¡¯t he concerned about how she¡¯d feel?


    Her fists clenched tightly by her side and she felt stabbed in the back. If it wasn¡¯t for Calista, she would have probably been dead by now, thinking Adryan wasing to help her and the thought of it suddenly made her feel foolish.


    ¡°Your highness.¡± Bryan suddenly showed up, causing Anna to finally hide away as he approached Adryan.


    He bowed politely before raising his head up, ¡°his majesty wants you back at the pce, the new swords has just been made and it¡¯ll be a good tryout if we test it on demons.¡± He informed, causing Adryan¡¯s serious Amber eyes to finally glint in amusement.


    ¡°The swords have arrived already?¡±


    ¡°And many other weaponry, but the sword seems to be special, a valerian sword if I¡¯m not mistaken.¡± He added, causing Adryan and Sir Arlow to exchange looks that showed their cluelessness.


    ¡°Very well, we¡¯lle back here another day.¡±


    Annalise shook her head in disagreement, at this point she no longer cared if she would be caught or not, but he has to answer to her questions and why he of all people would do this to her.


    Already stepping out of her hiding ce, a hand suddenly seized her arm with a quick grasp, unceremoniously drawing her back and into the other side of the bushes where she¡¯d be out of sight to the Euphrasia guards.


    ¡°Ah!¡±


    Annalise yelped at the unexpected action and before she got a chance to recover from that unexpected hold, she was backed against a tree with Roshan standing right before her.


    Her big eyes turned round yet again at his unforseen presence, her heartbeat immediately picked up speed and its thumping sound didn¡¯t miss his ear, but he barely reacted, more like he was forcing himself not to react.


    ¡°R... Roshan??¡± The surprise and shock were both evident in her tone as she was left to stare into those Hazel-green eyes of his, he was dressed in a royal attire that he suddenly looked a bit different to her, like the dark prince she had predicted in her head earlier but an unknown fear equally gripped her heart. His aura became much worse as he stared with so much intensity in his eyes.


    ¡°W_why are you here?¡± She stammered but he suddenly leaned towards her against the tree, causing her to shrink away as though she could disappear from his sight and from his overbearing aura, nearly forgetting about the betrayal she got today.


    She was already filled with enough rage at the moment and he just interrupted her only chance of ever getting the truth from Adryan. She was hurt but instead, her heartbeat seemed to be focusing on Roshan and the looks he kept giving her.


    She watched his seductive gaze slowlynd on her lips before retracting back to meet her stare.


    ¡°To take what¡¯s mine.¡± He responded and it sounded so foreign to her ears as she blinked in confusion, take what¡¯s his?? What could that....


    Before she got a chance to make up her thoughts, his lips were already on hers, causing the confused and disoriented Anna to go still against the tree like someone who just got electrocuted. Her eyes widening to the point it looked no different from the eyes of an owl.


    Her heart thundered in her ribcage the moment his soft lips forced it way into parting her lips and deftly sliding his tongue in without restraint.


    Only then did Anna regain herself and her heart was instantly filled with a sense of disgust with the fact he was actually kissing her. How dare he do this????


    She tried to push him off with all her might, her sounds of disapproval were muffled in-between the unexpected kiss, causing it to sound like a sweet moan to his ears and he took it even deeper.


    The more she resisted and tried to squirm from his trap, the more chances he got to savage the inside of her mouth with his tongue. He could feel the heat escaping from her body despite her being so reluctant to give in and his mind was immediately filled with how soft and kissable her lips were. He wanted more and kissed her without realizing how possessive his kisses were starting to be.


    Annalise stopped struggling when he pulled her body to his like a ma, forcing her hands tond on his chest and she could only close her eyes tightly, she wanted to catch her breath but barely got the chance to.


    She was immediately overwhelmed by the anger and strange flutters building inside of her, she didn¡¯t realize that her eyelids were starting to be heavier the more he kissed her.


    Soon enough, her body was starting to grow weak, she didn¡¯t have the strength to fight him off and wanted to even take out her sword, but her body wasn¡¯t cooperating with her senses anymore.


    Slowly and slowly, her energy seeped from her system with each passing second and just like he realized it too, he slowly pulled back as well.


    He met her stare and she looked weak like he had expected, he saw the rage in her eyes, but she was too weak to even vent them.


    ¡°What did you.....¡±


    ¡°Shhh.¡± He softly silenced her when he sensed she was about to say something.


    ¡°Don¡¯t fight it.¡± His tone sounded somewhat different to her ears and her eyelids dropped again, why was she suddenly dizzy? What did he do to her??


    Without getting an answer to those questions, she instantly lost consciousness in his arms, causing a look of triumph to glisten in the eyes of Roshan as he swiftly picked her up.


    Just like before, he was once again covered with a dark light swirling around him and once it faded, he was nowhere to be seen.


    Neither was Annalise.


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 33

    Chapter 33: The Valerian Sword


    Hurriedly making his way into the pce as instructed by his father earlier, Adryan strode through the grand hallway with his lips curling into a half smile, Sir Bryan and Arlow following from behind.


    Hearing about the arrival of the sword really lighten his mood a bit as he softly ran his fingers through his hair, causing the maids who quickly walked by to blush uncontrobly at his sight.


    He purposely nned on taking a little trip into the dark woods earlier to figure out if truly the tales of a devil, or a demon, or a beast, whichever one they imed it to be, he wanted to know if it really existed and if truly it¡¯s escape was the cause of all the massacre happening in Euphrasia.


    But since the sword surprisingly arrived at the pce today, he was anxiously anticipating to see what it looked like, what it could be specifically used for and just how powerful the merchant imed the sword to be.


    Upon reaching the inventory room as that was the only ce every weapon made, bought or brought could be kept, he finally stepped in as the guards who guarded the door opened the tall gates for him to proceed further into the inventory room.


    Not much to his surprise, his father and a very few members of the royal court were already present in the inventory, causing him to halt in his steps after seeing almost everyone surround a wooden table and numerous whispers echoed by.


    ¡°Your majesty.¡± Sir Arlow¡¯s and Bryan politely greeted in unison while taking a low bow before the King himself.


    .....


    King Olis, who was busy having a brief discussion with one of the court members present in the room, finally turned to look at the guards who still kept their heads lowered in a bow before shifting his gaze to the direction of his son.


    ¡°Adryan,e.¡± His father quickly beckoned him over which he politely followed and within a few seconds, he was standing right beside him at the table.


    Since this was basically a private matter, Calista wasn¡¯t allowed to go in, leaving her to take the decision of eavesdropping instead at the door, curious about why they had suddenly gathered in the inventory of all ces.


    Convincing the guards was a bit difficult, so she had to use her trademark smile and offer them enough dinner to easilypensate them for letting her do this, also that they¡¯ll have to keep their lips sealed about it.


    ¡°I got your message father.¡± Said Adryan while folding his hands behind his back. On top of the wooden table was something that seemed to be wrapped in a brown cloth, gaining Adryan¡¯s attention immediately as he noticed its dark colored shining hilt.


    ¡°Is that the sword?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± A court member responded with a focused gaze, ¡°the valerian sword, we can¡¯t process it yet until the merchant arrives, ording to him, this is one of the most deadliest of swords ever made, so why rush things when we can wait?¡±


    The king himself nodded in approval to his words, ¡°he also said something about the sword that I need to rify from him. The Valerian sword was made long ago, even more than decades before the war started and its only aim was to take out the most powerful of Demons.¡±


    The king theoretically exined, causing his son¡¯s brow to knit into a look of enquiry, a deep line forming on his forehead.


    ¡°And who¡¯s the most powerful of Demons?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s escaped.¡± The king broke it down with a grim look appearing on his nearly, ¡°and he isn¡¯t going to take this lying down, he¡¯ll strike back and in the meantime, I want everywhere in the pce secured.¡±


    He made it clear to Bryan and Arloe who immediately nodded in response.


    ~


    ¡°Roshan¡¯s been away for a while now, for some reason I¡¯m starting to get the feeling we should have tied him up and not let him step out through that door in the first ce.¡±


    Levi admitted with a half worry contorting his beautiful face but Azazel barely flinched or even reacted, his gaze just remained fixed on the door which they were sure Roshan would use to make an entrance very soon...


    Or maybe not so soon.


    Levi knew Roshan and Azazel had a way of settling things amongst themselves, he was the youngest which is mostly why they tend to shove him out of most things going on between the two of them, which he finds very unfair.


    ¡°Normally I would have left a long time ago,¡± Azazel¡¯s deep cool voice resonated in the quiet stairway where they patiently stood waiting. He knew as much that if it was anything that needed his concern, Roshan would always find him no matter where he was, so waiting for him was something he¡¯s never done before, yet feltpelled to do it today.


    ¡°Tch! The rest of the breakable family will soon return from their hunting trip. I¡¯m going to stay hopeful that my brother won¡¯t cause trouble once they arrive, in fact I¡¯ll talk to him once he¡¯s in a good mood.¡±


    Azazel¡¯s lips slowly curled at Levi¡¯s pessimistic word, ¡°you¡¯re a demon yourself, yet your heart is so different.¡±


    ¡°I never really nned on being like you or brother in the first ce, I¡¯m a handsome man with many emotions.¡± He softly bit back, knowing that Azazel wasn¡¯t actuallyplimenting him at all despite sounding so amused about it.


    Soon enough, the grand door unexpectedly bursted open with a vast winding in, gaining the two bickering daredevil¡¯s attention as their gazes shifted to the door instead.


    Roshan finally stepped in, but what they weren¡¯t expecting was to see a woman in his arms as he approached the two of them, like a warrior bringing home a trophy after a long battle.


    ¡°He¡¯s back!¡±


    ¡°But with a human girl?¡± Azazel cocked his head slightly at his own enquiries, finding it somewhat strange to see a girl in Roshan¡¯s arms, thest time he saw a girl in Roshan¡¯s arm like this was....he could barely remember.


    She seemed to be unconscious based on the fact she wasn¡¯t reacting to his hold and once Roshan made it to where they stood, his gaze lightened a bit.


    ¡°Where are the guards? I need her to be kept under serious surveince until she wakes up.¡±


    ¡°But who is she?¡± Levi couldn¡¯t resist asking as he blinked at her, even taking a step closer to see her properly as she somewhat looked familiar to his gaze.


    ¡°She¡¯s the insight I need, she¡¯ll tell me what I need to know about Euphrasia.¡±


    With that, he made his way into one of the chambers upstairs without letting a word escape from Levi¡¯s mouth. The moment he was out of sight, Levi¡¯s expression suddenly frowned a bit, which Azazel noticed.


    ¡°What happened this time?¡±


    ¡°Is it just me or does she look really familiar to you as well?¡± He asked, causing the white-haired being to narrow his eyes at him.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°I get the feeling we¡¯ve met her before.¡± He searched his brain as he spoke, but unfortunately nothing seemed to be clicking for him. Strange, or maybe he might have just seen her when he secretly roamed Euphrasia.


    Or was it just that??


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 34

    Chapter 34: A Man¡¯s Pleasure


    The suede softness of her orchid-pink lips awakened a feeling at the inner depths of his body, the taste of her tongue reminded him of sweet-syrup and the tempting heat from her body when he pulled her close kept invading his mind to the point he could barely take control of it anymore.


    The day quickly ran by to everyone¡¯s surprise and the already quiet kingdom of Viscarrian became even quieter due to Roshan¡¯s presence. The Maidens at the pce were extremely curious about the human his highness Roshan had brought to the kingdom and without any sort of warning too.


    Going near the chambers to steal a peek was impossible cause it had two huge guards dressed in armor shielding it. An order was assigned to the two hefty guards by Roshan himself, instructing them not to let anyone step into the room else he¡¯d have their heads rolling on a tter.


    And no one knew his highness to be a man of jokes.


    Normally, when an Euphrasia gets abducted for special use, they were always kept in the dungeon due to the dislike they had for one another. The dungeon was basically the worst ce to be at as a human and the most treacherous too, where only endless punishment are served until death finally saves you from the unbearable torture.


    But shockingly, whoever his highness Roshan brought to the kingdom did not only escape the horrors of the dungeon, but also got one of the mostfiest chamber¡¯s to rest on.


    This has never happened before!


    .....


    Meanwhile, the disoriented Roshan hade to his underground pool to heal himself for a while. He rxed his back at the edge of his huge magic pool that looked really blue and crystal clear in a mystic way.


    He had taken a few swims and even drowned himself for a couple of hours to regenerate his weak body before bringing his head out to take a deep breath. The candle lights being set as decorations only glorified his ethereal looks, making him look sexually alluring to the eyes of anyone who was lucky enough to pass by.


    Except, no one is ever allowed into his underground cave, even in his absence until when summoned and everyone knew just how possessive Roshan is about his things.


    His wless body glistened under the orange-yellowish light of the candles as sparkling waters dripped from his pale skin, his wet hair fell across his back, shoulder and a few unweed strands fell at his face, enhancing the color of his Hazel-green eyes as they too seemed to have a natural glow on their own.


    He looked like a magical painting that had been brought to life as strength and power proudly chiseled his features, his alluring beauty was both fascinating and inessible at the same time.


    He closed his eyes for a few minutes to recover from the earlier wounds he was sure hadn¡¯t healed properly, when the earlier kiss he shared with the annoying woman kept invading his mind and breaking past the barrier he had set around them.


    A frown settled on his face and what he didn¡¯t like was how his body seemed to respond to those illogical fantasies of his, he wouldn¡¯t have kissed her if he knew things would end up like this for him but giving her the pills was necessary so it¡¯d be easier to take her away without having to put up a fight.


    But then, it was nothing but a kiss! Why was he feeling like this for someone he was supposed to hate?? Even her appealing scent still lingered in his nostril and he hated the fact he liked it. She obviously annoyed him, he can¡¯t stand her without having the urge to strangle her but yet she does this to him as well.


    Throwing his head back to push away the desires trying to cloud his senses, another feeling struck him. It¡¯s been a very very long time since he desired to touch a woman like this, could that also exin why he¡¯s suddenly feeling this way about that kiss? To the point of wanting more and having her slender body on his for the second time??


    He tsked in frustration and really felt like killing that woman for doing this to him, what assured him a bit was the fact the sight of her doesn¡¯t make his heart beat in any damn way.


    He felt the scars in the left side of his chest and a cold glint danced in his pupils, he doesn¡¯t even have a heart to begin with.


    Nodding at the assurance of his thought, maybe satisfying his sexual desires might be what he needs to erase that kiss from his mind so he can focus a lot better on his next n of action.


    ¡°Levi!¡±


    The moment he called his name, the young Demon immediately appeared before him while carrying the same breathtaking smile on his lips, but what he wasn¡¯t expecting was to find Roshan in such an irresistible state that his smile nearly dropped in awe. He literally blinked in surprise.


    ¡°Well this is interesting.¡± Levi couldn¡¯t help but tease a bit as his beautiful eyes raked the being who remained in his pool, cing his hand on the tiled edge and using his palm to support his head. Only his torso was exposed above the water while the rest was buried below, yet he carried such an enticing sight.


    ¡°I was summoned.¡± He spoke up but Roshan wasn¡¯t in the mood to deal with Levi¡¯s flirtatious side.


    ¡°Shut up and listen carefully, find me a maiden who is capable of satisfying a man¡¯s pleasure.¡± His tone still remained cold and void of all emotions as though he was giving a reference, but his words left Levi¡¯s eyes to widen a bit at his request.


    ¡°Wait... for you or who?¡±


    ¡°No for the person sitting beside me.¡± He sarcastically responded and Levi couldn¡¯t help but be astonished, still finding it quite difficult to believe as he suspiciously eyed the half-naked man in a pool.


    His brother can feel pleasure? When did that suddenly happen??


    ¡°I thought you were made of stone.¡±


    ¡°Even stones break.¡±


    ¡°Who broke you then?¡±


    ¡°Levi!¡±


    Clearing his throat at Roshan¡¯smand, Levi adjusted the royal blue garment he was wearing and like a mischievous fox, he couldn¡¯t help but ask.


    ¡°Well if that¡¯s the case, there are many maidens here who are capable of satisfying, do you want one or two? Or three? Are we going for extreme pleasure here?¡±


    ¡°Just one.¡±


    Levi smiled regardless, ¡°alright then.¡±


    But before he left, he stopped in his tracks and couldn¡¯t help but confirm once more.


    ¡°But brother are you serious? Are you really aroused? Like I mean... do you have a bulge?¡±


    He wasn¡¯t joking this time around as he asked those questions, he couldn¡¯t remember thest time Roshan ever touched a woman and all of a sudden, he¡¯s aroused??


    The deadly res directed at him made a cold wind prate through his back and he instantly swallowed his next question, adhering to the warnings being signaled at him by the devil himself.


    ¡°As you say brother.¡±


    ¡°Check on the human girl I brought afterwards, if she¡¯s awake or not.¡±


    ¡°When did I be your ve sheesh...¡± he mumbled on his way out, going up the stairs while Roshan just shook his head helplessly before proceeding to drown himself underneath the water once more.


    At the chamber where Anna was kept under serious surveince, Azazel was sitting beside the edge of her bed, seriously staring at her face as though he was searching for something.


    She was still unconscious which gave him a better chance to study her and his brows knitted into a frown.


    Not only did Levi sense a familiarity but he sort of did as well, a very strange feeling that didn¡¯t really favor his thoughts.


    ¡°Where did youe from?¡± Azazel couldn¡¯t help but wonder as he found it strange that he was unable to connect with her soul either. His eyes suddenly noticed the golden badge which hung at her waist belt and his eyes narrowed into slight curiosity.


    ¡°An Euphrasia badge?¡± He gently took hold of it and studied the logo that was crafted on the badge. This badge was given to only the bravest and strongest of warriors in Euphrasia. He remembers seeing a badge that was quite simr to this during thest war between humans and Demons but whoever he saw it with wasn¡¯t clear in his head.


    ¡°How did she get this?¡±


    He naturally paced along the room, holding the badge in his grasp as his mind wandered elsewhere. He was not the type of person to ignore clues like this and being in charge of the limbo where he guarded special souls, his mind was starting to ur upon something.


    Shifting his gaze to her face once again, he suddenly noticed the jewelry headband on her forehead. He had seen it earlier but now, he felt strangely drawn to it. Wasn¡¯t that the jewelry mortals use to beautify themselves?


    He was hesitant at first when he tried to reach for the jewelry headband but wanting to clear his assumptions on something, he moved closer to the edge of her bed, reaching for the headband and gently shifting it aside so he could see what was hidden beneath it.


    Once her birthmark came into view, he felt his body turn immobile for a few minutes as he blinked at the mark, in case his eyes were deceiving him but shockingly, it wasn¡¯t.


    His pupils dted at the sight and the disbelief was clearly written on his face as well as his eyes. Was he dreaming?


    ¡°It¡¯s the meteor¡¯s birthmark!¡±


    He eximed in shock and before he got a chance to recover, the door to the room suddenly opened, causing the dumbstruck Azazel to instantly keep his distance from Anna, thinking it was Roshan who stepped in but a little to his relief, it was Levi.


    The being who nonchntly walked in equally halted the moment his gaze fell upon Azazel.


    ¡°Brother?¡±


    Levi couldn¡¯t hide the surprise in his tone, finding it suspicious to see Azazel in the chamber where the human girl was.


    ¡°What are you doing here? Roshan will have your head if I tell him you came here.¡±


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 35

    Chapter 35: No Matter What


    ¡°I could say the same.¡± Azazelposed himself, looking away from Levi who threateningly took a step back, yet his eyes twinkled with something Azazel sensed to be not good at all, specifically for him.


    ¡°Will you spill? Or should I...¡± he gestured towards the door with his brows, reminding Azazel that if he lets him step out of the room without responding, he¡¯s marching straight to Roshan.


    A look of annoyance contorted his handsome face at Levi¡¯s constant threat but what to do? This mortal shockingly bears the meteor birthmark and now, here¡¯s Levi trying to force the truth out of him, a truth he couldn¡¯t say until his confirmation turns right.


    ¡°Fine.¡± He dejectedly responded, knowing he had no other choice but to allow Levi win this time around. A small smile of triumph proudly disyed itself on Levi¡¯s yful demeanor and knowing Azazel wasn¡¯t the type of person who goes back on his words, he meekly took a step closer towards Azazel.


    ¡°Why are you here then?¡± His Amber eyes still held suspicion and that¡¯s when Azazel¡¯s firm demeanor broke, recing itself with a look of hesitancy as he let out a deep breath.


    ¡°Have I ever mentioned a meteor mark to you before?¡± Questioned Azazel, who watched Levi¡¯s expression wander a bit as though he was thinking and he slowly shook his head.


    ¡°No, why?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Follow me.¡± A crimson red light instantly enveloped him before Levi got a chance to speak and he was out of sight. Due to his curiosity, Levi willingly followed as a bright orange light epassed him and soon enough, the room was empty once again.


    Arriving at what looked like an abandoned pavilion that was nowhere near the pce of Viscarrian, the patterned stoned tiles seemed to lead both of them to an extravagant door which Azazel forced open with a gentle flick of his wrist.


    The huge door creaked open with uneven sounds, followed by a gust of wind that gently fluttered their robes.


    Stepping into the room with Azazel leading the way, the inside looked foggy to Levi¡¯s gaze and the more they ventured in, the colder and darker it became which didn¡¯t really appeal to the young Demon at all. Nevertheless, he quietly followed Azazel¡¯s steps.


    Four grand, yet simple statues of the same design mark up the halfway point between each of the four corners of the room, including the center. Levi¡¯s gaze curiously followed it until he noticed a swirling line of multiple glowing lights, crimson, white, gold and it all made their way to the center of the room. Two heavy guards guarded the multiple swirling lights behind them and the two Demons finally halted.


    Levi squinted his eyes a bit, finding the look of this ce to be a little familiar now.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡±


    ¡°This is the line that connects to a limbo.¡± Azazel exined before turning around to look at Levi who still remained confused and half speechless at the same time.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what? Why are we here?¡±


    ¡°You wanted to know didn¡¯t you?¡± Azazel strictly reminded him, making it clear that he wasn¡¯t forced toe here in the first ce, not only that, he had a second reason for picking this ce, knowing they wouldn¡¯t stand a risk of running into Roshan here.


    For the first time, Levi was starting to notice a look of hesitancy in the eyes of Azazel and curiously wondered what the problem was.


    ¡°Is everything alright?¡±


    ¡°That mortal Roshan brought bears a meteor mark on her forehead.¡± He informed while looking away, feeling pissed but the person he was talking to just stared nkly in cluelessness.


    ¡°What¡¯s a meteor mark?¡± He asked, causing Azazel to take a step forward, looking away from him once again as he drew in his nostril.


    ¡°A meteor mark is a dangerous silver crystal thates as a birthmark once a mortal is born, it¡¯s very rare and could be mistakenly considered as a blessing if one is unaware of what it holds.¡± He exined, causing Levi to fold his arms as a look of understanding portrayed itself on his face.


    But he didn¡¯t fully get it.


    ¡°If it isn¡¯t a blessing, then what is it?¡±


    ¡°The meteor birthmark reduces the lifespan of a mortal but for those who have no idea about it, it could be seen as nothing and the deaths of the people may be mistaken for an unknown illness.¡± He turned away, ¡°the meteor birthmark has a lot of effects, dizziness, slower heartbeat, loss of consciousness chronically, body weakness and as the person progresses longer, the weaker the heartbeat and it¡¯ll remain that way till it finally stops beating.¡±


    Levi¡¯s eyes widened in shock at the revtion of the strange human girl, ¡°you mean she¡¯s gonna die soon?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s lucky to have lived up to this stage already, judging from what I noticed, she doesn¡¯t have much time left.¡±


    ¡°So what are we talking about here? Weeks? Months? Years? When?¡±


    ¡°Approximately two months actually.¡± He rified and for some reason, Levi felt a bit worried for the mortal being.


    ¡°How¡¯s it possible she bears a mark so distinct?¡±


    ¡°A meteor mark is given to those who vite the rules of rebirth, meaning it wasn¡¯t her time to get reborned, she chose her fate.¡±


    Snapping his fingers, the golden badge instantly appeared in his grasp and he showed it to Levi.


    ¡°During thest war, when you and Roshan made it to the pce walls, did youe across something like this?¡± He inquired, causing Levi¡¯s gaze to shift to what his brother was showing to him.


    He took hold of it and carefully studied the golden badge, ¡°an Euphrasia badge?¡±


    He nodded, ¡°only the most noble warriors of Euphrasia are rewarded with this, I¡¯m just wondering if you equally saw something familiar to this that day? And in whose hand you might have seen it?¡±


    Levi silently searched his brain for those answers but unfortunately, the memories weren¡¯t clear in his head, ¡°It¡¯s familiar but I can¡¯t recall who I saw it with, where did you get it?¡±


    ¡°It belongs to the mortal, I think this gave Roshan a hint that she was close to the royal family of Euphrasia.¡±


    ¡°Is she a special soul?¡±


    ¡°Probably, apparently only that soul had escaped the limbo which led to its vition and gaining the meteor mark. If she¡¯s the one with a special soul then I¡¯m not as happy as I expected myself to be.¡±


    ¡°Wait, hold on.¡± Levi interjected as something unusual crossed his mind.


    ¡°That girl, I knew she looked familiar but if her soul was reborned, it means the familiarity we sense is because we knew her before?¡± He cryptically inquired himself and that question struck Azazel, as to the reasons for his troubled moods.


    That could be true. Why didn¡¯t he think of that?


    ¡°Possibly.¡±


    ¡°And with the way Roshan brought her in his arms, that sight was undeniably familiar, wasn¡¯t Roshan married before the whole war thing even began?¡±


    ¡°What are you implying?¡±


    ¡°Could it be...... she¡¯s his reborned wife?¡±


    ¡°.......¡±


    ~


    In one of the majestic rooms in the Viscarrian pce, Roshanfortably sat on the bed, looking like a King that had stepped out unscathed from the underworld while keeping a distant gaze. He wore a glorious ck transparent robe that left his chest and those rock-hard abs visible, along with its darker pants.


    Meanwhile, an extremely gorgeousdy silently crawled behind him, before sneakily reaching to massage his shoulder with her pretty hands, teasingly letting her hands explore his chiseled chest in an attempt to further arouse him.


    ¡°How does his royal highness wish to be pleased tonight?¡± She whispered sexily into his ear, but the being still remained unmoved by it, rather his mind was elsewhere instead.


    Noticing hisck of response, the pretty maiden slowly reached to touch his member and just like she had expected, he grabbed her arm almost immediately in an attempt to stop her.


    He met her gaze and her foxy brown eyes still lingered on his, looking as though she was getting drowned in his hypnotizing stare and couldn¡¯t wait to sink right in.


    ¡°Don¡¯t touch, unless I tell you to.¡± His voice brought her back and her smile returned.


    ¡°I¡¯m all yours, I can give you all the satisfaction if his highness so wishes then?¡± Her sweet voice made his eyes dance with a tiny glint and before she knew it, he had herying t on the big bed with her hair sprawled over the pillow. She looked at the enthralling creature from above and could feel herself dripping underneath from excitement.


    She had always dreamed of having a day like this with his highness and It was more of an honor to her.


    ¡°Is his highness having second thoughts?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t speak.¡± His hypnotic deep voice resonated in his room and like a spellbound whim, she obliged, her brown eyes dancing with excitement as she couldn¡¯t wait to taste and feel him as well.


    He saw her excitement and slowly leaned over the beautiful Demon maiden whose seductive smile widened further. His body was literally on fire at the moment and he just wanted to get rid of it anyway he possibly could, he couldn¡¯t bear it.


    He was staring at a maiden who was dressed in a silky short revealing nightdress, magnifying her perfect hourss figure and her ethereal beauty, yet he felt nothing or even the slightest desire to touch her..... or was it because he hadn¡¯t done anything yet?


    Pushing aside the disturbing mortal from his mind, he was going to get rid of that woman from his head no matter what, even if it meant having to do it with aplete seductress.


    Despite getting that information clear in his head, he couldn¡¯t bring himself to kiss her and instead, his lips found its way to the nape of her neck and she closed her eyes at the feeling, slowly letting her fingers run through his hair before pulling him down on her.


    New Book Out! Do check it out


    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 36

    Chapter 36: Kidnap


    ¡°You aren¡¯t supposed to bring up memories that were long dead.¡± Azazel firmly reprimanded Levi who was slowly starting to put two in two into ce, ignoring the cold Demon¡¯s warning while turning away from him with his arms folded.


    ¡°Whether or not she¡¯s the same person, I can¡¯t say, all I know is we need to inform Roshan about this information.¡± Levi pushed on but this time, Azazel refused to budge as his expression went gelid, causing Levi to feel as though he just stepped into an Arctic circle.


    ¡°You¡¯ll keep your lips sealed about what I just told you, if she¡¯s destined to die, then so be it. Her soul is needed to fix the chain of rebirth and no one shall stop it.¡±


    His tone remained apathetic, yet Levi was willing to try again. She might be an Euphrasia n, but the hate he had for them wasn¡¯t what he had for her, instead he felt bad for her.


    ¡°But....¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t forget,¡± Azazel suddenly added, ¡°Roshan might remember everything, but he doesn¡¯t remember he had a wife once, telling him would only put his life in grave danger and you, without a doubt understand what I mean by that.¡±


    He reminded Levi whose words immediately hung at his throat due to Azazel¡¯s third warning and his shoulders slumped. As much as he tried to shake off the feeling that Azazel was right, telling Roshan about any of this would only put his life in danger. The young man has been through a lot already even if he¡¯s too stubborn to admit it himself.


    .....


    ¡°I understand your point.¡± He finally responded in a low dispirited tone, relieving Azazel a bit and the white-haired Demon turned away to stare at the multiple swirling lights.


    ¡°Good, you saw it yourself, she was reborn as an Euphrasia which earns her Roshan¡¯s hatred as well, telling him won¡¯t get rid of his hatred and he¡¯ll only make her suffer so it¡¯s best she dies for her own good, besides there is no cure for such fate.¡±


    Levi could only blink in awe as he watched Azazel speak of death with such indifference in his tone. Of course, Roshan was the cier and Azazel was the ice.


    What cold-blooded beings!!


    ~


    In one of the ptial chambers where Anna wasid and still being monitored, the unconscious beauty finally stirred a bit on the bed when she felt her position was a little bit ufortable, turning to the other side like a baby who was slowly waking up from her slumbers.


    Finally regaining her consciousness, hershes slowly fluttered open, revealing a pair of innocent, chocte-brown sparkling eyes, but they closed up again when her eyelids felt too heavy and she couldn¡¯t keep them open for much long.


    She just wanted to sleep due to the heaviness of her eyelids and to be honest, being asleep was the only ce she found peace.


    ¡®Dear lord, for how long did I sleep?¡¯ she silently asked herself while forcing her eyes to open once again but her vision became blurry and she felt a slight headache.


    She waspletely unaware of how she even fell asleep in the first ce.


    ¡®Did I pass out in the bushes again?¡¯ her unsettled mind gradually wandered to different possibilities, not until her hands reflexively grabbed something soft and cozy to her touch, it felt like a bedsheet and one thing Anna knew for a fact was that there are no bedsheets in a bush.


    Her brows knitted into a V sign as confusion painted her face and she forced her eyes open once again to see exactly what she had touched, pulling the bed sheet cover up a bit so she could see it more clearly, her eyes immediately went wide.


    ¡°A bedsheet?¡±


    Like a quick bolt jolting through her brains at the realization, something immediately struck her senses, her hormones took quick charge of her body and that made her sprang upright on the bed the moment she realized she was nowhere in the bushes.


    At least that¡¯s where she was meant to be.


    ¡°How....where am I?¡± She rmingly whispered to herself when her mind had settled a bit, seriously trying to study and understand the environment she was in.


    No doubt, she¡¯s in a bedroom which came pretty clear to her, but at the same time, she couldn¡¯t tell if it was her imagination but the room she was in looked majestic and really beautiful.


    The walls were painted in deep royal purple, with ornate patterns that masterfully stretched from the floor to the ceiling, seeming to be made of velvet. The curtains were a soft light purple coloration that gently swayed from the breeze prating into the room, due to the wide windows positioned at the right side of the wall.


    In the center of thergest bed Anna has ever seen and currently lying on, the silken sheets andfy pillows really made her wonder if she was dead and currently in her resting ce. Shifting her bewildered gaze to the bed stand was a vase ofvender and its alluring scent invaded the entity of the spacious room.


    Everything about the room was splendid! And it left her with one unanswered question.


    ¡°B_but how did I end up here?¡±


    The confused and disoriented Anna quietly got out of bed, she silently tiptoed to the window as though she knew someone would be watching her and couldn¡¯t risk alerting whoever it was that brought her here. She pulled the cottons open and to her even more bewilderment, it was night time!!


    Goodness gracious! How long did she sleep??


    She was undeniably surprised and remained rooted to where she was, her mind immediately thought of getting out of here as she tried as much as possible to silently open the windows, but unfortunately, they seemed stuck or even locked.


    It felt as if the person who brought her here knew the next thing she¡¯d think of doing once she wakes up is to escape.


    Pursing her lips at theplete unfamiliarity of this ce, she instantly recalled being in the woods and she had hurried to go get the things Calista had given to her before it got dark, then she saw Adryan standing before the dark woods and his betrayal suddenly enveloped her heart.


    Shaking that memory aside for now, she equally remembered sir Bryan had showed up to take Adryan back to the kingdom, she wanted to stop it when someone grabbed her and that person.... That person was none other than...


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    His name fell from her lips in a whisper, following the breath of wind that blew into the room as a surprised look masked her face.


    Her eyes went round the moment she recalled how he forced a kiss on her against the tree and her heart uncontrobly sped up at such remembrance.


    ¡°He.....he kissed me.¡± Her fingers impulsively went to feel her lips after uttering those words, the memory was still fresh in her head and how he tasted still lingered on her lips.


    After that kiss, she couldn¡¯t remember anything else, almost like her mind went nk on what had ured next.


    ¡°Did he.... bring me here?¡± She finally swirled to look at the magnificent room once again and a dreadful feeling took ce inside of her. He literally kidnapped her!


    But why can¡¯t she remember what happened after the Kiss? Or did she pass out after that?


    Her fist balled into fury and her eyes glistened with untold rage as her mind immediately came to a conclusion.


    Yep. She¡¯s gonna kill him.

 Chapter 37

    Chapter 37: Coming For Her


    Sittingfortably on the bed while regaining his earlier posture from before, Roshan silently loomed in the darkness as every source of light in his room had uncannily gone out.


    It left the room with an unusual eerie aura hanging in the air, to the point one would feel extremely frightened to step in and hopefully make it out alive without looking like a bird being driven into a Fowler¡¯s nest.


    Roshan, on the other hand was barely bothered and chose to linger in the darkness since he was very well ustomed to it, concerning the fact that it was the only ce he found peace.


    A ss of white wine remained in his grasp, his Hazel-green eyes showing what one barely_or in other words, ¡®never¡¯ saw on his face as a lonesome look appeared. He looked lost, the light in his eyes kept flickering like that of a cottages fire.


    As much as he tried to fight it for a whole two hundred years of living, they always manage to crawl back at him like a quiet fox and get right under his skin.


    Being a demon child, he had chosen to seek shelter in the hands of the humans since he knew getting a normal life while living as a demon would be impossible.


    There was obviously nothing normal about being a demon to begin with.


    .....


    Most of his family barely considered him as one due to the fact he wasn¡¯t willing to take a walk on the dark path. Not even his father, the mighty Demon King with the highest of ranks, King Aherlow, the man who dared to scar his heart.


    Anger fumed in his eyes and due to the intensity of his rage and the pressure his grasp applied on the champagne ss, it broke instantly, shattering into pieces and giving him a few deep cuts which he wished wouldn¡¯t heal so soon.


    He thought Demons were worse to be honest but who knew the actual Demons were actually disguised as humans in the first ce.


    He wasn¡¯t poor at all, but after leaving home, he took nothing with him, not even a coin or his favorite weapons, he looked no different from someone who belonged to the low-ss society the moment he arrived at Euphrasia those years ago.


    The thought of wanting a normal life really went down the drain for him after noticing how badly the low-ss were treated by the top officials in Euphrasia, like they were some mud beneath their shoes that could easily be gotten rid of.


    He was basically the reason that led to the revtion of Demon¡¯s in the human world. He couldn¡¯t bear to see those top officials or those in the royal family treat him like rags while carrying themselves like they were the actual God and that¡¯s when he killed one of them, to gain his satisfaction.


    He stained his hands with blood for the first time at the age of 12 and before he realized how deep he had gotten into it, he couldn¡¯t stop.


    An evil smirk adorned his pretty face at the bloody remembrance but it was aplete contrast to the lingering pain in his eyes. A pain that said it could have all been avoided if they left him alone like he told them to.


    One by one he mercilessly got rid of them and with each passing day his heart hardened, the taste to kill took over him and he grew up with it.


    He was the heartless viin, a threat to the humans yet no one ever bothered to ask why? What made him the way he was? Yet they had the ordersity to point fingers at him.


    That¡¯s how selfish the people of Euphrasia really are!


    Knock! Knock! Knock!


    A gentle knock on the door propped Roshan back into reality but he barely reacted, that look in his eyes had vanished within a sh that it¡¯d be impossible to believe he looked so lonely in the first ce. He just poured himself another ss of wine and calmly sipped his drink.


    ¡°What is it?¡± His tone came out sharp, signifying he didn¡¯t want to be disturbed at the moment.


    ¡°Your highness, the human you brought earlier has awoken.¡± The guard immediately informed right outside the door, causing Roshan to halt just when he was about to take the next sip of his drink.


    She¡¯s awake??


    ¡°Leave!¡± Came his subtle response and the guard¡¯s heavy footsteps could be heard as it faded away into the distance.


    Dropping the ss close to the table by his bedside, Roshan unhurriedly got out of bed and turned to look at the wall where all his special weapons were neatly kept intact.


    Just the way he left them.


    With a smile of mischief, he took two of his extremely sharp and favorite silver daggers, studying the dangerously sharp edges by tracing it with his fingers, his eyes glinted in ways that spoke of the iing terror about to befall on his victim.


    ¡°This is going to be fun.¡±


    Without even changing from his dark robes, Roshan exited from the room, keeping his daggers on the beltline of his pants in an attempt to conceal it before striding with quick steps once he made it to the corridor.


    ~


    Annalise paced along the room with a very strange anxiety building inside of her. She couldn¡¯t help but bite at her nails and pace back and forth the moment she realized her sword was missing, including her most treasured golden badge, causing a look of worry to paint her face.


    To her quick fears, she could feel his cold presence getting closer and closer and when he eventuallyes, what will she use to defend herself against him???


    Surely he had a reason for abducting her in the first ce and she could feel it in her skin that there was a negative reason for it.


    ¡°Or should I pretend to be asleep?¡±


    She shook that idea away, knowing he wouldn¡¯t fall for it and her palms were already starting to sweat, she waspletely defenseless against him at this point.


    Not only that, the fear in her heart told her she was about to experience something big, something that would leave her falling to her feet at the end of the day.


    Like a jack bird that has suddenly heard the sound of a wolf, Anna¡¯s ears instantly twitched due to the heavy footsteps she could hear getting closer to her bedroom. She keeps forgetting she had sensitive ears when ites to hearing things and she knew, with no doubt that he wasing for her.


    Immediately ncing around the room in panic, her eyes fortunately spotted thevender vase on the bed stand and with quick steps, she hurried towards it, grabbing hold of the vase and getting rid of the flowers inside of it.


    She instantly went to hide at the corner of the door and remained as silent as she could, except for her heart, which drummed frantically against her ribcage as she held the vase up against her chest, her grip tightening in fear at the sound of those footsteps getting closer, but she had made her ns clear.


    The moment he opens the door and steps in, she¡¯ll hit him hard with the vase and make a run for it.


    New Book Out! Do check it out


    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 38

    Chapter 38: The Devil¡¯s Den


    As many breathless seconds happened to tick by in Anna¡¯s head, she was mentally prepared to expect the worst out of this oue as she has never done something like this in her years of living, but being hesitant won¡¯t save her from this predicament so it¡¯s either she tries, or is willing to die trying.


    At this point, those were the only two options that sounded pretty absurd but equally convenient due to the direful situation in her hands.


    Soon enough, the heavy footsteps unceremoniously stopped walking as though it hade to a halt right outside the door, leaving Anna¡¯s gaze to instinctively lower to the door knob. Her nervous gaze was expecting to see the door knob twist a little in ordance to her pounding heartbeat but as she anxiously waited for the person to burst the door open, nothing happened.


    Her brows furrowed slightly in worry, wondering why whoever was at the door hadn¡¯te in yet but after noticing it was getting her a little distracted, she refused to give up her guard and remained positioned at where she was, not willing to drop her guard after making it this close. One could even feel the tension arising in the quiet room as a single sweat rolled down her forehead.


    Her gaze still remained fixed on the doorknob.


    A few heartbeatster, the door knob finally moved to Anna¡¯s surprise, causing her already racing heart to jump in fright but she stood her ground nevertheless without making a single sound, quietly raising the vase above her head and getting prepared to thrash it at the being with all she¡¯s got.


    The door finally creaked open and a guard stepped in instead.


    .....


    Without waiting for even a split second, Annalise proceeded to hit the guard with thevender vase and she hit him hard like she had said she would at the back of his head, causing the ss shattering sound to envelope the quiet room as it broke into pieces on his head.


    The loud shattering sound was enough to alert any passerby that something was happening in the room and Anna couldn¡¯t help but freeze as well. Shock and fear took control over her body at the mere thought that she might be caught due to the sound and like a building that had suddenly grown legs, Anna slowly turned her stiff body around so she could look at the door.


    ncing at the open door, the beautiful path looked clear and empty and its side had been gorgeously darmacated, enough to signify she was in a room upstairs. But that wasn¡¯t what actually surprised her the most, the fact that not even a single soul was nearby made her wonder if she should feel relieved about it or not.


    It looked somehow stranded as though they had been forbidden toe near the walls that led to her room, unfreezing her from her panicked state.


    Before she realized it herself, the guard she had brutally hit with a vase finally dropped to his knees and despite it not being Roshan, Anna felt satisfied with it and immediately dashed towards the door in a hope to escape before someone eventually shows up here.


    She instantly ran out from the room without looking back, holding the length of her gown up a bit so she could run properly and as she ran, her surviving skills alerted her to be vignt as well, in case any other guards wereing or if it was the devil himself who might appear next.


    With that thought in mind, her heart picked up speed and so did her feet as she hurriedly searched for the stairs, only toe to a sudden halt after reaching the fancy corridor and that was the moment she realized she didn¡¯t know which other direction to take. They were too many rooms and too many stairs that it left her mind dibobted.


    Was she in some sort of pce??


    Despite her situation, she didn¡¯t miss the majestic look of the ce she was in but the aura surrounding it was a feeling that made her know she didn¡¯t step into any pce, but a devil¡¯s den.


    Immediately shaking that frightful thought away as this wasn¡¯t the right time to be bothering her mind about something like that, she noticed a guard wasing up one of the stairs by the left, hurriedly approaching the high corridor where she stood and her gaze widened once again.


    She instinctively hid awaypletely at the corner of a wall, fortunately for her she had a slender body that could fit right in, giving her a chance to hide and wait for the guard to pass by.


    Due to how fast the guard was heading past her direction, Anna came to a conclusion that he must have heard the ss shattering noise and must be on his way to check on it.


    With silent steps, she quietly crawled out of her hiding spot and secretly followed him, only to give him a quick pat at the back of his shoulder, gaining his attention and sessfully making him turn around, but what he didn¡¯t expect was to be kicked in the face by Anna¡¯s feet as she skillfully swirled around to give him a swift-kick in his abdomen beforending another one directly at his face and he staggered back.


    He sprawled to the ground and Anna immediately hid him at the corner where she currently was, before searching his body for any weapon she could use. Surely guards had to have some kind of defense weapon on them in case of any unforeseen situations.


    To her delight, she saw a sword hanging around the waistline of his trouser and immediately took it, before hiding his bodypletely in the dark corner and continuing on her quest to escape from this ce.


    A few and many times actually, Anna had to hide away due to the guards and maids that patrolled, it left her stunned watching all of them wander around like this, it was night time yet everyone was still so active!


    Shouldn¡¯t they be asleep instead??


    Silently groaning in frustration, once the path had cleared out once again, she stepped out of her hiding spot and continued to run as usual, her legs were already starting to ache but the determination to get out of here kept her going.


    It seems her life was all about her being chased.


    Sessfully making it to the downstairs without getting caught, she was torn between two paths to follow, the right path or the left path?


    Without giving it a second thought, she instantly followed the right path, normally that¡¯s where every exit should be located in a building.


    To her quick relief, she was nearing a vast gate with heavy wooden doors, causing her eyes to glint in sheer relief as she paused to catch her breath for a little while.


    ¡°This.... This should be the exit!¡± Her voice didn¡¯te out straight but the excitement lingering in them could be felt.


    Gaining a few of her strength back at the idea she was already getting out of this ce, Anna hurried towards the wooden door, bursting it open and hoping to see the outside world but instead, she ran directly into someone¡¯s chest.


    The triumph smile which was slowly starting to appear on her face,pletely erased itself the moment she noticed this wasn¡¯t the outside, rather, it looked more like a grand hall and to worsen the situation, she got herself caught due to too much excitement.


    Taking in the ck robe in front of her, Anna¡¯s gaze slowly traveled up with each passing beat of her heartbeat, praying silently that she hadn¡¯t run into who her mind had conjured upon.


    Raising her head up since she was only reaching him at shoulder length, Anna found herself staring straight into those hazel-green green eyes that she wouldn¡¯t miss anywhere else and her heart hooked at her throat.


    He had a tiny dangerous smirk on his lips as he pierced his cold gaze right into her and the next thing he heard was...


    ¡°Arrrrrrrrhhhhhhh!!!!!!!¡±


    Anna¡¯s high-pitched scream epassed the whole room and she instantly turned around to get away from the man before her, but before she could make it to the door. It closed shut right at her face.


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    The Baroness Misbehaves

 Chapter 39

    39 A Pawn I


    Annalise¡¯s neckline became extra visible as her neck strained in fear and her eyes went round in shock due to the door closing right before her face.


    She remained frozen at the doorstep as she stared at the structure of the tall wooden door, with many questions gued her mind, she looked like someone whose face had been rudely sshed with mud.


    The main question was; who closed the door? And how?


    It felt as if the road to her freedom hadpletely abandoned her and shunned her out of it¡¯s existence, leaving her to face the trial of the one person she never wished to crosspath with ever again but as always fate likes to y this sort of unfriendly games with her. She still didn¡¯t get why it surprised her so much till now.


    ¡®Oh Lord, help my soul!¡¯ came the prayer that silently echoed in her head as she closed her eyes to recover a bit from all of this turn of events.


    Taking a deep breath and tearing her eyes apart once more, she could feel his piercing gaze on her back, as though he was patiently waiting for her to react in some way, before whimfully reaching to devour herpletely.


    Getting a firm grip on herself, her hold tightened against her dress in order to stop her palms from sweating further, but her mind wandered into different scary possibilities that could happen if she dared to turn around so instead, she took a step forward when a deep sophisticated voice stopped her in her tracks.


    ¡°Now isn¡¯t this interesting...¡± Roshan made sure to draw thest word and Annalise refused to move from her spot or even turn around, as though a heavy piece of ma had forcefully held her there. She could feel his piercing gaze at her back and instantly took a hard swallow to stop herself from reacting to his words that always seemed to carry some sort of negative meaning.


    .....


    ¡°You had a better chance of escaping this ce, Miss Anna, and I had no intentions ofing after you. To be even more honest I actually enjoyed watching you deal with those guards, it¡¯s been quite a long time since I¡¯ve witnessed such pleasant entertainment.¡±


    Anna¡¯s fist slowly balled against her dress the more he spoke with such calmness and authority, but her brain was quick to register his words this time around. That means he was fully aware of her moves all this while?


    She hadpletely forgotten just how Roshan could easily get except she never saw this particr side to iting at all.


    ¡°What do you want from me?¡± The demanding question left her lips the moment she spun around to look at him, it took her every courage to eventually face him like this and she met his intense stare.


    ¡°Why did you abduct me?¡±


    ¡°Where¡¯s the fun without a little guess, Miss Anna.¡± His subtle tone caught her off guard but the imperturbable being just turned around and unhurriedly headed for the throne seat. He sat on it with his arms resting against the arms of the chair, keeping his interested gaze locked on the confused woman while snapping his fingers at every reaction he saw on her face, looking like the true king of the underworld who had finally returned to take over and bring hell to the world.


    Although hesitant, Anna¡¯s gaze finally shifted from the man before her to study the structure of the hall room. The room she was currently in was surrounded by guards who stood in straight lines at both sides of the room and she knew for a fact that this mysterious man was actually a prince, or the king? Either one she knew he was someone of royalty. Even when they first met she knew he was no ordinary person cause he exuded some sort of majestic aura.


    But at the same time, he was hovered in a cloud of darkness and that made her frown in disdain.


    ¡°Who really are you? With what I¡¯ve concluded I doubt Roshan is even your real name!¡± The distaste in her tone and the skeptical look she gave him didn¡¯t miss his ears or eyes and he tried not to react, meanwhile Annalise¡¯s fear was slowly being taken by the rage building inside of her.


    ¡°Where did you bring me?! What am I doing~¡± her little outburst was instantly interrupted the moment two powerful glowing lights appeared out of nowhere, swirling right in front of the grand hall in a red and orange light.


    When those lights finally died down to Anna¡¯s widened gaze, Azazel and Levi were present in the room and she took a step back in disbelief. Even the two Demons were taken aback cause they weren¡¯t expecting toe across such an encounter in the hall, knowing they had definitely interrupted something.


    ¡°Wrong timing?¡± Azazel cooly asked while shifting gazes between the baffled Anna and the less bothered Roshan.


    Levi was the only person who seemed quite pleased to see thedy awake and fine.


    ¡°You_¡± Annalise could barely resist blinking in bewilderment, she lost her voice after seeing two enchanting men appear right before her eyes and out of nowhere, like some script that had been yed out in a novel except this wasn¡¯t a novel like she wished it would be, it was damn REAL!!


    ¡°How did.... Where did....huh???¡±


    Noticing the panicked look starting to cross her face, Levi wanted to say something but immediately got silenced by Azazel¡¯s serious stare, a stare that told him that whatever was about to take ce here has nothing to do with him and he should keep his lips sealed.


    Annalise on the other hand could barely keep hold of the sword she was hiding right behind her and her heart elerated into a faster and deeper rhythm, clearly these people aren¡¯t normal people at all.


    But if they aren¡¯t normal people, then what are they??


    At that moment, something popped right into her head as she remembered Roshan¡¯s words during the time they took a walk past meadow Lane before departing. He had outrightly said something to her, what was it?


    ¡®I¡¯m the Demon King, and I¡¯vee to take my revenge.¡¯


    That particr phrase kept reying in her head until it finally sank into the depths of her heart. A quick horrified gasp escaped her lips as it suddenly made sense to her and her eyes unknowingly dted.


    Back at the temple, the shadow behind the door she had opened, was he the one?


    ¡°The....the sealing door! The Devil that was trapped! It was you!¡± She eximed in horror as she pointed a finger at him at the revtion but she paused when his gaze suddenly darkened, but they were directly staring into the hands that pointed his way.

 Chapter 40

    40 A Pawn II


    It happened again, they always pointed a finger at him and he found it surprising that he didn¡¯t expect the same from her. She was an Euphrasia afterall and being part of the kingdom, she must equallye as a top official¡¯s daughter as well.


    The idea made him hiss in resentment.


    ¡°Sometimes the heart takes time to ept what the mind already knows.¡± Came his icy response and that¡¯s when Annalise¡¯s heart dropped.


    She shook her head in skepticism as her neckline became even more visible due to her shock. She didn¡¯t want to believe that she was cursed enough to have freed the devil that would bring a serious impending doom to her people, she couldn¡¯t have possibly freed him, she couldn¡¯t have.... WHAT HAS SHE DONE??!!


    Annalise tried to fight back the tears and the lumps which were starting to build in her throat, her stomach churned and she felt like waking up from this bad dream that only seemed to be getting worse with each passing second.


    ¡®Dear Lord, what have I gotten myself into?¡¯ Thought Annalise.


    With a sudden regret feeling her heart and the suffocations threatening to make her lose it, she turned around to make a run for it.


    ¡°If you leave this hall room then I promise you the lives of Euphrasia would crumble like dust in my palms the moment I¡¯m done with them!!¡± Roshan instantly threatened, causing Anna¡¯s feet to sessfully stop once again due to his promised threat.


    ¡°Turn around and see for yourself.¡± He added more calmly this time around, which was never a good sign and she immediately turned around to see what he meant by that, her eyes narrowing into suspicion as her lips thinned in worry.


    .....


    Before her tear-filled eyes, three Euphrasia vigers were immediately brought to the hall by some of his guards, forcing them to go on their knees and Anna felt her breath seize at the sight.


    It was a man, a woman and a boy who looked no older than eleven year old. They had their eyes blindfolded but a look of trepidation lingered on their expression.


    Their clothes looked rag and they had dirt on their faces, she would have sensed something was a bit off if they didn¡¯t look even more frightened than a mouse.


    ¡°Let us go!¡± The woman among them instantly pleaded, despite being blindfolded and having no clue where she was, she knew they had been brought to the person who took them in in the first ce.


    ¡°We did nothing wrong, I¡¯m pleading with you to spare our lives.¡±


    ¡°Mother, where are we?¡± The fear in the boy¡¯s tone could equally be felt and Roshan returned his gaze to Annalise whose face had gone really pale, looking no different from a white sheet.


    ¡°If you leave this room, the lives of this people will be gone before I even count to three.¡±


    ¡°You do not own their lives, so you have no right to take it away from them!¡±


    ¡°Test me.¡± He challenged and to his surprise, Anna shook her head slightly and still chose to leave the room, with quick steps, she headed for the door.


    STAB!


    She had barely made it to the door when she heard the piercing sounds of a sword like someone had been stabbed, followed by the sound of agony that came along with it and she immediately halted.


    STAB!!


    She heard it again.


    Instantly turning around to see what had happened, she realized one of Roshan¡¯s guards had stabbed the man with a sword, not once but twice! Piercing it directly into his chest and he didn¡¯t stop until he watched the look in the man¡¯s expression turn pale and lifeless, before Anna could take in what just happened, the man sprawled to the ground, unmoved.


    Time seemed to slow down as blood traces escaped from the man¡¯s chest and staining the golden tiled floor, the remaining two victims couldn¡¯t help but cry and gasp as they felt something very bad had urred but didn¡¯t dare move from their spot.


    ¡°Harold!¡± The woman called, hoping to hear her husband respond while trying to reach for him but sadly, she heard nothing and tried not to speak.


    ¡°Mother, what happened to father?¡± The little boy worriedly asked but Roshan¡¯s expression remained unfazed. Anna could barely believe the scene in front of her eyes and stood looking like a ghost.


    Levi wasn¡¯tpletely shocked by the scene since it¡¯s happened many times while Azazel just remained calm andposed as always. Rather, he was studying the interaction between the two of them.


    The hostility was no doubt present but he was even more surprised seeing how bold the youngdy was, he didn¡¯t think there was anyone capable of challenging Roshan and not facing the dire consequences for it.


    Or could it be she¡¯s unaware?


    ¡°Dare to leave again?¡± Inquired Roshan with his brows questionably arched and Anna¡¯s eyes clearly showed disbelief.


    How could he bring himself to do something as horrible as this?? He.....he killed an innocent man and barely showed any form of remorse for it, it¡¯s possible he could do the same to the two innocent people.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± She finally asked, not letting a single tear escape from her eyes as she met his stare.


    A devilish smile finally formed at the corner of his lips and the air turned dangerous, ¡°ever yed a game of chess?¡± He asked but wasn¡¯t expecting a single response from her.


    ¡°You my dear, are going to be my most loyal maid and you will provide me with enough informational insights I need to know about Euphrasia, in other words, you¡¯re a pawn in my game to victory.¡±

 Chapter 41

    41 An Exception


    ¡°Why would I ever stoop that low to go against my people?¡± She hollered at his absurd demand, finding it absolutely ridiculous that he thought she¡¯d ever agree to something that¡¯d be even more chaotic in the first ce, but the cier just shrugged with that tricky smile still painting his half contemting face.


    ¡°If I remember correctly, I never gave you an option.¡± Came his subtle response and Anna could barely hold in the rage that demanded freedom from her soul.


    ¡°You monster!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s old news, a new name would be better.¡± He waved it off.


    Anna was speechless and felt tongue-tied, hot tears uncontrobly welled up in her eyes at his ever so cold responses towards her, his actions had really proven him to be the beast everyone imed him to be and how can someone with emotions still carry an unmoved smile after taking the life of an innocent man.


    He wasn¡¯t only a beast but a murderer as well.


    ¡°You murdered an innocent man!¡±


    ¡°When?¡± Questioned Roshan whose expression immediately turned saint, ¡°I see no blood stains in my hands neither do I hold a weapon, so that is just a false usation Miss Anna.¡±


    If one didn¡¯t know him any better, they¡¯d fall t to his maniption and believe without a doubt that he was actually clueless about what she had just uttered and tables would have turned.


    .....


    To say she was shocked was an understatement. And to think that this same man had kissed her made her feel even more disgusted.


    ¡°I will never be a maid to someone like you, I¡¯d rather die!¡±


    ¡°But that¡¯s where the problem is, Miss Anna, you see, unfortunately I have no interest in killing you.¡± He tsked as if he himself was equally disappointed about it before getting to his feet.


    The two Demons who had asionally showed up just quietly remained at a corner, watching the scene being disyed before them without daring to interfere with the cold air that had taken over the hall, but Levi had his brows forming a V as he frowned in worry.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen my brother act this cold to anyone before, did staying in that forbidden temple do something to him?¡± Questioned Levi, who found his brother¡¯s change of personality to be something else.


    But Azazel¡¯s demeanor always made him regret ever speaking to him in the first ce because the least worried person in this hall was Azazel.


    ¡°Before opening your mouth to ask me such irrelevant questions, know that you just inquired about ¡®Roshan¡¯ and no one else, he¡¯s not even taking this as seriously as I expected, that is enough to answer your questions, now don¡¯t bother me and say nothing.¡±


    He dismissed Levi¡¯s words while keeping a straight posture with his chin lifted up a bit in finality. Levi tried not to re at him and forced himself to look away as a trickle of displeasure went down his heart.


    Yes yes, he was the youngest and he gets treated this way because of it, sigh... if his feelings were hurt or not it didn¡¯t necessarily matter to Azazel.


    It was either he knew Roshan¡¯s trick or cared less to bother about it.


    ¡°Two more lives remaining.¡± Roshan softly reminded Annalise whose gaze inadvertently drifted to the sobbing woman and the boy she confirmed to be her son.


    She felt torn on saving these two innocent people and putting the lives of her people at an even greater risk. Even if she refuses to help them she doubts he¡¯d even let her walk out of this door, which will be an even worse case.


    Fidgeting a little, she retracted her solemn gaze back to Roshan, only to see the cier had his deadly gaze fixed on the little boy before meeting her stare, his eyes glinting with a meaning that he made sure only she would understand, making her shake her head in disbelief as the horror of his iing actions disyed in her head.


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t!¡±


    He smirked in response and drew out his daggers for Anna to see, making sure she noticed how sharp the edges were as he traced the line with his fingers and when he felt satisfied with her ghostly reaction, he unhurriedly approached the little boy.


    When he got close to him, he crouched to his level, causing the boy to shiver in fright as he immediately sensed someone¡¯s cold presence in front of him.


    ¡°Shhhh, don¡¯t speak.¡± He calmly silenced the boy while giving his head a gentle pat, ¡°a vicious cat is proving to be a little too stubborn and she... will be the reason for what happens to you.¡±


    He tilted the boy¡¯s chin up as though he was trying to prepare his neck for a clean slicing and that¡¯s when he heard the boy take a deep breath with tears streaming down his eyes.


    ¡°Let him go!¡± Anna yelled with her fists balling beside her but Roshan barely flinched as he held the de up.


    ¡°You have three seconds.¡± He responded instead.


    ¡°One, two...¡± the dagger was already at the boy¡¯s neck, ...¡±thr-¡±


    ¡°Wait!¡±


    She spoke up before the little boy¡¯s neck got sliced at the nick of time. Roshan equally halted due to the gravity of her tone and a sinister smile appeared as though he had expected it.


    Feeling a bit relieved in ways one wouldn¡¯t notice since it only disyed in his eyes for a split second, he let the boy go and rose to his feet, heading towards the grieving Annalise whose heart clenched when he stood before her.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°I have an ex_ exception to....to make.¡± She stuttered through gritted teeth as she injured her palm with her nails. As it hurt, it also helped in putting her nerves in ce.


    Roshan, on the other hand looked quite amused as he never expected her toe up with something as an ¡®exception¡¯ he had expected her to give in immediately but she surprised him yet again.


    ¡°What exception?¡±


    Turning her gaze to the pitiful people, she came to a decision that felt right in both her heart and mind before letting out a deep breath. She looked up to meet the stare of a man she was going to kill herself someday.


    ¡°Let them go and I¡¯ll be your maid,¡± she said ¡°...but to gain insights is another thing, so I need you to promise me one thing in return¡±


    He arched his brow, ¡°and what is that?¡±


    ¡°This mark on my forehead.¡± She pointed at it, taking Roshan¡¯s gaze towards the silver birthmark on her forehead, ¡°it¡¯s called a meteor mark and I want it gone. Within two month and a half, I need you to get rid of it for me.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Ny-four days Roshan.¡±


    ¡°And what if I object?¡±


    ¡°Then you lose me.¡±


    Her response rendered the hall silent for once, as though they knew her words carried a silent meaning.


    Azazel¡¯s demeanor slowly changed after hearing her speak of the mark and when he wanted to intervene in an attempt to stop Roshan from epting her crazy exception, Levi was the one who stopped him.


    ¡°We were told not to interfere,¡± he reminded Azazel, ¡°so don¡¯t.¡± His half smile carried a warning which he understood and thatpelled Azazel to keep quiet, a frown appearing on his rather inexpressive face.


    Meanwhile Roshan¡¯s brows knitted into a concerned frown, a look he didn¡¯t even know had appeared on his charming face.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    Taking a deep breath, Annalise continued, ¡°It means I will no longer be your maid or your pawn and you¡¯ll never see me again, promise?¡±


    Roshan remained quiet as he stared into the eyes of Annalise before taking it back to the mark on her forehead.


    He was going to lose her? What did she mean by that phrase?? Does she n on escaping at that particr time??


    Several questions invaded his mind as he stared into her eyes to get the truth but he saw nothing, they looked shockingly empty and that made him more curious to figure things out himself.


    ¡°Fine,¡± he responded, ¡°it¡¯s a promise and I never break a promise.¡±


    Annalise didn¡¯t say a word, she wanted that statement to be true, the physician mentioned something about him when he nned on letting her know the truth and since he was somehow connected to it, surely he can help her get rid of it.


    ¡°I hope you keep to this one.¡±

 Chapter 42

    42 Something Sweet


    The next morning when the sun was just starting to approach the blue sky, how Anna had slept, she couldn¡¯t even remember but when she woke up to her own surprise, she found herself back in the room where she once was.


    If she had slept or passed out again, she couldn¡¯t really tell and cared less about it.


    With a tired sigh escaping her parted lips, she rubbed off the lingering sleep from her eyes, equally allowing her brain to reboot after everything that happenedst night made her feel a bit nauseous but she has no other choice but to hold herself together.


    Sighing deeply once again, her eyes finally traveled to the door, only to see the cier standing by the threshold while resting his back at the edge of the door.


    He looked somewhat different from yesterday as he was dressed in a ck pants, with a white long sleeve shirt along with a ck vest to go with it. Despite his simple and easy appearance, the enigmatic aura was always there to remind one of not being fooled by his looks.


    He was sarcastically humming something to himself but the unexpected entrance made Anna sit up in full speed as her energy coursed through her system.


    ¡°What are you doing here?!!¡± Her ring tone still held a little bit of sleepiness and shock but the young looking man who leaned against the door, continued to hum until his gaze slowlynded on her.


    ¡°Punishment.¡± His sophisticated tone sounded rather punishing to her ears as well, he sized her up with his gaze, taking in her clear chocte brown eyes and disheveled hair, probably due to how she slept since she was all over the ce.


    ¡°Is that a drool?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Huh?¡± A quick embarrassment shot up her insides as she hastily reached to wipe it off from her face with her hands, but when she returned her gaze back to him after feeling something wasn¡¯t right, the being only smirked at her in a way that made her feel like a dummy, which Anna didn¡¯t fail to notice and it made sense now.


    ¡°You..!!..¡±


    ¡°Baby girl, get out of bed, your work begins today.¡± He cut her off with his unusual calm tone, but Anna barely processed the rest of his words and only one got stuck to her head.


    ¡®Baby girl?¡¯ Did he just refer to her as that?? Thought Annalise as it made her blood boil for some reason.


    Gently slipping out of bed and making her irritation unknown, she stood straight before him as she spoke firmly, ¡°I might be starting today but do note that I¡¯m a grown woman, not a baby girl.¡±


    Apart from her innocent-looking face, his eyes literally scanned her body once again but the look in those beautiful eyes remained nk.


    ¡°You have nothing at the front to show for it.¡± Came his implied response after a few minutes¡¯ pause and the room fell silent.


    Anna was first confused as her eyes narrowed in suspicion but when she noticed his gaze settle on her chest, her eyes widened.


    Was he talking about her bosoms???


    Anna immediately felt like the ground should open and swallow her up this instant as her cheeks went rosy in embarrassment and she used her hands to wrap her body, but there was very little things her hands could do. This hical being!! She hadpletely forgotten just how immoral he was and that part of him hasn¡¯t changed.


    How dare he look at her body with such eyes??


    ¡°Ro_¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s young master now.¡± He corrected before stepping away from the threshold, ¡°get dressed and meet me at the downstairs corridor, we¡¯ll begin from there.¡±


    And he left before she got a chance to even speak or throw a fit of rage, her heart raced and she cursed him silently in her head, but immediately had to regain herself when a maid stepped in while holding a purple dress in her hand.


    ¡°His highness wants you to wear this.¡± The maid straightforwardly said her reasons foring here while stretching the cloth towards Anna.


    No doubt, Anna could easily tell the maid didn¡¯t really like her as she received the dress, she silently wondered if the maid was a demon too or if she was forced to work here.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    The maid quietly left after that while Anna¡¯s gaze followed her till she was out of sight. Shaking that from her head as she had more important things to begin with, Annalise hurried to the next door in the room, knowing it had to be the bathroom.


    Quickly dressing up and getting changed into the dress being brought to her, she equally packed her hair in a bun which perfectly brought out the delicate shape of her smooth face.


    Studying herself in the mirror and knowing everything was right in ce, she refused to let Roshan¡¯s heartless words get to her and proudly arranged herself in the mirror before gracefully stepping out of the room, remembering the man she despised more than her life right now had told her to meet him in the downstairs corridor.


    But she had one problem, how will she find the right one? There are so many corners that she was sure she¡¯d get lost in an attempt to get to him.


    Goodness, why didn¡¯t she think of this??


    Unwilling to anger the demon himself and let him suspect her, she hurried towards one of the stairs, holding on to the ck colored rims and going after step by step. She came across the second hallway and took a left turn but then, how was she going to find him?


    She was afraid to ask the maids for directions because she could sense they didn¡¯t like her, but was it because she was human or an Euphrasia or Roshan¡¯s maid? She couldn¡¯t tell.


    Making it towards thest part of the corner, she identally bumped into someone due to her hurriedness and the impact alone made her stagger back a bit.


    ¡°Ah.. forgive me.¡± It had be one of her habits to apologize when she ran into someone, her feets were always in a hurry and as she looked up to see whom she had ran into.


    She met the res of aplete stranger and took another step back due to the look in his copper brown eyes. Knowing exactly where she was and the rule to not annoy anyone, she immediately bowed her head.


    ¡°Forgive me, I didn¡¯t see youing.¡± She quickly apologized but the man looked rather irritated by her presence.


    ¡°Mindless maids these days, don¡¯t you realize I can take away your life for this?¡± He threatened with his tone irked in frustration, ording to Annalise¡¯s analysis, it seemed like he was already in a bad mood and her careless actions had infuriated him further.


    ¡°Forgive me.¡± She bowed in apology but the man¡¯s look of annoyance suddenly changed into puzzlement as though he smelled something sweet and his gaze retracted back to her.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± He asked instead, which sounded rather odd to Annalise but she didn¡¯t dare to utter her thoughts.


    ¡°Annalise.¡± She politely responded.


    The man¡¯s cold eyes glinted a bit and before he could make a move...


    ¡°Uncle Evan.¡± He turned to look at the young man who had dared to call him and as expected, it was no one other than Roshan who unhurriedly made his way towards them with his hands sticking to his trouser pocket.


    He caught up with them after taking a few more strides and paused, he turned his gaze to Annalise who still kept her head tilted down a bit.


    To Anna¡¯s quick surprise, he unceremoniously reached for her hand and drew her behind him as though he wanted to shield her from the menacing gaze of his uncle.


    ¡°No one ever knows when you¡¯re around.¡± Roshan casually uttered before meeting his uncle¡¯s stare and their eyes alone seemed to do the talking.


    ¡°I see.... A puppet of yours?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t really see how it concerns you.¡± He calmly responded before a tiny smile appeared on his lips as though he had jumped to a conclusion, ¡°but I hate puppets.¡±


    Returning his gaze to the baffled Anna, he coldly said. ¡°Never keep me waiting for irrelevant discussions you tend to have with nosy people.¡± He held her hand once again and dragged her off.


    His uncle¡¯s gaze still followed the sight of Anna¡¯s figure and smooth skin before they turned red in hunger.


    Once they were out of sight to his uncle¡¯s gaze, he freed her wrist even before she could scold him for holding her without permission and he turned to look at her.


    ¡°Listen, as long as you¡¯re under me, stay away from the rest youe across,¡± he warned before taking a dominant step towards her and leading the confused Anna to take a step back.


    ¡°When a fly dances carelessly along a spider¡¯s web, it risks the wrath of facing the spider¡¯s teeth. So be warned on how you move around here.¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t dancing carelessly and don¡¯tpare me to a fly.¡± She stubbornly muttered, wondering how any of this was even her fault, but since she¡¯s pretending to go by his rules, she might as well hold her tongue to avoid suspicion.


    ¡°Anyway, where are we going?¡±

 Chapter 43

    43 Game Of Chess


    ¡°Anyway, where are we going?¡± She proceeded to ask after noticing he wasn¡¯t going to take a step forward anymore and they just stood along the empty corridor way.


    ¡°Somewhere.¡± He responded while folding his arms. It left Anna a bit surprised as her eyes dted a little cause she thought she¡¯d be trapped in here like a ve forever.


    Moreover, he didn¡¯t even order her to serve him tea, or any of those maiden jobs in particr which was rather odd.


    He spoke of punishment earlier, does he have any intention of punishing her??


    She hoped not.


    ¡°Where then?¡±


    ¡°Curious?¡± His glimmering eyes slightly shifted towards the figure beside him, knowing she definitely wasn¡¯t expecting to find herself stepping out of his den so out of the blue like this.


    Annalise only nodded as she wished to see the outside world and its beautiful nature again, even if it meant with him by her side all through.


    ¡°Then keep guessing baby girl.¡± He retorted.


    .....


    Anna frowned deeply at his response and to be a lot more frank, she didn¡¯t really like it when he called her that, nor did she fancy the idea of helping him out. It always tore at her heart that it¡¯d made her feel she was betraying her people who never even trusted her due to her cursed mark, but she had two reasons for agreeing to do this.


    One of the reasons was she is more than curious to figure out what he wanted to know and why he wanted to know the insights in Euphrasia.


    Staying here would equally give her a chance to know his next n on Euphrasia and if she gets the chance, she might be able to warn Calista or even the physician with the slightest escape she can make.


    The second one was, there was a better chance that he could get rid of her mark, he had promised to get rid of it and since he wanted to really know about the insights, there was a higher chance of him fulfilling that promise to her.


    ¡°Ro_ I mean.... young master.¡± She nervously corrected herself before looking up to meet his stare with an inquiring gaze.


    ¡°How do you n on using me to gain insights?¡± She asked and an evil smile delicately formed on his lips in response. Anna didn¡¯t feel quite appeased with that smile on his face and he suddenly let out his hand for her.


    ¡°Come, let¡¯s go.¡±


    Annalise stared at his beautiful long fingers which were stretched out for her to hold and she bit the skin inside her cheek, she didn¡¯t want to hold it.


    ¡°Go where?¡± She asked instead and the cier tilted his head to the side, staring at her with a look that said she just ignored his proffered hand.


    Hesitantly, Anna finally ced her dainty hands on his in an attempt to avoid getting on his nerves. There were a few cuts to her fingers and palm which he took notice of.


    ¡°You did this?¡± Questioned Roshan while Anna¡¯s gaze fell on her bruised hands, remembering how she had used her own nails to hurt herself.


    ¡°It¡¯s one of my many habits, it keeps me calm.¡± She responded with a smile and that only made him knit his brow in skepticism.


    One way or another, he was going to figure out the mind of this woman standing before him.


    Tauntingly, his gaze raked her up once again and he added, ¡°nice dress, really brought out the shape of your....¡±


    Anna¡¯s face became instantly red again when his gazended on her bosoms and she felt like killing him this time around.


    ¡°You...!!..¡±


    A powerful light immediately epassed the both of them before she got a chance toin and within the blink of an eye, they were out of sight.


    ~


    ¡°And what brings you to the Viscarrian pce, dear uncle?¡± Azazel questioned as he served his uncle a ss of wine and they took a seat on one of the tables in a private quarters known as the sr room.


    A chess board was ced on the table, indicating they were actually battling over a game of chess before starting up a discussion.


    ¡°From your ugly expression, did you perhaps run into Roshan?¡± Azazel calmly inquired with a hint of mockery and that only made his uncle¡¯s eyes spark in response.


    ¡°That impudent rascal hasn¡¯t changed one bit, he¡¯s as he always was.¡±


    ¡°What made you think he¡¯d change in the first ce?¡± Azazel secretly rolled his eyes before moving a white pawn to the right on his chessboard.


    ¡°The girl with him.....¡±


    ¡°A piece of advice dear uncle.¡± Azazel smoothly cut him off, ¡°..if you really want peace, I¡¯d advise you to kindly stay away from her.¡±


    ¡°Because you¡¯re a walking encyclopedia doesn¡¯t give you the right to advise me.¡± His uncle sharply retorted before making his own moves on the chessboard.


    ¡°She has a special soul, I sensed it and her blood is rather tempting.¡± Uncle Evan amusingly spoke, recalling the sweet scent of her blood earlier and how he nned on sucking her dry. Had Roshan not interrupted, he would have had her to himself.


    ¡°Are you that desperate to have your head nailed to a tter and hung in Roshan¡¯s room as decoration?¡±


    ¡°Come of that, I heard he just recently came back, so he must be terribly weak, or am I wrong?¡±


    ¡°You speak like you can actually face him even in his weakest moment, I¡¯m impressed.¡± Azazel ironically spoke before moving his own piece on the board. His expression suddenly looked quizzical after moving a piece.


    ¡°I feel there¡¯s more to that sealing chamber that meets the eye and Roshan hasn¡¯t told anyone how he seeded in getting out of there.¡± Azazel cryptically added, ¡°he still ns on taking his revenge but after witnessing what he did yesterday, I¡¯m starting to wonder, is he having a war with the Euphrasia¡¯s or the people of Euphrasia itself?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d rather have him dead.¡±


    ¡°Who knew the great count could actually carry such vile thoughts.¡± A charming feminine voice suddenly spoke and when they turned their heads towards the direction the voice came from, a young beautifuldy stood at the threshold, wearing a sweet smile on her face.


    ¡°Forgive me if I interrupted your ¡®mini conversation¡¯ but Uncle, cousin, we¡¯re back from hunting.¡±

 Chapter 44

    44 Six Distinctive Bells


    ¡°We¡¯re back from hunting.¡±


    Gretta¡¯s demeanor looked calm anddy-like as she gently bowed before the two men who were deeply engrossed in a game of chess, but now had their attention diverted to thedy dressed in a ck exquisite gown with her hair packed in an updo.


    Azazel¡¯s expression still remained unfazed despite the sweet smile being directed towards his direction and a silent scoff left his lips instead.


    There¡¯s never really good news behind the smile you see on an Astaroth family¡¯s face, their smile only meant they had done something bad which again, is never good news.


    ¡°What¡¯s with the look? I had high expectations of you being the first to wee me, dear cousin.¡± Said Gretta, who masterfully feigned innocence as though his ignorance had hurt her feelings, except Azazel hade to know her way better than that.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Gemma?¡± He asked instead, causing a little girl¡¯s head to pop from behind Gretta who still stood at the doorway and all eyes shifted to the girl hiding behind her.


    The little girl who looked no older than six, curiously let her hazel eyes travel amongst the people present in the sr room before hesitantly stepping away from Gretta¡¯s back, keeping mute.


    ¡°Urgh! Gemma!! Aren¡¯t you supposed to have taken your bath already??¡± Grettained as she saw the little one still dressed in her hunting outfit, a few leaves were stuck to her hair which she guiltily removed and her boots were covered in mud.


    Whilst she paid less attention to Gretta, knowing she only cared about her standards and nothing else.


    .....


    Azazel met the little one¡¯s stare before she hurried towards him with a happy smile, her eyes glimmering in delight as she reached for him to jerk her up and sit her on hisp.


    Which he did, not minding her appearance at all as he found it rather cute instead.


    ¡°How was your hunting? Did you find something special?¡±


    She excitedly nodded before looking away and lowering her gaze to the brown sack hanging around her waist. With itchy hands, she brought out a beautiful blue glowing pendant from her sack, holding it in her small hands and showing it to Azazel who looked impressed at the sight.


    But to everyone¡¯s unexpected surprise, a little blue bird suddenly flew out of her small sack, startling everyone in the sr room and with the way it flew, one could tell it wasn¡¯t strong enough to carry itself and instead, watched itnd on the floor with a soft thud when it had grown tired of flying.


    Quickly, Gemma got down from Azazel as she hurriedly went to pick up the little bird with gentility, causing a look of annoyance to paint Gretta¡¯s pretty face.


    ¡°I thought I already warned you not to bring that filth in here, throw it away right now before aunt Letitia sees it!!¡± Gretta half-scolded the little one whose big round eyes immediately looked downturny with sadness as her shoulders slouched.


    That alone earned a little smile from Gretta, finally wanting to use the opportunity to talk some sense into Gemma and having her ruin her moment.


    ¡°Let me see the bird.¡± Azazel¡¯s cool voice resonated next, interrupting Gretta who was about to scold her again and gaining Gemma¡¯s attention.


    Ignoring Gretta, Gemma quietly headed up to him with the beautiful little animal resting in her tiny palms.


    Azazel stared at the bird and noticed the poor thing had a slight injury in one of its colourful feathers and a slow smile formed on his lips.


    ¡°I see, so you want to treat it.¡±


    She nodded without speaking, causing Uncle Evan to bluff at her words as though she was being naive and truly, she was, ording to him and Gretta.


    ¡°Why treat a bird that will end up being eaten someday in the wild? Haven¡¯t you heard about the cycle of nature, little one.¡±


    Gemma¡¯s eyes immediately widened at her uncle Evan¡¯s word, as though the news of the beautiful bird being eaten had shocked her to her core.


    Azazel, who noticed his little cousin¡¯s fright immediately made her look at him instead, shifting his warm gaze to the bird before bringing it back to look into her hazel eyes.


    ¡°You can keep the bird and make sure to treat it properly.¡± Came his response as well as a secret warning to the rest present in the sr room.


    Gemma, who wasn¡¯t expecting such a response from one of her cold favorite uncles, stared at him with a surprised look, as though asking if he really meant it and he reassuringly nodded, giving her head a gentle pat.


    ¡°Go freshen up and get changed, then we can talk.¡±


    With a happy smile adorning her lips, the little girl ran out of the room with the bird in her hand, causing Gretta¡¯s mouth to fall open that Azazel really let Gemma keep that filth, the dirty thing!!


    ¡°It was picked from the bushes Azazel! Who knows what germs and disgusting organisms must be living inside of it.¡± She made her distaste known but that never really concerned the white-haired being whose focus was back to the chess game as he moved a piece.


    ¡°You just came back from the bushes Gretta, who knows what germs and disgusting organisms must be living inside of you.¡± Azazel¡¯s words came soft, but they were a great p to Gretta¡¯s face as her expression fell.


    ¡°Pardon but I¡¯m the daughter of a great Duke, and due to our family rtion, I won¡¯t take your words too deep.¡±


    With the stern look in her eyes, one could tell she was trying really hard not to react to his words, hence she knew, without a doubt, that he¡¯d find absolute joy in it, so what was the use of feeding him with that satisfaction.


    Instead, she headed towards their table and sat in the middle by their right, unwilling to let her nerves be yed with and quietly watched the two Demons y chess.


    ¡°A Game of chess, who is thinking and who is silently venting?¡± She inquired.


    ¡°Why? Got a bad day?¡±


    ¡°Not as bad as Levi.¡± She chuckled silently at her own words like she just remembered something. Uncle Evan seemed to have expected the news since he hasn¡¯t seen Levi around and chose to ask.


    ¡°What did he do?¡±


    ¡°He came to join the hunt, stating he was tired of Azazel breaking his heart all the time.....¡± she redirected her gaze towards Azazel who just kept ying the game, acting like he wasn¡¯t actually the one they were talking about.


    Rolling her eyes, Gretta continued,¡±...we were after the six distinctive bells but unfortunately, the djinns got them first, some we had to kill and some we ended up bargaining with using Levi, I think he¡¯s married to their queen now cause she found him appealing due to his appearance.¡±


    She tried not to chuckle again while uncle Evan just shook his head.


    ¡°That boy is certainly no different from Gemma, no wonder they¡¯re siblings, sometimes I wonder if he¡¯s even an actual Demon, are you sure he wasn¡¯t picked from somewhere?¡±


    ¡°He has more humor than you to say the least.¡± Azazel instantly striked, his polite smile was aplete contrast to his venomous words, earning him a half threatening re from his uncle but he just politely motioned to the chessboard.


    ¡°Your turn uncle Evan.¡±


    ¡°At the end of it all, we got them.¡± She brought out the bells from her own sack, three were tied with a red knot while the remaining three were tied with a blue knot.


    ¡°What are those bells?¡± Questioned Azazel.


    ¡°It¡¯s called the six distinctive bells, very unique and rare.¡± Gretta amusingly began, ¡°they are two different types of bell as you can see, the love bell and the death bell.¡±


    ¡°Love bells?¡±


    She nodded, ¡°I have no idea how the djinns got hold of something like this in the first ce but the love bell automatically rings when you stand before a person you¡¯d love till eternity toe.¡± she batted hershes at Azazel who once again, ignored her.


    She held the bell with a red knot up, ¡°this particr one is quite fatal, holding this bell and hearing it ring means you¡¯re standing before a person who¡¯d actually kill you someday, or you¡¯d kill one another I can¡¯t remember how Aunt Letitia ced them again.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s weird.¡± Uncle Evan found her little theory to be untrue but Gretta only shrugged with an empty look in her eyes.


    ¡°They¡¯re more of magical fated bells, and with the three realms being unstable, I have my suspicions on something but I rather keep my thoughts to myself until proven otherwise.¡±


    ¡°Why do you even have them?¡± Questioned Azazel, who seemed to find them useless and bothersome to his gaze.


    ¡°Cause Aunt Letitia told me to keep them for her, Roshan¡¯s return doesn¡¯t seem to fit in well with her.¡± She whispered with a giggle that sounded sweet yet mocking.


    ¡°Did you show them to Gemma?¡±


    ¡°Why would I? Gemma actually enjoyed hunting but it¡¯s like she¡¯s always appearing and disappearing with each chance she gets,¡± Gretta couldn¡¯t help but find that part of the adventure a bit strange and at the same time, wasn¡¯t willing to let it bother her.


    ¡°It¡¯s her first time going for such meaningful hunts and she should learn.¡±


    ¡°Is Levi still stuck there?¡±


    ¡°Most likely yes, but I don¡¯t really care.¡±


    Azazel rolled his eyes and with a snap of his fingers, he had vanished, startling Gretta and uncle Evan.


    ¡°How rude!¡±

 Chapter 45

    45 General Hendrick And Lady Odette


    *Green Town*


    Annalise surprisingly found herself back in a unique ce known as Green Town with Roshan standing by her side. For a moment, she nearly lost her breath at the thought of how she ended up in apletely different location but after seeing Roshan, a thought suddenly hit her.


    Of course, he was a demon and it¡¯s quite normal for Demon¡¯s to vanish and appear through thin air whenever they felt like it.


    But they could transport humans too?? That was a new urrence to her.


    Shaking off the reality on how everything had turned out to be, she could trust no one but herself at this point.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t this Green Town in Euphrasia?¡± She asked and he nodded with a firm expression, letting his tongue slide through the area of his teeth were his fangs were meant toe out from as though they were itching him.


    ¡°Why are we here? I¡¯m not really weed in Euphrasia at the moment.¡± She told him but the being barely reacted to her words and just kept a straight face.


    ¡°I know.¡±


    There were tall trees with fresh green leaves at both sides as they stood on the earthly path, the sky looked clear and blue, indicating it wasn¡¯t going to rain anytime soon but Anna still had her doubts since the clouds could be really tricky.


    .....


    Fancy-looking carriages hurried past them and the clip-clop of the horses hooves could be heard. Very few people dressed in modest outfits strode by but that didn¡¯t spare Anna from the strange looks she got from them.


    It made her naturally ufortable.


    ¡°Then why are we here?¡±


    ¡°The great count of Green Town should be expecting us.¡± He responded and Anna couldn¡¯t help but find his tone pleasing whenever he spoke with that deep sophisticated voice of his.


    She didn¡¯t want to find anything pleasing or appealing about him, she wanted to despise every single thing that had to do with him but unfortunately, things never seemed to work out the way one expected.


    To put it simply, things never seemed to work out the way SHE WANTED!!


    ¡°Who is the count of Green Town?¡± She asked while shifting that uneasy feeling from her heart, leaving Roshan to arch his brow at her question as his Hazel-green eyes shifted to meet her stare.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know him?¡±


    She shook her head in response while returning her gaze back to the calm streets of Green Town, ¡°I¡¯ve barely visited this part of Euphrasia before, but I¡¯ve heard about Green Town, the people here are rather not so nosy and I don¡¯t think they¡¯d be familiar with me.¡±


    Although she had worn the Jewelry headband again, she could tell from the people¡¯s stare that they saw her as nothing but a stranger, that alone relieved her heart to some extent.


    ¡°Good,e on.¡±


    He strode off, leaving Anna to scrutinize the view once again before following his steps.


    Green Town were more like for the nobles who weren¡¯t poor and lived a much morefortable life than those living in Daekrahm vige, the vige closest to Euphrasia and where she lived with her parents.


    Her mother wasn¡¯t the type of woman who¡¯d let her child wander too far and because of that, she barely knows much ces about the town¡¯s and smaller towns in Euphrasia.


    Her mother had been too protective of her and her safety the moment she was born so most of her life was spent indoors while her mother went out to work.


    Her mother was young, beautiful and very hard-working cause she knew her mother did three jobs, she wasn¡¯t familiar with the two but she knew her mother worked for a ship by helping them unload their bags or boxes once they¡¯ve made it to their right destination so she was usually left alone.


    That was until the terrible incident happened when her mother decided to take her along one certain day and the painful memories were still fresh in her head.


    Getting into the Euphrasia kingdom became even worse, the rules of the pce made it extremely difficult for the maids to go anywhere, the head maid was rather strict and thankfully, she had to stick around Calista and avoided the head maid.


    Since the pce was her only source of shelter, adhering to the rules was all she could do, closing the doors that would lead her into taking any step towards an adventure.


    Noticing the gloominess in her eyes as they strode by, Roshan had to speak up.


    ¡°Hey, baby girl, I don¡¯t need you sulking at the moment, gather yourself lest everyone might get the wrong impression that I kidnapped you.¡± He mischievously hinted, gaining Anna¡¯s attention with that wicked, yet pleasing tone of his.


    ¡°I told you not to call me that, I have a name!¡± She countered with a look of great displeasure, except Roshan wasn¡¯t the kind of person who cared much about what she thought of it.


    ¡°And when did a maid learn to order her master?¡± His question came rather cold to her ears, sending a little trickle of fear down her heart and that reminded Anna of her ce.


    ¡°People are passing by dear master and I¡¯m just trying to help keep your moral rectitude in check.¡± She smiled politely like the humble maid that she was who only cared about the reputation of her master or Lord.


    ¡°How generous of you, I¡¯ve always known you had a liking towards me.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t mistake generosity for affection, Lord Roshan.¡±


    ¡°True generosity is given freely and out of pure love, or am I missing something, Miss Anna?¡±


    Another carriage hurried past the two young fellows who looked no different from a couple taking a walk under the friendly weather.


    They were starting to approach the main streets where stone buildings came into sight. Healthy green trees stood beside each building and that brought about the name Green Town, they had many healthy trees and with it, came a cool vibrant breeze.


    Anna would have taken her time to enjoy the view and the sight of beautiful houses if she didn¡¯t have a mission here.


    ¡°Where exactly does the count live?¡± She changed the topic, reluctant to continue her earlier discussion with Roshan since he always manages to twist her words.


    Her sudden question didn¡¯t reallye as a surprise to Roshan and he stopped walking.


    ¡°Right there.¡±


    His gaze was fixed in a certain direction and when Anna followed it, he was staring at a golden gate which wasn¡¯t too far from where they stood. The gate suddenly opened to Anna¡¯s unexpected surprise and ady was roughly thrown out by a guard.


    ¡°Dear lord!¡± Anna couldn¡¯t hold in her exmation at the sight as her hands went to her mouth, in an attempt to stop herself from uttering anything else.


    ¡°Please, sire, forgive me! I never stole a thing, I¡¯m being falsely used of this, please!¡± Thedy instantly went on her knees to beg the man who proudly stepped out with two guards standing behind him.


    ¡°You never stole it?¡± The man who was dressed in a stylish outfit questioned thedy who pleaded for mercy with tears in her eyes.


    ¡°Then how did it get to your bag?¡± His tone was unforgiving and demanding, his eyes holding no trace of pity.


    ¡°I swear with my life, I have no idea how it got there, I¡¯m pleading for mercy, my whole family depends on this job, I¡¯m innocent of this.¡±


    ¡°Humph! When you¡¯re done, leave my premises and return to the slums where I was once kind enough to pick you from, you irritate me!¡±


    He walked inside as though the sight of thedy disgusted him to the very core, the poordy who Anna assumed to be a maid was further pushed out by the guards and she fell to the ground with a soft cry escaping her lips.


    ¡°Please! Don¡¯t do this!¡±


    The iron gate was closed shut right in her face, shattering thedy¡¯s hope of ever working here. She finally rose to her feet and walked away in another direction when she noticed people were starting to gather.


    Roshan¡¯s expression barely changed, he looked as though the scene had bore him out but Anna was the one who looked broken down by what she just witnessed.


    ¡°How can a human being treat another fellow human like this?? it¡¯spletely unfair and outrageous.¡±


    ¡°Who knows, maybe she did steal something.¡± He shrugged in a nonchnt manner, causing Anna to look at him in disbelief but his boring gaze remained fixed on the iron gate.


    ¡°Even if she did, manhandling a woman like that is absolutely cruel, there are many better ways to handle the situation than to do this!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s a top official,¡± he reminded her with a hint of annoyance etching to his tone, ¡°no one can question him based on the actions he chooses to take, whatever happens in Green Town is his business.¡±


    ¡°Well I find such men utterly disgusting!¡± She spat, remembering Sir Arlow wasn¡¯t any different with the way he treated the maids too.


    ¡°Hold in your disgust baby girl, he owes us a special visit and whatever happens, just smile.¡± He warned in a calm tone.


    ¡°At this point, I¡¯m not Roshan, but General Hendrick and you¡¯redy Odette.¡±


    ¡°I beg your pardon?¡± Annalise blinked in surprise, wondering why he changed their names.


    ¡°We came in presence of one of the neighboring towns, sent to get the information about Demons ravaging Green Town, that is if they¡¯re here.¡± The evil smile returned to his lips and Anna knew this meeting won¡¯t end very well.


    He walked out, leaving Anna to think wisely about the precautions of her act before apanying him in and with a few minutes walk, they were standing before the golden iron gate.

 Chapter 46

    46 Rted


    ¡°Who are you?¡±


    The uniformly dressed guard at the gate cautiously demanded after spotting two unknown strangers standing just outside the gate of his Lord¡¯s premises, but Roshan only folded his arms with ease, his expression neutral while exuding the aura of a true general that would leave one bowing at his sight.


    ¡°I wonder how the great count would feel if he knew you kept the general he was expecting at the gate.¡± He tsked in pity, ¡°how sorry I¡¯d feel for the one who dared to question me in the first ce.¡±


    The warning was clearly hinted at the guard and as though he had been whipped behind the back by Roshan¡¯s death gaze, he instantly left his post station within a few seconds, hurrying to go open the gate as he knew the count was receiving some important visitors today.


    ¡°Forgive me general Hendrick...¡± he quickly apologized with a nervous smile adorning his lips, ¡°I didn¡¯t see your carriage... so I mistook you for the lowly disturbance.....e in.¡±


    He politely made way for the two visitors to step in.


    Anna, who was surprised at first by the guards quick change of attitude instantly regained her firm demeanor as she wouldn¡¯t want to be the one who¡¯d ruin Roshan¡¯s n at the end of it all.


    She didn¡¯t actually me the guard for being fearful and rmed, the authorityced to Roshan¡¯s tone was frighteninglypelling, she would have done worse if she was in the ce of the guard.


    Together, they stepped into the mansion and were immediately led towards the threshold by the post guard who politely bowed before them.


    .....


    It was the first time Annalise ever received a bow from anyone and it made her feel a little different for once, like she was seen as someone special.


    Striding across the beautiful wide hallway, Roshan could feel a tinge of pain starting to tear at his chest in a subsequential manner, as though a knife was being mercilessly pierced into his heart and he nearly stopped walking when it stung him deep.


    Letting out a soft sigh as he continued walking, It took him great effort not to react to the biting pain and keep his expression cold and serene. His scar....


    Is it starting to ache now??


    ¡°Are.... you alright?¡± Anna¡¯s soft voice brought him back to the present as he met her stare and the pain in his chest worsened. Earlier on, his fangs had been itching toe out and devour the life of many victims which wasn¡¯t what he wanted at the moment.


    He had fought with himself not to let his Demon¡¯s gain the upper hand but now, they were literally tearing at his chest and specifically at his heart region, demanding their release.


    They were ferociously hurting him.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± He coldly responded before averting his gaze from her as though she was bothering him with her irrelevant question.


    His craving to see blood only heightened and the thought of killing was starting to upy his senses.


    No! Not now!!


    As much as Anna wanted to ept his words and how final they sounded, something strange bugged her heart, yet she couldn¡¯t tell what it was and continuously casted him a side nce.


    She hoped whatever they came here for would end soon cause truth be told, she was internally freaking out due to the personality of the count, to the point she habitually hurt herself with her nails by pinching her skin.


    She has never done anything like this before, ying to be someone she¡¯s not and the guards don¡¯t seem to even realize it themselves.


    Could it be they haven¡¯t met the actual general Hendrick and Lady Odette? But what if the actual people eventually show up?


    Why haven¡¯t they showed up? Has Roshan done something to them? The mere thought of how possible it could turn out to be made her shiver in fright as the aura surrounding him at this point made it clear he doesn¡¯t want anyone interrupting his thoughts.


    ¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll get him for you.¡± The butler politely motioned for the twopletely lost beings to take a seat at the waiting room.


    ¡°Do you need some refreshments while you wait?¡± Asked the butler and they shook their heads in response.


    ¡°Alright then, I¡¯ll be back.¡±


    Heading up the stairs, Roshan and Annalise took their seats on the chair with a circr table in front of them, waiting for the count to make his presence and not too long, he approached the stairs, gaining Anna and Roshan¡¯s attention as they nced up to look at him.


    Anna¡¯s already terrified heart drummed frantically after noticing the seriousness in the man¡¯s gaze and what he did to thatdy reyed in her head.


    Roshan¡¯s demeanor remained intact and he barely had a look of hesitancy in his gaze.


    He didn¡¯t even want to show what was happening inside of him cause a lot of people would die.


    ¡°I never expected to see you here so early Hendrick.¡± The man spoke with utter curiosity while Roshan gingerly got to his feet. Seeing as he did so, Anna proceeded to do the same.


    ¡°Greetings Sir Steve.¡± She greeted, causing the man¡¯s attention to divert towards her and at that point, Anna seemed to regret speaking as his eyes uncannily narrowed at her.


    ¡°You.... You look familiar.¡±


    That word alone nearly sent Anna into a quick panic as her eyes slightly erged itself and the next thing she felt like doing was running from this ce with what energy was left in her, but remembering Roshan¡¯s warning not to mess this up, she held herself together and kept her expression warm.


    ¡°But I¡¯m seeing you for the first time.¡± Her soft pleasing voice was enough to mess with sir Steve¡¯s head a little and an amused expression yed on his facial looks.


    ¡°Really...¡± his gaze still looked somewhat doubtful, not until Roshan finally chose to step in.


    ¡°She¡¯s from the main kingdom of Euphrasia,¡± Roshan said. ¡°If you¡¯ve been to the pce, then it¡¯s quite normal that she looks familiar to your gaze.¡±


    ¡°Well....¡± Sir Steve straightened up, ¡°...that is true.¡± He finally averted his gaze from her, ¡°have your seats.¡±


    They quietly sat down back, sir Steve sitting opposite next to them.


    ¡°So what do I owe this visit?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re here on behalf of the neighboring towns.¡± Roshan professionally began, ¡± as you know, Demon¡¯s have been causing a lot of mishapstely and the people of Euphrasia are filled with great terror about what¡¯s going to happen next, they¡¯re curious to know if the seal has been broken or not.¡±


    ¡°I see...¡± the look in sir Steve¡¯s eyes showed that he had expected something like this, resting his hand on the table as he clutched his fingers against each other.


    On the other hand, Anna was finding it quite strange that Roshan would ask about something like that.


    ¡°It¡¯s being worked on at the moment, I paid a visit to the dark forest but going in is not in my power. If the demon was actually freed, the darkness of the clouds should have been gone which should serve as a warning, but the forest is still covered in darkness.¡±


    ¡°So you¡¯re saying the demon might not have been freed?¡± Anna finally spoke up while Sir Steve rxed against his seat.


    ¡°Trapping him in there was the only way possible to seal him and after that was done, the darkness soon enveloped it and not everyone could escape it. Those who did im after he got locked, anyone who tried to open the sealing door would be faced with dire consequences.¡±


    Roshan¡¯s brow arched a little, ¡°so no one is aware if the Demon has escaped or not?¡±


    ¡°In my opinion, I call it a fifty fifty.¡±


    Roshan secretly casted a side nce at Anna¡¯s direction, suspicion filled his piercing Hazel eyes and that made Anna gulp in consternation.


    ¡®why¡¯s he staring at me?¡¯ thought Annalise.


    The discussion went on for almost an hour and through each passing time, Anna caught a glimpse of the man¡¯s strange eyes on her. Ever since the conversation began, he had been stealing a few nces at her direction which she took notice of.


    She couldn¡¯t wait for everything to be done with and escape from here.


    ¡°....I¡¯ll be holding a little mask celebration by the weekend, do attend with the lovely Lady Odette.¡± He handed Roshan the invitation card and just like that, Roshan got his triumph card.


    ¡°Of course Sir Steve, you¡¯ve been more than kind.¡±


    ¡°But before you leave, can I have a word with the young miss?¡± He requested.


    Anna¡¯s eyes unknowingly widened at his sudden request while Roshan went mute for a few seconds. He turned his head to look at Anna who equally met his stare with a nervous look.


    She was hoping he¡¯d understand her fears at the moment and refuse Sir Steve¡¯s request but instead, the cier turned his head back to the man and nodded.


    ¡°Sure, it¡¯s not a problem.¡±


    Anna felt her heart drop as Roshan willingly agreed to let her stay behind, she wanted to speak, but to her quick dismay, Roshan just stood up and exited the main hall.


    He really left her alone here? With this disgusting man!? This is betrayal!


    ¡°You¡¯redy Odette, right?¡± The man suddenly questioned, gaining her attention back and she could do nothing more at this point but nod relentlessly as she had no idea what to do or say, instead she carried a smile to hide her nervousness.


    ¡°Do you know why I asked you to stay?¡±


    ¡°How can I possibly know if you don¡¯t tell me?¡± Her warm smile was still intact and it took every strength in her system to stop her voice from cracking.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never been to the pce before, I just thought you knew about the wife ofte sir Mateo cause you look really familiar to her.¡±


    Anna¡¯s expression remained firm, but her heart was drumming against her ribcage.


    ¡°What?¡± She breathed out instead, it felt as though she was being squeezed in a very small, tight rubber tube that she even lost the energy to speak properly.


    ¡°Are you rted to her in some way?¡±

 Chapter 47

    47 Questions


    Annalise did nothing more but blink in trepidation as she hadn¡¯t expected his strange question at all, with the rate at which her heart was drumming right now, she could only pray it doesn¡¯t get heard by sir Steve and a miracle happens on her path.


    Was she figured out already? He had been staring at her all through the entire conversation. Does he know her father? Why does he ask for her mother and if they¡¯re rted?? Was he suspicious? Does he know of her birthmark??


    If she responds will he kill her??


    Several negative questions spiraled inside her head, the room temperature was cool, but Anna could nervously feel a cold sweat trying to break out on her forehead. She couldn¡¯t dare to utter her inner thoughts and bit her lower lip to stay calm, most especially to this dangerous man.


    Why did Roshan leave her in this tight situation??


    ¡°Pardon my manners, you were saying?¡± She snapped herself out of her shocked reverie, returning her gaze back to sir Steve who only let his eyes rake over the beautifuldy in front of him beforeposing himself.


    ¡°I was just wondering if you were rted to her, she lived in Daekrahm vige and was among the troupes who helped in shipping valuable boxes to other neighboring towns.¡±


    He spoke like aplete gentleman which Anna had fullye to know he wasn¡¯t. Regardless, she was forced to smile all through his words due to Roshan¡¯s warning. Hence, she could barely stand the sight of this man who kept ogling at her.


    He looked old enough to be her uncle, or even her father.


    .....


    ¡°She sounds like a wonderful woman to me.¡± Was the best response Anna coulde up with, she didn¡¯t want to reveal her identity to anyone and found it safer if she kept it hidden.


    ¡°Yes, unfortunately she died under the terrible storm along with her daughter I assume....¡± He shrugged, ¡°....the rest of the bodies were recovered except hers, seeing as you shared some sort of resemnce I assumed you were rted, but it was a misgiving....¡±


    ¡°Wait.... Her body wasn¡¯t found?¡± That piece of information didn¡¯t slip from her ears and Anna couldn¡¯t refrain herself from interjecting the man¡¯s word who met her gaze. Realizing what she just did, she maintained herself while curling her fingers against her palms.


    ¡°Why was her body never found? The family should be worried, shouldn¡¯t they?¡± Her expression became neutral. If she were to jeopardize this for Roshan, he¡¯d kill her himself.


    Sir Steve nodded to her inquiries, ¡°I agree, but how about we talk a lot more on this during the mask celebration, I have somewhere important to be at and can¡¯t risk arrivingte.¡±


    They both got to their feet while Anna bowed politely, ¡°thank you for the warm conversation sir Steve, reminded me of a father and daughter chat which I appreciate dearly.¡±


    Her words seemed to affect sir Steve a little bit and she had intentionally said it to remind him of his limits in case he forgot about it.


    ¡°See you at the celebrationdy Odette.¡±


    She hastily turned around and walked off at the path she knew the butler had guided them through before.


    Making it half-way through the hallway, her brows naturally knitted into a worried frown at the thought of sir Steve¡¯s words. Her mother¡¯s body wasn¡¯t found??


    How¡¯s that even possible?


    But if her mother¡¯s body wasn¡¯t found, who did the vigers bury?? She was still a child when she saw her mother¡¯s corpse but it was wrapped with a white sheet, so she couldn¡¯t see the face of her mother before she got buried.


    It took days before her mother¡¯s body was literally found but the people imed her body had deformed because it stayed out for too long. It was the dress she wore that made her recognizable to them and being a child, she wasn¡¯t allowed to see it.


    Sir Steve on the other hand, interestingly watched her graceful figure fade into the exit but his suspicion hadn¡¯t cleared just yet.


    Anna finally made it out of his mansion while catching a deep breath as though she had been holding it all the while she walked. She thanked the heavens in her heart that she had escaped from that suffocating chamber, but a sudden whistle caught her attention, she nearly jumped out of her skin.


    Turning to the direction of the whistle, she saw the strikingly handsome cier leaning his back against the wall while whistling something to himself or to the wind she couldn¡¯t really tell.


    His hands were in his pockets as usual and he barely spared her a nce. There was something a bit eerie about him and his aura had changed drastically in a way that silently screamed terror.


    ¡°Did you smile?¡± He asked, leaving a look of displeasure to disy itself on Anna¡¯s face. She wanted to ask why he had left her alone there but held her tongue the moment he turned to look at her.


    His expression looked serious and strangely quizzical at the same time, it made her wonder if she did anything that was out of ce or if he heard the conversation between her and sir Steve.


    The rude guard who was at his post was no longer there either.


    Strange.


    Where did the guard go? And leaving his post unattended.


    ¡°You, me, we have a lot to talk about.¡± Said Roshan and he headed for the gate without waiting for her.


    Anna didn¡¯t quite fancy the seriousness in his subtle tone as a sense of dread followed it, but she couldn¡¯t wait here either.


    She was about to leave when she caught sight of a figure at the corner that led to the side of the mansion.


    Slowly and steadily, she tiptoed to see who was lying on the ground and to her shock, it was the post guard, lying dead and in the pool of his own blood.


    Her hands flew to her mouth as she saw his lifeless body and she stopped herself from screaming.


    Did Roshan do this???


    Afraid someone might spot her and misinterpret the situation, she ran out of the mansion, exiting through the gate and she didn¡¯t stop running until a figure suddenly blocked her path.


    ¡°And where are you going?¡± He questioned straightaway, causing a little scream to escape from Anna¡¯s lips as Roshan immediately stood in front of her, out of nowhere.


    ¡°You and I have something important to talk about.¡± He reminded her but Anna shook her head in disbelief.


    ¡°You killed the guard!¡¯


    ¡°So?¡±


    His eyes had turned red when she looked into them, they looked cier and she felt she was staring straight at the eyes of aplete demon now, making her take a step back.


    ¡°Don¡¯te near me, or else I¡¯ll scream.¡± She warned while pointing a threatening finger at him, but her act of defense only made him take a step closer to her.


    ¡°You....Ahh!!¡±


    She lost her footing and fell on her butt while trying to retreat and Roshan couldn¡¯t hold back a light chuckle at her helpless and ghostly situation.


    ¡°Don¡¯t fret baby girl, I¡¯m still in need of you, so don¡¯t worry about bing dinner for the time being okay?¡± He assured her in a way that told her not to believe his words hundred percent.


    Scrutinizing the area and confirming the coast was clear, he crouched to her level and as he held her hand, they both vanished out of sight.


    ~


    ¡°Let me go.....your hold is too tight!!..let go off me!!¡±


    Making it back to the kingdom, Roshan dragged Annalise across the corridor and into a room, shutting the door right after which silenced herints.


    She turned around to look at him with widened eyes and the being just stood at the door.


    ¡°I have a question and you must answer me correctly and sincerely.¡± He demanded before meeting her gaze.


    ¡°How did you open that door?¡± His tone came soft this time around, but the warnings of not daring to lie to him lingered in his tone.


    ¡°Wha_what are you talking about?¡±


    ¡°You know very well what I¡¯m talking about, how did you open the door??¡± Roshan hadn¡¯t let that particr question skip from his mind which was why he brought up the topic to that douchebag of a count.


    The sealing room was held by a strong, invisible magical vortex, a door he himself couldn¡¯t open despite his countless tries but this annoying human was able to do just that.


    ¡°What door?¡± Anna still wasn¡¯t getting it.


    ¡°The sealing chamber at the temple, how did you open the door?¡± He demanded again, giving Anna a fright as he took a step towards her. She instantly retreated back only to end up sitting on the bed.


    Trapped!


    ¡°Answer me.¡± He came closer while Anna felt her lungs overworking themselves again, her breathing came short and her hands tightened against the foot of the bed.


    ¡°I... I didn¡¯t do anything, I just opened the door.¡±


    ¡°How did you open it?¡±


    ¡°The door....it was....I....it was jammed..... really hard....and I took....took an iron rod to help me open the door....I swear I did nothing else.¡± She truthfully told him, his crimson colored eyes were frightening the very soul inside of her and she didn¡¯t want to die in the hands of him.


    ¡°Just that?¡±


    She nodded immediately while sniffling quietly, holding back the tears which were threatening to spill from her eyes at his harsh tone.


    Noticing the tears which welled up in her eyes, Roshan finally shifted away, turning his back on her before closing his eyes for a brief moment to gather himself.


    ¡°You¡¯ll remain here until I ask for you.¡± With that being said, he headed for the door before stopping once again.


    ¡°Do you need anything?¡±


    She instantly shook her head in fear, however, in truth, she needed two things.


    Her golden badge and food.


    But seeing his temper at the moment, she was unwilling to demand anything from him. He walked out, mming the door behind him and causing a gasp to escape from her lips.


    Anna sank to the cold ground once his presence had left the room, drawing her knees up to her chest as she hugged herself and for some reason, she couldn¡¯t stop herself from crying at the way he treated her.

 Chapter 48

    48 Another Discovery


    Scampering halfway through the red carpeted floor of the high corridor, Gemma skittishly went after her precious blue bird with a bright smile adorning her lips as the bird flew around the corridor. The mischievous blue animal had sneakily escaped from it¡¯s little cage while she was busy searching for the ointment she¡¯d use to treat it¡¯s injured wing.


    Fortunately, she had spot it leaving the room which enabled her to go after it without losing it¡¯s sight.


    But right now, she looked no different from a little girl having fun with her new found pet as she scampered from one direction to the other, her ponytail hair equally bounced with her movements.


    ¡°Oh my! Be careful princess...¡±


    ¡°Avoid tripping on the way...¡±


    ¡°Ah!...no running around princess.¡± The Maidens who were startled by Gemma¡¯s quick energy as she dashed past the corridor only made them shake their heads helplessly with a hint of worry. If Lady Gretta spots her behaving udylike, the maids are going to have their ears full for not stopping her.


    Gemma, however, ignored their remarks and only paid close attention to the bird she was currently chasing after. Her hazel eyes childishly glimmered in triumph when she finally caught the bird with both arms, feeling victorious that she had won their little chase without hurting the poor thing in return.


    She gave it¡¯s head a gentle loving pat before carefully cross-checking it¡¯s body to make sure she hadn¡¯t injured it further. To her surprise, a soft sobbing instantly caught her attention, making her ears twitch in response and the blue bird chirped as well.


    Turning her little head to the side with a curious stare, her prying gazended on the door by her right, it was slightly opened and the soft crying seemed to being from in there.


    .....


    Suddenly concerned about who was crying in such a sad tone, Gemma silently reached for the door and quietly pushed it open using her elbows. She craned her neck in to see who it was that upied the room and to her innocent hazel eyes, ady sat on the tiled floor in the darkest part of the room, hugging her knees with her head resting on them.


    The loneliness surrounding her at the moment was one that could easily be felt, even to Gemma. She could see the stranger had no one around her and understanding how it felt to be alone most of the time, it gave Gemma a heart ache just by seeing her state.


    With an expressive stare, Gemma watched the strangedy cry for a few more minutes before silently making her way in.


    Due to Anna¡¯s keen sense of hearing, she could already sense someone¡¯s presence in the room as the sound of light footsteps echoed into her ear. rmingly, she raised her head back up, causing the little one to stop in her tracks while Anna met her startled stare.


    Her eyes had reddened a bit due to how long she had been crying but the girl just silently stared, confusingly tilting her head to the side as though asking why the stranger was crying.


    Anna, who didn¡¯t understand the girl¡¯s gesture and found her silence to be a little awkward, decided to speak first as she quickly wiped her tears away, recalling that she was actually crying earlier before the girl intervened.


    Did she hear her cry? It was quite embarrassing to her that a little girl witnessed her crying in the first ce.


    ¡°Did you lose your way? You shouldn¡¯t be here.¡± Anna softly spoke to the little girl who just stood at where she was, the blue bird gently held by both her grasp kept chirping for release, which Gemma ignored as she hade to know just how stubborn the bird can be.


    Seeing as the girl had no intention of leaving or even speaking, Anna proceeded to say something else.


    ¡°Why..... are you here?¡±


    Hearing that question, Gemma finally moved forward with quick steps, only to sit beside the paranoid Anna on the tiled floor. She showed her little blue bird to Anna with a solemn gaze, pointing at the small injury it had on one of its wings which Anna quickly took notice of.


    ¡®It¡¯s injured.¡¯ her mind whispered it to her before looking into the eyes of the strange, yet adorable little girl.


    ¡°You want me to help you treat it?¡±


    Gemma immediately nodded with a hopeful smile, feeling d that the strangedy understood what her big sister couldn¡¯t. At this point, Anna¡¯s tears had been unknowingly held back due to her surprise and the girl¡¯s unexpected airy presence.


    Shifting her gaze to the door which was still open, she wondered where the little child came from or who she belonged to? Was she a demon? Did Roshan send her here to ensure she hasn¡¯t escaped or something?


    ¡°Did someone send you over?¡±


    Gemma shook her head at the question, relieving Anna a bit but notpletely. At least she would be out of sight from Roshan in the meantime but sooner orter, she¡¯s bound to be by his side again.


    Slightly shivering in fear, she pushed aside her fearful thoughts and brought her gaze back to the little girl. Studying her more perfectly, the girl looked really harmless and adorable, her dressing looked standard like those born from higher nobles.


    ¡°Uhmm... what¡¯s your name dear?¡±.


    The little girl said nothing again and only blinked, as though she didn¡¯t understand what she had been asked and ever since she got here, she hasn¡¯t even uttered a single word, leading Anna to finally inquire with a cautious gaze.


    ¡°You..... can¡¯t speak?¡±


    The little one¡¯s gaze suddenly lowered like she was staring at the tiled floor, giving her facial look a pitiful expression and it took a few more minutes of silence before she finally nodded in response, curling her toes when the thought of being pushed aside came to her mind.


    Anna¡¯s pained heart was instantly reced with sadness as the color on her face reduced to a certain amount that disyed her shock. She can¡¯t speak?? And at such a young age too?


    Anna couldn¡¯t imagine what life would be if she ever lost the ability to talk and this time around, she felt pity for the little one. Seems like everybody in the world has a bit of their own personal problems and one should really be grateful no matter what trials they face in this unforgiving world.


    No matter how one actually imagined life to be, it can¡¯t always be perfect.


    Turning to look at the girl with a smile to avoid making her feel ufortable, she said.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay then, I¡¯ll help you treat your pretty bird, let me see.¡±


    With happiness returning to the girl¡¯s beautiful hazel eyes, the little one handed the bird to Anna who proceeded to study the wing of the blue animal. It was nothing but a slight cut on the little animal¡¯s wing skin but if properly treated, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem.


    ¡°Your bird will be fine, but can you get me a few things that I might need to treat it?¡±


    The girl nodded right away.


    ~


    ¡°How could I forget...¡± Roshan softly muttered to himself as a realization dawned on him, ¡°she¡¯s human....¡± He returned his gaze back to Levi who stared at him with twinkling eyes.


    Sigh....Why wasn¡¯t he surprised.


    ¡°Get a maid to send some food to Anna.¡± Came his quick order as he turned away from Levi, tiredly resting his back against the edge of the pool but the cheerful being gently rubbed his temples with his brows neatly furrowed, wondering why Roshan was sending food to his new pawn.


    ¡°Food?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not a demon like us, we can go without food but she¡¯s human, she can¡¯t.¡± Roshan still found it difficult that he had let something as important as that slip from his head.


    Levi equally realized it himself and nodded, ¡°That is true.¡±


    ¡°Go.¡± Roshan¡¯s deep tone waspelling as he threw his head back while closing his eyes. Levi couldn¡¯t even risk waiting another second due to how much power his tone weighed and instantly left the room like he was being chased away.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Questioned Azazel, whose gaze had be stoic like he was about to start some sort of investigation due to Roshan¡¯splicated moods this past few days


    ¡°Can you be a little more clear?¡±


    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll pretend you¡¯re dumb and exin it better this time.¡± His words wereced with sarcasm which Roshan chose to ignore and hear the tongue twisted Azazel out, ¡°Why did you bring the human here?¡±


    ¡°Cause she¡¯s of great use to me.¡±


    ¡°And?¡±


    ¡°And what else do you n on hearing?¡± Roshan coolly fired back, causing a half-serious smile to enchant Azazel¡¯s demeanor but just as it came, it equally disappeared.


    ¡°The temple, how did you escape?¡± There wasn¡¯t even the slightest hint of emotion in Azazel¡¯s tone as he spoke, more like he was analyzing what he noticed as his gaze traveled to Roshan¡¯s exposed scar.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t get out of that temple yourself, I know.¡±


    Roshan on the other hand already expected it and really wished he could drown himself again to escape Azazel¡¯s disturbing question, it seemed difficult to ever hide anything from the white-haired Enigma.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Came his cold response as a glint of anger danced in his green irises, ¡°but I¡¯m angry, yet so unsure of what I¡¯m upset about.¡±


    ¡°Anna was the one who opened the seal door, am I right?¡±


    ¡°A human opened the door,ing close to the door meant death Azazel, what if she died??¡± He had been so upset about it and for some reason, he couldn¡¯t fathom the idea of her even dying.


    To the extent he even vented it out on her earlier today.


    ¡°What¡¯s your issue?¡± Azazel suggested.


    ¡°Since I¡¯m out of that disgusting ce, the dark clouds should have cleared off shouldn¡¯t it? But the forest is still plunged in darkness.¡±


    He cryptically informed and judging from Azazel¡¯s clueless look, it meant he knew nothing about it either.


    ¡°That means something else is trapped there?¡±


    They both met each other¡¯s stare as though they had just thought of the same thing.

 Chapter 49

    49 Record Breaker


    Once it clocked midnight in the Viscarrian pce, Anna picked the peach-colored silky night dress from the hanger which stood adjacent the magnificent room she was in.


    Her depressed self had been strangely uplifted by the little girl who visited her chambers today. Turns out she ended up using the rest of her day to converse with the little girl, treating the blue bird while telling Gemma some fascinating moral stories she could remember.


    Unfortunately for the two of them, it was starting to gette and the story had to be cut short since they both had to retire to bed.


    Smiling at the fact her heart eased to a normal rate, she wanted nothing more than to soak herself in the bathtub and get rid of the heavy clothes she was wearing.


    Acknowledging the idea, a quick knock came from her door, gaining Anna¡¯s attention and when she turned her head towards the direction of the door, a maid quietly opened the wooden carved door and walked in.


    She had red hair which was neatly packed in a bun and her gorgeous green eyes stood out with the beauty she possessed. It looked naturally strict and her face spoke of maturity.


    ¡°His highness Roshan orders your presence in his chambers.¡± Came her straight message as she patiently waited for the stiff Anna to respond.


    My....p_presence??


    ¡°Why?¡± Anna couldn¡¯t hold back the question as she blinked in awe, it¡¯s midnight already and everyone should be asleep, so what would he possibly want from her sote that he couldn¡¯t wait till the morning.


    .....


    ¡°Find out yourself.¡± The maiden turned around to leave but after getting to the door, she suddenly halted and met Anna¡¯s confused stare.


    ¡°His highness doesn¡¯t like to be kept waiting, to avoid trouble, I¡¯d advise you to go now.¡±


    Before Anna got a chance to utter anything in response, she left, closing the door shut behind her and Anna¡¯s words instantly hung at her throat.


    Her grip against the folds of the night gown tightened in an attempt to conceal her hesitancy, she wasn¡¯t ready to see that man at all and her lips pursed in displeasure. The look in his red eyes had frightened her to her wits and she was reminded of the devil¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°I...I can¡¯t go.¡± She shook her head in disapproval just by thinking about it, she knew what she did by refusing to see him and she knew very well that she could get punished for this.


    But she was willing to face the punishment than having to be in the same chamber with that heartless, immoral and innocuous man who only thinks about himself and his revenge.


    When a maid brought food for her earlier, her mind had wandered to Roshan not until the maid imed it was Levi who ordered her to send the food.


    She didn¡¯t know why but the fact Roshan wasn¡¯t the one who ordered the maid brought a surge of pain and anger in her heart, he basically proved that he showed no remorse for the way he treated her and that he was nothing but an emotionless monster!!


    She gritted her teeths, he doesn¡¯t deserve her respect since he chooses not to give her the same respect as well, to hell with his orders, she¡¯d rather enjoy her moment in the tub than listen to the orders of a man who had no heart.


    It¡¯s possible, he might even go to bed and forget he even asked for her, afterall she¡¯s not in any way special to a man like him.


    Damn his highness!!


    She strode into the bathroom instead, remaining oblivious to the warnings of the maid who came to call for her.


    After thirty minutes of having her moment in the bathroom, Anna finally stepped out dressed in the peach colored silk night gown, she cleaned her wet cinnamon-brown hair with a towel while humming a sweet Melody to appease her racing heart.


    She was literally engrossed in the melody that the dark presence of someone in her room wasn¡¯t felt. A figure dressed in ck robe casually rxed on her bed, watching thedy dry her long wet hair with a towel as she had her back against him.


    All of a sudden, she stopped humming.


    ¡°His highness must be asleep by now_¡± she thought out loud with a rxed expression, ¡°I guess the maid was only bluffing, earlier she sounded like if I didn¡¯t go, Roshan woulde knocking at my door.¡± She sighed and gritted her teeth as the thought of Roshan invaded her mind yet again.


    ¡°I hate that man..¡± she spat out, ¡°....he¡¯s cruel, stone-hearted, evil_¡± she naturally turned around to head to her bed when her eyes caught sight of the pulchritudinous being rxing on it while looking as ethereal as always, his hardened gaze was locked on her and like a moon-caught ghost, Anna froze against her spot as her heart shook in fast ryhthm, the towel falling from her grasp as she blinked in horror.


    ¡°R_roshan?¡± She wanted to confirm she was dreaming and it had to be a dream, someone please tell her this is nothing but a dream! Roshan?? In her chamber¡¯s??


    ¡°Young_¡± she wanted to feign politeness as she took a step forward, only to catch her foot against the rug below her feet and it made her stumble forward.


    ¡°Ahh!!¡±


    She fell right on the bed with a soft cry, almost colliding with Roshan who barely shifted from his position and to Anna¡¯s dismay, she found herself staring into the Hazel-green eyes of her young Master.


    The look in those eyes were even more frightening than the ones she saw in his red eyes, they spoke of serious consequences and she gulped.


    She¡¯s dead.


    ¡°Y_young...¡±


    He didn¡¯t let her finish and leaned closer to whisper in her ears.


    ¡°Those who touch me without permission, loses the right to touch anything till they meet the end of their journey.¡± His breath was hot against her earlobes and it made blood rush to her face. The threat in his tone wasn¡¯t overlooked, it made her nce at where her hands was ced and to her shock, theynded right on his chest.


    Now that she even realized it, his body tone could be felt against her palm as they grew hot in embarrassment and she yanked her hands away.


    ¡°Forgive me, I never... I mean..... it wasn¡¯t my...¡±


    She wanted to pull back but he grabbed her arm and made her remain where she was, her breath stilled as she looked into his eyes that seemed to seduce her at the moment.


    To say she was afraid was an understatement, she had been uttering so many negative things about him, she wondered if he heard it all.


    ¡°Am I cruel?¡±


    That question alone answered her questions and she immediately shook her head in response.


    ¡°Am I evil?¡±


    She shook her head yet again, earning a dangerous sneer from Roshan who generously helped her tuck a strand of hair at the back of her ear.


    His touch made her skin shiver in response. She hated it as much as she liked it the same time.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to lie, I¡¯m not a good person and you my dear tend to y with how linient I get with you.¡±


    He forcefully tilted her chin up so she wouldn¡¯t look away from his stare, ¡°why did you defy me?¡±


    ¡°I.....¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t test my patience baby girl, my moods this days are very unhealthy to those around me.¡± He tilted his head to the side a bit, amusement shing in his Hazel-green eyes. ¡°You deserve to be titled a record breaker tonight, you¡¯re basically the first person to ever defy my orders.¡±

 Chapter 50

    50 Punishment vs Choice


    To say he wasn¡¯t the least shocked was a tant lie, even Levi couldn¡¯t refuse his orders the moment he said them but then.... this human had briskly dared to ignore him.


    He was infuriated and didn¡¯t even realize when he left his chambers only to end up in hers, that was something no one has ever made him do.


    He always made theme to him but this human made hime to her.


    What charm did she use to fog his mind???


    Her chocte brown eyes looked clear and glistened with fear when he stared into them, yet he couldn¡¯t ignore how adorable she looked at the moment, her wet hair which had stopped dropping water plunged against her back and some locks ended up being stuck to her face.


    ¡°Did you lose your tongue? Weren¡¯t you always sharp mouthed?¡± The resolve in his tone barely broke and he still held her in ce.


    He watched her irises constrict in response and her lips trembled. His gaze finally shifted to those blushy pink lips of hers and he recalled what kissing her had done to his body.


    They were a red g that signaled a warning in his head, as tempting as they looked, he wouldn¡¯t make the same mistake of ever kissing the human before him again.


    His gaze instantly averted from there and his cold demeanor returned.


    .....


    ¡°What punishment do you think is befitting for your actions?¡± He asked, ¡°maybe a night in the dungeon will do..... no food for a whole day seems fair enough..... or..¡± he nonchntly guessed with interest but those punishments were even more horrible than Anna had expected them to eventually be.


    No food for a whole day? She rather sleeps in the dungeon.


    ¡°Maids tend to make mistakes...¡± Anna¡¯s soft dulcet voice echoed into his ears and he met her innocent stare.


    ¡°You can choose to give me a second chance instead and....¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t do ¡®second chance''¡± he heartlessly rified, ¡°what I say goes.¡±


    Anna was left speechless, how can a man so handsome be this cold-hearted?? She only learned to despise him even more as she was forced to keep herself together.


    ¡°But...¡± his unexpected ¡®but¡¯ suddenly grabbed her attention and his eyes instantly sparkled with mischief.


    ¡°In order to change my mind baby girl, you have to.....¡± he met her stare, looking drop dead gorgeous as a devilish smirk enchanted his features.


    ¡°Please me.¡± He said them.


    ¡°W_what?¡± Anna didn¡¯t even realize she was out of breath until she decided to speak.


    P_please him?? That word rang in her head for a couple of seconds before the meaning finally sank in.


    Her eyes widened in disbelief, how could he ask her to do something as unthinkable as that? This man really has no shame, whatsoever!!


    ¡°You immoral man!!¡± She couldn¡¯t hold it in and tried to push herself away from him but his grip on her arm hadn¡¯t loosened and he pulled her back onto the bed.


    ¡°Hmm.. I tried to be generous and this is the best I get.¡± He tsked before meeting her ring gaze.


    Stubborn woman!!


    ¡°I¡¯ll never.....¡±


    ¡°I admit I¡¯m immoral.¡± He casually agreed while cutting her words short, ¡°and I¡¯m hical, Ick ¡®moral rectitude¡¯ but being in the den of an immoral man makes you nheless.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m nothing like you!!¡±


    ¡°I never wanted you to be like me, like they say; opposites attract even better.¡±


    Anna really felt like stabbing him at this point, she was angry he said such uneptable words to her, yet was more than angry with herself as her heart fluttered against his every word.


    Her gaze reflexively shifted to his sensual pink colored lips and the kiss they shared still haunted her memories, she didn¡¯t need a mirror to know her face must have reddened like that of a lobster.


    Roshan could sense her anger, her fear, the thundering sound of her heartbeat, the heat escaping from her body since he had her close against him, yet he found them even more alluring than the most beautiful seductress in his pce.


    She smelled of sweetvender, did this woman really prepare to entice him tonight??


    His eyes traveled her smooth skin once again and her pale swan neck caught his attention, he had the urge to take a bite out of it, his fangs were already itching toe out in ordance to his words.


    He was basically falling into the trap, but found it too irresistible to walk away from.


    She was a threat to his mind and body.


    This was never the reason why he wanted to see her, he had a much more important reason for wanting to see her tonight but his mind was getting fogged again as his eyes traced her beguiling shoulders, only to stop at her cleavages which were exposed a bit and he felt himself swallow what he couldn¡¯t really tell it was.


    Self control?


    His gaze returned back to meet her stare and as much as she tried to hide it herself, he saw through her and could tell her mind was just as foggy as his.


    The connection was unlike any he¡¯s ever felt, but couldn¡¯t understand why he sensed this much spark between the two of them.


    Clearly they both needed this but the hatred attached to it was something difficult to get rid of.


    He couldn¡¯t stand her yet she seemed to have more control over his body.


    They were enemies for goodness sake!!


    ¡°Your choice, miss Anna.¡± He broke the silence, ¡°what will it be?¡±

 Chapter 51

    51 Vague Memories


    ¡°I choose.....¡± Anna didn¡¯t know why, but her lips went stiff the moment she looked into his beautiful eyes. Roshan¡¯s Hazel-green eyes glistened in a mysterious and odd way, it was something her mindset couldn¡¯t really fathom to and that sent her heart pounding against her chest.


    Her mind was muffled and she could barely think straight.


    It looked like he was expecting something, it was oddly familiar and Anna took it to be some kind of deja Vu affecting her soul. Like a spellbinded whim, the words subconsciously slipped from her mouth without warning.


    ¡°I choose Roshan.¡± Came her response, but in a soft whisper that carried emotion¡¯s she herself was oblivious to.


    Roshan¡¯s grip on her arm loosened as the look in his eyes turned into one of shock and bafflement. A frown appeared on his forehead as her words finally sank in.


    She chooses him? That wasn¡¯t even part of the options.


    Her gaze never left his and the more he stared into them, the more familiar those eyes looked in his head.


    All of a sudden, vague images of two figures shot through his brain like a typescript and his eyes unknowingly dted. Those chocte-brown eyes were vivid in the shbacks, the rest weren¡¯t clear but he could hear a faint voice in his head.


    The voice speaks, but it sounded distant, like it¡¯s traveling with the wind now.


    .....


    ¡°I choose Roshan.¡± The familiar dulcet voice kept saying and it left him agitated, a sudden feeling crept up to his chest and his expression looked lost.


    Why did it feel like it wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯s heard it?? Why did it feel like he¡¯s heard it before?


    The look in his eyes suddenly disyed a loneliness which Anna instantly took notice of. Her eyes widened and like Roshan knew his emotions were being sensed, he averted his gaze and freed her.


    ¡°Why did you say that?¡± He asked in a hoarse voice, as though she just said something abominable and Anna cautiously shifted away from him and moved to the other side of the bed.


    Roshan was obviously upset as he ground his teeth at the thought, did she even know what it meant by saying something like that to him??


    Her heart elerated even more when she recalled her own words, how she said something that she wasn¡¯t even sure herself.


    ¡°I.... don¡¯t know.¡± She admitted with a heavy breath as her own words sang in her head. She chose him?? How did something like that evene to her mind??


    It was the stupid deja Vu!


    Unbeknownst to her, those words affected Roshan in many ways except she couldn¡¯t see his expression since he had his back facing her. Unfamiliar and vague memories kept reying in his head and most of all, why did the voice in his head sound just like Anna¡¯s??


    He felt dizzy. It was giving him a blinding headache, he had to close his eyes for a few seconds but the unclear images won¡¯t leave him alone. His chest felt heavy as a strange feeling crawled right into the direction of his scar.


    ¡°Say it again.¡± He ordered, causing Anna to whip her head at his direction and she blinked.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Say it.¡±


    Anna was confused now, first he asked her why she said it and now he¡¯s telling her to repeat it??


    ¡°Say it and I¡¯ll free you from this.¡± He sincerely told her and his desperation was something she never expected. Anna couldn¡¯t hide the surprise in her eyes when he stated he¡¯d let her go if she said it.


    As much as she felt it was a bad idea, she had no choice but to do as he says. With a racing heart, she uttered those words once again.


    ¡°I choose Roshan.¡± Her voice came out soft, it was pleasing to the ear and before Roshan knew it, a cial pang of pain stabbed his chest, he felt he was being stabbed with a dagger ice frozen from a poison well, it savagely stabbed him to the extent he spat out blood.


    ¡°Ah!!..No!¡± Anna¡¯s hands instantly flew to her mouth in an attempt to stop herself from screaming in horror. Shock and fear became evident in her eyes the moment she watched blood escape from his lips.


    Was that blood???


    Shock-stricken, Roshan¡¯s hand frantically moved up to feel his chest.


    His heart. It was beating!!


    ¡°Y_your highness...¡± she suddenly reached for him at the other end of the bed, wanting to get a better view if it was actually blood and it was.


    ¡°How...how did this happen?¡± She questioned in horror and instantly got out of bed, she hurried to the drawer to check for any medical kits but there was none.


    ¡°Where is it??¡±


    She searched the wooden shelves and the cupboard by her bedside, but there were no medical kits. Unsure of what to do next, she hurried back to Roshan who¡¯s mind didn¡¯t seem to be here at the moment.


    ¡°I...I couldn¡¯t find the medical kits...isn¡¯t there a physician around?¡±


    He was still bleeding and since she couldn¡¯t find the medical kits, she reached for the hem of her dress and crouched before him at the edge of the bed, using the dress to carefully wipe the blood away from his lips and that¡¯s when Roshan¡¯s mind came back to reality as he looked at her.


    He saw the panic in her eyes as she gently wiped the bloodstain away, as though she wasn¡¯t trying to hurt him but he grabbed her hand at thest minute, stopping her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t.¡± His tone still came out firm despite his condition.


    ¡°But...¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t, Anna.¡± He sounded serious, meanwhile all she wanted to do was help. His expression looked pained. This is basically the first time she saw him look this torn.


    ¡°Let it be.¡± He added in a whisper and before she could say anything, he snapped his fingers and was out of sight to her gaze.


    He left?


    Anna sank in her bed the moment it urred to her that he didn¡¯t actually leave but was escaping her presence.


    She just did what he asked her to do, what happened???


    The look in his eyes was something she¡¯s never seen in them before, he was always cold, his gaze was empty but today, she saw loneliness, his silent pain and that left her dumbstruck.


    Was he actually suffering on the inside??


    Roshan appeared in his room and fell right onto his bed while clutching tightly to his chest, his beating heart was causing a dreadful pain to sting at him and it¡¯s unlike any pain he¡¯s ever felt.


    Whose memory did he see? Why did that voice sound like Anna¡¯s??? He closed his eyes in despair, feeling the pain worse the more he thought about it.


    Not only that, those vague memories were making his heart beat.


    He bit his bloody bottom lip as though he was trying to suppress the pain and silently let it torture him, not until Azazel appeared out of the blue with a file in hand. He was about to say something, but instantly paused when he found Roshan in a terrible state.


    ¡°Roshan?¡± His eyes dted.


    He walked towards his bedside to get a better look at him, Roshan¡¯s eyes had gone red in pain, it felt like every tendon in his body was being plucked out. The veins in his body felt like they were being slit and he closed his eyes again.


    His heart wasn¡¯t supposed to beat, why was it beating???


    Make it stop!!


    Azazel, seeing his condition, instantly dropped the file on a desk and crouched down to Roshan¡¯s bed level. He ced a hand on Roshan¡¯s shoulder, then closed his eyes with an engrossed expression.


    After a few seconds of concentrating on his spiritual powers, Azazel¡¯s body suddenly glowed in a dazzling white light as he silently chanted some words. He could feel his energy seep from his body, concentrating it to move directly to his hand and connecting to Roshan¡¯s body.


    Roshan, who had a painful expression on his face as he was silently tortured, suddenly felt the aches in his heart reduce slightly. Gradually, the painful stabs reduced and only then did he realize Azazel was passing some of his energy into him.


    ¡°Stop!¡± He uttered in displeasure.


    ¡°Ruin the process and face the consequences.¡± Azazel calmly threatened as he pushed more energy into Roshan¡¯s body.


    The pain finally reduced to a tolerable extent, leaving the being to rx as he let out a tired breath. Soon enough, the memories as well as the voice faded like he never even heard them in the first ce.


    He was currently sweating all over and Azazel stopped glowing.


    ¡°Are you mad?¡± Roshan cursed either way, ¡°why did you give me your strength?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t give you, I shared it with you which you are certainly going to pay me back for, you¡¯re wee.¡± Azazel calmly responded before meeting Roshan¡¯s stare.


    The being looked weak as he barely moved from the bed, he was sweating from the pain and Azazel couldn¡¯t dare to imagine how horrible the pain must have felt.


    ¡°What happened to you?¡±


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Roshan questioned back, catching his breath but he felt weak to even move. He licked the bloodstain away from his lips while Azazel¡¯s gaze lingered on him.


    His eyes moved to the scar on Roshan¡¯s chest, new scars had formed on them again and he understood exactly what took ce.


    ¡°Father¡¯s punishment seems to be taking a great toll on you.¡±


    ¡°He should rot in hell.¡±


    ¡°Father is hell itself, so that wish isn¡¯t something that can be aplished.¡±


    Seeing the stubborn demon was starting to feel a little better, Azazel shifted his attention to the file he had dropped on the desk.


    ¡°The higher demons dropped a meeting invitation for you, go through it when you feel better.¡±

 Chapter 52

    52 Bathroom Incident I


    That night, Anna couldn¡¯t get the peaceful sleep she hoped she was going to sumb to and instead, kept thinking about Roshan all through the night.


    Everything that happenedst night kept invading her head, especially those lonesome looks in his eyes. She consistently turned left and right on her bed, trying to find afortable position and when she suddenly blinked, it was daytime.


    The sun had barely risen but the clouds looked blue when her eyes darted towards the window.


    Sighing heavily after not being able to get that much of a sleep, shezily got out of bed and made her way towards the bathroom to get ready for the day. All through her heart was restless each time her thoughts diverted to Roshan and what happened to him.


    None of it still made sense to her and she wondered if he was alright, he had to be, else she would lose the chance of ever finding out the reason behind her birthmark and getting rid of it.


    Changing into a simple cream colored dress after calming her mind, body and senses, Anna stepped out of her room with the aim of going to check on Roshan.


    She needed to make sure he was alright at least. Passing through the corridor, the maids were up early as well, doing their morning routines while Anna greeted each one of them as she strode by.


    Thankfully, they epted her greetings today and didn¡¯t look like people who wanted to devour her. All the maids in the pce looked beautiful to her surprise, each one of them had their standard beauties that made her feel somewhat different.


    Her beauty was nothingpared to theirs.


    .....


    Are all thedies this pretty in Viscarrian? She wondered if Roshan ever noticed them.


    As for the guards, they always had a helmet on but they were built and guarded almost all the important doors in the pce.


    Anna¡¯s mind curiously wondered what life outside the pce looked like, she wondered if there was really life outside the pce and if there was, what would it look like?


    But now wasn¡¯t the time to have her brain doing many sorts of calctions, she has to find Roshan¡¯s chambers.


    Nodding to her own thoughts, Anna proceeded to ask a few maids who strolled by with trays in their hands, she politely asked them for the direction towards his highness Roshan¡¯s chamber.


    ¡°Take the stairs and go right, the third chamber belongs to his highness Roshan.¡± The maid responded while Anna bowed with a grateful look.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    They departed and Anna immediately took the stairs that equally led to the balcony, except they had corridors at both sides which meant the highest chambers in the pce.


    Making it up to the stairs, she admired the beauty of the corridor and with how admirably beautiful it was, she knew this ce was reserved for those who had a royal bloodline, those who belonged to the family.


    The air surrounding it alone was enough to make her heart race as she took a right turn, it felt like they were people watching her despite not seeing anyone at all. All the doors were closed shut but then, why did she feel like they were eyes on her??


    Giving herself a mental shake, she wouldn¡¯t let her fears be known and soon enough, she arrived at the third door.


    Just standing before his door was already making her heart race but nevertheless, she knocked.


    No response.


    ¡°Could it be.... he¡¯s still asleep?¡± She muttered to herself before her brows creased in worry, had it really affected him that much?


    She knocked again but got the same silent response. When she got tired of knocking, she held the door knob and quietly opened the door since it wasn¡¯t locked.


    ¡°Your highness?¡± Her voice echoed in the dark room and her eyes widened a bit.


    ¡°It¡¯s so dark!¡± She muttered her exmation but still found herself taking a step in.


    ¡°Your highness?¡±


    It was pitch ck, she could barely see anything and that gave her goosebumps all over her body. How can someone stay in such a room? But it was Roshan, she shouldn¡¯t find it surprising but she strangely did.


    The darkness was terrifyingly haunting.


    ¡°I never told you toe in.¡± A deep voice came from behind her and a short scream left her lips as she jumped in fear.


    rmed, she instantly turned around and the lights were switched back on. The chandelier hanging above the ceiling glowed with an enchanting gold and silver white light, enough to brighten the whole room. Roshan stood at the edge of his bedside, his Hazel-green green eyes resting upon the human that had dared to step into his den.


    ¡°Morning, your highness.¡± She immediately bowed, her heart racing in return from the earlier fright she received. He was here all this while???


    ¡°Did someone see you on your way here?¡± He suddenly questioned, leaving Anna to meet his quizzical stare.


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think so.¡±


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± He asked without moving from his spot, his expression was back to the normal stoic look he always carried and that relieved her.


    It meant he was fine.


    ¡°I just came to check...¡±


    ¡°If I died?¡± Hepleted her words for her with a tiny smirk while Anna raised her head up to meet his empty stare.


    ¡°No.¡± She shook her head and Roshan hummed in return.


    ¡°I¡¯ll believe that, it¡¯s not so easy to get rid of me.¡±


    Anna lowered her gaze again, he was still dressed in his robe and the straps were undone this time around, leaving his bare torso exposed and she forced her eyes to look away.


    Her cheeks heating up at the sight of his body, he was literally the first man to appear before her like this. ¡°Since you¡¯re alright, I¡¯ll... I¡¯ll take my leave now.¡±


    She has to leave this ce!


    ¡°Not so fast!¡±


    Her legs stopped moving at his words, she slowly turned to look at him with her head lowered and he finally moved away from the edge of his bed.


    ¡°Since you¡¯re here already, I need to take a bath, set it up for me.¡± Came his order as he turned away from her and strode to a table, reaching for a file on his desk and Anna remained rooted to her spot.


    ¡°Make it warm too, I might be cold but.... sometimes even the ice needs to melt.¡± He added and Anna knew he was somehow teasing her a bit.


    At least he¡¯s focused on something to even bother about her at the moment. She better set it up and get out of here quickly.


    Her legs finally moved as she hurried to a door at the left side of the room, refusing to nce his way, she opened it and stepped in. Meanwhile, Roshan¡¯s lips deviously curled to the side when he saw the petite woman go in and close the door behind her.


    Anna was stupefied when she stepped into his bathing chamber, it was bigger than any normal bathing chamber she¡¯s ever seen. The walls were painted in white, Even the floor wasced with white tiles and the sink looked silver in color.


    His chamber smelled just like him, like mint and spice but in a very alluring way. Shaking that thought away, she turned the tap on and instantly filled the big tub with water. She hummed a rhythm while waiting for the tub to fill and once it did, she turned it off.


    Although the bathroom was lit well enough, Anna felt it¡¯d add more beauty if the candles surrounding the tub were lit as well, so being a good maid, she lit up every candle and added some cherry blossom petals into the water.


    Getting to her feet and turning around, a gasp left her lips when she saw Roshan step into the bathroom and her heart hitched.


    Wasn¡¯t he busy with something before???


    ¡°I¡¯ve set the tub.¡± She said but instead of responding, Roshan proceeded to take his robe off, fully exposing his upper body to Anna¡¯s dumbstruck gaze and before she realized it, he tossed the robe at her which she caught out of involuntary means.


    ¡°We¡¯re not done here.¡± He uttered and before Anna¡¯s flushed face, she watched as the demon himself reached for his breeches and her eyes widened.


    0_0


    Was he going to take that off too????


    In front of her???

 Chapter 53

    53 Bathroom Incident ll


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Anna didn¡¯t hesitate to ask, realizing the shameless demon actually nned on undressing before her gaze.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Roshan paused at her obvious question, he tilted his head at her while carrying the expression of a saint. It made him look irresistibly fragile which was nothing but a death trap to Anna.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡±


    ¡°Why are you taking it off?¡±


    ¡°Cause I¡¯m not supposed to bathe with clothes on?¡± His response sounded more like he was asking a question and stating a tant truth at the same time.


    With her face still flushed, she didn¡¯t let it ruin the firm demeanor she carried, folding her arms as though she was in for drama and giving him a look that meant he had to be joking.


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you ever told not to undress before a woman.¡±


    ¡°Unless that woman is my personal maid? I guess.¡± Came his neutral response and Anna¡¯s eyes suddenly glistened with untold anger.


    His personal maids? She didn¡¯t know why but that only added fuel to the fire.


    .....


    ¡°I see.... so the height of your shamelessness has really exuded the path where you undress for ¡®all¡¯ your personal maid?¡° As Anna tried to twist her words in order to get the answer, a knowing smile formed on Roshan¡¯s lips and he felt tempted to ask.


    ¡°Are you jealous?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Even Anna didn¡¯t believe the response that came out of her mouth and a bashful feeling followed next. She looked away from Roshan to avoid his teasing gaze and silently cursed him in her head.


    ¡°Incase it makes you feel any better, you¡¯re the first maid I¡¯ve had to work for me.¡± He cleared her doubts and reached to take off his breeches for real this time when Anna immediately shook her head in horror.


    She didn¡¯t want her eyes to see what she might never unsee again and hurried towards him to stop him.


    ¡°No wait! Ah!!¡±


    *SPLASH!!*


    She identally missed her footing, leading her to fall forward and she would have been fine with it, if only Roshan was standing right in front of her. She collided with him as she stumbled forward, leading the both of them to fall straight into the tub and Anna¡¯s yelp followed it next.


    Water sshes could be heard the moment they fell right in. The petals moved with the water as it gushed out of the tub and onto the tiled floor. Roshan, who didn¡¯t expect the fall at all, stared in wonder, this woman!!!


    Has she always had clumsy feet?!


    He looked at her with the aim of scolding but then realized she was actually resting on top of him, her hands clinging around his neck as though she was hanging on for dear life and that made him blink in half bafflement.


    Her eyes were tightly sealed shut in fear as her pursed lips trembled, like she was expecting something terrible to happen and it made him wonder what, did she think she was going to drown? Or did she sense his scoldinging?


    Either one it was, her expression at the moment somehow managed to drive away the annoyance she had caused inside of him. He nned on punishing her for it but right now, he didn¡¯t really feel like punishing her at all.


    At least for now.


    ¡°Hey!¡±


    He tried to wriggle free from her hands which were wrapped around his neck but the crazy woman barely moved, as though she was frozen in ce.


    That wasn¡¯t even what got Roshan worried, that fact she wasn¡¯t breathing caught his attention even more.


    Was she holding her breath??


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    Like someone who just woke up from a nightmare, her eyes immediately snapped open as though a heavy tide had passed her by. Her heart drummed frantically against her ribs and she looked sideways as though she was expecting to see someone, equally catching her breath as well.


    For a moment, she felt she was back as a little girl who nearly died due to the wave of the water that awful night and her heart sped up.


    This incident reminded her of it and Anna finally looked at Roshan with a teary gaze.


    Her expression left him speechless as he hadn¡¯t expected this reaction from her, his eyes slightly widened after sensing she was about to....cry??


    What seriously happened??


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± He found himself asking as he searched her tear-filled eyes, did she hit her head on the tub or something?? No that couldn¡¯t possibly be it since he was closer to the edge of the tub. She was clinging unto him as if her whole life depended on it and that left him even more shocked.


    Why does she suddenly look sad?


    ¡°Anna, is every_¡±


    He hadn¡¯t evenpleted his statement when thedy in his arms bursted into uncontroble tears and instead of pushing herself away from him, she was hugging him instead in an attempt to findfort.


    Roshan¡¯s body froze the moment she cried in his arms. Time seemed to slow down for him and he barely moved. The unforeseen reaction from her really left him frozen to the spot.


    ¡°It was so scary.¡± She admitted as her hold around him tightened. Anna was so caught up with her emotions she didn¡¯t care about the fact she was hugging a man she despised.


    ¡°It was scary.¡± Images of that night yed in her head, the violent waters, her mother¡¯s scream, the wailings of people who drowned. She tried to swim and get to her mother who was also trying to reach her, only to be separated by a heavy wave and that was it.


    The heart aching memories were still there, she was hoping she¡¯d forget but maybe that wish wasn¡¯t something that could be fulfilled.


    Roshan on the other hand found his fist clenching after sensing the fear in her tone. His eyes darkened with a tiny glint. It made him angry, yet he was so unsure about why?


    What was she talking about? What was scary??


    It took him a lot of control not to yell those questions at her. He wasn¡¯t the type of person who offeredfort. That wasn¡¯t something he did but here he was, trapped against the tub with a crying maid.


    He wanted her to stop, he didn¡¯t like it at all but then again, found it difficult to even say it. His chest felt heavy, why was he feeling this way??


    Instead of yelling at her to stop like he nned on doing, he raised a hand and gave her back a gentle pat. To be honest, he had no idea what he was doing but decided to follow his instincts.


    Anna, who didn¡¯t expect theforting pat from Roshan, chose to sumb to it instead of running away, she needed it and Roshan felt her body rx against his.


    He didn¡¯t say a word and they remained that way for a while longer, not until the door to the bathing chamber suddenly opened and since Roshan was facing the door, he was able to see who had opened it.


    His gaze shifted to Levi who stood there, frozen like someone who had seen a ghost, his eyes widened in full surprise and his mouth hung agape.


    What was he seeing?? The human in Roshan¡¯s arms?? From the way they positioned themselves, it made them look intimate, like a couple who wanted nothing more than to just hold each other.


    Levi wanted to speak but had suddenly forgotten what he wanted to say, or what had even brought him here.


    Roshan¡¯s death re made him swallow whatever word he nned on saying. A glimpse of anger could be seen dancing around his green irises as he cocked his head to the side.


    The sight of him nearly freezed Levi into bing an ice sculpture.


    Gulp!


    ¡®Maybe barging in turned out to be a wrong idea.¡¯ Levi frighteningly thought before passing a nervous smile towards Roshan¡¯s direction and silently closed the door back.


    ***************


    Special thanks to Ariana_Sawyer for the gift and GoHamSam for the GT <333

 Chapter 54

    54 Higher Demons Of The Council


    Levi returned to the dining hall where most of the higher demons of the council were patiently sitting while waiting for Roshan, including the families with a royal bloodline.


    Ah yes! He was sent to actually call Roshan.


    Azazel sat at one of the chairs with a bored expression crossing his pretty face and he was the first to notice Levi¡¯s presence. His gaze shifted from Levi to the stairs and it doesn¡¯t seem like a certain someone would being down any time soon.


    Did he even read the file?


    ¡°Where¡¯s Roshan?¡± He asked, Levi wanted to respond but instantly paused when his gaze cautiously shifted to the higher Demons. It wouldn¡¯t be right to say anything in their presence, at least not something as surprising as what he just witnessed.


    ¡°He¡¯s getting dressed and will be here shortly.¡± He said instead, but Azazel could tell it was something different, his brows furrowing into suspicion.


    One of the higher Demons dropped his wine ss with a click on the table and turned his red gaze towards Azazel.


    ¡°Your brother still has the habit of keeping people waiting.¡± The man directly stated in a calm tone, but Azazel wasn¡¯t the type to stupidly fall for such fake empathy.


    ¡°He¡¯s getting dressed, he¡¯ll be here.¡± Came Azazel¡¯s response as his gaze remained fixed to Levi who shrugged with a nervous look.


    .....


    Something tells him Roshan must have scared him away.


    Sigh.... what will he do with that demon???


    Gretta whofortably sat next to a woman with red hair, leaned closer to whisper.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure I have the strength to face Roshan yet, hopefully he doesn¡¯t target any of us today.¡± Gretta poured out her fears to Aunt Letitia who elegantly sipped her red wine with aposed demeanor.


    Her expression was unreadable but she was known to be very calctive.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡±


    After a few minutes of waiting, the council¡¯s were starting to get impatient. One of them was about to raise the topic, but stopped himself on time when he spotted Roshan standing at the stairs with his hands in his pockets.


    ¡®About time.¡¯ Azazel silently uttered in his head. The look in Roshan¡¯s eyes was one that showed how much he didn¡¯t want to be here, but unfortunately he couldn¡¯t avoid this crazy meeting. The higher demons meant power and made sure every political matter concerning Viscarrian was put to ce.


    Speaking about politics, their politics are very unusualpared to that of the humans, it was one that concerned blood, deaths, rituals, subduing the weak, turning them into ves and making sure the royal bloodlines goes ording to the rules. It has been that way for many years and this stupid politics was implemented by his father.


    All in the name of rank and power.


    ¡°Here we go again.¡± He boredly sighed before heading towards the dining room, leading the rest of the family to maintain themselves at his overbearing presence. He pulled out a chair and that¡¯s when one of the council¡¯s uttered his displeasure.


    ¡°Do you think we have all day?¡±


    Roshan paused and slowly raised his head to meet the man¡¯s stare.


    ¡°Incase you don¡¯t know, there are other important matters that need our attention and you.....¡±


    Roshan dragged the chair harder on the ground, causing a long screeching sound to follow and everyone at the dining table covered their ears due to the torturing sound. The painful look on their faces earned a half satisfied smile from Roshan, most especially the one who had the ordersity to question his presence.


    Good, he finally learned to shut up.


    With a polite smirk, Roshan stopped and looked at the council¡¯s who rubbed their ears, trying to recover from that awful screech.


    ¡°My apologies, the chairs must be getting old.¡±


    He took his seat and if they didn¡¯t know Roshan any better, most of them would have believed his apologies were sincere.


    He was a skilled maniptor.


    Gretta on the other hand, found herself staring in awe at the enchanting being who sat across her on the dining table, she hadpletely forgotten just how charming Roshan was and after getting to see him again, she couldn¡¯t help but admire the cier.


    Like he sensed someone¡¯s gaze on him, Roshan looked at her direction, causing Gretta to instantly avert her gaze at thest minute.


    ¡°Did everyone miss me so much that a meeting was called just for me?¡± He asked, he had gone through the file Azazel gave him and shredded it into pieces afterwards.


    ¡°We¡¯re here for something important, I prefer we get into the formalities.¡± A man whose skin was as white as snow and eyes crimson red like that of a moltenva suddenly spoke up, gaining Roshan¡¯s attention and a dark glint shed in Roshan¡¯s eyes.


    He came as well.


    ¡°Of course uncle, go ahead.¡± He rxed on his chair, waiting to hear the absurd news they must have heard about him, or the scandals he caused.


    ¡°Since you came back, you haven¡¯t been avable for the royal meetings concerning Viscarrian and its people, even worse, we heard there¡¯s a human in your vicinity.¡±


    ¡°I see...did a nosy fat rat tell you that?¡±


    ¡°Mind yournguage boy!!¡± Hollered uncle Evan who nearly got up to his feet but had kept his rage intact. He knew Roshan was indirectly referring to him because he was somewhat chubby, and yes, he was actually the one who told the council about it.


    ¡°I don¡¯t recall mentioning your name uncle Evan.¡± He hummed and nonchntly waved it away as though he was swatting a fly, ¡°but it¡¯s alright if you see yourself as one, considering the fact that there isn¡¯t much of a difference and...¡±


    ¡°You...¡±


    ¡°Evan!¡± Gravion, who was one of the higher demons present in the dining hall, instantly stopped Evan from firing back. If he continued, then with no doubt a fight would eventually start and Roshan would kill him in the blink of an eye. He might not be as strong as he was due to his current predicament, but no one should forget whose son he is.


    The air surrounding the dining hall was filled with enough discordancy already.


    ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡±


    ¡°Where is the human?¡± Roshan¡¯s uncle, sir Luderick finally demanded but the cier remained unmoved, he looked too rxed despite the situation at hand. He knew it made their blood boil and he enjoyed every minute of it. It might not be enough to satiate his own anger but it was surely something.


    Humans aren¡¯t allowed in the Viscarrian empire unless they want to be killed. It was a death zone which is why he never lets Anna step out of the kingdom. Apart from that, she¡¯s a unique human, her blood was special because the scent of it attracted demons her way. That alone exins the demon they caught at the forest and her encounter with uncle Evan as well.


    Both Azazel and Levi tried to keep their demeanor firm, suppressing the urge tough as they knew this meeting would get nowhere at all.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Roshan yed cluelessness.


    ¡°The human you n on using to get your revenge?¡±


    ¡°What business do you have with my human?¡± He clearly wasn¡¯t asking, his authority and power could be felt in the tense dining room and he casually crossed his legs on the table.


    ¡°She has a special soul.¡± Aunt Letitia firmly broke it down as she shot the being a re.


    ¡°I¡¯m not dumb, I know.¡± His response sounded calm and polite, but everyone knew it was nowhere close to politeness at all.


    Keeping his own mood in check, the red-eyed man tapped his finger on the table. The stubborn demon he was currently talking to was his nephew, a nephew whose presence was a great threat to him. He had been finally happy that the threatening being was sealed for more than a decade now in the temple.


    No Demon could possibly go there unless they wished to be trapped too, which was the reason why no one ever bothered to look for him and he thought he¡¯d gain peace after knowing there was absolutely no way to get Roshan out of there.


    But that peace came crashing down the moment he heard of Roshan¡¯s return.


    He was curious about how Roshan managed to get out, only to discover he brought a human girl with him. Knowing Roshan, he always had a reason for everything he does.


    He¡¯s more than curious to see her.


    ¡°We want to have a look at her.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± He tantly refused. Levi could only hope in his head that Roshan doesn¡¯t start a fight and even Azazel hoped the same.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t she an Euphrasia?¡± Another member thoughtfully inquired, ¡°the human is an enemy, so surely it¡¯d do no harm if we choose to see her for ourselves.¡±


    ¡°This is my battle.¡± Roshan¡¯s deep voice amplified in the dining hall, ¡°keep your noses away from things that have no importance to you. My enemies are none of your concern and instead of poking fingers into where they aren¡¯t needed, try helping out in fixing the rift between the three unstable realms. Maybe then, I¡¯ll let you see her.¡±


    He couldn¡¯t hold back his disgust as he got to his feet, only to bow politely at them with a mocking sneer. ¡°I¡¯ll excuse myself.¡±


    Turning his attention towards Azazel, he grabbed the young man¡¯s wrist.


    ¡°You¡¯reing with me.¡±


    Before Azazel could ask what happened, Roshan was already taking him up the stairs and leaving the rest at the dining hall. He literally just walked out on the higher Demons.


    Knowing Roshan, he wasn¡¯t the type to end a meeting so quickly without causing a mayhem. Infact, the stubborn being was starting to look troubled as a hint of worry shed before his Hazel-green eyes.


    He wondered what happened, and where was he taking him to??


    ¡°Roshan?¡±


    ¡°I need your help.¡± He finally said something after leading Azazel towards the corridor and he was heading straight for Anna¡¯s chamber.


    ¡°My help with what?¡±


    ¡°To cast away an evil spirit.¡±

 Chapter 55

    55 Little Warmth


    Azazel¡¯s clear blue eyes slowly contracted into one of shock, his eyebrows impulsively raised in a way that expressed his uncertainty.


    ¡°Evil spirit?¡±


    He couldn¡¯t remember thest time he¡¯s heard about such situations. Evil spirits couldn¡¯t get into the pce of Viscarrian even if they wanted to, so how???


    Roshan immediately opened the door to Anna¡¯s chamber and walked in, Azazel followed behind him and his gaze unhurriedlynded on the girl whoid on the bed.


    Her face showed a clear difort and she looked power drained, she was asleep but her eyeballs seemed to move along her closed sockets as a look of fear contorted her expression. Her grip on the bed tightened and a cold sweat ran down her forehead.


    ¡°So cold.¡± She whispered in her subconsciousness, her brows knitting into a frown and she turned her head the other way.


    Azazel moved closer to the edge of the bed. Leaning over, he ced a hand on her forehead in an attempt to feel her temperature. After a period of silence, his lips formed a grim line as that of a mask.


    ¡°She¡¯s having a nightmare.¡± Azazel finally concluded before taking his hand away. He sensed it, the dark shadows surrounding her body and a soft sigh left his lips.


    ¡°It¡¯s a stubborn one.¡±


    .....


    ¡°I don¡¯t care, just get it out of her.¡± Came Roshan¡¯s orders and Azazel took a step back.


    He stretched his right hand forward, letting it hover in the air before Annalise and his blue irises lit up with a powerful white light swirling within them. A sudden mystifying mist escaped from his palm, enveloping Anna¡¯s body as she continuously mumbled words in her sleep.


    A lone tear escaped from the corner of her eyes and just seeing it made Roshan¡¯s fist clench in fury.


    ¡°Why is it taking time?¡±


    ¡°I told you, it¡¯s a stubborn one.¡± Azazel sedately retorted and his power intensified. The dark smokey shadows finally moved, trying to avoid the powerful mist he created and after a few minutes of silent battling, the dark shadows vanished like smokes on an incense.


    Anna¡¯s disturbed expression gradually rxed as her brows unknitted. Her chest heaved before she let out a deep breath that rxed her soul.


    The mist instantly cleared off as Azazel drew his hand back.


    ¡°It¡¯s done.¡±


    Roshan carefully watched her expression as it slowly calmed and she was fast asleep again.


    ¡°What type of shadow was that?¡± He questioned, leading Azazel to turn and look at him.


    ¡°It¡¯s a spirit, but the type that haunts dreams and leaves disturbing memories. I guess it has been stuck with her for a long time, judging from how reluctant it was to leave.¡±


    ¡°She kept saying something about water.¡± Roshan added but Azazel just shrugged it off.


    ¡°Depends on what sort of dream she had, but it¡¯s gone now.¡±


    ¡°So cold...¡± she muttered while shivering slightly and it drew Roshan¡¯s attention to her again.


    ¡°She¡¯s still cold.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but she¡¯s fine, you just need to help her warm up.¡±


    ¡°How do I do that?¡±


    ¡°By improvising.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    Azazel stared at the confused being for a few ufortable seconds before uttering. ¡°You¡¯re a demon_ and our bodies naturally generate heat, if you know what I mean.¡± He hinted, leaving Roshan to guess the rest by himself and a re was directly sent his way.


    ¡°You mean I should warm her up?¡±


    ¡°You need to help her, else she¡¯ll keep freezing.¡±


    Azazel detected a bit of hesitancy in Roshan¡¯s gaze and that made him fold his arms with a brow slightly raised. Weird, it¡¯s quite unusual to see Roshan hesitant about something, for a second he thought the cier¡¯s eyes were burning.


    ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± He firmly refused.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Roshan didn¡¯t respond and he pursed his lips, he couldn¡¯t do it and barely knew why. Warming her up meant lying beside her, letting her embrace him, having her hands and body on him and he had to make sure she received his warmth.


    No! He shook the idea away from his head. He couldn¡¯t do it, it¡¯s as though he was afraid of something, or afraid that something might happen.


    But what??


    Luckily for him, a little girl¡¯s head mischievously popped in as she stole a peek at what¡¯s happening inside the chamber, only to find her uncle¡¯s standing before Anna¡¯s bed.


    The little bird hovering beside her unceremoniously chirped in a melodious tone, gaining the two men¡¯s attention and startling poor Gemma.


    She ced a finger to her lips while drawing her tiny brows together, her eyes squinted into a half-stern gaze as she gestured for the bird to remain quiet.


    She turned back to look at the room but gasped when Roshan stood right in front of her, his deadpan gaze made her gasp in fear and as she quickly took a step back, she stumbled backwards and fell on her butt with a light thud.


    Timidly, she lifted her innocent hazel eyes to meet that of Roshan¡¯s, wondering if she was in deep trouble for eavesdropping, but the cier crouched before her with a nk gaze. It¡¯s the first time he¡¯s seeing a little girl in his pce, where did shee from?


    Gemma¡¯s Hazel eyes slowly brightened and her lips formed a thin line the moment she pressed them together, finding her big brother¡¯s reaction to be a little funny.


    Roshan¡¯s brow pulled together as he noticed she was holding back a chuckle.


    Why was she staring at him like that?


    ¡°Who are you?¡± He asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s Gemma, don¡¯t frighten the poor child.¡± Azazel beckoned the little one over with his index finger. Seeing his gesture, Gemma instantly got to her feet and hurried to go stay by Azazel¡¯s side, her little blue bird followed, only to rest on her shoulder.


    ¡°You know her?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s Levi¡¯s sister, Aunt Letitia brought her a few years ago toe stay after the demise of Levi¡¯s mother.¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡±


    Roshan¡¯s gaze lingered on the little one for a while but she smiled at him in return, it made Roshan feel a little awkward and he averted his stare from her direction.


    ¡°Since she¡¯s here, she might as well be of help.¡± He thoughtfully said while meeting Azazel¡¯s stare, gesturing with his eyes as it shifted back to Anna.


    Gemma turned to look at Anna who shivered on the bed, her smiley expression slowly faded after seeing her new friend wasn¡¯t feeling too well and her shoulders slouched. What happened to the nicedy?? She was actually hoping for more stories today.


    ¡°Do you know her?¡± Azazel asked after seeing her downcast stare and she nodded her little head in response.


    ¡°Do you like her?¡±


    Her eyes went round in delight and she nodded again with a smile this time around, remembering how Anna had helped her heal her bird and told her amazing stories.


    ¡°She¡¯s cold, can you help her with a little warmth?¡± Azazel softly spoke to Gemma who nodded right away and it surprised both men at how she instantly agreed without any hesitation.


    She held Anna¡¯s hand, being a demon, their body naturally developed enough heat, most times, the heat depended on their mood. She crawled into Anna¡¯s bed, sitting by the empty space beside her and when Anna subconsciously felt the heat nearby, she couldn¡¯t resist holding onto it as she hugged the little girl in an embrace.


    Azazel turned his attention to Roshan but the man had a distant look on his face as though he was lost in thoughts. His eyes remained locked on the two of them and those hazel-green eyes glimmered with something Azazel couldn¡¯t interpret.


    ¡°Roshan..¡±


    ¡°Dismiss those people at the dining.¡± Came his straight tone as he instantlyposed himself and turned around, already stepping out of the room.


    ¡°I have something to prepare for.¡±


    ¡°Is it the mask celebration?¡± Azazel smoothly inquired, causing Roshan to halt in his steps and he looked at him over the shoulder.


    ¡°How do you know?¡±


    ¡°Saw their little invitation card for general Hendrick at your table.¡± He admitted and folded his arms.


    ¡°What about the beautiful Lady Odette?¡±


    He knew Azazel was referring to Anna, ¡°she¡¯s noting.¡± His subtle response caught Azazel off guard.


    ¡°Huh? Why?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll attend the mask celebration alone, keep Anna here and make sure she doesn¡¯t show up at the celebration.¡±


    Azazel released his arms, letting it fall to his side. Well that response was totally unexpected. Why isn¡¯t Anna tagging along?


    He tried to answer that question for himself by reading Roshan¡¯s expression, but the being was currently backing him, making it impossible to see his facial demeanor.


    Before he could ask if there was a problem, the young man had left. With the air he carried, there was a feeling that frantically crawled up Azazel¡¯s spine, signifying that something wasn¡¯t right and he curiously wondered what.

 Chapter 56

    56 Aveline


    The night was rtively calm in the pce of Viscarrian, the maids did their duties as usual, clearing the areas and everyone seemed to mind their business for a day. Everyone except Gretta and Aunt Letitia who took a stroll along the quiet garden.


    ¡°I knew it! I told you Aunt, once Roshanes back we¡¯re all doomed!¡± Gretta loudly grimaced while throwing her hands up in the air, but the red-haired woman who walked beside her nonchntly rolled her eyes at Gretta¡¯s dramatic gestures.


    ¡°He won¡¯t do anything, he hasn¡¯t recoveredpletely as I¡¯ve heard, he¡¯s still weak but of course we don¡¯t expect him to show us that.¡±


    ¡°Weak?¡± Gretta couldn¡¯t hold back a scoff, ¡°.....don¡¯t be fooled by Roshan¡¯s antics aunt! Uncle Evan keeps spouting rubbish to you and you meekly believe him.¡± She huffed out her frustration while crossing her arms under her chest, turning her attention to the flower bed at her side.


    The night breeze swifty blew the blossomed flowers, letting its alluring scent linger in the cold night air.


    ¡°I¡¯m not even worried about that...¡± Aunt Letitia¡¯s calm demeanor changed into one of eager curiosity.


    ¡°The human he brought over is basically what I¡¯m worried about.¡±


    ¡°Why worry about a human?¡±


    She looked at Gretta, ¡°Have you seen the human girl?¡±


    .....


    Gretta shook her head with a puzzled stare, Letitia¡¯s expression slowly frowned as she averted her gaze, staring ahead and into particrly nothing at all.


    ¡°She has a striking resemnce to Aveline.¡± Her firm tone drifted with the cold air, carrying a sense of rm and uncertainty that could give one the shivers.


    The world seemed to go still for a few seconds after Letitia uttered those simple, yet logical words. Gretta¡¯s feet stopped moving after the word rang in her head for several minutes before sinking into her brain. Her pupils unknowingly dted like she just heard the most shocking news of her life.


    ¡°Aveline??¡±


    Looking around to make sure no one heard her shocking outburst, Gretta cautiously whispered.


    ¡°How did you see her? No wait, how do you know? How can you say something like that?¡±


    ¡°Early this morning, I knew what I saw, she was heading for Roshan¡¯s chamber.¡±


    ¡°Aunt, you have to give me the full details.¡± She instantly dragged her Aunt Letitia so they could sit on the bench at a corner.


    ~


    In Roshan¡¯s chamber, the cier unhurriedly picked up a ck mask from the dressing table and wore it on his face with ease. Once he was done, he lifted his lowered gaze back to the mirror.


    The ck mask did a great job in concealing half of his features partially, but it wasn¡¯t enough to hide his enthralling sight, the color in his eyes stood out. His hair was tied in a man bun and his facial look attractively came out even more, enhancing the edges of his sharp jaw that was deemed high by many women. He was dressed in a ck noble attire that made him feel among, probably even more than that.


    But one look at his face, it would be easy to spot his disturbed emotions, his grip on the dressing table tightened as his thoughts didn¡¯t seem to be in reality at the moment, he looked lost, like a wind wandering the world as though he was a rejected soul.


    Anna¡¯s presence was really ying with his mind more than it did when they first met. Ever since she said the word, ¡®I choose Roshan.¡¯ he couldn¡¯t get her out of his head and it only angered him further.


    Those words were frighteningly familiar, he couldn¡¯t shake off the feeling that he¡¯s indeed heard those words before and as he had her in his arms today, several thoughts spiraled in his head and he was afraid of doing something that might hurt him. Not him but his scarred heart.


    She made his heart bleed without doing anything at all of the sort, she caused him pain, be it when she cried, or gave him those hateful stares. she was turning him into a weakling which was something he didn¡¯t wish to be. She was basically the first human he¡¯s ever consoled despite having the urge to yell at her, but couldn¡¯t find the energy to do it.


    He had stopped her from attending the mask celebration tonight, maybe because he was unwilling to lose focus?? He couldn¡¯t tell but he had a feeling her presence at the celebration was going to be threatening for him. He needed to keep his mind and thoughts on his goal.


    Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes for a few minutes to recover and strengthen himself. No, he can¡¯t be weak now, there¡¯s still a lot more he has to do. There¡¯s still a lot of things to correct, his revenge has to bepleted no matter what. Like they say;


    ¡®There is no market for emotions, never advertise your feelings and just show your attitude.¡¯ he reminded himself of this, basically the only sensible thing his father had taught him.


    An evil smile instantly adorned his lips and his eyes were back to being dead cold, the type that described blood lust with a hint of mischief. They looked nothing like the emotional look he once carried, more like it wasn¡¯t even there at all.


    ¡°It¡¯s time.¡±


    He snapped his fingers and vanished out of thin air.


    Anna on the other hand, ended up sleeping through the whole day. It had been a very long time since she slept without having nightmares and all she wanted to do was just sleep some more. By the time she awoke, Gemma was still beside her, childishly counting her fingers but she had stopped after seeing Anna¡¯s eyes flutter open.


    She¡¯s awake!


    Anna saw the bright look in her eyes and the sweet smile she dashed at her, but she was more than surprised to find Gemma in her chambers.


    When did shee?


    ¡°It¡¯s you.¡± Anna gently forced herself into a sitting position, rubbing the back of her head as though she sensed a headacheing. Gosh she wondered how long she slept for her head to start aching already.


    Did the little one watch her sleep? She hoped she didn¡¯t drool. As if feeling uncertain, she touched the side of lips but there was nothing dry or sticky.


    I thank the heavens!


    Gemma just confusedly stared at Anna who made multiple expressions on her face as they went from shock, to delight, to worry and then relief. She seemed to be thinking about something the moment her eyes narrowed and a frown formed on her forehead.


    And just like that, her eyes widened.


    ¡°Wait!!!¡±


    She looked through the window and it was already night time.


    ¡°Oh no! The mask celebration!¡± She instantly got out of bed, hurrying towards the window and she drew the cottons open. It¡¯s midnight, how could she have possibly forgotten??


    ¡°Roshan.... He must be waiting!!¡±


    She headed for the door, but to her surprise, it was locked.


    ¡°What?¡±


    She struggled with the door knob but it wouldn¡¯t budge, no no! She can¡¯t miss this event, sir Steve was going to tell her something about her mother, she has to know.


    ¡°Why is it jammed??¡±


    Seeing her struggle was leading to nothing at all, she stopped and turned around to look at Gemma who remained on the bed.


    ¡°Did someone lock the door?¡± She asked and Gemma nodded.


    ¡°Who?¡± Knowing she couldn¡¯t speak, Anna decided to call out a few names. ¡°Was it a maid?¡±


    She shook her head.


    ¡°A guard?¡±


    She shook her head.


    ¡°Was it that green-eyed maid?¡± Anna continued with several guesses but got no positive response from Gemma, that¡¯s when the thought of Roshan invaded her mind and as much as she didn¡¯t believe he was the one who¡¯d lock her up, she asked.


    ¡°Was it Roshan?¡±


    This time around, Gemma didn¡¯t respond and only thinned her lips together, that alone gave Anna the answer she needed.


    ¡°Roshan? But why??¡±


    She turned to bang on the door Incase anyone would hear from the outside but she was ignored as always.


    ¡°How can he.... How can he lock me in like this?¡±


    A mixture of anger and worry filled her heart as she continuously banged on the door.


    She had to be there, knowing the truth about her mother¡¯s corpse mattered to her, she didn¡¯t know why but she was craving to be there and know the truth that she wasn¡¯t getting. Why would Roshan lock her in??


    ¡°That demon! He¡¯s so selfish!¡± She cursed, ¡°he does whatever he pleases without thinking if it mattered or affects the other person in return.¡± She let out a sigh of frustration and tried to think clearly about her situation. He imed she was his pawn, so he would definitely need her to y a role in this, so why did he lock her in??


    ¡°Gemma, can you help me find a way out of here?¡± She asked and to her quick relief, Gemma nodded with a smile.


    ¡°How?¡±

 Chapter 57

    57 Scent Of Floral Lavender


    Stepping into sir Steve¡¯s mansion, Roshan could hear the soft music of an orchestra being yed at therge splendid decorated hall. The chandelier¡¯s hanging above bathed the hall in a golden light and Roshan couldn¡¯t help but feel sir Steve outdid himself with the preparations tonight. All in all, it was nothing but a challenge amongst those with a higher status to throw the most grandiose events. A showoff.


    Like everyone else he was warmly weed by the guards, most especially by sir Steve himself as they both shook hands at the entrance way.


    ¡°So d you could make it Hendrick, but what about Lady Odette? She didn¡¯te?¡± He asked after sighting her absence from the mask celebration, neither is she by Hendricks side, he was really expecting her today.


    Roshan¡¯s eyes glinted with a dark intention as he politely responded. ¡°She¡¯s not going to be avable unfortunately, is there a message you¡¯d like me to deliver on your behalf?¡±


    He noticed a look of sheer disappointment in sir Steve¡¯s eyes but it quickly cleared off and he smiled at Roshan.


    ¡°No need for that, I was just expecting her to be present but anyways, enjoy the celebration and if you need me, just ask.¡±


    He gave his shoulder a pat before walking out and Roshan¡¯s tight fist loosened, his gaze dangerously following sir Steve until he disappeared through the stairs, only then did he avert his gaze but a slow thought crept up his brain like a warm.


    Why was he asking about Anna? That question spun in his head for seconds, his lips slowly forming a grim line. If only he knew exactly what they talked about the other day but hearing him ask about Anna with such a look in his eyes really tempted his balled fist tond on the old man¡¯s ugly face, but he surprisingly held himself back.


    Wow, he¡¯s getting good at keeping his anger in check, that¡¯s an improvement.


    .....


    With a malicious smile, he gracefully stepped into the main hall.


    The grand hall was filled with men and women dressed in expensive gowns and attires. Their chatterings and feignedughter¡¯s annoyed his ears. It was easy to tell that this celebration wasn¡¯t for the less privileged. The women had their hair in a stylish updo and wore expensive jewelries, probably to unt their high status to the rest and it made Roshan scoff in disgust.


    Waiting staffs circted the crowd, offering drinks and exchanging empty wine ss for fresh ones. He even received a drink from one of the staff and how could he refuse.


    The music continued to y in a serene manner and his mind disturbingly drifted to Anna, he wondered if she had woken up or not, but then, he discarded it from his head.


    It shouldn¡¯t matter to him if she was asleep or not, he has to get into business since he¡¯s least suspected at the moment. The securities around the mansion are even tighter tonight, maybe the post guard he killed had alerted them a little too much.


    Taking a sip of his drink, he turned his attention to the dance floor and watched as the guest swirled to the music. At that moment, a youngdy walked up to him.


    ¡°Mr.¡± Her sweet tone gained his attention and when he looked at her, she bowed in greeting with a charming smile.


    ¡°I was hoping a handsome Mr like you wouldn¡¯t mind having a dance with a finedy like me, I want to dance but I need a partner for it as you can see.¡± She shyly uttered and when he looked at her, thedy lowered her head with a blush creeping onto her pale cheeks.


    Oh, an admirer.


    ¡°Of course.¡± Came his response that surprised thedy herself. She didn¡¯t think he¡¯d agree so readily but then again, who¡¯d reject a finedy like her?


    She had been admiring him all the way from where she sat. As dashing as he looked, she found him unapproachable as the air around him told her he was someone she needed to stay clear of, but decided to take the risk nevertheless.


    Thedy¡¯s face brightened at his response, most especially when he held out his hand for her like aplete gentleman and she quickly ced her dainty hands in his.


    With a smile she didn¡¯t notice, he led her towards the dance floor. What a good way to actually fit in if it isn¡¯t through dance? Get lost in the crowds and find a way he can get up that stairs.


    Unbeknownst to a Roshan, Anna had ended up sneaking her way in, she wore a flowered imprinted red mask which equally hid her face partially. Her cinnamon-brown hair plunged around her delicate face and hid her swan neck, smoothly running across her back to her waist. She was dressed in a red off-shoulder gown which enhanced the color of her skin.


    As much as she tried not to gain too many attention, her beauty behind the mask and the elegant red dress she had worn made her stood out among the crowd, she looked like a lost princess in search of something or someone and barely noticed the men ogling at her direction.


    After confirming Roshan was nowhere at sight, she finally pushed away her fears and strengthened herself up. She elegantly made it past the guards who were equally taken aback by her looks, noticing their stares and assuming she might be kicked out, she broke into a megawatt smile. Her beguiling oyster white teeth lit up the hall as her sweet smile happened to draw more attention towards her direction.


    Like a contagious whim, the guards couldn¡¯t help but smile back as they bowed in respect. Again, it was something Anna wasn¡¯t used to and to their surprise, she politely bowed back before entering the main hall.


    Her smile slowly dissipated after sessfully entering the main hall which was filled with even more people than the hallway. Taking a deep breath, she quickly scanned the area for a familiar face in a mask, but there were so many people dancing that it was quite difficult to spot him.


    She wasn¡¯t here to help Roshan out in any way, her presence at this mask event was solely for her own benefit. All she had to do was find Sir Steve and get to know about her mother¡¯s corpse. Then she¡¯ll leave.


    Giving her chest a pat to calm her racing heart, Anna nned on heading for the stairs when a voice called her.


    ¡°Lady Odette?¡±


    She froze at her spot once her hand touched the rim of the stairs and her eyes rmingly widened. Her already racing heart sprang like sparks of anvil. Did Roshan catch her already?


    Even if he did, why would he call her by the name Lady Odette? Finally turning around to see if she had been caught by that devil, she realized to her relief that it was no one other than sir Steve, who looked rather surprised to see her.


    ¡°Oh, sir Steve.¡± She bowed politely in greetings before raising her head to meet his stare. Sir Steve¡¯s gaze interestingly scrutinized her for a few seconds before he cleared his throat and spoke up.


    ¡°You¡¯re here? I heard you won¡¯t being tonight, so I¡¯m quite surprised...¡±


    ¡°Uhmmm.... Yes, I was down with a cold and thought I needed a little bit of rest. But it was starting to get boring and I decided to attend.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t look sick though.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s probably because of the makeup.¡± She came up with a good excuse, but she barely applied much makeup, was powder and lipgloss considered much??


    ¡°Well I¡¯m d you could make it..¡± sir Steve said before turning his attention to the dance floor, then at her, ¡°..I¡¯m sure you do not care for a dance now, do you?¡±


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened the moment he requested for a dance from her, a dance with him?? A man who barely gave women respect?? But then, it¡¯s not like she had a choice but her heart was totally disgusted by his advances towards her.


    She rather deals with this quickly, earning a bit of his trust first before she asks the question about her mother was a tactful antics and she was willing to give it a try.


    ¡°Of...of course.¡±


    Hesitantly, she ced her hand in his outstretched hand and with a progressive smile, he led her towards the dance floor.


    The guest¡¯s waltzed their way through the center of the hall as they followed the tone of the music, Roshan gently twirled the pretty woman in his arms and a faint blush colored her cheeks when she met his stare.


    ¡°You have such beautiful eyes.¡± Sheplimented, ¡°they¡¯re green and grey, just like an April day.¡±


    ¡°Are you yielding to the charm of the moment?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s difficult to resist.¡±


    A killer smirk adorned his lips, leaving thedy in his arms to fall victim to his charms. If only she knew.....


    ¡°Where are you from? Do you stay in green Town?¡± She asked.


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Where do you reside in Euphrasia?¡±


    ¡°Why? Are youing to ask for my hand in marriage?¡±


    ¡°Possibly.¡± She giggled lightly but then, Roshan¡¯s n to distract himself from thinking about Anna went down the drain quicker than he expected.


    A familiar sweet floral scent entered his nostril like an alluring invader, catching his attention and a slight frown creased his forehead.


    The scent of floralvender.


    Is Anna here???


    His gaze instantly shifted to check the rest of the guest¡¯s dancing and that¡¯s when he caught sight of a brown-haireddy in a red dress, dancing with sir Steve and a dark glint of unexinable possessiveness shed in his irises.

 Chapter 58

    58 Bring Her Alive


    Roshan kept his piercing gaze locked on the two figures who danced to the rhythm of the soft music ying in the background. Thedy in red was currently backing him as she moved gracefully with quiet steps and he found it difficult to 8 see her face. Even if he did, she must be wearing a mask like everyone else present.


    Yet seeing sir Steve¡¯s hand linger on her tapered waist and hers on his shoulder was making his blood boil and he forced himself to look away, her alluring scent was clouding his head and he wanted it to stop. No one except Anna has a scent like this.


    Damn it! What was she doing to him??


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Thedy he was dancing with couldn¡¯t help but ask after noticing his disturbed expression, most especially the icy look in his eyes and she thought she heard an ice crack. It looked like he wanted to kill someone but after hearing her speak, those looks vanished from his eyes like a fleeting bird.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m just burned up.¡± He subtly responded, a response thedy herself barely understood but it wasn¡¯t his business if she did or not. His unsettled gaze shifted towards the two dancing figures again and he could barely focus on anything except them.


    Anna, who forced herself to stay in the arms of sir Steve learned to hide her anxiety with a smile but she doesn¡¯t think she can hold on to that patience for much long.


    She silently wondered when the dance would end or if it¡¯ll ever end. asions like this were always boring to her cause the wealthy preferred doing something fancy to keep their reputations in ce rather than something fun.


    She had witnessed a lot more while staying in the pce but she was never allowed to serve since she was considered a curse due to her mark.


    Nevermind that, her main concern at this point was her mother. Her heart always acted restless whenever the thought of that corpse not being her mother crossed her mind. Doubts were gradually rising in her head but_ if it wasn¡¯t her mother who owned those corpse and if she¡¯s really alive somewhere, why didn¡¯t shee back?


    .....


    If she was truly alive then surely her mother would have definitelye back for her, she wouldn¡¯t abandon her.


    Anna¡¯s mind was dibobted, or was she crazily giving herself false hope?


    ¡°Uhm...sir Steve.¡± She finally began, her patience had reached the top of the cup and she wasn¡¯t willing to waste anymore time with this man than she already did, ¡°about the woman you told me about, I was hoping if we could finish that conversation.¡±


    She didn¡¯t care anymore if it led to her true self being exposed, she just wanted to know the truth and since sir Steve oddly brought up the conversation, there¡¯s no doubt he could be clueless about her mother¡¯s whereabouts.


    ¡°Oh.¡± Sir Steve¡¯s expression was one of puzzlement before a look of realization dawned on his facial features.


    ¡°Yes I remember,te Mateo¡¯s wife right?¡±


    Anna nodded before taking her time to speak, ¡°you see, that conversation had really left me curious and I was wondering if you couldplete it.¡± She said her words carefully before giving him one of her best doe-eyed looks and that was something sir Steve found difficult to resist.


    He was a man who had interest in young women and it didn¡¯t matter if she hated it, she¡¯d use his weakness against him to get what she wanted.


    ¡°If you insist, let¡¯s head up the stairs where there won¡¯t be noises to interrupt.¡±


    He released her from his dance hold which was nothing but a great relief to Anna. At least she tore herself from this ufortable dance she was having with sir Steve. A slow smile crossed her lips and she nodded.


    ¡°I don¡¯t mind at all.¡±


    Sir Steve¡¯s eyes mischievously glinted and with a cunning smile that no one could see, he led Anna up the long stairs. Taking a deep breath, Anna shook off the eerie feelings in her heart and went up the stairs alongside sir Steve.


    Roshan¡¯s gaze silently followed them like a hawk until they were out of sight and a rage he couldn¡¯t understand swept through him. His eyes zed like deep forests.


    Where where they going? This annoying woman! She really has no idea the amount of danger she¡¯s currently putting herself into. Her presence alone is threatening but she always defied his orders and did as she saw fit.


    Something didn¡¯t feel right and a dread he¡¯s never felt before crawled into his chest. He felt this way before leaving the pce and now that feeling only worsened after seeing Anna here.


    She shouldn¡¯t havee here. Wait... how did she even get here??


    The music finally stopped and he looked at thedy he was currently dancing with.


    ¡°If you¡¯ll excuse me, I¡¯ll be back.¡± He said as politely as he could before releasing her, he didn¡¯t bother to wait for her response and walked off in a hurry. Thedy was a bit baffled and she had sensed his worry all through the dance.


    Strange.


    Making sure there were no guards of sir Steve guarding the stairs, Roshan headed up as well, he felt the daggers he hung at his belt side, confirming they were intact. Something told him he wasn¡¯t just going upstairs to get Anna, but he was going for a killing spree.


    Sir Steve led Anna towards the balcony of his mansion. There was no one there and even on their way here, she barely saw anyonee up this particr stairs.


    Anna gazed up at the empty dark sky with her brown eyes sparkling under the moonlight but a hint of loneliness could be spotted in them..


    ¡®There¡¯s no stars tonight,¡¯ thought Annalise, but the silvery-white moon lit brighter against the dark sky and it felt cold standing in the open balcony.


    ¡°I hope you don¡¯t mind this ce.¡± Sir Steve uttered after spotting Anna rubbing her arms in an attempt to keep herself warm. She wondered how it became cold here. It was much warmer in the hall.


    Holding in the cold, she shook her head in response to sir Steve¡¯s words before proceeding to ask.


    ¡°So....¡±


    ¡°Sir Mateo¡¯s wife was very hard-working..¡± he began after clearing his throat, ¡°...she was a good and beautiful woman at that.¡±


    Anna held back a scoff due to the fetish look in his eyes, was he interested in her mother as well??


    ¡°That day on the ship, when the terrible storm urred, no one in the ship survived but their bodies were found. I got to know of this cause the boxes of goods that had to be delivered to the neighboring towns were mine.¡±


    He folded his arms behind his back, ¡°I think she had a daughter, though I¡¯ve never met her daughter before but I¡¯ve heard people refer to her as a curse.¡±


    Anna¡¯s expression dimmed at his words, but she shook it off and waited for more.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about the daughter, but what I do know is the mother¡¯s body wasn¡¯t found. Like it just.... disappeared.¡±


    Anna¡¯s brow furrowed into a frown, ¡°you mean her body was never found? If it wasn¡¯t found then, where is the body?¡±


    Before sir Steve could respond, something unexpected happened at thest minute and Anna¡¯s eyes widened in horror. The world seemed to stop moving for a couple of minutes before the situation dawned on her.


    An arrow was shot straight at sir Steve from who knows where and it left Anna frozen as she witnessed it herself. The arrow pierced through his back and the head stuck out from his chest. Sir Steve¡¯s eyes widened at the quick sting of pain and almost like he couldn¡¯t believe it, he lowered his gaze to his bleeding chest and he realized he got shut directly at his heart. Blood escaped from his lips as he looked up to meet Anna¡¯s horrid stare.


    ¡°Sir Steve!¡± She sped her hand over her mouth, watching the man sprawl to the ground and before Anna could react, a man surprisingly stood at the edge of the balcony with a demonic aura emanating from him, he wore a ck mask that covered his entire face, not even his eyes were left visible for anyone to see.


    The being held a crossbow and an arrow while staring at the dumbstruck Anna. She couldn¡¯t move as fear gripped her whole senses, the cells in her system were screaming for her to run but she could barely move a foot.


    Before her eyes, more demons appeared out of the shadows they were currently lurking in, but they appeared in the form of a grotesque, they had scaly bodies, lifeless eyes and two horns protruding at both sides of their head. Never has shee across demons that were scary and ugly as this ones.


    They growled at her, sounding so inhumane as they came forward, their soulless eyes frightened Anna to the point she took a step back.


    She wanted to scream as her throat ached to let out all her fright, but she could barely speak.


    The man in a mask suddenly pointed at her and that¡¯s when Anna regained herself.


    Are they here for her???


    Without waiting for a single moment, she took to her heels and left the balcony.


    The man in a mask finally spoke to his minions in a cold but unhurried voice.


    ¡°Bring her alive. Our master wouldn¡¯t appreciate a dead being.¡±

 Chapter 59

    59 Who Will You Save?*


    Roshan hurriedly strode past the wide carpeted corridor while keeping his eyes locked in case he spotted Anna somewhere. He didn¡¯t bother to take any turns and kept going straight.


    This woman!!


    He found himself getting anxious and angry as he continuously searched for her, opening every door that his eyesnded on but they were empty with no one at sight.


    The corridor had many corners which led to different ces of the mansion, thus, making his search even harder. Fortunately, he picked up her scent and that directed him to the right corners, but the more he kept walking, the more he felt an unusual distance between them despite sensing her presence.


    ¡°Where is she?¡± He opened another door but it was empty like the rest, there were no guards positioned in this corner either which was strange, it made it look like a restricted area, enough reason why his first n wasing up this particr stairs.


    Or did they go somewhere even more private than a room??


    When his thoughts were starting to divert to the corridor¡¯s balcony, he halted when a man dressed in a ck attire unhurriedly stepped out of a corner, his face waspletely hidden by a mask and he barely spared a nce at Roshan the moment they crossed paths.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Roshan¡¯s gaze curiously followed the man until he took another corner, it looked as though he was heading somewhere.... or did he get lost? What had Roshan baffled was the way his whole face was covered. Was he even seeing??


    .....


    As much as the man looked and felt familiar in an odd way, Roshan didn¡¯t let himself ponder on him for too long and headed for the balcony instead.


    He opened the door and stepped in, the crisp cold air of the night weed him first, but his eyes widened further after spotting sir Steve¡¯s body on the ground.


    ¡°What the_¡±


    A cold feeling washed over him as he took a step towards the dead body, sir Steve was lying in a pool of his own blood and the color from his face and body had turned pale and cold.


    Roshan crouched before him and felt his pulse.


    ¡°He¡¯s dead.¡± He muttered under his breath but his emotions were decisive, his gaze shifted to the arrow in sir Steve¡¯s chest and the shape of the arrow looked familiar, the angr head was painted red and so was the tail which had a more symbolic sign. The look in Roshan¡¯s eyes glinted darkly as the arrow became familiar to his gaze.


    The arrow is poisoned.


    Who uses such arrows? He¡¯s seen a simr arrow like this before, no human could possess an arrow as poisonous as this except....


    The man he had walked past in the corridor immediately crossed his mind and the color on his face drained a bit after realizing why the strange man in a mask looked familiar. Anxiety suddenly hung over him like a storm cloud and it all made sense.


    ¡°They¡¯re here.¡±


    Why didn¡¯t he sense this before?? They must be hiding their aura¡¯s again. But if sir Steve¡¯s body is here? Where¡¯s Anna??


    He got to his feet and quickly surveyed the balcony. No, he couldn¡¯t let her get into their hands, it would be a big problem for the both of them. He has to find her before they do.


    He knew exactly who was behind this but right now, finding Anna was his main cue.


    ¡°Dammit !¡±


    He got to his feet and left the balcony.


    Anna ran through the corridor without stopping or even turning around to look if they were after her, she didn¡¯t need to, their angry growls behind her made her know she wasn¡¯t out of their sight yet, what did they want from her??


    Lines of statued armors were arranged at each corners of the corridor and it gave Anna a chance to draw out one of the statues weapon.


    Stopping, she turned around to look at the grosteque demons heading her way, her breathing was ragged and her heart pounded repeatedly. The grotesque demons were dragging their feets along the ground like zombies, yet they were still able to catch up to her.


    She knew Demons were good at detecting the scent of someone, could that possibly be it?


    With a cautious gaze, she took a step back, pointing her sword at them as though threatening she would slitter them all if theye near her, but it was a stupid decision cause they¡¯re already dead souls, threatening them was of no use at all.


    ¡°Who sent you?¡± She asked while continuously taking a step back, their lifeless white eyes were giving her the chills and Anna¡¯s heart nearly left her chest.


    She wondered what kind of demons they are, they looked so horrific and even going near them was scaring the wits out of her, she couldn¡¯t possibly fight a dead soul, she didn¡¯t know their weak point.


    How will she get out of this?


    Their growling came closer and the strength she had to fight earlier dissipated and she was back to the chase.


    Roshan kicked a room open and walked in, the lights were out and his eyes glowed against the darkness. Being a demon, their eyes could easily adjust to the dark after spending a few seconds inside and before he knew it, the room was starting to look vivid as his irises contracted and a swirling white light appeared in the form of dots against his pupils.


    Papers were hung on the walls with arrows showing direction of every paper, each paper led to another paper as though it was some sort of finalized plotting. There was a table close to the wall, Roshan reached for it and stared at the papers on the table.


    Different shapes of sword were drawn on it, including the names and a map leading to the dark forest wasid on the table.


    This was what his reason for attending the mask celebration. He knew sir Steve would be part of the Euphrasia¡¯s analysis and he could get the information he needed from him. The humans n to eradicate Demons which was not new information, his main goal was figuring out what their weapon was and he found it!


    Staring at the sketched sword, a look of pain and anger shed in his irises as he recognized it, most especially the spells written below and the room seemed to have gone still. This sword.....


    ¡°I thought it was destroyed.¡± He shockingly muttered, there were more papers on the table and he nned on going through all of them when a figure ahead caught his attention.


    It was the masked man! He leaned against the wall with folded arms, staring at Roshan who lingered in the dark room. The masked man saw his glowing eyes sh in fury and he ran off.


    ¡°Hey!¡±


    Roshan called and was suddenly stuck on what to do, he had to choose between getting his revenge or saving Anna. His expression looked conflicted, but he couldn¡¯t get rid of the feeling that he might regret it if he abandoned the answers he came here for, but would regret it even more if he chose to leave Anna in the hands of those bloody demons.


    Looking at the papers before him, he discarded it and stepped out of the room with a sigh. He hoped to meet them again once he¡¯s done dealing with those idiots that just can¡¯t keep their hands away from his things.


    With a speed that was difficult to see with just the human eyes, Roshan chased the masked man across the corridor, hoping it wasn¡¯t toote to save Anna from that scum.


    He stopped after realizing he couldn¡¯t sight the masked Demon guy.


    ¡°Where did he go??¡±


    All of a sudden, two perfect arrows were shot directly at Roshan, but his senses were super active which led him to easily avoid the arrows as he side stepped it and his ring eyes nced at where the arrows came from.


    ¡°Master was right, your senses have improved way better than they did before.¡± The masked man uttered with a terrible aura seeping from him, but Roshan looked barely affected and clenched his fist to suppress his own fury.


    A lot of things could go wrong if he was triggered to unleash his demon.


    ¡°Where is she?¡±


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t get on my nerves.¡± He warned, ¡°tell me where she is and get out of here.¡± He ordered but the mask man chuckled instead, it sounded so deadly and Roshan silently wondered how he could possibly speak through that mask.


    ¡°She¡¯s over there.¡±


    He pointed in a certain direction and Roshan could hear Anna¡¯s voiceing from one of the corners.


    ¡°Let me go!! Leave me alone!! What do you want from me??¡± She stopped struggling after spotting Roshan in the midst of that masked Demon.


    Her red mask hade off during the chase which means Roshan can actually see her.


    Roshan¡¯s gaze burned with something that was almost unidentifiable after seeing Anna dragged to the front by soulless demons. Those ugly fools!!


    Seeing he was distracted by the humans presence, the masked Demon used thest opportunity he got to fire two arrow straight at Roshan, it was one he didn¡¯t senseing but when he did, it was toote as the arrow already pierced through his chest.


    ¡°Roshan!!¡± Anna called out after witnessing what happened, her eyes widened seeing the area he was mercilessly pierced slowly dripping blood.


    ¡°No!¡± She tried to free herself but the masked Demon approached her within a sh, he had his sword on Anna¡¯s throat, silencing her and he gazed up to look at Roshan who fell to his knees, his eyes turned red, he was reacting to the poison on the arrow.


    The arrow aimed directly for his scarred heart, the jerk!!! He knew his weakness!


    ¡°In pain?¡± The masked man ironically questioned. It was a good thing his master told him exactly where to aim for else he¡¯d be a walking corpse in the hands of Roshan.


    ¡°Time will be ticking.¡± His voice went cold, ¡°I¡¯m hoping to see if you¡¯ll survive this or not. Who will you save first? Yourself? Or a mere human?¡±


    When Roshan didn¡¯t understand what he meant, the sounds of guards approaching their direction made it clear what the masked Demon had done.


    ¡°The Demon¡¯s over there! Catch him!¡±


    Roshan barely reacted to the noises, but Anna felt her heart drop when the sound got closer.


    ¡°Roshan!¡± She tried to gain his attention, she wanted him to leave this ce but it was clear he didn¡¯t look fine, what¡¯s happening to him??


    ¡°Roshan! Listen to me!¡±


    ¡°One word from you and I¡¯ll slit your throat!!¡± The masked man threatened before vanishing with Anna and the rest of his demons.


    They took Anna away!


    Roshan fell to the ground as the poison tended to paralyze his whole system, he found it difficult to move. Heaving a deep breath, he forcefully pulled out the arrow from his chest, his vision became blurry but through his blurry gaze, he could see the guards had made it to his direction.


    ¡°There he is!¡±


    ¡°Kill him!! He murdered the count of Green Town!!¡±

 Chapter 60

    60 A Special Blood


    Roshan only tsked at the situation revolving around him and his expression remained unfazed, he justid there, looking unbothered like he cared less about his own life.


    His vision was nothing but a blur as he watched them run towards him with forks and torches made from fire and their angry yells were starting to get even closer.


    He gazed up at the ceiling, the wound in his chest would take longer to heal and the paralysis was something he couldn¡¯t fight. He didn¡¯t have enough strength to aplish that since it aimed directly for his heart. It would have killed him instantly if he was full human but being a demon, it could only weaken his system to the point of paralysis.


    ¡°Get him! Burn him up!!¡±


    Before his eyes closed shut while waiting for his unfair destiny, a powerful swirling wind instantly blew the knights away like they were unwanted dust particles that needed to be gotten rid of. The sight of knights being flung meters away and getting viscously mmed against the walls made him wonder if it was his imagination, but his body was giving up and he couldn¡¯t see things clearly. When his eyes closed shut, he heard a very familiar deep voice reaching to him.


    ¡°One two three.... Three hours remaining. What are you gonna do?¡±


    ~


    ¡°Let go of me, you¡¯re hurting my arm!¡± Annalise continuouslyined as they dragged her into an unknown fortress, the frightening sounds of hungry birds echoed along the way, causing a look of anxiety to disy on her dainty face. They only stopped walking after standing in front of a big gate with two doors. The fortress was aplete contrast to Roshan¡¯s pce. It had the sickening scent of dust and blood lingering in the cold night air and Anna really tried not to let the bitter biles forming in her mouth escape.


    The big gate finally creaked open and the masked freak led the way while the Demon¡¯s followed behind, forcefully dragging Anna in as well. Where could they possibly be taking her to???


    .....


    Everything about its environment gave her the chills, it was dimly lit as they walked past what might be the passageway. Human skeletons rested at the corner as their faces froze in terror. She gulped, not willing to let her mind believe that those skeletons might actually belong to humans.


    Another tall double door came in sight and just like the other door they had passed through, it needed no assistance as they weely creaked themselves open and they walked in. Stopping at what seemed like the main hall, a man dressed in a ck mantle made from the feathers of a bird stood before what looked like a throne except it was made entirely out of skeletons.


    Anna¡¯s stare curiously lingered on the strange man as several thoughts spiraled in her head, was he the one who sent them? Was that throne made from an actual skeleton, was he going to turn her into one of those as well??


    Her heart thumped louder to the point she could hear it herself, oh no! What does he want from her?? Even his aura is more appalling than that of Roshan. He looked like someone who just descended from the world of hell.


    The beings¡¯ extremely white skin stood out even more in his feathered ck mantle and he finally turned after some minutes to see the guests that chose to interrupt his moment of thinking.


    The irritation in his cold-blooded demonic red eyes disappeared into a look of amusement as he saw his trusted men holding the human captive.


    ¡°Lord Luderick!¡± He bowed, ¡°she¡¯s the human girl.¡±


    The masked being politely said while dragging Anna forward.


    Anna met his ruthless stare with a frightened gasp. Was he the one who sent them? She doesn¡¯t even know him.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± She questioned first, using the little courage left in her to speak but the man solely ignored her and instead, took a step towards her until he was standing right in front of her. He lifted her chin up with his wed fingers and Anna felt a cold sensation run through her system as his touch moved down to her neck.


    A gasp left Anna¡¯s lips and she shut her eyes in pain when the man¡¯s wed finger dug into the flesh in her neck.


    She wanted to scream but it came out like a painful whimper instead, blood streamed down her pale neck before the man stuck his finger out to Anna¡¯s relief, he licked the blood in his finger and his eyes brightened. She has a special blood.


    She¡¯s the one!


    ¡°Lock her up in the dungeon.¡± Came his orders as he turned away from her, Anna immediately shook her head in retreat.


    ¡°You can¡¯t do that!¡± She yelled out her protest, ¡°who are you? What do you want with me? What did your men do to Roshan??¡±


    ¡°I thought I asked you to be quiet?¡± The masked man threatened in a low voice, his de hanging in her throat and Anna¡¯s lips instantly sealed. She turned her eyes to the man who the masked being referred to as Lord Luderick and she spoke calmly this time around.


    ¡°What is it that you want from me?¡± She questioned, ¡°I don¡¯t know you and....¡±


    ¡°Tsk tsk tsk poor child.¡± He turned around and gave her head a pat as though trying to calm her down but his touch only sent a cold horrendous feeling down her spine.


    ¡°You only knew me once, dear human.¡± He squeezed her jaw with his hand but his weird statement lingered more than the pain she was feeling due to the hands which squeezed her jaw.


    ¡°No wonder that stupid nephew of mine was relentless on showing you to me.¡±


    Her mind instantly crossed to Roshan and how he was before she came here.


    ¡°Roshan, your masked friend here shot him with something, what did you do to him??¡±


    ¡°Oh, Roshan didn¡¯t tell you?¡±


    ¡°Tell me what?¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t it surprise you that he couldn¡¯t resist the pain of the arrow?¡± He questioned with a look of mischief, helping the baffled Anna tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear but she remained half frozen. His question only left her mind perplexed and disconcerted. Seeing she didn¡¯t truly get it, Luderick proceeded to exin himself further.


    ¡°Well my dear, Roshan is a half Demon, by half Demon I mean he¡¯s also human.¡± An evil grin appeared on his face and he stood straight. ¡°...the arrow was meant to weaken him for at least three hours but it¡¯ll be toote to save you, the ritual would have beenpleted.¡±

 Chapter 61

    61 Necessary Duty


    ¡°Human?? Half Demon??.... What ritual?¡± Anna¡¯s mind only seemed to be going round with no specific route, the words of the strange white man onlyplicated things in her head and the ugly-looking Demons won¡¯t let go of her hands.


    Luderick¡¯s crimson eyes sparkled with mirth after seeing the feisty look in her brown irises. He could sense her anger, confusion, even her fears and yet, she stood her ground, could it be she¡¯s actually Aveline??


    ¡°I¡¯m done here.¡± He turned away with azy gaze and imposingly walked back to the throne made entirely out of skeletons. He satfortably on it and watched the reaction on Anna¡¯s delicate round face.


    She couldn¡¯t possibly be Aveline, Aveline is dead and even if she were to be reincarnated, it wasn¡¯t her time to be reborned, yet this human shared a physical simrity with her. Just staring at the feisty look in her brown eyes already made him think of the brave and fearless Aveline, the onedy who dared to go against all the rules of Viscarrian. His fist clenched against the arms of his throne chair.


    ¡°Take her to the dungeon.¡± Came his straight orders, he didn¡¯t like the fact she looked so much like ady he once hated and that only made him sneer in disgust, he couldn¡¯t get rid of Aveline himself in the past, but he would make sure to get rid of her look alike.


    Anna didn¡¯t miss the little anxiety she caught in those crimson eyes of his, like he was battling with something inside his head and before she knew it, he had ordered his men to lock her in the dungeon.


    ¡°No I¡¯m not done yet, you have to answer my questions cause you can¡¯t just abduct me and wound me to your satisfaction!! Who are you?¡±


    ¡°Patience dear, if you eventually get to live longer, you might just find out.¡± Came his subtle response that only gave Anna more questions instead of answers. He shifted his gaze to the masked man.


    ¡°Lock her in a separate dungeon, away from all the chaos and eerie screams, afterall she¡¯s a special guest.¡± He smirked.


    .....


    The masked man bowed in response before turning to look at the grotesque Demons.


    ¡°You heard from the master himself, lock her up!!¡±


    ¡°No wait! You haven¡¯t answered my questions yet....wait!!!¡± Ignoring her protest, Anna was forcefully dragged to the private dungeon by the grotesque Demons. They didn¡¯t wait for a second before pushing her in, causing Anna to stumble inside and she turned around to look at them in fury. Stomping her feet on the ground, she pointed a finger at all of them in an using manner.


    ¡°You¡¯re all sick!! Is there some kind of rule that states a demon should never treat ady with respect?¡± She outrightly questioned with her face contorted into one of stubbornness, ignoring the risk of getting punished for her behavior but the masked man carefully locked the cell gate before looking at her.


    Although he wore a mask, Anna could tell he had his gaze locked on her, seeing as he looked at her from head to toe, did her question really not sound obvious?


    ¡°We don¡¯t deal with children,¡± came the masked man¡¯s heartless words, ¡°now keep quiet incase you have no wish of losing your tongue!!¡±


    Children???!!!!


    Anna¡¯s hands flew to her mouth, instantly stopping herself from firing back as she wouldn¡¯t want to lose her tongue to these awful Demons. First Roshan calls her baby girl and now this masked psychopath dared to call her a child??? Was her face really that cute to the point she¡¯s considered a child??


    Wait!.... What are you thinking Anna??? You really need a p! Get your mind together!!


    She gave herself a mental shake to gain herself back. Once the masked man had left, Anna sat on the cold floor while biting on her lower lip. She definitely won¡¯t cry her way out of this one, she needs to think of a possible way to get out of here.


    But how?


    The weird man said something about ritual and Anna rubbed her jaw slightly, suddenly feeling the pain the man had inflicted on her by squeezing her jaw so tightly.


    ¡°Ritual... I have no idea what this ¡®ritual¡¯ is all about but I have to get out of here before it starts.¡±


    As though remembering something, her hands instantly moved to the belt which held her small waist and she brought out her golden badge.


    A determined smile reached her lips and she kissed the badge. She prayed silently to the heavens for a few minutes and when she opened her eyes, she felt even more courageous than ever.


    Deep breaths Anna... deep breaths.


    ~


    ¡°Ahhh!! Brother don¡¯t do this!! Forgive me for being so gullible.¡± Levi grimaced after Roshan made him sit in his dark room and worst of all, he was trapped.


    Alone!!


    In the Devil¡¯s den!!


    Roshan sat on the bed, staring at Levi with a gaze that was difficult to detect if he was angry or not. The fact he wasn¡¯t showing it made Levi even more frightened.


    ¡°But I¡¯m not even touching you.¡± Roshan finally uttered while raising a pretty brow at Levi whose hair immediately stood at attention in his back.


    ¡°That is the problem.¡± Levi admitted, ¡°you aren¡¯t touching me when you¡¯re supposed to, I was the one who brought Anna to the mask celebration but I promise I never knew you gave the orders. She tricked me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to touch you.¡± Roshan calmly said to him, but Levi didn¡¯t know if he should take Roshan¡¯s words seriously or not. After a few seconds¡¯ pause, he narrowed his eyes at Roshan who propped himself on the bed and asked.


    ¡°You aren¡¯t.... going to hurt me?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t kill me?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    Levi seemed to rx a bit, knowing Roshan barely lies and then all of a sudden, Roshan¡¯s expression looked thoughtful as he cocked his head to the side.


    ¡°Come to think of it, when was thest time you trained again?¡±


    Levi shifted his gaze to Roshan who kept his glistening Hazel-green eyes locked on him.


    ¡°A few days, why?¡±


    Roshan¡¯s lips curved to the side, revealing an unreadable smile and before Levi knew it, a lever was pulled and the ground beneath him opened.


    His eyes widened but since he didn¡¯t sense thising, he fell right in with a yelp and the shiny tiled floor instantly closed back up.


    ¡°I thought you said you wouldn¡¯t hurt him?¡± Azazel¡¯s voice interrupted his moment of punishment and he rolled his eyes.


    ¡°And that statement still stands.¡±


    ¡°You just sent him down the underground dungeon, they¡¯re beasts there.¡±


    ¡°He said he trained, he¡¯ll survive.¡±


    Azazel could only shake his head hopelessly and strode over to Roshan¡¯s bedside, he¡¯s never really met someone who was quick to give harsh punishment like his unforgiving brother. Maybe that¡¯s because the heartless being had spent most of his life receiving punishments that weren¡¯t fair to him.


    ¡°How are you feeling?¡±


    ¡°What do you expect?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t go.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°You were lucky enough to have gotten the arrow out before the poison got enough chance to spread across your heart. If you get shot again, your energy will reduce to a critical limit, you¡¯re already weak as it is, I won¡¯t advise you to put yourself in the face of danger.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need your sympathy.¡± Came his annoyed response which only left Azazel to take a deep breath at his brother¡¯sck of reasoning.


    ¡°I¡¯m giving you a piece of advice, take it or leave it. You don¡¯t need the human, you can always find someone else.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need someone else Azazel, it¡¯s a necessary duty and I¡¯m hoping you understand that.¡±


    Azazel shook his head, ¡°I don¡¯t understand, you abandoned the papers Roshan, the clues to help your revenge, you left everything to save a human but look how it turned out.¡±


    ¡°Shut up!¡± Roshan warned in a low tone as his knuckles clenched on the bed, ¡°don¡¯t twist my brain else you¡¯re gonna take that awful journey with Levi as well.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t see what I see Roshan, that human would end up being the death of you, don¡¯t say I never warned you. Get rid of her or watch her get rid of you.¡±


    **********


    Special thanks to my wonderful readers for the Golden tickets, gifts and power stones??????

 Chapter 62

    62 What¡¯s In The Golden Goblet?


    ¡°Why are you telling me this?¡± Roshan¡¯s questionable gaze instantly shifted to the demon who lingered in the dark room with him. A deep ufortable silence apanied the already still night as Azazel¡¯s blue eyes disyed a bit of hesitation.


    It was unlike Azazel to be so persistent or persuasive in changing his mind over something, he wasn¡¯t the type to care about what people did, most especially him unless his help was needed.


    Roshan seriously searched his face with a suspicious stare, endlessly wondering if there was something the white haired Demon knew about but wasn¡¯t directly telling him.


    Noticing his stare, Azazel naturally averted from it before his emotions were caught and he turned sideways, facing the window to avoid looking into Roshan¡¯s imprable gaze while gathering himself.


    ¡°I¡¯m just reminding you that she¡¯s an Euphrasia,¡± he spoke with a much more neutral tone, ¡°you¡¯ve killed her people in front of her eyes before, forced her to be your maid so what makes you think she wouldn¡¯t strike back someday?¡±


    ¡°So what if she strikes back?¡± He asked, still not getting the message, ¡°It¡¯s only natural if she ns to kill me in return but she needs to be alive to do that, if uncle performs that damned ritual, she will die, and I won¡¯t let her die.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Cause I¡¯m not done with her.¡± His words were like a whish that silenced any further words from Azazel and whenever he sounded that way, Azazel knew he couldn¡¯t discuss the topic any further.


    He watched as the stubborn being took a deep breath before forcing his limbs to move as he got out of bed.


    .....


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± He raised a brow in questioning but Roshan only grabbed his robe from the hanger and slipped it over his shoulders. He worked on the sash and his face instantly creased into one of pain the moment his body jerked, like his system were being pricked with a thousand needle. He was forcing his body to act against the paralysis and the effects of his actions were returning at full force, which meant he¡¯d receive twice the pain with each resistance.


    Azazel did nothing but stare at his younger brother¡¯s situation, he couldn¡¯t help him even if he wanted to, and it has always been like this.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to get Anna.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re bing too attached to the human without even realizing it.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t really see how that is any of your business.¡±


    ¡°You never listen, do you?¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t named Roshan without a reason.¡± He smirked and picked up his favorite sword from his wall shelf. His body shivered in pain but he stubbornly resisted and turned to look at Azazel.


    ¡°I warned you.¡±


    Roshan smiled, ¡°I¡¯ll try to remember that.¡± and he vanished.


    ~


    Back at the dim lit fortress, Anna restlessly paced back and forth in the cell she was kept in, she had felt the brick walls and thought of any possible way to escape from the hell of a cell but unfortunately that weird man really worked hard on this cell to not have an escape route.


    She let out her frustration on the wall as she hit it severally with her balled fist, not minding the sting it caused and the fact she had hurt herself.


    Sinking to the ground for the tenth time in defeat, Anna couldn¡¯t help but think rationally at this point in time and her expression appeared downcast. This predicament would have been avoided if she didn¡¯t attend the mask celebration at all, because of her sir Steve got killed at the spot, right before her very eyes, Roshan was shot and she¡¯s trapped in who knows where this ce might be, waiting to be used for some unknown ritual.


    She ran her fingers through her hair before scratching it, thinking about how surprisingly worse things just got for her, she was so aimed on hearing about her mother¡¯s corpse from sir Steve that she foolishly ignored Roshan¡¯s orders but how could she possibly have known any of this would happen?


    ¡®Was that why he even locked me in? Did he sense thising if I attended? But why didn¡¯t he just tell me instead?¡¯ thought Annalise as the frustration only seemed to build up.


    Who knew if he was alright or not? So many lives were in danger tonight and it¡¯s because of her, if they had gone down the stairs then...


    ¡®No.¡¯


    She shook the unthinkable imagination from her head and thanked the heavens that they didn¡¯t, else it would have been a bloodshed and many lives would be lost.


    She felt the mark on her forehead, carefully running her already wounded fingers through the little crystal birthmark and right now, she felt like using a knife to pull it out. What kind of birthmarkes in the form of a crystal? Was she really cursed that everyone around her always got hurt?


    A small smile traced her lips as she couldn¡¯t even defend herself anymore, she had nothing else to say, what could she possibly say? It seemed like whatever choice she chooses to take happens to take the better of her so why choose when basically she¡¯s getting nothing out of it.


    A tired sigh left her lips and she curled herself at a corner, hugging her knees and resting her head on them while her mind chose to escape reality even if it¡¯s just for a few minutes.


    It seemed like that little wish wasn¡¯t going to be fulfilled either cause the moment she closed her eyes, she heard footsteps heading towards the direction of her cell, causing those eyes to snap open and she instantly lifted her head up. The masked man came in sight, holding a tray in hand and Anna scurried backwards till her back touched the wall.


    The cold wall meeting the skin on her back made her flinch and she involuntarily moved away. The masked man opened the cell gate and walked in. He dropped the tray in front of her before lifting his head up to look at her face.


    ¡°Eat!¡± He ordered but due to the anger and all sorts of mixed emotions bubbling inside of Anna, she spat on the food instead and met the masked man¡¯s stare with a re.


    ¡°I¡¯ll never touch anything thates from you or your master.¡± She made it clear, she was done being scared of them.


    Since he wore a mask, Anna couldn¡¯t see his expression but she knew her actions had made him angry.


    ¡°You ungrateful..¡± he stopped himself from speaking and clenched his fist to hold in his anger. One could tell he wanted nothing more than to strangle the living daylight out of her, he¡¯d drain both her blood and soul without mercy but he held himself back due to his Master.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright then.¡± He said instead before turning his attention to her bleeding hands.


    ¡°Get rid of the blood, not all humans are lucky to bleed and still be alive at the same time, you don¡¯t seem to get the fact you have a very tempting blood.¡±


    His voice sounded unexpectedly hoarse and Anna figured he was still looking at her bleeding hands, was he tempted to taste her blood??


    She instantly picked the cup of water and turned her back against the masked man, rinsing her hands and getting rid of the blood. The cool water against her bruised hands was a littleforting but she didn¡¯t like how hungry the demon sounded over her blood.


    She stared at her dainty hands the moment she was done, it had cuts on several ces and the sides of her palm had swollen a bit since she used it to punch the hard brick walls without pity.


    Gosh, they look so ugly.


    A grotesque Demon walked in all of a sudden, handing the masked man a golden goblet which left Anna curious.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright if you don¡¯t want to eat, but I¡¯m sure you wouldn¡¯t mind a drink.¡± He offered but Anna only frowned in suspicion as she looked the cup over before returning her serious gaze back to him.


    ¡°What¡¯s in it?¡±


    ¡°You still question me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not drinking that.¡±


    ¡°Tch! I always have to force you to do everything!¡± He forcefully brought the cup to her lips, prying her lips open as he made her drink every content on the goblet.


    Anna struggled to move her face away but the masked man held her face in ce with one hand while the other forced a bitter and burning drink down her throat.


    The moment he moved it away, Anna coughed severally while patting her chest and the sensation was frightening. The content was burning her chest and many secondster, her vision blurred as well...


    ¡°What¡¯s... what¡¯s happening??? What did you give me?¡± She demanded while the masked man stood straight in his full height, staring down at her with no pity.


    ¡°Just a little mixture of magical Herbs and maybe other contents.¡± He sounded evil which made Anna¡¯s eyes widen. How dare he??? What did he give to her?? Why was it burning??


    ¡°Ahh!!¡± A painful whimper left her lips as the burning sensation increased and her hands shook, her eyelids grew heavier, like a deep sleep calling after her. Was this torture or was it part of the ritual??


    With each passing second, her body grew weak and when she couldn¡¯t bear the pain, she passed out on the cold ground.

 Chapter 63

    63 An Ossuary*


    *SPLASH!*


    Annalise¡¯s eyes were forced to flutter open when a bucket of cold water was sshed to her face, waking her up from the deep slumbers that drink had sent her into. She felt like someone threw a bucket of ice instead of water at her that she instantly sat up.


    The color on her face had drained and she felt blood rush to her head which made everything around her spin in circles.


    ¡°Wake up!¡± The masked man¡¯s stern tone caught her attention and it made her blink away the dizziness in her weary eyes.


    Looking at him, she didn¡¯t have the energy to even get angry as her whole system remained affected by whatever he gave her. At least it wasn¡¯t hurting anymore and the burning sensation was reced by a dull ache all over her body.


    She tried standing up but her muscles only twitched in response before she fell back to the ground. She could barely pick herself up, and her head was spinning, followed by a blinding headache and she remained where she was to recover.


    ¡°Can¡¯t get up?¡± He asked, sounding not the least worried, ¡°would have given you enough time to generate some strength back but unfortunately, time isn¡¯t in our hands now, is it?¡±


    Annalise hissed in annoyance, she didn¡¯t know which was more upsetting, the bucket of ice water, the headache she was feeling right now or hearing the masked being speak. When she looked up once again, two Demons were standing before her alongside the masked man.


    ¡°Get her up and take her to the Ossuary.¡± Came his quick orders. The Demons were quick to get Anna up her feet and her expression already disyed a look of trepidation.


    .....


    An Ossuary??


    Her anticipated gaze shifted to the masked man who enjoyed seeing her fears, she really wanted to kick that stupid ugly mask right off his face and see if he¡¯d enjoy it.


    She didn¡¯t say a word, she was too weak for that and waster dragged out by the guard. She didn¡¯t bother struggling knowing it¡¯d end up futile and her body wasn¡¯t in a good state to battle as she shivered relentlessly due to the water poured on her in an attempt to wake her up.


    They arrived at a particr door made of wired together bones and it startled her all the more, was the masked man¡¯s master really that interested in bones??


    The had a double-sided bolt with two pythons hammered into each side of the door. From the looks of it, she knew it wasn¡¯t a good ce to begin with, an Ossuary.... What could that possibly be??


    Stepping inside this weird part of the chamber, Anna¡¯s eyes suddenly widened and she muttered out of breath.


    ¡°An Ossuary??¡±


    The whole ce was strangely lit up with candles and when they engaged deeper into the chamber, the Demons suddenly let go of Annalise and to her surprise, they turned and left the room, including the masked man and the door was instantly closed shut, she could clearly hear them lock it from the outside.


    Anna fell to her feet with her shoulders trembling and her legs shaking, her body hasn¡¯t recovered from that drink yet and she took a deep breath to calm her racing heart. She studied the strange room she was locked in. The floor was filled with numerous scorch marks and signs of fire which ran across the whole room. The entire ceiling was gently round, taking the shape of a dome, several long ck scorch marks ran across it, except for the windows which were sealed shut but the outside could still be viewed.


    It was surrounded by forests.


    Averting her worried gaze from the window and looking ahead, there was a box resting at the end of the room and what drew her attention towards it was the candles which surrounded it in some sort of symbolic sign she didn¡¯t understand. The box was made of stone and it was big enough to fit a human inside.


    Her heart drummed in fear at the sight and she slowly got to her feet with the tiny courage her body could muster, the air carried an unfavorable whisper that wasn¡¯t actually a whisper at all, it felt like a calling and that made the hairs on her skin stand.


    What is this ce?


    Terrified, she turned to look at the door where the Demons had exited earlier and she wanted to run towards it, but identally tripped on the way and fell hard on the floor.


    ¡°Ow! ow! ow!¡± She whined in pain, but a dark chuckle suddenly caught her attention and she paused like a moon-caught ghost.


    ¡°How pathetic! I was expecting something better but who knew you¡¯d turn out to be so weak in your second life.¡±


    Anna, who only heard the echo of a dangerous cunning voice, tried to find who or what was speaking as her eyes scanned left, right, both sides, anywhere her eyes could possibly reach, but there was no one there.


    ¡°Looking for me?¡±


    Anna turned around when she felt an ufortable presence behind her and before she knew it, an unknown force had sent her feets moving without her consent. It was so fast that the next thing her heated brain could register was she found herself lying on top of the stone, symbolically designed with candles around it.


    She wanted to scream out her fears but her tongue felt tied and adrenaline pumped harder through her very skin. She wanted to move, to stand up from the impure stone but her body felt held back by something.


    ¡°I thought you wanted to meet me, so why are you trying to run away?¡± Came the voice again that made her pinch herself in the fingers in case she was dreaming, hoping to wake up from this nightmare but sadly it wasn¡¯t a nightmare.


    Anna barely knew what else to do, so she spoke back.


    ¡°Who are you?¡±


    Before she knew it, a figure gracefully stepped out of the shadow as though it was proud of making its presence known, her eyes widened after spotting the figure in front of her, it was the masked man¡¯s master, Luderick!


    ¡°You poor child.¡± He walked towards the Ossuary she was currentlyying on top of while Anna continuously struggled to release herself. He stared at her body which he had held down thanks to the content his trusty guard had given her.


    ¡°What is it you want from me??¡± Anna didn¡¯t understand this man as she raged her questions at him, he was acting no less than a psycho but once again, those wed hands of his traced the corner of her delicate small face, sending a dreadful chill down her system and he continued, it moved to her chin, before sliding through her neck and down her shoulders.


    Anna didn¡¯t really like where this was going, it even brought hot tears to her aching eyes as she hoped he wouldn¡¯t sink his ws into her skin again. After a few seconds of torturing silence, Luderick finally said something.


    ¡°I thought I had just one big threat on my path to gaining extra power ever since his father died, but you came back as well, making it an even bigger threat!¡± He was obviously irritated as he didn¡¯t hide his disgust but Anna sealed her lips and didn¡¯t dare utter a word.


    ¡°You my dear are going to be the weapon I need to gain power and you see this stone you¡¯re resting on?¡± He tapped it lightly before whispering with a sneer.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be your coffin, your burial ground once I¡¯m done getting what I need from you.¡±


    Her eyes dted in horror and she shook her head, ignoring her, he looked out at the window and the moon was fully disyed in the empty dark sky.


    It¡¯s Time.


    Before Anna realized what he nned on doing, he sank his wed finger deeply into the skin on her wrist, earning a painful scream of agony from her lips as the pain circted her whole body.


    ¡°Stop! It hurts!¡± His w against her wrist was like her skin being stabbed with an extremely sharp dagger, tears streamed down her eyes as she remained glued against the stone Ossuary. Blood escaped from her wrist, streaming out from the wound and her body grew weaker than it already did before.


    She was losing blood.


    ¡°You see the holes in this tomb?¡± He stuck out his wed hands and pointed at the patterns which started from where her hand rested to another path. His glistening red eyes showed an insightful look that made her feel her heart stop at her throat.


    ¡°That¡¯s where your blood will go through.¡±


    He told her and with quick speed, he shoved a dagger from his outfit and raised the silver dagger up to stab her wrist.


    ¡°No, don¡¯t do this!!¡± Anna struggled to free herself from this but it only ended up futile, would she really be used by him to gain power???


    Just before he got a chance to stab her wrist and draw out more blood, a knock on the door suddenly interrupted him.

 Chapter 64

    64 Uneptable Gratitude


    Luderick¡¯s hand froze mid-air the moment he heard a knock on the door, his face wrinkled with annoyance as he lowered the dagger at his side and turned around.


    He thought he made it clear to those miscreants that he didn¡¯t want to be disturbed once the door was locked! So who dared to defy his orders??


    Anna¡¯s chest heaved up and down, both in fear, relief and panic as she watched the dagger drop to the ground with a tter. She closed her eyes, feeling thankful to whoever had knocked on the door and interrupted the process but she didn¡¯t let her hopes skyrocket as she waited to see who knocked as well.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± Luderick growled his question, but there was no response which made the situation even weirder and his brows furrowed at the disturbing silence, it oddly felt as though whoever was standing outside was taking his time and it was unusual because he was sure his trusted guard was standing right outside that door.


    To his unprepared gaze, the door instantly bursted open with a sharp jolting sound, he even had to look away due to the dust that followed as he blocked it with his hand.


    Roshan carefree walked in, his footsteps echoing on the cold tiled floor and behind him, the dead bodies of Demons perished utterly, like a blown-out candle.


    Roshan¡¯s guards stood at the entrance, scanning the area for more grotesque Demons but there was none at sight. Roshan flicked his wrist as he dismissed his guards with an order.


    ¡°Kill anyone present in the fortress.¡± His voice amplified, an authority that even Anna was tempted to follow if only she wasn¡¯t trapped against this stupid coffin stone box.


    Her heart skipped a thousand beats at the sight of Roshan who was literally dressed in a....


    .....


    Isn¡¯t that his night robe?


    His eyes were a crimson red that looked expressionless to both their gazes, when he strode in farther, they both realized he held someone¡¯s head in his grasp. The bloodied thing left traces of ck blood on the tiled floor, while his other hand held a sword which rested on his shoulder and he stopped walking.


    ¡°I was expecting his energy to be a lot tougher than this but turns out he¡¯s only good with arrows so I bit his head off, he¡¯s useless, you need a new and improved trust guard uncle.¡± He threw the head at his uncle¡¯s direction and watched it roll on the ground only to stop in front of Luderick.


    Luderick¡¯s angry gaze shifted to Roshan who smirked in return, his extremely sharp white fangs could be seen and Anna just stared as though she was dreaming about Roshan being present here, unknowingly forgetting about her own predicament.


    Why was he here?


    Anna sensed the already rising tension thicken in the air due to Roshan¡¯s ipetent actions and the two Demons locked gaze, hate darkling in their irises as the swift winter hail, it gave Anna the chills.


    Roshan¡¯s bloody red eyes shifted to thedy in red, lying on top of an Ossuary with a pale face and a bleeding wrist. His hold against the hilt of his sword tightened in an attempt to keep his anger in check and he could very much tell his uncle had held her down. He was holding her down without mercy.


    He has to distract his mind from her.


    ¡°You know something else uncle.¡± Roshan added in a carefree tone, gaining his attention back ¡°Time just ran out, it¡¯s over.¡± He spoke freely while pointing at the moon which had disappeared from the sky, but they were like a sting to Luderick¡¯s skin and he couldn¡¯t take it.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you just die in the temple?!¡±


    The two Demons instantly charged at one another, the sounds of their des shing echoed loudly in the room, followed by a breeze that swept past them in ordance to the force of their powers. Due to hisck of concentration on Annalise, the force no longer held her down and she was able to move herself from the stone.


    She didn¡¯t wait to recover and quickly crawled to a corner and hid there to regain a little bit of strength since she was losing blood. Staring at her bleeding wrist and the pain still lingering like thorns to her flesh, she sniffed and returned her stare to the two Demons who were currently in a heated battle.


    Watching their des sh in fury sent Anna¡¯s heart on a race and she stared at Roshan who sessfully dodged the man¡¯s massive hits with such skills she didn¡¯t imagine he¡¯d have, he was staying on the defensive side. He was rather fast with his movements and urate with his stances for someone they kept calling weak.


    But she can¡¯t let him fight alone since he must still be down by that poisoned arrow, he wasn¡¯t showing it but she knew. What if he gets hurt again??


    ¡®No¡¯ she shook her head at the thought, she wouldn¡¯t let him get hurt all because of her.


    Knowing it wasn¡¯t possible for her to fight thanks to her current state, her rmed gaze quickly searched the corner where she hid and the candles caught her attention. She picked a burning candle with her uninjured hand but yet her arm still hurts. Resisting the pain in her own system, she tossed the burning candle at Luderick and it caught his long feathered cloak, gaining both Luderick and Roshan¡¯s attention.


    ¡°This woman! Was it necessary to intervene?¡± Roshan muttered under his breath and seeing as his uncle was distracted due to his burning cloak, he used the opportunity to slice off one of his uncle¡¯s arms, ripping it from its flesh and Anna watched with horrid eyes as someone¡¯s arm fell to the ground.


    A gasp left Anna¡¯s lips as she watched and she knew with no doubt Roshan would kill him with this much anger.


    ¡°My arm! You impudent rascal!¡± His uncle cursed.


    ¡°But I¡¯m not even done uncle.¡± He said while taking a step towards the man who fell to his knee.


    ¡°You know how possessive I get with something that¡¯s mine, you hurt what was mine!!¡±


    He didn¡¯t bother to hide his anger anymore, he wanted to stab him when his uncle suddenly picked the sword nearby and blocked the hit, using that opportunity to escape as he vanished out of thin air.


    What!


    ¡°Get back here!!¡± He really wanted to kill that man, his hands were itching but seeing Anna¡¯s condition at the moment, he couldn¡¯t go after him and discarded the idea for another day. Afterall, that wasn¡¯t the reason he came anyway.


    Turning around, he saw Anna sitting beside the Ossuary while staring back at him, she looked as pale as a drifting blossom, tears swam in her eyes but they didn¡¯t drop, she didn¡¯t even know what to say. She never once expected Roshan to show up here and save her, she never did and now...


    Seeing she wasn¡¯ting over and at the verge of tears, Roshan went up to meet her instead. He stared at her wounded wrist which hadn¡¯t stopped bleeding and to Anna¡¯s surprise, she watched him crouch before her, tearing up his cloak and using it to tie her wrist.


    ¡°Ro_ah!¡±


    She winced at the pain, but his expression barely changed and remained neutral. She felt the pressure he applied to her wrist lessen a bit after she winced and he tied it more gently.


    ¡°Everything¡¯s alright.¡± He said since he wasn¡¯t the type who knew how best it was to console someone who nearly got used for ritual, but Anna shook her head in disagreement.


    ¡°Everything is not alright.¡± She sniffed, ¡°but where did he go?¡±


    ¡°To find another body.¡± He told her through gritted teeth while keeping his annoyance under control, but she didn¡¯t understand.


    ¡°What?¡±


    He shook his head, ¡°don¡¯t worry about it, it¡¯ll take him time to get a new body anyways,e on.¡±


    ¡°Roshan.¡± she called, her expression suddenly looked even more fragile than it already did as she lowered her head.


    ¡°Thank y_¡±


    ¡°If you dare to thank me for this, I¡¯ll bury you in here myself.¡±


    His interjection made her blink at him in disbelief and when she looked into his eyes, he looked somewhat offended.


    Was he angry??


    ¡°But why?¡±


    ¡°Cause I don¡¯t ept it.¡±

 Chapter 65

    65 Heading To Emsdar Lake*


    Anna was rendered speechless due to his childish response and she couldn¡¯t believe him. Was he serious right now?


    ¡°When I do something out of line, youin, when I try to do something the world considers appropriate, you¡¯re the only different being toin, what else should I do then? Kill myself?¡±


    He clicked his tongue at her emotionaleback but said nothing, he was an angry man at the moment and she was.... You know what, he doesn¡¯t even want to have this discussion anymore.


    ¡°Sigh... let¡¯s just go.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± She spoke without a hint of hesitation in her tone, stunning the demon who was already walking away, only to stop in his tracks and look at her. She was obviously holding back her tears and it made her eyes red.


    Anna had to admit to herself that she was tired, she was really tired of crying but most times she couldn¡¯t help it. She hated to see herself break down in front of people like this, most especially him but what can she do when emotions are so difficult to control?


    ¡°Why?¡± He asked, still not understanding her point.


    ¡°Cause you¡¯re never nice to me, must you always remind me of how cold and heartless you can really be? I get it if we don¡¯t like each other and if you¡¯re saving me for your own gain but....¡±


    ¡°My own gain?¡± Roshan couldn¡¯t help but intervene at that particr statement, finding it quite offensive, ¡°I abandoned my main reason for attending that boring celebration toe here and save you, all this happened cause you refused to listen and just stayed back like a dutiful maid, but you wanted to prove your stubbornness which you sessfully did and look at where itnded us both!¡± He fired back.


    .....


    A deep prolonged silence followed his words and Anna couldn¡¯t believe he was putting the me on her. The thought of it was like a thorn in her heart.


    ¡°Well if you had just told me maybe I wouldn¡¯t have shown up, for goodness sake you never told me!¡±


    ¡°Why should I? Huh? When did you be so loyal that you willingly wanted to go anywhere with me? Clearly you had your own selfish reason foring there and now that you reminded me of it, why did youe?¡±


    Anna¡¯s eyes suddenly felt dizzy with the way he kepting at her, firing questions and usations that triggered her emotions, thus, triggering her mark as well, but she held herself and red at him.


    ¡°I came cause I wanted to know the truth about my mother¡¯s corpse, sir Steve had something to say about my mother¡¯s dead body and I came to get answers for myself, but it¡¯s not like you¡¯d understand me even if I tell you in details, you¡¯ll never understand me cause you have no emotions or whatsoever to understand me!¡±


    ¡°Yes I have no emotions, and I¡¯m d I don¡¯t cause I wouldn¡¯t have to deal with all of this emotional trauma of yours.¡±


    ¡°Well fine then! You might as well go your way while I go mine.¡±


    ¡®Fine then!¡¯ Roshan was more than tempted to say that response to her, he was tempted to say yes, they should go their separate ways and never cross paths again, but unfortunately he could only say that in his head cause he had a hard time letting the annoying woman go.


    ¡°You and I know that is not possible.¡± He said instead, and it was the truth. He needed to know what she was doing to him, why he felt the familiarity pull and he wouldn¡¯t let her go till he figures everything out. He wanted to know why saving her was more important than the mission he abandoned.


    Anna hissed and took a deep breath, gently rubbing her forehead with her index finger to calm her brain before meeting Roshan¡¯s stare. ¡°You make me feel anger towards you when I¡¯m meant to be grateful you saved my life, even if it wasn¡¯t from the heart you saved me, regardless, I should be thankful for it.¡±


    ¡°ying genuine?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not like you.¡±


    ¡°Why are all the women so fond of being emotionally dramatic?¡± he heaved a deep breath and looked at Anna who was looking away from him, her arms were folded and her cute face puffed with anger, because clearly she was annoyed.


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    She ignored him.


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk to you, go away from here!¡±


    ¡°Nice try, but you¡¯reing with me cause you have no choice.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Well..... let¡¯s see if we can understand each other then.¡±


    Anna blinked at him, ¡°what?¡±


    ¡°Juste with me.¡±


    He unceremoniously held her uninjured hand and took her out of the chamber. Anna tried to shake off the dizziness as her head spun in circles but she wouldn¡¯t let herself drop like this, she can¡¯t pass out now.


    Roshan¡¯s guards hurried towards them once they were out and immediately bowed politely in his presence.


    ¡°Your highness, the fortress is empty.¡± The main guard incharge of the rest firmly dered and Roshan nodded, keeping Anna beside him before the stubborn woman wandered off.


    ¡°Good job, but I won¡¯t be able to transport back at the moment so let¡¯s do this, once you return to the pce, send a carriage over to Emsdarke.¡±


    ¡°We will, your highness, be safe.¡± The Demon guard responded before vanishing, leaving Anna and Roshan standing alone in the fortress.


    He looked at the woman whose face turned bashful all of a sudden and Anna inadvertently met his gaze.


    ¡°What¡¯s the problem? Are you alright?¡± Questioned Roshan.


    ¡°I neverined about feeling unwell.¡± She retorted stubbornly and huffed as she looked away, avoiding eye contact. Anna couldn¡¯t find herself admitting that him holding her hand was the cause of it.


    The warmth of his palm against hers was strangelyforting and the way he held it kind of spoke of her safety towards him.


    It¡¯s not possible he secretly cared about her, could it?


    Looking at his face, his crimson red eyes held a hint of disdain as his nose wrinkled in disgust.


    ¡°This ce sickens me, let¡¯s leave.¡±


    Anna couldn¡¯t argue with that and nodded her head. Together, they left the fortress.


    The first thing Anna saw after stepping out from that hell was trees surrounding everywhere, the sky was as dark as te in the early mornings when people would still be asleep. The breeze whistled against the leaves of the trees and everything looked normal.


    ¡°Are we still in Viscarrian?¡± She asked with obvious curiosity in her voice and he nodded.


    ¡°Yeah, but we¡¯re not close to the pce.¡±


    ¡°It looks.... Normal.¡± She couldn¡¯t hide the surprise in her tone, she didn¡¯t expect everything in Viscarrian to look natural at all.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be deceived by the outside appearance, there¡¯s a lot more to witness on the inside.¡±


    ¡°You actually sound smart.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°Nothing.¡± She averted her gaze with a guilty smile and stared ahead, but then her brows creased in worry as something popped in her head.


    ¡°You said you couldn¡¯t transport back earlier, why?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t use my powers, the poison builds a resistance between me and power, why do you think I got shot in the first ce?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard.¡± She immediately epted before he dragged it into another argument.


    ¡°So we wait?¡±


    ¡°We head to Emsdarke, my guards will be waiting there.¡±


    ¡°So we have to walk??¡± She sounded even more shocked, she doesn¡¯t think she has that much strength in her to walk all night, she¡¯ll pass out on the way for sure.


    ¡°Is it that far? Because I can¡¯t walk all the way there, I¡¯m weak as it is.¡± She admitted and he knew she wasn¡¯t lying, it showed in her face.


    ¡°That leaves us with one option.¡±


    ¡°Which is?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll carry you.¡±


    Anna instantly raised a finger, already opening her mouth to protest against it but surprisingly, no words came out, as though she was having second thoughts about it.


    Few minutester, the two beings wandered into the forest, Roshan carried Anna behind his back while she gently had her arms wrapped around his neck. They remained quiet as they ventured farther into it and Roshan was the first to break the silence.


    ¡°Are you going to tell me a little about you?¡± He asked, but Anna shook her head in response.


    ¡°No, you¡¯ll only make fun of me and besides, you would have probably dug up enough information about my life already.¡±


    ¡°I heard it¡¯s better to hear it from the horse¡¯s mouth.¡±


    ¡°Fine but only on one condition, you have to tell me yours in return.¡±


    ¡°You go first and let¡¯s start by telling me....what happened to your mother?¡±

 Chapter 66

    66 His Cure


    ¡°My mother?¡± She sounded surprised to the extent her eyes went round, and she was. She never really expected he¡¯d ask about her mother of all things. The forest was a bit foggy and the sounds of twigs snapping as he walked echoed in the quiet forest.


    ¡°Yeah, you said sir Steve knew something about your mother¡¯s corpse, so tell me what happened to her?¡± His tone was shockingly gentle, neither was it an order. Anna didn¡¯t even respond and only blinked at him in surprise, but the being just stared ahead as he walked, looking as though half of his mind wasn¡¯t particrly here at all.


    ¡®Why is he acting strange?¡¯ thought Annalise as her lips curiously pulled up in wonders. For some reason, she doubts there¡¯s an ulterior motive behind his questions, he actually sounds like he was interested in knowing more about her.


    The only people who were this interested in knowing her was Calista and the physician. She remembered the physician could equally transport as well, was he a Demon too?


    So many unanswered questions, but Roshan¡¯s calm attitude right now surprised her even more


    A faint smile formed on her lips at the thought of her mother, but the memories of her death made those pretty smiles fade from her lips and Roshan could sense her hesitation when he felt her shiver slightly.


    ¡°I might do a lot of things, but I respect people¡¯s personal thoughts¡± he immediately told her in case she was ufortable, ¡°... if you can¡¯t talk about it, it¡¯s fine too.¡±


    ¡°My mother died on a ship during a terrible thunderstorm.¡± She began, ¡°I was still a child back then, so I couldn¡¯t do anything to save her or anyone.... a terrifying wave ruined the ship we were in, everyone died..... everyone except me.¡±


    Her tone carried a heavy weight that oddly affected him, he could sense the pain hadn¡¯t been forgotten and as much as he hated to admit it, he knew what it felt like to have painful memories haunting the day life out of you.


    .....


    She continued, ¡°I got med for the death of those people because somehow I survived the incident, the mark on my forehead gave people reasons to point fingers at me, they imed I was cursed and I wasn¡¯t epted.¡±


    ¡°And you still want to help these people?¡±


    ¡°I thought about it and then I realized, you can¡¯t expect the world to be fair to you just cause you¡¯re nice, that¡¯s like expecting a lion not to eat you cause you didn¡¯t eat him.¡±


    Roshan actually found some sense in her statement, but still...


    ¡°Well, the royal family of Euphrasia took me in since they owed that much to my father.¡±


    ¡°Your father?¡±


    She nodded, ¡°yes, sir Mateo Hunter of Draekharm vige, he was among the greatest warriors who fought in thest war between Euphrasia and the creatures of the night, but he didn¡¯t make it.¡±


    That name lingered in Roshan¡¯s head for a while, ¡®sir Mateo Hunter? No wonder that golden badge looked familiar!¡¯


    She sighed. ¡°Anyway sir Steve ims my mother¡¯s body was never found, I needed answers cause I was sure she got buried, but he doesn¡¯t believe ippt, that¡¯s why I attended the ceremony.¡±


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me this before?¡±


    ¡°I assumed you wouldn¡¯t listen so I didn¡¯t.¡± She didn¡¯t actually assume, she knew he wouldn¡¯t listen.


    ¡°Either way, you should have said something, I understand what it feels like to lose someone important and we could have worked a way around it.¡±


    ¡°Wait_ you¡¯ve lost someone important before?¡± She asked, finding it shocking and surprising to her ears and when he didn¡¯t respond, she asked further.


    ¡°Is that the reason you¡¯re so cold to everyone?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ve always been like this.¡±


    ¡°You promised you¡¯d tell me if I tell you mine, so tell me, why are you so full of anger and hatred all the time?¡± She asked, ¡± if you wanted revenge for yourself, you could have easily wiped the royal family of Euphrasia but you haven¡¯t even been there, what are you searching for?¡±


    Roshan clicked his tongue, suddenly regretting why he even agreed to her demands in the first ce, he wasn¡¯t the type who knew how to say his personal thoughts to someone else.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you be a dummy and forget I made that promise?¡±


    ¡°Well I¡¯m no dummy, so tell me now.¡±


    She noticed his face grew pale all of a sudden and his expression... he looked like a wind wandering the world like a rejected guest. The pain in his crimson red eyes were visible as though he was wearing them like stars and that look stunned Anna more than ever.


    Roshan had emotions??


    Meanwhile, Roshan had a hard time stopping those memories from guing his mind. The look in his mother¡¯s eyes when she was roughly dragged away, his sister¡¯s scream when they were seperated, all the painful memories were still fresh and continuously reyed in his head. It reminded him of the loser he was, how useless and helpless he was at that moment. He couldn¡¯t save them despite trying so hard and....


    ¡°I lost my mother and sister at a very tender age.¡± He started and Anna listened carefully, ¡°They were both mercilessly killed and dragged away in front of me, I couldn¡¯t do anything to stop it.¡± Roshan suddenly paused, unable to say the rest out loud and his gaze lowered.


    His father had called him weak when he was a child, his father didn¡¯t ept him because he was half human. His father always carried the ideology that being human meant weakness and he started to believe that at some stage in his life. Aherlow punished him without mercy, inflicted injuries and scars on him to the point he began to question if truly that was his father.


    There was nothing called love in his family, his father was all about producing strong heirs that¡¯ll take over from him.


    He didn¡¯t me Azazel for doing nothing more than just stare back then, there was nothing he could do to help the situation cause they were only children.


    The humans were no different after he left the underworld, they hated him for being out of his mind but they never spoke of they were never kind.


    And even killed the only people he ever considered.


    Humans, Demon¡¯s, he could barely find the difference between them, most of them are just demons in sheep¡¯s clothing and what they made him go through would never be forgotten.


    ¡°We¡¯re here.¡± He said instead, Anna was actually expecting him to continue but unfortunately, he didn¡¯t. Almost like he was scared of hurting himself again.


    Was that it? He¡¯s scared of loving again.


    ¡°Will you drop?¡± His voice brought her back and she recalled she was still on his back, she unwillingly blushed and finally dropped from his back.


    Emsdarke was surrounded by fresh crystalline turquoise water, the pines and coniferous forest beautifully surrounded theke edges, Lily¡¯s sublimely floating atop the water, with tiny fire dragons dancing from one lily to the other.


    ¡°This is Emsdarke?¡± She asked, disiming the weariness that dragged upon her spirit like leaden weights. It looked beautiful but Roshan only strode to the big tree and sat on the ground, resting his back on it.


    ¡°Yes, we¡¯ll wait here for them.¡± Roshan¡¯s gaze shifted to the woman who stood ahead, admiring the surrounding with an impressed stare, her big brown doe eyes looked bright again, the soft waves of her deep cinnamon-brown hair fell like flowers from paradise to her lower back and he didn¡¯t even realize he was admiring the beautiful woman. She looked like a picture of a young rapt saint, lost in heavenly musing.


    Anna joined him afterwards and stared at his face, he looked strangely pale and delicate as the flush on a rose, he looked so innocent that she was having second thoughts about whether he was the one who ripped a man¡¯s head and arm off.


    He looked unwell, out of worry, she felt his forehead and he was burning up.


    ¡°Roshan, you¡¯re not...¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the poison.¡± He spoke up, before taking her hands off his forehead and Anna mistook the soft shade of pink color on his cheeks as one of the sickness reactions, leaving her even more worried.


    ¡°We can¡¯t just leave it spreading inside of you.¡± She said but he only chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m serious!¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s impossible to get the cure.¡±


    ¡°What is the cure?¡±


    He looked at her, ¡°your blood.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    He tilted his head at her, a burning glint sparked in his eyes, ¡°Will you let me have a taste of your blood?¡±

 Chapter 67

    67 Burning Sensation


    ¡°M_my what?¡± Anna couldn¡¯t stop herself from asking that question for the second time and her hands subconsciously felt the side of her neck.


    Was he also tempted by her blood?


    ¡°Forget it....I shouldn¡¯t have said it.¡± He threw his head back and closed his eyes, surprisingly looking unbothered and somewhat peaceful with himself for a change.


    A reaction that left Anna blinking in disbelief.


    ¡°How can you possibly be fine with this when your health is at risk !¡± Anna couldn¡¯t believe his calm response towards his life, was he really less bothered about the fact he might die from this?


    But she got no response from him and was taken aback by how lightly he handled the situation.


    ¡°Listen to me, isn¡¯t there another way?¡± She prompted, wanting him to take this seriously and to her relief, he suddenly looked thoughtful as his eyes fluttered open and she didn¡¯t fail to notice the tired look in his beautiful crimson eyes.


    He was getting weaker.


    ¡°There is..¡± he responded, ¡°..... But for that, I need to be in the pce.¡±


    .....


    ¡®The pce?!¡¯ Anna felt her hopes crushed at his second suggestion, knowing it wasn¡¯t possible since his guards haven¡¯t arrived yet, talk more of the journey back to his pce.


    ¡°Wha_so...¡± she barely knew what else to say and groaned in frustration, her head was spinning and she bit her lower lip while looking away, thinking about the suggestion he made earlier and her eyes went round. Having him draw her blood meant she¡¯d feel his fangs in her....


    ¡°Are all Demons tempted by my blood?¡± She had to ask for safety reasons and he nodded with his eyes still sealed shut.


    ¡°Not all Demons are the same, some can be tempted by blood, some are by soul, Demons are different and I¡¯m both.¡± He nonchntly uttered and Anna seriously couldn¡¯t tell howforting his words were meant to be because they were not.


    She suddenly felt stuck when she felt his temperature with the back of her palm and they weren¡¯t reducing at all, more like they increased at an abnormal rate and he was sweating. The fact his expression suddenly looked delicate to the point she was even afraid to hurt him stunned her even more.


    One thing was for sure, she couldn¡¯t get tired of staring at him.


    ¡°So hot!¡± He murmured to himself and shifted ufortably, his hands reaching to loosen his robe. Anna frantically helped him undo his straps out of helplessness and the fact he needed help with it. His chest was instantly exposed to her guilless eyes and she reluctantly looked away.


    She snapped her mind back to the situation happening before her, his fever wasn¡¯ting down at all and the poison was spreading non-stop. If it continues like this then....


    Her eyebrows curiously pulled together as though a thought had hit her. Was it affecting him this much because he was half Demon? The man earlier said something about Roshan being half human.


    Anna didn¡¯t know what else to do and sighed at the only option ringing in her head, the only option that oddly felt right and she wished it didn¡¯t. She owed him that much at least, he saved her from the hands of his evil uncle and willingly carried her on his back all the way. Sparing him a little blood wouldn¡¯t hurt right?


    ¡°Don¡¯t drain me out, else I¡¯ll kill you with my bare hands.¡± She warned and he opened his eyes to look at her, confusion clearly written on them.


    ¡°What?¡±


    She moved her hair to one side of her neck and pulled the stubborn being towards her, making sure his head faced her exposed neck and she took a deep breath before uttering. ¡°Take my blood.¡± She found the courage to say, but Roshan pulled back to meet her hesitant stare.


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± He needed to know, cause this was the one thing he wouldn¡¯t force her into doing out of her will.


    She shook her head and closed her eyes tightly, ¡°now do it before I change my mind.¡±


    Roshan¡¯s gaze finally shifted to the paleness of her exposed neck and he gulped in restraint, his eyes glinted with unspoken desires and Anna felt a bit nervous at his dy.


    ¡°Uhm.. Roshan, will it hurt?¡±


    ¡°Definitely.¡±


    ¡°Wait what!!¡±


    He immediately sank his fangs into her skin, earning a low whimper from Anna who wasn¡¯t prepared for it just yet and her eyes momentarily widened at the quick sting that coerced not only at her neck, but her system as well.


    Roshan pulled Anna closer to his body without even realizing it himself, her blood was even sweeter than he had expected it to be, like a sweet honey nectar that was freshly collected. He began to suck on it in an attempt to draw out more blood.


    Anna¡¯s mouth was opened as though she wanted to scream, but she held it back and grabbed a handful of his hair, leading her to straddle against him in order to steady herself as he showed her neck no mercy, she was already weak as it is and she hoped he¡¯d stop soon enough.


    She felt her heart stop when he sucked on her tender skin, equally wrapping his hand around her small waist as he feasted on her blood with so much hunger. Her body oddly heated up in response and feeling her body press against his made her insides swirl.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± She whispered with a voice that tended to arouse him even further, trying to gain his attention and he suddenly stopped after realizing what he just did. Pulling back, he licked the blood that lingered on her skin and Annapulsively shivered from the heat of his tongue.


    He looked at her face, her heart beat drummed in his ear and her whole face was red.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± He asked, leading Anna to avert her stare and where he bit her left a burning sensation swirling through her body. Roshan stared at the woman who was currently straddling him, the heat of the moment made his mind foggy and he couldn¡¯t help but admit her blood was one of the best he¡¯s ever tasted.


    ¡°Yeah.¡± She responded.


    The euphoric feeling hadn¡¯t left yet and it¡¯d take time to gain himself back, but having her straddle against him and having her warm body on his gave his mindset a little bit of unwanted thoughts which he found unnecessary at the moment.


    Anna felt the area where he bit and it was wet, it made her face redder than that of a lobster and she didn¡¯t even realize he was watching her.


    ¡°I get the feeling you don¡¯t want me to stop.¡± He subtly uttered and right before her shocking eyes, he sexily licked the blood lingering on his lower lip before a taunting smile appeared.


    ¡°I asked you to feed me your blood, not seduce me.¡±

 Chapter 68

    68 Unpleasant Encounter


    At this point, Anna really felt like squeezing her blood out of his system. She quickly stood up from him after realizing she unintentionally straddled the young man. The thought of her own act made her face go red in embarrassment and she subconsciously adjusted the hem of her gown.


    Seduce him??


    Her face scrunched into a look of annoyance and her ring eyesnded on him, she looked like a mother who was about to scold a child for being naughty and it frightened Roshan to the point he immediatelyposed himself. For the first time, he felt weirdly threatened by the stare of someone and remained quiet.


    Anna really couldn¡¯t understand the thoughts of this man no matter how many times she tried. How ungrateful! He¡¯s supposed to thank her for this but instead he¡¯s ming her for seduction, did her blood really heal him that fast? Because it seemed like it.


    ¡°I was expecting a thank you.¡± Her tone came out straight and clear, aplete contrast to her unappealing mood, but Roshan just rxed his back on the tree and closed his eyes.


    ¡°Sit here first.¡± He patted the empty space beside him, beckoning her to sit there and as reluctant as Anna felt, she did as he told her but didn¡¯t allow herself to get too close, she couldn¡¯t risk it and what if he bit her again?


    But what she didn¡¯t expect was for the arrogant being to rest his head on her shoulder, leaving her baffled and she thought of many ways in which this little act of his could lead to something dangerous but the demon was already drowsing off. She looked at him, his eyes were closed shut and she pinned her lip, not entirely sure of what to say.


    ¡°Roshan?¡±


    ¡°Shhhh.¡± He shushed her up and Anna had to keep her lips sealed, his long darkshes fluttered and tiredness lingered in his brows, he was still terribly weak but his temperature had reduced fortunately.


    .....


    ¡°Sometimes I wonder if we¡¯ve met before and if we did.. it makes me curious to know if you were always like this.¡± She uttered after seeing he was fast asleep. The cool morning weather wasforting and Anna watched as the light wind swayed a bunch of leaves to and fro, the trees rustled their leaves and Anna forced herself to stay awake and not fall asleep.


    No sooner after Roshan fell asleep, the guards arrived with their fancy-looking carriages and Anna dly let them get him into the carriage.


    ¡°Is he alright?¡± She asked after seeing he didn¡¯t wake up and the main guard nodded, although he wore a helmet, his deep green eyes carried a look of concern as he uttered, ¡°he¡¯ll be fine, get into the carriage so we can leave.¡±


    Anna politely nodded and got into the carriage with Roshan, being his personal maid, it was her duty to take care of him, whether she liked it or not.


    Once the carriage had made it out of Emsdarke, Anna stole a peek through the cottons and to her surprise, Demons that looked no different from humans bustled the street. Some were at the stalls buying artifacts and magical equipment that glowed, little children chased one another with a happyughter echoing through the busy street, as well as whispers as most eyes turned to look at the carriage.


    ¡°Everything looks.... Really normal.¡± She whispered surprisingly to herself before closing the cottons, this really wasn¡¯t what she had pictured and the demons lookedfortable amongst themselves.


    Roshan said something about not believing what she saw on the outside, this people couldn¡¯t really be pretending to befortable right?


    Her gaze shifted to Roshan who was still asleep and she quickly averted her gaze.


    They arrived at the pce once it was almost sunset and the guards took Roshan to his room.


    After taking a quick refreshing bath and having some food to eat, Anna was busy arranging her bed when she felt a little sting at the nape of her neck and she winced softly. She massaged it lightly with her hand and a tired look crossed her face, she was hoping the burning sting would stop within a few hours but strangely, it hasn¡¯t.


    Or does it take a few days?


    She nodded at her own question, maybe it does and she¡¯s probably overthinking all of this.


    ¡°I wonder if he¡¯s woken up or not?¡± Unable to get his condition out of her head, she left her room and headed for Roshan¡¯s chamber, she wanted to know exactly how he was doing but to her surprise, a youngdy suddenly stood in front of his door, blocking Anna¡¯s path so she wouldn¡¯t enter and based on her outfit and majestic appearance, she knew the youngdy was someone important.


    ¡°Greetings!¡±


    ¡°Spare me the greetings, It¡¯s not needed!¡± Gretta rudely rejected her polite greetings but Anna didn¡¯t take it to heart and kept her head lowered.


    ¡°So you¡¯re Annalise, Roshan¡¯s new personal maid? Am I correct?¡± She asked, eyeing the youngdy from head to toe and Anna nodded.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°I see...¡± Gretta cautiously studied her and she felt no sort of aura that gave the hint that she must be Aveline. She might look like Aveline but their personality was quite different. Aveline was a demon and this human isn¡¯t.


    ¡°So you¡¯re the one responsible for my cousin¡¯s predicament.¡±


    ¡°I beg your pardon?¡±


    ¡°I heard everyone considers you cursed, even your own people and looking at Roshan¡¯s state at the moment, it¡¯s difficult not to believe.¡± She smiled, ¡°anyway I¡¯m Gretta, daughter of Mr Hampshire, a rtive of the royal family so I must be treated with equal respect, do you understand?¡±


    ¡°As you wish, Miss Gretta.¡±


    ¡°His highness is asleep, so it wouldn¡¯t be best to disturb him don¡¯t you think?¡± She suddenly chuckled as though she uttered something funny.


    ¡°Who am I kidding, you must be one of those after his life aren¡¯t you? Coming from an Euphrasia....¡± Her tone wasced with sarcasm despite the sweet smile she carried.


    Anna smiled regardless, ¡°don¡¯t I have enough right to be?¡±


    ¡°That is what you think, but of course, I wouldn¡¯t exin myself to a ¡®maid¡¯.¡± Anna noticed the way she stared at her, as though she was someone who got picked from the mud and Anna tried not to show how offensive her gestures made her feel.


    ¡°Then I shall take my leave since his highness is resting.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re quite smart for a maid.¡± She continued, giving Anna no chance to flee from the toxic conversation.


    ¡°You¡¯re from Draekharm vige, I heard not everyone was able to receive good education from that vige. I wonder how you learnt so much since you lost both parents due to your curse and at a young age too, how sad, it must have been pretty tough for you.¡± She feigned pity and tsked, but Anna chose to remain quiet and politely kept her head dipped in a bow.


    ¡°And...¡±


    ¡°How surprising...¡± Azazel¡¯s calm voice interrupted Gretta¡¯s moment, a repulsive expression crossed her face but when he finally approached them both, Gretta smiled his way.


    ¡°And what is?¡±


    ¡°If I¡¯m correct you¡¯ve always found maids quite off-putting to talk to, is Roshan¡¯s new maid rubbing off on you?¡±


    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t she find that worthy?¡±


    Azazel turned his gaze to Anna, ¡°you may leave.¡±


    Anna quickly walked away without turning back, afraid they might sight her tears. She wouldn¡¯t want to hear more of the newdy¡¯s ¡®I heard¡¯ stories anymore and she just wanted to get away. She silently thanked the strange young man for interrupting.


    As she hurried down the stairs, Gemma who hid in a corner and saw everything felt sad for Anna. If only Gretta wasn¡¯t so mean to everyone.


    Gretta frowned at Azazel, ¡°You...¡±


    ¡°Your attitude this days is uncalled for, Gretta. Next time you act, try to do it with a little bit of sense attached, rich people without wisdom or learning are but sheep with golden fleeces, and you¡¯re no different.¡±


    His venomous words sent Gretta¡¯s sentimental heart spranging like sparks of an anvil and she looked around to make sure no one heard him. She red at him and it satisfied Azazel to see her get angry.


    Good, that was his motive.


    Without saying a word to him, Gretta walked out and after confirming she wasn¡¯t going to vent her anger on another innocent maid, Azazel left.


    Seeing the path had cleared out, Gemma stepped out of the ce she was hiding, surveying the area to make sure no one else would pass by. Feeling assured that no one would take this particr corridor anytime soon, she quietly tiptoed to Roshan¡¯s chamber and halted after reaching the threshold.


    She recalled the maids had warned her simultaneously not to step inside this particr chamber of all ces, but she wanted to know why his room was restricted.


    Being a curious little girl, Gemma pushed the door open with her two hands. The moment she sessfully opened it, she stepped in, only to be weed by the darkness in his room.

 Chapter 69

    69 An Inconvenient me


    Gemma¡¯s feet naturally halted and a soft gasp of exmation left her small parted lips due to the intense darkness of the room, it was pitch ck and not even the windows could be seen.


    Fortunately for her, being a demon made it easier for her eyes to adjust to the blinding darkness, it was part of their demonic powers and once her eyes gotfortable, the room would look vivid in the dark.


    Tiptoeing farther into the chamber, the door unexpectedly closed behind her, causing the hairs on her back to stand at attention and she quickly turned around to see who had closed the door, but there was no one there.


    Maybe it¡¯s the wind? She thought to herself and shook the nervousness of her system.


    She quickly nced around with her hands on her waist. Now where is his highness?


    ~


    After properly adding some ointment and carefully bandaging her injured wrist, Anna finally decided to read a book that was boringlyid on the book shelf opposite her chambers, silently begging to be read or even touched. The wooden shelf had several books resting on it but due to the upromised situations surrounding hertely, it made it quite difficult for her to read any of them but tonight, she was gonna read herself to sleep.


    Agreeing with herself, the confused Anna randomly picked a book with a purple cover from the shelf, she picked another book with a blue cover and nced at both books with her eyes forming a ruminating slit.


    She silently debated on which book she should go with for tonight before returning the one with a blue cover back on the shelf. Keeping the purple covered book close to her chest.


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯ll go with this one.¡± She walked back to her dressing table and sat on it.


    ¡°Okay.... Let¡¯s start with this first.¡± Taking a deep breath, she opened the book to page one. The title of the book; ¡®AN INCONVENIENT FLAME¡¯ sounded very riveting to her ears, she had read the synopsis at the back and it looked pretty catchy to read.


    She was in the mood to leave reality, even if it¡¯s for the night and hopefully this book would be able to take her on that stress free journey. Pushing aside every other thought that concerned Roshan or Euphrasia and even Viscarrian, Anna rxed on the chair and began her journey to an entirely different world.


    The story was about a brave female warrior who was terminally ill. Sadly, there was no cure for such illness so her life was numbered. Although their illness might be different, they both seemed to share the same cruel fate.


    Shaking off the anxiety slowly building up inside of her, Anna continued further. Since she was terminally ill, the warrior decided to go on a quest to search for her main purpose in life, other than defending her empire from the brutal enemies. On her quest to true discovery, an unfortunate ident took ce, leaving her trapped in a cave only to be saved by a handsome dark Knight, who happened to be an enemy of the other empire her people were currently battling with.


    ¡°A forbidden love story.¡±


    Anna¡¯s hooked gaze remained buried in the book and she¡¯d squint or widen her eyes at anything surprising to the extent she ended up reading half the page of the book.


    Her cheeks unwillingly flushed into a bright cherry red after reaching an intimate scene between the warrior and the dark Knight. Her big eyes went round and she shut the book out of impulse. Her heart thudded against her chest and she felt her whole system scorching with an unexinable heat.


    ¡°N_No, I can¡¯t read this, it¡¯s too detailed.¡± She cautioned herself, but then she wanted to end the book. She wanted to know if thedy survived her illness and ended up living happily ever after with the Dark Knight, so she decided to skip the steamy scenes, but not all of them as curiosity always got the better of her at the end.


    The moment she was done reading, her heart was pounding and her body felt hot, the book was amazing! No doubt. But it left her with unanswered questions and she med the author for not exining if her illness was cured or not. Although the two couples ended up happy, the main character¡¯s predicament wasn¡¯t cured in the story.


    ¡°Did she die?¡± Anna really wished she could find an extra chapter that exined it to her, but sadly, the story had ended. Guess it¡¯s left for her own imagination toplete the story.


    She closed the book with a half satisfied expression crossing her face when a thought suddenly hit her and her eyes rmingly widened. If Roshan catches her reading an erotica, she¡¯ll never hear the end of it for sure.


    She hid the book under the rest of the normal books resting on her dressing table and her heart finally calmed.


    Sighing to herself, her eyes were already tired and ached from the reading, this was what she wanted. To read herself to sleep and she got just that. Resting her head on the table, she fell asleep within a second as her eyes dropped to a close.


    Not too long after she had slept, Roshan appeared in her chambers, only to find the annoying woman asleep on the chair and he nonchntly rolled his eyes while folding his arms.


    ¡°She¡¯s sleeping.¡± For some reason he felt disappointed, he actually expected his maid to check on him but instead, he got the smaller version of her lurking in his chambers.


    He reached for her dressing table after taking a few strides, she was fast asleep and he noticed her wrist was neatly bandaged, the injury his uncle had mercilessly inflicted on her.


    He ced his palm on top of her wrist, a golden light shed in his irises, as well as his palm and once it stopped, Roshan loosened the bandage and her wound was healed.


    He carried her from the chair andid her on the bed so she could sleep properly. Anna could feel her body being effortlessly dropped on thefy bed but she was too sleepy to bother about who was in her chambers or who carried her from the chair she was sitting.


    That was until she felt the weight of the bed press down, as though someone just got on top of the bed with her. She ignored it at first but when she felt the straps of her night dress untying themselves, her eyes quickly snapped open as her brain finally worked. She looked up to see who was undressing her, only to meet the intense stare of someone she never imagined to find in her room, at such ate hour.


    ¡°Roshan?¡± Shock and bewilderment shed in her eyes, she stared into his Hazel-green eyes but they glinted darkly against the dim-lit room, he didn¡¯t stop untying her straps until she ced her hands on his.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± She asked in disbelief after seeing he wasn¡¯t stopping, her heart thumped loudly against her ribcage but the being who was on top of her just smiled seductively and tugged her hands off.


    ¡°I¡¯m hot.¡± He uttered before loosening the straps of her night dress but Anna didn¡¯t give him the chance to flip them open. A sudden look of hunger shed in his eyes and Anna wasn¡¯t oblivious to it.


    It sent a quick tremor rolling down her spine and she felt cold.


    ¡°Roshan_¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re my maid.¡± He uttered in a deep dark voice before leaning to whisper in her ear.


    ¡°That automatically makes you mine.¡± His hot breath tickled her earlobe, causing her to shiver relentlessly and it took her some minutes to recall what he just said.


    His what??


    The side where he bit her, Anna could feel his soft lips drop a kiss on that area, channeling a new unfamiliar sensation through her body and she impulsively tilted her head up, giving him more ess and those sensual lips teasingly traced the nape of her neck and her corbone, only to stop at the swell of her breast and her eyes closed as the sensation ran through her burning system like ants on fire.


    His body wasn¡¯t even touching hers in the slightest of ways, he kept a torturing distance between their bodies but the heat escaping from him could be felt, or was the heating from her??


    It couldn¡¯t be, no!


    ¡°S_stop.¡± She forced herself to speak, her first instinctive measure was to push him away but shockingly, she didn¡¯t have the strength to. Roshan wickedly continued with his act as he kissed the swell of her breast and as though that wasn¡¯t enough, Anna felt his adventurous hands crawl against her night dress, only to grip her thighs and a gasp left her lips.


    ¡°Wait_¡±


    He lifted his head to look at her, ¡°You chose me, remember?¡± A predatory smile crossed his lips, enhancing his features, his hair fell over his face and he was all naked before her. ¡°It¡¯s time to face the repercussions of your choice!¡±


    His eyes dangerously glowed a deep red and his fangs appeared as well. Anna¡¯s eyes widened and before she could do anything, he bit her at the exact same spot he bit her before and that¡¯s when her eyes snapped open.


    ¡°Ah!!¡±


    She sprang on her bed with a desperate cry, sitting upright and her hands involuntarily reached for the nape of her neck, but surprisingly, she wasn¡¯t bitten, nor did she feel the sharp pain she was anxiously expecting.


    ¡°W_what?¡± She looked around her room, but there was no one present, she was fully clothed and Roshan was nowhere in her room.


    Her body shivered with fear, anticipation and they hummed to life as she was left aroused.


    ¡°Was it a dream?¡±


    Her face went red in embarrassment and she smacked the back of her head.


    How can she be having scandalous thoughts about this man?? Even when she was with Adrian, she¡¯s never thought of him in this inappropriate manner before and now, the person she was supposed to despise with every fiber inside of her, was making her skin go hot.


    She nced at her wrist and her heart jumped to her throat after seeing her wrist was healed.


    Her wrist was healed???


    That means.... Roshan was evidently here??

 Chapter 70

    70 Marked


    The serene morning weather felt cool and crisp as the sky turned a shade of purple and blue outside her window, leaving a delightful breath of fresh air in the Viscarrian pce.


    Anna sat at her dressing table after getting herself prepared for the day. She gently massaged the two dot marks at the nape of her pale neck, curiously studying it on the ss mirror and there was no trace of blooding out of it. It looked as though it was waiting to be pierced again, pierced by a certain someone and it made her pulses flutter like a dove.


    She pursed her lips at how difficult it was to stop thinking about Roshan, surely it was a normal thing if a good-looking person lingers in the thought of someone for a while but this was entirely different.


    She found the mark on her neck to be something out of the ordinary and as much as she tried to avoid the topic, there was a great possibility that the mark on her neck carried a meaning she was unaware of.


    ¡®I choose Roshan.¡¯ her own unusual phrase reyed in her head constantly and it left her thinking even up till this day, she still doesn¡¯t know what made her utter them.


    She gave up guessing and her big brown eyes lit up with contempt, ¡°There must be a library in the pce.¡± She thoughtfully said to herself before getting to her feet. She was going to find the library and hopefully, there might be books about the mark that would help her understand her situation even better.


    Most especially that scandalous dream she wasn¡¯t entirely sure was a dream. Everything.... felt so real, his presence, his hot breath, the arousing tension and the heat of his body, his hypnotizing scent, plus the wound on her wrist vanishing out of the blue and finding herself on the bed, she was sure he came into her chambers.


    And just thinking about it non-stop made her heart race.


    ¡°I¡¯m overthinking this.¡± She admitted and involuntarily clicked her tongue. She should find the library first and try as much as she can to avoid Roshan for a day till her mind settles.


    .....


    Keeping that word at the back of her head, she stepped out of her chambers and headed for the corridor.


    As always, she greeted a few maids that strode by and they seemed to be in a hurry today. Upon reaching a certain corner, Anna¡¯s feet stopped in their tracks as a middle-aged woman with red hair came into sight. She was half-scolding a few maids and worst of all, Gretta stood beside her with an equally strict stare.


    ¡°Have you forgotten the rules?¡± Letitia strictly said to the trembling maids. ¡°Remember you¡¯re from the low-rank demons, His highness doesn¡¯t like Intruders in his underground pool and you foolishly defied his orders, but I¡¯ll let it slide today, next time I won¡¯t be this kind!¡±


    ¡°Forgive us for our ignorance, we won¡¯t make that mistake again.¡± The maidens immediately pleaded, but the red-haired woman only hummed as she stood straight.


    ¡°I hope not.¡±


    Anna who quietly hid and watched the scene already knew the woman was someone important, or a rtive to the royal home as well. She didn¡¯t dare to take that route after spotting Gretta, and something told her the red-haired woman wasn¡¯t going to find her presence appealing.


    ¡°Is everyone so strict in Viscarrian?¡± She still remembered that at Euphrasia, the royal families weren¡¯t so strict.


    Silencing herself, she quietly walked away and continued to find the library. She wandered restlessly through the pce like a prowling animal.


    ¡°Viscarrian pce is so big, I wonder if the library is close by.¡± She muttered to herself, but her feet instantly halted after spotting Roshan heading towards her direction.


    He wasn¡¯t alone, his main guard walked beside him and Anna suspected he was the marshal of Roshan¡¯s guards. They seemed to being back from who knows where and where deeply engrossed in their own conversation. Roshan¡¯s expression looked serious and his eyes looked distant.


    That didn¡¯t stop her from recollectingst night¡¯s scandal and her face unwillingly flushed, just watching him brush his fingers through his messy ck hair in an attempt to think properly only brought out the beauty he possessed. His morning look was dangerously alluring and his aura at the moment became heavy and dark, indicating he wasn¡¯t in the mood to be messed with.


    Every maiden at the hallway politely dipped their heads in a low bow the moment he walked by, and instead of Anna to do the same like any normal being, she fled like a spirit from the upper hallway, afraid he might spot her and call for her attention, thus, venting his early morning frustration on her.


    ¡°Sir Gravion dropped a message.¡± Lorenzo clearly stated to the man he was currently walking beside with. Seeing as Roshan hadn¡¯t shut him up yet, he continued, ¡°he requests you show up at the meeting tonight.¡±


    Roshan¡¯s lips twitched at the news, ¡°cancel it, I have important things to take care of.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that is impossible, every high Demon would be present at the council meeting and your presence is highly needed.¡±


    A frown settled on Roshan¡¯s face at the news of higher Demons being present at the council meeting, why won¡¯t they leave him alone??


    As much as it ate at him that he couldn¡¯t refuse a higher Demon, he could always irritate them to his satisfaction until they chased him away themselves.


    He suddenly smiled, ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll just use the meeting to my own advantage.¡± He subtly responded, making Lorenzo¡¯s brow bend in a silent inquiry. He had somehow suspected it, but he wondered what mayhem his highness would cause at the meeting tonight.


    As Roshan strode by, the familiar floral scent instantly invaded his nostril, gaining his attention immediately and when his eyes diverted to the maids bowing before him, the one with the scent was nowhere present among them.


    ¡®She isn¡¯t here.¡¯ he silently said to himself, but yet his eyes kept searching as though he was expecting to spot her around.


    ¡°Are you looking for something?¡± Lorenzo felt the need to ask, his Lord¡¯s gaze hasn¡¯t rxed ever since they strode past this particr hallway, as though he was searching for something... or rather someone.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± He lowered his gaze. Strange, he swore he felt her presence here. Where is she anyway?


    ~


    ¡°Slow down Gemma, you¡¯ll get hurt if you keep running like that.¡± Anna chuckled lightly, seeing the little girl bolt happily through the stairs and Anna had to raise the hem of her gown so she could go after her without tripping.


    Gemma only stopped after reaching a particr door, she turned to look at Anna who was busy catching her breath, her hands rested on her waist and she took one final deep breath before standing straight to look at Gemma.


    ¡°I¡¯m so d that¡¯s over, I thought my legs would break, next time I¡¯ll make sure to hold your hands.¡± She joked, causing Gemma to snicker silently.


    ¡°So, this is the library?¡± Anna asked with interest, turning her attention to the huge door and Gemma nodded.


    If she hadn¡¯t run into Gemma on the way, goodness knows she¡¯d end up patrolling the whole pce and still not find the library.


    She opened the door and took a step in, Gemma followed behind and as they progressed farther into the library, Anna¡¯s eyes widened at how big the library room turned out to be.


    Thousands of books wereid on the shelves that were extremely taller than her, Anna¡¯s eyes widened further as she wandered through the library. Gemma stayed beside her as she also stared at how big the library was.


    ¡°So many books, how do I find the particr book that I need?¡±


    A sudden ¡®boom¡¯ sound behind them caught their attention and the two lost beings nearly jumped out of their skin due to the unexpected loud sound.


    Anna instantly turned around to see what had caused it, only to find the walls split open and a figure stepped out. Her eyes widened seeing it was Levi.


    ¡°My goodness!¡±


    Levi sluggishly stepped out, his clothes were a bit torn, as though something sharp wed through them. He looked dusty and coughed while adjusting his outfit. His hair was a mess on his head and when he raised his head up, he caught sight of Anna and Gemma.


    His dull eyes instantly brightened, ¡°ah, you¡¯re back!¡±


    Anna hurried over to him, ¡°what... what happened to you?¡± Shepletely forgot about Levi who helped her show up at the mask celebration, she didn¡¯t even notice his absence if not now.


    And what happened to him??


    Gemma tried not to chuckle as she stared at her brother¡¯s situation, her hands covered her mouth and she looked away before he noticed.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, just a rough ride down the tunnel.¡± He nervouslyughed, he couldn¡¯t admit Roshan punished him terribly, who knows if the unforgiving demon of a brother would kill him next.


    ¡°Forget about me for now, I heard what happened to you at the celebration, I¡¯m d you¡¯re alright.¡± He genuinely said and truly he was. Anna couldn¡¯t help but smile at his weird, but honest concern.


    Levi¡¯s gaze shifted to the little girl who hid behind Anna and his beautiful eyes formed a yful angry slit. This little demoness tricked him into opening the door and he foolishly fell for her cuteness.


    ¡°You.....¡±


    To his surprise, his sister stuck her tongue out at him in a mocking manner and he scoffed in response. Of course, no one in this house was afraid of him. He¡¯d like to see if she¡¯d have the courage to do that if he was Roshan.


    ¡°No, don¡¯t punish her please.¡± Anna intervened after realizing what his re meant, ¡°I asked for her help so she wasn¡¯t at fault, punish me instead.¡±


    ¡°What!¡± He instantly shook his head, Roshan would tear him in pieces if he ever did that. He knew what he went through in there and couldn¡¯t risk going through it again, so he shrugged it off.


    ¡°Nevermind it, what are you doing here?¡±


    Anna suddenly smiled as an idea popped in her head. It felt like luck was on her side today, Levi has lived in the pce, surely he must know books rted to Demon bites.


    ¡°Can you help me find a book about demon marks?¡±


    ¡°Huh? Why?¡±


    ¡°Well..¡± Anna was hesitant at first, but she showed him the mark on her neck, only to see his eyes widen into stupefaction as though he just saw a ghost.


    ¡°I wanted to know about this.¡±


    ¡°You got bitten?¡± He sounded too surprised, ¡°by who?¡±


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    Roshan???


    Anna watched as his expression changed with the rapidity of a kaleidoscope and it made her even more nervous than she already was.


    Was it something bad??


    ¡°You chose Roshan as your mate?!!¡± He blurted.


    ¡°Mate? What?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve been marked.¡±

 Chapter 71

    71 The Golden Badge


    ¡°Marked? I don¡¯t understand.¡±


    Levi wanted to blurt more answers but when his mouth opened, nothing came out of them, as though he just restrained himself from exposing more about the mark and his demeanor slowly faded like a cloud in a horizon, his eyes instinctively narrowed with interest.


    ¡®Wait, if Roshan really marked her, why didn¡¯t he tell her what the mark meant?¡¯


    Anna waited for him to say something else but he just remained mute, he appeared to be in another dimension as multiple expressions disyed on his enchanting face, leaving Anna even more agitated and her fingers uncontrobly dug into the skin in her palms.


    Why did he stop?


    ¡°You wanted to say something.¡± Her voice broke him out of the trance he unknowingly kept himself in and he indubitably met her eyes.


    ¡°Did I?¡±


    He suddenly looked confused as though he had no clue what she was talking about.


    ¡°Yes, about the mark on my neck.¡± She pointed at it, diverting his attention to the two dot marks on her neck.


    .....


    ¡°Oh.¡± He let out augh but Anna could tell he feigned it, he awkwardly cleared his throat and met her quizzical stare.


    ¡°Books about Demon mark, I¡¯ve nevere across such in the library but you can always check.¡±


    ¡°Check? But you just said_¡±


    ¡°When did you get bitten exactly?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Yesterday?¡±


    Anna wasn¡¯t understanding why he questioned her when she was the one with the questions, but watching his face as a look of realization dawned on them made her body tense for unknown reasons.


    ¡°If you¡¯ll excuse me, I¡¯ll go get myself prepared for the day.¡± He smiled and instantly vanished before Anna could say anything else to him.


    A strange silence lingered after he left. What just happened?


    She turned her attention to Gemma who shrugged with a, ¡®I don¡¯t know what happened¡¯ look on her face.


    Seeing as they were both clueless about what happened, Anna decided to brush it aside.


    ¡°Nevermind, he¡¯s probably confused, let¡¯s find the book ourselves.¡±


    Gemma nodded and together, they searched the library.


    ~


    Roshan sat at the sr room, ying with the chessboard on the table and his eyes looked distant. He just finished having a boring and uninteresting conversation with Uncle Evan about tonight¡¯s meeting and with nothing else to upy his mind, the annoying woman immediately invaded his thoughts.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t seen her today.¡± He uttered to himself with a half-serious look. Normally she¡¯d show up in his chambers incase she was needed for anything but she didn¡¯t do that today.


    He healed her wristst night, she was smart enough to know no one else could do have done it except him and yet, she didn¡¯t bother toe see him, or even thank him for it.


    He sighed and threw his head back on the chair, closing his eyes to rest his unsettled mind.


    Why did it even bother him this much? Not like he needed her for anything important.


    He suddenly recalled her mentioning about Sir Mateo being her father and the golden badge turned out to be even more familiar.


    ¡°She¡¯s sir Mateo¡¯s daughter.¡± He couldn¡¯t hold back a lightugh, was fate ying a trick on him?


    ¡°Brother.¡±


    Levi showed up at the sr room and quickly walked in. He looked relieved to have spotted Roshan in the sr room.


    ¡°I knew you¡¯d be here since I couldn¡¯t find you in your room or underground cave pool.¡±


    Roshan stared at the being who stood at the doorway, looking haggard and his face was hysterically designed with the earth¡¯s soil, but he looked cute regardless.


    Tsk! He expected his appearance to be a lot worse.


    ¡°Took you long enough.¡± Was Roshan¡¯sment on him, but Levi discarded it and hurried to his side.


    ¡°Yes I¡¯m alive thank you for asking but you need to answer my questions.¡±


    Roshan folded his arms, his face remained solemn like a mask, ¡°which is?¡±


    ¡°Did you really bite Anna!?¡± He couldn¡¯t hold back his exmation, all the while he was searching for Roshan, he couldn¡¯t stop thinking about what Anna told him, to the point he wanted to confirm from the cier himself.


    He noticed Roshan tense a little bit at his question, but the cier instantly rxed.


    ¡°It was the only option, I needed her blood.¡±


    ¡°But you made her your mate.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not my mate.¡±


    ¡°I saw the bite mark, it¡¯s still visible on her neck, if she wasn¡¯t your mate it would have cleared off within a few hours.¡±


    Roshan¡¯s gaze finally shifted to Levi, ¡°the mark isn¡¯t gone?¡±


    ¡°You.... Didn¡¯t know?¡±


    Roshan didn¡¯t respond, he averted his stare instead and Levi couldn¡¯t read the imperturbable look on his face.


    ¡°Where is she?¡±


    ¡°At the library, trying to find answers about the mark.¡±


    ¡°Why would she do that?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, maybe because a Demons mating mark tends to do a lot of things and she¡¯s hypothetically facing one of those ¡®challenges''¡±


    ¡°Sigh... stupid Bond mark.¡± He wasn¡¯t entirely sure, but he thinks he has a reason as to why she¡¯s avoiding him now.


    ¡°Well, what are you going to do?¡±


    ¡°I discovered something as well.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s the daughter ofte sir Mateo.¡± There was a slight trace of empathy in his tone, but Levi didn¡¯t get it and tilted his head at him.


    ¡°Sir who?¡±


    ¡°The golden badge she always carried belongs to sir Mateo, her father.¡±


    It took a while before the name sank into Levi¡¯s head and his eyes dted, his face pale-stricken. ¡°I hope you aren¡¯t referring to Euphrasia¡¯s greatest warrior. It¡¯s not him, right?¡±


    Levi still remembered what happened during the war, it was clearly vivid in his head and the golden badge, yes! He was the one with the golden badge.


    Seeing as Roshan hadn¡¯t said anything in response, his earlier expression copsed and his shoulder slouched. The air around the sr room tensed a bit, followed by a dreadful feeling as Levi lifted his gaze to stare at the cier.


    ¡°Are you going to tell her?¡±


    ¡°Where¡¯s Azazel? His presence is needed.¡±

 Chapter 72

    72 Behind The Bushes


    Riding in her royal carriage down the quiet forest of Draekharm vige, Calista remained lost in thoughts as she leaned against the window, staring out at nothing.


    Based on what has been happening recently, her mind has remained upied and unsettled. But fortunately, no Demon¡¯s have been spotted for the past few days, nor has she heard of any deaths urring recently, except for the unfortunate sad death of the count of Green Town.


    With a sigh escaping her lips, she had left the castle early this morning to go pay a visit to one of the most wealthy officials living in Hollow Town, so they had to pass through Draekharms forest since it was an easy shortcut back to Euphrasia pce.


    Her father had suggested she meet with her suitor despite her reluctance. She didn¡¯t want to think about anything concerning marriage when her people were facing a lot of distress, but frustratingly, her father isn¡¯t willing to reason logically with her.


    Her own brother barely lends her his listening ear as his attention these days were more focused on using the Valerian sword.


    Her mother was not even an option as she always agrees with the words of her father so she found no point in exining her problems to her.


    ¡®Calista my dear, you¡¯re a princess and getting married to the son of a powerful kingdoms will help your father immensely, don¡¯t you want to see him happy?¡¯ were her mother¡¯s words to her, but what about her happiness?


    Didn¡¯t they always say parents derive great Joy in seeing their own children happy? So why was her case so different?


    She didn¡¯t fully me her mother cause the woman obviously has no say. Whoever said being a princess was every girl¡¯s dream and true happiness doesn¡¯t even know the meaning of happiness, because being a princess meant carrying the family¡¯s burden, making sacrifices and getting married to strengthen the power of her Kingdom.


    .....


    Sighing to herself once again, she wished Anna was still around, only Anna was able to tolerate her long talks for hours without getting tired and now, there was no one to talk to.


    Her thoughts were caught off-guard the moment she heard a guard yell at someone.


    ¡°Clear the path you peasant! How dare you stop the princess¡¯s carriage, out of the way!¡±


    Stunned by the seriousness in his tone, Calista immediately brought her head out of the window to see who exactly her guards were arguing with.


    To her shock, the guard was actually arguing with a man who was dressed in a ck hoodie, his face was entirely hidden in the darkness of the hoodie and he suddenly limped forward instead of walking away.


    He had only one arm and blood dropped from them down to the ground.


    ¡®Was that ck blood?!¡¯ The sight was both horrific and frightening to Calista and she wondered what a lone man could be doing in such an isted forest.


    Not everyone takes this particr forest except farmers and they¡¯ve even stoppeding since the Demon situation, so who could this be? And why was he injured??


    The strange man didn¡¯t utter a word to any of them and suddenly stopped moving, making her call the attention to her guards.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening over there?¡± Her voice rang out, gaining the attention of both the guards and the strange man who refused to move away from the front of the carriage.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about this princess, we¡¯ll handle it. Stay in the carriage.¡± The guards following her carriage rmingly said to Calista as they brought out their swords and she quietly did as they told her.


    ¡°Are you deaf?? Move out of the way or be runned over!¡± A guard warned, but to their surprise, the one arm being just stood there, slowly tilting his head to look at the princess whose head was still outside the window of her carriage. She watched the scene unfold before her eyes and her body tensed, seeing the strange being was looking at her in particr.


    She felt her nerves screaming to her to get down from the carriage and make a run for it but she stood her ground and met the stare of the stranger.


    She would have said something to it, or questioned it but that idea died when its eyes glowed a bloody red behind the hoodie it was wearing and her heart stopped.


    ¡°D_demon!¡± She breathed out, that was the next thing that rang in her head after sensing the deadly aura it emitted, and the glowing eyes. She had the strange feeling that it wasing for her.


    ¡°Start the carriage, now!¡±


    A smirk appeared on his face behind the hoodie. After sensing the princess was smart enough to have guessed him out so quickly, Luderick didn¡¯t hesitate to go after her with a speed that the guards failed to notice themselves.


    Calista¡¯s pupils dted in horror and she instinctively shifted away from the window, pushing herself back onto her seat but before he got a chance to reach her and carry out his n, an unexpected wind shoved him out of the way.


    A mystifying wind he didn¡¯t senseing ruined his n and blew him away from the carriage. Before he could see who had dared to interrupt his n, he was mercilessly mmed against the trees with a powerful impact, even the half frozen Calista couldn¡¯t help but feel it. He was mmed to another tree with an invisible force and the tree broke with a loud crack, falling to the ground with a heavy thud and blinding the path ahead with dust.


    ¡°Let¡¯s leave, get the princess to safety!¡±


    The carriage immediately started as the Coachman pulled at the horses reign, they neighed loudly while standing on their lower leg before dashing off with a quick speed through the dusty fog.


    But before Calista left, she spotted a pair of pretty blue eyes hiding behind the trees, they were locked on her, expressionless and nd to the point it gave her the shivers.


    With the blink of an eye, the pair of blue eyes were no longer seen and she nearly told the Coachman to stop.


    ¡°Who was behind the bushes?¡±

 Chapter 73

    73 Her Mission


    At the Euphrasia pce at noon, Adrian stared warily at the long silver sword ced on the table before him.


    He was currently sweating due to the fact he just finished training swordsmanship with a few guards and now, he was back to the Valerian sword.


    He gently reached for the hilt and tried to unsheathe the sword with all of his strength but it barely made a slight movement, one would think the sword was glued to its holster. He didn¡¯t stop and continued to the extent his veins began popping out on his forehead and when he finally stopped to no avail, he let out a frustrated groan.


    ¡°Why won¡¯t it open!¡±


    He¡¯s been trying to unsheathe the sword for weeks now but yet, it refuses to give even the slightest budge.


    Calista strode past the passageway in silence, heading to her chambers after the unexinable journey and forgetfully branching by her parents chamber¡¯s to see them. Adrian caught sight of her as she wandered past like a forgotten creature.


    ¡°When did you get back?¡± His untimely question caused Calista¡¯s feet toe to a halt, she let out an exhaled breath before turning to look at her brother who stood before the Valerian sword at the courtyard, staring at her with his arms folded.


    ¡°Just now.¡± Her response came out clear and short.


    ¡°Oh, how¡¯s Archer then?¡±


    .....


    ¡®How¡¯s Archer?? Don¡¯t I matter as well?¡¯ she wanted to say, but swallowed it instead.


    ¡°He¡¯s well and his family sends his greetings to everyone, do deliver this to father for me, I¡¯m feeling a little unwell after the journey and need to rest my head for a couple of hours.¡±


    She smiled reassuringly, even if he didn¡¯t ask about her well being, she wouldn¡¯t want to worry anyone about what happened at the forest and besides she¡¯s alright. She just wished she saw the face of whoever saved her so she could thank him properly.


    ¡°I¡¯ll_ I¡¯ll take my leave now.¡±


    She walked away, only to run into the physician along the way and she smiled warmly at his presence.


    ¡°Greetings princess Calista.¡± He dipped his head in a little bow, ¡°it¡¯s a relief to see you¡¯re back safely from the hollow town.¡±


    She nodded, ¡°thank you for that.¡±


    ¡°How was your journey?¡±


    ¡°It was quite hectic to be honest, I¡¯ll just take a little rest and I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll regain my strength back.¡± She softly said to him, tiredness lingered in her tone and the physician willingly cleared the path for her by moving to the side.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let me stop you, go have your rest.¡±


    A grateful smile crossed her lips and she walked away. The old physician didn¡¯t utter a word and just turned to keep moving. He caught sight of prince Adrian struggling to unsheathe the Valerian sword and he shook his head in pity.


    ¡°Prince Adrian, I see you¡¯ve been overworking yourself these days. When are you going to let it go?¡± Asked the old physician and Adrian finally paused. He turned to look at the old white-haired man who stood at the doorway, watching him.


    ¡°When I finally unsheathe the sword that can end the Demon race, only then will I let it go.¡±


    The physician shook his head yet again but said nothing, he was getting too old to exin things to anyone and hopefully, the right wielder of the sword wille back to take what¡¯s rightfully hers. Only she can do the sword justice.


    ~


    The moment Azazel appeared in the grand hall at Viscarrian pce, Levi hurried towards Azazel with his arms wide open.


    ¡°Azazel! So d you¡¯re back!¡±


    He gave Azazel an unexpected hug, startling the young man who just returned from the human world and squeezing him in a tight embrace.


    ¡°How sweet.¡± Came the usual sarcasm from Azazel as he nonchntly rolled his eyes in their socket.


    ¡°Let go before I send you walking through the valley of dead shadows.¡±


    Levi immediately let go as the thought of it brought back his senses, he really couldn¡¯t get why everyone enjoyed torturing him.


    Azazel wanted to walk out but got stopped by Levi.


    ¡°Hold on, I have something to tell you!¡±


    ¡°You have sixty seconds.¡±


    ¡°Sir Mateo is Anna¡¯s father!¡±


    ¡°I know.¡±


    ¡°I know right? And_¡± he paused, his brain finally registered Azazel¡¯s response and his brow knitted, he knew??


    ¡°Howe you knew?¡±


    ¡°Where do you think I¡¯ve been, you fool?¡± He flicked Levi¡¯s forehead, causing the demon to grimace a little as he rubbed off the sting.


    ¡°Harsh!¡±


    ¡°I understand everything now.¡± He uttered, causing Levi¡¯s face to be contorted with curiosity.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Her rebirth, the reason why her soul left the limbo untimely, it all makes perfect sense now.¡±


    Levi¡¯s eyes widened in anticipation, ¡°Tell me.¡±


    ¡°During the war after sir Mateo¡¯s death, Anna wasn¡¯t born yet, her soul hadn¡¯t left the limbo either.¡±


    ¡°And....¡±


    ¡°Roshan was maneuvered and he got trapped, that¡¯s how he ended up at the forbidden temple and he would have been trapped forever....until Anna came along.¡±


    He turned to meet Levi¡¯s innocent stare and the naive Demon was cracking his brain to understand what Azazel was trying to portray.


    Azazel sighed as he watched Levi scratch the back of his head, ¡°You still don¡¯t get it.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m trying to.¡±


    He shook his head and cursed the fact that he was the only smart one around here, ¡°there was a ny percent chance that Anna wouldn¡¯t have been reborn since she had a special soul, being in a limbo meant she could be reborned but there was a great possibility that she would be different. The sh at the limbo, it was caused by her soul so it could escape and she didn¡¯te back as a demon, but a human.¡±


    ¡°So you mean, her soul leaving the limbo was deliberate?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Anna¡¯s mother became pregnant after Roshan was secretly sealed. There was no way Roshan could have escaped and Demons couldn¡¯t go near the temple cause we were at risk of being magically sealed if we stepped into the temple.¡±


    ¡°Wait, so that means Anna¡¯s rebirth had a reason?¡±


    ¡°She came for a purpose and that purpose was Roshan. She doesn¡¯t recall a thing but yet, fate guided her back to Roshan and something tells me she couldn¡¯t have done it alone.¡±


    ¡°She came back for Roshan? That means she came back to free him from the temple.¡±


    Azazel nodded, ¡°Yes, but her mission isn¡¯t only to free him from the temple, she¡¯s going to free his heart as well.¡± He turned to look at Levi, ¡°Roshan has a scarred heart, his feelings are trapped and it has been that way ever since Aveline died.¡±


    Levi¡¯s expression turned into one of empathy, he still remembered when Roshan wasn¡¯t always so cold and merciless, he fought with his Demons countlessly so he wouldn¡¯t go crazy but everything crashed after he lost almost everyone that mattered. His family and Aveline.


    Like that wasn¡¯t enough torture, he got sealed in a temple for something he didn¡¯t do. Why wouldn¡¯t he seek revenge? And his father... What else could he expect from a devil? Roshan¡¯s father was a man who walked around with no heart.


    ¡°He¡¯s afraid of opening up his heart,¡± Azazel continued, ¡°his memories of Aveline disappeared due to his trauma, and with Anna¡¯s presence, she¡¯s suddenly a threat to his control, his power and his heart, but he has no idea how much.¡±


    ¡°That exins a lot about something!¡± Levi eximed and met Azazel¡¯s nk stare.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°The poison, I think Roshan bit her and took some of her blood to ease the poison in his system and now, she¡¯s marked.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Roshan made her his mate... identally. Wow, so this is how fate works, despite not remembering anything, they were brought back... together! So Anna is really Aveline??¡±


    ¡°Slow down, don¡¯t forget Anna has the meteor birthmark.¡± He reminded the already excited demon, ¡°I don¡¯t think she ns on staying.¡±


    ¡°Staying? What do you_¡±


    ¡°I think she wanted to free Roshan, her soul knew it wasn¡¯t going tost long on Earth but it took that risk. The moment she¡¯s done aplishing that wish to free Roshan from his burdens, she¡¯ll be gone.¡±


    ¡°But Roshan promised_¡±


    ¡°I know he did, but there¡¯s no possibility he can stop her from dying once her timees, her soul took that risk and there¡¯s no solution for it. He¡¯ll have to let her go if he doesn¡¯t n on bringing primal chaos to the world.¡±


    He took a step forward, staring out at the window with a look of forewarning, ¡°remember the rift between realms, if her soul doesn¡¯t return, the horrors of the ancient ones will gradually awaken and everything forbidden will draw our attention.¡±


    Levi didn¡¯t know what primal chaos awaited them since the rift hadn¡¯t been cleared but it frightened him.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Roshan?¡± Azazel asked, turning to look at Levi.


    ¡°In a council meeting.¡±


    ¡°Is it that bad?¡±


    Levi shrugged, unwilling to say as he knew what Azazel meant.

 Chapter 74

    74 The Kiss


    Anna spent the whole day at the library, browsing through numerous books with Gemma by her side. She sat on one of the wooden chairs and closed a book shut with a look of dissatisfaction crossing her pretty face.


    ¡°No book about Demon mark¡¯s?¡± She found it pretty absurd because out of the thousand booksying on the table, none of them spoke about Demon mark¡¯s.


    She nced at Gemma who was already dozing off due to too much reading and Anna couldn¡¯t help but smile at her sleepy face, she was just too adorable.


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get you to bed.¡±


    Anna gently carried Gemma in her arms and her eyes surprisingly widened after the little one wrapped her hands around Anna¡¯s neck. She was a little bit heavier than Anna expected her to be but she didn¡¯t mind it and took her out of the library room.


    She¡¯lle back another day to search for more books, but it¡¯s time to put the little one to sleep.


    As Anna headed up the long stairs, a maid hurried towards her and instantly let out a relieved breath at the sight of Gemma in Anna¡¯s hands.


    ¡°Thank goodness I found her, I was wondering where she went to.¡± The maid hurriedly said before standing in front of Anna who smiled at her.


    ¡°She was with me and she fell asleep.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Oh, I can see that.¡± The maid responded as her eyes moved to the sleeping girl before returning back to Anna with a warm stare, ¡°then I better take it from here, thank you for watching over her, she can be a little mischievous sometimes and I have to round the whole pce walls just to find her.¡± The maid jokingly said before reaching to take Gemma from Anna¡¯s hold.


    Anna dly gave her to the maid, seeing the maid was actually a free person.


    ¡°If you have trouble finding her, don¡¯t hesitate to call me, I¡¯ll be d to help you.¡±


    ¡°Ah.. that¡¯lle in handy in the future.¡± She smiled gratefully and wanted to walk away, but then paused and turned to look at Anna yet again, as though she just recalled something about her.


    ¡°You¡¯re the human girl, his highness¡¯s maid am I right?¡±


    She nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve been seeing you around, You¡¯re pretty nicepared to what I¡¯ve heard about most humans, but I¡¯d advise you to avoid Miss Gretta and Lady Letitia if you don¡¯t want trouble.¡± She whispered, ¡°those two are like two peas in a pod so if you see theming right, quietly follow left.¡±


    She winked, causing Anna to giggle a little at how funny the maid was.


    ¡°I have to go now, it was lovely meeting you.¡± She hurried back up with the sleeping Gemma in her arms.


    Well that was heartwarming, for the first time she had a normal conversation with one of the maids.


    Anna smiled at the thought and headed down the stairs, she was thirsty and needed some water to drink.


    ¡°Now to find the kitchen.¡± She made it to the downstairs hallway and wandered past, her gaze mostly distracted by the interior designs and she couldn¡¯t help but admire.


    They might be demons, but they surely had good tastes.


    She found the kitchen fortunately but there was no one there. She wanted to take a ss of water when her eyesnded on the berry juice in a big bowl and her eyes widened in stupefaction.


    ¡°Berry juice!¡± She eximed happily at the sight of it, it¡¯s been a long time since she had berry juice and she couldn¡¯t believe she forgot one of her very best fruit juices. Her mother always made them when she was little on her birthdays and she remembered how she always sipped little by little of it just so it wouldn¡¯t finish.


    ncing around to make sure no one was nearby, she carried a cup from the counter and scooped a cup full for herself.


    She drank everything to thest drop and licked her lips at how refreshing it was, and sweet too. It was nothing but a fruit juice she loved.


    ¡°Whoever filtered this did an amazing job.¡± She took another filled cup.


    ~


    In the council meeting, several men were surrounding a long rectangr table with a look of seriousness contorting their faces, the air inside the chamber was murderous but then, a certain cier amongst their midst looked rxed, aplete contrast to the situation revolving around him.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± A higher Demon amongst the members finally spoke up, directing his question to Roshan cause ever since the meeting started, the cier did nothing more but just sit there, refusing to contribute to their discussion.


    ¡°You outrightly refused to take the throne and be ruler of Viscarrian, yet you don¡¯t want anyone else to take that position.¡±


    ¡°Agreed, cause it¡¯s mine and I have the right to do what I want with it.¡± Came his tant response but one of the members smacked his hands on the table.


    ¡°Nonsense!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t raise your voice,¡± Roshan calmly warned, ¡°raise your words instead, afterall it is the rain that grows flowers, not thunder.¡±


    He could see just how much they were restraining themselves fromshing back at him and that was his goal. He really enjoyed making them look like fools in front of his midst, but since they wanted his contribution so badly, why not make the best out of it?


    ¡°Alright let¡¯s do it like this.¡± He sat properly on his chair, his teasing gaze had changed like a sh of light and he suddenly looked dead serious.


    ¡°I¡¯ll heed to your words, but you have to do something for me in return.¡±


    The members of the higher Demon exchanged nces, wondering what schemes his highness must be nning again but none of them seemed to have an idea.


    ¡°Which is?¡±


    Roshan leaned forward, resting both his hands on the table and intecing them together.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple, I just need someone to tell me what a meteor mark means.¡±


    ~


    After a few boring minutes of having a conversation with the higher Demons, Roshan finally left the council chambers, he strode past the hallway with his hands shoved into his pockets, looking lost as he pinned his lips together, forming a thin line.


    Dissatisfaction settled on his troubling mind like a shadow and he couldn¡¯t understand how the higher Demons knew nothing about a meteor mark.


    They¡¯ve promised him they¡¯d do a research and notify him about it once they get an idea but he doesn¡¯t know how long it¡¯d take, he remembered his promise to Anna, he was going to help her get rid of that mark, if only he knew what the birthmark meant.


    ¡°Azazel should have an idea since he¡¯s in charge of the limbo, shouldn¡¯t he?¡±


    He walked past the kitchen, only to find Anna half asleep on the table counter with a cup of juice in her hand. He immediately forgot about what he was thinking earlier, as though the sight of Anna had left his mind nk.


    ¡°Anna?¡± He strode towards where she sat, she held a berry juice in her hand and was about to take more of the sweet juice but he stopped her, finding her behavior a little strange.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    She freed her wrist from his grip, ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk to you, leave me alone.¡± She shooed him away, as though she was swatting a fly and she suddenly smiled again, turning her attention to the berry juice in her grasp.


    ¡°Are you drunk?¡±


    Her eyes half-closed as she sent a look of daggers at Roshan¡¯s direction, ¡°I¡¯m not drunk.¡±


    Roshan sniffed her drink and his eyes widened as a very faint pungent like scent entered his nostril.


    There¡¯s liquor in the juice, who kept it here??


    He looked around but there was no one present in the kitchen except for Anna.


    ¡°You¡¯re drunk!¡± He told her, but Anna brushed it aside.


    ¡°You¡¯re the drunk one, I just had berry juice.¡±


    ¡°Why did you take it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s my favorite berry juice and it tastes amazing! You don¡¯t believe me, here, taste it.¡± She wanted to feed it to him, but he turned his head to the side and made her sit back on the stool.


    He shook his head hopelessly as he watched her subconsciously murmur a few words to herself, words he couldn¡¯t even make out himself.


    ¡°You need to sleep,e.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± She shook her head, ¡°I want more berry juice.¡± She stubbornly turned away and nned on pouring more for herself, but it led Roshan to carry the woman in his arms and her mouth hung agape.


    ¡°You_¡±


    ¡°Shut up.¡± Was enough to silence the sleepy and drunk Annalise, she instantly kept quiet like an obedient puppy.


    He carried her to her chambers andid gentlyid her on the bed, she rxed to thefort of the bed and her lips curved into an innocent pretty smile


    She was his maid, she was meant to take care of him but it seems reverse was the case on his own terms.


    Her closed eyes suddenly fluttered open and she turned to meet the nk stare of Roshan.


    ¡°There¡¯s something I want to say to you.¡± She said, but Roshan knew it was something that wouldn¡¯t be important.


    ¡°Tell me tomorrow.¡± He was in no mood to hear her drunken statement but the stubborn woman shook her head yet again.


    ¡°No, I¡¯m telling you now.¡±


    She seemed adamant, giving Roshan no chance to leave and he dejectedly crouched before the edge of her bed, he leaned closer to hear what she wanted to say but instead, she sat upright and her arms immediately circled his neck, pulling the cier closer as her lips shockingly met his for a kiss.


    It felt like everything around them went still at the unexpected kiss, his head went nk and his thoughts faded like a cloud in a horizon. It took Roshan some blinking seconds to understand what just happened.


    His eyes slightly widened and he froze in ce the moment her soft lips slowly moved against his in a gentle caress. He stiffened like a wave-beaten rock and didn¡¯t move, nor did he respond.


    It was only a touch of the lips but there were unsaid emotions that came along with it, emotions that came like the sweep of a sun-rent cloud over a quietndscape and it took over himpletely. He¡¯s never felt anything like this before and his nerves thrilled like throbbing violins.


    Why did it...feel so familiar??


    He waited, thinking she¡¯d proceed further with the kiss but to his disappointment, she moved back to meet his stare instead. Her eyes glimmered like twinkling stars in her pale face and he restrained himself from kissing her back.


    ¡°Be nice to me.¡± She uttered with a smile before throwing her hands in the air and falling back to the bed like nothing happened. She closed her eyes to sleep, turning the other way to get afortable position and that¡¯s when he noticed the bite mark on her neck.


    Roshan was left dumbstruck and he didn¡¯t even realize his face had turned a shade of pink to his ears.


    She kissed him!

 Chapter 75

    75 Poison In The Juice


    Anna was back in the library the next day, she randomly nced through a book that exined a lot of knowledgeable ancient symbols she found meaningful to read.


    That was until a familiar looking maid with long brte hair knocked on the already opened door, gaining Anna¡¯s attention and the youngdy lifted her head up to meet hervender eyes.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen someone who visited the library this often.¡± The maiden heartily said while leaning her shoulder against the edge of the door with a hand on her waist. It was none other than the maid who took Gemma to her chambersst night.


    ¡°Good morning to you too Reba.¡± Anna responded with a smile she couldn¡¯t hide before returning her gaze back to the book. She finally shrugged.


    ¡°I¡¯m not really into reading unless the book interests me.¡± She briefly exined, her gaze attentively buried on the book as she spoke.


    ¡°I see, well I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m going to have to interrupt your reading. His highness requests your presence in the hall room.¡±


    Anna¡¯s heart suddenly missed a beat at the mention of his highness, her once buried gaze was now staring up at beautiful Reba, ¡°his highness? Which one?¡±


    ¡°His highness Roshan, oh and it¡¯s never a good idea to keep him waiting so you better head down, he¡¯s not in a cheerful mood this morning so it¡¯s wise not to anger him further.¡±


    Anna¡¯s brown eyes glinted with worry as she pushed herself into the chair she was sitting. She clearly recollected taking some berry juicest night and embarrassedly got herself drunk. She doesn¡¯t remember exactly what happened after that as her memories of the night were fogged in her head.


    .....


    She wasn¡¯t a nutritionist but she was smart enough to know berry juice contained no sort of liquor that could get one drunk. It was a juice made from berry fruits.


    So howe she got drunk from taking a mere fruit drink? Or was it spiked?


    She couldn¡¯t shake off the feeling that she might have done something embarrassing. Was Roshan that kind enough to carry her to her chambers? Is she in trouble for taking what wasn¡¯t hers?


    Blinking her worries away and convincing herself that it might not literally be the case, Anna feigned normality and tried as much as she could to hide her nervousness.


    ¡®I wish I could disappear.¡¯


    ¡°I¡¯ll be there.¡± She said instead.


    ¡°Hurry up.¡± She gave Anna a look that reminded her of the consequences if she spends too much time and she nodded, signifying she got the message.


    Reba exited the library, giving Anna a few moments to catch her breath as she closed the book shut. She gave her chest a gentle pat to reduce the beating of her pounding heart. She closed her eyes and took a deep rxing breath before peeling them open.


    Knowing Roshan¡¯s temper wasn¡¯t something she could tamper with, she got to her feet and quickly left the library. Whatever happens, she was prepared to face the worst.


    A heavy silence filled the spacious hall room as all the maidens and servants were lined up before the heartless cier, their bodies rattling in fear and their gazes fixed to the ground. No one had the courage to look the demon in the eye and not quake in fear.


    If he was capable of hurting his own uncle that terribly, obviously they were nothing but mere ants that could easily be stepped on whenever he felt like it.


    The cier remainedfortably rxed on his majestic chair with a face tempered like steel. He deliberately toyed with his shiny sharp dagger, as though his hands were itching to get themselves stained with something treacherous.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to ask a question,¡± he began, ¡°and all I need is an honest answer.¡± He turned his attention to the maids and servants lined before him.


    He understood their fears, as well as their cluelessness about what was happening, or why he suddenly called for them without any notice, but it was the best way to fish out the bad egg amongst them.


    ¡°Berry juice.¡± The moment he mentioned it, his eyes instantly searched their faces and although many were shaking like an Aspen leaf, he didn¡¯t spot them to be the culprit.


    He snapped his fingers, a cup of berry juice was brought in front of him and ced on the table by a guard, he quickly dismissed the guard after that and returned his gaze to the confused workers.


    ¡°Who makes the best drinks amongst all of you standing here?¡± He questioned and after a minute¡¯s silence, the pce Brewer slowly raised his hand up, signifying he was in charge of making the drinks in the pce.


    ¡°Good, you¡¯re cooperating pretty well.¡± His tone was calm, but the look in his eyes wasn¡¯t.


    ¡°Come here.¡±


    The brewer gulped down a dry saliva as fear had gripped his entire being. A cold sweat ran down his back as he stepped forward with enough willpower he could muster.


    ¡°Did you make berry juicest night?¡± He asked but before the Brew man could respond, he quickly warned, ¡°don¡¯t lie to me,¡± his deadpan tone made the man lower his head even more, ¡°remember, I want nothing but an honest answer, my ways of forcing the truth out of people won¡¯t be a pretty sight for anyone to see, so let¡¯s keep things easy. Shall we?¡±


    He immediately nodded, ¡°back to my question, did you make Berry juicest night?¡±


    ¡°Y_yes, I did.¡± The Brew man responded, leaving Roshan¡¯s brow to knit into a frown.


    ¡°For who?¡±


    ¡°S_some of the royal guests yesterday ordered me to serve them something sweet, so I made the berry juice, your highness.¡± He truthfully said to Roshan.


    The cier picked the cup of berry juice in his hand and turned his attention to the Brew man.


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    ¡°Yes, your highness.¡±


    ¡°Go back.¡±


    It felt like a heavy rock had been lifted off the man¡¯s back after he got dismissed, he was so scared to the extent his soul nearly left his body. He quickly moved back to stand with the rest in line.


    ¡°You.¡± The cier suddenly pointed at a maid with red hair.


    ¡°Come here.¡± He beckoned her over, the red-haireddy was a bit hesitant at first, but she gathered the courage to move forward and she bowed politely.


    She was expecting to be questioned about the drink just like the Brew man, but surprisingly, his highness handed the cup of berry juice to her.


    ¡°Drink.¡± He ordered.


    The red-haired maiden took the cup of berry juice from Roshan and she gulped down the whole thing without wasting even the slightest minute, his lips curved into an unreadable smirk and she returned the cup back to him.


    ¡®She drank it all.¡¯ the voice in his head sounded impressed at her stupidity. Levi, Azazel and almost everyone in the pce were now present in the hall room.


    ¡°Now that you¡¯ve drunk your punishment,¡± Roshan uttered, ¡°tell me this, why did you poison the berry juice kept in the kitchen?¡±


    The rest of the workers gasped at Roshan¡¯s question and many uncertain murmurs were exchanged by the workers.


    The red-haired maiden immediately bowed, ¡°how could I possiblymit such an act your highness, I¡¯m nothing but a maid.¡± She feigned innocence with her head dipped in a bow, but the next thing she failed to seeing was Roshan¡¯s anger.


    A frightening gasp left her lips after feeling the cold touch of his silver dagger at her neck and her green eyes involuntarily met his Hazel-green ones. She immediately regretted it because those eyes swirled with fury, a fury that sent cold ice running through her hot veins.


    ¡°Lie to my face again.¡±


    She instantly shook her head, feeling the de of his dagger already tearing into her skin, ¡°I dare not, yes_I was the one who poisoned the berry juice.¡± She admitted, too shocked about the fact he figured her out already.


    ¡°For who?¡±


    Her lips suddenly went mute, fear gripped her nerves as though she was scared of admitting the person¡¯s name.


    ¡°Speak!¡± The tone of his voice was like a whish against her back and she didn¡¯t even realize when she blurted them out.


    ¡°It was poisoned for Anna, your maid, please forgive me your highness.¡± She immediately went on her knees to plead. Shock and bewilderment filled her head cause she made sure she nned everything out perfectly so she wouldn¡¯t be suspected but the brewer instead, so how did he....


    ¡°And what are your reasons for taking such actions in my kingdom?¡± His tone was frighteningly calm, and it sent the beat of her heart smashing against her ear.


    ¡°I really don¡¯t like repeating myself.¡± He was getting impatient with herck of response and he threateningly nned to kill her in front of everyone if she didn¡¯t speak.


    ¡°Y_your highness,¡± she finally began, ¡°I did it cause_¡±


    She didn¡¯t even get a chance toplete her word when Gretta showed up out of the blue,nding a hot p on the Maiden¡¯s right cheek and the sound of it echoed in the quiet hall room.


    Anna remained frozen at the doorway, she just walked in only to be weed with such an appalling sight and the hall room grew quiet.


    Why¡¯s the maid being pped? What¡¯s going on?


    The workers of the pce held their breaths after witnessing such a blinding p, holding back their gasps and shock.


    The Maiden was left dumbfounded by the unexpected p and she met the angry stare of Gretta.


    ¡°You low life disgusting, wretched and useless beings, how dare you try to end the life of his highness¡¯s maid? Not only that, what gave you the right to carry such scandalous thoughts about his highness??¡±


    She eyed the maid with disgust, ¡°your evil ns have finally caught up with you today.¡±


    Roshan, who barely cared about what Gretta was hollering about, finally intervened.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

 Chapter 76

    76 Move The Devil¡¯s Heart


    Gretta swiftly turned to look at Roshan, ¡°forgive my intervention, but I couldn¡¯t stand such animosity happening in our kingdom and decided to speak up.¡±


    ¡°Which is?¡±


    Roshan¡¯s gaze shifted to the papers she held in her hand, they were almost rumpled and Gretta wasted no time handing the paper over to him.


    ¡°This low poor demoness actually made scandalous notes about you and her. Like that wasn¡¯t enough abomination on her path, I found a note of her scheming ns. In that note clearly states how she ns on getting rid of your maid and taking her ce in order to get close to you.¡±


    The red-haired maiden stared in disbelief, her mouth remained agape as she listened to all the lies Gretta kept spilling without even batting an eye. When did she...? When did she make a scandalous note?


    ¡°I...I never made a note, I never did and I can swear on my life, I¡¯m innocent of this usation.¡± She defended herself immediately, but Gretta threateningly silenced her with just a nce that flitted like a bird.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t do it? Okay let¡¯s agree you didn¡¯t do it, then who did? Is it me? Or any of the workers present here?¡± She asked, waiting for the trapped maiden to speak but she remained mute. She was unsure of how to prove herself innocent of this usation and Gretta masterfully twisted her words in ways that would leave her trapped, regardless of her response.


    Seeing she had nothing to say, Gretta smiled in disdain, ¡°surely this is your handwriting, as well as your signature underneath it, is it possible you have an aplice or is there someone else who knows your signature?¡±


    Roshan studied the notes carefully, the schemes on the paper went in perfect ordance to the poison in the berry juice and her reasons below made him scoff.


    .....


    He looked at the maid and she shook her head, ¡°I_¡±


    ¡°It has your signature underneath, how do you exin that?¡±


    ¡°I_I don¡¯t know but I promise I never wrote any of that!¡± She spoke up, ¡°yes, I admit I never liked your new maid and I won¡¯t deny my feelings for you either, you never noticed me and it only worsened after you made a human your maid. She got all the attention! I don¡¯t like her at all and out of jealousy, I did what I did, but trust me when I say the poison wasn¡¯t even my_¡±


    She suddenly paused before she got a chance to finish her confession and everyone present equally grew confused, wondering why she stopped.


    An ufortable feeling surged ufortably through her system and the next thing, she spat out blood when it became unbearable, startling everyone at the hall room except Roshan who took it as a perfect timing.


    Shock and confusion were discernibly written on her face as she stared at the blood on the marbled tiled floor.


    ¡°B_blood?!!¡±


    She met Roshan¡¯s unreadable but cold stare, a stare that broke her heart in two and he finally said something.


    ¡°The drink I gave you, it had poison but you took it cause the poison only worked for humans, it¡¯s only toxic to humans but has no effect on Demons, am I right?¡±


    Her eyes horrifically widened while Roshan nodded as though he just finished reading her thoughts, ¡°yes, I did my research pretty well.¡± He cleared his throat, ¡°anyway, I added a little pinch of dark flower to give the drink a little taste. Don¡¯t you like it?¡±


    He barely cared if the maiden did it alone or not, what mattered was that she was the one who poisoned the berry juice. She wanted to hurt Anna which was something he wouldn¡¯t tolerate in the slightest.


    The red-haired maiden felt a throbbing pain circting through her system, along with a pulsing sensation that brought cold to her skin. She couldn¡¯t move and she felt painfully weak, the energy in her body was frighteningly being drained by the minute and she sprawled to the ground with a low cry.


    Anna, who remained at the doorway, watching the scene unfold in front of her and she just stood there like a statue, unable to take in everything she just heard and it left her thinking.


    ¡°I was poisoned?¡± But it didn¡¯t make any sense, if she truly was poisoned, how is it possible she doesn¡¯t feel a thing? She should have been dead shouldn¡¯t she?


    Realizing that just standing there and talking to herself won¡¯t give her the answers she needed, she finally walked into the hall room and everyone¡¯s attention shifted towards her direction, most especially the red-haired maiden.


    Watching Annalise head towards her direction stunned her to the very core of her nerves, her eyes dted like she was staring at a ghost and she looked shock-stricken.


    ¡®Why is Anna here? She¡¯s supposed to be dead!¡¯


    ¡°You¡¯re alive?!!¡± She shook her head, unwilling to believe the sight of Anna in front of her. But it¡¯s not possible! She saw it herself when Annaid unconscious on her bedst night, or was she sleeping??


    ¡°Surprised to see her alive?¡± Gretta spoke up with a tricky smile as her lips beautifully curved to the side, ¡°you see after I witnessed your evil actst night, I added some liquor to the berry juice, it would reduce the toxic of the poison to an ineffective measure you see, but in return it¡¯d leave her drunk.¡±


    The maiden was left speechless, including Anna as she wasn¡¯t expecting the missy Queen to save her at all. Instead of feeling grateful, it only filled Anna with doubts.


    Roshan wasn¡¯t entirely surprised because Gretta was the one who came to inform him about the poison, else he would have beenpletely clueless about any of this. He didn¡¯t believe the crazy woman at first until he confirmed it from the cup Anna used.


    No one has the right to hurt Anna as long as she remained under him, he¡¯d protect her, even if his mind was against it or not.


    The maidens¡¯ eyes brimmed with tears after realizing she got used!!! And she couldn¡¯t even say it now!


    Anna ignored the stares and turned her gaze to Roshan.


    ¡°Will she die?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± He responded, ¡°This is her punishment and she¡¯ll only be tortured by the pain, she¡¯ll get the antidote when I feel like giving it to her. For now...¡±


    He snapped his fingers and two hefty guards approached his side.


    ¡°Lock her in the dungeon.¡±


    The guards wasted no time in picking her from the ground and before she got dragged away, Anna met her stare and those green eyes of hers screamed pain, causing Anna to quickly avert her stare.


    Roshan dismissed everyone from the hall room and Levi wanted to say something, only to be shut by Azazel and he dragged the nosy Levi away.


    Gretta secretly calmed her nerves and a smile of triumph crossed her lips, she felt relieved she was able to save herself before the useless maiden exposed her too. Roshan would behead her if he got to know she was the mastermind behind everything. But how is it possible that the poison had no effect on Anna?? Even if she did added liquor to reduce the effects of the poison, it was still meant to torture her at some point, but that didn¡¯t happen.


    ¡°Anna dear, are you alright?¡±


    Anna stared at the youngdy who smiled her way with a look of concern, if she didn¡¯t know any better, she would have foolishly fell for her smile right now.


    ¡°Healthy as a may morning¡±


    ¡°Thank goodness, it¡¯s a good thing she¡¯s locked in the dungeon, but I think it would be better if you just killed her Roshan.¡± Gretta offered, but Roshan only handed the papers to a guard who collected them.


    ¡°....tell him to look into these papers.¡±


    The guard nodded and left.


    Anna turned her attention to Roshan, ¡°she had something else to say, you need to give her the antidote let¡¯s hear it.¡± She ventured with considerable daring. Yes, the maiden might be wrong but Anna couldn¡¯t shake off the feeling that there was a mastermind behind it. Afterall a maid wouldn¡¯t dare to take such a step if she wasn¡¯t persuaded by someone to do it.


    Gretta¡¯s heart nearly left her chest due to Anna¡¯s opinion but she remainedposed, waiting for Roshan to respond.


    ¡°No.¡± He refused, ¡°she¡¯s undergoing punishment and once I¡¯m satisfied, then I¡¯ll give her the antidote.¡±


    ¡°But_¡±


    ¡°No buts, and you can¡¯t change my mind.¡± His words were final and Anna had to seal her lips.


    Gretta smiled in a way that was unnoticeable to both of them and she bowed before Roshan.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave.¡± She met Anna¡¯s suspicious stare before walking out. Even if the maid does mention her name at the end, where¡¯s the proof??


    The moment she was out of sight, Anna continued with her persuasion, ¡°Your highness I...¡±


    He rose from his chair and stood in front of Anna who immediately lost her voice the moment she tilted her head up to meet his hypnotizing gaze.


    ¡°You were saying?¡±


    She immediately lowered her gaze and cleared her throat, ¡°what I meant to say was, this concerns my safety, so I have enough right to know who made her do it.¡±


    She was hoping he would see things from her point of view for a change but the cier only hummed in response.


    ¡°Not enough.¡± He heartlessly responded, leaving Anna¡¯s expression to fall into a gloomy look, but he suddenly leaned closer to the extent she could inhale his intoxicating scent and he mesmerizingly whispered into her ear.


    ¡°If you want the antidote, try moving my heart next time.¡±


    His warm breath on her earlobe made her heart triple beat and her face uncontrobly reddened. Why was she feeling like this whenever he came this close to her?? Was there any way to make it stop?


    He moved away and gave her head a gentle pat before walking out.


    Anna turned around to watch the stunning being exit the hall room and she wondered to herself.


    ¡°How can I move the devil¡¯s heart?¡±

 Chapter 77

    77 A Bet


    The whole day Anna spent it reminiscing about what could move the heart of not just anybody, but the half-devil named Roshan.


    Obviously stories that were told to touch the heart were ineffective on him, so she skipped it and involuntarily bit her nails, as though it¡¯d help her think properly.


    ¡°You¡¯re one strange human if you ask me, why help someone who tried to end your life?¡±


    Reba couldn¡¯t hold in her question anymore as sheid Gemma¡¯s bed. If it were her, she¡¯d make sure that lousy maiden doesn¡¯t even get the antidote.


    Anna understood Ba¡¯s questioning to a valid point and a faint smile crossed her lips, yet Ba could tell from her eyes that the youngdy was in another dimension.


    ¡°That¡¯s not it.¡± She sighed.


    ¡°Then what is?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think she wrote any notes.¡± Her cryptical starended on Ba. ¡°I don¡¯t know why, but I believe her.¡±


    Ba facepalmed as though Anna uttered something foolish, ¡°believe what? I¡¯ve known Freya for a long time and her feelings for his highness Roshan could be stated as obsession even if she never showed it, you don¡¯t know her better than me.¡±


    .....


    ¡°She admitted her wrongs, she didn¡¯t deny her feelings for his highness either, but then she¡¯s nothing but a maid, it¡¯s possible she couldn¡¯t have carried such a clean n all by herself.¡±


    Anna clearly understood Ba¡¯s logic, but that doesn¡¯t mean she was going to ignore her instincts as well.


    ¡°So what are you trying to say?¡±


    ¡°Ifdy Gretta really saw it happen, why didn¡¯t she stop it there and then? If she wanted to save me, she could have thrown the berry juice away, but she added liquor instead.¡±


    Ba stopped arranging the bed and turned to look at Anna. ¡°Where exactly are you getting with this?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to jump into any conclusion just yet but I feel Gretta_¡±


    ¡°Shhhhhh..¡±


    She hurried towards Anna, immediately covering her mouth with her palm in order to silence the human from saying something that¡¯llnd her in serious trouble.


    ¡°Shush!¡±


    Anna stared at her, not particrly sure on why she was being shushed.


    ¡°The walls have ears you know, don¡¯t trust anyone, not even me.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Gretta isn¡¯t someone you should mess around with, she¡¯s well-mannered on the outside but a different being on the inside, avoid her and stay away from anything that involves her.¡±


    She whispered while rmingly ncing around to ensure no nosy maid was eavesdropping on them.


    Anna¡¯s eyes narrowed a little bit at Ba¡¯s unexpected rm. Was Gretta that dangerous? To the point even Ba had to warn her about it? If Gretta didn¡¯t expose her true self on their first encounter, goodness knows she¡¯d mistake thedy for being well-mannered.


    That only increased her suspicion.


    ¡°Do you understand what I¡¯m trying to say?¡± Ba asked, bringing Anna back to the present and as her mind recalled Ba¡¯s question, she nodded.


    ¡°Yes, I... understand.¡±


    ¡°Good.¡± Ba smiled with a friendly glint in hervender eyes before returning to Gemma¡¯s wardrobe to arrange her outfits. ¡°Now let it slide and help me with Gemma¡¯s study table. The little demoness never forgets to read, but she always forgets to pile her books in one piece.¡± She joked.


    Anna shook her head with a warm smile before heading to Gemma¡¯s study table. She arranged the pile of storybooks and notes that were kept on her study table, but her mind was back to thinking again.


    She has to speak with the maid no matter what because this matter concerns her life in many ways. What if she gets attacked again? But then to get the antidote, she has to move Roshan¡¯s heart which was something she surprisingly found impossible.


    Roshan was a mysterious type of being, he was differentpared to the men she¡¯s met in her current years of living and it was difficult to guess his thoughts, or even understand him as he kept most things to himself.


    ¡°Move his heart?¡± She quietly muttered to herself, as far as she knows, Roshan was always intrigued by something that interests him, he was that type of person who liked ying games, and he used people as his pawn, making her no different and this... was one of his games.


    She randomly picked a book on Gemma¡¯s study table, turning it over so she could stare at the front cover and a beautiful silver sword was drawn on it.


    ¡°Sword.¡± Her eyes glimmered with a sudden realization and she quickly asked.


    ¡°Ba, was his highness Roshan ever interested in swords?¡± She didn¡¯t know why, but the thought of swords crossed her mind in an unanticipated manner.


    ¡°His highness loves his sword and daggers if I¡¯m not mistaken.¡± She neutrally responded, carefully cing Gemma¡¯s clothes in the right hanger and Anna¡¯s lips curled into a smile.


    ¡°That¡¯s it!¡±


    She eximed! Startling Ba who wasn¡¯t expecting Anna to sound so.... Excited all of a sudden. She had to turn to see what the weird human was so upbeat about.


    ¡°And what is?¡±


    Realizing she had eximed a bit too loudly, Anna swifty turned to meet her quizzical stare.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I just remembered something that made sense, uhm.. If you¡¯ll excuse me.¡±


    Before Ba could ask what happened, Anna quickly left Gemma¡¯s chamber, leaving Ba all to herself.


    ¡°Human emotions are so difficult to understand.¡± She muttered to herself as she found Anna¡¯s reaction to be weird.


    At the empty hallway, Anna confidently stood before Roshan, staring straight into his Hazel-green eyes that tend to suck her in like a maic pool. He has such an admiring noble appearance but he was actually a devil on the inside.


    Watching his face turn into one of interest, she mustered up the courage to speak.


    ¡°Let¡¯s make a bet.¡± She offered, leaving Roshan to raise a brow at her in a silent inquiry. It left him wondering what this woman had gone ahead ande up with.


    ¡°Which is?¡±


    ¡°A sword fight.¡± She folded her arms, ¡°I¡¯m challenging you to a sword fight.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think you can beat me?¡± He tilted his head with a look of uncertainty. As expected she seeded in surprising him yet again but clearly she had gone crazy.


    A sword fight? Was she asking for a death wish?


    ¡°If I win,¡± she continued regardless, ¡°..you have to give me the antidote.¡±

 Chapter 78

    78 Open Your Mouth


    ¡°Do you really want to do this?¡± Roshan considered her going over her own choice for the second time, but thedy in particr was already dressed in a white linen shirt, along with a ck corset that perfectly held her small waist. It attractively brought out her delicate shape and graceful figure.


    She wore breeches and ck boots, her cinnamon-brown hair was tied in a messy bun and just staring at her under the moonlight as she pointed a sword at him made a strange feeling crawl up to his chest.


    Her chocte-brown eyes sparkled and she radiated confidence. Her face barely showed a hint of fear, as though proving that he didn¡¯t entirely frighten her.


    ¡°Why?¡± The sound of her dulcet voice brought him back to the present, making him realize the situation in front of him.


    ¡°Is his highness afraid of losing to amon maid?¡± She challenged and to her surprise, his face lit up at her question.


    The cier was half-impressed by her courageous advances and he wouldn¡¯t force her into backing out. He roughly grasped her peaceful desposition and picked up his sword as well.


    The courtyard was cool and airy at night, making it the perfect time tomence their little duo and Anna was physically and mentally prepared for what toe.


    She¡¯s seen him fought before and it proved how much of a great sessor he was when it came to swords. This was exactly why she picked this, to stimte his interest further.


    He beckoned her over and Anna wasted no time lunging her sword at him for a quick thrust, but Roshan had enough super reflexes which made it pretty easy to avoid her advances and their swords shed with an unexinable fierceness.


    .....


    For a few heart stopping seconds, their eyes shed.


    Hazel-green green against chocte-brown and Anna¡¯s heart thumped in response to their unnned eye contact.


    ¡°Too slow, try again.¡± He kind-heartedly hinted and Anna blinked.


    She quickly broke from the trance and withdrew her movement, only to try once more but she quickly switched moves. The sounds of swords shing non-stop echoed in the courtyard and Roshan remained on the defensive part, evading her constant thrusts and lunges and he had to secretly admit that she had a good timing and improved stances.


    ¡°You¡¯re good.¡± Heplimented before letting out a tsk, ¡°but not good enough.¡± He deted her sword and with a movement that Anna didn¡¯t sense approaching, her sword was knocked right off her hand and it ttered to the ground.


    ¡°I must say you¡¯re doing so much for just an antidote.¡± He aimed his sword at her, leaving the unarmed Anna to retreat while he advanced forward. She was already out of breath but the cier barely broke into a sweat. It looked as though it was nothing but a warm-up for him, and it hurt her pride to see he was this strong.


    ¡°I¡¯d exin it to you but I have no time for people who have no soul.¡±


    ¡°Really? It didn¡¯t actually feel like that when you kissed mest night.¡± The neutrality in his tone came to a halt when Anna¡¯s eyes went round at his unbelievable words.


    She did what?!


    ¡°What.....what do you mean I kissed you?¡± She asked again, wondering if she had ear problem and heard him wrong but Roshan¡¯s shoulders rxed as he let out a sigh.


    ¡°I had a feeling you wouldn¡¯t remember.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re lying!¡± She took the opportunity of their conversation and skillfully kicked his sword away from her face, distracting his mind from her direction and she did a somersault, quickly reaching for her sword on the ground. She swiftly turned to look at the cier who kept his interested gaze fixed on her.


    ¡°Of course you¡¯d say that, afterall you picture yourself to be ¡®nothing¡¯ like me.¡± He subtly responded with a teasing smirk that made her seem foolish, deliberately trying to get on her nerves and he could hear the fast beating of her heartbeat, yet her face was contorted with a building anger and the colors on her cheeks ruined the moment.


    Such a lovely irony.


    She lunged forward with an intense speed and the shing of sword continued, except it was fiercer than thest and she gave it her all in trying to scar the man a little bit, but he was just too good with his movements that she couldn¡¯t help but envy. His timing and distance were all urate and he seemed to have already figured out her moves before she did them.


    Worst of all, he looked good doing it, as though his body was made for this and it left her feeling conflicted.


    He was the one to attack now and before Anna knew it, she had her back against a tree and the cold steel of his de was ced on her neck.


    ¡°You can¡¯t win, there are no silver bullets to sword fighting.¡± He withdrew his de, allowing Anna to catch her breath at the fact he didn¡¯t end her life just now.


    ¡°How are you so...good at this?¡±


    ¡°Sword Fighting is simr to ying a game of chess,¡± he sheathed his sword in ce, ¡°...you win through strategy, not simple one two three and you-win process.¡±


    She understood his logic even if he sounded a little arrogant, but she has to get that antidote.


    ¡°You lost.¡± He clearly stated, ¡°but you tried to some extent.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t there any other way I can get the antidote?¡±


    Roshan stared at the desperate look on her face and he realized he¡¯s never met anyone who shocked him in different ways as much as she did. It haunted him and now he felt the irresistible pull between them.


    ¡°Do you promise to do anything I ask?¡±


    She nodded without thinking twice about what he might request from her. A smile of mischief adorned his lips but it disappeared the moment it came.


    Anna¡¯s mind had barely wandered far when the being suddenly leaned forward, startling her as she didn¡¯t expect his advances. Her eyes widened seeing he was standing a little too close to her and she felt herself shrink against the tree like someone who wanted to disappear.


    Her heart raced and his seductive stares were killing her to the point she lowered her head, but a gasp left her lips when he tilted her head up to meet his stare and Anna felt herself let out a ¡®hoof¡¯ of breath. This particr stare burned with something she couldn¡¯t fathom with and it spoke of danger, a danger that could lead to serious consequences if he kept staring at her like that.


    His fingers trailed her chin before moving to cup one side of her cheek and his lipsnded on hers when he couldn¡¯t hold himself back anymore.


    Anna¡¯s eyes dted as those warm soft lips on hers sent her whole system electrocuting as though a heavy current just ran through her.


    Seeing she wasn¡¯t responding to his kisses and remained frozen like a statue against the big tree, he pulled back to meet her stare.


    ¡°If you want the antidote, you have to respond and I mean it.¡± His tone came out hoarse with a look of desire shing in those hypnotizing stares, the one that never failed to leave her in a trance.


    Anna only blinked, she couldn¡¯t speak as the shock of it had held her downpletely, at least that was what she thought until the cier¡¯s fingers caressed her bottom lip and he coaxed.


    ¡°Open your mouth.¡±

 Chapter 79

    79 The Voices


    Ever since the night she kissed him in her drunken state, the thought of kissing her again fogged his entire mindset and he couldn¡¯t sleep properly because of it.


    Each time he closed his eyes even for a few minutes to gather himself, he recalled the way she kissed him and his body would automatically tense at the lingering feeling.


    It¡¯s not the first time he¡¯s kissed a woman before, he¡¯s done worse actually, but there was always a different feeling that emerged from within him each time he was closer to the human and it left him restless_restless to the point she invaded his thoughts whenever she pleased.


    He wanted more.....No. he was hungry for more. His Demons were eagerly waiting to get their hands on his idental mate but it was something he had to resist no matter how much he wanted it.


    He thought he could handle it, but seeing her at the moment, under the moonlight in his courtyard made his chest ache in ways he hadn¡¯t felt before.


    There was definitely more to this than meets the eye, he just couldn¡¯t wrap his finger around it.


    ¡°Anna.¡± He said her name, meeting the surprise look in her big doe-brown eyes and like a spellbound whim, her lips parted at his silentmand.


    She didn¡¯t even realize this herself until he imed her lips, kissing her passionately like someone who had been thirsty for days, only to be served the water he craved for at his near end.


    Her eyes flew wide open in bewilderment. Her heart jumped to her throat when she felt his tongue deftly slide into her mouth, hot and weing. It sent a quick fervent shiver running down her spine.


    .....


    Her hands rested on his chest and her first intent was to push him away for his indecency towards her, but she was trapped in a web of utmost curiosity as his tongue hungrily explored the inside of her mouth.


    ¡®It¡¯s.... Not actually that bad.¡¯ thought Annalise in surprise as he appealingly tasted fresh and surprisingly...sweet!


    Her eyes fluttered to a close as the being took the kiss even deeper, conquering her breath and she felt the hands wrapping her waist pull her even closer till her small frame collided with his.


    The first time he kissed her, she had been overpowered by anger to even feel anything, but now, as much as it didn¡¯t make sense, him kissing her felt right in a strange way.


    She agreed to this for the antidote, but a part of her wanted this even if she countlessly denied it.


    Instead of feeling ashamed, her own lips finally moved, responding to his sensual kisses and he noticed, it only encouraged him to take it even deeper and feeling her warm body on his was messing with his head to reason properly.


    He found it difficult to understand why kissing her wasn¡¯t enough, he wanted to get rid of the feeling by sumbing to it but instead, he found himself wanting more and the desires heightening like steps on adder.


    Kissing her like this somewhat gave himfort, it was a kiss he never knew he needed until now and when the aching in his chest increased, Vagued images disyed in his head again, images that weren¡¯t clear but the emotions and strange voices caught up with him like a quick bolt to his senses.


    The world went still before him and a deep silence epassed the environment, that was until he heard a familiar voice call out his name.


    ¡°Roshan!¡± His eyes slightly widened as the voice grew even more familiar in his head, it was Anna¡¯s voice! He couldn¡¯t see the images disying in his head but the voice...


    Through the vague images, he witnessed a sh of powerful lightning strike the ground before him, separating the two figures he couldn¡¯t see properly and the area they were in; it looked familiar, like he¡¯d been there before.


    The sky was even gloomier than that of a storm cloud and it made Roshan¡¯s forehead wrinkle with doubt, smokes and fire could be seen and he could tell a serious battle took ce here..... but the two figures, who were they??


    A dreading voice suddenly spoke in the background as the ground viscously split in two, giving the two vague figures no chance of getting to each other.


    ¡°You stole the sacred sword of the heavenly kingdoms!¡± The voice heartlessly used, ¡°ept your punishment for the one who dared to weiled it shall face the doors of death!!¡±


    A soft gasp left Roshan¡¯s lips as he listened to the voice more carefully, he¡¯s heard that voice before, but where?


    ¡°I didn¡¯t steal it! Face me instead but spare him, he had nothing to do with this¡± Came the angry cry from the feminine voice who dropped to her knees on the ground in defeat.


    The voices kept guing his mind as well as the unclear images, it felt as though he was recalling something tragic, but it wasn¡¯t clear enough for him to understand it better.


    That voice... Why did it sound like Anna¡¯s, what¡¯s happening?


    He pulled back from the kiss when his head was beginning to spin, a blinding headache struck his brain, causing him to stagger backwards and Anna didn¡¯t fail to notice it.


    ¡°Roshan!¡±


    She reached to hold his outstretched hand before he fell to the ground but she ended up falling on top of him instead.


    His vision was blurry but when he forced his eyes to see who was on top of him, Anna¡¯s worried face came into sight and several images shed in his head again, an image that showed a vivid picture of Anna¡¯s face and one word escaped his lips.


    ¡°Aveline?¡±


    Anna stared at him in bafflement the moment he mentioned a woman¡¯s name, time seemed to slow down for a few seconds before Anna opened her mouth to speak.


    ¡°What?¡±


    A sad look of emotion shed before his Misty eyes, leaving Anna speechless and before she knew what else to do, he passed out on the ground.

 Chapter 80

    80 A Favor


    At the hauntingly quiet dungeon below the pce ground, Freya struggled to get herself into a sitting position as the effect of the dark flower poison tended to have worsened the pain in her system.


    ¡°Ah!¡± She let out a short cry when her bones gave up and she sank to the ground with a light thud, hissing at her own predicament. She added way too much pressure to her hands while trying to get to her feet and she was facing the consequences of it.


    Her joints were terribly aching and her body felt sore. She barely had the strength to talk as her throat felt dry and perched.


    She shivered slightly as she leaned her back against the cold wall. The dungeon had no source of light, or even a fire to keep her warm and it made her grit her teeth in anger.


    She never imagined she¡¯d one day spend her life in a dungeon while the main culprit got the chance to roam the pce freely.


    Her hands balled into a tight fist, remembering how she stupidly fell into Gretta¡¯s antics, all because she wanted to be with someone she had loved and admired for years.


    She was a human?! An Euphrasia at that! Yet Roshan chose to stand up for a mere human, and he...he did this to her.


    ¡°I¡¯ll kill all of you!!!¡± She raged her warning with the little bit of strength left in her and her eyes filled to the brim with tears. The sound of her crying voice echoed through the dungeon, like a silent oath was being made and that¡¯s when she heard footsteps.


    A soft gasp left her lips as the footsteps tended to approach her direction and it got closer, and closer_ and her green eyes stared into the darkness in front of her.


    .....


    As far as she knows, not all guards wander through this particr dungeon cause escaping from it was impossible.


    So_who could her guest possibly be? Was it Gretta?


    As the footstep approached her cell, an unknown man in ck cloak stepped into the silver light that prated from the small window and Freya¡¯s eyes widened at the sight of the strange being.


    She didn¡¯t utter a word and just stared like someone who witnessed the presence of a ghost. His face was hidden behind the cloak and he leaned before her cell while Freya cautiously stayed put.


    ¡°Look at what they¡¯ve done to you.¡± He sounded somewhat sad for her pitiful condition as he looked her over.


    ¡°You¡¯re just a demoness who fell in Love but Gretta outsmarted you sadly, and this is the treatment you get. Demons truly live up to their name.¡±


    ¡°Who_who are you?¡± Freya asked with an rmed stare, looking a bit too shocked to see someone who knew that much but the strange being quickly scrutinized the dungeon before returning his attention back to her.


    ¡°That will be exinedter, for now, I can help you get out of here, but you need to promise to do me a favor in return.¡±


    Freya stared at the man for a while and his offer sounded tempting to her ears. Obviously she¡¯d go with anything as long as it gets her to avoid the torturing pain his highness had inflicted on her.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ~


    Roshan sat up on his bed with a nk stare, his gaze disappeared into the distance like a hazy sea, indicating his mind waspletely elsewhere.


    Anna quietly poured a cup of herbal medicine tea on a teacup before handing it to the cked out Demon.


    ¡°Here, it¡¯ll reduce the headache.¡± She softly exined while stretching it forward for him to take. Roshan¡¯s gaze finally shifted to her and it took a minute before the cier received the cup of tea.


    ¡°It¡¯s a little bitter, so bear it.¡±


    Roshan drank the whole thing on the cup in one go and handed it back to Anna. He was back to staring into space again, and it worried Anna to see him so deeply lost in thoughts for the first time.


    ¡°You should rest.¡± Her calm tone broke the loneliness reaching towards him and his Hazel-green eyes diverted to her direction, but he said nothing.


    Anna politely bowed, thest thing she wanted at the moment was to irritate or get him angry over anything, so maybe it would be wiser if she left him alone ande check tomorrow.


    She was about to walk out of his chamber when he finally said something.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    Anna¡¯s feet halted at his question, it was the first word he uttered ever since he woke up and she turned around to look at him.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°What exactly happened before I passed out?¡± He held her gaze, and Anna barely knew how to exin the situation to him. Even she herself doesn¡¯t understand exactly what happened and she wasn¡¯t in the right state of mind to say anything.


    ¡°N_nothing happened.¡± She responded. Roshan¡¯s gaze shifted to her fingers that habitually pinched into her palm and she only ever did that when she felt nervous.


    Why was she nervous?


    ¡°Nothing happened?¡± He doesn¡¯t know why but it didn¡¯t actually feel like it, nor did he believe her.


    She nodded and reached for the tray on his table.


    ¡°I¡¯ll... take my leave now.¡±


    ¡°Wait.¡±


    His voice made her halt for the second time and her speeding heart wasn¡¯t doing any good. Taking a deep breath, she turned to look at him.


    ¡°Come here.¡±


    Anna didn¡¯t bother to argue and quietly did as he told her. She stood before the edge of his bed.


    ¡°Let out your palm.¡± He said again.


    Anna was a bit confused, but still did as he told her and stretched her right palm forward. He ced a red pill on her fair palm before meeting her stare.


    ¡°You can give this to the maid.¡±


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened at a realization, ¡°is it the antidote?¡±


    He nodded, ¡°but be careful when giving it to her, she¡¯s tried to kill you once and she could do it again. Remember to stay alert no matter what, and if something goes wrong, just call my name.¡±


    She nodded regardless with a small smile and left his room after that. She met Azazel on the way and politely bowed her head.


    ¡°Greetings your highness.¡±


    ¡°Did you tell Roshan about what happened?¡± He asked with an expressionless stare and Anna shook her head at his question.


    ¡°I did as you told me to, I didn¡¯t tell him.¡±


    ¡°Good.¡± She noticed the white-haired demon rxed at her response but it only left her with questions. Why wasn¡¯t she allowed to mention it to his highness??


    ¡°I¡¯ll carry on.¡±


    Azazel nodded, giving her the freedom to leave and she walked out. She stared at the pill in her palm and a look of determination crossed her face. After she¡¯s done dropping the tray, she¡¯ll pay the maid a visit.


    ~


    Freya drew circles on the ground with a stick she found in the dungeon, but the steps heading towards her cell caught her attention and when she looked up, Anna stood in front of the cell with a candle.


    ¡°Why are you here?¡± Freya demanded straightaway. She never really expected Anna of all people would be the one to visit her chambers but Anna¡¯s gaze silently raked over her.


    She looked sick and her green eyes expressed the severe pain she was going through. Anna couldn¡¯t help but pity her condition.


    Taking a deep breath, Anna raised the pill up for Freya to see. The sight of it made her eyes widen with hope and she dashed towards the cell with lightning speed.


    ¡°Please...I_I need that.¡±


    ¡°And I¡¯ll give it you.¡± Anna assured her, ¡°after you tell me who sent you to poison the juice.¡±

 Chapter 81

    81 Pair Of ck Boots


    ¡°I was the one who poisoned the juice, what else do you want to know?¡± Freya forced herself to speak, but Anna wasn¡¯t going to agree with herpletely and her expression turned strict.


    She ced the candle on a nearby wood before taking another step towards Freya, but she cautiously kept a safe distance between the two of them, knowing Freya¡¯s hostility towards her.


    She could even sense it.


    ¡°I know you did.¡± Anna responded, ¡°but I¡¯m more eager to know who sent you to do it.¡±


    Freya¡¯s hands held onto the iron poles of the cell, a tiny melodious chuckle escaped her lips as she shivered in pain. She met Anna¡¯s suspicious stare and a smirk formed on her delicate lips.


    ¡°What makes you think there¡¯s a mastermind behind it?¡± She suddenly looked thoughtful and a knowing gasp left her lips.


    ¡°Is it possible you have a suspect?¡±


    ¡°That is none of your business.¡± Anna responded before looking at the pill in her palm, then returning her cold stare back at Freya, ¡°your business is with the antidote in my hand, either you tell me the truth or_¡±


    ¡°Wait!!¡± Freya¡¯s panicked voice stopped Anna from throwing the pill away and her hand hung mid-air.


    .....


    ¡°Don¡¯t do that, you can¡¯t throw it away.¡±


    ¡°Are you ready to be reasonable then?¡± She was going to give the maid onest chance. Freya¡¯s fist clenched beside her till her knuckles turned white, restraining the urge to pounce on the human and suck her dry.


    Anna¡¯s arms were folded against her chest, waiting and hoping that the maid would reveal something about the Mastermind behind everything.


    However, Freya¡¯s eyes filled to the brim with tears and they dropped to her cheeks as she raised her head up to meet Anna¡¯s unfazed stare.


    ¡°You_you were never like this hundred years ago, you..you were never like this!¡± She shook her head before burying them in her palms, sobbing lightly and leaving the interrogating Anna baffled.


    ¡°I was never like what? What do you mean?¡± Anna was taken aback by her words and her brows furrowed into a curious frown.


    ¡°Aveline.¡±


    She called the name again and Anna¡¯s pupils dted at the mention of Aveline. Her crossed arms dropped to her side and she blinked at the maid who was now staring back, looking teary-eyed.


    ¡°Aveline?¡± ¡®Wasn¡¯t that the name Roshan equally mentioned before he passed out?¡¯ thought Annalise to herself before the look on her face grew serious.


    ¡°You know Aveline?¡±


    Freya nodded, ¡°yes, she was the closest to his highness Roshan, I...I can tell you more about her if you just give me the pills, I¡¯ll also reveal the mastermind behind the juice but....but you have to help me first.¡±


    Anna could see she was unmistakably losing breath and it left her rmed. ¡®I thought Roshan said the poison wouldn¡¯t kill?¡¯


    ¡°What if you escape?¡±


    Freya fell to her knees as the pain increased to an unbearable amount, but she forced herself to keep speaking, ¡°I_I can¡¯t escape even if I want to, I¡¯m a low rank Demon so my powers are weak and ineffective at the moment. The cell is well sealed, so how can I escape? Just let me catch my breath please!¡±


    Anna strangely felt she was telling the truth, what if she dies?? But then Roshan told her to be extra cautious, he might have given her the pills but he warned her not to give it until she reveals the name.


    ¡°Do you promise to tell me once I give it to you?¡± Anna found herself saying regardless and the maiden immediately nodded.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you anything I promise.¡±


    Seeing she was actually honest with her response, Anna gently threw the pill into the cell and watched as Freya hurriedly caught it.


    She took the pill with her shaky hands and swallowed it without wasting a second. Annalise wasn¡¯tpletely sure if she did the right thing or not, but then she couldn¡¯t stand seeing someone in such pain.


    The colors on her Freya¡¯s face were slowly starting to return and her breathing rxed after a few minutes.


    ¡°Now tell me.¡± Anna hadn¡¯t forgotten her real purpose for giving her the antidote, but Freya darted her an appreciative nce.


    ¡°Thank you for helping me.¡± She said with a tired voice, but then her face scrunched into a look of confusion as a realization dawned on her.


    ¡°Why_why did you help me?¡± To say she was surprised Anna would give her antidote was an understatement, she expected the human to despise her even more for trying to take her life but instead, she¡¯s the one helping her.


    She couldn¡¯t understand why.


    ¡°You were in a lot of pain.¡± Annalise truthfully told her, ¡°and I know what it feels like to be framed for something you never did, even if you did most of it.¡±


    Freya¡¯s expression turned into one of guilt and appreciation, but Anna stood her ground and proceeded to the main subject.


    ¡°So tell me, who is Aveline?¡± Anna couldn¡¯t get that name out of her head ever since Roshan mentioned it. Plus Freya said he was familiar with this Aveline and they were ¡®close.¡¯ That alone left her even more curious.


    ¡°The walls have ears Anna,¡± Freya hinted, ¡°I don¡¯t want tond in any further trouble so let me whisper it to you instead.¡±


    Anna didn¡¯t have too much problem with that, afterall she was trapped in a cell and her demonic powers must have deteriorated immensely due to the poison, she recalls reading something like that in one of the books at the library.


    Although hesitant, Anna forced her feet to move closer to Freya¡¯s cell. Freya equally leaned on the cell, waiting for Anna to get close enough for her to whisper.


    Anna turned her head to the side, waiting for Freya to whisper what she knew to her.


    ¡°The truth is...¡± she whispered, ¡°the truth is Anna.... Forgive me but I can¡¯t tell you.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Anna looked at her and that¡¯s when Freya took the opportunity to gently blow air from her mouth into Anna¡¯s face. Not just any ordinary air, but one that left Anna¡¯s head spinning and almost too quick, her body dropped to the ground, her strength sipped away in ways that left Anna shock-stricken.


    ¡°What...What did you do?¡± Anna mustered up thest breath in her, using it to ask that particr question and that¡¯s when she heard heavy footsteps approaching her direction.


    Her vision turned blurry and all she saw was a pair of ck boots walking past her. Freya¡¯s cell door was opened by the owner of the ck boots she was seeing.


    Who could this be?


    ¡°Good job Freya, you did well.¡± The voice praising her was deep and dark, reminding her of the viscous hiss of a serpent and her heavy eyes appeared shocked.


    That voice, it sounded familiar, too familiar rather and it sent her blood stirring like the sound of a trumpet.


    Who is this? How was Freya able to use her powers?


    She tried to see things clearly but her vision was too blurry, her eyelids grew heavier and her body felt weak, signifying she was about to pass out soon. What did Freya blow to her face??


    ¡°What did you_¡± she tried speaking again, only to feel the owner of those boots crouch before her body, tilting her head up with his wed fingers.


    ws?!!


    ¡°We have unfinished business, miss Anna.¡± The cold voice said to her, and Anna forced her limbs to move as she pushed herself away from the man¡¯s cold touch.


    She instinctively moved backwards, trying her best to keep a distance between her and whoever was standing before her in a ck cloak that hid his face.


    Roshan said to call his name if she ended up in trouble, should she call his name? How can he possibly hear from here??


    ¡°Who will save you this time?¡± The man teased as he advanced forward like an evil predator. His wed nails were out and Anna didn¡¯t want to imagine what he nned on doing to her with those eagle-like ws of his.


    She gave up moving and remained where she was, watching through her hazy vision as the pair of ck boots were gaining in on her. She finally used thest energy in her and whispered his name.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± It was barely audible, even she herself couldn¡¯t make out what she said, but it held a desperate calling and as his ws reached to strike her, Anna looked away and instead of feeling her skin being painfully scraped by those ws, a loud ng was heard, as though someone just blocked the hit with something metallic.

 Chapter 82

    82 Purple Swirling Light


    When Anna slowly raised her head up to see who had intervened the expected strike she anxiously waited for, Roshan was standing right in front of her, shielding her from the attack but he was injured as those ws had left a deep scar on his chest.


    Her eyes went round and she gasped at the sight, shock and worry glistened in her irises seeing he was injured but his face barely flinched.


    He only seeded in blocking the other wed hand from touching her and his eyes glimmered a crimson red, but in undeniable fury.


    ¡°I hate it when people don¡¯t listen.¡± He growled and for the first time, Anna witnessed Roshan¡¯s nails grow into the exact same ws and with a speed as fast as lightning, those wed hands of his scarred the cloaked man straight in his chest, followed by an unexpected heavy blownding on his left jaw and the impact tossed him few feets away from Roshan, but he regained himself andnded on his two feet rather than mming into a wall.


    A brooding silence fell on the dungeon, as though the world had gonepletely still and pulseless, and it only turned heavier when the two beings locked gaze, their nces met like crossed swords and it glinted with unspoken primal rage.


    Freya, who hid behind a corner watched the two powerful demons get into a deadly fight that left her shuddering in fear and it left her thinking; How did his highness get to know about this in the first ce?


    She pursed her lips, worried that the man in a cloak might end up hurting Roshan and her brain moved fast, thinking of a meaningful way to end this chaos without blowing her own cover.


    Her gaze shifted to Anna who hadn¡¯t stopped fighting the effect of the drug she blew into her face and her eyes widened in astonishment seeing the weak human struggling to get to her feet. The drug was meant to make her pass out but she¡¯s struggling to keep herself awake.


    This was way too much for an ordinary human to handle. How is she doing this? First it was the poison and now she¡¯s resisting the drug?? Do humans tend to have their own special powers?


    .....


    ¡°She keeps surprising me.¡± Freya had to admit and she hid away again when Azazel and Levi showed up at the fighting scene. The two confused demons stopped in their tracks after seeing Roshan and a man in ck cloak stand before each other, exchanging deadly looks that said a lot of things that words couldn¡¯t.


    Azazel was nning on heading to his duty post at the limbo when he sensed a very strong demonic aura in the pce and he had toe check things for himself.


    ¡°What is happening here?¡± It was not his thing to intervene in such duo¡¯s but that demonic aura he sensed emitting from the ck cloaked being was too strong for him to ignore and his icy blue eyes shifted to the man.


    The wound on Roshan¡¯s chest healed up and his fiery gaze was locked on the cloaked man who stood a few distance away from him, away from all of them.


    ¡°Reveal yourself you bastard!¡± Roshan cursed, but the man in a ck cloak suddenly chuckled darkly before standing straight and meeting Roshan¡¯s stare.


    ¡°I might have changed my body, but I wasn¡¯t expecting you to forget about me.¡± The man in a cloak pulled it over his head, revealing apletely different human face, but his crimson eyes, the powerful aura and the whiteness of his skin already made Roshan figure out who he was.


    ¡°Uncle?¡±


    He grinned, ¡°you never disappoint me.¡±


    Azazel and Levi stood their ground while Azazel silently cursed himself for not ending the man¡¯s life back at the forest.


    Now he¡¯s gone ahead to practice the forbidden magic of switching bodies.


    Roshan stared in disbelief at the body his uncle currently resides in, obviously it was the body of a young man and his appearance was normal. Anna¡¯s eyes equally widened after seeing he was no one else but Roshan¡¯s uncle, but in an entirely different body??


    ¡°Did youe to showcase your new body or are you here for some tea?¡± Roshan asked, already bored.


    ¡°I¡¯ve had enough on my te, but I¡¯ll have to run now. In the meantime, try saving your precious human.¡± His lips pulled to the side, revealing a mocking sneer.


    Before Roshan could understand what his uncle meant, an invisible force was sent directly at Anna¡¯s way, pushing her backwards until she fell from the window.


    ¡°Ahh!¡± She screamed the moment she realized she had fallen. There was basically nothing she could hold onto to stop herself from falling, nor could her already weak body fight off the force sent her way, leading her to fall off the pce building.


    ¡°Anna!¡± Roshan¡¯s eyes dted horrifically after witnessing her fall from the window and several emotions crossed his face at that minute, knowing it was a fall a human could never survive.


    ¡°Bye bye.¡± His uncle waved before drawing his new pawn beside him, but unknown to him, a purple light swirled around Freya¡¯s finger and she secretly sent it after Anna.


    Roshan didn¡¯t wait to face his uncle and jumped out of the window without thinking, going after her.


    Azazel¡¯s deadly starended on his uncle while Levi¡¯s eyes turned a bright red. A huge lightning ball formed on Levi¡¯s palms and when he sent the disastrous light at his uncle¡¯s direction, the two Demons vanished out of sight before it got a chance to hit them, leading the lightning bolt to hit the wall instead and erupting a ¡®BOOM¡¯ sound that made them look away.


    ¡°Dang it! He escaped again.¡± Levi groaned out his frustration after the heavy dust had cleared away, revealing nothing in particr as only the two of them were left standing in the quiet dungeon.


    Azazel¡¯s mind slowly drifted to the people who were currently falling from the pce walls and his eyes widened.


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    They both hurried to the window and looked down to see the height and it was super high, so high to the extent they couldn¡¯t see the ground as it was covered by heavy fog. Roshan and Annalise were nowhere to be seen either.


    ¡°Ahh!!¡± Anna¡¯s frightened screams as she fell were silenced after spotting Roshaning for her, her eyes widened and he reached his hand out to her.


    ¡°Hold my hand.¡±


    Anna stared at his outstretched hand but she could barely move as fear had held her body down. The gravity was pulling her down a little too fast and the wind whistled furiously against her ears, fluttering her hair that kept touching her face and bringing water from her eyes.


    ¡°Give me your hand.¡± He said more loudly this time around and Anna finally stretched out her right hand. She tried reaching for his hand but as she struggled, their hands refused to meet.


    ¡°I can¡¯t reach it.¡± She was near sobbing and a part of Roshan felt like he had been painfully stabbed just watching her reaction.


    ¡°Keep trying,e on.¡± He encouraged which was something he rarely did. Anna mustered up enough strength and stretched out her hands again, trying to reach for his and after a few struggling, their hands met and Roshan quickly pulled her into his arms, an embrace that made her feel oddly safe despite the fact they were still falling at an incredible speed.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± She stared at his face but unlike her who was already shading tears, he looked more rxed and his Hazel-green eyes settled on hers.


    ¡°Close your eyes Anna.¡± He said but she was afraid, she wanted to avert her stares from his and look down but he didn¡¯t let her, knowing it¡¯d only frighten her more.


    ¡°Don¡¯t.¡±


    She met his stare again.


    ¡°Close your eyes.¡± His tone came out soft and it calmed her a little bit, just staring into his beautiful calm eyes already made her feel safe and her heart raced, not because of the fall, but because of him.


    Anna did as he told her and closed her eyes, holding onto him tightly as she buried her face on his neck. When Roshan looked down himself, instead of seeing the ground beneath him, a purple swirling light came in the form of a portal and he watched it erge.


    ¡°What the_¡±


    The purple swirling light suddenly grew wide enough, sucking Anna and Roshan in before closing uppletely.


    Azazel and Levi rushed to the next window and saw them get sucked in by a magic portal.


    ¡°Oh oh.¡±


    Levi and Azazel exchanged nces before looking at the empty ground before them.


    Where did they go?

 Chapter 83

    83 A Soothing Touch


    When the portal opened up, Roshan found themselves in an entirely different environment and worst of all, they were heading straight for an ocean below.


    ¡°Damn it!¡± He cursed as something rming popped in his head.


    He quickly turned, making sure Anna was above him while he remained below and the next minute.


    *SPLASH!!*


    He already expected the painful impact since he wasn¡¯t in the right position to enter the water, heck! They fell from a very high ce as well.


    Ignoring the stinging pain in his back, he swam up while holding onto Anna and only after bringing their heads out of the water did he realize she had passed out.


    The look in his eyes widened into one of concern as he tapped her cheeks lightly while keeping her close, trying his best to revive her.


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    She didn¡¯t respond, if she passed out from the drug or from fear, he couldn¡¯t tell. He sighed and just held her close before surveying the area they were in, trying to see if there was anynd closeby. He has to get her out of the water.


    .....


    Sessfully making it to the shore, Roshan rxed the unconscious Anna, resting her back against a tree. He held her wrist and closed his eyes to concentrate on whatever energy was left in him.


    At that moment, his body glowed in a soft golden light and those lights were smoothly transferred into Anna¡¯s body.


    He fully concentrated his energy into leaving his body and escaping from his hand. They connected from her wrist he held and Anna¡¯s body rxed a little when she subconsciously felt her energy return.


    While concentrating, a cial pang of pain stabbed Roshan¡¯s chest and he spat out blood before stopping the energy transfusion. At first it had left him shocked cause didn¡¯t expect it, not until a realization dawned on him and the look on his face softened.


    Right, his body hasn¡¯t fully recovered yet and he was being punished for overusing his powers again. He wiped the blood from his lips and stared at the face of the youngdy who was peacefully resting and a look of relief shed in his Hazel-green eyes, seeing she was alright.


    He knew the risk of transferring whatever little energy he had to her but he had to make sure she was safe.


    Leaning his back against another tree as he felt terribly weak, the pain along his right shoulder de hadn¡¯t dissipated and he knew why. Gosh, so many things he¡¯s doing for this woman. He¡¯d have to experience pain just so she doesn¡¯t.


    Letting out a weak sigh, his tired eyes finally shifted to where he had brought them to and he only started to realize they were in a forest.


    ¡°Where is this ce?¡± His eyes scanned the area they were in and he sensed no danger nearby. But the forest alone had left him quite taken aback.


    The unfamiliar forest was incredibly stunning at night, his eyes followed the moon that sneakily came out from behind the clouds, only to show itself in its silvery light glory. In between the trees, the moon beams entered the forest, giving way to the fireflies that rested upon flowers and the sight was oddlyforting.


    The light emitting from the moon shines onto the tree trunk, making them illumined in the night and it gives the forest an enchanting glow.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± There was a hint of hidden curiosityced in his tone, he would have stood up to take a look around but his body felt weak and his wound hadn¡¯t healed yet.


    How did they even show up here in the first ce? Who created the portal??


    He really wanted to figure it out but then, he felt tired, his joints were aching and he rxed himself even more against one of the tree trunks.


    ¡®I should build my energy up first.¡¯ he thoughtfully convinced himself before closing his tired eyes and falling into a slumber.


    The next day, Roshan¡¯s eyes slowly fluttered open, but instead of feeling the night fatigue take over him, a soft caress along his shoulder instantaneously rxed his body and his eyes involuntarily dropped to a close. Just feeling the soft caress of someone¡¯s hand on his back made his system gain an unexinablefort and the peaceful look on his face was enough to show for it.


    At least to a certain point until the thought of who was touching him invaded his head.


    ¡®Why do I feel exposed?¡¯ The question came to his mind and his eyes immediately flew open. He quickly turned around and swifty grabbed the hand that kept touching him non-stop, only to meet the surprised stare of Annalise.


    ¡°You¡¯re awake.¡± The worried look on her face was reced with one of great relief and a ¡®phew!¡¯ sound left her lips.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± He questioned, and it turns out she had shifted his shirt a bit, revealing his bare back, which exins why he felt exposed.


    ¡°Your wound,¡± she began, ¡°when I woke up I saw you were hurt, so I went to find herbs that I could use in treating it. How do you feel now?¡± She genuinely asked out of concern and his gaze shifted to the greenish substance in her fingers. He could feel something creamy along his wounded back as well.


    She was applying herbal ointment to his wound. That exins the rubbing.


    He finally released her hand after she was done exining the situation to him.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± He neutrally responded and truly he was, he felt ten times better after waking up and just reminiscing about her hands on him made his body tense a little, thankfully she didn¡¯t notice.


    He quickly adjusted his shirt back like some shy girl who was afraid of opening up her body to the gaze of her husband on their first night. He frowned with a soft shade of pink slowly creeping onto his face after noticing Anna was still staring at him with her doe-brown eyes.


    ¡°Do you mind?¡±


    His gorgeous eyes narrowed into a slit and it took a few seconds before Anna understood what he meant, leaving her own face flushing with embarrassment.


    ¡°Oh... right, sorry.¡± She quickly turned around and to think she was staring at him all through nearly made her facepalm with shame and the air felt ufortable.


    She was never like this.


    Meanwhile Roshan was equally dealing with his own feelings, it wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯s exposed himself before her gaze but today, all of a sudden he felt unnecessarily... shy!!


    She made him shy? He was never the shy type, so what happened to him??


    ¡°Are you.... done?¡± Anna¡¯s voice broke him off his trance and he looked at her to see she still had her back against him.


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    She turned around to look at him and when their gazes met, everything around them seemed to stop as well and her heart uncontrobly sped up. The sound of it invaded Roshan¡¯s ears and when he refused to break eye contact, Anna couldn¡¯t keep up and instantly averted her stare before she thought of something stupid, returning it back to her surrounding as her arms anxiously swinged at her side.


    ¡°So uhm... What is this ce?¡± She asked, trying to get rid of the sudden heat in the air and Roshan¡¯s attention was equally brought back to his surroundings.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± He responded before getting up to his feet, ¡°but I think we¡¯re in some enchanted Forest.¡±


    The sun had risen high above them, giving a clearer view of the forest and Anna hummed to herself.


    ¡°Come on.¡± She said but Roshan remained where he was, arching a brow at her.


    ¡°To where?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s see if we can find people nearby, since we have no idea where we are, they might be able to help us.¡± She walked out after that, leaving Roshan with no other choice but to follow her.

 Chapter 84

    84 Mishap Situation


    The chirping and twittering sounds of beautiful birds echoed through the forest as they flew gracefully from one tree branch to another. It interestingly caught Anna¡¯s attention as she walked beside Roshan.


    They took a step forward through the earthly path and the tall trees were the first thing their eyes focused on. The big brown trees stretched high above like they were in a race to see who would reach the sky first.


    Their roots were long and strong, going deep underground and Anna could tell these trees have lived in the area for a long time, even centuries.


    Their leaves were freshly green with a bit of gold color running along the edge, Anna has nevere across such leaves in her entire life.


    The air smells like soil, leaves and flowers.


    ¡°How did we end up here?¡± Anna turned her attention to the handsome being who walked beside her, his gaze was also scanning the enchanted Forest they walked in and he clicked his tongue.


    ¡°It¡¯splicated.¡± He told her instead. He was unwilling to go into too much detail as it might mix up her little brain.


    Anna¡¯s stare curiously returned to scrutinize the forest and she pinned her lips together. She tried to rack her brain on what happened after they fell from the building, because after she woke up, she found herself here instead of the Viscarrian pce.


    ¡°She tricked me.¡± Anna quietly realized it herself, but she absentmindedly said her thoughts out loud for Roshan¡¯s sensitive ears to grasp.


    .....


    ¡°Who?¡± He finally looked at her for the first time ever since they started walking.


    ¡°The maid.¡± Her expression slowly dropped as she cursed herself. She felt eveb more stupid for thinking the maid was really genuine with her words.


    Ba was actually right when she said she shouldn¡¯t trust anyone, now Freya¡¯s gone, Roshan¡¯s uncle is back and the mastermind behind the juice had gotten away all because of her own foolish decisions.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t listen to your advice for the second time and gave her the pill.¡± She guiltily admitted and just thinking about all her wrong decisions so far made her wonder if she was jinxed at birth.


    ¡°It¡¯s just....she sounded.....¡± a sigh left her lips when the words weren¡¯ting and she took a deep breath to calm her nerves before speaking again, ¡°I really thought she had changed.¡±


    ¡°People don¡¯t change easily Anna,¡± he reminded her, ¡°she¡¯s a demon after all, what did you expect? Did you really think believing her stories and saving her from torture would make her speak? I don¡¯t know if it works on humans but demons are different, they won¡¯t speak until tortured.¡±


    ¡°So what do we do? How do we get out of here?¡±


    ¡°We?¡± He scoffed, ¡°all this happened because of you, it¡¯s your fault wended here, so you should think of a way to get us out of here, I have nothing to do with it.¡±


    The way he spoke always made her feel like a burden that he couldn¡¯t get rid of even if he wanted to, and as much as she hated to admit it, he was right. She¡¯s been nothing but a burden to people she¡¯s met and maybe she¡¯s actually cursed to be a burden forever.


    Her heart sank at the thought and she looked at the cier again.


    ¡°You should_¡±


    ¡°Shhhh.¡± Roshan suddenly silenced her, giving her no chance to finish her words and he stopped moving.


    ¡°Don¡¯t take another step.¡± He held her hand, bringing her back and Anna was instantly baffled by his rmed whispers.


    ¡°Wha_¡±


    ¡°Shhhh.¡± She got silenced again.


    The flight of birds fleeing from trees caught their attention. Roshan and Anna remained where they were and his gaze quickly nced at the bushes beside them, as though he was calcting something.


    ¡°When I say run, you run as fast as you can, do you understand?¡± He whispered.


    ¡°What? Why?¡±


    ¡°Just listen and do as I say.¡±


    He wasn¡¯t joking, he really seemed to be picking up something and at the same time, Anna¡¯s ears twitched the moment she heard a twig snap.


    ¡°Run.¡±


    And they both took their heels at the same time. All sounds were lost in the whistle of air humming by, followed by the flights of millions of arrowsing after them from behind.


    ¡°Is that..!?..¡±


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened in trepidation, and she ran as fast as she could to avoid being touched by an arrow. They came as fast as lightning after them and if she hadn¡¯t learnt a few tricks in Euphrasia, evading those arrows would be impossible.


    ¡°This way!¡± Roshan¡¯s voice reminded her that she wasn¡¯t actually running alone and they quickly cornered, following a divided path in an attempt to evade the arrows following their trail.


    A shocking gasp left her lips when a sword showed up from nowhere and was ced at her neck, instantly stopping her in her tracks and denying her the freedom to take a step forward.


    She looked up to see exactly who had stopped her and a strange young man dressed in warrior outfits was staring back at her with his coffee brown eyes.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move.¡± He politely warned, Anna¡¯s gaze returned to Roshan who was equally stopped by these men and she realized that they were surrounded by a bunch of men dressed in ck warrior outfits.


    They looked no different from normal humans, except they were all dressed in warrior outfits and Anna watched as more of them ascended from the bushes.


    Amidst all these strong men, a short funny looking bald man stepped out from within them. It took Roshan a lot of restraint not tough at the man¡¯s appearance, despite the fact he appeared strict with a venomous gaze.


    ¡°Trespassers! Are you spies from the other realm?¡± He asked a question Roshan found to be very stupid.


    ¡°What sort of spy shows up unarmed you birdbrain!¡±


    ¡°Hey!¡±


    ¡°He didn¡¯t mean it.¡± Anna quickly intervened after realizing his words had offended the man. Thest thing she wanted at the moment was to see any bloodshed.


    ¡°Spare him... please.¡±


    Roshan frowned at her direction as he watched her plead for his sake. Of course he meant every word he said and he wouldn¡¯t mind repeating it. What¡¯s she pleading with them for??


    ¡°Who are you? What is your mission in Ark Ville? ¡±


    ¡°We are.....uhm...¡± Anna tried to think of a way out and once again, she said something that made Roshan facepalm.


    ¡°He¡¯s my brother you see and we¡¯re from the Euphrasia Kingdom.¡± She grinned nervously before bowing at them,pletely oblivious to the death rays a certain cier had on her.


    Brother? ¡®I¡¯m not her brother!¡¯ he really wanted to say it but then again, it would only get them into more trouble.


    And they weren¡¯tpletely out of this trouble yet.


    ¡°Euphrasia kingdom?¡± The short bald man wrinkled his forehead as he remained deep in thoughts, as though trying to figure out if the name of that kingdom was familiar or not.


    ¡°Come with us, you¡¯ll exin yourself better to the emperor of Ark Ville!¡±

 Chapter 85

    85 Great Use


    ¡°You really are a danger ma.¡± Roshan quietly said to her as they were currently dragged down the earthly path.


    ¡°I¡¯m not, this is all just an unfortunate misunderstanding.¡± She defended herself, ¡°they think we¡¯re spies and we both know we¡¯re not.¡±


    ¡°So you went ahead with the siblings idea again, wow I must acknowledge the way you think.¡±


    ¡°What could I possibly have said? That we¡¯re a couple?¡± She fired back in an angry whisper but the unbearable being only scoffed with a hint of sarcasm.


    ¡°Couple? I¡¯d kill you before our wedding night.¡±


    ¡°You annoying perv..!!.¡±


    ¡°Stop the murmurings!¡± One of the men quickly snapped at them, silencing the two bickering people and they casted a quick re at one another before looking away and swallowing their words.


    It was silence all through the walk as none of them were ready to talk to one another.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± The young man with the coffee brown eyes suddenly asked, gaining Anna¡¯s attention and she whipped her head to his direction.


    .....


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°Who really are you? What brought you to Ark Ville?¡± Turns out he was the one gently dragging her forward, but surprisingly, he wasn¡¯t harsh towards her.


    Instead of wasting this opportunity, she¡¯d rather use it to her advantage.


    ¡°We¡¯re really not spies I can promise you that, we identally stumbled into this... enchanted Forest and we¡¯re looking for a way out of it.¡± She truthfully exined but his brows questionably arched up.


    ¡°How¡¯s it possible you just ¡®stumbled¡¯ into Ark Ville?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been asking myself that question ever since I got here.¡± As funny as it sounded, it was the truth.


    Roshan, whose attention finally diverted to Annalise, caught her having a conversation with one of the men who basically dragged them ahead.


    ¡°You know about medicinal herbs?¡±


    ¡°Yeah why?¡±


    ¡°How partial of you to shush us up but you¡¯re the ones free to talk.¡± Roshan hissed out, deliberately interrupting the man who was having a conversation with Annalise and Anna really felt like sealing his mouth before he ruined her n.


    He really has no idea when to talk.


    She forced a smile regardless and ignored Roshan, ¡°pay no attention to anything he says, he tends to act like this when med for something he never did.¡± She quickly exined.


    Roshan¡¯s frown only deepened after seeing her smile at the young man whose eyes were only visible against the clothed mask he wore, why was she smiling??


    Arriving at a town surrounded by high mountains, Anna¡¯s eyes stared in wonder as they stopped before a well fortifiedrge stone wall around the perimeters.


    The entrance of the town was guarded by tworge towers each with a drawbridge that can be raised in order to keep the residents safe.


    After walking past the bridge, the short bald man suddenly strode towards an empty hole in the building and he shoved a blue gem into it, forcing the two huge doors to open with a heavy creak sound, weing them to a new town.


    The center of the town has arge courtyard with different buildings surrounding it. The buildings looked fortified and defensible Incase of any attacks from Invaders. The buildings are all connected via a series of underground tunnels, which are for the most part blocked by wooden doors.


    The center of the courtyard has arge limestone statue that faces towards the entrance of the town.


    The people of Ark Ville who looked no different from humans made Anna wonder if they were another human race the world waspletely unaware of.


    What caught her attention more was how beautiful the people of Ark Ville looked and not only that, their dressing style was equally fascinating.


    Thedies were dressed in simple but refined gowns, most of them even worefortable fitting pants with their swords hanging in the holster fixed to their waist belt.


    The men were dressed in jackets andfortable fitting pants along with leather boots.


    Their quizzical gazes were transfixed on them and thedies interestingly murmured some words to themselves while casting shy nces towards Roshan¡¯s direction.


    Whenever he met their stares, their faces went red and he wasn¡¯t surprised, he was used to it. But Anna strangely happened to have a problem with it as her face scrunched into a look of annoyance.


    ¡°Surely they¡¯vee across many handsome men before, what¡¯s with the sudden excitement?¡±


    ¡°Oh Anna.¡± Roshan tsked, ¡°Unlike you, these pretty women know a good-looking guy when they see one, you on the other hand tend to have eyes at the back of your head.¡±


    ¡°Hmph! That equally exins your unruly attitude. You might be handsome but your cold act is enough to scare them away from you, beauty isn¡¯t the only thing that matters.¡±


    ¡°Preach to yourself, silly woman.¡± And he eyed her.


    If Anna¡¯s hand weren¡¯t being held behind her back by these men, goodness knows she¡¯d have pounced on the demon beside her.


    Stepping into a different building that hid them from the eyes of the Ark Ville people, Anna and Roshan were led to the main hall, only to stand before an average looking man dressed in an exquisite golden colored clothing.


    ¡°We found them lurking around the spirits of the wild.¡± The short man boldly informed to the average man whose bored gaze remained settled on him, before shifting to the two trespassers.


    ¡°Trespassers?¡±


    ¡°I assume so, mayor.¡±


    ¡°Then why waste your time bringing them to me when you can just kill them?¡± His lips curled a little to the side, revealing a smirk that made the man tremble before him.


    ¡°The youngdy ims they¡¯re from Euphrasia Kingdom so I_¡±


    ¡°If they aren¡¯t of great use to my domain, kill them.¡± His words were final, not until Anna found the courage to intervene.


    ¡°Wait.... what if we¡¯re actually of great use to you?¡± She asked, gaining the man¡¯s attention and he raised a questioning brow at her.


    ¡°In what way exactly?¡±


    ¡°Your son.¡± She spoke up, ¡°he¡¯s... he¡¯s currently ill isn¡¯t he? What if we help you treat him? Then can we leave?¡±


    *******


    We crossed a 100k views already ??


    Many thanks to my readers for the sweet support!!


    Hopefully I¡¯ll be able to write a bonus chapter before the week ends as my appreciation ??


    Keep voting and showering much love to our Anna and Roshan!!

 Chapter 86

    86 His Help


    ¡°You know about my son?¡± His eyes narrowed in an interrogative manner but it failed at hiding the shock in them. He curiously wondered how a stranger from who knows where could know about his son¡¯s illness.


    Roshan secretly stole a nce at Anna, confused about what she herself was talking about.


    ¡°I¡¯m not a physician,¡± she continued despite the many questionable gazes that were fixed on her, ¡°but I know of ways your son could be cured from a demon bite.¡± She continued, secretly looking at the young warrior before returning her attention back to the Mayor.


    ¡°How dare you lie before Ark Ville¡¯s greatest Mayor?!¡± The bald man angrily hollered at her, knowing what a great consequence her sudden discussion would put on him, but Anna wisely ignored him and looked at the Mayor instead.


    ¡°Demon bites could kill and it¡¯s a process, it all depends on the specific type of Demons but if you can give us a chance, your son still has a chance of surviving.¡±


    Anna dared to take the risk, the young warrior strangely, but surprisingly told her about the king¡¯s son who was recently bitten by a demon that got into Ark Ville.


    The Mayor stroked his chin lightly as he appeared lost in thoughts. Roshan casted Anna a nce that asked many questions but she closed her eyes reassuringly before opening them back up, signifying she¡¯d exin everything to himter on.


    ¡°You¡¯re nothing but a trespasser, how can you possibly treat a demon bite if you aren¡¯t one yourself?¡± The bald man annoyingly questioned yet again and he really had no idea how his rude words were provoking Roshan, despite the fact those using questions weren¡¯t directed at him.


    ¡°You question us as though you have an issue with getting his son treated,¡± Roshan spoke as politely as he could, but it made the color on the bald man¡¯s face drain a bit, ¡°surely you don¡¯t have an issue with it, do you?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Nonsense!¡±


    ¡°William.¡± The Mayor¡¯s deep, powerful voice interrupted the bald man and he gently raised his index finger in the air, signifying it was enough.


    The bald man had to hold his tongue, but he casted a re of vengeance at Roshan who smirked in a way only the bald man took notice of.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± The Mayor of Ark Ville proceeded to ask, giving Anna the go ahead and she politely bowed to his presence.


    ¡°The name¡¯s Annalise from Euphrasia and this is my....brother, Roshan.¡± She hesitantly mentioned Roshan as her brother and quickly moved on before they took notice.


    ¡°We were in a battle with a few demons before, somehow, we coincidentally found ourselves here in the enchanted Forest or Ark Ville as you mentioned it. We were wondering if we could find a way back to Euphrasia before your men caught us wandering about.¡±


    ¡°Euphrasia you say?¡±


    She nodded, ¡°On our way here, the news of your son¡¯s illness had gone rampant, only to figure out he was actually bitten by a demon and itpletely exins the tight security and your.... current anger for bloodshed.¡±


    ¡°No one made mention of the son¡¯s illness!¡± The bald man interjected, only to be interrupted by Roshan again.


    ¡°I did,¡± he second Anna¡¯s response, ¡°you couldn¡¯t possibly have heard since your ears are too tiny.¡±


    He indirectly made jest of the funny looking man whose fists were angrily balled at his side, yet he couldn¡¯t give a satisfying retort as he wouldn¡¯t wish to anger the Mayor any further, considering the fact there¡¯s someone who can heal his son¡¯s illness.


    ¡°And you can heal my son?¡±


    Anna nodded for the second time, ¡°yes, but I need to know exactly when he was bitten and how long it has been since then.¡±


    Her heart continuously pounded as she kept speaking with such a firm tone. She really wished the ground could open and swallow her in, but knowing she was already digging her grave, why not keep digging?


    ¡°And if you fail to treat him?¡± Came a question that held unexinable consequences, but Anna stood her ground and gracefully tilted her head up to meet his Amber eyes.


    ¡°Then I hold no objection to what you n on doing to us.¡±


    ¡°Why are you helping?¡±


    ¡°Cause I want to prove that we certainly mean no harm, they do say actions speak better than words, don¡¯t they?¡±


    Roshan who watched Anna speak had to force an impressed smile not to showcase on his lips. As much as he hated to admit to himself, she was good at this.


    ¡°Guards.¡± The Mayor¡¯s deep voice amplified in the grand hall and they all bowed.


    ¡°Take him to Nichs¡¯s chamber.¡± He ordered.


    ¡°Before we proceed, can I have a word with my brother for a few seconds? I promise it won¡¯t take much of your time.¡± Anna politely requested. She sensed a bit of hesitation in the Mayor¡¯s look but he nodded regardless.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Anna quickly dragged Roshan to one of the empty corners. After confirming there was no one at sight and it¡¯d be difficult for passersby to hear. She began;


    ¡°I¡¯ll need your help with this.¡± She whispered.


    ¡°My help?¡±


    She replied with a nod, ¡°If I get the specific herbs, they¡¯ll be effective but slow. I need your help in transferring some of your energy into his son, that way, it¡¯d speed up the process.¡±


    ¡°What, no!¡±


    The hopeful look on her face instantly crashed like a pricked balloon due to his refusal.


    ¡°What? Why?¡±


    ¡°I have my reasons, I can¡¯t do it.¡±


    ¡°But...but I can¡¯t do this alone.¡±


    ¡°Who cares if it¡¯s a slow process, go with the herbs but I¡¯m not transferring my energy to some Mayor¡¯s son that holds no importance to me.¡±


    Anna really couldn¡¯t believe his cold response right now, she¡¯s trying her very best to get them out of this situation but he¡¯s refusing to lend a helping hand?? To be honest, she shouldn¡¯t really be shocked but she was.


    ¡°You know? I still wonder why I even bothering to you when you clearly have no interest in helping me. Fine then, I¡¯ll do it myself if that¡¯s what you want.¡±


    Before he could speak, she walked out on him and he didn¡¯t miss the disappointment that shed in her irises. He saw she genuinely needed his help with this but how could he tell her it was impossible.


    He gave her most of his energyst night so she¡¯d recover quicker and the result he got from it was a warning to his own life. If he dares to do the same thing, he could be hurt, not just externally, but internally as well, hence, reducing his life span since he wasn¡¯t a full Demon.


    ¡°Sigh... how do I handle this.¡± He thought to himself as his fingers ran through his hair, feeling stuck but before anyone got suspicious of his absence, he left.


    Anna walked back to the Mayor. She quickly discarded the heavy feeling in her heart and politely bowed to his presence, ¡°I¡¯m ready to see your son.¡±


    ¡°What about the person with you?¡±


    ¡°Apparently, he¡¯s not needed.¡± She tried not to let the sadness in her voice be noticed and masked it up with a faint smile.


    The Mayor nodded and just a few second nce at his guards was enough to tell them what they needed to do.


    ¡°This way.¡±


    The young warrior she was familiar with led her up the stairs, she smiled at him as he made way for her with right arm stretched to the side, silently indicating, dies first.¡¯


    Anna went up the stairs and he followed behind, along with two guards that brought them in.


    ¡°Go.¡± The Mayor strictly said to the bald Williams, ¡°follow them ande back to share the results with me.¡±


    William nodded before hurrying up the stairs.

 Chapter 87

    87 Strange Difference In His Demon Bite


    Striding past the upstairs hallway, Anna¡¯s mind was preupied with some deep thoughts as she forced her feet to move. She couldn¡¯t afford to lose her guard since these men were cautiously tailing behind her.


    ¡®But what if it doesn¡¯t work?¡¯ she worriedly thought to herself, absentmindedly biting the skin in her left cheek while knitting her fingers together at her front.


    She only came across the solution to Demon bites in one of the books at the library back in Viscarrian. She really had no idea what pushed her into reading it but she did.


    Maybe because getting to know more about Demons turned out to be quite interesting and frightening at the same time.


    She hasn¡¯t tried such a healing method before and this would be her first time treating a demon bite.


    ¡®What do I do? And Roshan has refused to help me with this.¡¯ one look at her face and it¡¯d be easy to detect her anxiety. She appeared lost, confused, afraid and somewhat upset too.


    She couldn¡¯t possibly handle this alone, she needed someone by her side, even if it¡¯s to build up her courage or assure her everything would be fine, but she was going to face this alone.


    She let out a soft sigh when suddenly, a painting at the left side of the wall caught her attention. An impulse that couldn¡¯t be ignored made her look up to see the painting.


    ¡®Dragon?¡¯ she silently uttered. It was no ordinary dragon but a ck dragon. The artist made sure it stood at the top of a mountain, with a zing yellowish-orange fire burning bright behind it like it just finished creating a never ending chaos. It looked realistic in the painting, giving a high ordance to the artist and it was something admirable.


    .....


    But why did it give her the chills?


    The more she stared at it, the more realistic it turned out to be. The expression on the dragon¡¯s face showed extreme fierceness, it¡¯s golden eyes were filled with terror, anguish, a deadly warning as though making a silent promise only she could understand.


    She wanted to avert her gaze, but found it impossible to look away. Instead she had the urge to run her fingers through the painting, wanting to confirm if the dragon on the wall was real or if it was an actual painting.


    ¡°Miss, can you hear me?¡± And Anna was quickly broken from her trance as she instantaneously met one of the guards expressionless stares. She only realized they had stopped walking after being brought back to the present and her anxiety slowly grew worse.


    What was it about that painting?


    ¡°We¡¯re here.¡± The guard said to her before pointing at the door in front of her. Anna¡¯s gaze followed his hand and stopped after sighting the big red door in front of her.


    ¡°Should I....?¡± She made a gesture on whether it¡¯d be necessary to knock or she should just enter at their orders.


    ¡°Enter, the Mayor¡¯s son is unconscious anyway.¡± William spoke from behind. After gaining their permission, she twisted the door knob before giving it a gentle pull.


    It quietly creaked open and when she took a step into the lit room, the three maidens who were tidying the ce up paused at the presence of someone.


    William followed suit and stood in front of Anna.


    ¡°She¡¯s with me.¡± He assured them while trying to boast his own authority in the Mayor¡¯s mansion, ¡°if you¡¯ll excuse us.¡±


    At his words, the maids politely nodded before stepping out of the room, but their questionable looks hadn¡¯t left Anna yet till they were out of the room.


    ¡°He¡¯s over there.¡± William pointed at the big mattress that was beautifully draped with transparent white curtain.


    Anna slowly approached the bed, her soft footsteps made a clicking sound to the tiled floor. She reached the edge of his bed and gently pulled the curtains to one side.


    The young looking man she was staring at had his eyes sealed shut as heid unmoving on the bed. He looked sickly pale, the color of his lips had faded a bit leaving it somewhat dry like that of a dead person. He was currently sweating due to the effects of the demon bite. Anna didn¡¯t need anyone to tell her the bite wasn¡¯t something of recent.


    ¡°It¡¯s gotten really worse.¡± She felt his forehead with the back of her palm and took notice of the quick rise in his temperature.


    ¡°Where was he bitten?¡±


    ¡°On his left arm.¡±


    Anna raised his sleeve with lots of care and stopped after sighting the wound close to his elbow. The demon bite mark she was seeing here was aplete contrast to the one on her neck. It was obvious the poison had spread because his veins had turned a shade dark, like the venom was slowly absorbing his energy.


    ¡°Can you heal him like you said you would?¡± William didn¡¯t hide the doubt in his tone. ¡°The best physicians in Arkville have tried their very best in healing Nichs and getting him off this suffering state, but nothing worked. What makes a mere mortal capable of doing something we can¡¯t?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s actually very simple sir.¡± She politely said while turning around to look at him. The man before her barely reached her shoulder but it wasn¡¯t something that bothered her much.


    ¡°It¡¯s all about gaining more knowledge, it is possible that the physicians in Ark Ville know the herbs used in treating Demon bite, but aren¡¯t particrly sure on how to use it.¡±


    Williams¡¯ hairy brows furrowed at her words, ¡°meaning?¡±


    ¡°Demon bites vary as they tend to be different species of them, so their healing methods are bound to have some differences. I¡¯m just saying but if I¡¯m not mistaken, this doesn¡¯t look like any normal Demon bite.¡±


    She turned to look at the demon bite in his arm. The one on her neck has just too tiny holes caused by Roshan, but the one on his arm has up to four holes, did he get bitten twice?


    ¡°If I seed in treating him, will I be free to leave?¡± She had to be sure that they weren¡¯t going to turn their backs on her after making use of her knowledge.


    William nodded with full honesty. ¡°The Mayor never goes back on his word, as long as you seed in treating his son, you¡¯ll be free to leave Ark Ville.¡±


    That reassuring response calmed Anna¡¯s heart a bit, ¡°Okay then, I¡¯ll need some herbs, is it possible to get some Golden Anise, Dicria root, vechi leaf smoothly pounded with uhm some hazel spice....¡± She kept on listing the necessary herbs and once she was done, William nodded.


    ¡°It can all be arranged.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good then, but can you hurry up with them please? Dying much further will only slow the healing process.¡±


    William¡¯s half concerned stare shifted to Nichs, it took a few seconds before he responded with a nod of his head.


    ¡°I¡¯ll assign the maids to get them ready.¡±


    He left the room after that.


    Ten minutester, Anna was given the herbs she had asked for. She stared at the yellowish-brown substance in her palm before gently applying it to Nichs¡¯s injury.


    She wiped the sweat that ticklishly rolled to her chin, using the back of her sleeves and a tired sigh left her lips as she continued to treat him for almost twenty minutes now.


    ¡°Come on, respond.¡± She silently prayed in her head, hoping to get some response from him but he remained unmoving.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you responding?¡± A worried expression masked her pretty face as she sank to the ground, feeling tired already. It couldn¡¯t be it was toote, or could it?


    If only Roshan was here to assist.


    ¡°Thinking about me?¡± The velvety deep voice that spoke behind her, jolted Anna back to the situation before her and her head instantly whipped to the direction of the door.


    Roshan stood there, leaning against the edge of the door as he waited for her response. The same expressionless stare of his was something she had gotten used to and a happy smile slowly crossed her lips without her even realizing it.


    ¡°Roshan, you¡¯re.... you¡¯re here.¡± She got to her feet and hurried to go meet him, surprised to actually see him standing before the door post.


    But how is he here?


    ¡°Where are the guards meant to guard the door?¡± She asked while stealing a peek at the empty corridor, but a surprised gasp left her lips when Roshan grabbed her arm and pulled her back so she could meet his gaze.


    He took notice of the tiredness in her face and flicked her forehead.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be this foolish next time, learn to ept the fact you can¡¯t do this without me, I hate to see my human getting worked up for someone else.¡±

 Chapter 88

    88 Unusual Favor


    His tone was supposed to sound scolding, but if Anna heard right, she could swear she sensed a hint of worryced in his alluring tone.


    And did he just refer to her as his human? When did she be his??


    ¡°How is it my fault?¡± She countered back regardless of her own thoughts, ¡°you said you wouldn¡¯t help me so I had to do it alone.¡±


    ¡°I expected you to beg for my help.¡±


    ¡°Well sorry to burst your bubbles but I have no intention of ruining my dress.¡± She retorted and at this point, he was tempted to squeeze her little mouth in order to shut her up.


    Roshan finally gave up, it was difficult to strike a conversation with the silly woman without turning it into some sort of argument. No matter how exhausted she was, she always had enough strength to argue with him.


    ¡°We¡¯ll finish this conversationter.¡± It was a subtle response that left Anna guessing what he really meant by that.


    His attention eventually diverted to the personying on the bed and he strode up to his bedside.


    ¡°Is this the Mayor¡¯s son?¡±


    .....


    She reached to stand beside him before nodding in return, ¡°I¡¯ve been trying to get a response from him for about twenty minutes now but he¡¯s not responding, and look...¡±


    She pointed at the bite mark on his left arm, ¡°it¡¯s totally different from the one on my neck.¡±


    She moved her hair to the side so Roshan could see the mark he gave her and he instinctively lowered his gaze, as though he was unwilling to look directly into the bite mark on her neck.


    ¡°He has up to four marks on his arm, is it possible to be beaten twice, at the same time?¡±


    Roshan nodded with a cryptical stare, ¡°yeah.¡± He crouched closer to examine the bite mark that was currently smudged with herbal ointment.


    ¡°The venom has spread to a limit the herbs unfortunately can¡¯t reach, that¡¯s why he isn¡¯t responding.¡± He stated, causing Anna to take a step back as thest hope she had came crashing down like a tidal wave.


    ¡°That means the herb won¡¯t work?¡±


    ¡°Not if I can help it.¡± He muttered to himself before holding the victim¡¯s arm. As much as he was willing to risk it, he couldn¡¯t let Anna¡¯s hard work go to waste. All he had to do was stay focused in order to find the venom, that way it¡¯d be easier to force the venom out of his system before it¡¯s toote.


    Taking a deep breath to prepare himself mentally, he closed his eyes to concentrate on the little energy left inside of him and before Anna¡¯s hopeless gaze, she watched as Roshan¡¯s body glowed in a soft illuminating light.


    Her eyes widened in pure fascination, seeing those silver lights move from Roshan¡¯s body and into the Mayor¡¯s son¡¯s body.


    ¡®He¡¯s transferring his energy.¡¯ she silently marveled and her eyes shifted back to the Mayor¡¯s son.


    A stabbing pain was the first thing Roshan felt as he continued the process, but he was capable of handling it and decided to hold it in for as long as he could. He tried to remain focused so he could track the poison when another painful stab struck his chest.


    The red crimson liquid slowly escaped from the corner of his mouth as he constantly battled the pain and tried to stay focused at the same time.


    After a few minutes of energy transfusion, the young man resting on the bed suddenly jerked and he turned his head to the side, spitting out blood as he coughed violently.


    Roshan finally let go of his arm as he sank to the ground with a light thud, his body shook slightly due to the pain circting his system and it felt like he just ripped his tendons apart.


    An ted gasp left Anna¡¯s lips after seeing the Mayor¡¯s son respond and she instantly hurried to his bed side.


    ¡°He¡¯s alright!¡± She happily eximed, gently helping the unconscious beingy backfortably on the bed after the terrible coughing. His heartbeat slowly returned to a normal pace, relieving Anna¡¯s heart further.


    ¡°Roshan he...¡±


    She turned to tell Roshan the exciting news, only to see the being was battling with a look of pain she¡¯s never seen in his eyes before and her happy expression slowly dissipated. What caught her attention was the blood that escaped from the corner of his lips.


    ¡°Roshan!¡±


    She hurried to his side with quick steps, discarding the Mayor¡¯s son from her mind as she quickly knelt on the ground beside Roshan.


    ¡°What... what happened to you?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯te close.¡± He warned after seeing she was about to touch him, ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t look fine!¡± She argued. His face was contorted with a pain he couldn¡¯t hide and she knew he was trying his best to keep them hidden Ashe gritted his teeth.


    ¡°It¡¯s just a little consequence I have to face, I¡¯m alright.¡±


    ¡°Consequence?¡± Anna didn¡¯t get it, ¡°what consequence?¡±


    ¡°Check him while I...¡±


    He hadn¡¯t even finished speaking when she raised the hem of her dress and lightly wiped the blood from the corner of his lips, as though she was scared she¡¯d end up hurting him more if she pressed too hard.


    ¡°You im to be his highness when you can¡¯t even take care of yourself, how will you take care of your people then? I¡¯m still a maid so the care of his highnesses first, you can¡¯t stop me.¡±


    She queried non-stop like a mother scolding her son for being reckless. He didn¡¯t miss the look in her innocent brown eyes and for some reason, he found it difficult to look away.


    ¡°You...¡± he finally said something, ¡°you.... never listen, do you?¡±


    She noticed the glint in his Hazel-green eyes, causing a familiar feeling to flutter in her heart, but their moment was interrupted when the door opened. William was the one to step in.


    ¡°I heard ady scream.¡± He said with an rming look, only to spot Anna helping the annoying man up to his feet.


    ¡°What happened here?¡± He immediately questioned. Surprising both Anna and Roshan with his presence. Goodness knows what could have happened if he stepped in during the energy transfusion.


    Roshan¡¯s identity would have been exposed.


    The soft painful groan behind them caught their attention, equally catching the attention of William¡¯s and when they turned to see who it was.


    The young man on the bed was slowly regaining consciousness, leaving William¡¯s eyes to widen in disbelief after seeing the Mayor¡¯s son wake up from his deep slumbers.


    ¡°N_Nichs?¡± If he was wearing sses, he¡¯d have definitely taken it off to be certain he was seeing correctly.


    ¡°Arghh, my head.¡± The blinding headache was the first thing Nichs was weed with after staying how many days in bed??


    ¡°Nichs, you¡¯re awake!¡± William couldn¡¯t hold back his exmation before rushing to his bedside.


    ¡°How are you feeling?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s best not to stress him, he just woke up and his brain needs a lot of rebooting to do.¡± Anna suggestively exined, drawing William¡¯s attention back to her and Roshan.


    ¡°How did..how did you?!¡± He really couldn¡¯t believe it, they healed the Mayor¡¯s son.


    ¡°But what happened to him?¡± He asked after noticing a little change in Roshan¡¯s expression.


    ¡°He...uhh... he¡¯s not feeling too well,¡± she quickly came up with a lie, ¡°it¡¯s something that urs once in a while with him, but he¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    ¡°Then we better put him to rest to show our gratitude.¡±


    ¡°Can I ask for one favor then?¡± She mustered up enough courage to ask, causing William¡¯s brow to pull together.


    ¡°Which is?¡±


    Anna pinned her lips together as though feeling ashamed to say it, but it was something that needed to be done.


    ¡°Can we share a room?¡±

 Chapter 89

    89 A Wise Word


    Roshan¡¯s head whipped at the woman supporting him but he said nothing. Her gaze was fixed on William¡¯s who pondered on her question for a few seconds.


    He finally raised his head to look at them, his hands folded behind his back.


    ¡°As long as you both don¡¯t mind it, it can be arranged.¡±


    Anna smiled gratefully, ¡°thank you.¡±


    He walked out in a hurry and Anna could tell he was going to inform the mayor about his son¡¯s recovery. It was difficult not to smile at the fact they both did something good.


    ¡°Hey, why¡¯d you ask for such a favor?¡± Roshan who barely uttered a word finally asked and Anna met his surprised stare.


    ¡°You¡¯re hurt, I need to be around to take care of you.¡± She exined her reasons before averting her gaze, unwilling to stare further into those spellbinding eyes of his.


    ¡°Come on.¡±


    She wrapped an arm around his waist and held the hand that was around her neck. Roshan tensed a little after feeling her delicate hand circle his waist. She was holding him a little close that her heartbeat increased in his ears and he could feel her body warmth.


    .....


    He really wished he could clear his mind of this, but the mating mark was affecting him a lot more than he thought it would.


    A maid dressed in an ash- colored gown finally showed up in Nichs¡¯s room and her eyes instantly marveled at the sight of Roshan. Not that she knew him, but his handsomeness was something she had to stop and confirm he wasn¡¯t some dream painting that came to life.


    ¡°G.... greetings.¡± The maid finally forced herself to speak. ¡°Are you the new guests?¡±


    Anna nodded, ¡°yes.¡±


    The maid smiled, e with me so I can take you to your room to get some rest.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t we supposed to see the Mayor first?¡± Roshan inquired in a low tone, the maid blushed the moment she met his Hazel-green eyes and she lowered her gaze.


    ¡°The Mayor wants you to get enough rest, then you can join him for supper.¡± She exined, which made sense to Anna and besides, Roshan needed it to gain his strength back.


    ¡°Okay.¡±


    The maid stole one more nce at Roshan before turning to leave. Anna didn¡¯t fail to notice the admiration in her stare and looked at Roshan after she left.


    ¡°So many admirers, better hurry up and pick a wife.¡± She teased but Roshan rolled his eyes in response.


    ¡°I¡¯ll think about it.¡± The sarcasm in his tone was obvious, causing Anna to shake her head helplessly at him. They both walked out.


    They followed the maid and she led them to a room at the left corner of the corridor. She stopped after reaching the door.


    ¡°This is your room.¡± She said to them, ¡°if you need anything, do call on me and I¡¯ll be more than willing to attend to you.¡± She sweetly offered, but Anna wasn¡¯t dumb to know her own reasons behind it.


    ¡°We don¡¯t need anything for now thank you, but when we do, I won¡¯t hesitate to call.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll leave now.¡± The maid looked at Roshan one more time, ¡°do have your rest sir.¡±


    Roshan only responded with a nod of his head, the maid left after that.


    Anna took Roshan into the room and helped him sit on the bed.


    ¡°Take off your shirt, I need to check your injury.¡± She quickly said, but to her surprise, Roshan refused.


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Why? Please don¡¯t get difficult again and do as I say, it¡¯s important I check.¡±


    ¡°I said no.¡±


    ¡°Roshan!¡±


    He met her stare and she looked dead serious about it. Her arms were folded and her strict gaze was locked on him. He wasn¡¯t afraid of her, but he was definitely afraid of that stare.


    Slowly, he reached to loosen the knot in his shirt and Anna watched as more of his fair skin came into sight. He finally took off his shirt, leaving his bare torso exposed and Anna quickly checked the wound along his shoulder to the back.


    Her brow creased into worry after seeing the wound heal slower than usual, which was something that barely urred for Demons. Aren¡¯t they fast healers?


    ¡°Your wounds aren¡¯t healing quickly.¡± She said to him, and that¡¯s what he wanted to hide.


    ¡°I know.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°My energy level is low, as a half Demon, it¡¯s one of the consequences I face each time I transfer too much energy to someone.¡±


    ¡°Too much energy? But....the Mayor¡¯s son is the only person you¡¯ve transferred energy to, right?¡± She inquired with a look of concern, but he didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°Right?¡± She asked again and he suddenly stood up from the bed.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to take a bath.¡± He said instead. He reached for the wardrobe but Anna surprisingly came in front of him, blocking him from opening the wardrobe door.


    ¡°You have to answer my questions first.¡± She demanded, but he ignored and tried to open the wardrobe door. Anna¡¯s back was pressed against it, making it impossible to open the door.


    ¡°Move away Anna.¡±


    ¡°No, you have to answer me first.¡±


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not moving.¡±


    He forced the door open, mming Anna¡¯s body against his bare torso and she gasped at the unexpected turnout.


    She met his stare and her eyes dted further after realizing their faces were only centimeters apart, if she dared to take even the tiniest of steps, she¡¯d end up having her lips on his.


    His body against hers made her mind turn foggy and staring at his face which was covered with his hair made her wonder what it¡¯d feel like to have her fingers running through those soft silky ck hair of his.


    Are they as soft as they look? What¡¯s happening to her mind??


    Her heart thrashed in her chest and when she tried to retreat, he didn¡¯t let her and kept her frame trapped against his body and the wardrobe door.


    ¡°Now you wanna flee?¡± He asked, ¡°I thought you needed answers.¡±


    ¡°I...¡±


    ¡°A wise word from me Anna.¡± He leaned even closer, closing the unbearable distance between them and just when she thought he was about to kiss her, those sensual lips moved to her ear instead, giving it a bite and causing her heart to jump to her throat.


    ¡°No matter what happens, don¡¯t ever let yourself fall for me,¡± he softly whispered, ¡°else it¡¯d be difficult to get rid of me in the future.¡± He reminded her and at that moment, Anna felt something hard against her thighs, causing her senses to return. When she dared to look down, her face flushedpletely and she quickly raised her head back up.


    Anna could barely speak as though her voice was being held down, her body felt hot and every feeling was familiar, yet she was unsure of why? She wanted to push him away, she wanted to escape this but her body kept betraying her constantly.


    Roshan knew she sensed his hard member, he wanted her to feel it so she¡¯d keep a far distance from him and his scandalous thoughts, it¡¯s best to avoid the avoidable.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been warned.¡± He grabbed a nket from the wardrobe before pulling back, giving her enough space to breathe properly.


    The heat was instantly reced with a cold breeze after he kept a distance between them. His eyes spoke of the sinful intentions he nned on doing to her if she vited his warnings and he walked into the bathroom at the right corner of the room.


    Anna immediately regretted her choice of sharing a room with a pervert, if only she could turn back the hands of time.


    And did she just feel his...on her....


    Her face reddened and she moved away from the wardrobe.

 Chapter 90

    90 Trapped With A Devil


    ~


    Nichs dropped his teacup with a click on the table, before turning his Amber eyes at his father who was sitting beside him on the bed.


    William gracefully stood at the edge, keeping his presence close in case the mayor might need something.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been out for a whole week?¡± As shocked as he was, Nichs didn¡¯t have the strength to show it and his father nodded before masking the worried look with one of great relief.


    ¡°But you¡¯re fine now and the venom has sessfully gotten out of you, you¡¯ll heal with time.¡±


    ¡°Then what about the Demon?¡± His gaze turned cold as he asked, recalling he was on his way back from an important meeting to Ark Ville when the Demon showed up, creating an unforgiving terror.


    ¡°We killed it.¡± William spoke up this time around, ¡°It was a soulless demon, so it was quite easy to get rid of.¡±


    ¡°Did you use the spell to confirm if there were more of them?¡±


    William nodded, ¡°yes, and there was no sign of them.¡±


    .....


    ¡°There¡¯s a strange issue with the realms,¡± the Mayor cryptically added, ¡°that exins how the demon got into Ark Ville but thankfully, it didn¡¯t hurt anyone.¡±


    Nichs¡¯s charming face rxed at his father¡¯s word. ¡°Ark Ville¡¯s physicians are getting good enough to be able to treat the poison, demon bites aren¡¯t something that urs in Ark Ville.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s where you¡¯re wrong Nick.¡± William caught in, ¡°Ark Ville¡¯s physician couldn¡¯t treat your demon bite, a strange prettydy did.¡±


    Nick¡¯s brow arched in confusion, ¡°who?¡±


    ¡°A strangedy who goes by the name Anna.¡±


    Nichs turned his inquiring gaze to his father, who nodded in agreement to William¡¯s words.


    ¡°She and her brother got the poison out of you, they are the reason you¡¯re alive today.¡±


    ¡°Can I see them?¡±


    ¡°You need to rest first, she¡¯lle over to check your wound, then you can see them.¡±


    A realization quickly dawned on him as though he just remembered something important, ¡°I¡¯m supposed to have supper with them, I have to leave now.¡±


    He turned his attention to William, ¡°send a maid to watch over Nichs incase he needs something.¡±


    ¡°As you wish sire.¡±


    He stood up and left.


    Anna stepped out of the bathroom after refreshing herself and getting ready for the supper, there were no amount of words to exin how hungry she was.


    She spotted Roshan sitting on the chair at the dressing table, his eyes were closed shut as a maidbed his hair for him.


    The sight of him was heavenly and just watching the maid smile sheepishly as she handled his hair made her fist ball beside her. She seemed to enjoy having her hands on him and Roshan barely reacted, he just stayed put.


    In fact, he looks so rxed that it didn¡¯t settle with Anna at all. She didn¡¯t call him a pervert without a reason but then, she secretly wished he proved her wrong.


    ¡°Ahem!!¡±


    Anna ufortably cleared her throat, gaining the attention of the maid and she stopped.


    ¡°Greetings.¡± She bowed, leaving Anna speechless for a few seconds as she wasn¡¯t expecting it. Were the people of Ark Ville so respectable to their guests?


    ¡°I¡¯ll take it from here.¡± She said.


    ¡°But....¡±


    ¡°Surely there are a lot of things that need your attention, I wouldn¡¯t want my brother¡¯s selfish wants to add to your day.¡± Anna politely exined, but she knew in her head there was a second reason to it.


    The maid looked at Roshan, hoping he¡¯d say something to make her continue but his eyes just remained closed, as though he was fast asleep.


    ¡°Of...of course.¡± The maid dropped theb and bowed before exiting the room. A slow smile formed on Anna¡¯s lips and just when she was about to walk out, the cier suddenly picked up theb for her to see.


    ¡°You chased the maid away, you might as well continue from where she stopped.¡± He said, but his eyes were still sealed shut.


    Anna frowned at him, but at the same time, she had been wanting to know what touching his hair felt like. She forced a smile and took theb from his grip.


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    Averting her gaze from his enchanting face, she dropped it at his silky dark hair. It had grown a bit longer than usual.


    She finally reached tob his hair and to her surprise, theb easily went through as she brushed them, proving to be even more softer than she imagined it to be.


    It felt smooth and silky to the touch, making her wonder exactly what type of cream he uses. No wonder the maid was reluctant on leaving.


    ¡°How are you feeling?¡± She asked instead, and his eyes finally fluttered open.


    ¡°Better.¡±


    A sigh left his lips and his eyes closed again. The feeling of her hands in his hair made his scalp tingle. He liked it whenever she touched him cause there was aforting feeling that came with it, but he wasn¡¯t going to show it, he couldn¡¯t risk liking anything about the woman looking into his hair.


    Anna neatly styled his hair into a man bun, then left a few loose around his face, creating a framing effect that even made her gulp at how handsome he looked.


    ¡°Done.¡± She forced herself to speak. Roshan¡¯s eyes fluttered open again and when he met her big round eyes from the mirror, a kindling blood burned her cheeks like the breath of a hot wind and she instantly averted her stare.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be heading down for supper now, you can join when you¡¯re ready, just don¡¯t keep the Mayor waiting.¡± They couldn¡¯t forget this wasn¡¯t their ce, so they have to stay dutiful.


    Before she could walk out, he grabbed her wrist, stopping her from leaving and unhurriedly rose to his feet.


    He stood before her but as Anna¡¯s gaze remained buried to the ground, she failed to see he was checking her out.


    She was beautifully dressed in a simple cream colored gown. The dress left her shoulders uncovered and flows down into a simple Queen Anne neckline. It¡¯s a tight fit which makes the dress look graceful and stylish at the same time.


    Her arms are only covered at her shoulder, as though saying those good silky skin wasn¡¯t something that had to be covered. Below the waist, the dress flows generously till it reaches the ground and Roshan had to admit to himself that it looked good on her.


    Her brown hair was neatly tied in a ponytail, revealing her small, delicate and exquisite face. It looked pure and innocent like that of a child and for the first time, he wondered how someone so innocent ended up being trapped with a devil like him.


    Right, he abducted her.


    ¡°You look...¡± he nearly blurted the fact she was beautiful, but regained himself at thest minute.


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened slightly as she met his stare. He released her hand and he was the one to avert his gaze this time.


    ¡°I meant to say you look presentable.¡± He switched words, and Anna believed him with a nod of her head.


    ¡°The dress looks amazing, before we leave I¡¯ll make sure to shop for more of this.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you have a supper to go to?¡±


    And once again, he ruined the friendly atmosphere with his arrogant tone.


    ¡°Hmph! I¡¯m going, don¡¯t bete as well.¡± She twitched her lips at him before exiting the room.


    Just when he thought he could think properly now, Anna suddenly popped her head in.


    ¡°Hey Roshan.¡±


    He met her stare and watched as the silly woman had the audacity to stick out her tongue at him, obviously mocking him.


    ¡°You..!!..¡±


    Before he got a chance to react to her stubbornness, she quickly fled like she had sensed iting.


    He heard herugh for the first time as she ran off and a vague image of something simr to this shed in his head, leading his eyes to widen as it peeled through his brain like muffled bells.


    The vague image of ady running across the corridor with the same melodiousughter continuously echoed in his head and he couldn¡¯t understand why he kept getting uncleared shes whenever Anna was closeby.


    There was definitely more to this woman that meets the eye.


    ¡°Who really are you?¡±

 Chapter 91

    91 Spirit Of The Wild


    Humming brightly to herself, Anna skipped through the pleasantly bright corridor, feeling all cheerful for no particr reason. No doubt, the Mayor was someone important in Ark Ville and just thinking about her journey so far made her wonder how it all came to this.


    She was nothing but a cursed low-ss girl living in Draekharm vige, she had dreamed of having a simple normal life, but the heavens gave her way more than she expected. She became a maid to the kingdom of Euphrasia, then she became a pawn to the half-devil in Viscarrian, and now she¡¯s here, in Ark Ville, an unfamiliarnd with no idea how she ended up here.


    Feeling her silver birthmark with her fingers, she didn¡¯t bother to hide it since the people of Ark Ville weren¡¯t really familiar with a cursed birthmark. She had been wondering why thete symptoms weren¡¯t showing, she¡¯s barely passed out so far and despite sensing she had little time, she didn¡¯t really feel the symptoms.


    It reminded her of the old physician and his constant encouraging words. She¡¯d be lying to herself if she said she didn¡¯t miss him. She missed Euphrasia.


    ¡°If I could see the physician just one more....¡± Her gaze identallynded on the ck dragon painting at the left side of the wall and just like that, she stopped walking. The promising terror in it¡¯s golden eyes was something she couldn¡¯t shake off and the painting looked so realistic, giving her a feeling like the dragon would jump out of the painting and burn her into ashes.


    Coming closer, she stood before the painting. Anna¡¯s hand slowly reached to touch it when an ented voice broke her from her trance.


    ¡°Are you lost?¡± Asked a decent middle-aged woman who unhurriedly approached her direction.


    Anna immediately withdrew her hand before it could touch the painting and she took a quick step back. A look of bafflement and shock disyed on her face cause for a moment, she felt her body was unnaturally being pulled towards the painting, which was dangerously odd.


    ¡°N_no...I mean...I mean yes.¡± She tried to hide her anxiety by masking it with a smile and the woman finally stopped beside her. She doesn¡¯t look like someone Anna has seen around the Mayor¡¯s mansion and her dressing was one that showed her high status without her having to say it. Anna instantly concluded that she must be the Mayor¡¯s wife.


    .....


    The woman who appeared to be in herte 40¡¯s looked at Anna with a strange stare.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯re a maid I know, who are you?¡± She asked with that fluent ent of hers and Anna dipped her head in a low bow.


    ¡°Greetings..¡±


    She raised a brow, ¡°that doesn¡¯t answer my question.¡±


    Despite sounding a little rude, Anna didn¡¯t me her for being cautious. ¡°I¡¯m Annalise, from Euphrasia Kingdom and I¡¯m a guest to the Mayor.¡±


    ¡°How strange, my husband didn¡¯t inform me about receiving any guests today.¡±


    ¡°It was an inconvenience.¡±


    The woman still had her doubts when her eyes suddenly widened as though she recalled something, and her gaze shifted back to Anna.


    ¡°You¡¯re the one who healed my son.¡± She said, leaving Anna to nod with a smile and thedy¡¯s rude expression unexpectedly vanished.


    ¡°You should have said so instead of beating around the bush.¡± She let out a rich chuckle which made Anna feel awkward but she just smiled.


    ¡°I¡¯m justing from Nichs¡¯s room to see how he was doing. You did a good job and I hope you wouldn¡¯t mind teaching the useless physicians we have in Ark Ville some of your techniques?¡±


    Anna politely refused, ¡°I don¡¯t think the physicians are useless, they¡¯ve been treating every hurtful resident in Ark Ville so it¡¯s actually normal if they mess up one or two.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you naive?¡± The woman smiled, ¡°there are no mess ups when ites to taking care of my son, the Mayor¡¯s only son, but you¡¯ll understand the motherly feeling when you be one yourself.¡±


    She closed her hand fan before turning to look at the painting Anna was currently staring at.


    ¡°Beautiful, isn¡¯t it?¡± She asked, leaving Anna to nod politely before exchanging nces between the painting and the woman.


    ¡°It¡¯s a... Lovely painting.¡±


    ¡°The painting does make sense.¡± She agreed, ¡°the most talented painter of Ark Ville brought it as a gift to my husband when he got elected as Mayor, it¡¯s also something to remind the people of Ark Ville that we once conquered a dragon.¡±


    Anna met her stare, ¡°that means the dragon was once real?¡±


    She nodded, ¡°but that was three to four decades ago,¡± she shrugged it off, ¡°anyway if you¡¯re heading to the dining hall, we happen to be walking in the same direction so will you be my guest?¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡± Anna was a bit saddened she had to cut the discussion about the dragon short, but why did it bother her? It¡¯s just a painting.


    ¡°dly.¡±


    They both headed for the dining hall together.


    Roshan finally made it to the big dining hall after regaining himself. Anna and the Mayor were already present at the table, along with ady he¡¯s never seen before and a few maids that served them.


    They didn¡¯t notice Roshan¡¯s presence until the ss shattering sound of something drew their attention. When they checked, a maid had broken a ss the moment she was about to leave the dining hall and when they raised their heads up, Roshan stood there, equally startled by the sound and Anna seemed to understand exactly what happened.


    The maid quickly picked up the broken pieces before her madam starts yelling, hiding her bashful face and hurried out the moment she was done.


    ¡°Weird.¡± The Mayor who didn¡¯t understand what transpired all of a sudden found the maids¡¯ change of attitude to have turned a little clumsy. Too clumsy.


    ¡°Is he your brother? He¡¯s indeed a charm.¡± Madam Alinamented, ¡°This is the part I wish I had a daughter.¡±


    The Mayor ignored his wife¡¯s constant bbering and turned to face the cier. ¡°Roshan my boy,e, have your seat, join us.¡± He gestured for the cier to join them on the dining table and since he didn¡¯t have any other option, he joined them, sitting opposite Anna who refused to look at him and just quietly ate her delicious carrageen pudding.


    ¡°How are you feeling? William¡¯s made mention of you being off today.¡± The Mayor asked, using the opportunity to strike a conversation and Roshan clicked his tongue.


    ¡®I gave my energy to your son, it¡¯s a miracle my system hasn¡¯t copsed yet.¡¯ he felt relieved at his own thought but that left him with a question Azazel has to give an answer to.


    ¡°I¡¯m alright.¡± Came his short response before facing the meal a maid served on his table. He wasn¡¯t much of a talker when it came to having conversations with a stranger and Anna noticed that mostly about him. Even when they first met, she had to do most of the talking and there was no difference today.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to hear,¡± he cleared his throat before picking a teaspoon and using it to mix the tea in a cup in front of him, ¡°you both are from Euphrasia Kingdom.¡± He continued, ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of such.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s mostly ruled by humans, and I don¡¯t think you are one.¡± Anna softly emphasized after sensing his mystifying aura. It earned a light chuckle from the mayor who clicked the teaspoon on his cup before setting it back on the napkin.


    ¡°You¡¯re not wrong.¡± He met her gaze, ¡°Ark Ville¡¯s civilians share no difference with humans physically, but we¡¯re actually known as spirits of the wild.¡±


    ¡°Spirit what?¡± Roshan couldn¡¯t help but ask again, and the Mayor had expected it. He took a sip of his warm tea before dropping it back on the table.


    ¡°Let me put it like this, we¡¯re magical beings with different spiritual powers.¡± He broke it down while his wife nodded in response, ¡°not everyone has the same spiritual powers cause it¡¯s a gift we get after being born.¡±


    ¡°What type of powers then?¡± Anna delved in further.


    ¡°Most are spiritual animals, Mages exist, assassin¡¯s, let¡¯s take my guards for example.¡±


    Anna nodded after realizing he wasn¡¯t wrong.


    The conversation went on for almost half an hour and it was a pleasant one, except for Roshan who happened to space out during most of the conversation and it didn¡¯t miss Anna¡¯s noticeable gaze.


    ¡°I¡¯d like to excuse myself if you don¡¯t mind.¡± He spoke up and was already getting to his feet. Anna wanted to ask what the problem was but he left before she could say anything.


    ¡°I should...¡± she wanted to go after him but was stopped by Alina who gently grabbed her arm.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯s fine, whom you need to be worried about is my son.¡±

 Chapter 92

    92 Bloodstain


    ¡°Y_your son?¡± Anna didn¡¯t really get it and she nodded, confusing Anna even further.


    ¡°The poison might have been out, but he isn¡¯t fully healed yet.¡± She reminded her, ¡°you have to take care of him till he healspletely, then you can leave.¡±


    The Mayor only shook his head hopelessly at his wife¡¯s silly request.


    ¡°We have physician¡¯s to take care of that.¡± He caught in, which earned him a look of disbelief from his wife.


    ¡°And let them kill my son? I won¡¯t allow it Rnd.¡± Her response was clear and she turned to look at Anna again.


    ¡°I trust my son¡¯s health in your hand, that¡¯s why I want you to take care of him till he¡¯s healed, then I have no issue with you.¡±


    Anna silently pondered on her words for a while since thedy hasn¡¯t let go of her arm yet. Well she hasn¡¯t been killed fortunately, neither has Roshan but it wouldn¡¯t hurt to stay a few more days and help out, right?


    But what if Roshan¡¯s identity get¡¯s discovered??


    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much and just ept it. It¡¯s actually a privilege in Ark Ville to be able to care for the Mayor¡¯s son.¡±


    .....


    The Mayor who had been quiet just watched his wife¡¯s dramatic disy with a questionable intent before finally intervening.


    ¡°Anna dear, listen to the woman or else she won¡¯t let you go so easily.¡± He joked, but he knew his wife was capable of being a persistent being.


    ¡°Mhmn.¡± Anna responded with a nod of her head, causing a bright smile to lighten on madam Alina¡¯s face.


    ¡°Good girl, see Rnd? Our Nick will be all healthy and fit before you know it.¡±


    The Mayor rolled his eyes, indicating he wasn¡¯t going to fall for her moment but she swatted him off and faced Anna again.


    ¡°My dear, he¡¯s beenining of heavy breathing and the wound on his arm is still open, looking like a burn¡±


    ¡°Well... he should take somefrey tea, it¡¯ll ease the heavy breathing and some Aloe would work for the burn.¡± She rmended it, relieving Madam Alina at her thoughtful rmendation.


    ¡°I¡¯ll send a maid to make them, but you¡¯ll deliver it to him, it¡¯ll be a perfect chance for him to meet the girl who saved his life. Don¡¯t you think?¡±


    Anna barely uttered a word and just nodded her head like a controlled doll.


    ~


    At one of the fancy rooms, Nichs tried testing his powers as he stretched his right arm forward, focusing the little bit of energy his body could gain and an unknown spark was the first thing that ignited from his palm before dissipating.


    ¡°Come on!¡± The disappointment could be seen in his Amber eyes as he let himself rx on the bed. He has been out for a whole week, his body would definitely need time to recover fully but he wasn¡¯t the type who got used to staying in bed.


    Knock! Knock! Knock!


    Came the three knocks on his door, he rested his head on the headboard of his bed before responding.


    ¡°Come in.¡±


    The door quietly open with a light creak, Anna stepped in, holding a fancy white tray in her hand and when she advanced deeper into the room, the young man who sat upright on his bed came into sight.


    From the look on his expression, he doesn¡¯t seem to be in a good mood?


    It¡¯s toote to turn back now, so she took a deep calm breath before proceeding to break the strange silence in the atmosphere.


    ¡°How are you feeling now?¡±


    Her dulcet voice caught his attention even quicker and when he turned his head to see who had spoken to him, a young prettydy stood a few steps away from his bed, holding a tray and looking at him with such innocent big brown eyes.


    He blinked in response, a bit taken aback by the stranger in his room and she looks nothing like the maids who usually tend to his room.


    ¡°Who are you?¡±


    Anna had already expected his question, ¡°The name¡¯s Annalise.¡±


    ¡°Annalise?¡± He cracked his brain a little, wondering where he heard such a name before and the word of William¡¯s rang in his head.


    ¡°A strange prettydy healed your wounds.¡±


    ¡°Ahh, so you¡¯re Anna?¡±


    She nodded, ¡°yes, I was asked by Madam Alina toe treat your wound.¡±


    She reached for the drawer by his bedside, gently cing the tray on top of it before crouching at the edge of his bed to examine the wound, she reached for his head but halted mid-way when she realized he was still staring at her.


    ¡°Can I take a look at your arm?¡± She asked. Nichs, who finally realized he had been staring a little too long at the strange prettydy quickly averted his gaze, he didn¡¯t say a word and just stretched out his injured arm for her to see.


    Anna was satisfied with his cooperation and gently held the arm, examining it for herself and truly, it had opened just like Madam Alina said it did. It looked reddish, like some burn imprint.


    ¡°I¡¯ll apply some Aloe to your wound, that should heal it faster since it¡¯s nothing more but an injury now and you¡¯ll be fine.¡± She assured him, but the look on his face was one she found difficult to read. It left her wondering if he even heard the things she said or not.


    Still getting no response from him, Anna proceeded to apply the Aloe gloo on his injured arm, gently rubbing it along his arm to his elbow, she looked focused, meanwhile her mind waspletely elsewhere.


    ¡®I wonder if Roshan is okay.¡¯


    ~


    The moment she was done, Anna couldn¡¯t deal with the restlessness of her heart and hurried to her room instead. Thankfully, they didn¡¯t make it too far from Nichs¡¯s room which made it easier for her to locate it.


    Opening the door, Anna walked in with quick steps and she hadn¡¯t even let herself enter the room properly before calling out.


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    She surveyed the room she was hundred percent sure was theirs, but the being was nowhere to be seen.


    A little confused, Anna turned around and locked the door so no one woulde in.


    She swiftly turned back to stare at therge room given to them, but no sign of Roshan anywhere.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± She called out again but got no response from him. Then something caught her attention. The duvet on the bed had shifted slightly so the other end would fall to the ground, as though someone had rolled off the bed and slipped when trying to grab the duvet for support.


    ¡°Roshan?¡±


    Anna¡¯s heart repeatedly pounded in her chest as she slowly reached for the other edge of the bed, hoping it wasn¡¯t what her mind had pictured but after getting closer, her eyes horrifically widened after spotting Roshan unconscious on the tiled floor.


    She slowly staggered back like someone who just lost their stamina and shook her head in disbelief.


    ¡°What the_ Roshan!!¡±


    It felt like a part of her had torn after seeing Roshany unconscious on the ground. She instantly knelt beside him, shaking him in an attempt to revive him but he wasn¡¯t responding.


    ¡°What...what happened here?¡± She tapped his cheeks lightly with the aim of waking him up, but what she saw next made her heart stop. She slowly moved her hand away away from the corner of his lips, only to see bloodstain in her fair palm.


    ¡°B.. blood???¡±

 Chapter 93

    93 Stay Hidden


    Earlier


    ********


    The door was instantly closed shut by Roshan after stepping in, only to rest his back on it in an attempt to catch his breath. The whole room was spinning before his eyes as he surveyed it and he felt unusually dizzy, making his head ache painfully in return. He wasn¡¯t even sure if he stepped into the right room and that was one of his least worries.


    He forced his eyes to search for the direction of the bed and he spotted itying in the middle of the huge room. There were two bedsying farther apart from each other and he went for the one that was the closest to where he stood.


    He dragged his feet to move so he could get to the bed, but after taking one step forward and pushing his body weight away from the door, an unpleasing strain tugged at his chest which made him stop, like the vibration of a rope that was drawn too fast and It left a torturing effect circting around his system, causing him to feel unbreakably tied down.


    His legs nearly gave in as what affected the heart tends to affect the whole body but he restrained himself from falling. Of course, it was impossible to avoid the consequences no matter how much he fought it and he should have sensed it sooner.


    He faced it regardless and unsteadily headed for the bed, falling on top of it but that didn¡¯t help his predicament as his breathing changed rapidly.


    Losing his energy meant giving his Demon¡¯s the opportunity to take control of him, take control of his entire being and he felt something crawl under his skin. He felt their presence like a dark cloud hanging above his head.


    A presence he didn¡¯t want to feel or even know exists, because if he ever gave them the chance, not only will his identity be exposed, but he would cause unforgivable disasters for the second time.


    .....


    The memories of Euphrasia during the war, how he gave in to his demons and the chaos that followed after it, he couldn¡¯t let such repeat itself. Even if they triggered him, he couldn¡¯t let his Demons gain the upper hand again, what if Anna walks in? What if he hurts her??


    ¡°Get away from me!¡± He raged in a voice that barely sounded like his and his grasp tightened on the bed. It sounded more demonic and inhuman, giving way to the dreading energy that slowly consumed him except he didn¡¯t want it. His Hazel-green eyes turned a crimson red in anger, the air around him went still and his aura spoke volumes.


    The more he tried to keep them in, the more pain he felt within himself to the extent it brought tears to his eyes.


    ¡°Blood.¡± He whispered the moment those crimson eyes gazed at the ceiling. Her blood, he needed it to stabilize himself but not like this, not when his Demon¡¯s were going rampant inside of him and craving for bloodshed. If Anna dared to walk in....


    He closed his eyes and let out a groan, the vases in the room broke due to his powers going abnormal, followed by a heavy wind that blew the cottons open. He possessed too many powers that it became difficult to control, he was able to cause destructive chaos like his father and that gave him the name half-devil.


    ¡®Don¡¯t fight it.¡¯ his father would warn, but epting it was way more worse. When did he be so weak??


    His fangs grew and when he turned to the side, he ended up falling from the bed and grabbing the edge of the duvet, dragging it along with him.


    He remained on the ground, staring at the ceiling above him as blood trickled from his lips to his chin and onto the tiled floor. Everything looked hazy and the ceiling looked unclear in his demonic eyes.


    His eyelids grew heavy, he couldn¡¯t move a muscle and when he tried to speak, he couldn¡¯t even say the words that gued his mind.


    Giving up on fighting it any further, he closed his eyes and let the darkness wee him in.


    ~


    Like every other normal morning, the sun was out and the sky was clear blue. It was meant to be a peaceful morning but the stern voices of men drew Anna¡¯s attention to the window.


    She peeped through the curtains and watched as the guards of Ark Ville yed a soulless demon, she heard it make an ugly shriek of pain but they didn¡¯t stop and continuously kept thrusting their swords into the Demon¡¯s chest, arm, leg as though they had a goal to decapitate it.


    Anna barely knew how she got the strength to watch something so horrific, but arge beast wolf ended up showing up at the scene and tearing the demon in half with its extremely sharp teeth, that¡¯s when Anna¡¯s hand nervously tightened against the curtain.


    What if Roshan¡¯s identity is discovered? what if??!


    ¡°Soulless are pretty easy to get rid of.¡± The deep tired voice that suddenly spoke brought Anna¡¯s mind back to the present and she turned around to find the cier awake.


    ¡°Roshan!¡± A look of relief washed over her earlier worried face and she left the window, hurrying over to the edge of his bed.


    The cier was sitting up, his back against the headboard as he met her pleasing stare.


    ¡°You¡¯re awake.¡± As happy as she was, she was still surprised. His situationst night looked so critical that she found herself lost on what to do, so she got him to bed and made some medicinal tea she recalled reading from the old physician¡¯s book.


    ¡°How are you feeling now?¡±


    Instead of answering, he moved the duvet away and wanted to get up from bed, only to be stopped by Anna.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± She asked, leaving Roshan to pause in his movement as she blocked his path.


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I be asking you?¡±


    ¡°You aren¡¯t allowed to leave the bed until I say so.¡± She stated, but the cier didn¡¯t have the strength to start an argument with her so early in the morning.


    ¡°Anna, who is the master between the two of us?¡±


    Anna shook her head, ¡°the answer to that is obvious, if I don¡¯t take care of you before we go back to Viscarrian, I¡¯ll die in the hands of your family so stay still.¡±


    He wasn¡¯t fully healed yet and she was smart enough to notice it, he looked exhausted and he was restraining himself again. His energy was low, extremely low and he wouldn¡¯t give her a response as to how it came to this.


    ¡°Plus, Ark Ville are not a fan of Demons, you should stay hidden most times since it might be a lot risky, they have powers and they¡¯re magical, your aura can be sensed if you make a slip.¡± She reasoned, but the cier got to his feet regardless and strode towards the window.


    The body of the soulless was left decapitated on the ground and his Hazel-green eyes remained fixed on it.


    ¡°Gather this filth and burn it to ashes!¡± Came the stern voice of Nichs who was also present in the scene. Just watching it all brought disturbing memories to Roshan and Anna noticed the look in his eyes lost a bit of its colors.


    ¡°I_I don¡¯t think you should be worried about any of this.¡± Anna quietly intervened, gaining Roshan¡¯s attention back but he didn¡¯t look at her.


    ¡°Who said I was worried?¡± He let out a soft chuckle and the little light that was gone immediately returned. How was someone so good at hiding their emotions??


    ¡°It deserved to die anyway, it¡¯s never a good thing to hurt the innocent without a reason.¡± He added before averting his gaze from the window but when he turned, Anna was standing before him.


    ¡°Are you bothered about something?¡± Even if he didn¡¯t respond, she could see it in his eyes that he wanted to say something.


    ¡°Anna..¡±


    ¡°You know I won¡¯t listen unless you push me out of the way.¡± She made it clear to him, ¡°we¡¯re in Ark Ville together, so whatever happens involves us both no matter how much we disapprove of it, so tell me, what¡¯s bothering you?¡±


    Roshan, whose gaze was fixated elsewhere, returned to look at Anna, he could see she wouldn¡¯t leave the way and she remained true to her words. He wasn¡¯t the type who knew how to receivefort, he never knew how to receive one but just looking at her, a strange feeling curled into his chest, as though telling him he could freely pour out whatever he wanted to say to her.


    ¡°Your blood.¡± He began, ¡°I need your blood again.¡±

 Chapter 94

    94 Hold On Tight


    ¡°M_my what?¡± Anna blinked in awe.


    Out of all the thousand things bothering him, Anna really couldn¡¯t believe he picked this particr one and her quizzical stare was justified.


    ¡°I can¡¯t control my Demons.¡± He admitted before looking away, ¡°regaining my energy would take years of healing and my Demons aren¡¯t very friendly with me.¡±


    ¡°Wait, years??¡±


    He nodded to her stupefaction and that made Anna realize something as well, causing a look of remorse to disy on her face.


    ¡°Your refusal to help me treat Nichs was because of that?¡±


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter anymore, does it?¡± He shrugged it off, but it only made Anna worried and a little bit upset too as she stumped her feet in action.


    ¡°Why did you do it after knowing your health would be in this much danger?¡±


    ¡°You asked me to do it.¡±


    .....


    ¡°When did you start listening to everything I tell you?¡± She really couldn¡¯t believe this man, was he serious?


    ¡°Let¡¯s just say I took pity on you.¡± His indifference was something Anna found difficult to deal with.


    ¡°Still...¡±


    Anna couldn¡¯t help but feel guilty, and she had been quite upset with him for thinking he was being the cold-hearted being he was, she never knew he had a reason behind it and now, he was facing the consequences for her own ignorance


    ¡°By my blood, that_that means you have to go with the same process? On my neck?¡±


    When she looked at him, his fangs were already visible, causing a gasp to escape from her lips as she wasn¡¯t expecting he¡¯d be this ready to take her blood.


    ¡°I¡¯m not so patient, human,¡± he tilted his head at her as his impish eyes wandered elsewhere, ¡°anywhere in particr is fine by me.¡±


    ¡®Anywhere?¡¯ that response left Anna puzzled, where else could he bite apart from the neck?


    His gaze was still fixated on her body but Anna didn¡¯t dare to follow the specific direction of those hazel-green eyes. Her heart raced and he made her feel naked just by staring like that.


    ¡°The same area would be fine, but....¡± She wasn¡¯t even done speaking when he grabbed her and pulled her into his arms.


    ¡°Hold on tight if it drains you, at least I¡¯ll know when to stop.¡± He whispered before sinking his teeth directly at where he bit her before, as though he couldn¡¯t wait to get his fangs into her delicious skin again.


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened at first due to the quick sting but she was expecting a much more painful prickle. Strangely, it didn¡¯t hurt like the first time he bit her. Instead, she could feel her body grow weak with each passing minute when he sucked her blood out of her body and was this what he meant by she should hold on tight?


    Her arms immediately wrapped his neck when she felt her knees buckle and his arms around her waist supported her to stand straight. She remained oblivious to the fact that she would end up sealing their bodies together in an intimate manner but her mind was far from that. Her eyes were closed shut and the same familiar heat that urred whenever he sucked her blood was felt again.


    She shivered when he continuously drained her blood with no mercy, not wanting to give her a break or let her catch her breath. Her blood had always been tempting and just getting the chance to taste it again, he¡¯d make sure to relish the moment.


    Meanwhile, Anna held on even tighter as his hot lips on her bare neck nearly forced a moan out of her, he was just too good at this and their bodies pressed against each other only added to the heat of the moment. She wanted him to stop, but didn¡¯t want him to stop at the same time.


    He slowly pulled back to look at her and met her brown eyes, his eyes were crimson red when he met her stare and a sudden thump at the left side of his chest caught his attention.


    For the first time, Anna saw him stare at her with such tenderness in his eyes, followed by an unreadable sadness as his hand slowly grazed her thighs through her gown, making him wonder what it¡¯d really feel like to feel them bare against his hands.


    The feeling was all too familiar for Anna and he didn¡¯t stop there. Anna felt those hands travel up to her waist, her stomach and lingering a little longer on her breast before reaching to caress her soft cheek.


    He suddenly uttered something that he himself barely heard, but it was enough to make his heart beat.


    ¡°Aveline.¡±


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened when he mentioned that name again, the look in his crimson eyes turned predatory, like the one in her dream and before she knew it, he was kissing her.


    It was nothing like the teasing kisses he shared with her, there was something entirely different about this one, his unforseen possessiveness, the way he kissed her fiercely while thrusting his wicked tongue into her mouth and giving her no chance to breathe.


    It ignited something inside of her and before Anna knew it, she was moving back, hoping to break the kiss but he followed and the next thing, she felt her back against the wall and now she was trapped with Roshan devouring herpletely.


    It was burning her up and it felt hard to keep up with how demanding his kisses were. She let out a whimper, wanting him to know she couldn¡¯t breathe but he didn¡¯t give her that chance and trapped her arms against both sides of the wall.


    Why did he call her Aveline? Her name was Anna... and why was he kissing her like this? Despite being so demanding, she couldn¡¯t deny it felt good and she felt ashamed for thinking like this.


    Roshan on the other hand was lost in his sudden possessiveness over her, he had been trying to ignore what she did to him and his body but today, he couldn¡¯t hold himself back. His once usuallyid shaft was now throbbing and hard against the woman he wanted to rip naked and feel even more.


    But the unexpected knock on the door stopped him from carrying out his sinful ns.

 Chapter 95

    95 Tea In The Garden


    ¡°Anna dear, are you awake?¡± Came the ented voice of Madam Alina who continuously knocked on the door.


    The constant knocking sound was enough to irritate Roshan and when he mmed his fist on the wall like it¡¯d stop the annoying knock from echoing into his sensitive ears, his powers indeliberately activated.


    The floor beneath their feet shook unsteadily due to the impact of his hit, despite it being nothing but a normal punch to the wall. Madam Alina felt the unsteady impact herself as the ground beneath her shook in a way that threatened to break and crumble if much pressure were applied, causing her to unsteadily stagger back from the effect.


    ¡°Oh my!¡± She took a quick step back away from the door, avoiding the negative energy that came along with it and her brows furrowed in dismay, her lips curving to the side to match her intent stare.


    ¡°Strange, that energy...¡± it left her puzzled and she closed her beautiful hand fan. She¡¯s never felt anything so powerful like that before. Who in heaven¡¯s name possessed such vile power??


    Anna¡¯s hazy eyes instantly widened after seeing the action Roshan took and she made him look at her. His eyes were crimson red and she shook her head after noticing he wasn¡¯t himself.


    ¡°Madam Alina is at the door, she can¡¯t see you like this.¡±


    In other words, she can¡¯t see them like this, all flushed, with ragged heavy breathing and the aroused heat surrounding the two of them. Anna barely had the energy to ask what happened but there was something way more important she had to deal with and that person was standing right outside the door.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± She wanted to gain his attention, bringing his mindset back to the situation before them and the cier finally blinked like someone who just snapped out of a deep trance. Only then did he realize what unfolded between them and he took a shocking step back.


    .....


    He closed his eyes for a few seconds and when he opened them, they were back to the hazel-green eyes, the normal pretty eyes she was used to seeing but the primal desires swirling in them hadn¡¯t cooled off.


    ¡°Anna? Is everything alright in there?¡± Came the voice of madam Alina and Anna immediately responded this time around.


    ¡°Yes, everything¡¯s alright, forgive myte response but... I¡¯ll be at the door in a few seconds.¡±


    She looked at Roshan who let his weight fall to the bed with a soft sigh leaving his parted lips, he covered his face with his palm and before madam Alina got suspicious, Anna quickly adjusted her dress and hurried towards the door to open it.


    Madam Alina¡¯s pretty face came into sight but Anna didn¡¯t wait by the door and stepped out before closing it shut behind her.


    ¡°Morning Madame Alina.¡± She greeted as usual, but the woman¡¯s expression was somewhat quizzical as she asked.


    ¡°Is everything alright? You took forever to open a simple door.¡± That really wasn¡¯t the case to Alina, she was more concerned about that energy she felt and wondered who could possibly possess something so... so chaotic.


    But looking at Anna at the moment, she doesn¡¯t seem to have been the one capable of causing something like that, afterall she¡¯s nothing but a human.


    ¡°F_forgive me, I was attending to_¡±


    ¡°Your brother?¡± She quickly clicked in as the thought of Roshan invaded her mind.


    Anna nearly cringed the moment she mentioned Roshan as her brother and now she was starting to regret evering up with such an excuse. She wanted to tell her that he wasn¡¯t her brother in any way, but unfortunately it¡¯s toote for that now, isn¡¯t it.


    ¡°Yes.¡± She replied instead.


    ¡°Oh, how is he feeling now? After what happened yesterday he seemed off.¡± The suspicion in her tone really rang an rming bell in Anna¡¯s head but she held her resolve and kept her demeanor calm and convincing.


    ¡°He¡¯s actually better now, he¡¯s not been feeling welltely so he just needed some rest.¡±


    Madam Alina had her doubts on something as a vague thought creeped into her head, but she waved it off and opened her fan to elegantly blow herself.


    ¡°Let¡¯s skip that for another day, I was wondering if you could join me for some tea at the garden.¡± Madam Alina requested, although in her mind she didn¡¯t think it¡¯d be normal for her to refuse such a special invite from a Mayor¡¯s wife, but she decided to ask regardless.


    ¡°The weather is actually pleasant this morning and it is indeed a good time to have tea.¡±


    ¡°Does that also exin the colors on your cheek?¡± Madam Alina pointed out, causing Anna¡¯s hands to fly to both her cheeks as they turned even redder due to her observation and a shocking gasp left Madame Alina¡¯s red lips.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯ve got the morning fever, that regrly happens during this particr season since it¡¯s almost autumn.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m perfectly fine, I just felt uhm.. hot, you see, the room doesn¡¯t really wee a lot of fresh air so I¡¯m even more pleased that you chose to invite me for tea in your garden.¡± Anna forced herself to respond while rubbing her cheeks lightly to get rid of the colors and of course, the scandalous moment from her head.


    ¡°Good,¡± Alina smiled once more, ¡°then let¡¯s go, we¡¯re all actually in a favorable mood today after getting rid of the soulless Demon.¡±


    Madam Alina started a conversation which Anna had no choice but to lower her guard and listen to as they strode past the wide corridor.


    Roshan, who remained on the bed, finally opened his eyes to gaze at the ceiling and everything that happened earlier came flooding his mind.


    He bit his lower lip hard, finding every feeling to be strange and yet so familiar at the same time. He couldn¡¯t remember thest time ady caught his attention to this extent, to the extent of making him hard and tempting his Demons.


    A questioning look formed in his brows as his eyes narrowed and something didn¡¯t make quite a lot of sense to him.


    ¡°Why did I call Anna Aveline?¡±


    ~


    At the beautiful garden, Anna sat on one of the fancy white chairs while staring at the booksying on a table in front of her.


    ¡°You¡¯re into books?¡± Anna politely questioned while lifting her gaze to look at the woman who sat beside her, currently enjoying her tea and she dropped it back on the tea te.


    ¡°These are actually called grimoires.¡± She exined, ¡°I use them to help build my skills.¡±


    ¡°So you¡¯re a mage.¡±


    ¡°A powerful one at that,¡± she proudly added, ¡°but I don¡¯t use them since I have lots of people doing the work for me.¡±


    Anna¡¯s gaze returned to the book and a look of interest shed in her irises. She wanted to pick one but stopped mid-way and turned her head to Madame Alina¡¯s direction.


    ¡°Can I?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not something human¡¯s read but go ahead.¡±


    Anna picked a book and stared at the thick cover. Indeed, it had a strange symbol on the center that wasn¡¯t only beautiful, but had a meaning she wanted to figure out herself. Her brown eyes stared in great curiosity while running her fingers lightly through the cover.


    Impulsively, she opened to the first page but what she saw made her stare as though she was looking at a nk page. Strange spells were written in extremely tiny letters. She could barely see what it said.


    Madam Alina chuckled at her expression. ¡°I told you.¡±


    ¡°The handwriting is so small.¡± Anna blurted out while Madame Alina shrugged to it and sipped her hot tea.


    ¡°What can I say? Our ancestors were quite difficult and took things like this very seriously.¡±


    Anna¡¯s gaze remained fixed on the tiny words and a soft voice uttered something she could barely understand.


    ¡°Huh?¡± The soft whisper made her avert her gaze and she turned to look at Madame Alina who was staring back at her.


    ¡°Is something wrong dear?¡±


    ¡°I_I thought you said something.¡±


    ¡°Did I?¡± Madam Alina looked quite puzzled and clueless about what she was talking about, but Anna discarded it. Maybe it was her mind bothering her.


    She picked up her cup of tea to take a sip and rx her mind when she felt something buzzing around her ear. She ignored it at first, thinking it¡¯d go away but when the buzzing slowly grew louder, she tried to swat it away.


    She threw her hands back in an attempt to get rid of the fly or whatever was bothering her, only to end up pouring the tea on someone who approached their seat.


    When Anna finally turned to see who it was, her expression dropped and that¡¯s when she knew she was in big trouble because she didn¡¯t just pour hot tea on anyone, but the Mayor¡¯s son!!

 Chapter 96

    96 Daydream


    After ending the life of the demon that dared to cross the border and step into his territory, Nichs had a much greater satisfaction in watching his soldiers hold the ugly thing down and ripping its body into pieces.


    This would be nothing but a warning to whatever demon lingered out there and he¡¯d like to see which demon would be brave enough to step into his domain after that.


    Taking a walk in the garden, he caught sight of his mother at the corner of the garden, sitting in the arbor with the strangedy next to her. They seemed to be having tea and enjoying their light conversation but it was something that triggered his suspicion.


    When did his mother be sofortable with strangers? It¡¯s never like his mother to be so nice and worst of all, she¡¯s having tea with a total stranger.


    The stranger might have saved his life but that doesn¡¯t mean he¡¯d blindly trust her and that¡¯s exactly what his mother was doing.


    He nned on walking away and leaving them to their own discussion, but stopped before he could even take a step forward.


    ¡®It wouldn¡¯t hurt to pass my greetings. I haven¡¯t seen my mother today.¡¯ he convinced himself on why he shouldn¡¯t just walk away, using his mother as bait when his real intention was to crosspath with the strangedy.


    With that excuse of a greeting, he headed for their direction.


    He watched her cinnamon-brown hair effortlessly flutter to the cool breeze that swayed back and forth, the wind carried a mixture of alluring scents of flowers that pleased his mood and for a few seconds, he couldn¡¯t help but picture the strangedy as one of those flowers.


    .....


    Upon reaching the arbor made by green leaves and stems from nts, the strangedy looked bothered about something, drawing his attention and when he saw her trying to swat something away, a hot liquid ended up sshing on his body and he paused in his steps.


    He closed his eyes, pinning his lips together as this wasn¡¯t how he pictured his entrance to be.


    ¡°Forgive my carelessness, I¡¯m so sorry.¡± Was the panicked voice of the strangedy who was already up at her feet, keeping her head bowed as a sign of apology before raising them to look at him and he met her brown eyes when his eyes flickered open.


    ¡°Are you hurt? The tea was really hot so you must have been hurt from it, I even ruined your outfit, please have mercy, it wasn¡¯t intentional.¡± Anna¡¯s mind was already filled with a lot of things and it seems she just keeps bringing more to the table, isn¡¯t it her bad luck.


    She stared at the young handsome man whose noble outfit was stained due to the tea she identally spilled on him. Thankfully it didn¡¯t look like it touched his skin, but the look in his Amber eyes was one she found difficult to read.


    Was he upset?


    ¡°Nichs, are you alright?¡± His mother also rose from her seat, hurrying to go check her son and making sure he wasn¡¯t hurt from the tea spill.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine mother.¡± He responded, ¡°I actually came over to pass my greetings but I guess it had been rejected before I even started.¡±


    He wasn¡¯t looking at her, but Anna knew he was referring to her in some way, causing her to shake her head and lower it in remorse in front of him.


    ¡°Oh Nichs, she didn¡¯t do it on purpose and she already apologized.¡± His mother cut in, ¡°she¡¯s actually very nice.¡±


    He raised a pretty brow, ¡°Is she? Then how does she tend to my clothes?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not a maid Nick.¡± His mother reminded him, ¡°she¡¯s your father¡¯s guest and also your personal physician, you don¡¯t expect her to wash your clothes for you.¡±


    Nichs ran his fingers through his brown hair but he said nothing, his personal physician? He doesn¡¯t recall appointing her as his personal physician.


    ¡°Who made her my physician?¡± He inquired before looking at her, but her head remained dipped in a low bow and he felt somewhat disappointed she wasn¡¯t even looking at him.


    ¡°Your father and I.¡± Madam Alina smiled before reaching for Anna¡¯s arm and only then did Anna raise her head up to look at the woman.


    ¡°Ignore my son, he tends to act like this with people he isn¡¯t familiar with.¡± She exined but that made her mind drift to a certain someone who also has issues with talking to strangers.


    ¡°Once again, do ept my apology.¡± Anna bowed and it only made Nick slightly frustrated with how respectful she was. Apart from that there was nothing attached.


    ¡°Fine.¡± He finally responded in a rich manly tone, ¡°but as my physician you should learn to keep me from harm¡¯s way, not add salt to the already opened wound.¡±


    He felt d it didn¡¯t spill to his wounded arm, it hadn¡¯t healed yet and he didn¡¯t want to imagine how painful it¡¯d end up being for him if the hot tea touched him there.


    ¡°If you want I can have a look at your wound in return.¡± Anna offered but he only scoffed.


    ¡°Why? To spill_¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s even better, let her have a look at your wound to make sure no damages were done.¡± Madam Alina chimed in while pulling Anna to stand beside her son whose gaze grew more suspicious due to his mother¡¯s act.


    Alina couldn¡¯t help but smile at how perfect they looked together, her charming son was already at the age of getting married but he constantly rejects the women she brings to him with the excuse of wanting someone different and unique.


    Well now she can do nothing more but bring them closer together and make sure they fall for one another before Anna thinks of going back to her ce.


    ¡°Anna my dear, do apply the same ointment you applied on himst night, he¡¯s already standing before me thanks to your magical Herbs.¡±


    Anna nodded in affirmation, but when Nichs opened his mouth to object, the warning stare from his mother silenced him and he shut his lips.


    ¡°Go now.¡± She gestured for them to leave. Nichs had a particr question he was tempted to ask his mother but decided to save it for another day.


    Anna and Nichs left the garden at madam Alina¡¯s word. Nichs walked ahead while Anna followed behind like an obedient servant.


    She raised her head up to make sure she hadn¡¯t lost sight of Nichs just yet and that¡¯s when she saw him. The cier was resting his back on the wall with his hands in his pocket, looking ethereal and devilishly handsome as always.


    He met her stare and winked, causing Anna¡¯s heart to palpitate in her chest and when she blinked, he was no longer there.


    ¡°Where did he go?¡± His quick disappearance wasn¡¯t one she had expected but a quick snap at her face made her look up to meet Nichs¡¯s Amber eyes.


    ¡°Why did you stop walking?¡±


    ¡°Stop?¡± She realized they were still standing before the passageway and truly, she had stopped walking.


    ¡°Was it a daydream?¡± She muttered to herself, only for Nichs to snap his finger at her face again, gaining her attention back.


    ¡°You cked out again.¡±


    Anna immediately shook her head, ¡°no I just.... thought of something, we can continue.¡±


    ¡°Stay ahead this time, this way you won¡¯t stop walking.¡±


    He was curious to know what had her eyes glinting earlier but stopped himself from asking after spotting a golden badge hanging around her waist.


    ¡°Hey, where did you get this?¡±

 Chapter 97

    97 Finding Roshan


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°That thing on your waist.¡± He pointed at the golden badge that hung on her waist belt and Anna reached for it.


    ¡°It¡¯s something very special from my kingdom.¡± She responded with a look of enthusiasm.


    ¡°Can I have a look then?¡±


    Anna stared at his outstretched hand but instead of dropping the badge on it, she met his gaze. Why was he interested in her badge? So many times she¡¯s lost it on her journey but fortunately she always receives it back. Will he give it back?


    ¡°Is there a problem?¡± She worriedly asked, but he shook his head in response and his gaze held no evil intentions.


    ¡°I just want to have a look at it.¡±


    ¡°Will you give it back?¡±


    ¡°As long as it¡¯s not edible.¡±


    .....


    His responses sounded funny and convincing to her ears. She felt a strange feeling like she could trust his words, even if it¡¯s just once and it wouldn¡¯t hurt to give it a try. Assuring her mind with that, Anna ced the golden badge on his palm and the noble being finally raised it up to study it.


    The texture was smooth and carved into perfection. He could swear he¡¯s seen someone with this same badge in Ark Ville, but who was it again??


    ¡°It¡¯s made of real gold.¡± He analyzed before meeting her stare and she nodded.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s wise to walk around with something this valuable then, what if it gets stolen?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a warrior badge from Euphrasia, it can¡¯t be stolen without facing great repercussions for it.¡±


    ¡°Well this isn¡¯t Euphrasia,¡± he reminded her, ¡°this is Ark Ville and things like this can attract hoodlums in Ark Ville, don¡¯t take it out with you in case you have any ns of stepping out.¡±


    He handed it back to her as promised. Anna nodded gratefully, feeling happy that he warned her about something like this and they continued walking.


    ~


    Viscarrian


    ************


    ¡°Roshan and his maid vanished for a whole three days to be exact, and no one¡¯s doing anything to bring them back.¡± Lady Gretta voiced her fake worries in the grand hall, crossing her hand under her chest before looking away from Gravion and the rest of the Demons present.


    ¡°I have to agree.¡± Madam Odette neutrally responded with a nod, ¡°who knows if they¡¯re alive or even_dead.¡± She pointed out with a flick of her wrist.


    ¡°My brother isn¡¯t dead.¡±Levi intervened with a scowl, finding the two women to be nothing but annoying sets of demoness with pr needles as tongues.


    ¡°We just can¡¯t find him, all the guards in Viscarrian are searching for him and so have we, but you two just sit around and make numerousints without doing anything to help the situation.¡±


    ¡°Where are your manners?¡± Madam Odette cut in, finding Levi¡¯s rude words to be totally uncalled for, ¡°and who says we haven¡¯t contributed to Roshan¡¯s search? Who do you think informed the higher demons about all of this?¡±


    ¡°That isn¡¯t enough, I¡¯ll appreciate it more when you actually stand up and leave thefort of the pce to go find him.¡±


    Amidst all the argument, it finally dawned on everyone present in the hall that only Azazel was mute.


    The being just rxed on the chair, lookingfortable with himself. His eyes were sealed shut as though he was resting and everyone¡¯s gaze was currently fixed on him.


    ¡°If you really want to me someone, me the one whose most rted to Roshan,¡± Odette huffed, ¡°afterall, they¡¯re brothers but he¡¯s sofortable with the fact Roshan¡¯s missing, or maybe that¡¯s what he wants so he can get the throne for himself.¡±


    ¡°You know something Aunt.¡± Azazel¡¯s voice was just as soft as the rain, sounding less traumatic or angered like someone who carried no burden.


    ¡°Back then when I was younger, Roshan made a statement that I didn¡¯t quite understand until now. He said strange things like many are mad, but only few roam the street. I used to think he was mad not knowing he was referring to the both of you.¡±


    Every phrase of his was like a sh of scimitar to Odette¡¯s pride and Gretta¡¯s face copsed as if it were a pricked balloon. Did he just...!!..


    ¡°It¡¯s enough, all of you!¡± Gravion, who had been quiet, finally intervened before a family feud urred. He rubbed his forehead slightly as all the usations and constant bacsh was making his head throb in pain.


    ¡°We¡¯re here to find Roshan, not create unnecessary uproar.¡±


    Azazel got to his feet and swiftly grabbed his jacket from the stand. ¡°You all can continue with whatever it is you¡¯re doing, I hope you find Roshan by the way but I¡¯m heading to Euphrasia for now.¡±


    ¡°Euphrasia? Why?¡± Levi asked with a suspicious stare. Azazel wasn¡¯t the type who visited the human world, he always said he hated it so what¡¯s he going to do there?


    Gemma, who hid behind the stairs, watching everything unfold as usual, hurried to go stand beside Azazel. She hid behind him and peeped from his legs like a frightened white puppy.


    Even if Gemma couldn¡¯t talk, Azazel found her to be a lot wiser than a lot of people living in the pce walls. He held her small hand to calm her nervousness before meeting Levi¡¯s gaze.


    ¡°Don¡¯t ask stupid questions ande with me instead.¡±


    He turned and exited the hall with Gemma.


    ¡°Wait for me.¡± Levi went after him, leaving Gretta, Odette and Gravion to themselves. There was nothing more toxic than hanging around this three set of Demons and Gretta couldn¡¯t help but whisper to Odette after finding Azazel¡¯s excuse for leaving to mean something else.


    ¡°Where is he going?¡±


    Odette didn¡¯t respond to Gretta¡¯s prying question and remained silent. She doesn¡¯t have a clue as to where the being might be going and it¡¯d be even more dangerous to follow him.


    Just like Roshan, he was unpredictable and guessing his movements coulde out wrong in a lot of ways. But why should she bother? She¡¯ll figure out what¡¯s going on between these two brothers sooner orter.

 Chapter 98

    98 Untimely Visitor


    Euphrasia


    ***********


    Walking amongst the normal civilians of Euphrasia in the calm afternoon weather, Gemma¡¯s happy eyes scanned the stalls that lined in rows both in the left hand side and the right.


    It was bustling with people who came to sell, buy or gossip as different voices echoed through the busy street.


    Delicious aroma of buns, cake, every other snack filled the air and Gemma really enjoyed the snacks humans eat, and now this mouthwatering scent was making her crave for one.


    She tugged lightly at Azazel¡¯s shirt, drawing his attention back to her and she excitedly pointed at a stall where the owner was making fresh buns. She jumped lightly while pointing at it, indicating that she wanted one.


    ¡°You want one?¡±


    She nodded happily. Meanwhile Levi¡¯s own eyes feasted on the stalls that sold unique artifacts and he looked thoughtful. Humans are quite fond of prehistoric treasures but have no idea on how to use them, or what their main uses are.


    ¡°The ones on the table must be cold already, when I¡¯m done here we¡¯ll get the freshly made ones, you¡¯ll like that even more, right?¡± Azazel questioned the little girl who paused for a while. She ced a finger to her cheek, thinking about Azazel¡¯s offer before nodding her head again in agreement.


    .....


    ¡°Good, let¡¯s go.¡±


    Levi turned his attention to Azazel, ¡°where exactly is this ce?¡±


    ¡°Draekharm vige.¡± He responded after they made it past the busy market and approached a different area that was more quiet than where they came from.


    Draekharm is a quiet vige formed from the collection of small huts and homes made out of logs and tree branches.


    As they progressed farther, Azazel took his time to study the environment. The roofs of their homes were covered with leaves and moss and are held by awork of vines. The people of Daekrahm were no more than farmers or traders and there was arge section of thend that had been carved out and turned into farnd.


    ¡°So this is Anna¡¯s vige.¡± Levi couldn¡¯t hold back the surprise in his muttering tone. Howfortable are people living in such houses??


    ¡°Life isn¡¯t always sweet Levi.¡± Azazel responded to the question Levi silently asked himself, ¡°unlike us, humans who have no connection to the higher nobles or the kingdom itself have to go through this.¡±


    ¡°But that¡¯s a system built on favoritism.¡±


    Azazel shrugged, ¡°not our business now, is it?¡±


    ¡°Then why are we here?¡±


    ¡°To find out Anna¡¯s life story, it¡¯s actually that simple.¡±


    ¡°And how do you n on doing that?¡±


    ¡°Excuse me sir.¡± Azazel stopped an old man who held a big sack in hand, probablying back from the farm after a fruitful harvest.


    ¡°Pardon my manners of stopping you so abruptly but it¡¯s urgent and I was wondering if you¡¯re familiar with the name, Annalise.¡±


    The old man who got stopped on the way, met the chilling blue eyes of the strange man standing in front of him, it shifted to the remaining two as he wondered who they were before pondering on his word.


    ¡°Annalise?¡±


    ¡°If the name isn¡¯t familiar then surely you¡¯ve heard of a cursed girl who once lived in Daekrahm vige.¡±


    At the mention of cursed, the man¡¯s eyes widened in realization and he nodded. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve heard of the cursed girl but she¡¯s no longer in Draekharm vige.¡±


    ¡°Do you know where she lived? Has the house been taken yet?¡±


    ¡°She lived at the far end of the vige, if you take that route, thest house you¡¯ll see should be her home but if it¡¯s taken or not, I don¡¯t know. Her mother preferred keeping her away and so they stayed in a dested area.¡±


    Azazel nodded, ¡°thanks for the information, you¡¯ve been of great help.¡±


    Levi also smiled in appreciation, ¡°I hope you had a wonderful harvest.¡±


    The man nodded before picking up his sack and walking away.


    Levi and Azazel took the route the man pointed earlier and as they kept walking, it grew quieter and all that could be heard were their own voices as they chatted on. Levi had to carry Gemma on his back since she kept insisting and faking tiredness.


    Arriving at the particr ce where the old man pointed to be Anna¡¯s home, it had to be because apart from the little abandoned home they were staring at, no other home was nearby. Just bushes that must have grown recently and turning the ce into some little forest.


    ¡°Her mother sure chose a really dested area.¡± Levimented after scanning the outside with many questions disying in his unique Amber eyes.


    The house was covered under a thick coat of dust that silently told its old age, the framework and everything about it proved no one had taken the house after they left. Who¡¯d want to stay in such a lonely ce anyway.


    The door which was now covered with dust and spiderwebs was left open ajar as it was no longer attached to its hinges. A calm breeze blew by, sending the door pping left and right and it sent a feeling of intent down Azazel¡¯s spine, leaving his eyes to momentarily darken.


    ¡°Do you sense something?¡± Azazel¡¯s rming question made sense to Levi because he equally felt the dark energy surrounding her home.


    ¡°Someone¡¯s here.¡±


    ¡°Then I guess we havepany.¡± Azazel really wasn¡¯t expecting this. Who else would want to visit Anna¡¯s abandoned home and why??


    ¡°Stay here with Gemma, I¡¯ll go see who the untimely visitor is.¡±


    ¡°Be careful.¡±


    Azazel climbed the wooden stairs and it made a light creak, followed by another creak until he made it to the varenda.


    The door was already opened so he stole a peek in, it was dark and much warmer on the inside. The scent of dust invaded his nostril but he held back a cough and finally walked in.


    His eyes got ustomed to the dark within a matter of seconds and he quickly took a scan, broken chairs and shattered ssesid on the ground. Almost everything was teetered with spiderweb and it gave a ghostly feeling that whispered its painful stories to those who paid it a visit.


    ¡°There¡¯s no one here.¡± He muttered but those blue eyes clearly held doubts. Maybe he wasn¡¯t searching properly.


    Taking his time, he followed the archway while getting rid of the spiderwebs and that¡¯s when a certain door at his left caught his attention. There was a broken lock on the ground, as though someone had forcefully hit the lock with something to break it open. The door was slightly ajar and from inside, he could hear the quick sound of shuffling, like someone was searching for something and in a hurry too.


    Without wasting any more time, Azazel reached for the door and opened it. The person who was currently going through Anna¡¯s wardrobe paused at the sound of the door being flung open, only to turn around and meet the frightening stare of Azazel.


    ¡°It¡¯s you!¡±


    The person freezed at his word.


    >>>>>>>>>>>


    Thank you for unlocking chapters so far<33 I appreciate the support!

 Chapter 99

    99 [Bonus chapter]


    A sudden sense of fear ran through Freya¡¯s nerve like a chill on an icy wind. She turned to look at Azazel who was standing at the door and her next sense of escape was disappearing from his sight.


    ¡°Don¡¯t.¡± He quickly warned, forcing Freya¡¯s feet to halt at where she was. The low demoness didn¡¯t need anyone to tell her she was in deep trouble. As bad as her situation was, she felt a little bit better it wasn¡¯t Roshan. She wouldn¡¯t even be standing here right now if it had to be him.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± He demanded, keeping his piercing blue gaze locked on the frightened demoness who flinched at his every word like a startled rabbit.


    ¡°Your highness I_¡± she tried toe up with an excuse but was silenced again.


    ¡°So brave of you to show your face at a time like this Freya, but let¡¯s leave that for now.¡± His calm tone was nowhere near calm and it gripped Freya with fear.


    ¡°Why were you going through Anna¡¯s wardrobe?¡± He took a step closer towards her, she took a step back.


    ¡°What are you looking for? Were did you send Roshan and Anna to?


    ¡°I_I don¡¯t know their whereabouts.¡±


    ¡°Where are they?!¡±


    .....


    ¡°I really don¡¯t know!¡± She truthfully voiced, ¡°I created a portal to stop them from hitting the ground at a very short notice and that was it, I have no idea where it took them.¡±


    ¡°Liar.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not a liar!¡± Freya¡¯s heart clenched when he kept staring at her with so much disdain in his eyes, like he was finding it difficult to even stand the mere sight of her. Why isn¡¯t he believing her? ¡°This is what I¡¯m talking about,¡± she pointed at him, ¡°none of you are willing to believe a word I say and it¡¯s all because of what I did, yes I know I was wrong but what did you expect from me since everyone refused to listen to the things I had to say.¡±


    ¡°Silly excuses, the only person who was kind enough to do that is transported into who knows where! How was the oue of trying to listen to you?¡±


    A guilty look crossed her face at his heartless usation and sadly he was right this time. Thinking about Annalise who gave her the antidote despite trying to kill her made her feel remorseful for once but she hid her guilt and held Azazel¡¯s menacing gaze.


    ¡°I had my reasons.¡±


    ¡°And what has that got to do with her abandoned house?¡± To say he was shock-stricken to see her here was an understatement. He was restraining himself from absorbing her pathetic soul at the moment, not until he got the truth out of her.


    Freya¡¯s eyes rmingly widened at his demanding questions, the look on her face showed a frightful trepidation and when she tried to flee, she couldn¡¯t move her feet.


    ¡°Wha_¡±


    It left her baffled as she looked down to see her feet were glued to the ground. She struggled to move from her spot but she could barely move an inch, causing her heart to thrash as a reason behind her not being able to move crawled into her head.


    ¡®what¡¯s happening? Why can¡¯t I move?!!¡¯ she inwardly panicked.


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother, it¡¯s difficult to escape the trapping and if you fail to answer my questions, your legs won¡¯t be the only thing I¡¯ll be trapping.¡± He calmly threatened but it sent Freya¡¯s body shuddering in dire fear. Living in the pce along with them, she knew Azazel¡¯s capability when it came to things like this.


    ¡°Speak!¡± His voice was like a p of thunder that sent a trembling fluid down Freya¡¯s spine.


    ¡°The p_p...poison!¡± Her voice trembled as she began, he could tell she was holding back her tears and he sensed her fears. Freya on the other hand met his stare, her teary eyes were already filled to the brim and as she looked away, a lone tear dropped and rolled down her cheek.


    ¡°Anna couldn¡¯t have survived that poison if she was human, yet she¡¯s still alive.¡± She sniffed and wiped her tears away. Azazel remained unfazed and kept his cold gaze locked on her.


    ¡°Exin.¡±


    ¡°I know I poisoned Anna, and Gretta might have added liquor to subdue its effect, but it wasn¡¯t supposed to free herpletely from the poison.¡± She paused, she looked hesitant while taking a deep breath, ¡°it should have affected her, but the effects of the poison wouldn¡¯t be strong enough to take her life, yet nothing of that sort happened.¡±


    Azazel¡¯s gaze turned serious as he carefully registered her words.


    ¡°Axiom.¡± Freya said the name, catching Azazel¡¯s attention as his eyes widened slightly as if asking a silent question and she nodded, still trying to force her feet to move.


    ¡°You know what the poison is.¡±


    ¡°A dangerous mortal venom got from the hiss of a serpent.¡± He stated and she nodded, ¡°it¡¯s impossible for a human to survive something as toxic as an Axiom venom, but she did.¡±


    ¡°Who sent you?¡±


    ¡°If you really want to know why don¡¯t you ask Gretta and stop questioning me like I¡¯m the only person who¡¯smitted a crime before!¡± She voiced her frustrations out, knowing she wouldn¡¯t even be in this predicament if she hadn¡¯t listened to Gretta.


    Her fist balled beside her just thinking about it.


    ¡°Gretta??¡± The mention of her name already answered his question, but that¡¯ll be dealt with when he returns to the pce.


    ¡°And how does that rte to Anna¡¯s house?¡±


    ¡°I came to find answers.¡± She pointed out in a calmer tone as her fist slowly unclenched.


    ¡°Answers to what?¡±


    ¡°That Annalise might not be human.¡±


    That particr phrase racked his ear like an explosion of steam whistles and a deafening silence fell in the quiet room. Anna might not be human?? What¡¯s she trying to say here?!!


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Master Luderick! Please save me from this!¡± She suddenly called out for help, leaving Azazel a little confused, not until a ck smoke appeared beside Freya, leading Azazel to take a step back.


    Luderick¡¯s figure came into sight after the smoke had vanished, but in apletely different body with the same cloak. Azazel wasn¡¯t entirely surprised.


    His red eyes disyed anger as his nose wrinkled in annoyance.


    ¡°Tch! If it isn¡¯t Roshan it¡¯s his brother!¡± Luderick cursed in a way that alerted Azazel about something, ¡°guess we¡¯ll have to hold in our ns for a few days.¡±


    ¡°ns??¡± Questioned Azazel, ¡°What ns?¡±


    Grabbing Freya¡¯s hand, Luderick vanished from sight along with Freya, giving Azazel no chance to react as a gust of wind was blown his way, using it as a distraction to make him look away.


    When he turned, he was the only one standing in the empty room.


    ¡°What n was he talking about?¡± Azazel pondered on it for a while and the look on his face turned grim.


    Anna isn¡¯t human??

 Chapter 100

    100 idental Stare


    Stepping out of the old cranky house, Gemma¡¯s hazel eyes quickly brightened and a relieved look washed down Levi¡¯s worried face after seeing Azazel was perfectly alright.


    ¡°You¡¯re back, did you see who it was? I don¡¯t feel the energy.¡± He indicated. The once dark energy he sensed could no longer be felt.


    ¡°That¡¯s because he left.¡± Azazel said through gritted teeth, but it left the nonplussed Levi pulling his brows together into a questionable frown.


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°Luderick.¡±


    ¡°Uncle???¡± That wasn¡¯t the response he expected, ¡°why is he here??¡±


    ¡°That I don¡¯t know, let¡¯s leave.¡±


    ¡°Already? But what about Anna¡¯s life story that you came here for?¡±


    Azazel paused and stared at the house, ¡°I¡¯m not the one destined to see it, the one destined wille when the timing is right, for now let¡¯s leave. We need to get Gemma back and I don¡¯t like the feeling of this ce.¡±


    .....


    Levi nodded in understanding and they left the ce. He had many questions to ask about what happened inside the house but will save it for when they return to Viscarrian.


    Returning to the vige, they ended up witnessing a sight that left them puzzled. Euphrasia¡¯s high-level soldiers were busy taking the crops of innocent farmers who constantly begged on their knees, only to end up being rudely kicked away by them.


    ¡°please! Don¡¯t take them! The farm is all we have to keep ourselves from starving and enable us pay the tax. How do we feed our children?? Have mercy.¡± A man knelt before Arlow, clutching to his leg for mercy, only to be ruthlessly kicked off as a look of disgust yed on his face.


    ¡°Keep your distance, you peasants!¡±


    ¡°Please sir!!¡±


    Levi¡¯s expression dissipated at the sight and he couldn¡¯t help but cover the eyes of his little sister who was also witnessing the horrible scene, ¡°what¡¯s this?¡±


    Azazel only tsked in pity, ¡°They¡¯re using their status to reap from the struggling ones.¡±


    ¡°And I thought Viscarrian had bigger trouble, isn¡¯t there anyone who can stop this?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I¡¯m wondering if there¡¯s actually anyone sensible in the whole Euphrasia family cause...¡±


    ¡°Stop!¡± Came the feminine voice that interrupted both Azazel and silenced everyone at the farnd.


    Everyone¡¯s gazended on the beautiful young woman who walked in their direction. She was dressed in an elegant sky blue floral gown that fluttered with the breeze, but her blue eyes held a look of contempt as she stood before Arlow, her guards defensively standing right behind her.


    ¡°Princess.¡± Arlow¡¯s expression slowly faded at the presence of the king¡¯s daughter. Out of everyone who could have interrupted him it had to be the princess.


    A detestable scoff left her lips and she couldn¡¯t help but find his fake disy of respect any scornful.


    ¡°You know, I¡¯ve been monitoring your movements quitetely and the heavens decided to bless me with an opportunity when I recieved a note ofints that was meant for father.¡±


    His eyes rmingly widened at her words but she just smiled, ¡°at first I wondered who could be so cruel to take away the resources that mattered to Draekharm vige, but after showing up here, I¡¯m not too surprised at what I¡¯m witnessing.¡±


    ¡°Princess_¡±


    ¡°My father is currently sick and lying on his sick bed,¡± her voice amplified when she couldn¡¯t handle such betrayal, ¡°he trusted you to handle the affairs of Draekharm and I¡¯m very sure he¡¯s unaware of all this barbaric acts of yours.¡±


    She sighed as though she pitied him. He¡¯s the reason why Anna is nowhere near Euphrasia but she chose to let it be, but now, she wasn¡¯t going to take this lightly when it concerned Anna¡¯s people and her own n.


    Unable to waste her time on a worthless scoundrel like Arlow, she turned to face the vigers who were currently bruised from all the hitting. The women were silently sobbing while attending to their husbands and children that got hurt in the process and Calista had to keep her keep herposure intact, no matter how much she felt sorry for all of them.


    Back then they med Annalise for every little thing that happened and now that she left, who else is left to me?


    ¡°No one shall take your crops.¡± She firmly rified, ¡°it¡¯s your sweat, you worked hard on it and so it shall rightfully remain yours. If someone tries to act against my orders z be it my father¡¯s men, don¡¯t hesitate to inform me about any of this.¡±


    A grateful look washed down the faces of the people of Draekharm and they all bowed their heads in respect and great acknowledgement.


    ¡°Thank you so much princess.¡±


    She smiled before turning to look at Arlow. She brushed past him but suddenly stopped and turned to look at him.


    ¡°This is just the beginning, all your evil deeds will be exposed and I¡¯ll watch with a triumph gaze when the post you so cherish get¡¯s stripped from you. In the meantime, get out.¡±


    Her retort was like a knife-cut against Arlow¡¯s intention and he couldn¡¯t stop himself from ring.


    ¡®I guess the princess has gotten bolder.¡¯ he inwardly said to himself and as much as he wanted to tear her in pieces for speaking to him in such manner, regardless of his age, it¡¯d be more wiser to remain quiet.


    ¡°Yes, your highness.¡±


    He held himself back and left the ce. Everyone returned to their usual daily activities as the matter was settled.


    Levi, who stood behind the crowd watched with a smile, ¡°I guess there is someone sensible, right brother?¡±


    Azazel just stared at the woman who was brave enough to speak, he recalled seeing her somewhere before but he had too much on his mind to be bothered about that now.


    ¡°Shall we leave?¡±


    ¡°Hmmn¡± he nodded, but before he left, he identally locked gaze with the princess who equally stared back and he watched as her eyes slightly widened.


    ¡°Excuse me, Mr.¡± She called out to him, but instead of waiting, Azazel walked into the crowds and that kept him out of sight, along with Levi and Gemma.


    ¡°Wait!¡±


    Calista knew she wasn¡¯t imagining it, that person had the same coal blue eyes like the one who saved her from the demon. She couldn¡¯t have mistaken it but why was he leaving?? Is it possible he didn¡¯t hear her.


    ¡°Princess, are you searching for someone? Do you need us to fetch him?¡± Asked a guard who remained by her side and she raised a finger, wanting to respond but then stopped.


    If she sent her guards to go fetch him, he might take her for one of those desperate women and that wasn¡¯t the mentality she wanted him to have of her while thanking him.


    ¡°No, let him go.¡±


    Levi who witnessed the beautiful princess of Euphrasia calling out of Azazel earlier made him look at the man beside him with a suspicious stare.


    Azazel who naturally strode with an expressionless face finally turned his head to meet the questioning stare of Levi.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°The princess kept calling out to you.¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t me.¡±


    ¡°I know what I saw.¡± He pushed on, despite the fact Azazel barely paid him any attention and stopped at a stall to buy fresh buns for Gemma.


    ¡°Do you know her by any chance? Have you met her before?¡± Levi stood in front of him, wanting to gain his attention and he finally got it.


    ¡°Hmm? Answer me.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know people who hold no importance to me.¡± Came his emotionless response as he pulled Levi to the side and collected the bag of buns.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± He paid for the buns, dropping more than a half a crown on the table which was a payment more than what he bought and he walked out.

 Chapter 101

    101 Under One nket


    Ark Ville


    ***********


    When it clocked evening, Anna quietly snuck back to the room after sessfully avoiding Madame Alina¡¯s neverending chatter but surprisingly, after making it to the room, it was totally empty and not even the presence of a certain someone could be sensed.


    The candles were left burning brightly on the table and everything had a mystifying touch to it, one that gave off a feeling of loneliness that didn¡¯t quite stick with Anna.


    ¡°Where did he go again?¡± Anna¡¯s glimmering eyes slowly lost it¡¯s brightness as she couldn¡¯t spot the Demon anywhere in the room.


    Did he go out?


    ¡°Yet he says I don¡¯t listen, I told him not to step out for security reasons, but he didn¡¯t listen to me.¡± She huffed, but just inhaling his scent that lingered in the room was enough to make her heart beat, bringing a full rey of what transpired between them earlier in the day.


    She hadn¡¯t seen him after that.


    ¡®Where can someone like him possibly go? He barely knows the route of the Mayor¡¯s mansion.¡¯ she silently thought, not until a cool breeze blew the windows open, sending a freezing gust of air into the room and at her direction.


    .....


    She shivered while hugging herself as the cold air prated through her clothes to meet her skin.


    ¡°Why¡¯s it so cold tonight?¡± She turned to look at the opened windows and as she reached to close it up, that¡¯s when she caught sight of the alluring being.


    He was sitting on a bench at the front yard, blowing air into his palms and rubbing them together. He looked like some innocent wanderer who was deep in thoughts and he rubbed both his arms to reduce the coldness feasting on him.


    ¡®He¡¯s not even with a nket.¡¯ thought Annalise.


    She didn¡¯t need any more sign to know he was freezing out there. Aren¡¯t Demons naturally warm?? Why¡¯s he cold? She¡¯s given him her blood earlier this morning so he shouldn¡¯t feelpletely weak, right?


    Closing the windows shut, she hurried to the wardrobe and brought out a nket. She gets the feeling he might refuse toe inside if she says so, so why not take the warm nket to him instead?


    Leaving her room and closing it shut behind her, she headed for the front yard.


    At the beautiful front yard adorned with flower beds and a silver fountain in the middle. Roshan stayed outside the mansion, sitting on the bench while letting his thoughts wander into different ces.


    He needed some alone time to himself and chose toe out where he could barely be noticed.


    The freezing temperature outside aren¡¯t really helping him, but he liked how rtively quiet it was. All he heard was the rustling of leaves caused by the gentle wind and those disturbing crickets adding to the tune of the nights.


    For once, he looked visibly sad, his body felt cold and unfortunately he wasn¡¯t in the mood to step inside just yet, but surprisingly, to him, that cold was instantly reced with an unexpected warmth when he felt a nket being gently draped on him.


    A bit taken aback by it, he looked up to see who had found him, only to meet the innocent stare of Annalise who took a step back after draping the nket on him.


    ¡°It¡¯s cold outside.¡± She exined her reasons before he thought otherwise.


    Instead of responding with something sarcastic or something that showed his arrogance, he just nodded and looked away while covering himself more with the nket. A reaction she wasn¡¯t used to witnessing from him.


    ¡°Is.... everything alright?¡± Anna found that to be very strange and he nodded.


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t seem alright,¡± she pointed out, ¡°are you feeling sick?¡±


    He took a deep breath but said nothing, he had a lot of things troubling his mind at the moment and he had been dealing with it all by himself for many years. What¡¯s the use of saying it now? Not to anyone to say the least but her..


    ¡°You should go inside, you¡¯ll freeze out here.¡± He ignored her concern but instead of leaving, Anna stubbornly sat beside him with her cheeks puffed as she stared into basically nothing at all.


    Roshan was baffled by her actions and just watching her act all stubborn when he wasn¡¯t in the mood for it made him sigh dejectedly. To say he¡¯s met anyone like this human sitting beside him would be a tant lie.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°Joining you in grieving.¡± She directly rified.


    ¡°Grieving?¡±


    Releasing her puffed cheeks, she let out a sigh andher expression disyed a look of empathy, ¡°you¡¯re a bad person Roshan.¡±


    He let out a throaty chuckle at her words, ¡°thank you.¡±


    She red at him, ¡°now I¡¯m torn between understanding things from your side and that of the Euphrasia¡¯s. You carry so much burden all by yourself and don¡¯t you know, when someone thinks too much, they grow old quickly and die.¡±


    He rolled his eyes, ¡°and who told you that?¡±


    ¡°My mother did.¡± She proudly said, ¡°and she isn¡¯t wrong, I¡¯ve known my mother to be very wise and I¡¯ve been thinking too much these days, I thought I saw a wrinkle somewhere.¡±


    She instantly felt her face with an rming expression as though she just remembered it, one that made Roshan snicker silently at how serious she took it and Anna didn¡¯t miss his secret snicker.


    ¡°I¡¯m being serious here and you¡¯reughing behind my back!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re unbelievable, I¡¯m a demon, remember? I can¡¯t get old.¡±


    ¡°Then I have to struggle on this alone.¡± She rubbed her cheeks lightly before letting out a soft gasp.


    ¡°Lady Gretta always says something like, ¡®I heard¡¯ that if you seal her mouth shut for a whole week, a lot of people in Viscarrian would gain Peace.¡±


    ¡°Wait what?¡±


    ¡°If Lady Gretta has something to say about someone, she indirectly uses ¡®I heard¡¯ like it¡¯s some heaven¡¯snguage. Imagine if she couldn¡¯t talk for a week, the maidens mostly will be free from her taunts.¡± She twitched her lips in annoyance but she had no idea her facial expression wasing out a little too serious and funny at the same time.


    Roshan couldn¡¯t hold back augh and decided to let it out, he found her a little funny tonight as she kept going on about so many things, she unknowingly pulled him out of his own state of despair as the colors on his face returned and his Hazel-green eyes were glinting with interest.


    ¡°I¡¯m basically telling you my state of despair and all you do isugh at me, you¡¯re not nice at all.¡± She feigned a look of betrayal but just watching himugh like that while staring at the side view of his enthralling face, made her realize how undeniably handsome he looked.


    His richughter carried no malice and for the first time, he looked genuinely happy, or rather, he looked lightened.


    ¡°How did your mother cope with you?¡±


    ¡°Same way you¡¯re coping with me. I troubled her a lot to be precise and when she left every morning for work, I kept praying she woulde back cause I was really stubborn and had a feeling she might nevere for me again.¡±


    ¡°And that sickness of being stubborn hasn¡¯t left you.¡± He flicked her forehead lightly and she had the urge to reciprocate, but didn¡¯t.


    ¡°So now you feel better after listening to my crazy stories, you have to pay me for this.¡±


    ¡°With what?¡±


    ¡°Clothes!¡± She eximed, ¡°Ark Ville has such beautiful dresses and I want to get something simple I can take back to Viscarrian or Euphrasia.¡±


    Roshan contemted it for a while, but paused his thoughts on that after seeing Anna rub her shoulders slightly to ease the cold.


    ¡°Who knew Ark Ville can be this_¡± she wasn¡¯t even done speaking when she felt the warmth of a nket being draped around her shoulder and when she looked at Roshan, he was equally staring back at her.


    ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡± He said and Anna knew he was back to feeling himself.


    ¡°Wee for what? We¡¯re both under one nket.¡± She pointed out after realizing the nket was covering them both, pulling them towards each other.


    ¡°It¡¯s big enough.¡±


    She tried to free herself, only to end up being pulled even closer by him, forcing her to stop what she was doing.


    ¡°You really have no way of showing appreciation,¡± he tsked before a mischievous thought creeped into his head, noticing her cheeks turn into a soft shade of pink and adding to her charms.


    ¡°Or you don¡¯t want me to notice your.... body heat? It feels even warmer if you ask me and we can both share...¡±


    ¡°You..!! Keep quiet!!...¡±


    She freed herself from the nket and instantly got to her feet before he did something again and just watching her flee made himugh.


    He enjoyed teasing the life out of her and just watching her escape made him feel like he was watching his prey go into hiding.


    Anna, who wanted to run off, suddenly missed her step on the way, causing her slipper to slip from her right leg and she stopped.


    She turned around and hopped on one leg, wanting to reach for her shoe when Roshan shockingly reached for it first. The enchanting being crouched on one knee, picking her shoe for her and the moment she brought her cute feet forward, he helped her slip her shoe right back, still remaining on his knees??


    A sudden feeling fluttered in Anna¡¯s heart, a very sweet and pleasing feeling. Where did he learn this good manners from?


    She didn¡¯t even say a ¡®thank you¡¯ to him before dashing off again.

 Chapter 102

    102 I¡¯m You


    When Anna¡¯s eyes slowly fluttered open, a sore pain traveled up her limbs like someone who got mercilessly whipped with a cane, abandoned on the ground and left to decide what her fate would be.


    Instead of feeling her body resting on thefort of the soft mattress like it was meant to be, she felt her body resting on something t and hard. It was nothing like a mattress as she subconsciously felt it first before fully snapping her eyes open.


    ¡®This isn¡¯t...¡¯ pulling herself up a bit from the hard surface till she sat upright, it turns out she was resting on the hard ground. A shocking gasp left her lips when she heard a loud ¡®BANG!¡¯ at her left. She instinctively lifted her gaze to stare at her environment.


    She wasn¡¯t anticipating to find herself in apletely different remote ind and_


    ¡®Wait, this isn¡¯t a different environment.¡¯ thought Annalise as she slowly rose from the ground and stared at the dested town that strangely felt familiar to her.


    *BOOM!!*


    Another heavy sound that struck the ground below her feet and it made her stumble back with unsteady movements, then the next thing she heard was a crack!


    The ground suddenly cracked open, with a sound like the quick rasp of a shirt. Anna stared as the crack didn¡¯t stop there but moved until it caused a division and she tumbled back.


    ¡°Ouch!¡± She fell to the ground again as it violently shook and that¡¯s when she noticed it.


    .....


    Watching the chaos unfold before her very own eyes, Annalise froze with unexinable terror as her pupils contracted in a way that expressed her horrors.


    There was fire, ombre colored fires everywhere as it ruthlessly burnt down the homes of people, setting everything alight with a furious rage and sending the people fleeing for their lives, but shockingly, the fires did her no harm and she could stand up on her feet.


    The screams and wails surrounding her were like the cries of an untuned orchestra that sent her heart grieving at the sight.


    Annalise was left perplexed as she saw people running for their lives as the inferno chose to swallow their homes and destroy their town. If she recalled perfectly, she left the front yard and headed to bed since she needed to get enough sleep for tomorrow, so how did she end up here? Is she having a nightmare!?


    But that wasn¡¯t what left her speechless, what got her shock-stricken was the fact that she could see herself, standing before the wailing crowd, not as a victim, but as the terrorizer.


    She saw herself or rather, someone who shared aplete resemnce to her hold a glistening silver sword that had been stained with blood, the crimson liquid drop from the tip of the de, indicating the many souls that sword alone had taken.


    The person stood before another victim who pleaded for mercy with his head bowed.


    She was going to kill that man!!


    ¡°No wait!!¡± Anna yelled as she ran towards their direction but the ground shook again, leading her to stumble forward and fall to her knees.


    When she looked up, Anna locked gaze with the person and her heart stopped when she met her crimson red eyes.


    ¡°You¡¯re just like me.¡± Said thedy with interest before going ahead to stab the man with no sense of remorse. Blood sttered on her white dress, including that of Anna¡¯s as she witnessed the scene that made her feel nauseous.


    There was blood everywhere, the metallic scent was nowhere near appealing and Anna¡¯s horror-filled eyes stared at the sword which prated through the man¡¯s back.


    Thedy withdrew her de from the man¡¯s belly and took a graceful step towards Anna, leaving the man¡¯s dead body to copse on the ground.


    ¡°Who_who are you?¡± Anna quickly got to her feet and moved back, keeping a distance from thedy who was unhurriedly heading her direction with the sword. How¡¯s it possible they look so alike??? Except, the crimson colored eyes gave them an obvious difference.


    ¡°How can you run away from me? I¡¯m you.¡± Thedy sweetly said but her eyes held a different contrast that made Anna move back in rm.


    ¡°No! You can¡¯t be me!¡± She disagreed, iming it to be a fleet of her imagination. This wasn¡¯t real, it can¡¯t be real!


    Thedy¡¯s chuckle went mute against the howling people who avoided the slutters of both the storm demons and the soulless. Anna could do nothing but observe the pitiful scene and these people, she doesn¡¯t think they can see her.


    ¡°Do you need me to prove it?¡± Asked thedy who pointed her sword at Anna. Everything about her gave off a negative vibe and it was something Anna couldn¡¯t stand to picture herself in.


    ¡°Prove what?!¡±


    ¡°Anna!¡± Came the familiar voice that called out to her and she whipped her head in the direction. Everything happened so quickly that before she knew what really took ce herself, she had thedy¡¯s sword pierced into the chest of Roshan, an impulse that was beyond her control.


    Her eyes widened in disbelief at the sight and the world seemed to stop before her eyes as she watched the crimson blood escape from his chest and stain his shirt.


    ¡°No!¡± How¡¯s she holding the sword??


    She tried to pull the sword out, only to be stopped by Roshan whose hand covered hers around the hilt joint, restricting her from pulling the sword out and the look on his face held no pain, but she knew he was.


    ¡°Don¡¯t stop.¡± He whispered and this time, he forced her hands to push the sword deeper into his chest and directly at his heart rejoin, an action she wasn¡¯t expecting him to take and when she looked into his red eyes with her own teary eyes, they held a look of tenderness and the unutterable longing as he cupped one side of her cheek.


    ¡°What_what are you doing?¡± Her throat felt charred for her to even speak properly but he said nothing.


    The warmth of his hand on her face made her give in as a tear dropped from her eyes, only to be gently wiped away by him.


    She wanted to ask him why he did it? Why did he let her stab him without fighting back? He knew her intentions but he didn¡¯t stop her or even bother to fight back. Why????


    But before she could say anything and vent out her anger, she felt the life in him slowly slip away, like a drifting air and she shook her head before pulling the sword out of him.


    Her once silky white dress was stained with blood and the moment Roshan fell to his knees, Anna took a step back in disbelief, staring at the man on his knees and the sword in her shaky hands, they were stained with blood.


    His blood!! She killed him!


    ¡°Roshan!¡± She screamed when he copsed in front of her but before she could reach him, the ground continuously cracked and split, separating her from his body and creating a big gap between them. She could no longer get to him, even if she dared to jump.


    An undefined sadness seemed to have fallen above her and she threw the sword away, unsure of how she was supposed to react to this.


    She looked up at the sky which had been turned to a smoky ck haze, covered in ash.


    ¡°What¡¯s all of this? What¡¯s happening??¡± Anna felt she was going to lose her mind with all theplexities of the situation unfolding before her.


    What does it mean?? Someone wake her up from this nightmare!


    At that thought, a figure appeared from behind the smoke, he looked at her with his face covered with a mask and he let his hand out for her.


    Anna retreated instead as she had no idea who the man in a ck mask was.


    ¡°Come with me, Aveline.¡± He said but Anna shook her head, unwilling to move from her spot. She wasn¡¯t Aveline and that¡¯s what she wanted to say, but shockingly, she felt her body move against her own will, heading towards the strange person whose hand was stretched out for her to hold.


    ¡®No no no!! What¡¯s happening? Why can¡¯t I stop??¡¯ she inwardly panicked.


    ¡°Come, Aveline.¡± He said again, but it only infuriated Anna.


    ¡®I¡¯m not Aveline!¡¯


    Just when she was about to ce her hand on his, her eyes snapped open and Anna instantly sprang up on her bed.


    ¡°No!¡±

 Chapter 103

    103 It¡¯s Just A Dream


    ¡°No!¡±


    She eximed in fear, rising up from her bed like a quick jolt from her nerves that screamed for her to run, but she just remained frozen on her bed.


    She was sweating and her chest heaved violently as the dream sent a shuddering feeling down her nerves, like some doomed soul. Her heart thrashed in her ears and her head was nowhere near reality, as if stuck in an inescapable trance and one could easily guess it from the look in her eyes.


    ¡°No... what?¡± Asked the voice of a certain Demon who heard her scream and Anna slowly turned her head to look at him with shock-filled eyes.


    The cier was sitting up while going through a book on the bed and only then did Anna¡¯s eyes shift to view her surroundings with a hopeful gaze, hoping she wasn¡¯t hallucinating this one too but after pinching her arm a little, nothing happened. She was back in the room!


    A relieved look washed down her face at the sight of Roshan, seeing he was alive and well. Her delicate fair hands weren¡¯t stained with blood. Her white night dress also had no stains of blood but as happy as she felt it all to be nothing but a dream, it was something that made Anna cry lightly as it didn¡¯t make sense to her.


    Her heart was already grieving and she couldn¡¯t help but let it out.


    The sight baffled Roshan who just stared. He was busy going through a book that talked more on symbolic meanings, only to witness Anna scream in fear as she rose to a sitting position on the bed.


    He didn¡¯t want to cause some sort of panic attack by interrupting her which was why he remained quiet, but he wasn¡¯t expecting her to cry at all. What happened??


    .....


    He stood up from his own bed and headed for hers. He sat at the edge, staring at the woman who silently sobbed to herself and Anna met his stare.


    ¡°Was it a nightmare?¡±


    He asked and she nodded, still unable to utter a word about it and he could tell whatever nightmare she had really scared the life out of her. He knew he wouldn¡¯t get the answer from reading her mind at the moment since the shock of it must have disorganized her thoughts.


    ¡°It¡¯s just a dream.¡± He assured her, but Anna shook her head in disagreement.


    ¡°It_it didn¡¯t feel like one,¡± she forced herself to speak after swallowing the lump that kept building in her throat, ¡°there was blood everywhere, so much blood Roshan. Many lives were taken and you were_¡± she paused when she met his stare but didn¡¯tplete it, ¡°There was someone with a mask and he kept_ he kept calling me Aveline.¡±


    Tears streamed down her eyes at the recollection and she sniffed back a cry.


    The name struck a chord in Roshan for the second time and he paused. ¡°Aveline?¡±


    She nodded and looked at Roshan, ¡°yesterday, you also called me by that name. Freya mentioned something about the two of you being really close before she fled, who is Aveline and what has she got to do with me????


    Anna half-panicked as she asked, she knew what she heard and saw and as the stranger called her Aveline, her body unnaturally responded to it¡¯s call.


    ¡°I¡¯m scared.¡± She admitted while hugging her knees and she found it difficult to stop herself from crying, ¡°I don¡¯t know why, but I¡¯m scared of the future, I just wish the world can freeze for a few years let me catch my breath again, I¡¯m not prepared for what lies ahead, I don¡¯t have that strength.¡±


    Watching her grieve sent a pain even worse than death crawling into Roshan¡¯s chest and he looked away when it became difficult to bear. He was tempted to make her stop, he hated it each time she cried and now, this was just a torn to his chest.


    ¡°Anna.¡± He called softly and that¡¯s when she took his arm and ced it around her shoulder, leaning into him as she cried her eyes out. She neededfort, she was scared and needed someone to reassure her that she didn¡¯t have to be.


    Roshan, who didn¡¯t expect this, also gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze and pulled her into his arms.


    ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡± He consoled her, stroking her hair lightly to calm her down, ¡°it¡¯s just a dream, stop thinking about it.¡±


    Anna didn¡¯t restrain herself and sumbed to thefort of his protective arms. She rested her small head against his chest like it was a pillow. His voice was calm and naturally pleasant to the ears as she heard him speak, sounding concerned for once and it eased her heart to some extent.


    They remained that way for a few hours and when Roshan heard her heart return to a normal rate and her breathing normal, he moved the locks of her hair away from her face, only to see she had fallen asleep.


    He looked relieved to see she was sleeping soundly again, but that didn¡¯t stop a hint of worry from shing in his unique colored irises.


    ¡®there was blood....so much blood Roshan....!¡¯ her words kept ringing in his head and he exhaled. She might be an Euphrasia, but she proved him wrong in his mentality towards all of them.


    Afterall, there are good and bad people in this world. The innocent ones don¡¯t really have to pay the price for who killed his mother and sister.


    The ones who did must be dead anyway, rather than start a war, he¡¯ll get rid of the bad eggs that haven¡¯t stopped criticizing the innocent and he¡¯ll do that after destroying that sword he saw on those sketches in sir Steve¡¯s home.


    Figuring out Aveline¡¯s identity is something he¡¯s going to get from Azazel. If he was really close to this unknown Aveline, only Azazel can give him full details on it.


    And also, the reason why he doesn¡¯t remember her.


    Staring at Anna¡¯s sleepy face again, even if they end up departing someday, he¡¯ll secretly be there to protect the scaredy being if she ever needed him.


    ¡°Annoying woman.¡±


    In other words, she was ¡®his¡¯ annoying woman.

 Chapter 104

    104 Beast Event


    *Note* sorry for the inconveniences on the previous chapters, I have been really upiedtely and had little time to write so I couldn¡¯t edit. In case you had a problem understanding it, the chapters have been fixed and you can re-read them to understand better. ;-; <333


    **********************


    As early as Dawn, tworge wolf beasts stepped into the circle of a training ground. A lot of Ark Ville¡¯s civilians had gathered to watch the event, including Anna who sat next to Madame Alina at the front seat.


    Her brown eyes marveled over the two beautiful wolves, one of them had a dark and silver fur, while the opponent had a brown and gray fur on its back, normally their bellies were always lighter and their tails were big and fluffy.


    She had woken up this morning, only to hear from the Mayor and his wife that an event would take ce at the training ground in their mansion.


    She pictured a swordsmanship event but her mind never crossed watching two beast animals fight. They were more than ten feet and she wouldn¡¯t have believed it was a wolf if not for its fox-like face.


    ¡°Grrrrrrr!!!¡±


    A deep growl emitted from the grayish-brown wolf who had clear Amber eyes, it showed it¡¯s extremely sharp canine, indicating how easy it¡¯d be to rip his opponent if it doesn¡¯t back down, but the silver wolf stood its ground, pacing left and right while locking it¡¯s predatory gaze with the wolf.


    With an unexpected speed, it pounced on it¡¯s opponent with the aim of knocking it to the ground, but turns out the opponent wasn¡¯t as dumb as the silver wolf sensed it to be and watched as it easily leapt to the other side of the circle, swifty evading the hit but what happened next wasn¡¯t something the silver wolf senseding.


    .....


    The moment it hopped to the other side, with the same vitality still intact, it jumped on the silver wolf and gave it a sharp bite straight at the neck. It made the silver wolf whimper in pain as it tried to keep itself from falling to its feet. Sensing the wolf¡¯s reluctance,the grayish-brown wolf gave it a hard nod at the side of its belly, sending the silver wolf falling to the ground with a heavy thud due to the impact. Heavy dust hid the two wolves and a cheerful uproar emitted from the crowd.


    Anna, who watched unblinkingly didn¡¯t even realize her mouth was left agape, this is basically the first time she¡¯s witnessing something like this, and it caught her interest, except for the biting part.


    ¡°What do they call this event?¡± Anna couldn¡¯t help but ask Madame Alina who gracefully fanned herself with her exquisite hand fan. She was dressed in a luxurious deep brown gown, along with the matching hat and she looked beautiful.


    ¡°It¡¯s something we call the beast event,¡± Madame Alina curtly began, ¡°...where all beast animals get a chance to prove their strengths and show their stamina. It¡¯s one of our important cultures in Ark Ville and it happens every seven years.¡± She briefed, but then pointed at the two beast wolves that came into sight after the dust had cleared off.


    ¡°Can you guess which is my son from the two wolves?¡± She asked, leaving Anna¡¯s eyes to widen in stupefaction at the mention of her son.


    ¡°Your son?¡±


    She nodded, ¡°my son is a beast wolf, a trait he got from his father.¡±


    ¡°The Mayor is a beast wolf?¡±


    ¡°He was one of the strongest among the beastmen, but now he feels too ¡®old¡¯ to participate in things like this, so he wants our son to take over and win the event.¡±


    Stealing a nce at the Mayor who sat on a specially designed stool made from gold and adorned with intricate patterns, the look on his face showed how proud he was as he continued to watch the event in silence.


    From there, Anna already knew exactly which wolf was Nichs.


    ¡°That one.¡± She pointed at the grayish-brown wolf, ¡°the one with the gray color and brown is Nichs.¡±


    Madame Alina swung her fan to the right, ¡°not bad, but I take it to be obvious since his power holds an envious dominance, don¡¯t you think?¡±


    Anna just smiled before returning her gaze back to the training ground, unwilling to answer that.


    In a dark corner of the event building, Roshan stood there, silently watching everything disy before him and a loud cheering uproar nearly bursted his eardrums.


    ¡°What crazy civilians.¡± He hissed, looking disgruntled as he waited for the ringing in his ear to settle.


    ¡°It¡¯s nice to see I¡¯m not the only one with that mentality.¡± Came the feminine voice of a woman who approached his side, she had her arms folded against her chest and watched the event go on, Roshan didn¡¯t really bother to look in her direction and kept watching.


    ¡°And what¡¯s a fellow Ark Ville doing here when she¡¯s meant to be up there, with the crowd?¡±


    She let out a mocking chuckle, ¡°I can ask you the same.¡±


    ¡°Not quite.¡±


    She looked at him, surprised he didn¡¯t even spare her a single nce, but then, why should she bother anyway?


    ¡°You¡¯re the one who helped Nichs right?¡±


    ¡°No, Anna did.¡± He neutrally corrected.


    ¡°Right, your sister.¡±


    Roshan silently scoffed, with the sibling rtionship spreading like this, he really wonders what reaction to expect from all of them when they figure out what he does to her behind closed doors.


    The thought made a sinful smile across his lips, but unfortunately he has to keep with the act.


    Another uproar was gotten from the crowd, ¡°y¡¯all deal with this screams?¡±


    She nodded, ¡°yes, the beast event is a cultural event and so it¡¯s one of the most anticipated days in Ark Ville.¡±


    The cier finally decided to nce at the person he was talking to. As expected, it was ady, but she didn¡¯t seem to be the princess type. Her outfit proved that part already cause she was dressed in a linen long sleeve shirt along with the tight-fitting pants. A sword hung at the side of her waist and her blonde hair was tied in a short ponytail.


    ¡°You¡¯re a warrior.¡±


    ¡°An assassin to be precise.¡± Her blue eyes met his Hazel-green ones.


    ¡°The name¡¯s Leasis.¡± She introduced herself with a smile that didn¡¯tst long on her pale lips.


    ¡°Your sister seems to enjoy the event a lot.¡± She said, drawing Roshan¡¯s attention to the beautifuldy who was smiling from ear to ear as she enjoyed the scene before her, she made multiple expressions as he watched her further and it became difficult to look away.


    ¡°So, wanna ditch the event and go horse riding with me?¡±


    ¡°Are you asking me out on a date?¡± He joked.


    Leasis sighed, ¡°don¡¯t think too highly of yourself young sir, obviously this isn¡¯t interesting either of us, but I guessed you might be interested in a horse race.¡±


    ¡°And if I refuse?¡±


    ¡°I can only wish you good luck on getting your eardrums fixed.¡± She smiled and walked out, an attitude Roshan actually foundmendable.


    ¡°Not bad.¡± It¡¯s been a while since he rode a horse, so it wouldn¡¯t hurt to leave the mansion for a little while and go horse riding. He could tell she had no sort of infatuation for him and her words were genuine, if he could get close to her, she¡¯d render him a valuable help when ites to protecting Anna.


    With that thought in mind, he followed her.

 Chapter 105

    105 Silver Mark


    ¡°So where exactly are we going?¡± Asked Roshan as he gently pulled at the reins of his dark stallion, moving it to stand beside Leasis who stared at the open forest ahead of them.


    Rampaging through her inner thoughts, he already knew she had no ulterior motive or something that would trigger his suspicion towards her, she looked more like a free person who just wanted a little horse ride with someone.


    ¡°¡±You know how to use arrows and bow? Right?¡± She questioned with interest while giving her white stallion a pat and Roshan just nodded.


    A young boy who looked no older than sixteen hurried towards them, handing out the bow and arrows.


    He scurried back after that, leaving Leasis to chuckle lightly after seeing Roshan¡¯s nk expression.


    ¡°I sense your strength.¡± Uttered Leasis as she threw a bow for Roshan and he skillfully caught it.


    ¡°I¡¯m just a humble human.¡± He responded but Leasis didn¡¯t need anyone to tell her that he was certainly more than that.


    ¡°First one to hit as many targets as they can, wins.¡± She offered while pulling out her bow and arrow.


    ¡°So this isn¡¯t just a horse ride.¡± Roshan finalized it himself. Leasis met his gaze and shrugged with a guilty smile, ¡°this is much fun than a normal horse ride. My partner who I normally do this with is drowning with the crowds at the event.¡± She rolled her eyes.


    .....


    Seeing as she wanted to race that badly, why not use it to his advantage since Ark Ville had more wiser people. There¡¯ll be lots of grimoires he can go through and hopefully find something that can exin a meteor mark.


    That is the promise he wants to fulfill before letting the annoying woman go. He actually feels she deserved better and something told him she¡¯d only feel that way if he keeps as much distance as he can from her.


    ¡°Can I make a proposal then?¡± He requested, but seeing as his expression meant no harm, she gestured for him to go on.


    ¡°You¡¯ll get me all the books that speak of a symbolic sign.¡±


    ¡°What do you need them for?¡±


    ¡°For reasons that don¡¯t affect you in anyway. Deal?¡±


    ¡°Well then, meet me at the finish line. Hyah!¡± She gave the stallion a gentle squeeze at its side before dashing off.


    Roshan, who was starting to find this quite interesting followed suit. They raced into the forest and only when they got close did he understand the path inside the trimmed forest was divided in two.


    ¡°Is it always like this?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s used to test everyone¡¯s ability based on themselves in person, you¡¯ll understand once we begin.¡±


    She took the left path, leaving Roshan to take the right and a surging sense of throbbing feeling crawled into Roshan¡¯s nerves.


    ~


    ¡°Your bite mark is already fading, you should bepletely fine after a matter of a few days.¡± Anna assured Nichs who was back in the room after the first day of Event had ended. She had to tend to his wounds since Madame Alina already told her she needed him ¡®spotless.¡¯


    ¡°Ignore my mother.¡± Nichs suddenly began and she met his stare. He cleared his throat while looking away with an ufortable expression as though he could guess her thoughts, ¡°my mother can be overly dramatic if that¡¯s the right word to use.¡±


    Anna neatly bandaged his arm along the elbow side before taking a step back from Nichs.


    ¡°I think she¡¯s just concerned about her son so it¡¯s normal for her to act like this. You should focus more on taking care of yourself so she doesn¡¯t have to worry too much.¡± Anna politely advised before reaching for the tray at the table close to his bedside, cing the herbal ointments on top of it.


    ¡°So uhm... you¡¯re from Euphrasia Kingdom, what¡¯s your kingdom like?¡± He asked. A knowing smile crossed her lips and she shook her head slightly.


    ¡°Euphrasia is just like any other normal kingdom, I can¡¯t say it¡¯s one of the most powerful kingdoms out there but Euphrasia is known for its really good resources and great numbers of high nobles.¡±


    ¡°I see...¡± he nodded his head in understanding before letting his gaze wander to the unique silver mark on her forehead.


    ¡°Nice mark.¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    He pointed at her forehead, indicating he was talking about her birthmark, ¡°a silver mark, it¡¯s pretty much the first time I¡¯m seeing one.¡±


    Anna felt the meteor mark on her forehead and her face secretly turned Ashen, but she hid it behind a smile while lowering her gaze, ¡°thank you.¡±


    ¡°Is it a gift?¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t hundred percent say that.¡± She never really liked talking about her birthmark, it brought her quite a lot of difort and forced her to remember the fact that her days were reallying off short.


    How Roshan intends to help her get rid of it still remains a mystery to her, ording to the old physician it¡¯s all fate, but she wished date brought along an easy suggestion along with it as well.


    She had been so upiedtely that she didn¡¯t even count the number of days she had left to live, at first she didn¡¯t picture it as necessary but now, she would start marking the days, so she can do all that her heart felt like doing before her timees.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t sustain any injury from the event,¡± Anna quickly changed the subject, ¡°that¡¯s actually impressive.¡±


    Nichs nodded, ¡°my father trained me well when it came to things like this, enough reason why I want this bitemark to heal quickly so I wouldn¡¯t be restricted from the rest of the event.¡±


    He sighed and Anna understood his point, that¡¯s why she was sort of impressed cause it¡¯s never easy to battle while sustaining a severe injury, yet he came out unscathed.


    ¡°When are the rest of the events?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯ll be one tomorrow, you shoulde watch.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll definitely be there.¡± She found it really interesting to be precise and Nichs felt somewhat lightened by her response.


    There was a knock on the door and before Nichs could give whoever it was permission to step in, William already walked in, leaving him to shake his head hopelessly.


    ¡°Morning to the both of you.¡± He said right away before turning his attention to Nichs and a conversation started.


    Anna used the opportunity to quietly step out of the room and on her way down to the kitchen, the dragon painting caught her attention but she didn¡¯t let herself fall into it¡¯s trance again.


    Lord, when will she leave this ce?? Or maybe she should stop looking at the picture and act like she never saw it, that¡¯ll be a lot better.

 Chapter 106

    106 A Pinky Promise


    Walking past the hallway with a sweet humming tone leaving her closed lips, Anna¡¯s footfalls clicked on the tiled floor as she wandered by without having any specific destination in mind.


    She radiated vigor and abundance like a happy child as she continuously hummed something melodious. She had kept her mind preupied all through the morning, not giving it any little chance to recall that harrowing nightmare that makes her shudder till now.


    Her feet suddenly came to a quick stop after catching sight of a familiar figure, sitting in a bright-lit room that happened to be the library. The blue curtains were spread apart, allowing direct sunlight to filter the room and cast a shadowy figure over a particr being.


    His unreadable gaze was locked in a book he was currently reading as he sat at one of the tables, legs crossed and looking more enticing as those eyes barely shifted from the book.


    A slow smile formed on her lips as she watched him, he was fine and alive, she had absolutely nothing to be worried about when it came to him. She remembered perfectly how he patted her to sleep in his arms.


    She was sort of anxious when she woke up this morning, afraid he might have done something to her since she got all emotional and a little clingyst night, but impressively, she met him asleep and there was nothing that indicated he touched her.


    Maybe he does have emotion, but why was he always so reluctant when it came to showing it?


    Noticing how deeply engrossed he was in a book, Anna quietly tiptoed to stand behind the cier, making sure her footsteps were as silent as that of assassins and she felt proud in her heart, seeing he hadn¡¯t sensed her presence yet.


    His gaze still raked the pages of the book, giving Anna a chance to peep at what he was reading as she childishly thinned her lips.


    .....


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Came the abrupt question from the cier and since she wasn¡¯t expecting to be caught so soon, it made her stumble forward as she missed her footing, but somehow managed to regain bnce, except she was standing right in front of the cier now.


    Bursted.


    ¡°Tch! I barely heard my own footsteps, but you....¡± She twitched her lips in great displeasure, finding it very abstruse on how he still sensed her presence.


    ¡°Your floral scent.¡± He subtly responded to the question she silently asked herself, ¡°I can¡¯t mistake it for anyone else.¡±


    ¡°That is not polite, you can¡¯t invade my thoughts without permission.¡± Her eyes narrowed into an using slit, but he pped the book shut and lifted his gaze to meet hers.


    ¡°I can¡¯t help it when you tend to carry such a... fascinating cerebration.¡±


    A quick gasp left her lips at hisprehensible words and her pupils dted slightly, showing her difited reaction. Her eyes slowly averted.


    ¡®Does that mean he¡¯s aware of most of my thoughts?¡¯


    ¡°I will if you don¡¯t stop thinking a little too loudly.¡± He said again, responding to her thoughts and her eyes snapped at him.


    ¡°Stop that! You¡¯re doing it again!¡±


    ¡°I thought you were asking.¡± He defended himself with the same innocence in his demeanor. One that could easily deceive people into thinking he was the victim in all of this.


    ¡°Sheesh.¡± She frowned at him, but he just opened a book and let his eyes sink to the words written on them.


    Sitting beside him on the study table, she picked a scroll that rested at the end of a table and her eyes widened in stupefaction.


    ¡°You read grimoires?!¡± She asked, the surprise evident in her voice as she looked at him.


    ¡°Demons are connected with magic, and also drop it, you can¡¯t read that.¡± He tantly told her, leaving Anna to feel somewhat useless as she dejectedly dropped the scroll back on the table.


    Stealing nces at Roshan who kept himself engrossed in a particr book, Anna couldn¡¯t help but wonder why he¡¯s reading all these scrolls and books on the table and unfortunately, she couldn¡¯t understand them since it had something to do with strange spellings and words.


    ¡®Demons are connected with magic,¡¯ she silently pondered on that word for reasons unknown to her, and that¡¯s when her eyes went round as something struck her.


    A radiant look came over her face and she gave Roshan a tap on the shoulder, drawing his attention back to her.


    ¡°Demons are connected with magic, right? Isn¡¯t that what you said?¡±


    His eyes curiously narrowed as he cocked his head at her, the gleam in her eyes was one he couldn¡¯tprehend with and he wouldn¡¯t want to read her thoughts again.


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°If Demons are connected with magic, doesn¡¯t that make it easier for a demon to connect with another demon, but through mindmunication.¡±


    Roshan still didn¡¯t get it and Anna had to break it down for him, ¡°what I¡¯m trying to say is, what if you connect with one of your guards or your family members using mindmunication.¡±


    ¡°You meanmunication through the mind.¡±


    ¡°Yes, isn¡¯t that possible for Demons as well? You¡¯re a half Demon but that shouldn¡¯t limit you right?¡±


    Roshan closed his book,pletely awestruck that he never thought of using the mind array. He¡¯s never used it after stepping out of the temple and that must be why he didn¡¯t recall something as the mind array.


    ¡°If I can get hold of Azazel or Levi, they might be able to get us out of here.¡±


    She nodded, ¡°exactly.¡±


    Roshan had to admit to himself, that was a pretty nice idea from his annoying woman, wow, she really studied about Demons to know this much.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it tonight and hopefully I can get through to one of them.¡± His concentration might be a little weak, but before tonight, he should master the art of concentration when ites to the mind.


    ¡°See, you also need me.¡± Anna jokingly uttered before picking a book, ¡°without me, you wouldn¡¯t have thought of this.¡±


    For once, she decided to feel herself and her worth, leaving Roshan to roll his eyes but he chuckled with mirth.


    ¡°I don¡¯t trust you, so I need you to make me a pinky promise,¡± She looked at him, ¡°...that you won¡¯t leave here without me, no matter what happens.¡± She raised her pinky finger, leaving Roshan to stare nkly at her little pinky before meeting her gaze.


    ¡°Pinky.... promise?¡±


    It finally urred to Anna that he clearly has no clue on what a pinky promise is.


    ¡°Oh, see in the human world, we lock pinkies to seal an unbreakable promise, so now I need you to promise me that you won¡¯t leave here without me and once we lock pinkies, it¡¯s a promise you have to keep.¡±


    A look of realization finally dawned on his expression, making him look cute as he stared at her pinky. He equally raised his fair pinky and looked at Anna, as if asking what to do next.


    She smiled and gestured with her eyes for him to join their pinkies together. He did as told and intertwined their pinkies together, before lifting his sparkling eyes to meet hers.


    ¡°It¡¯s a pinky promise.¡±

 Chapter 107

    107 Duty Before Heart


    Viscarrian


    *************


    ¡°What are you talking about?? This is nothing but a false usation!¡± Gretta feigned innocence as she voiced her words out, standing before Azazel who had his back turned against her.


    ¡°Oh.¡± Azazel softly uttered, ¡°so you didn¡¯t poison Anna then?¡±


    He unhurriedly turned to look at her with an unreadable expression that sent tiny shivers crawling up the back of her skin. Gretta couldn¡¯t possibly make out what the iceberg was thinking and decided to keep her little act in check.


    ¡°If you really want to use me, why don¡¯t you outrightly say it rather than beat around the bush!¡±


    ¡°Cause I see no use in saying it, you know the truth yourself and you¡¯re not so foolish to think I¡¯d fall for your petty acts!!¡±


    Azazel really couldn¡¯t understand the mentality of this woman, he¡¯s known her sly antics for a long time and he¡¯s never really taken serious action against it, but this time, it waspletely different.


    She messed with a soul and being the keeper of the limbo, she had risked his duty.


    .....


    If Anna eventually died from the hands of his own family, the heavens won¡¯t spare him for being reckless about a special soul and he¡¯d have to pay the price for Gretta¡¯s stupidity.


    That was something he wasn¡¯t going to easily overlook and she had messed with his temper.


    Gretta gasped in horror when a thundering sound erupted from the sky and the air inside the hall room went suffocatingly thick, to the point she really thought she couldn¡¯t breathe anymore.


    ¡°Gretta Marquis, do you admit to your crime of taking the life of a special soul?¡± The voice speaking at the moment didn¡¯t sound like that of Azazel. It sounded inhuman, like he had called upon his divine powers to deal with the situation and Gretta shockingly took a step back, staring at Azazel whose bloody red eyes were fixed on her.


    ¡°You can¡¯t do this! I¡¯m more like a sister to you!¡± Tears brimmed in her eyes after realizing his intention, he was really going to punish her for it!


    ¡°Dutyes before heart.¡± He reminded her in an icy tone that made her face turn paler like that of a ghost.


    When he stretched out his right hand, a long golden staff appeared in his grasp, followed by another threatening thunder strike that made Gretta¡¯s heart jump.


    ¡°Do you admit to your crimes, or do you need the truth to be forced out of you??¡± There was a strange message in his menacing tone, indicating that there¡¯d be severe consequences if she even thinks about lying to the supreme heavens.


    ¡°But I_I didn¡¯t kill her, I¡¯m being judged wrongly!¡± Gretta couldn¡¯t believe it, she was about to be punished all because of an ordinary human girl. Was she that special to the heavens???


    ¡°Gretta Marquis!¡± Azazel¡¯s inhuman voice amplified in the hall, ¡°you¡¯re ced under hardbor and shall be ordingly dealt with, your release will remain indefinite till we¡¯ve seen how remorseful you are for your act.¡±


    ¡°Hardbor??!¡± Gretta shook her head at the punishment being given to her and immediately went on her knees. Hardbor was one of the severe punishments she couldn¡¯t possibly find herself in, ¡°I had no intention of killing her, I just wanted to teach her a little lesson and_¡±


    ¡°Silence!¡±


    Gretta¡¯s lips sealed when the foot of his staff hit the tiled floor with a powerful thud, leaving it to shake in ordance to his power and he pointed the staff at her.


    ¡°No, wait!!¡±


    A powerful crimson colored light emitted from the top of the staff and went straight at Gretta, seizing her in ce as Azazel¡¯s cold gaze remained unfazed by her pitiful expression.


    Instead, a cold chuckle left his lips and he tilted his head at her, ¡°this is something very minisculepared to what Roshan ¡®will¡¯ do to you when he finds out you¡¯re the mastermind behind the poison Anna consumed.¡±


    Gretta¡¯s eyes horrifically widened at the mention of Roshan, ¡®no, Roshan can¡¯t find out about any of this, she can handle any punishment, but Roshan mustn¡¯t find out about any of this.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take the punishment, don¡¯t tell Roshan any of this, I beg you.¡±


    He saw the fear in her eyes and scoffed in disdain, averting his stares from her as he took a deep breath, ¡°fine, I¡¯ll help you keep your little secret, but that doesn¡¯t save you from the punishment you totally deserve.¡±


    With that being said, the crimson light grew stronger, only for Gretta to slowly weaken and eventually vanish out of sight.


    The crimson light died and the staff vanished from Azazel¡¯s grip. The heavy atmosphere finally swept away like crumbling ashes and the hall looked calm.


    Azazel¡¯s eyes turned normal but his fist clenched. He was really disappointed in Gretta to say the least and his punishment for being reckless would have been way worse.


    He turned sideways, roughly running his fingers through his silvery white hair. He stared out at the night sky, trying to figure out the next step to take when a familiar feeling rushed through his nerves, like a quick jolt to his brain and his eyes widened when a voice he had grown too acquainted with spoke in his head and his eyes slightly widened.


    ¡®Roshan??¡¯


    Acent smile adorned his captivating face and he moved away from the window, feeling satisfied like he just figured out the answers he needed.


    ~


    Ark Ville


    *************


    Roshan was about to concentrate more when he noticed Anna dropping herbal creams on a tray, humming to herself and looking ready to go somewhere.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Hmm? I¡¯m going to Nichs¡¯s room.¡± She responded without turning to look at him, but Roshan¡¯s expression had dimmed at her response.


    ¡°Why? It¡¯ste.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± she agreed, ¡°but he has an event tomorrow morning so it¡¯s important he gets treated before then.¡±


    Roshan raised a brow, still not getting it, ¡°it¡¯s not right you go into another man¡¯s room at night.¡±


    He hadpletely let the thought of speaking with Azazel skip from his mind, but thedy he was talking to barely paid him any attention as she got to her feet with the tray.


    ¡°I won¡¯t be long, you should focus more on connecting with Azazel, tell me how it goes when Ie back, okay?¡± She smiled and before he could stop her from leaving, she had left the room.


    ¡°This woman..!!..¡±

 Chapter 108

    108 Silent Treatment I


    Twenty minutes silently ticked by in Roshan¡¯s head and weirdly, there was no sight of Anna yet. Roshan could barely concentrate when his mind kept diverting to the one woman who hadn¡¯t returned like she said she would.


    Noticing his meditation was going absolutely nowhere, a sigh left his lips and his eyes fluttered open. His gaze constantly drifted to the door, waiting to hear it creak open or hear the soft footsteps that¡¯d notify him of her presence.


    But as he waited, he got none of those options.


    ¡°What¡¯s taking her so long?¡± He muttered to himself, already losing half of his patience and he clicked his tongue.


    He honestly didn¡¯t want to bother himself about this, but his mind wasn¡¯t listening. Every inch of him was itching to go see what¡¯s happening and why she¡¯s taking so long to return from just applying mere ointment on someone.


    She was in another man¡¯s room for goodness sake and it ate him up.


    Getting down from the bed to hold on to his restraint, Roshan strode to the table and served himself a ss of water from the jug.


    He took a sip of the cool water to help calm his nerves. He gazed at the twinkling night sky and moved to the window. Leaning against the hinges, he stared at the stars that rested like nkets in the dark blue sky.


    He remained there, getting lost in his own thoughts and that¡¯s when the sight of two figures strolling in the front yard caught his attention.


    .....


    He instantly looked down and the sight before him made his eyes darken. Anna walked by with Nichs by her side, she seemed tough at something he said, making Roshan¡¯s mood dissipate further as he watched them like a falcon in a nest.


    Like that wasn¡¯t enough, the daring being leaned closer to whisper something into her ear, leaving Anna tough again with a surprised look contorting her face and the ss in Roshan¡¯s hand unexpectedly broke.


    ¡®Stay away from my mate!¡¯ his Demons were just as angry and that triggered his powers.


    It startled Roshan himself as he hadn¡¯t even realized his grasp on the ss had tightened to the extent it broke into unrepairable pieces.


    He gazed at the blood that dropped from his hand with a feigned smile. The little pieces of ss were stuck in his palm after he had unknowingly crushed it. He wasn¡¯t even holding it that tight!


    His gaze returned to the two happy figures who were entering the building and he scoffed before moving away from the window.


    And here he was getting all worked up because of her, but she was out there taking a fancy stroll with the Mayor¡¯s son. He was pretty sure the mate mark would have faded if he hadn¡¯t bit her again, and now he was facing the consequences by bing possessive.


    After a few dark minutes passed by, the door finally opened and Anna walked in. Her gazended on the cier who was sitting on his bed and just by stepping into the room, she didn¡¯t fail to notice the change of aura in the atmosphere.


    From the cier¡¯s expression, he didn¡¯t look anywhere cheerful, his face was as imperturbable as fate and she couldn¡¯t possibly guess what went wrong this time.


    She quietly closed the door behind her before taking slow steps towards the cier, until she found herself standing at the edge of his bedside.


    ¡°What happened? Did it work?¡± She softly asked, but got no response from him. His darkened gaze just remained fixed at the wall in front of him, he didn¡¯t even bat an eye at her direction.


    ¡®What¡¯s wrong with him?¡¯ thought Annalise to herself. He wasn¡¯t like this before she left, was he? She was actually in a hurry earlier to even notice if he was or not.


    ¡°How was your little stroll?¡± He suddenly asked out of the blue, leaving Anna to tilt her head in confusion.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure you enjoyed the nightwalk with Nichs, right?¡± His tone wasced with sarcasm, except thedy he was talking to hardly noticed.


    Anna finally realized what he was talking about and smiled instead, ¡°ah yes! It was a nice walk. Did you see us?¡± She asked, leaving Roshan to stare in disbelief at how cheerful she suddenly got.


    ¡°He¡¯s not actually that bad once you get to know him, I finished treating him but he wanted to take a walk and asked me to be his walking partner and I was also in the mood for a walk so I agreed.¡±


    She cheerfully went on,pletely unaware that her words were only adding fuel to the fire inside of Roshan.


    ¡°He¡¯s very funny and interesting to talk to, he¡¯s calm and_¡±


    The loud ss shattering sound forced Annalise to stop speaking and when she looked at where the sound came from, the jug that rested on the table had broken into pieces. Her eyes went round at the sight,pletely dumbfounded by how the jug broke and when she met Roshan¡¯s stare, he was ring at her with those death beams called eyes.


    Did he do that????


    ¡°Do you have anything else to say?¡± His tone was gravely calm, sending chills running through her veins and Anna didn¡¯t dare to continue.


    A nervousugh escaped her lips and she shook her head, ¡°N_no, nothing at all.¡±


    Roshan looked away, feeling frustratingly upset for no particr reason and Anna couldn¡¯t understand why he¡¯s currently mad at her. What did she do?


    ¡°Ahem!¡± She cleared her throat, gaining the cier¡¯s attention and her heart jumped when his eyes darkened, ¡°I_I just wanted to ask if you spoke with Azazel or not.¡± She quickly said.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t.¡± He responded before looking away.


    ¡°Well...why?¡±


    ¡°I lost interest,¡± he told her, ¡°I¡¯ll try again tomorrow, goodnight.¡± And that was it.


    Anna stared at him in silence as he dismissed her just like that, she really couldn¡¯t picture why he¡¯d be mad at her all of a sudden, she doesn¡¯t remember saying something offending to him before leaving, or did she?


    ¡°Are you...angry about something?¡± She dared to ask, ¡°or is it with me?¡±


    Sadly, he didn¡¯t respond and just looked away. Anna had to give up since he had suddenly decided not to talk to her. As far as she knows, she did nothing wrong, so why was she bothered about it anyway?


    ¡°Since you won¡¯t tell me, goodnight.¡±


    She turned and headed for her own bed. He watched as she got on top of it. When she looked at him, he quickly averted his gaze, acting less bothered and showing his nonchnt attitude that only provoked her even more.


    ¡°Hmph!¡± She covered herself with the duvet and turned the other way on the bed. He can ignore her for all she cares, it doesn¡¯t matter to her. He¡¯s always so Moody and who knows what sort of expression to expect from him next.


    Roshan¡¯s gaze remained fixed on her back as she curled herself up with the duvet, looking like a ball. She really walked out just like that? She really doesn¡¯t care now, does she?


    It felt like something got smashed in his chest and he looked away from her.


    She¡¯s sleeping peacefully over there and here, he couldn¡¯t get any sleep thanks to her.


    But it turned out, none of them actually slept that night.

 Chapter 109

    109 Silent Treatment II


    ¡°61 days gone.¡± Anna circled the 31st date on a small notepad she found in one of the drawers.


    She was stunned to see a whole two months had passed by as she ticked the days and she wondered how fast time in each world seemed to differ.


    ¡°I have 30 days left.¡± She uttered to herself and a sad smile formed on her lips. She really has no idea when she¡¯ll die to be exact, but her heart told her it¡¯d be on the 30th of this new month.


    A day that¡¯s really special to her.


    Wow, her death day was actually.... really close.


    Roshan¡¯s sudden presence in the room as he stepped out of the bathroom made her shut her notepad and she instantly hid it under her pillow before he saw it.


    He met her stare and they could both recall exactly what transpired between themst night the moment they locked their gaze. Anna wasn¡¯tpletely over it yet, so she was the first to break the gaze as she got out of bed.


    He watched her pick a blue dress from her wardrobe without talking to him or even ncing his way. Okay so she has the right to be upset but not him? Two can always y the same game if that¡¯s what she wants.


    The cier also carried on with his business as he deliberately ignored her, using the orange-colored towel to clean the water from his hair.


    .....


    Anna stole a nce at him and couldn¡¯t believe he was ignoring her when he ought to apologize to her!!


    Her lips pulled up in displeasure, ¡®I need to stop thinking too loudly since he¡¯s chosen to barge into my privacy without permission!¡¯


    She really wanted to throw a pillow at him, or something, anything at him but she just balled her fist at her side instead, pinching the skin in her palm in an attempt to calm herself down.


    Letting out an exasperated breath, she headed for the bathroom as well, brushing past the cier beside her and refusing to drop her guards in order to keep a good rtion with him.


    If he wasn¡¯t going to speak to her, then why should she?


    She reached for the bathroom door and when he looked in her direction, she banged the door loudly at his face, closing it shut and leaving the startled Roshan to blink in bafflement.


    ¡°What a troublemaker.¡± He quietly said to himself before shaking his head and getting himself dressed for the day, he still had Azazel to connect with and his situation right now with Anna wasn¡¯t helping.


    At the practice field, Anna stood before the big grayish-brown wolf that growled in a low tone at her and she smiled, ¡°you seem prepared for the event which is a good thing, I can only wish you good luck, oh and try your best to avoid being hit in your left arm since it¡¯s your weak point.¡±


    The wolf still towered above her despite being in a sitting position. She had to admit that Nichs had a beautiful beast animal, he looked adorable and fierce at the same time but the only thing that scared her was those extremely sharp teeth of his.


    ¡°Ah! I see you¡¯re here.¡± Came the voice of Madame Alina who strode towards them. Anna bowed her head in greeting.


    ¡°A wonderful Morning to you Madame Alina, you¡¯re looking lovely as always.¡± Sheplimented.


    ¡°Oh I know.¡± Madame Alina curtly responded and Anna wasn¡¯t surprised to see her holding a hand fan that always matches the color of her dressing.


    ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you two bonding, but Nichs, your father wants to see you before the event starts, you know his usual words of ¡®encouragement¡¯ so off you go.¡±


    Nichs walked off in his wolf form and suddenly jumped from one fence to another, he continued until he was no longer in sight after dropping somewhere else.


    ¡°When his father was just like him, he always enjoyed dropping through fences all the time, he said it was a shortcut to reach the mansion on time.¡± She rolled her eyes, leaving Anna to snicker softly and with what she¡¯s been hearing so far, Nichs was really like his father.


    They both appeared calm and friendly after getting to know someone, but pretty off-putting when met for the first time.


    ¡°Shall we go save ourselves a seat at the event?¡± Asked Madame Alina and Anna nodded.


    She wondered if Roshan would attend the event today. She didn¡¯t see him yesterday and it¡¯s funny how she lets herself get bothered about someone who¡¯s been avoiding and ignoring her all morning.


    Together, they left the practice field.


    At the library, Roshan once again was reading all the books Leasis had given to him. It all concerned different types of strange birthmarks that had a meaning.


    Leasis rxed her back on a wall, idly tossing a little ball in the air and catching it in her grasp.


    ¡°What exactly are you looking for?¡± She had to ask, he hadn¡¯t said a word to her ever since she gave him these books and he barely noticed her presence after that.


    ¡°Will you help me out in finding it once I tell you?¡±


    ¡°As long as it catches my interest.¡± She shrugged. Another familiar assassin with the coffee-brown eyes, whose name was Neil silently watched as Roshan went through the scrolls and books.


    ¡°I thought humans aren¡¯t able to read magical scrolls?¡± He popped a question at the cier, but Leasis huffed.


    ¡°Human? I doubt it.¡±


    ¡°If you doubt me to such an extent, why haven¡¯t you revealed my ¡®true identity¡¯ yet?¡± He neutrally asked like someone who was having a formal conversation with his people.


    ¡°You and your sister, who are you?¡± The guy with the coffee-brown eyes couldn¡¯t hold back his question, ¡°I knew she was different after seeing the mark on her forehead and you, your presence alone says enough.¡±


    Leasis nodded in agreement, ¡°I had my suspicions after seeing the sister looked familiar to the head of assassins, did you notice?¡±


    Neil nodded, ¡°that was my first suspicion and I need answers to it.¡±


    Roshan let out an exasperated sigh as they continued to bug him with their words, ¡°can you kindly take your suspicion with you and get out of the library.¡± He faked politeness, but Leasis shook her head before moving closer to his table.


    ¡°You¡¯re searching for birthmarks, am I right? Your.... sister¡¯s mark if I¡¯m not mistaken?¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°We can help you.¡± Neil butted in as he moved his weight from the door, ¡°but first, you have to tell us who you really are.¡±


    ¡°We won¡¯t report, trust us.¡± Leasis assured the cier who finally gave them a listening ear, ¡°afterall you guys saved Nichs¡¯s life, the least we can do to show our appreciation is help you out.¡±


    ¡°And how do you intend to help me?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re assassin¡¯s who share connections with a mage¡¯s power.¡± Neil emphasized, ¡°we know almost every scroll in this library, just tell us specifically what you¡¯re looking for and we¡¯ll tell you if we have it here.¡±


    Roshan listened to them while stealing a sneak peek into their thoughts. As curious as they were in figuring out his real identity, they sounded grateful about the fact he saved Nichs and genuinely want to repay by helping him.


    And a few minutes before they came, he was already making ns on how to end that man¡¯s life. Who knew his earlier act of kindness would bring him help.


    ¡°Fine.¡± He agreed, ¡°I¡¯m looking for a scroll that has any information regarding a meteor mark.¡±


    ¡°Meteor what?¡± Leasis lifted a brow, not sure if she hade across a scroll like that and when Roshan wanted to give up on finding a scroll due to Leasis reaction, Neil spoke up.


    ¡°I think we have something simr to what you¡¯ve just asked.¡±

 Chapter 110

    110 Iplete Grimoire


    ¡°We do?¡± Leasis raised a brow in an inquiring manner. He nodded before shifting his gaze to the many scrolls on the table.


    ¡°I think I¡¯vee across something like that among one of the grimoires, that¡¯s why I found her pretty strange the first time I saw her.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the name of the grimoire?¡± Asked Roshan, whose hopes had heightened a bit. Neil shuffled through the scrolls on the table, trying to see if he can fish out correctly which one it was, but strangely, that particr scroll wasn¡¯t there.


    ¡°It¡¯s not here.¡± He uttered as if confused himself. ¡°Are these all the grimoires containing info that rte with birthmarks?¡± He diverted the question to Leasis and she nodded, feeling sure with herself.


    ¡°These are all I could find.¡±


    Roshan ran his fingers through his hair as a tired sigh left his lips. He¡¯s been here all morning and when luck decides to favor him, it gives him one-quarter of it.


    ¡°One grimoire is missing from here.¡± Neil quickly confirmed before moving away from the table and heading for the shelves. His eyes scheminly shifted from one shelf to the other and he barely moved from his spot.


    All of a sudden, Roshan heard a light creak that came from one the shelves, then another one, followed by another and the more he heard it, the louder it became until a quick snap bolted through his eardrums and a scroll appeared from one of the shelves and the next thing, Neil was holding it.


    ¡°So you¡¯re a library magician.¡± Roshan sarcastically concluded, leaving Leasis to snicker at his expression. He looked as though he wanted to beat Neil up for nearly ruining his sense of hearing.


    .....


    ¡°Remind me to walk out next time before trying something like that again.¡± He rubbed his ear with a finger to stop the continuous ringing. That thing was irritatingly loud.


    ¡°Forgive me, I wasn¡¯t aware of the fact you had sensitive ears.¡± He brought the scroll over to the table and ced it before Roshan.


    ¡°This should be it.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re sure this would give me the answers I need.¡±


    ¡°Hypothetically, yes.¡±


    Roshan stared at the scroll in front of him, for some reason, he felt hesitant on opening it, as though he knew he wasn¡¯t going to expect any cherry on the cake type of news but if he wanted to fulfill his promise, he¡¯d have to do the needful.


    Opening the scroll in front of him, there was a small drawing of a meteor at the top of it and below, some little poetry were written in uniquenguages which he understood, but for better understanding, he chose to read the trantion itself and it went like this;


    ¡®For a soul to be sealed by attestation, a rule had to be broken.


    From the confines of the three realms,


    a birthmark shall be given to those who vites thews of rebirth by the heavens.


    They shall bear a meteor mark as a sign of their punishment,


    a sign that depicts their untimely rebirth and the consequences of this~¡¯


    Roshan suddenly paused, blinking at the scroll as if he had no idea what just happened and his eyes narrowed suspiciously.


    ¡°It¡¯s notplete.¡± He finally muttered after seeing the rest of the words beneath it were no longer visible.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s notplete.¡±


    ¡°Impossible.¡±


    Neil took the scroll from him as if he didn¡¯t believe him and as he terribly wished for Roshan¡¯s words to be a lie, it wasn¡¯t, the rest of the notes were gone.


    ¡°How is it.... possible?¡±


    ¡°Someone couldn¡¯t have stolen the remaining notes, right?¡± Leasis critically questioned, leaving the three of them to exchange nces, all hoping they weren¡¯t thinking the same thing.


    After having a delightful supper with the Mayor and his family, Anna strode through the hallway, skipping lightly on her feet when the sight of a certain someone made her stop in her tracks.


    The cier was also heading her way as he stepped out of a corner with both hands in his pocket. On a normal basis, Anna wouldn¡¯t hesitate to go to him, but today, she didn¡¯t even dare to do that.


    He wasn¡¯t looking at her as he strode by and Anna quickly finalized with a depressed heart that he still wasn¡¯t going to talk to her.


    They brushed past each other after barelying in sight, but Roshan suddenly did something Anna didn¡¯t expect he¡¯d do.


    He stuck out his arm from his jacket pocket and unceremoniously grabbed her wrist, dragging the baffled Anna along with him as he made her turn to follow his lead.


    ¡°Ah! What are you doing?¡± She broke the silence as he made her follow him, his grip gradually tightening against her wrist and he refused to let go.


    ¡°Let me go, leave me alone!¡± She tried to free her wrist from his grip, but could barely open his hands that were like ws against her poor wrist.


    ¡°Stop! Let me go!¡±


    Instead of listening, his grasp slowly loosened and when Anna wanted to use the opportunity to free her hand, he held her palm, quickly locking their fingers together and that made her heart miss a beat.


    ¡°Roshan!¡±


    ¡°We need to talk.¡± His tone was strangely pleasant, but Anna didn¡¯t let herself get deceived by it because she knew deep down that he wanted to scold her for something.


    ¡°But I don¡¯t want to talk to you.¡± She tried biting his hand so he could let go of her but he only hissed at the quick sting and refused to let go, still.


    ¡°You need to bite harder than that if you want that tiny temper of yours to affect me.¡±


    ¡°Stop forcing me.¡±


    He finally let go and she freed her arm, he turned to look at her and she took a step back, pointing a warning finger at him.


    ¡°I told you already, I have nothing to talk with you about.¡±


    ¡°Of course, you¡¯ve got a new partner now so it¡¯s not actually surprising that you¡¯d want to talk to me, which is why I have to force you.¡±


    ¡°Why? I thought you were upset with me?¡±


    ¡°I still am.¡± He rified, ¡°but this is something that concerns you so be a good girl ande with me.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t_¡±


    ¡°Shhhh.¡± He ced a finger to his lips, gesturing for the stubborndy to keep quiet. His inexpressible gaze turned serious as he took a dominant step towards her.


    ¡°Either you do as I say, or continue to be the troublemaker that you are and get kissed in this spot, in the open, where people can see us. You wouldn¡¯t want us to be exposed so soon, am I right?¡±


    He raised a pretty brow, as if daring her to go against him and Anna¡¯s hands balled into a tight fist at her side. Was he seriously ckmailing her??


    She gritted her teeth to keep her self-control in check because one slip, and she might end up pping the demon in the face.


    The cier tilted his head at her, obviously aware of her thoughts and as much as he derived joy in seeing her sopelled to remain quiet, there was something more serious that he had to deal with.


    ¡°Good girl.¡± His hand found hers and when he intimately inteced their fingers, Anna couldn¡¯t keep her angry demeanor in ce as it dropped from her face like a cast-off cloak, feeling theforting warmth of his palm against hers.


    His lips secretly curled to the side as he looked away from her, a bit pleased by her reaction and he took her away.

 Chapter 111

    111 Hidden Emotions


    He took Anna into the library and made sure no one saw them before shutting the door behind him.


    Anna took a quick step back after he released her hand, keeping a safe distance away from him. She was already expecting some sort of scolding as his mood tends to change like the rapidity of the weather and right now, she was unsure of when the volcano inside of him would erupt.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to eat you alive.¡± He assured her, but Anna still had her doubts and refused to drop her guard.


    ¡°What do you want then? And why did you bring me here?¡± She demanded, finding it unusual that he¡¯d want to speak to her in a library of all ces.


    He leaned against the door but said nothing, the look in his eyes disyed a bit of hesitancy as he averted them and Anna didn¡¯t know exactly what to make from that expression.


    ¡°That mark on your....¡± He pointed at his own forehead, indicating he was referring to her meteor mark.


    ¡°Oh.¡± She felt the silver birthmark on her forehead, ¡°what happened to it?¡±


    He brought out the Grimoire from his pocket, opening it and holding it out for Anna to see.


    ¡°This old little paper here says a few things about your mark that leaves me with tons of questions, and I need you to answer them for me, and be honest.


    .....


    ¡°What about my birthmark?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a punishment given to your soul, due to the fact you chose to be reborned at your own will and defying thews of rebirth.¡± He stated, leaving Anna to snatch the Grimoire from his grasp and she looked at it.


    ¡°Untimely rebirth?¡±


    He nodded, ¡°the consequences were strangely wiped out from the Grimoire and that¡¯s when youe in.¡± He moved away from the door and stood before her. There was a strange look of concern as she met his gaze. For the first time, she noticed his emotions despite him trying to hide it.


    ¡°What are the consequences?¡± He popped the question at her.


    ¡°Why are you asking me?¡±


    ¡°Cause I don¡¯t think you¡¯d want to get rid of a mark that you certainly have no idea about.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a cursed birthmark, everything in my life has been upside down from the day I was born, so you see,I have enough reasons to get rid of it.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± He shook his head, ¡°you aren¡¯t telling me the full truth and it took me some little puzzles to fix before it made clear sense.¡±


    He took another step towards her, she took a step back.


    ¡°Azazel finds it difficult to bnce the three realms after a special soul escaped from the limbo,¡± he began, ¡°such souls aren¡¯t guaranteed to live long Anna. It¡¯s the consequences of going against thew of rebirth and...¡±


    ¡°I know that already.¡± She told him, ¡°I know my lifespan is limited and you wanna know something else? I used to think that that was the major problem in my life, I used to think that getting rid of it would give me the happiness that I aim for but....but it¡¯s not.¡± She shook her head at Roshan before dropping the Grimoire down on the table, using it as an attempt to hide her nervousness but he grabbed her hand and forcefully made her look at him.


    ¡°You knew?? Why didn¡¯t you tell me the whole truth when making that exception of yours?¡±


    She freed her hand from his grip, ¡°I didn¡¯t find it necessary to tell you back then, it¡¯s not like I meant anything to you for you to take it seriously.¡±


    She truthfully said, ¡°Yes I want to live but I want to do that so I can experience the true feeling of happiness, I_I want to experience that feeling of being happy, even if it¡¯s just once.¡±


    The emotionsced to her tone and the look in her watery brown eyes brought a feeling upon Roshan that he never knew existed inside of him, but regardless of it, he felt restrained and looked away from her, refusing to show it and it was something Anna wouldn¡¯t let him do this time.


    ¡°You im to have no emotions when all you do is hide it.¡± She smiled sadly with a look of pity, ¡°I used to think you were heartless but now I understand it better, every man has his secret sorrow that the world knows not and is often considered cold when he is only sad..... that¡¯s you.¡±


    ¡°You have no idea what you¡¯re saying.¡± He responded, ¡°this isn¡¯t about me.¡±


    ¡°It has everything to do with you,¡± she countered back, ¡°we¡¯ve spent a lot of times together Roshan, we_¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t wanna hear it.¡±


    ¡°You have to, sooner orter you¡¯re going to regret keeping things to yourself, cause it¡¯ll do nothing more but hurt you and eat you in_¡±


    ¡°I said it¡¯s enough!¡± He snapped, leaving a startled gasp to escape from her lips and thest thing he wanted to do was frighten her, but he hated how true her words were, he hated the fact she was able to see through him and his cold gazes and he wanted her to just stop.


    He wasn¡¯t used to people understanding him like this.


    ¡°Fine.¡± Came a response he wasn¡¯t expecting to hear from her and the next thing, she ran towards the direction of the window and opened it.


    To Roshan¡¯s horrified gaze, he watched as she climbed the edge of the window, staring down at the length of the ce before turning to look at Roshan.


    ¡°Fine, since neither of us are willing to ept the truth about ourselves, I don¡¯t have much time left anyways so there¡¯s no difference if I die today or not.¡±


    ¡°What are you doing? Don¡¯t be foolish and get down from there.¡± He watched her take a step back but what added to his vexation was the painful smile on her lips, it was like a heavy stab to his chest and she just waved, making him realize that if she fell, he would never see her again.


    ¡°Goodbye.¡±


    ¡°Wait!¡±


    She closed her eyes and deliberately let her foot slip from the edge. She felt herself being pulled down by the gravity that awaited her fall but instead of falling, someone grabbed her hand at the nick of time and pulled her back up. The pull forced her toe down from the edge of the window and when she looked up to meet his stare, he was ring at her.


    ¡°Are you mad??¡±


    She shook her head with a knowing smile, ¡°I knew you¡¯d stop me.¡±


    Roshan could finally catch his breath after seeing she was standing right in front of him. Obviously she had gone crazy and he felt like killing her for daring him like this, then killing himself afterwards.


    ¡°What if I didn¡¯t?¡± Was she even thinking? He nearly asked if her main aim in his life was to drive him mad, but restrained himself from saying something foolish and he didn¡¯t even realize his emotions were being disyed right in front of her.


    ¡°If you really had no emotions, if you didn¡¯t have a heart, then you wouldn¡¯t have stopped me. People with no emotions don¡¯t value the lives of others, neither do they care about the lives of an ordinary maid, do you get it now?¡±


    She said, leaving him to reflect more on her words and she walked out. She hadn¡¯t even brushed past himpletely when he grabbed her arm and brought her back.


    ¡°A maid?¡± He frowned at her words, ¡°you do know you¡¯re more than a maid to me, right?¡±


    As angry as he was, those words were still as sweet as honey from his sensuous lips and Anna had no control over her heartbeat as it thumped in response.


    ¡°You¡¯re.My.Mate.¡± he didn¡¯t bother hiding his emotions this time, making his concern known and it left Anna breathless.


    ¡°What?¡±


    He kissed her, leaving her eyes to widen in bewilderment as she blinked in disbelief. Although it wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯s kissed her, his kiss today was surprisingly gentle, not forced and they held more feelings that were unutterable as she instinctively found herself reciprocating to his touch and his hands wrapped her tiny waist.


    Unknown to the two of them, William hurried past the garden below and just when he was about to step into the building, he caught sight of the two of them.


    ¡°What the_¡±


    He arranged his sses, thinking he wasn¡¯t seeing properly but turns out, his eyes aren¡¯t deceiving him and the color on his face paled.


    ¡°Roshan and Anna??¡±

 Chapter 112

    112 Two Choices


    The door to the library bursted open with a startled sound and William quickly stepped in. To his bafflement, the library was empty. Not a single soul could be felt in the library and his mouth remained agape.


    ¡°But I thought_¡± he paused, quickly surveying the library properly in case something was missing but there was no one there.


    Unbeknownst to him, Anna and Roshan hid behind the door and the deeper he surveyed the library, the more chances he gave them as they quickly exited the library, knowing he wasn¡¯t going to turn around anytime soon.


    Roshan was having fun watching the old shorty try and look for them, not until Anna dragged the cier away from sight.


    William adjusted his sses once again and it didn¡¯t make any sense as to how it¡¯d be possible for them to leave the library without being spotted on the way.


    He can¡¯t even find them here, or was it just a hallucination?? He hoped so.


    Anna let out a deep breath of relief after making it out of there. Roshan just watched her fan her face with her palm and he folded his arm.


    ¡°Next time when we run into an upromised situation, think twice before iming someone like me as your sibling.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t remind me, I feel ashamed already.¡± Anna ced both her cold palms on her hot cheeks. She couldn¡¯t imagine what would have happened if he saw them, then they¡¯d figure out who they really are and they¡¯ll never be trusted.


    .....


    ¡°Did you get the Grimoire?¡±


    ¡°Was I supposed to leave it there?¡± His sarcastic response wasn¡¯t helping the situation and when she gave him that re that frightened him a little, he brought it out from his Jacket pocket.


    ¡°I did.¡±


    ¡°Give it to me.¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°The remaining notes are missing, if the consequences of the meteor mark were stated here, so should the solutions to getting rid of it, can your little brain register that?¡±


    He ced it back in his Jacket pocket, leaving Anna with no other choice but to leave it with him, not like she understands those Latinnguages anyway.


    ¡°We need to leave the mansion,¡± Roshan finally began as they strode past the hallway, ¡°find somewhere safe and quiet to discuss this further. It¡¯s difficult using the mind Array knowing people like William¡¯s forget to knock before entering.¡± He rolled his eyes, feeling somewhat disappointed that he didn¡¯t get to enjoy his moment for a little longer.


    Anna scratched the back of her head, trying to align her senses with his words as he continued to speak.


    ¡°Well.... How do we do that?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t do anything.¡± Came his underlying response.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°I just happened to have more pawns in the mansion.¡± He smirked sinfully, leaving Anna to scrunch her face in confusion.


    More pawns??


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Just get ready to leave with me.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? I¡¯m all ready.¡±


    He stopped in his tracks at her words and let his eyes rake over her in a devil-may-care manner. The way he stared at her sometimes always made her feel like she wasn¡¯t wearing enough and she wrapped her body with her hands. His gaze was always periphrastically taunting.


    ¡°Are you?¡± He tilted his head at her.


    Anna looked at her dress, trying to find the faults in it that she had to get ready to leave with him.


    ¡°Why should I get ready?¡±


    ¡°His scent.¡± He hinted, leaving Anna to blink in genuine cluelessness.


    ¡°Whose scent?¡±


    ¡°Your ¡®walking partner.''¡± He made the quote sign, wearing a smile of sarcasm and just like that, the smile vanished.


    ¡°I really don¡¯t like his scent on you, It doesn¡¯t suit you, get rid of it.¡±


    He had sensed it earlier but the situation then was different from the one happening now.


    ¡°No!¡± She outrightly refused. She can¡¯t believe he was telling her to go change because of a mere scent and it only made his mood dissipate when she refused.


    ¡°It wouldn¡¯t hurt to be obedient for once, you seem to derive joy in defying everything I say.¡± He bickered with a hint of annoyance in his tone and Anna stubbornly looked away.


    ¡°Hmph! Fine then, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m needed there anyway neither am I helping you to meditate, so go by yourself.¡±


    ¡°I see...¡± he clicked his tongue at her retort and that was definitely something he couldn¡¯t do, what if she went back to that douchebag when he¡¯s gone?


    ¡°Alright.¡± He shrugged, ¡°I actually had ns on getting you those dresses you talked about the other night,¡± at the mention of dresses, Anna¡¯s gaze slowly returned back to him and seeing he was sessfully starting to get her attention, he continued with an apathetic gaze, ¡°but I don¡¯t think you need them anymore so it¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll just_¡±


    ¡°Wait!¡± She suddenly blocked his path when he tried to move, stretching both arms out wide so he wouldn¡¯t leave and he stopped.


    From the look on her face, he could see she was seriously contemting his words and she bit the skin in her cheek before lifting her eyes to meet his gaze.


    The fact he was enjoying this really didn¡¯t sit with her, she was hoping he¡¯d beg her to follow but now, he was using something she couldn¡¯t refuse to keep her tied to him.


    ¡°Are you_are you serious about getting me those dresses?¡± She wanted to confirm if he was just ying with her or not, but he only moved closer, closing the distance between them. He leaned a bit and subtly whispered into her ear.


    ¡°Two choices Anna, it¡¯s either you take the risk and trust a man like me, or you don¡¯t.¡±


    Anna pinned her lips into a thin line, that phrase meant many things and she couldn¡¯t pinpoint exactly what he meant by that.


    Trust him?


    He moved back to meet her stare, ¡°meet me at the front yard in case you change your mind.¡±


    And he walked out.

 Chapter 113

    113 Ways To Ride a Demon


    Just as he predicted, Anna ended up showing up at the front yard like he asked her to, but her steps were somewhat stiff like she knew a certain someone¡¯s gaze was fixed on her.


    She was casually dressed in a burgundy gown made from fluttering chiffon. It looked simple and delicate on her tender skin and it made her look no different from a rose on its stem. The demon found it difficult to avert his stare till he realized she was standing in front of him.


    He couldn¡¯t exin the reason for it but she appeared more beautiful in his eyes each time he saw her.


    ¡°So where are we going?¡± She asked, ¡°Do we get the dresses first and then take a stroll around Ark Ville before doing whatever it is you n on doing?¡± Her glimmering brown eyes were filled with anticipation as she asked, but she got a flick on the forehead in return, as if snapping her back to her senses.


    ¡°Have youe down to earth? We¡¯re not doing any of that stuff.¡±


    ¡°But_ the dresses, you promised.¡±


    ¡°And you¡¯ll get them.¡± He assured her, ¡°but speaking with Azazel is more important, it¡¯s best we get this off our chest so we can focus on your birthmark and find a solution quickly.¡±


    Although she was a bit disappointed that they wouldn¡¯t go for a walk around Ark Ville, he was still right and to say the least bit of truth, she never really took it serious and it all started after she met him. So this is basically his fault.


    ¡°Fine.¡± She agreed before looking around with a searching gaze.


    .....


    ¡°So how do we go? Do we get a carriage on the way or..¡±


    ¡°Get on my back.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Her eyes instantly googled at him, as though she didn¡¯t hear him correctly and he repeated it.


    ¡°Get on my back.¡±


    Anna still remembered vividly the first time he suggested this same technique to her after saving her from Luderick and she unwillingly blushed at the recollection.


    ¡°Why? We can just take a carriage.¡±


    ¡°Ever ridden a demon before?¡±


    He uttered something that made her question his words in her head. Of course she hasn¡¯t but now that he mentioned it, she was curious to know what it felt like.


    ¡°What if someone sees?¡±


    ¡°Then you better hurry up.¡±


    Anna took her time to look around and make sure no one was at sight and to her relief, everyone seemed to be inside the mansion or the guest house which was at the back of the building.


    Which means the path was more than clear.


    Without dying any further, she got on his back like he asked her to and heard him tsk after carrying her properly, feeling her delicate arms wrapped around his neck gently.


    ¡°I see you¡¯ve been eating a lot, you¡¯re heavier thanst time.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a good thing.¡± She felt proud, ¡°uhm Roshan, I¡¯ve never ridden a demon before so can you have mercy and slow down on the way?¡±


    ¡°Sure, they¡¯re actually two ways to ride a demon, this is the first.¡± He subtly told her and Anna¡¯s brow knitted into a curious frown.


    ¡°What¡¯s the second?¡±


    ¡°It remains a mystery till you experience it yourself, but there is one secret I can tell you.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Both methods will leave you screaming my name.¡± The corner of his lips pulled up.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Anna didn¡¯t get it until the being finally took off.


    All she knew was that she wrapped her arms tightly around him and buried her face at his neck. She knew she was screaming out but could barely hear what she was screaming about due to the howling wind that continuously swept past them.


    Roshan sensed her fear and unlike her who could barely hear her own screams, he held it clearly as she screamed out his name, begging him to slow down and instead of abiding to her words, he did as he pleased and chose to make her suffer a little as he rounded the forest path, avoiding the main street of Ark Ville.


    He was moving too fast for her to handle and she just held on tighter like a ma glued to an iron, afraid she might fall off if she let her nervousness take control of her action.


    And suddenly he stopped. If it wasn¡¯t for the sweet scent of his hair that helped ease her fatigue, she would have thrown up for sure.


    But at this moment, she felt like thanking him for stopping, she¡¯s never ridden anything so fast in her life and she barely saw how he even got here, the winds wouldn¡¯t even let her.


    When she finally raised her head up, they were in apletely different environment. The ce was surrounded with trees that he turned a shade orange as a sign of autumn.


    When Roshan dropped her on the ground, her feet were unsteady and everything looked dizzy before her eyes. She shook her head while cing a palm to the side of her face, as though it¡¯d steady her sight.


    ¡°Why is the_why is the forest spinning?¡± She nearly lost her bnce if not for Roshan who held her in ce so she could regain her stamina once again.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡±


    ¡°I think so.¡±


    When she felt her stamina returning once again, and her vision bing steady, she stood firmly on the ground and Roshan slowly released her, just in case she ns on falling again.


    ¡°Remind me not to ride a demon again.¡± She uttered before recovering fully from that ride and lifting her head to gaze at the sky.


    The sky was darker with a mixture of blue and red, beautifully highlighting the transition from day to night.


    ¡°Sunsets are always so beautiful, I see different colors.¡± She pointed at the sky with a glowing smile on her lips.


    ¡°You¡¯re smiling already.¡±


    She met his gaze and nodded, still staggering back a bit and a pleasingughter followed as she looked up at the sky again, ¡°watching the sunset reminds me that I¡¯m only a small part of a bigger picture, there¡¯s so much to explore in this life that being sad is really not worth my sweat.¡±


    He sighed hopelessly at her childish behavior and made her sit on the leaves that had formed a soft carpet on the ground.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move.¡±


    He sat beside her and Anna had to admit, the ce he brought her too was really serene and peaceful. The only thing heard was the sweet chirping of birds, already singing their goodnight songs and the cool breeze fluttering against trees was a sight to marvel at.


    ¡°This is_¡± she paused in her words after realizing the cier already had his legs crossed in a meditating position, his eyes were closed and he looked concentrated.


    Just staring at him made her realize how much of a long way they¡¯ve actuallye. It was something that was no different from now. She had awoken in a forest and met Roshan in a sitting position just like this.


    She had been so marveled by his appearance on that day and they never had a good start to begin with. Now that she thought about it, she found it funny and her escaped snicker made Roshan¡¯s eyes flutter open.


    Sheposed herself when he stared at her and he suddenly stretched his right hand forward.


    ¡°Your hand.¡± He said, leaving Anna to blink at his word.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Your hand.¡±


    ¡°Why do you need my hand?¡±


    ¡°Just give it.¡±


    Anna stared at his proffered hand for a few seconds before cing her delicate hand on his. The confusion was clearly written on her face as she met his stare and he held her hand in his, holding it affectionately like it was some special gem that he wasn¡¯t willing to let go off and he closed his eyes again.


    ¡°I can¡¯t concentrate, I just needed a little support.¡±


    ¡°By holding my hand?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s called seeking sce,¡± his tone came out even softer as he uttered, ¡°and I can conquer my demons knowing you¡¯re here with me, so don¡¯t let go.¡±


    Anna didn¡¯t expect such words toe from his mouth. She was really taken aback by it. She watched him as his eyes were closed and she was hundred percent sure he was fully focused now.


    ¡°You¡¯re in a subconscious state, in case you reach Azazel, just give me a thumbs up.¡±


    There was no reaction in his face to notify her that he¡¯s heard but Anna knew he heard her clearly, he just isn¡¯t allowed to respond since his mind was in another different dimension.


    Seconds ticked by, followed by minutes and when Anna was starting to get bored of waiting, his hands finally moved to her her bewilderment, he gave her a thumbs up.

 Chapter 114

    114 His Highness¡¯s Interest


    Viscarrian


    ************


    ¡°What were you thinking? Sending your own rtive to the underground prison??¡± Lady Odette stared in disbelief at Azazel whose blue eyes were nowhere near reality.


    He was sitting on a chair in the sr room, legs crossed while tapping his fingers lightly on the arm of the chair.


    ¡°If you feel bad for her, you can always join her. She¡¯ll appreciate thepany,¡± came his heartless offer and that made Lady Odette¡¯s brow rise in obvious hesitation. She discarded it quickly and wore a look of discontentment.


    ¡°I¡¯m highly disappointed in you Azazel, I thought you were the smartest in the Astaroth family, and to say you made this decision because of a lowlife human istling.¡±


    ¡°Funny how youin when all I did was send her to hardbor. You knew the consequences of her act, but you didn¡¯t stop her.¡± He said in a not so quiet tone, ¡°Gretta is still young so let¡¯s assume she made a mistake, but you¡¯re older and hopefully wiser, yet, you didn¡¯t stop her.¡±


    ¡°Mind your words and think twice before putting the me on me, I would have stopped her if I had a clue about it, why waste her energy in taking the life of someone who¡¯s going to end up dying anyways?¡± She harrumphed.


    Azazel¡¯s stern blue eyes snapped at her the moment she said it and his tapping finger paused mid-way, barely touching the arm of the chair.


    .....


    ¡°How did you know?¡±


    ¡°And what makes you think I¡¯d tell?¡± She snorted before casting him a threatening re, ¡°get Gretta out of that sickening ce, else, I¡¯ll make it my mission to make sure Roshan finds out about everything and how you¡¯re secretly anticipating Anna¡¯s death.¡±


    Azazel¡¯s gaze momentarily darkened like ice in winter due to the sudden threat, but he said nothing in response, silently wondering how the prying woman came to know about his intentions.


    She strode to where he sat and ced aforting pat on his shoulder, ¡°Roshan will eventually get his memory back and if he does that before Anna¡¯s death day, you and I know it¡¯ll be impossible to stop him from saving her.¡±


    A scoff left Azazel¡¯s lips, ¡°and who says I¡¯m scared of Roshan?¡± A mirthful smirk appeared next, causing the almost triumphant smile on Odette¡¯s lips to fade drastically.


    ¡°Roshan might be my brother, but I also have a duty to fulfill as the keeper of the limbo, Anna¡¯s death day is close, I can feel it and she will die.¡±


    ¡°And Roshan?¡± She tried to intimidate the iceberg further, ¡°how will he react when he realizes his own brother knew about Anna¡¯s death since the very day he brought her here? How will he react when he finds out that you knew Anna is his reborned wife, but said nothing to satisfy your own selfish intentions.¡±


    She tried to sense a little tension from Azazel who just looked neutral about everything and he finally said; ¡°He won¡¯t stop it, even if he wants to, he will figure it out, as well as my selfish intention and besides, no one in the Astaroth family is a saint.¡±


    ¡°What if he picks a fight?¡±


    ¡°Even more interesting, I¡¯ll just give him one.¡±


    The moment he said it, a triggering feeling surged into his head, leaving the iceberg to close his eyes for a few minutes and when he opened them back, an unreadable smile formed on his lips.


    ¡°Speak of the devil.¡± He uttered before shifting his gaze to Odette whose face immediately went pale-stricken as she knew exactly who Azazel was referring to.


    ¡°Want to say hi, Aunt?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m done with this conversation!¡± She haughtily walked out, leaving Azazel alone in the sr room and when he closed his eyes, he tsked.


    ¡°You bastard, you finally chose to use the mind Array.¡± He cursed the cier in his head.


    ~


    The maids who were seriously eavesdropping on the conversation instantly shuffled themselves back to work when Lady Odette walked past them with quick steps.


    From the look on her face, it was easy to tell she was in a very foul mood and not even the maids dared to speak or pass a greeting as they kept themselves busy with one or two things.


    The moment she waspletely out of sight, a maid stopped what she was doing and hmphed out her displeasure, ¡°his highness Roshan really shouldn¡¯t get involved with humans at all. I mean look at what one human girl is causing to the Astaroth family.¡±


    ¡°More to say she¡¯s a lowlife and not up to his highness¡¯s standard,¡± another maid who was skillfully dusting the stairs added, ¡°I can¡¯t help but wonder what his highness sees in her.¡±


    Another maiden who carried an appalling look on her face whispered to the two gossiping maidens, ¡± human¡¯s can not be trusted, after what his highness had to go through in their hands, I¡¯m surprised to see he¡¯s still mingling with them.¡±


    ¡°Is it possible she¡¯s using a magic charm?¡±


    ¡°All youdies know how to do is gossip all day.¡± Ba unhurriedly walked past while holding a tray of fresh milk on a ss.


    Her unforseen presence startled the three maidens who were almost bowing their heads to apologize for eavesdropping, but after seeing it was neither the head-maid ordy Odette, their minds settled.


    ¡°I think Anna is nice,¡± Ba continued with a smile, ¡°and she has good conviviality, you all should really leave the innocentdy alone.¡±


    ¡°Since when did you start supporting a human?¡± Asked a maid who eyed Ba from head to toe, but Ba met the maid¡¯s stare with a smile as though she pitied her.


    ¡°I¡¯m not supporting anyone, I¡¯m just looking at things from Anna¡¯s view. She has suffered enough already and backbiting about her all day won¡¯t change the fact that his highness Roshan has a lot of interest in her.¡±


    She turned to look at the corridor where Odette had angrily taken and her brows rose, ¡°oh, and I thinkdy Odette ising back....¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± The maidens immediately panicked and dismissed themselves from the stairs, leaving Ba to stand alone at the top of the grand stairs since everyone had chosen to disappear from sight.


    ¡°That scared them real quick.¡± She smiled at the result before shaking her head hopelessly and heading towards Gemma¡¯s chamber with the tray of milk.


    ¡°I hope they¡¯re both alright.¡± She murmured to herself while thinking about Annalise and Roshan with a look of genuine concern.


    ~


    Ark Ville


    ************


    The sky had visibly turned dark blue and Annaid her back on the soft leaves resting on the ground, looking up while counting the thousand stars that twinkle brightly in the sky.


    ¡°So many of them.¡± She whispered to herself, unaware that a certain cier had his gaze fixated on her. He watched as her expression turned into one of curiosity, then doubt, followed by a twinkling spark in her eyes as she continuously gazed at the stars above.


    ¡°Are you done?¡±


    His voice broke her from her thoughts and she met his gaze, a bit surprised to see he was done already.


    ¡°I should be asking you.¡± She got her body into a sitting position as hope glinted in her eyes.


    ¡°Did you reach Azazel? Please don¡¯t tell me you lost interest again.¡±


    ¡°I did.¡± He clicked his tongue, ¡°and that white-haired jerk dared to call me bastard before I could say anything.¡±


    Annalise couldn¡¯t help but chuckle lightly at his expression, already looking displeased like a child whose candy got snatched from him.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure your parents really had it full with you.¡± She joked heartily, but her giggling slowly faded after seeing the light in his eyes weaken and he averted his gaze.


    ¡°Something like that.¡±


    Anna slowly shifted closer to him, she could see he was holding back a lot of things that concerned his parents and families. To be honest, only Levi and Gemma happened to be the odd ones out of all of them.


    ¡°Can I ask you something?¡±


    He remained silent for a while, quietly pondering on whether to say yes or not.


    ¡°What?¡±


    She took a deep breath and she barely knew how those words slipped from her mouth.


    ¡°What was the rtionship like between your parents?¡±

 Chapter 115

    115 A Peek Into His Past I


    Roshan blinked in silence, looking like it was the first time he¡¯s heard such a word before. It sounded rather foreign to his ears and he couldn¡¯t help but ask again.


    ¡°Rtionships?¡±


    Anna nodded in affirmation, bringing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her hands around it, ¡°yes.¡±


    It took Roshan a few seconds to process what she meant, a softugh escaped his lips but his Hazel-green eyes revealed the sadness he held within. ¡°There¡¯s no such thing as rtionships when being with a demon Anna, in Viscarrian it¡¯s either you marry for political reasons or power, or maybe to spite someone.¡±


    ¡°Only that?¡± She found it queer, ¡°no love or_¡±


    ¡°Not everyone is as lucky to meet their one true love, when they¡¯re only seen as a weapon used to draw blood.¡± He cryptically emphasized beforeying on the ground and rested his hands at the back of his head. He gazed up at the sky that had caught his annoying woman¡¯s interest earlier and Anna didn¡¯t fail to notice a glint of regret in them.


    His gaze didn¡¯t avert from the stars and Anna couldn¡¯t stop herself from asking as she leaned in closer, leaving just a little gap between the two of them, ¡°what was your childhood like?¡±


    He said nothing in response to her question. A wistful breeze blew by, rustling the leaves and the sounds of cricket could be heard when the ce turned silent again.


    Anna was about to change the topic, seeing he wasn¡¯t ready to open up yet when he started,


    .....


    ¡°My father wasn¡¯t the type of man who cared about the happiness of his children,¡± he neutrally began, ¡°Azazel¡¯s mother had just given birth to him when an insane prophecy got to my father about having a half-blood Demon. Bearing a half-blood Demon meant having the strongest of Demons since they shared two traits. A human and a Demon.¡±


    ¡°My mother was human to say the least and she was a ve to my father since the war of human very and stealing of kingdoms were still very much rampant. From what she told me, not sure if I believe it yet or not, my father took pity on her for no particr reason and made her his first consort. She didn¡¯t want to suffer being a ve forever and agreed.¡±


    He paused again, already getting tensed by it. Anna could see he was forcing himself to speak up and she wanted him to say it, she wanted him to ease the burden that weighed on his shoulder.


    He let out a deep breath and closed his eyes.


    ¡°My father wanted to make that prophecy a reality, so he got my mother pregnant, and that¡¯s when I came along. Laura, Azazel¡¯s mother didn¡¯t fancy the idea of having a human for a consort but she never spoke against it due to the fear she had for my father. My mother told me how many times she unknowingly ate poison fed to her by Laura just to get rid of me, it affected my mother to some extent, but not me.¡±


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened, poison???


    ¡°When I turned seven, I was trained to have a cold heart, showing love and sympathy was considered weak by my father and each time I relented, he gave me a scar on my chest, using the hot ironed dagger he carries with him as my punishment. My mother felt suffocated by his callous attitude and decided to flee from Viscarrian, along with my sister but I_I stayed back, a decision I had to make, else he¡¯d find them and kill them. My father made me watch_ ¡± and he paused again, as though the memories of it all were crawling back into his head, haunting him, he looked so regretful and Anna had the urge to hug him.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± She touched his arm, wanting tofort him but then, something happened before she could say anything.


    Like a sh of events, Anna¡¯s eyes widened and before she knew it, she found herself in Viscarrian, back in the kingdom and shockingly, in Roshan¡¯s room.


    It looked empty as it had always been, the lights were out just as he always liked them or rather dwelled in them. If it wasn¡¯t for the silvery-white moon that gave a little bit of light to the room, she wouldn¡¯t have been able to see anything.


    ¡°How did I_¡±


    She paused when she heard a light sob and it caught her attention, it sounded more like someone was secretly crying and when she looked at the bed, there was no one resting on it.


    ¡°Where is the_¡± she heard it again, followed by a soft sniffling.


    She followed the sound of the light sob and when it was starting to get closer, she bent and looked under the study table. A little boy had curled himself there, his ck hair was scattered on his head, it looked damp from sweating and she could see he was trying his very best not to sob loudly, afraid someone might hear.


    His Hazel-green eyes shone like twinkling crystals and Anna doubted she¡¯d seen a child look so adorable, yet so sad and lonely. Worst of all, he was ying with a knife in his grasp.


    Is this....was this Roshan??


    The little boy she assumed to be Roshan brought the knife to his arm and with a horrifying gaze, she watched as he closed his eyes and slowly cut himself, taking in the pain and opening his own flesh.


    A panicked gasp left her lips and the boy didn¡¯t stop, he kept cutting himself with the knife, more so to the extent blood filled the ground in no time. Strangely, he no longer cried like before, he just stared at the deep cuts he gave himself, and to his disappointment, they started to heal and the marks faded.


    ¡°You weren¡¯t supposed to heal.¡± The sses in the room shattered in pieces as those hazel-green eyes turned a deep red in anger. Anna had to close her ears and the room shook violently as his powers went out of control. The sounds of vase breaking and things falling to the ground terrified Anna, but the boy just remained under the table amidst the chaos, and Anna doubted he could even see her.


    ¡°Stop!¡± She couldn¡¯t stop herself from saying to the little boy and almost like amand, it stopped and when she looked at the boy, he was back to sobbing as his face dropped to his palm.


    Was this really Roshan??


    With just the blink of an eye, she found herself in another ce in the kingdom.


    ¡®The dungeon?¡¯


    The same little boy had his hair tied in a ponytail and before him, he watched as several men got tortured, killed and decapitated in the most horrible ways, alive. Blood spilled everywhere, a sight Anna could barely watch but the little boy just sat there, hearing the screams, feeling their pain, but was unwilling to bat an eye or look away, even when blood spilled on his face.


    ¡°Are you seeing this?¡± A man stood before him, wearing a royal mantle and Anna didn¡¯t need anyone to tell her before knowing it was his father.


    ¡°This is something you¡¯re going to do when you get older.¡±


    The little boy shakily stared at his palms, already reminiscing the sight of blood in them and he looked away, shuddering in fear.


    ¡°What if I don¡¯t want to do it?¡± He asked with a considerable daring before meeting the gaze of his father.


    ¡°You¡¯re even more naive than I expected humans to be, but you¡¯re a half-devil too, we are made to torment the lives of people, we manipte and make sure to ruin them like crushed stones.¡±


    ¡°But they didn¡¯t do anything to us.¡±


    The man gave his son¡¯s head a pat and made him watch the awful scene happening again, ¡°who says they haven¡¯t? They¡¯ve killed your people just as much as we¡¯ve killed theirs, they are selfish and greedy people who wouldn¡¯t mind betraying themselves for power.¡±


    He dropped a dagger in his small palm, ¡°your days of killing start now.¡±


    Anna shook her head in disbelief, what sort of a father teaches his child such things?!! And at a tender age too.


    His eyes were swimming with tears as he stared at the dagger in his palm and he looked at his father.


    ¡°You promise not to hurt mother as long as I follow your orders?¡±


    Anna really felt like hugging the adorable child who just wanted to be loved and his father nodded.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°No!¡± It was obvious he was only using him and he still lied to his face. Anna realized she wasn¡¯t the only one who noticed, a white-haired boy who appeared to be a bit older than Roshan stood at a corner, staring nkly at the father and son. It took a few seconds before a look of pity shed in them, but his gaze was fixed on his little brother this time.


    A cute white rabbit was brought before Roshan and his father whispered into his ear, like a devil¡¯s whisper.


    ¡°Kill it.¡±


    As though hypnotised, the little boy raised the dagger up in the air, the look in his eyes had turned nk, as though every emotion inside of him got swept away and he brought the dagger down with quick speed, wanting to stab the rabbit and Anna¡¯s eyes widened.


    ¡°Stop!¡± She blinked again and found herself back in the forest, her skin grew cold and she shook her head, hugging herself.


    ¡°Don¡¯t do it, that¡¯s not you, you¡¯re still so little that wasn¡¯t_¡±


    ¡°Anna!¡± She gasped after realizing Roshan was sitting up, staring at her with a confused gaze.


    ¡°Are you alright? You were screaming to_¡±


    ¡°Did you kill the rabbit?¡± She popped the question at him, leaving Roshan¡¯s expression to pale and she had tears swimming in her eyes as she shook her head.


    ¡°That wasn¡¯t supposed to happen, you were so little and you did all that to yourself, you looked so lifeless and helpless how could you do that yourself??¡± She was already yelling at Roshan who was baffled by her questions. She didn¡¯t even realize she was grabbing the cor of his shirt and he shook his head.


    ¡°How did you know that?¡±

 Chapter 116

    116 A Peek Into His Past II; Two Surprises


    Anna froze the moment he popped the question at her, she could see the shock in his dumbstruck gaze and only then did her eyes divert to the hands that clutch tightly to the cor of his shirt.


    ¡°I_¡± thedy who was constantly yelling her worries at him, had suddenly gone mute at his question and her hands recoiled themselves from his cor and she met his gaze.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°You saw my past.¡± He concluded, already taken aback by it without shifting gaze. Anna averted her gaze and shook her head in denial.


    ¡°I_ how is that possible?¡±


    Anna¡¯s mind was already on a quick rampage when she felt Roshan¡¯s hand slide to the side of her neck as he moved her hair the other way, taking view of the bite mark on her alluring neck.


    Just staring at it got him tempted to take another bite and taste her sweet blood again, but restrained himself, knowing he couldn¡¯t do it without permission.


    Could it be because of the bite mark??


    Anna¡¯s heart picked up speed after seeing how intently he stared at the mark on her neck and she shifted away from his heating touch, covering the side of her neck with her hair.


    .....


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, what matters is what you went through, has life always been like that for you?¡±


    Remembering the sight of how he cut himself and opened his flesh was a sight she couldn¡¯t bear to recall, it was just horrible and to think a little child could do something like that to himself, he must have been really depressed.


    Roshan stared at her face with a look of interest and when Anna was starting to get bothered about what he was staring at with such glint in his eyes, she felt his hand gently reach to wipe away the tears she didn¡¯t even realize was rolling down her cheek already.


    He brought his hand back and stared at the single bead of tear resting on his index finger. A slow smile curled the side of his lips before he lifted his gaze to meet her stare.


    ¡°What are you smiling about?¡± She asked and he returned his gaze back to the glistening tears at the top of his finger.


    ¡°Is this tears or water?¡± He popped a silly question at her, and he sounded very curious to know what it was, leaving Anna to shake her head in disbelief and she facepalmed before raising her head to meet his stare.


    ¡°Are you being serious?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m the one with the memories, but you¡¯re the one in tears.¡± He pointed out.


    Anna quickly wiped her face with her palm in case there were more tears on her face. She met his gaze and realized he was just teasing her, and it only added to her already sad mood. How is he still like this after experiencing all that? She was even scared to hear more of his childhood stories and she understood why it got so difficult for him to say them out.


    She thought she had the worst time of her life but didn¡¯t even realize how miniscule it waspared to that of Roshan¡¯s. As scared as she was, she still wanted to know what happened after that, did he kill the rabbit? Was that why he¡¯s like this? What happened to his father?


    ¡°Stop that, I honestly feel bad for you.¡± She truthfully told him and he knew, it¡¯s the first time someone had to cry over him. He wasn¡¯t someone who spoke about his past but he did and she saw it herself. What shocked him more was the tears in her eyes and they glistened with genuine worry.


    He cupped her face with his palm and wiped another tear that was threatening to fall from the brim of her eyes.


    ¡°How cute.¡±


    He smirked, looking breathtaking as she noticed his mesmerizing face was close to hers. Anna¡¯s heart fluttered in rhythm to his words and she blinked.


    ¡°Cute?¡±


    His hypnotizing gaze fell on her lips and Anna felt her breath seize. The forest grew quieter than usual and all that Anna heard was the sound of her own heart beat thrashing loudly against her ears.


    Just when she thought he¡¯d kiss her again, he moved back and lifted his gaze back to meet her stare.


    ¡°We should leave, they can get suspicious if we stay out too long.¡±


    His words broke her from her thoughts and Anna¡¯s mind returned to the forest that was beautifully glowing with fireflies.


    Roshan got to his feet and kind-heartedly let his hand out for her. Anna smiled faintly and ced hers on his before getting to her feet.


    ¡°Can we take a walk? Even if it¡¯s for a few minutes, please?¡± She begged, she wasn¡¯t ready to return to the Mayor¡¯s mansion just yet, she wanted to take a walk around the street of Ark Ville, if they were going to leave here soon, they should use the opportunity to view the beauty of Ark Ville.


    Not only that, she wanted to spend a few more minutes with Roshan cause once they reach the mansion, she¡¯ll have to check on Nick¡¯s wound.


    ¡°Mmn.¡± He nodded to her surprise and her eyes shone brightly as though saying a silent ¡®yay!¡¯


    He locked their fingers and together, they walked out of the beautiful forest that was glowing romantically with fireflies.


    Reaching the street of Ark Ville, Anna¡¯s eyes feasted on the exquisite stalls that were still open and thedies who were selling kept calling them with sweet names to check their products.


    The night was lit withnterns and candle lights hanging on the shops of marketers and some lights had different colors. Roshan suddenly stopped at a particr stall that sells all sorts of beautiful dresses and his eyes shifted back to Anna.


    ¡°You wanted dresses, right?¡±


    She nodded excitedly and he let his eyes roam the dresses before moving to speak with the owner of the stall. It was a youngdy who attended to another woman who came to shop.


    ¡°This is wonderful miss, you look like an angel from heaven in this dresses.¡± Came theplement of the youngdy to her customer and when her eyes diverted to Roshan, a weing smile adorned her Rosy lips


    ¡°Lovely evening to you young sir, what can I offer you?¡± Asked thedy in a polite manner.


    ¡°Not me,¡± he responded, ¡°but her.¡±


    Thedy¡¯s gaze shifted to Anna who offered her a sweet smile in return and she surprisingly tilted Anna¡¯s head up with a finger, her eyes sparkling with interest.


    ¡°She¡¯s beautiful, is she your wife?¡± Asked thedy and Anna¡¯s face turned visibly red at her question. She was about to exin to thedy, already shaking her head in denial when Roshan spoke first.


    ¡°Something like that.¡± He intertwined their fingers romantically, meeting Anna¡¯s dumbfounded stare and he winked.


    ¡°Right darling?¡±


    ¡®D_darling???¡¯ Anna felt a thousand butterflies swim up to her heart when he called her that, despite feeling all fluttered, she wondered if Roshan had gone crazy over the night. He¡¯s probably teasing her again.


    She tried to free her hand but he held it tighter, unwilling to let her ruin the moment for him with her boring lecture of decency.


    ¡°I see.¡± The youngdy gave a knowing smile, ¡°a lover then? You don¡¯t have to worry, she¡¯s in good hands with me and I¡¯ll make sure to give her the best of our best.¡± She assured him and only then, did he let go of her hand and Anna hurried to the youngdy¡¯s side.


    ¡°I want to check a stall, I¡¯ll be back in a few minutes.¡±


    ¡°What stall?¡± Anna asked, hoping he wasn¡¯t leaving her here and running away, but he just stared with a dreamy gaze.


    ¡°That¡¯s not your business, your business is here, and you better be done before I get back.¡±


    He looked at the youngdy, ¡°I¡¯ll be back.¡±


    ¡°Take your time.¡± She waved and Roshan walked out. Anna didn¡¯t really trust that man but the youngdy had her attention immediately when she took Anna deeper into her stall.


    ¡°I have all the most wonderful dresses in Ark Ville, I¡¯m not called The Lady Of All Dresses for nothing.¡± She giggled cheerfully and Anna¡¯s jaw nearly dropped after sighting a lot of beautiful dresses in her stall.


    ¡°Just tell me the one you want.¡± Said thedy with delight and Anna just smiled.


    ¡°Can I have a look at that please?¡±


    ¡°Sure, anyone you like. Is it a dress for a ball that you need? Or a simple glorious gown? Or maybe something transparent to attract your lover even more to you?¡±


    Anna¡¯s cheeks burned at herst word and she froze for a few seconds. When she met thedy¡¯s gaze, she winked at her, signifying they were bothdies and had nothing to hide.


    Few minutester when Roshan returned, Anna was already done shopping for the dresses that she needed and as promised, he paid for the dress, surprising Anna herself. The youngdy¡¯s face lit up.


    ¡°Doe again!¡±


    Roshan had no response to give for that and walked out. Anna returned her friendly wave before walking away as well.


    She looked at the being who silently walked beside her and she smiled gratefully, holding the shopping bags in her hand, ¡°thanks for the dresses.¡±


    He suddenly stopped walking, leaving Anna to stop in her tracks as well. She was about to ask why he suddenly stopped walking when he held her right hand and to her surprise, he wore a gold and white designed enamel bracelet around her wrist. It was so beautiful that Anna¡¯s mouth hung agape.


    It had arge number of smaller silver white stones decorating each side of the bracelet and a bigger one at the center, giving that glistening effect of a magical, cold, winter night.


    This must have cost a fortune!!


    ¡°For me?¡± She asked, still surprised and he nodded, feeling a bit bashful with himself since it¡¯s the first time he¡¯s doing something like this for anyone.


    ¡°I saw it when we walked past a stall earlier and thought it¡¯d suit you. So I got it for you.¡±


    After saying it, it finally clicked, he went back to a stall to get her this??


    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful.¡±


    ¡°Come on, we have to hurry back,¡± and he walked out, quickly changing the subject and avoiding the conversation.

 Chapter 117

    117 Something In The Shopping Bag


    Sitting at the study table, Anna circled the 2nd date on her notepad before dropping the Quilt back into it¡¯s ink bottle.


    Normally, her heart would always clench at the thought of dying soon but recently, it didn¡¯t matter anymore as long as she was able to enjoy a little bit of happiness before leaving the world.


    If the heavens could give her that, then she¡¯ll be more than contented.


    ¡°What are you circling?¡± Came the questionable voice behind her and she instantly froze on her seat for a few seconds, looking like a criminal that got caught in the act. Her heart missed a beat due to the deep alluring voice whispering into her ear and that familiar scent of his that uninvitedly invaded her nostril, made her want to lean back against him and take in more of his scent, but she didn¡¯t dare to try the things in her head.


    Roshan, who leaned behind her to see what she was busy doing, had his gaze fixed on the notepad and saw she circled two dates.


    ¡°What are you busy doing?¡±


    Anna immediately regained herposure and closed the notepad. Shaking her head, she said, ¡°It¡¯s nothing serious, I was just marking a few...uhm...I....¡± She barely knew what excuse toe up with as the words refused to leave her tongue.


    ¡°Anna.¡± He drawled, making his impatience known and her mouth instantly moved faster than her mind.


    ¡°My birthday.¡± She said it and her heart rxed a bit at the thought of how quickly she remembered her birthday on time.


    .....


    ¡°Your birthday?¡±


    She nodded with a smile, still refusing to look his way, ¡°on the 30th of this month is my birthday so I normally start counting the days whenever we enter the month of autumn, a childish habit that hasn¡¯t left my system yet.¡±


    She exined with a smile and it wasn¡¯t aplete lie either. Her birthdays was always the best days she anticipated for as a child. She wouldn¡¯t even sleep the night to her birthday due to excitement, cause it was the only time her mother would take her out after being kept at home for almost all her life as a child.


    ¡°My mother was always afraid of letting me step out of the house for reasons unknown to me, aside the fact I was cursed, she always said the world outside was dangerous and I should stay hidden from it. I didn¡¯t understand her point back then and I constantly disturbed her, so on my birthday she always took me out, hiding my meteor mark with a jewelry headband.¡±


    A sad smile formed on her lips at the sweet remembrance of her mother, but she discarded it quickly before it brought tears to her eyes. Why remind herself of good memories when knowing she wouldn¡¯t experience them again.


    ¡°It¡¯s just a habit.¡± She quickly ced it back in the drawer and closed it. Getting to her feet, she finally turned to look at the cier who stared back.


    The enchanting being looked fresh out of the shower as his ck hair seemed damp and messy and his unblemished skin glowed. Worst of all, he was dressed in ck pants and a ck long sleeve loose shirt that had two to three buttons left undone.


    It exposed his smooth, sculpted chest, leaving a tantalizing glimpse that¡¯d make one want to unbutton the whole thing and see everything hidden beneath those clothes of his.


    He looked seducing! And to think he was standing really close to her just now....


    ¡®Goodness Anna! When did you start having such thoughts about a man?!!¡¯ she inwardly scolded herself, but it didn¡¯t help her situation at all. Everything about him was irresistibly tempting. He was a lethal beauty, a mixture of effeminacy and manliness. The best thing she had to do was excuse herself from his captivating presence.


    ¡°Madame Alina must need me now,¡± she forced herself to speak, ¡°and the beast event must have started already, why don¡¯t youe watch?¡±


    ¡°You go,¡± he moved away from the chair she was sitting on before, ¡°I¡¯m in the middle of something, I¡¯lle when I¡¯m done.¡±


    She nodded before taking her leave from the room. After she was out of sight, Roshan opened the drawer and picked the notepad. He stared at the two circled dates for a few seconds before letting his eyes divert to the 30th which was already circled.


    ¡°Why did she circle this?¡± His eyes narrowed in doubt.


    Anna hummed softly as she strode past the carpeted corridor, wanting to cheer herself up with a little sweet tone and get rid of the heat that had been awakened by the cier himself.


    ¡°Miss Ann, there you are.¡± William¡¯s brogue voice caught her attention and she stopped in her tracks. She turned to see he was heading towards her direction and when he stopped in front of her, she dipped her head in a polite bow.


    ¡°A lovely morning to you sir William.¡± She greeted him charmingly. William on the other hand lifted his shoulder in a gesturable manner, feeling all pompous about how politely she greeted him.


    ¡°At least you have some good manners unlike that brother of yours.¡± He harrumphed, meanwhile Anna just rolled her eyes with a knowing smile.


    ¡°And to what do I owe this sudden call?¡± She asked, bringing William¡¯s mind as to why he called her in the first ce.


    ¡°Ah yes! Nichs requests your presence in the garden.¡± He told her, but Anna¡¯s expression turned nk and her brows quizzically knit themselves.


    ¡°Nichs? But isn¡¯t he joining the event?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± came William¡¯s response as he adjusted the bowtie of his shirt, ¡°he¡¯s participating tomorrow, today¡¯s a normal duo for all beastmen to see who¡¯d be worthy enough to face Nichs tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I see,¡± she nodded in understanding, ¡°But....why did he ask for me?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t answer that Miss, I¡¯m just following orders.¡±


    A soft sigh left her lip, she already attended to his wound early this morning and he looked fine. Was something wrong?


    ¡°Okay then, I¡¯ll go see if he needs anything.¡±


    ¡°Should I escort you?¡±


    ¡°Thank you, but no,¡± she politely declined, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want to waste any more of your time Sir William, I¡¯ll find the garden myself.¡±


    ¡°As you wish.¡±


    She bowed politely once more before dismissing herself from William¡¯s presence.


    The moment she was out of sight, a slow smile formed on William¡¯s lips as he found her really nice. It made him wonder if Madame Alina will be sessful in bringing her and her son together.


    He left the corridor as well.


    ~


    Roshan, who kept his mind upied on the Grimoire, trying to figure out reasonable reasons as to why the rest of the letters were gone, stumbled slightly on something behind him and when he turned around, it was the shopping bag Anna had dropped by her bedside.


    Seriously?


    ¡°She¡¯s not even here but her things are tormenting me just like her.¡± He hissed out, sounding less annoyed than usual while shaking his head. He reached to pick the bag of clothes from the ground and ced it on her bed when something interesting caught his attention.


    With his Hazel-green eyes glinting like that of a sly fox, his hands reached into one of the bags to pick the red sexyce nightwear that left his eyes widening at the sight. It was a see-through shortce nightgown with wonderful designs, enough to bring out the sexy delicate curves of a woman.


    ¡°She... bought this?¡± He was really taken aback by it. And when he dared to give himself a mental image of a particr someone in the dress, he involuntarily gulped hard.

 Chapter 118

    118 A Dreadful Message


    Reaching the garden like William¡¯s had told her to, she found Nichs waiting at the arbor. He kept pacing back and forth, looking bothered about something and it made Anna hesitate to take the next step.


    ¡°Why does he look so bothered?¡± She questioningly murmured to herself, unwilling to move and different ideas shed in her head that instant. Was his wound hurting again? Did William¡¯s mention anything about what happened the other day? Could it be that he still saw them and chose to tell regardless?


    ¡®no.¡¯ She shook her head at the thought, if William¡¯s really did, he would have outrightly said it to her. So what could possibly be the problem?


    Unable to think of an issue that somehow, negatively connected with her, she eased her heart beat and cleared her mind before striding towards the arbor to meet him.


    Nichs stopped pacing after seeing thedye into sight. His half-worried expression dissipated with relief when Anna stood before him and politely bowed her head in respect.


    ¡°Greetings sir Nichs.¡± She said with that appealing dulcet voice of hers and a slow smile adorned Nick¡¯s lips.


    ¡°You came.¡±


    She nodded before adding, ¡°it would be wrong to refuse.¡±


    ¡°Forgive my sudden call but it was urgent.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Is there a problem? Is it your injury? Does it hurt again?¡±


    He shook his head, ¡°no, that¡¯s not it.¡±


    ¡°Then what is?¡±


    ¡°A demon was sensed at the autumn forestst night, a strong one at that and I heard you and your brother took that path, so I got worried and had to confirm you were alright.¡± He stated with concern, but Anna¡¯s expression slowly paled at his words, thankfully it wasn¡¯t too obvious to make her drop her guard.


    ¡°D_demon?¡± Anna felt her heart stop for a few seconds as she took time to register his words perfectly and to her fear, he nodded.


    ¡°Yes, but the energy instantly disappeared like it never came, it was so quick to hide itself back in its shell.¡± He frowned, ¡°fortunately, there are no news of demon creating havoc so when I heard you and your brother went outst night, I just got concerned, but I¡¯m d to see you¡¯re alright.¡±


    Anna¡¯s demeanor still froze, but just for a few seconds to let all of Nick¡¯s words sink in before giving her head a mental shake and returning Nick¡¯s smile with a grateful one.


    ¡°As you can see, I¡¯m fit and fine.¡± She assured the noble being who believed her to a point and Anna used the few minutes of silence to guess how he knew aboutst night, and how it became possible for him to have sensed Roshan.


    The cier was deeply concentrated in using the mind Arrayst night, his powers might have gone overboard due to mixed up emotions and he must have identally made a slip without realizing.


    They¡¯ll have to be a lot more careful from now on.


    ¡°You have an event tomorrow, it wouldn¡¯t be right to have your mind distracted on things like this.¡± She politely tried to convince him and sway his mind away from it, but he shook his head and met her surprised stare.


    ¡°Sooner orter, whoever held a power so indescribable will be revealed. The safety of my peoplees first.¡± His expression softened after that, ¡°Demons are vile creatures, they are no different from the creatures of the night and it would be advisable to stay away from one.¡±


    They were already walking together this time around, taking a little stroll around the wide garden path and the more Anna heard him speak about how heartless they were, she couldn¡¯t take it anymore and blurted out her own question.


    ¡°What if all demons aren¡¯t the same?¡± She asked, causing Nick¡¯s step to shorten as he stopped walking. Anna had suspected her words would leave her with this baffled reaction of his, but it was wrong to generalize all of them without knowing their story.


    ¡°Meaning?¡± His amber eyes quizzically glinted and Anna didn¡¯t hesitate to continue.


    ¡°I mean we have both the good and the bad in this world right? It¡¯s equally possible to say the same for Demons as well. Some might be good but they aren¡¯t given a chance to speak, or even prove it since they were only written and known for their screams.¡±


    She met his gaze, and to Nick¡¯s bafflement, she wasn¡¯t joking around.


    ¡°Are you...¡±. He paused in his question after noticing her demeanor turn pale for a few seconds, an unusual reaction he suddenly got from her and when he wanted to ask what the problem was, she moved back a bit, almost unsteadily that he had to hold one of her hands to avoid her tripping. Her eyes seemed to spin as she closed them in pain, cing a hand to the side of her head as though it¡¯d ease the striking headache that came and overtook her senses from who knows where.


    ¡°Miss Ann..¡± he called softly, wanting to gain her attention but to his shock, when she opened her eyes to look at him, what he saw in them showed weakness.


    ¡°I don¡¯t...feel...¡± she wasn¡¯t even done speaking when she unexpectedly slumped to the ground, but before she could hit the ground itself, Nichs had caught her quickly in his arms and to his awe, she was unconscious.


    ¡°Anna!¡±


    Roshan, who happened to have shown up at the event as promised, didn¡¯t find Anna amongst the crowds. She always sat with Madame Alina during the event but strangely, she wasn¡¯t there today.


    He had left to go find where the silly woman went, knowing she wasn¡¯t the type to abandon an event she enjoyed watching.


    He strode past the downstairs hallway with a searching gaze, only to catch a glimpse of the annoying woman taking a stroll around the garden with Nichs as he peeked through the ss window.


    His jaw clenched at the sight and he let out a controlled sigh to keep his unexinable anger in check. He couldn¡¯t understand why seeing her with Nichs always made him restless and uncertain of his feelings towards her. He didn¡¯t like seeing her walk beside that man, it was a sight he couldn¡¯t bear and just when he was about to walk out, the unexpected happened and before his very eyes, he watched her slump, only to be caught in the arms of Nichs.


    ¡°Anna!¡± He heard Nichs scream, obviously in shock as the look on his paled gravely. Roshan, who witnessed the scene, felt a part of him fade and his eyes widened slightly. It almost appeared as a nightmare to him, except this time around, he wished it was.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Nichs lookedpletely taken aback as his hands reached to tap both her cheeks lightly, trying his very best to revive her but unfortunately, she wasn¡¯t responding to his touch.


    He quickly felt her pulse and they were critically weak. He shook his head as a dreadful thought creeped into his head and when he tried to pick her up in his arms and get her somewhere safe, a hand instantly stopped him from nowhere, giving him no chance to pick the unconscious Anna in his arm and when he looked up, he locked gaze with a certain being.


    Those hazel-green eyes appeared as a surprise to him, but the dreadful message it sent wasn¡¯t ignored, as if silently telling him to back off.


    ¡°You...¡±


    Roshan deliberately ignored him and picked the unconscious Anna into his own arms, snatching her away from Nichs¡¯s hold. A look of worry contorted his handsome face as he sensed her heartbeat slow down to an abnormal rate.


    Without speaking or uttering a single word to Nichs, he walked off with Anna in his arms. Hershes slowly fluttered open and her eyes subconsciously met his.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± She whispered with a smile, as though happy to see herself in his arms. It was a smile that made the already painful feeling in Roshan¡¯s chest sink drastically and before he could say a word to her, her eyes closed shut and she was outpletely.

 Chapter 119

    119 I Want That Human..


    Euphrasia


    *************


    A dested graveyard in a murky mountain range marks the entrance to an underground building. Beyond the graveyard lies a grand ragged room that looked hauntingly dark. Tiny golden lights prated in from the smaller holes on the wall, aiding the dark to some bearable extent and inside this awful room, a young demoness stood in the middle, shaken and writhing with fear as beads of sweat formed on her forehead.


    The heavy stomps of the ck pair of boots sounding deathly in her ear made her shudder and a deep low voice was what she heard next.


    ¡°Tell me the truth Freya, where did you send the human girl to?¡± Asked Luderick as his red eyes dangerously beamed at her.


    ¡°I really don¡¯t know.¡± She truthfully responded but what she got instead made her eyes snap as he pulled hard at her hair.


    ¡°Ah!!¡± A strangled cry escaped her dry throat as he tugged sharply at the root of her hair, sending channels of pain from her scalp, down to her neck.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± Questioned Luderick in that deep low menacing tone that only made her quiver even more.


    ¡°I swear on my life I don¡¯t!¡± Tears brimmed in her eyes as she reached for the hand that tugged at her hair with no mercy, wanting to ease herself from the pain and it was only a matter of minutes before he let go, sending Freya to her knees as she panted heavily, trying to gasp for some air.


    .....


    ¡°How¡¯s it possible to transport someone without knowing the venue?¡± He demanded, already irked and it made Freya flinch to the side as she shook her head.


    ¡°My powers are unstable, being a low ranked demon I wasn¡¯t given a chance to master the art of teleportation, forgive me!¡± She instantly pleaded before he does something to her again but his face just wrinkled as if the sight of a low Demon already disgusts him and he turned away from her.


    ¡°The human girl is a special source to my next n, but you acted rather reckless by sending her to another dimension.¡± He turned to look at the weak demoness who remained on her knees. She barely raised her head up to see his expression, but could feel his frosty res on her.


    ¡°She saved me.¡± Freya sniffed as her throat felt perched, ¡°I had to repay her for it, likewise to you too, you got me out of there and saved me countless times, so I¡¯m highly devoted to you as well my Lord.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t have two masters.¡± He hinted before crouching on one knee in front of the shaky demoness, gently tilting her chin up so she could meet his stare.


    The man she was staring at no longer had the face of Luderick. Since Roshan had chosen to disfigure his actual body, Luderick had no choice but to steal a body from one of the aloof humans and switch their souls.


    Freya knew right from time that Lord Luderick wasn¡¯t a good man back in Viscarrian, so she avoided his path many times and was lucky enough to serve Roshan and his family.


    But she never imagined that her life would end up so tragic, all because of a silly mistake she made and how she blindly chose to follow it out of pure jealousy and infatuation.


    ¡°I need her blood and you my dear,¡± Luderick finally began, ¡°you shall help me in retrieving what was rightfully mine, do you understand?¡±


    His hold on her chin tightened, almost piercing his sharp nails into her skin and she instantly nodded, knowing he was silently threatening her not to go against his orders.


    ¡°How obedient, I knew you¡¯de in handy.¡±


    He finally moved away from her, giving Freya a chance to catch her breath as she quickly gave her chest a pat. She didn¡¯t even realize she had been holding her breath all through the time he was conversing with her.


    Luderick on the other hand was already pissed since he couldn¡¯t figure out the whereabouts of that human girl. If only he got a chance toplete the ritual and have her blood on the Ossuary_ but that senseless nephew of his was there to disrupt and ruin his ns.


    Having him locked in the forbidden temple was a sessful n he managed to carry out, thanks to the ignorance of most humans and he thought he could finally gain power, until that human girl.!!!...


    He took a deep breath to calm his nerves as getting angry wasn¡¯t going to aid him in any way.


    To say the least he wasn¡¯tpletely offended by it, in fact he felt somewhat grateful. If Roshan hadn¡¯t interrupted him and forced him to hide in the human world, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to run into a shocking surprise at the graveyard.


    When Luderick exited the room, leaving Freya all to herself and knowing she couldn¡¯t leave his den, he came across three paths on the way and easily took the right. His heavy boots caused a soft ssh as she stepped into the puddles of water on the ground. It echoed in the silent ce, as though it wanted to keep the lonely quiet towerpany for just a few seconds.


    Following the twisted trails and turning into different directions, Luderick soon came upon a dank area that was covered in dust and spiderwebs.


    A huge thick wooden double door blocked his path, dried blood stters were over it, somehow untouched by time and its element.


    A sinister smile adorned his lips after realizing he had reached a very valuable destination.


    Here atst!


    Without touching the door, he held out his hand and an invisible force shot through his palm, forcing the heavy door to loudly creak open and he quietly stepped into the room.


    It smelled of dead vermin and spiderwebs hung on each wall, adding to the lifelessness of the room but then, a brown coffin rested in the middle of the room.


    Luderick stopped in front of it and watched as the little insects resting on top of it instantly scurried off at his sight.


    His fingers lightly trailed the top of the coffin board and he only paused after hearing an odd screeching sound, but it barelysted a few seconds before it stopped and a menacing smile proudly disyed itself on his face.


    ¡°I want that human.¡± He made it clear before tapping the coffin board lightly. ¡°Only with her blood will I be able to revive you.¡± He walked around it before stopping and turning around to leave.


    ¡°Till then, rest a bit more.¡±

 Chapter 120

    120 An Unexpected Presence


    Ark Ville


    ***********


    Roshan barely knew how long he stayed beside Anna who remained unconscious on the bed. Time seemed to slow down for him meanwhile it was getting past noon and Anna still hadn¡¯t woken up.


    She looked sickly pale, yet so rxed like a sleeping porcin doll that didn¡¯t want to be disturbed just yet. He took her hand in his and affectionately inteced their fingers together, giving the back of her palm a gentle pat before letting out a sigh that sounded soft, yet desperate at the same time.


    ¡°Wake up Anna.¡± He knew his words couldn¡¯t do anything, but he hated to see her like this. She hasn¡¯t woken up since she passed out and it terrified him on the inside. Madame Alina had sent for their physician toe check on her, yet nothing was detected that must have triggered her unconscious state.


    Her heartbeat kept deteriorating the more he heard it and he really wished there was something he could do to get her out of this awful condition.


    He suspected her current condition has something to do with the meteor mark and this probably showed her time was getting really close. The thought of it frightened him and he didn¡¯t let his mind cross to that area.


    ¡°I¡¯ll get you out of this.¡± He softly said, sounding like he was making a silent promise not just to her, but to himself as well.


    Somehow the people he manages to care about always end up in a situation that leaves him with no other choice but to drift himself away from them, and the same will happen with Anna after he gets her out of this condition.


    .....


    He¡¯ll have to distance himself, whether he likes it or not.


    ¡°Can Ie in?¡± Came the requesting voice of Nichs who patiently stood at the door that was left ajar and Roshan was extremely tempted to say no.


    ¡°Yeah.¡± He dejectedly responded without looking at the door to even see who was standing there and he didn¡¯t care, whoever it was definitely didn¡¯t matter more than the personying on the bed.


    Nichs walked in after taking permission and quietly stood beside Roshan who was sitting on a chair close to Anna¡¯s beside.


    He had beenpletely taken aback by the sight of the young man, it¡¯s the first time he¡¯s crossing paths with Anna¡¯s brother and he used to think he was handsome, but definitely the man in front of him made him feel less of a man.


    ¡°How is she?¡± He asked, but Roshan remained mute.


    ¡°I just came to check on her health and see if she¡¯s woken up or not.¡± Nichs exined the reason for his presence and Roshan finally gave the Nichs a little bit of attention as he turned his head to look at him.


    No doubt, Nichs was a charming man himself. His amber eyes looked calm and sophisticatedly gentle like a summer morning. Being a beastman he was attractively built and Roshan really had a reason to spite the young man for going near his mate.


    ¡°She hasn¡¯t woken up yet.¡± Came Roshan¡¯s short response as he leaned back on the chair, still refusing to let go of her hand and his Hazel-green eyes were filled with worry.


    ¡°She¡¯ll be fine.¡± Nichs assured him, ¡°she took really good care of me and my injury so I personally wouldn¡¯t want anything bad happening to her while she¡¯s still here.¡±


    Roshan held back a scoff. He could tell Nichs was genuinely worried about Annalise¡¯s health and instead of feeling grateful, he felt insecure about something.


    What if Anna ends up falling for him? Nichs looked decent and obviously a fierce beastman, he has a very captivating family that equally picked a lot of interest in Anna and if she ends up falling for Nichs, he was sure he¡¯d give her a better life, better than the one he could give her if she eventually stayed as his mate.


    But it shouldn¡¯t matter to him, should it? He already made up his mind to let her go after fulfilling his promise to her, but why did his chest feel heavy just thinking about it.


    This isn¡¯t him. Why is he thinking like this?


    He rubbed his temples with a finger, trying to soothe a headache that was slowly creeping in and Nichs awkwardly cleared his throat.


    ¡°Do let me know when she wakes up.¡±


    ¡°I will.¡± He responded and he made it clear in his tone that he wasn¡¯t in the mood for any sort of conversation.


    Upon noticing that, Nichs respectfully dismissed himself from the room, closing the door after him.


    The moment he left, Roshan¡¯s worried gaze returned back to Annalise and an idea popped in his head at thest minute.


    She was weak which meant she needed energy, if he forced his powers to transfer some of his energy into her, that should relieve her to some extent and she might just wake up.


    ¡°Tsk tsk tsk! Don¡¯t tell me you n on doing what I¡¯m hoping you¡¯re not seriously nning on doing.¡± Azazel¡¯s voice caught his attention and Roshan instantly whipped his head in that direction.


    The white haired being was actually leaning against the door, arms folded while staring at Roshan with a pitiful expression.


    ¡°I warned you.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re here.¡± It took Roshan a few seconds to register what just happened in front of him and he didn¡¯t believe Azazel¡¯s presence until the demon moved away from the door.


    ¡°It¡¯s not your imagination,¡± he rified, ¡°I¡¯m here and in case you missed me, tell me on time so I don¡¯t break your heart.¡±


    ¡°You f**king scoundrel!¡± Roshan cursed but Azazel just shrugged to it and stared at Anna whoid on the bed.


    ¡°Using your energy would cause you severe consequences, be smart enough and listen to my advice this time around, don¡¯t do it.¡±


    ¡°I can consider your other advice, but not this one.¡±

 Chapter 121

    121 Settling Scores


    ¡°You¡¯re still weak.¡± Azazel candidly said to him, ¡°maybe not physically, but you know what I¡¯m talking about. Your energy has gone from bad to worse and what next¡±?¡± He tried to reason the situation with Roshan.


    ¡°You¡¯re still human, your energy level ispletely different from a pure blooded demon and you still used it to save human lives. If you take the risk and give Annalise whatever energy is left in you, I¡¯m hoping not to be the one who¡¯ll send your soul to theherworld.¡±


    As much as Roshan hated it, Azazel waspletely right about that and it only made him feel more useless. He can¡¯t even save Anna now since it¡¯d take years to recover whatever energy he¡¯s lost these past few weeks.


    ¡°Then help me.¡± He said through gritted teeth and closed his eyes to calm himself, gathering enough courage to lower his guard before fluttering those eyes open.


    ¡°Help me save her.¡± His tone came out soft, almost pleading and it made Azazel¡¯s gaze darken at how much his brother was willing to stoop to save the human girl.


    ¡°And why would I do that?¡±


    ¡°Cause I¡¯m asking nicely.¡± He retorted before meeting Azazel¡¯s cold gaze. The anger in those blue coal eyes wasn¡¯t hidden from Roshan and he knew very well that his sudden actions weren¡¯t funny to Azazel at all.


    ¡°Will you do it?¡±


    A controlled sigh left Azazel¡¯s lips as he looked away from Roshan, but he waspelled to agree, even if he didn¡¯t want to and it ate him up that he couldn¡¯t.


    .....


    ¡°You seriously owe me for this.¡± He mumbled before reaching Anna¡¯s bedside and crouching beside it.


    He held her arm and to Roshan¡¯s relief, he watched as Azazel transferred a bit of his energy into Anna and as he continued, Anna¡¯s slow heartbeat gradually picked up speed, returning to the normal beating rate and only then did Azazel let go of her arm, but his expression remained grim.


    ¡°Roshan...¡±


    ¡°You knew, didn¡¯t you?¡± Roshan immediately cut Azazel off with his question. ¡°You knew about Anna¡¯s condition the very first time you saw her meteor mark, and you kept it hidden from me.¡±


    That part wasn¡¯t difficult for Roshan to figure out. Azazel was in charge of the limbo and he was very much aware about the soul that had escaped from it, he even made mention of the soul having a time limit and when he brought Anna into the pce, there was no way Azazel could lie to him that he had no clue Annalise was the escaped soul.


    But what he doesn¡¯t understand is why his brother chose to hide it from him.


    Azazel, who didn¡¯t expect the unforeseen question, froze for a few seconds as his eyes slightly widened in rm. He had somehow suspected Roshan would figure it out already, but not so early.


    ¡°Why did you hide it?¡± He demanded. Azazel immediatelyposed himself as he stood straight, keeping his back to Roshan to avoid meeting his ring gaze.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t find it important.¡± Came his tant response but that only made something in Roshan snap as he moved from his chair and the next thing, his fist had connected to the wall behind Azazel to the point it cracked from the impact.


    Azazel barely flinched, knowing that the hit was actually meant for him. He just turned to look at the hand that still remained punched on the wall, before retracting it back to Roshan whose hazel-green eyes burned with fury.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t find it important? You failed toe up with an even greater excuse.¡±


    ¡°You punched the wall on purpose, didn¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t think I spared you,¡± his deathly tone was enough to send prickles of tormenting fear down the spine of anyone, ¡°it¡¯s just a near miss.¡± He met Azazel¡¯s stare, silently telling him he was lucky before taking his hand back and now, he was standing before his brother.


    ¡°Let¡¯s leave it at that, I want you to answer this instead, how does Anna¡¯s soul connect with Aveline?¡±


    ¡°Do you really want us to settle the scores here, dear brother?¡± Azazel tilted his head to the side, stealing a nce at Annalise and silently sending a message to the cier that the people of Ark Ville can easily sense their presence if they end up taking things too far.


    Getting the message, Roshan wisely stepped back from the white-haired Enigma who freely walked past him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m still getting you out of here.¡± He assured Roshan who obviously didn¡¯t need the assurance, more like he knew, but Azazel was only saying it to anger him further.


    The air in the room felt tense and Azazel did a good job in keeping his own emotions hidden. Roshan had every reason to get angry at him, he wouldn¡¯t me the guy for killing him because of it, but if Roshan does find a chance to think this through, he¡¯ll know he doesn¡¯t do things without a reason.


    ¡°I can¡¯t get you out of here tonight, that¡¯s what I came to tell you.¡± Azazel informed him, but Roshan only sighed and turned to look at him, keeping his anger in check.


    ¡°What¡¯s your n?¡±


    ¡°Meet me in the woods tomorrow night, I think the ce is called autumn forest, along with Anna, Levi and I will be there to take you both back.¡±


    ¡°What if you don¡¯t show up?¡±


    ¡°We will just be there on time.¡± He turned to look at Anna whose normal colors had returned to her face and he met Roshan¡¯s stare with a taunting smile.


    ¡°I hope your mate wakes up.¡±


    ¡°Get out before I lose it.¡±


    Azazel vanished after that, leaving silence to fall into the room. His gaze returned back to Annalise who was currently stirring on the bed.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± She softly called in her subconsciousness, her eyes were still closed but she just stirred on the bed, her fingers digging themselves into the duvet that covered her.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± She called again. He reached for her bedside and held her hand in his, making his presence known to her and only then did her expression calm.


    ¡°Shhhh, I¡¯m here.¡± He softly assured her, his anger vanishing without him even realizing it.

 Chapter 122

    122 Another Episode Of Grief I


    When Annalise finally arose from her deep slumbers, she met the room in emptiness and Roshan¡¯s absence was instantly felt, followed by a cold chilly wind that met her skin, causing her to shiver and she buried her small frame back in the duvet.


    The howling wind swayed the mes on the candles left and right. He had lit the room with candles, just in case she woke up so it¡¯d enable her to see, or so Anna thought.


    ¡°Where did he go?¡± Rubbing off the blurriness in her eyes, Annalise propped one hand on the bed, gently proceeding to get herself into a sitting position and a wave of unprepared dizziness followed, leaving her to stop and wait until the annoying dizziness swept by like one of those dark hours.


    Bncing her visuals, Anna moved her feet from the bed to the ground and took a deep breath before rising to her feet.


    She felt light-headed after standing up, but it didn¡¯t matter at the moment as she was more concerned about Roshan¡¯s whereabouts.


    ¡°What¡¯s the_¡± she wanted to ask what time it was, but stopped mid_sentence after looking out the window to see it was alreadyte at night. Her eyes widened in disbelief because if she wasn¡¯t dreaming, she passed out during morning time but...the sky was already darkish-blue, and the stars...


    ¡°It¡¯s NIGHT?!!¡±


    How long was she out?? Her fingers buried themselves in her scalp as she forced her brain to reboot. And where was Roshan??


    Afraid something must have happened to him while she was out, she was already running to the door, wanting to open it and go look for him when someone caught her arm before she could reach for the door knob, stopping her from going anywhere.


    .....


    rmed, she quickly turned around to see who it was, but was half stunned and relieved to see it was no one other than Roshan.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± He questioned with a raised brow, but what he got instead made him go stiff as she hugged him out of the blue, wrapping her arms around him and burying her head in his chest, feeling happy to see he was alright but she was still angry that he disappeared like that.


    ¡°Where did you go?¡± She asked, ¡°I didn¡¯t see you around when I woke up and wanted toe look for you.¡± She worriedly blurted out, still hugging him but the cier remained stiff like a statuesque object.


    He couldn¡¯t remember thest time he received a hug, and most of all, a hug as genuinelyforting as this.


    Anna, who finally regained her senses at thest minute and realized she was hugging the cier himself, made her face pale slowly.


    ¡®What am I doing??¡¯ Her eyes widened at her own act and the fact she felt him freeze against her hold made an embarrassing feeling wash through her.


    She wanted to move away, but he stopped her and pulled her into his arms again, hugging her back this time and surprising Annalise in particr.


    ¡°You¡¯re a stubborn woman, you aren¡¯t well, but you wanted to go look for me. I don¡¯t remember recruiting you as my bodyguard.¡± He said, but he didn¡¯t sound scolding, his tone was appealingly soft and his hug was ever so warm that Anna couldn¡¯t resist sumbing to it.


    ¡°I just got worried.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t get worried over someone like me, it¡¯s not advisable,¡± he told her in a strange sad tone and before she could ask what he meant, he pulled back from the hug and met her stare, giving the side of her head a little pat.


    ¡°It¡¯s good to see you awake.¡±


    She returned his smile and he made her sit on her bed. ¡°How are you feeling? Are you hungry?¡±


    She shook her head lightly, ¡°a little weak, but I¡¯m fine.¡±


    ¡°And you still wanted to step out?¡±


    She nodded before a look of realization dawned on her and she met Roshan¡¯s stare, ¡°I must have left everyone worried, did I? Especially Nichs since I passed out right in front of him.¡±


    ¡®You left me worried¡¯ he wanted to say, but just silently nodded to her words instead, ¡°don¡¯t think about it, tomorrow they¡¯ll know, for now, get some rest.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± She shook her head in disapproval, leaving the cier surprised.


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve rested enough.¡± She reached for the duvet instead and just wrapped her body with it, ¡°I want to see more of your past Roshan.¡±


    ¡°My past is not something you can handle witnessing, I¡¯ve done things.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± She agreed and she wasn¡¯t going to judge him for it, ¡°but I want to see it regardless, I want to know what happened to you, did you kill the rabbit?¡±


    He shook his head at her question, signifying he didn¡¯t, but Anna wasn¡¯tpletely relieved at the thought like she expected herself to be. The fact he didn¡¯t somehow sounded even more terrifying to Anna¡¯s ears.


    ¡°What did you kill?¡±


    ¡°My father.¡± He admitted and those words made the air in Anna¡¯s lungs feel knocked out, he what?!!!


    She wanted to ask if he was lying to her or not, but he didn¡¯t look like someone who was joking around at all.


    ¡°I told you.¡± He lowered his gaze, ¡°I¡¯m not called a half-devil for nothing Anna, I¡¯ve done unthinkable things in the past, why do you think the people of Euphrasia are afraid to utter my name? Even my family wasn¡¯t spared from it, except you.¡±


    Roshan didn¡¯t prefer going into details about that day, he had sent his father to theherworld when he lost control of his Demons and killed him unintentionally. That moment everyone knew the prophecy was true because it was impossible for a fifteen-year-old to kill someone, but he did and it was no other than the Demon King, his own father.


    Anna, who was speechless at the thought, finally found her voice again. That exins the fear in Euphrasia and she understood why he got sealed in the forbidden temple.


    Another range of torture, one that could kill him as it gradually takes away his energy.


    ¡°It was never my intention to hurt him, but...¡± his voice trailed again, he really wanted to exin it to her, he didn¡¯t want her to fear him just like everyone else. Everything he did back then wasn¡¯t him, he was triggered and whenever that happens, he can kill a whole civilization before gaining his actual self back.


    ¡°It_It couldn¡¯t have been you,¡± Anna finally said something to his relief, ¡°you can¡¯t control your demons and that¡¯s what led to it, right?¡±


    He nodded. Anna really felt bad for him as a sad realization creeped in, he was nothing more than a deadly weapon made by his father, a weapon that could kill and only derive joy in causing bloodshed, but it was obvious he wanted nothing like that, yet is forced to do it.


    She held his hand and met his stare, ¡°I want to help you carry some of your pain, let me see your past.¡± She asked again with a determined gaze, despite hearing all he just said to her.


    ¡°What?¡± Roshan blinked at the woman who ended up surprising him yet again. He was the type who foundfort in the dark so he could dwell on his emotions with no one around to pity him, but this human...


    Is she even human??


    ¡°Answer me.¡± Her gaze looked pleading, ¡°I want to see it for myself.¡±


    ¡°You really are crazy, just like the first time I saw you.¡±


    She just smiled but said nothing, it only made a feeling in his chest beat at her reaction, except he was scared to touch it, scared to believe his heart would beat for not just anyone, but a woman he knew he couldn¡¯t keep.


    ¡°Fine.¡±


    When Anna held his hand and closed her eyes, just likest time, she found herself in the Viscarrian pce, striding through the lonely wide corridor.


    Except this time, she heard a continuous whishing sound that startled her to her wits, like someone was being mercilessly flogged.


    ¡°Harder!¡± She heard the deep angry yell of another man. When she rushed towards where the sound of the familiar angry voice wasing from, nothing prepared her for what she was about to witness and she stood frozen at the spot.

 Chapter 123

    123 Another Episode Of Grief II


    Harder!¡± The loud angry voice that darkly amplified in the backyard belonged to no one other than Luderick, who strictly ordered two guards to flog the hell out of a fifteen-year-old Roshan.


    ¡°Such impertinence! You need to know your ce, human! And mind your callous attitude when speaking to a high-ranked Demon like me!¡± He raged, obviously pissed by something and that made Anna wonder what Roshan must have done this time to be mistreated like this.


    But the young demon barely flinched as the whip aggressively tore his skin open countlessly on his naked back, meanwhile Anna flinched at the whipping sound each time it struck his back painfully and it was no way appealing to watch,


    His expression looked departed, like a body with no soul. Those Hazel-green eyes were fighting to keep themselves open, but she knew he was in terrible pain, maybe not physically, but those eyes proved it.


    He was naked to his waist region and those milky colored skin that she secretly admired were now marked with whip marks and painted his body red, she had the urge to run to him, wrap her hands around him and beg them to leave him alone, but it would be all pointless since this was a memory of his past.


    Starkly, the flogging must have been going on for hours for him to have such an amount of injuries on his bare skin, and it was under broad daylight, when the sun was out and shining so brightly, the heat would be enough to pepper his wounds.


    ¡°Stop!¡± Came Luderick¡¯s orders and the guards politely lowered their whip.


    A satisfying look made its way to Luderick¡¯s face after seeing the young boy spit out a mouthful of blood due to the excess flogging and Anna just froze in her spot as she remained immobile, finding it difficult to move or even turn away from the horrible sight.


    ¡°You¡¯re lucky to find yourself alive after taking the life of your own father, how despicable!¡± He spat.


    .....


    But to his dismay, an evil smirk formed on Roshan¡¯s sinful lips as he tilted his head up to meet Luderick¡¯s stare. Despite being in such a tremendous state, it wasn¡¯t enough to ruin his charm as his face remained untouched, except for the little cut in his forehead.


    ¡°Tick tock.¡± He made the sound of a clock as he cocked his head to the side, the look in his Hazel-green eyes and the way his hair was aplete mess on his head made him look no different from a psycho as a sinister smile stered his bloody lips.


    ¡°Tick......tock.¡± his hands which were chained to a metal pole made it difficult for him to move but he balled his fist and met luderick¡¯s stare with a menacing one.


    ¡°Watch your back uncle, cause you might be next.¡± Those threatening words left his lips so easily, baffling Luderick who didn¡¯t expect to hear such intimidating words from a fifteen-year-old demon and he felt infuriated by it.


    ¡°Seems like you haven¡¯t learnt your lesson, flog him till he loses the ability to speak.¡±


    ¡°What??¡± And the thrashing began before Anna even knew how to react. The firstsh came as a surprise to Roshan as it stung his back like that of a scorpion¡¯s tail but he closed his eyes and refused to give in to the pain.


    There was a white-haired boy who silently watched from a corner. Unlike Roshan who was looking miserable over there, the white-haired Enigma was neatly dressed in a royal robe, watching the scene from a distance and keeping his presence unknown.


    ¡°Is that Azazel?¡± Anna blinked her tears away, surprised to see how young and charming the two Demons looked, and the fact there was no serious change in their appearance today made it easier to know who was who. Azazel might probably be two years older than Roshan but why was he just standing there??


    A woman dressed in a ck exquisite gown suddenly showed up from the background, rushing to stand beside Azazel and holding his hand.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± The woman half-scolded in a whispering tone, ¡°you shouldn¡¯t be here, let¡¯s leave.¡±


    ¡°But, he¡¯s my brother.¡± Azazel said to her, but the woman instantly silenced him with a ring gaze.


    ¡°Don¡¯t utter such nonsense, if I remember correctly, I only gave birth to one son. Come on!¡± She took him away, yet Azazel¡¯s gaze refused to avert from Roshan until he was out of sight.


    ¡°Flog him harder!¡±


    Roshan wasn¡¯t spared and was continuously tortured until he eventually passed out during the whole flogging session. Anna just stood there, holding back her urge to run to the boy and even if she did, he couldn¡¯t see her, no one could and that¡¯s what hurt her the most.


    How could they treat someone like this?? She was even angrier with Luderick and she doesn¡¯t think she¡¯s seen someone more heartless and evil like him in her entire existence.


    Time seemed to speed by and before Anna knew it, it was already noon. Roshan¡¯s tired eyes flickered open and he stared at the metal chains holding his hands in ce.


    They were already hurting from being in that stagnant position for too long and since there was no one to watch over him this time, streaks of tears rolled from his eyes as he tried to fight the pain in his back.


    ¡°No one wants to listen.¡± He muttered to himself, ¡°no one wants to listen...¡±


    ¡°I can.¡± Came the neutral voice of Azazel who appeared in sight. Roshan instantly lifted his head up to meet his sparkling blue eyes and he eyed the white-haired Enigma from head to toe.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Came his demanding question which Azazel calmly replied to.


    ¡°I¡¯m your brother, the name¡¯s Azazel.¡± He curtly introduced himself before shaking his head in pity.


    ¡°Father divided us the moment you were born, so it¡¯s understandable you don¡¯t know me since I stay in another part of the pce walls.¡±


    ¡°What do you want?¡± Roshan was clearly not in the mood for discussions as he moved forward, the chains nking to his movement and restricting him from going near Azazel.


    ¡°No one wants to listen right? I¡¯m here to do that.¡± Azazel subtly answered while rounding the confused being.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be here if I were you.¡±


    ¡°I do as I please.¡± He stopped in front of Roshan who looked ready tomit murder, or rather, looked ready to even hurt himself again.


    ¡°I can ease your arm from the pain, but you have to promise me you won¡¯t make any stupid attacks on me.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think I¡¯d do that?¡±


    ¡°The fact you keep staring at me like you want to dice me in two is enough reason, deal?¡±


    Roshan rolled his eyes and seriously thought about it before taking a retreating step back.


    ¡°Deal.¡±


    ¡°And if you break your promise?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t break promises, I¡¯ll keep to my word.¡±


    Feeling assured by his retort, Azazel reached for the lever on the wall and lowered it so Roshan¡¯s arm wouldn¡¯t feel strained, but they were still chained.


    A look of relief washed down his face as his arms were lowered and he dropped to his knee, already weak and tired as he panted heavily.


    ¡°You¡¯re hurt.... pretty badly, your healing process might take time.¡± Azazel quickly analyzed.


    ¡°Why are you helping me?¡±


    ¡°Cause I felt it was the right thing.¡±


    ¡°I killed father.¡±


    ¡°So?¡± Came his tant question, ¡°father is basically the ruler ofherworld, so hypothetically, he¡¯s not dead.¡±


    ¡°The dead go to theherworld.¡±


    ¡°And so will you if you don¡¯t get out of here.¡± He warned with a serious gaze this time, ¡°the more you stay here, uncle will use you to do his bidding, you¡¯re like a weapon that is capable of causing primal chaos if mishandled.¡±


    ¡°You want me to flee?¡±


    ¡°Your choice,¡± he shrugged, ¡°I just felt the need to save you which is what I did, the rest is left to you, brother.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t call me that.¡±


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t change the fact that you are one.¡±


    Since his torture began, this is the first time a real smile formed on Roshan¡¯s lips.


    ¡°Won¡¯t they suspect?¡±


    ¡°Of course they will, if they aren¡¯t dumb,¡± Azazel mildly concluded, ¡°which is why I didn¡¯t free youpletely, you¡¯ll have to break the chains yourself and get out of here.¡±


    ¡°Look at my condition, how do you expect me to...¡±


    Azazel crouched before him, cing a hand to his shoulder and just like that, his body shun, signifying the energy transfer had begun and to Roshan¡¯s amazement, he felt healed to a good extent.


    ¡°I¡¯m leaving, do what you can from here, it was nice meeting you.¡± And he walked out after that. Annalise¡¯s mouth hung agape at the sight, Roshan and Azazel stayed in the same pce for fifteen years and are only crossing paths today? What strange rules did his father have?


    Anna watched as a deep broken roar escaped Roshan¡¯s throat when he forcefully pulled the chains from the iron poles, and to her shock, they snapped open, freeing him from their shackles and Anna finally understood what Azazel did there.


    If Roshan freed himself, everything would seem like Roshan broke from the holds of the shackles by himself, leaving whatever suspicion they might have of someone helping him at the back of their minds.


    Roshan who finally got himself freed didn¡¯t waste anymore time before following the hidden door at the corner of the yard. Annalise¡¯s intention was to follow him but she stopped after sighting someone in a red cloak go after him.


    Confused, she followed the red cloaked being instead, finding herself being swayed away from Roshan¡¯s memory and now focused on the bright red cloak being who looked suspicious.


    Anna quietly followed the stranger, until whoever it was suddenly stopped walking and Anna halted as well.


    A soft chuckle escaped from the lips of whoever it was that got lost in the cloak, but it sounded feminine, giving Anna a hint that the person under the cloak was a Lady.


    ¡°I can see you.¡± Said thedy as she turned to look at Anna and her eyes widened. How is it possible?


    ¡°You can see me?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯d be a shame not to.¡± Came thedy¡¯s strange response and before Anna¡¯s dumbfounded gaze, thedy took off the cloak hoodie from her head, revealing her face and causing Anna¡¯s expression to pale at the sight.


    Thedy smirked innocently, ¡°surprised?¡±

 Chapter 124

    124 Cravings*


    Anna felt her heart freeze as she stood still, looking impassive as a statue and she shook her head, not willing to let her mind believe that she was seeing someone who had a striking resemnce to her.


    ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± Her voice came out as a whisper, as though the air in her lungs had been sucked out, rendering her mute, but thedy just chuckled lightly at her ghastly demeanor before taking a step towards the frozen Anna.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it weird to be afraid of your own reflection?¡± Asked thedy whose face beamed innocently, aplete contrast to the cold expression she saw in her dream the other day and she didn¡¯t know which facial demeanor to believe.


    ¡°Who are you?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s too easy,¡± she waved it off, ¡°you still have time, figure it out before your death day.¡±


    She smiled and turned to leave, but then she stopped and her brows rose like she just recalled something, ¡°before I forget,¡± she looked at Anna again, ¡°with the little time you have left, I¡¯ll advise you use it to make yourself happy, if it¡¯s right or wrong, it shouldn¡¯t matter now should it? After All you will end up dying so you¡¯ll have little or no time to even regret it.¡± She hummed lightly, but Anna didn¡¯t get exactly what she was trying to hint at.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    Thedy wore her cloak back and turned her back to the befuddled Annalise, ¡°you know what I mean, but if you keep denying it to yourself, you might not get the answer to it,¡± and she walked off.


    ¡®I keep denying it?¡¯ What is she trying to say? When Anna raised her head up to call her back, she was nowhere to be seen.


    .....


    ¡°Anna.¡± Roshan¡¯s voice instantly snapped Annalise out from her trance and she lifted her startled gaze to meet him. She was back in Ark Ville, back in their candle-lit room.


    ¡°Did something happen?¡± Questioned Roshan as he noticed a bit of worry contorting her face, ¡°I lost you for a moment there.¡±


    Anna opened her mouth to tell him exactly what happened, but then she stopped before the word¡¯s could manage to slip from her lips. For some reason, she didn¡¯t want to tell Roshan about it since she was unsure of what thedy who looked just like her was trying to pinpoint.


    ¡°I_¡± she sighed before shaking it off, ¡°it¡¯s nothing important actually, I was just..... interrupted.¡±


    She looked away from him and it was clear her mind was in a state of mental rejection.


    ¡°I just need a bit of distraction, I¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    ¡°Distraction?¡±


    She nodded before avoiding his hypnotizing stare again, only now was she starting to realize that they were both sitting together on a bed, her bed and it rang an rming bell in Anna¡¯s head.


    ¡°I want_¡± she got to her feet, wanting to escape from the closeness but he held her hand and effortlessly pulled her back to sit on the bed beside him.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± He asked and Anna just pointed at the bathroom without saying a word to him.


    ¡°Really? Or are you trying to avoid my presence?¡±


    ¡°No! I mean..I_¡±


    His lips found hers when she tried to speak, earning him a kiss but it was only brief as he moved back quickly.


    ¡°Are you afraid I¡¯d do something like that?¡±


    ¡°You just did.¡± She concluded and he smirked, ¡°I¡¯m not done yet.¡±


    The room suddenly grew quiet after he made that phrase, so quiet that Anna could hear her heartbeat drumming rapidly against her chest.


    She didn¡¯t avert her gaze this time and those hazel-green eyes of his glowed like the sparks of fire, the golden light from the candles created a warmth that made his features look soft, but more taunting and she already pictured something unutterable in her head.


    Her mind told her to get up and avoid this, there was still time to escape his heated gaze and those inviting lips, but deep down, she didn¡¯t want to escape any of this, she wanted to know what it felt like to actually kiss him again, to hold him, to feel him and this was something she always nagged him for, but look at her, feeling all desperate on the inside.


    Seeing she made no move to flee as he intentionally took his time before leaning close to her, Roshan¡¯s sensuous lips finally found hers, leaving Anna¡¯s eyes to close partly as those soft lips of his gently met hers.


    Her heart missed a bit when his lips demandingly tugged at her lower lip, creating a friction that made her body hum to life as her eyes closed shut. Her fingers digging into the duvet on the bed.


    His hand reached for the back of her head, angling it correctly as he sucked tenderly on her lips till they became supple and wet, and he kissed it, liking the oue of it as they looked like two budded roses.


    Anna didn¡¯t raise a protest this time as his actions made her body heat up and she felt butterflies flying around her stomach, her mind told her how wrong this was, but at the same time, she didn¡¯t seem to care at all, at least not now as she reciprocated against his sweet agonizing kisses that made her want to cry out.


    He pulled back to meet her stare, watching her eyes flutter open and they glistened with untold fascination.


    ¡°I want you to touch me.¡± He coaxed before reaching for her fingers that buried themselves in the duvet, he brought her hands to his toned chest before iming those luscious lips of hers again, his hands found its way to her waist, pulling her closer and a gasp left her lips, giving him the opening he was looking for as his hot tongue invaded her mouth, tasting and feeling every inch of her sweet carnals.


    Every nerve in Anna¡¯s body seemed like a harp-string ready to snap at his touch. She never knew kissing someone could actually feel this good, so good rather, or was it just like this with him??


    Her hands crumpled his shirt as he took the kiss deeper and before she realized it, her own hands were ready to explore as they slid up his toned chest, feeling it through the fabric of his shirt before reaching for his neck until they made their way to the back of his head, burying her fingers into his soft silky hair and relishing the moment.


    Roshan couldn¡¯t exin what he felt at the moment, having her this close to him was already intoxicating enough. It was somehow foreign, he¡¯s had women before, but what he experienced then, was nothingpared to what he¡¯s experiencing now. He just wanted to eat the fragile woman up, but knew he couldn¡¯t cross his limit and it frustrated him.


    He pulled back to meet her blurry stare, still not satisfied with what he¡¯s getting from her.


    ¡°I want more.¡± He kissed her harder, causing Anna¡¯s heart to jump in her chest as they engaged in a wet kiss, their tongues twisting and mating with one another. Their bodies were already pressed against each other, but he pulled her closer as though the closeness wasn¡¯t enough and Anna barely had time to catch her breath, but it didn¡¯t matter because she was lost in the pleasure he was making her experience.


    He explored her sweet mouth with his demanding tongue, to the point his Demons equally wanted a piece of her, she was his mate afterall and if he didn¡¯t stop, he couldn¡¯t picture what might happen next cause his self-control was already hanging on the edge.


    Taking his tongue back into his mouth, he pulled back for real this time and ced a tender kiss at the top of her forehead.


    He was selfish, he wanted her, he doesn¡¯t think he has the strength to depart himself from her, she was his mate, the woman who does things to him without even having to do a thing at all.


    It was toote to do anything about that now. She was his.


    ¡°Anna.¡± He made her meet his stare, her chest heaved up and down as she tried to take a breath and he could see she hadn¡¯t had enough either, they weren¡¯t satisfied, but they had to end it here.


    ¡°Roshan I_¡± she stopped herself from saying something that she might not be able to take back, he literally ignited the me in her system and she wanted nothing more than to quench it.


    ¡°Not here.¡± He told her in that seductive hoarse tone of his and he knew she understood what he was trying to say, ¡°not here.¡±


    Knowing what he meant, her cheeks burned in response and he got to his feet, not trusting himself and his mind at the moment.


    He went into the bathroom, leaving Annalise to recover in the bedroom. She hugged her body as a sudden crave to touch him again clouded her senses.


    She craved for his taste again and she saw it as nothing but pure torture, knowing the person her body was hungrily craving for, was right in front of her, but it was impossible to reach him.

 Chapter 125

    125 Exposed!


    The next morning, Annalise, as usual circled the dates on her notepad before neatly dropping it back in the drawer and closing it up.


    The glistening bracelet around her fair wrist caught her attention, leaving her to secretly admire it once more and a brightening smile adorned her pink lips. She recollected how shy Roshan acted when he gave her the bracelet and she hasn¡¯t taking it off since then.


    It was an adorable moment and who would have thought the cold-blooded Roshan would be so considerate towards her after all those times in Euphrasia and in Viscarrian too. She never imagined a day like this was even possible to exist and strangely, he¡¯s been the reason for both her happiness, sadness and every other emotions of hers that seemed to revolve around him.


    She woke up this morning and couldn¡¯t find him in the room, to her disappointment, but she suspected he might be in the library since that was another ce he grew fond of in the mansion.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let it escape! How did it get in?! Everyone stay locked in your various rooms! Now!!¡± Came the rmed yell of whom Anna assumed to be one of the Mayor¡¯s assassin and her eyes instantly diverted to the door, a gasp leaving her lips.


    A look of worry contorted her facial features as she heard hurried footfalls just outside her door, like they were after something and her attention was no longer on the bracelet.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening out there?¡± She got to her feet as the hurried footfalls slowly faded and it grew unusually quiet outside.


    Anna reached for the door handle, curiousity already getting the better of her as she wished to know what the guard or assassin was seriously yelling about.


    She quietly opened the door and popped her head out, the wide corridor was empty, not even a single soul could be seen wandering by and her brows knit themselves in puzzlement.


    .....


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± She didn¡¯t let the fear in her heart stop her from taking a step outside. She was meant to stay indoors like the assassin had ordered and every nerve in her screamed for her to go back inside, but she fought it, looking determined to figure out what exactly was going on.


    With silent steps, she walked past the red carpeted corridor and could hear hurried footstepsing from below.


    ¡°Find it!¡± The strict order in his tone made Anna flinch in startlement, but regardless of how scared she was, she curled her fingers into her palm and kept moving.


    ¡°Hold it down! Tie it up!¡±


    Anna paused as the ordering stern voice happened to being from the right corners of the corridor and it sounded like Nichs¡¯s voice.


    ¡°Tie what up?¡± The situation wasn¡¯t making things clear to Annalise and when she dared to peep, four to five assassins including Nichs were holding a soulless demon down, pressing his leg on the Demon¡¯s cheek to keep one side of it¡¯s face down on the ground.


    ¡°Can someone exin how to me how this happened? Aren¡¯t the bridges closed??¡± Nichs questioned one of the assassins who had shot an arrow to the soulless¡¯ back and an ugly shriek was heard before the demon gave up on struggling.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± He responded, obviously shocked himself, ¡°the bridge hasn¡¯t been lowered for three days now Master Nichs.¡±


    ¡°How strange, and this isn¡¯t the first time, it¡¯s almost like they¡¯re after something.¡±


    Anna froze against the wall the moment she saw the soulless demon. It looked grosteque, with the short horns on it¡¯s head and the irritating scaly body, just like the ones Luderick tamed and her feet instantly trapped themselves against the ground as it became difficult to move away from the scene.


    Her shock-filled eyes remained locked on the demon and Nichs¡¯sst words only heightened her fear.


    ¡®like they¡¯re after something..after something...¡¯ that particr word kept ringing in her head severally until the demon Nichs held down suddenly met her stare with it¡¯s purely ck eyes. It looked no different from a ck pool and it sent several chills running down Anna¡¯s spine, she had to let out a silent gasp while taking a step back and that was it. She wanted to run, but her legs weren¡¯t moving, almost paralyzed from fear.


    Why did she leave her room???


    The Demon¡¯s deadly gaze remained locked on her until amanding deep voice whispered into it¡¯s head, like a twisted trance.


    ¡°Bring her to me!¡±


    A loud ugly shriek left the Demon¡¯s mouth as it¡¯s energy returned and it broke free from Nichs¡¯s hold, sending an electrifying invisible force that pushed Nichs with his assassin¡¯s away from him.


    Nichs was shocked to see the demon reviving a little too quicker than he expected it to be and puzzlingly, it had it¡¯s gaze fixated on a particr direction.


    He looked at the direction of where the Demon was heading to and his face paled, seeing Anna stand before the corner, unable to move and his eyes widened in trepidation.


    ¡°Run Anna!¡± Nichs quickly alerted her, but she couldn¡¯t move her feet even when she tried, why now??


    The soulless headed towards her with a lightning speed, its arms stretched to grab her when Anna crouched to her knees and covered her eyes.


    ¡°Roshan!¡±


    She quickly called his name as that was the only thing that came into her mind at thest minute, still waiting for the expected but the unexpected happened when the Demon who should have reached her by now didn¡¯t touch her.


    Shakily tearing her palms from her face, she looked up, only to see the Demon¡¯s body had connected to the wall, a dagger was surprisingly buried at the side of it¡¯s head, so deep that only the hilt of the dagger was visible to her gaze.


    The sharp mouth of the dagger prated from the other side of it¡¯s head and trapping it to the wall. ck blood oozed from where the dagger had stabbed it and the demon stopped moving.


    When Anna looked to her left, Roshan was unhurriedly heading towards the Demon¡¯s direction, already pulling out his second dagger as he twirled it yfully in his fingers.


    But one thing that left Anna frozen was Roshan¡¯s fiery red eyes and snowy white fangs which were now visible to the gaze of the assassins, including Nichs too and Anna shook her head. Why did he reveal himself??


    To her dismay, the soulless wasn¡¯t dead yet as it suddenly moved it¡¯s fingers and with horror-filled eyes, Anna watched as it reached for the dagger in it¡¯s head and pulled it out, startling the human girl who fell backwards except this time, the soulless had it¡¯s gaze on Roshan who headed his way.


    An angry shriek escaped its mouth as it raced towards Roshan who just walked and it got to a point, he had to pick up speed as well, knowing the soulless wasn¡¯t any normal soulless for it to have survived his daggers and he was rather delighted for a fight.


    Anna didn¡¯t even realize when Nichs had reached for her side due to her shock-stricken state, picking her into his arms but she resisted his touch, unwilling to go anywhere as she watched the different Demons sh.


    ¡°Drop me down, Roshan_ he.!!¡±


    ¡°We need to get you to safety first.¡± He quickly convinced her before she stopped struggling. He looked at the assassins who were waiting for hismand and his gaze turned serious.


    ¡°Get rid of that demon!¡±


    They nodded before pulling out their silver swords and Nichs quickly took Anna back into her room, despite sensing how badly she wanted to be by Roshan¡¯s side.


    He dropped her to her feet after reaching her room but the stubborndy wanted to go out despite his words.


    ¡°Miss Ann.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s out there alone, I can¡¯t just....¡±


    ¡°Listen!¡± He finally snapped, gaining her attention and earning her silence as the room fell quiet, ¡°that thing is obviously here for you, if you go out there you¡¯re only risking more lives.¡±


    ¡°But Roshan..¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s a demon.¡± Nichs candidly said to her, reminding Anna with his serious stare about what has been shockingly revealed to him and she lost her voice instantly.


    ¡°Your brother is a Demon, what¡¯s going on? Is there something I should know about that you¡¯re not telling me?¡±


    ¡°I promise I¡¯ll exin it all to you but...¡±


    ¡°No,¡± his clipped tone cut her off and he wasn¡¯t joking, the look in his eyes proved it as he took a dominant step forward, leaving Anna to take a step back, ¡°tell me the truth, who are you?¡±


    Anna remained mute, looking as quiet as a nun. She barely had the strength toe up with an excuse as she was more worried about Roshan and her heart would tighten at the thought of what must be happening to him out there, what if he gets hurt??


    ¡°Will you tell me now?¡± Nichs¡¯s voice broke her from her thoughts and she met his amber eyes. A look of despondency smeared her features as she lowered her head. Her fingers curled into her palms as she uttered in a weak voice.


    ¡°Roshan isn¡¯t my brother, it¡¯s all a lie¡±

 Chapter 126

    126 His Protector


    ¡°So you¡¯re trying to exin to me that all this time you¡¯ve been here, you¡¯ve been ying with our minds and keeping us in the dark?¡± His eyes consciously narrowed into an usatory slit, still undeniably shocked as he never predicted this sort of foul action from her.


    He had his suspicions the first time he saw her, he didn¡¯t want to have anything to do with them but somehow, he fell for her Innocence without even realizing it and now that he thought about it, was her kindness and generosity to him also an act?


    He expected her to feel a bit remorseful after being exposed but instead, the look on her face was nowhere near that as she firmly began.


    ¡°I¡¯m not denying the fact that my actions were totally uncalled for and I sincerely apologize for lying to everyone, but what sort of action were you expecting us to take?¡± Annalise couldn¡¯t stop that question from slipping from her mouth as she anxiously turned away from him and said.


    ¡°We found ourselves in a world so different from where we came from, how we got here still makes no sense to me. Your assassins had their weapons pointed at us when we tried to figure a way out, your father wanted to end us without hearing the story from our side, so we had toe up with something to save ourselves.¡±


    She truthfully exined before turning around to look at him, her big innocent chocte-brown eyes that always drew his attention were now glistening with genuine worry, ¡°Roshan is a half Demon, but he¡¯s equally human. He¡¯ll never hurt your people for no urate reason.


    ¡°He¡¯s still a demon, he has no heart which leaves him lifeless, just like the rest of them that go about taking innocent lives.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about? He hasn¡¯t even touched a soul all the while he¡¯s been here!¡± She countered back, finding Nichs¡¯s words to be very offensive, ¡°so it¡¯d bepletely unfair of you to punish us.¡±


    ¡°Miss Ann,¡± Nichs started, taking another step forward, his tone unusually stoic and firm.


    .....


    ¡°If one is neutral in the face of injustice, then they have chosen the side of an oppressor, which I am not.¡±


    ¡°Then..!!..¡±


    The door to the room suddenly opened before Anna could get a chance ofpleting her phrase. It disrupted their conversation as their gazes diverted to the door and William quickly stepped in with a petrifying look on his face.


    ¡°Master Nichs! There¡¯s a de_¡±


    ¡°I know William.¡± He cut his words short with his not so quiet tone before returning his serious gaze back to Annalise who didn¡¯t look away either, as though they were both having a staringpetition that silently challenged them, that was until William quickly intervened, standing before Nichs as though he was a savior and pointing a threatening finger at Annalise.


    ¡°Keep your distance from the Mayor¡¯s son, you..!!..¡± he suddenly paused when he sensed no demonic aura around her, a bit surprised as he already rified in his mind that she was a Demon as well.


    ¡°Are you a demon? Or do you have a special talent in hiding your true nature just like your brother!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not my brother.¡±


    ¡°Then what is he? Your secret lover?¡± William randomly guessed but it sent a tinge of anger sprewing in Anna¡¯s system as her fist clenched at her side.


    ¡°Don¡¯t say things you know nothing about.¡±


    ¡°Well it doesn¡¯t matter anymore now cause the mayor has ordered for him to be killed at the spot, it¡¯s impossible to tell me that you¡¯re unaware of Ark Ville¡¯s dislike towards Demon. You outrightly deceived the Mayor and_¡±


    ¡°Killed at the spot?!¡± That was the only phrase of William¡¯s that sank into Anna¡¯s head while hearing him speak and it racked her ears like an explosion of steam-whistle, leaving her face ghostly pale. Kill him??


    No! No! No! They can¡¯t kill him! This is all her fault!


    Without waiting for William¡¯s to finish, she dashed out of the room, hoping it wasn¡¯t toote to get to Roshan on time.


    ¡°Hey!¡±


    ¡°Let her go William.¡± Nichs ced a hand on his shoulder, stopping the short middle-aged William from going after her.


    ¡°But master Nick, he¡¯s a demon and he could lose control if we let him live longer.¡± William quickly exined the gravity of the situation at hand. Feeling somewhat lost, Nichs cocked his brow at him.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s a half-devil! If he gets out of control, it might be toote to even stop him!¡± William quickly alerted Nichs, ¡°didn¡¯t you sense his powers and how stupefyingly different it was from the rest Demons? It carries weight.¡±


    William made a gesture by flexing his muscle, signifying the power was thick and Nichs¡¯s expression was now contorted with worry, seeing as Anna went after him.


    What if he hurts her??


    Shit! He shouldn¡¯t have let her leave.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± He quickly stepped out of the room, William¡¯s following behind.


    Anna, who ran through the corridor, desperately looking for Roshan finally spotted him at a corner except he was being held down by some sort of magic that restrained his movements. His eyes were bloody red and held a look of bloodlust, like he wanted to kill everyone at sight but a strong maic force held his feet to the ground, the doings of the assassins surrounding him.


    ¡°Hold yourself!¡± Came the Mayor¡¯s strict words as he caught the cier¡¯s attention, ¡°you wouldn¡¯t want to lose your life in the hands of an Ark Ville.¡±


    ¡°Does it look like I fucking care?¡± Came his tant response as the look in his eyes turned even redder. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t let go of this maic force if I were you.¡± His tone was menacing, sounding less like him and holding a deathly promise if they choose to free him.


    ¡°Seize him!¡± Came the Mayor¡¯s orders and one of the assassins raised his sword, channeling some sort of power through the des and getting prepared to stab the Demon when a voice threw him off guard.


    ¡°No wait!¡±


    Anna¡¯s panicked voice caught the attention of everyone and when they turned their heads her way, she was running towards Roshan, only to hug the cier in front of everyone and stop the assassin from stabbing him.


    ¡°He didn¡¯t do anything, you have no right to hurt him.¡± She said while continuously hugging him even tighter, refusing to let go as the fear of seeing him get stabbed clouded her mind.


    Nichs and Williams arrived at the scene and both beings were taken aback by the sight, most especially Nichs.


    Roshan, who didn¡¯t expect the protective hug from Annalise suddenly went still before her, the fact she was hugging him despite being in a beastly state....


    Wasn¡¯t she afraid?


    His fangs slowly retracted and the color of his eyes gradually returned to normal as his Demons calmed at her touch. But he didn¡¯t hug her back, almost like he was confused on what to do, or how to even react to her warm gesture, but she was fine, and that¡¯s all that mattered to him.


    He was in the library trying to figure things out for himself when he heard the assassins yelling out their orders and he suspected something was wrong, leaving him restless without knowing why, but after hearing Anna¡¯s panicked scream as she called out his name in his head, something in him lost full control and it unleashed his demons. He didn¡¯t care if everyone died from that soulless, he only cared about the safety of his Annalise.


    ¡°Anna.¡± He called and she moved back, meeting his surprised stare, those demonic eyes of his were now calm and glimmered with emotions he couldn¡¯t possibly say.


    ¡°I¡¯m here, nothing will happen to you.¡± She assured him in a soft whisper.


    ¡°What insolence! Hold her back!¡±


    Two Assassins hurried to get Anna away from Roshan, but she resisted their hold and swiftly turned, skillfully reaching for the sword that hung around one of the assassin¡¯s waist and pointing it at him.


    ¡°Come near us and I won¡¯t hesitate to use the sword on anyone.¡± She threatened as a sharp light shed in her eyes. Her sweaty hands tightened against the hilt of the de to keep her resolve in check as she positioned herself for a fight.


    At least they weren¡¯t soulless demons.


    Roshan on the other hand blinked at her fierce demeanor in amusement, for a sec she looked nothing like the innocent Annalise he was used to seeing, something about her today was different and it left him feeling even more attracted to her.


    His annoying woman was protecting him.


    ¡°Stay away from this Anna, this is between Ark Ville and a demon, a half-devil to be even more specific.¡± The Mayor calmly cautioned.


    ¡°No.¡± She refused, ¡°if you want him, then you¡¯re going to have to go through me.¡±


    There was no hint of fear in her dulcet tone and she was going to stand by it. They both made a promise and she wasn¡¯t going to leave here without him.

 Chapter 127

    127 A Myriad Strike


    ¡± In that case, you leave me with no other choice.¡± The Mayor¡¯s demeanor turned grim as he flicked his wrist, giving the assassins a go ahead and they immediately circled Anna, leaving not even a tiny escape route for her as she stood in the middle, all by herself.


    ¡°Father¨C¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear it.¡± The Mayor silenced his son who was about pleading for Anna¡¯s freedom, ¡°she picked her choice, so let it be.¡±


    Nichs had a lot more to say since he couldn¡¯t picture Anna fighting them all by herself, but he waspelled to remain mute before he made the situation even worse for her. Regardless of what she¡¯s doing or not, she saved him from a demon bite and this isn¡¯t the right way to repay her for it. This is wrong but his father won¡¯t listen.


    Anna on the other hand, was more than ready as her gaze traveled amongst the group of assassins dressed in ck attire. She¡¯s never felt so bold and this energized before that it sort of frightened and excited her at the same time.


    Roshan had the urge to intervene after seeing his mate get surrounded by a group of crazy assassins, but was unable to utter a word as something about her demeanor and unbnced aura piqued his interest. He really wanted to see what would happen next cause truth be told, he was liking this side of her.


    Seeing she had no ns of giving her choice a second thought, they advanced forward with quick silent steps that the only thing heard was the light wind that rustled the fabrics of their attire, but Anna didn¡¯t move, her eyes looked calctive as though she was picturing the scene in her mind and when they got really close to the point of attack, she leapt into the air. The slight wind helped with her lifting as she smoothlynded on the safer side but that wasn¡¯t the end as she swirled to look at them, a tiny glint shed in those pretty eyes of her as it challenged them.


    They advanced at her direction and this time, a sword was directly aimed at her, but she took arge step back to evade the attack but another one approached her from behind.


    She sensed it quickly and dodged it on time, only to end up shing her de with one of the assassins and redirecting the attack by pushing his sword away. The scraping sound of iron reverberated in the corridor, an effective move that left both Nichs and Roshan staring in awe.


    .....


    ¡°That move correctly advances one from going defensive into attacking in a matter of seconds.¡± Nichs impressively muttered in his head, obviously taken away by her unknown skill and he was correct about that, cause Anna was the one in the lead here, yet something about her stances and unique movement were familiar to him.


    ¡°What are you doing?!¡± The Mayor yelled at the assassins who were nowhere close to catching Anna due to her swift and perfect movement.


    Feeling somewhat angered, one of the assassin¡¯s swayed in a fit of rage and lunged at her, but Annalise counter-cut against his attack on time, leaving her with an opening as she targeted his arm with the hilt of her sword. The impact came a little too strong as it weakened his arm, forcing his sword to tter to the ground and a look of pain contorted the assassin¡¯s face.


    Annalise hadn¡¯t forgotten about Roshan yet and from the corner of her eyes, one of the assassins had used her distracted moment to sneak against Roshan who was still held by the maic force and before he got a chance to strike.


    ¡°No!¡±


    Anna stretched her hand forward in an attempt to stop him but what happened next left everyone staring in disbelief. An invisible force shot through her palm and went straight at the assassin behind Roshan. The impact of that force was so unexinable that it sent the assassin flying across the room and mming his back hard against the wall before sprawling to the ground.


    A shocking gasp was what Anna heard as it left her lips and she quickly kept her hand at her side. Her heart raced as she shook her head in skepticism, already convincing herself that there was no way she was capable of doing something as mystifying as that.


    Silence filled the corridor as all gazes shifted to Annalise, even Roshan had to stare as the sight wasn¡¯t something he expected at all, it felt like he just received an epic scene that was amazing and confusing at the same time.


    The Mayor¡¯s eyes widened in obvious disbelief when he saw the sword in her hand glow in a shimmering bright light and when the befuddled Annalise noticed it too, she quickly dropped the de as if it was a ticking bomb that would explode if she held it longer.


    ¡°The Myriad Strike?!¡± The Mayor mumbled in disbelief as his cheeks furrowed in a serious manner. How did she know of such a technique???


    ¡°Miss Ann..¡± Nichs too was left to stare in admiration rather. A myriad strike is more of a secret technique practiced by mages/witches. It¡¯s not something that is capable of being taught, ites naturally to the people born as a special soul, but how did a human??...


    ¡°Master Nichs! Did you see that?!¡± William looked like someone who was getting ready to pass out anytime soon as the situation just got confusing. He brought out a handkerchief from his breast-pocket and wiped his face with it, before fanning himself and trying to stay alive to witness more scenes.


    Seeing as everyone¡¯s attention was no longer on him, Roshan trickily crouched on one knee and freed himself from the force that held him down. It was something he grew capable of doing without much effort, but not with people watching.


    He stood straight again, pretending to still be trapped by the maic force and the bloody color in his eyes slowly returned as he mentally prepared himself for something.


    ¡°Who taught you the Myriad Strike?¡± Came the question from the mayor and before Anna could respond, all it took was the blink of an eye from everyone and she was no longer seen, except for the unexpected wind that followed.


    Puzzled, everyone¡¯s gaze rmingly shifted to where Roshan was trapped and the demon wasn¡¯t there either.


    How did he escape??


    ¡°Where did they go?? Find them!!¡± Came the Mayor¡¯s strict order the moment he realized what just took ce in his presence. The assassins scattered themselves as they seperated to go search for the two beings, knowing they couldn¡¯t have gotten that far yet..


    ¡°Father.¡± Nichs hurriedly walked up to his father who still looked very much dumbstruck, ¡°did you see that? It¡¯s impossible for a human to do such father, a myriad strike like that is not something we can ignore, does that make Anna one of us?¡± He asked, but with a hopeful smile his father couldn¡¯t see since he had his back facing his son.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I can¡¯t exin it either.¡±


    ¡°Where¡¯s mother? She¡¯s a strong Mage of Ark Ville, she can surely provide us with the answers.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not here,¡± he turned to look at his son who quickly regainedposure, ¡°the recruited assassin¡¯s sent to Stonhill justpleted their mission, so she¡¯s gone to get them.¡±

 Chapter 128

    128 A Kiss Behind The Bookshelf


    Quickly shutting the door behind them, Roshan turned around to see his annoying woman crouching at her bedside, stuffing the dresses he bought for her into one of the shopping bags and packing them together.


    The sight alone was enough to leave him baffled and despite everything that just happened out there, including the already risen tension in the air, she still has time for this?


    ¡°Please don¡¯t tell me this is the urgent thing we stopped to get?¡± He didn¡¯t bother hiding the hint of annoyance in his tone as he found it difficult to understand the woman in front of him, she was just unbelievable most times. There are crazy assassins out there who are in search of them and here he is, worrying himself out about her safety while she¡¯s more worried about.... clothes??


    ¡°You want me to leave them here?¡± She asked, looking shock-stricken herself before shaking her head in demure and focusing on the bags, ¡°the seamstress showed me such pretty dresses and I still remember how much they cost okay? I¡¯m not doing charity.¡± She curtly remarked, but then stopped when something crossed her mind, her eyes suddenly widened in silent realization.


    ¡°Oh.¡± She got to her feet and hurried to the wardrobe, quietly bringing out the notepad and quickly hurrying back to the bag and shoving it in. She couldn¡¯t possibly forget her notepad too.


    ¡°Now we can leave.¡±


    She looked at the man who shook his head helplessly at her. He was trying not to facepalm at the moment due to her absurd act. They would have left the mansion already if she didn¡¯t stop pissing him about the ¡®important things¡¯ she forgot and wanted to take.


    ¡°The mansion must be surrounded already.¡± He quietly moved to the window, taking a peek to know what¡¯s happening outside and what he saw at least a maximum of hundred assassins leaving the mansion.


    ¡°What do we do then?¡± She whispered, obviously worried since she knew they couldn¡¯t leave the mansion just yet.


    .....


    ¡°We need to head to the autumn forest.¡± He informed her, ¡°Azazel will be there but he¡¯s not showing up until night time.¡±


    Anna¡¯s eyes instantly brightened at the mention of Azazel and she hurried over to Roshan¡¯s side.


    ¡°You spoke with Azazel?¡± She asked, her surprise evident in her tone.


    ¡°Mmhn.¡± He responded with a slight nod before clicking his tongue and moving away from the window.


    ¡°But where do we hide first?¡±


    ¡°Where else except here? At this point we¡¯re nothing more but criminals in the eyes of them.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not a criminal, I didn¡¯t do anything.¡± Annalise disagreed with that statement he made, but he tilted his head at her, his gaze visibly taunting as always.


    ¡°You shot the Mayor¡¯s assassin through a wall.¡±


    He reminded her, masterfully hiding the fact that he enjoyed it as he raised an using brow at her, leaving the speechless Annalise to assume the worst of him as she gritted her teeth to hide her own anger.


    It reminded her of the fact that there was still trouble ahead, most especially after what she just did. No one knew how much it still bothered her that she did something as unbelievable as that, but there was a situation more important to take care of first and that was their safety.


    ¡°Check the rooms!¡± Came the order from outside from outside their door and Annalise froze at the mention of rooms.


    ¡°Check this one! It hasn¡¯t been checked, I doubt they¡¯ve gone that far.¡±


    ¡°In here.¡± Roshan whispered to Annalise as he grabbed her hand and pulled her into a corner, there was a small room to hide in behind the shelf on the wall but they had to shift it a bit so they could fit in, using the book shelf as a shield to hide themselvespletely and they remained quiet.


    The door to the room was instantly burst open and Anna couldn¡¯t hold back a gasp due to how forceful the kick against the door was. She sped both her hands on her mouth to stop herself from saying anything out of fear.


    She heard their footsteps as they surveyed the room, ¡°search the ce, I feel their presence here!¡±


    Anna looked up to meet Roshan¡¯s Hazel-green eyes and he gave her thefort she needed as he held her hand in his, silently telling her that she wasn¡¯t alone, that he was here with her.


    The sounds of things falling made her tremble slightly, afraid they might take notice of the secret hiding ce behind the bookshelf and like that wasn¡¯t enough, Anna soon had the urge to sneeze, causing her eyes to dte with a look of panic.


    Roshan¡¯s eyes slightly widened after noticing she was about to sneeze as well, she tried holding it in but that only made it worse as it only got stronger. Before she could sneeze, Roshan¡¯s lips found hers, silencing her at thest minute and driving away whatever sneeze that¡¯d jeopardize their n.


    Anna¡¯s eyes went round when he kissed her gently and it rendered her brain nk. It would have turned out to be a romantic scene if they weren¡¯t assassin¡¯s trying to look for them on the outside.


    ¡°They¡¯re not here.¡± One of the assassins joined the rest of them.


    ¡°Let¡¯s leave, the more we stay here and waste time, the more chances they get to flee.¡± Came Neil¡¯s orders, ¡°search the other rooms and outside the walls of the mansion.¡±


    The assassins hurried out and before Neil stepped out of the room along with them, his eyes diverted to the library shelf except he had no intention of searching there as his eyes glinted knowingly.


    Roshan finally pulled back once he no longer heard their footsteps and he met Anna¡¯s frozen stare, her flushed cheeks were visible before his gaze and a tinge of delight filled him on the inside, knowing he was capable of making her go red.


    He knew the kiss had taken her by surprise but it was theirst hope to avoid being caught.


    ¡°I think they¡¯re gone.¡± He whispered, gaining her attention back and Anna finally blinked, her mind returning to the assassins that invaded the room and truly, she no longer heard their footsteps and their presence had faded along with it.


    Yet none of them made a move to leave and he tilted her head up, gently running his finger through her bottom lip that nearly left her breathless.


    ¡°I¡¯ve not even started with you yet.¡± He truthfully told her while letting his gaze linger on her pink lips that looked like two budded roses, ¡°if we do make it out of here, then.....¡± his voice trailed off, deliberately leaving his words unfinished to make the woman guess out his sinful ns herself.


    Anna was somewhat anticipating his next word but he just stopped and shifted the library shelf.


    ¡°Come on, we don¡¯t have all day.¡± He said instead, to her disappointment.

 Chapter 129

    129 Out Of Ark Ville


    Holding her hand, they quietly stepped out of the room after confirming the coast was more than clear. The corridor was empty, with not even a single soul trespassing the area. The servants hadn¡¯t left the guestrooms yet since the earlier raise of rm, giving Roshan and Anna a better chance of escaping.


    Anna held the bag tightly in her grasp while keeping her eyes wide-open incase of any unanticipated attack.


    They could hear running footfalls below the corridor, leading them to halt for a few seconds until those heavy steps faded and they hurried past, taking the second stairs and avoiding the main hallway.


    ¡°I know an easier way to leave the mansion.¡± Came the familiar voice that made Roshan and Anna halt in their step, taking notice of the fact they¡¯ve just been caught. When they turned around, Nichs was striding towards their direction, unarmed, and Anna¡¯s eyes visibly widened in shock.


    ¡°Nichs?¡±


    He smiled when he stopped in front of them, the bewilderment in her eyes wasn¡¯t a surprise to him but he maintained a poisedposure as he began, ¡°you don¡¯t have to worry about being caught, I¡¯m here to help.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Roshan¡¯s eyes red at him in half suspicion as he protectively pulled Anna behind him, shielding her just in case the brown-haired beast boy ends up trying something farcical.


    Nichs¡¯s gazended on their locked fingers, his lips twitched as they pulled to the side in difort before averting them and lifting it up to meet his challenging gaze.


    .....


    ¡°Despite everything that has happened, I¡¯m not so heartless to overlook the fact she saved me from a demon bite.¡± He honestly stated, quickly shifting his gaze from Roshan and when they diverted to the puzzled Anna, they looked warmer.


    ¡°I¡¯m here to help you, but since you¡¯re quite close to the demon, I have no choice but to help him as well.¡± To say the least bit of truth even if he didn¡¯t like it, Roshan might be a demon but he never touched anyone, just like Anna said, so it¡¯d be wrong to pass unfair judgements towards them, plus he wouldn¡¯t want his conscience judging him for eternity.


    Anna smiled in relief at his words, they sounded genuine to her ears and as risky as it might be, it wouldn¡¯t really hurt to give him a chance, it was the only option they had if they n to sessfully escape from here. Anna finally looked at the disgruntled Roshan, gently tugging at his sleeve to gain his attention, ¡°let him help us.¡±


    Roshan averted his gaze from her, retracting them back to the Nichs who stared back, clearly this two didn¡¯t seem to fancy one another and Anna didn¡¯t fail to notice the hostility in their gaze.


    ¡°So uhm how do we leave?¡± Anna broke the silence and Nichs let his gaze rest on her again.


    ¡°Come with me.¡± He turned and left. Roshan and Anna exchanged nces before taking the risk and following Nichs.


    They carefully made it past the first stairs below and if there were any assassins patrolling the area, Nichs would send them away bying up with some sort of unnecessary orders and being the Mayor¡¯s son, they couldn¡¯t refuse him.


    They kept walking until he brought them to the quiet garden, they moved through the flower path till they progressed deeper and after confirming there was no one at sight, Nichs moved the flowers that designed the wall forming a blocked path except this specific path was actually a tunnel.


    ¡°A tunnel?!¡± Anna blurted out her exmation.


    ¡°It¡¯s one of my secrets.¡± He hinted before making way for them, ¡°follow this tunnel and you¡¯ll be away from our Mansion, no one will spot you as long as you keep to the woods.¡±


    Anna smiled gratefully as she dipped her head in a low bow, ¡°thank you for your help, I won¡¯t forget this.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m just repaying the favor.¡± He smiled in return before clearing his throat and looking away from her big brown eyes, ¡°you should leave now.¡±


    Anna quickly nodded in affirmation before holding Roshan¡¯s hand, ¡°let¡¯s go.¡±


    She dragged the cier in and the tunnel was immediately covered back.


    ~


    Once it got to noon, Levi and Azazel were waiting at the autumn forest. He leaned against one of the big trees, silently watching the yful Levi stare in admiration at the beautiful Autumn forest and azy sigh left his lips.


    ¡°The bastard couldn¡¯t wait till midnight before causing a ruckus, I wonder where they are now?¡± Azazel mumbled to himself but Levi just shrugged it off with a tsk.


    ¡°He better hurry up, Ark Ville is beautiful but it¡¯s not a ce for demon, the energy here is somewhat toxic and can fluctuate our powers which is understandable, they aren¡¯t in a good rtionship with Demons anyway,¡± he pointed out before cing a finger to his chin and looking at Azazel with an amused stare, ¡°your father really made lots of enemies for us don¡¯t you think?¡±


    ¡°Shut up.¡±


    ¡°Harsh!¡± Levi¡¯s expression turned hurtful as he kept quiet, knowing how those simple words of Azazel were like a knife whenced with his arrogance, but then, he didn¡¯t care.


    ¡°I gave him a time limit,¡± Azazel firmly began, ¡°if that brother of yours doesn¡¯t get here within that time, I¡¯m leaving.¡±


    ¡°I never really expected to be pictured as the tortoise and the hare.¡± Came the sarcastic response of a certain cier who finally showed up at sight, with Anna standing beside him.


    ¡°Tell me, which one am I in this story?¡±


    Levi¡¯s enchanted face instantly lit up in their presence, ¡°they¡¯re here!¡±


    He hurried towards the both of them and hugged the baffled Roshan first, but when he pulled back, his face was contorted with worry, ¡°my goodness what did this people do to you, the color in your face has paled, is it the energy from Ark Ville? I¡¯m sure it is...¡± he kept ranting while pulling at Roshan¡¯s cheeks and scanning the cier whose expression only frowned.


    ¡°Touch me again..!!¡± The silent threat in his tone made Levi keep his hands to himself and it earned a snicker from Anna.


    ¡°Get Anna out of here.¡±


    He nodded with a smile before looking at Annalise, ¡°ready?¡±


    She shook her head before meeting Roshan¡¯s stare, ¡°you said we¡¯d leave together.¡±


    ¡°We will, I¡¯m right behind you, but you need to leave first.¡±


    ¡°But...¡±


    Levi grabbed her wrist and she vanished from sight along with Levi, leaving only Azazel and Roshan to stand in the quiet forest.


    The cier brought out his silver daggers while Azazel just hummed with an interesting gaze.


    ¡°What bad timing.¡±


    Before they knew it, the forest was surrounded by assassins and Roshan stood behind Azazel as they both prepared themselves for a fight. Turns out they had both seen iting and where nning to linger longer for a little ytime.


    ¡°When was thest time we fought together again?¡± Questioned Azazel whose eyes turned red, but the cier¡¯s eyes glinted in primal response.


    ¡°I don¡¯t even want to remember, but this time around, keep your hands away from my toys.¡±

 Chapter 130

    130 Story Of A Cursed Girl


    Once it clocked midnight in the Viscarrian kingdom, Anna stayed awake in her chamber, staring intently at the golden badge in her hand while sitting before her dressing table in the pce.


    The recollection of what she did at Ark Ville hasn¡¯t left her mind yet and she still has a hard time believing she was capable of doing something so mystifying as a human. Just recalling every bit of her action made her rub her forehead slightly as though she wanted to ease an iing headache and a tired sigh left her lips.


    As unintended as it was, she hoped the assassin was alright though. For a moment she didn¡¯t really feel like herself after holding that de, she was conscious, but her body tended to move on its own without giving her enough time to n the next attack.


    She delivered all sorts of unique acrobatics that if she wanted to repeat those stances, she was sure she would never get them right. If possible, end up with a broken wrist or leg, but surely, something would go wrong as her swordsmanship skills hasn¡¯t advanced to that levelpletely.


    ¡°Why do I feel a headache?¡± She quietly uttered in a low painful groan while pressing her palm to her forehead, instinctively closing her eyes for a few seconds, silently trying to deal with the head pounding aches and the moment she opened them, what she saw next was somebody¡¯s palm stretched to her front and when those palm opened, a pill was resting on it.


    Baffled by the sight, she looked up to meet the gaze of a certain cier, his eyes met hers and Anna nearly jumped from her seat due to his unnned presence, how did he get in??


    ¡°Roshan?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll ease your headache.¡± He told her instead, changing the foreseen subject and not giving the startled Anna a chance to spill how his presence had frightened her, cause he already knew that would be her next line if he gave her the chance to speak.


    Anna stared at the pill in his hand before shifting her gaze to meet him, refusing to take the pill.


    .....


    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± She assured him but Roshan simply ignored her remark and fetched a ss of water from the small jug resting on her side table before handing it to her, along with the pill.


    ¡°Don¡¯t make me force you.¡± He could see she was drained out, probably weak from the whole thing that had happened, most especially after witnessing herself do something that was oddly mystifying and it got him worried too, even if he had a hard time showing it.


    He couldn¡¯t risk letting her put her health at stake as well. They already have a huge one on their te and triggering any further emotions might not be the best idea due to her condition, but the stubborn woman was already shaking her head in refusal.


    ¡°I¡¯m really¨C¡±


    ¡°Anna.¡± His tone came out even more serious, signifying he wasn¡¯t ying around and that he means every word. She has to take it, even if he had to shove it down her throat himself.


    Seeing how persistent he was at making her take the medicine, Annalise finally gave in and took the pill from him. She took the tiny blue pill into her mouth, using the ss of water to aid it down her throat and hopefully, her head would stop banging in a few minutes.


    She wiped her lips and dropped the cup close to the jug before walking past Roshan to go sit on her bed.


    On a normal basis, she wouldn¡¯t hesitate to chase him out whenever he stepped into her chambers unweed, iming this was her room but today, she seemed somewhat distant with herself and it wasn¡¯t helping Roshan either who found no joy in seeing her like this.


    ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± His tone came out soft and pleasing, just as she always liked it, but she pinned her lips together before letting out a soft sigh and looking away from his direction.


    ¡°Nothing, I just think my life is a little tooplicated, confusing and I guess I must have overworked my brain too much to earn a headache.¡± Sheughed it off while awkwardly scratching the back of her head, but Roshan wasn¡¯t easily fooled by it, he had spent a lot of time with her to understand the woman already, at least to a certain point.


    ¡°What¡¯s bothering you?¡±


    She shook her head while staring at the golden badge in her hand, ¡°I just wanted to visit my parents grave that¡¯s all, I miss them a lot and¨C¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll go tomorrow if that¡¯s what you want.¡± He interjected before she could finish, leaving Anna¡¯s eyes to widen in amusement. Truth be told, she wasn¡¯t expecting him to agree so quickly.


    ¡°You don¡¯t mind?¡±


    ¡°I understand what you¡¯re going through, maybe notpletely but I understand.¡± He licked his lips as he looked away from her, trying to pick out the right words to say, ¡°sometimes people feel weighed down by a lot of things and tend to visit the ce they gainfort, where they can let it all out to gain inner peace and that¡¯s what you need, I have no right to stop you.¡±


    Hearing him speak, Anna couldn¡¯t stop herself from smiling his way, when did Roshan be this considerate?


    But then, his approval wasn¡¯t going to help her get into Euphrasia since people like Sir Arlow would surely be roaming around Draekharm vige. That man wouldn¡¯t miss a chance to end her life for sure.


    ¡°But... I can¡¯t go there, I¡¯m being framed remember? I can be killed if caught again.¡±


    ¡°Framed for what exactly?¡±


    Annalise sighed softly as she was forced to recollect the incident, ¡°I¡¯m being framed for the death of my people who died in the river bank at Euphrasia, I¡¯m still yet to prove my innocence or how they were killed, I fled from the pce when they nned to execute me, that¡¯s how I ended up in the dark forest, with guards chasing me.¡±


    She shook the painful recollection away and Roshan still remembered that day, it was still vivid in his mind and back then, he had only killed them out of his awakened anger, but now he felt relieved that he did. If Anna had not freed him on time, she would have died from those arrows and he never would have met her.


    That wasn¡¯t the main issue now, he was interested to know which filthy bastard dared to frame his innocent mate. Whatever anger he had left will be used on the idiot who thinks he can get away after ruining the name of an innocentdy.


    ¡°Who framed you?¡±


    ¡°Does it matter?¡±


    ¡°Answer the question.¡±


    ¡°The king¡¯s most trusted Marshal, Sir Arlow, he should be the king¡¯s current courtier by now.¡±


    Sheid t on her bed, still unable to stop herself from recalling how he managed to twist his words and use a victim into calling her name. She still can¡¯t figure out why she gave him this much respect by adding sir to his name.


    ¡°He never really liked me and made several attempts to hurt me, but luckily I had the old physician and princess Calista by my side to help me.¡± She would have mentioned Adryan as well if she hadn¡¯t figured out the bitter truth at the dark forest.


    Sometimes the people who you think are willing to be there for you, are the first to stab you right in the back when no one¡¯s looking. Just thinking about it brought tears to her eyes, but sheughed as well, unsure of which emotions to fill at the moment.


    ¡°I was a cursed girl, the one who brought chaos to Euphrasia, no one wanted to believe I was innocent, I was med for killing the people who died on a ship, no one was willing to ept me. You know I¡¯ve heard great stories about my father, my mother never hesitated to sing his praises and now, I wish I wasn¡¯t even born into such a loving family, if they never had me, maybe things would have been different for them, maybe I wouldn¡¯t have spoiled their names like this, maybe I should have died¨C.¡±


    ¡°Stop.¡± Roshan silenced her, not pretty much liking where the conversation was heading to, Anna¡¯s eyes shifted to him and it was obvious on his expression that he didn¡¯t fancy the word she just said.


    ¡°Tomorrow, we¡¯ll visit your parents grave and then figure out how to prove your innocence to your people.¡±


    ¡°How?¡±


    ¡°Leave that to me, you just get ready for tomorrow.¡±


    Anna quickly sat up, unsure of if she was supposed to feel calmed by his words, ¡°what are you nning on doing?¡±


    He squatted before the puzzled Annalise, his beautiful fingers reaching to wipe the tears that smeared her cheeks and just seeing how someone made her cry only infuriated him on the inside, ¡°Getting your respect back,¡± he responded, ¡°you don¡¯t have to worry, I never hurt people without a reason.¡±


    He gave her head a gentle pat before rising to his feet, but that phrase of his wasn¡¯t clear to her.


    He never hurts people without a reason?? What is he talking about?


    ¡°Get some sleep.¡± And he stepped out of her room, closing the door behind him and leaving Anna¡¯s mind to ponder on that subtle word of his.

 Chapter 131

    131 The Biggest Of Hearts


    After having that substantial conversation with Roshan, Anna could barely sleep a wink like he had requested of her despite trying and hoping for that peaceful deep slumber to take her away for even a few hours.


    Meanwhile in Euphrasia, the royal guards were jubting and having a good time at one of the famous taverns close to Draekharm vige.


    ¡°Cheers to his Majesty¡¯s new courtier!!¡± The whole tavern resonated with their male upbeat voices as everyone of them clinked their drinks to celebrate Arlow¡¯s new promotion.


    The man being celebrated, proudly got to his feet while holding out his ss of beer, looking lordly ready to address everyone present in the tavern, he finally began, ¡°It is within my utmost power to pay the drinks of every soul present here, as a little token for my... promotion.¡± He giggled sheepishly as other joyous cheers echoed through the tavern.


    Just hearing his name being praised was enough to take his mind straight to cloud nine as he raised his drink up.


    ¡°Drink! Eat! Enjoy yourself, you have nothing to worry about with sir Arlow around.¡±


    ¡°Hail the new courtier!¡± One of the guards¡¯ voices rang out.


    ¡°Hail!!¡± The rest happily chorused.


    Admist all the jubtion going on, a certain being wearing an ash colored cloak hid in the shadows, his Hazel-green eyes shed with fury seeing as the person responsible for his Anna¡¯s tears was here jubting over a fucking promotion!!


    .....


    At this point, he wanted nothing more but to cut that imprudent¡¯s tongue out of his mouth so he can shut up for once, but in other to achieve that, he has to hold onto his patience if he wanted to picture that torture as a reality, one slip and he might be caught.


    Reminding himself of his sole reason for even showing up here to see the despicable man, he hid himself in the shadows again.


    After the whole celebration had ended, each guard grabbed a woman they¡¯d use to pleasure themselves for the night before departing. Arlow on the other hand, didn¡¯t bother as he already had up to two women waiting in his den.


    Already drunk from too much drinking, he waved the rest goodnight before staggering his way through the lonely path, singing and humming who knows what to himself.


    Thenterns being lit were able to provide the wide path with a source of light and he walked unsteadily with a foolish grin on his face. Unbeknownst to him, a certain demon was following him like a hawk from behind, not even his footsteps could be heard and he brought out his daggers from his waist pocket, his eyes glinting with a primal need for blood as they turned frighteningly red.


    Arlow suddenly stopped walking as though he sensed a presence behind him, the type that made the hair on his skin stand at attention, causing his nerves to tremble for no particr reason. Somehow rmed by the strange bizarre air that followed him, he swiftly turned around, almost losing his bnce and falling to the ground since he was unstable, but he managed to get a hold of himself.


    Looking at the path before him, there was no one there, the path was just as lonely as a graveyard but then again, why should he be scared?


    He was a brave man who had dealt with many Demons and managed to get what he wanted, the fact he sessfully made it as the king¡¯s courtier is one of his victorious examples. In no time, he¡¯ll get rid of the king and his son, then take over the throne too.


    Laughing at his evil thoughts, he continued to walk, unaware of the fact that this walk of his would end up being hisst.


    Seeing as he had left, Roshan stepped out of his hiding corner and let his bloody red eyes follow the man till he was out of sight, fully aware of all of his evil intentions and he still has no idea how he¡¯s letting that man go.


    ¡°This is going to be a long night.¡± His lips curved into a devilish smirk and he followed him.


    ~


    When the sun finally sipped out from the horizon, indicating it was morning time, Anna had dressed herself for the day before proceeding to pick the notepad and circled the 5th day on it. She dropped it back in her drawer when a knock suddenly came in and the next thing her mind could think of was Roshan.


    Getting to her feet, she hurried to go open the door and truly, it was him, standing before her doorway with his hypnotizing eyes locked on hers.


    ¡°Ready?¡± Came his question as he looked her over.


    Exhaling softly and gathering herself, she nodded before stepping out of the room and closing the door shut behind her. She wanted to visit her parents¡¯ graveyard, and she would do it with Roshan by her side.


    Before they got a chance to leave, the elderdy of the pce,dy Odette ended up crossing paths with the both of them and to be honest, she wasn¡¯t surprised to see Roshan and his human maid back in Viscarrian, but she was disappointed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ve ruined the family¡¯s name enough?¡± She questioned the cier who just stared at her as though she was a disturbing bug that was difficult to get rid off.


    ¡°Like leaving the pce and refusing to take the throne wasn¡¯t enough, you cling yourself to a simpleton as her.¡± She eyed the youngdy who stood beside Roshan, but Anna wasn¡¯t in the position to speak back as it mighte out rude, so Roshan did the talking.


    ¡°Aunt.¡± He smirked, ¡°ruining the family¡¯s name wasn¡¯t my intention, you see I actually n to ¡®destroy¡¯ it as well as the stupid politics that father implemented.¡± Taking a single step towards her that showed his unscathed authority and power, he wasn¡¯t ring at the slightest, but the dark look in his eyes was enough to make her look away.


    ¡°Until those higher Demons are willing to do my bidding, no one is taking that throne.¡± He made it very clear before looking over his shoulder to see the pretty youngdy standing quietly behind him.


    ¡°As long as you¡¯re in this pce or as long as you wish to stay here..¡± he met his Aunt¡¯s ring gaze, ¡°...no one will go near her, else I will make it rain blood on you.¡±


    Holding Anna¡¯s hand, he inteced their fingers together, leaving Lady Odette¡¯s face to turn grave at the sight.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t over, when I return, I¡¯d like to know where our modest Gretta disappeared to.¡±


    At the mention of Gretta,dy Odette couldn¡¯t bring herself to speak again. Eyeing the woman with obvious disgust, Roshan took Anna away from the woman¡¯s sight.


    Anna couldn¡¯t help but smile to herself as he took her away, still keeping their fingers inteced. His expression was stoic as usual when she looked at him and he barely nced her way, but it didn¡¯t matter since she hade to realize that he genuinely cares for her.


    He also made her realize one thing, he made her realize that most people who view the world as an abiding darkness and walk around as if they¡¯re the heartless ones, when on the contrary, they¡¯re the ones with the biggest of hearts, except his heart was shattered at a very tender age.


    A part of her felt sad for him on that part, but she smiled regardless, knowing that there was still some good in Roshan.


    But she wondered if he was going to take her to parents grave first, or somewhere else.

 Chapter 132

    132 She Hasn¡¯t Changed


    {Not sure if the music will flow with you as it did for me but I rmend; ¡®LUMINA By BRUNUHVILLE¡¯}


    Euphrasia


    ************


    Walking past the quiet street of Draekharm vige, Annalise let her eyes wander to the houses and huts that were still familiar to her gaze, she could vividly recall every creek and cranny of the ce since nothing has changed pretty much since then.


    The vision of little children chasing one another with their happy screams and their mothers worried yelling as they begged them to be careful all yed out in front of Annalise. Farmers were getting ready to head to the farm and every stall was active, either making tea or baking something savory, the usual life of Draekharm vige and it all still feels like yesterday.


    There was an abandoned stall at the side of the road and a smile adorned Anna¡¯s lips as a warm recollection crossed her mind.


    ¡°Roshan! You see that stall,¡± she quickly pointed at it, letting Roshan¡¯s eyes fall on the abandoned stall that was closed up, ¡°the owner of that stall, Mr Edgar used to make the best grape juice in our vige, I fell in love with it after one taste and even forced my mother to learn how to make them. He was a nice man and never failed to give me a free cup each time I paid his stall a visit¡± She was smiling as the good old times were still fresh in her head and just being here after so long rekindled her feelings for this ce.


    She didn¡¯t want to cry and just squeezed Roshan¡¯s hand tofort herself. They were one of the happy memories she had and looking at Roshan, a faint smile appeared on his lips as he locked their fingers even tighter, Anna returned his smile before looking at the scanty passerby that just hurried past them.


    So far the people she had spotted were unfamiliar faces and even they had to look at her with a quizzical stare, having no idea who she was. The houses of people she knew were now upied with new faces. It¡¯s been many years so it¡¯s possible most of them had emigrated from Draekharm, but what she couldn¡¯t understand was why the ce grew so empty in the morning. Draekharm has always been a busy ce during morning time.


    .....


    ¡°Why is it so quiet though?¡± She asked the cier who just stared ahead as he walked, his other hand resting in his pocket.


    ¡°The King has assembled for an important gathering with his people, my guess would be everyone has gone to see what the sudden gathering is all about.¡±


    ¡°Strange,¡± Anna¡¯s brows creased, ¡°his majesty only makes this kind of urgent gathering when he has something important to disclose.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s visit your parents grave first, then we¡¯ll attend the gathering.¡± Squeezing her hand affectionately in his, the two young couples wandered deeper into Draekharm vige.


    Annalise was back to being a chatterbox as she told Roshan everything about what happens in Draekharm, their events, their tradition, the funny experiences she had in the farm while picking herbs with her mother, the river where she¡¯de to take a swim before the fear of water got the better of her. She told him everything without even realizing she was inviting the being into her personal life and surprisingly to her, Roshan took interest in every word she said.


    With their fingers still inteced, Anna felt the mischievous demon rub his thumb intimately through the skin of her palm and the effect of it made her heart skip through her chest.


    She looked at the being who just kept walking and thinking he wouldn¡¯t do it again, he repeated the same nerve-racking effect on her sensitive palm.


    ¡°Roshan..¡± She wanted to free her hand but he refused to let go. That crooked smile he had been hiding finally disyed itself on his sinful lips and he bit his lower lip to stop the smile from spreading even more.


    ¡°Roshan..¡± She wasn¡¯t liking the way he teased her and wanted him to free her hand but he didn¡¯t give her that chance, holding it even tighter and pulling the flustered woman closer to his side.


    ¡°Red suits you,¡± his velvety deep voice rolled out from his tongue and when he looked at Anna, his smile broadened, ¡°....on your face.¡±


    ¡°You..!!¡± The color on her cheeks reddened and her insides fluttered uncontrobly when heplimented her flustered reaction, but a part of her told her he was deliberately messing with her, leading her to curse him silently in her head since he¡¯d definitely have aeback if she said her curses out loud.


    Since Draekharm was actually a small vige, Annalise still remembered the route to her home and so, she followed it, leading the path for Roshan who followed behind.


    As they progressed deeper through a bushy path, it didn¡¯t take too long for the both of them to sight an abandoned house that was located deep in the dested area of the vige. Anna¡¯s feet came to a stop after stopping in front of it, her eyes traveled to the condition of the house and it wasn¡¯t surprising that it was almost crashing, the vige hoodlums wouldn¡¯t waste any time to invade an empty home, grabbing whatever they could find useful inside of it.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± The pleasing deep voice beside her broke her from her train of thoughts and she nodded with a nervous smile returning to her lips.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s been so long and I¡¯m just overwhelmed by everything,¡± she responded before turning to look at him with a requesting gaze.


    ¡°Can you do something for me?¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing serious but I need a little time to myself.... with them... I¡¯m hoping you understand.¡± She stammered a bit but suddenly Roshan cupped her cheeks gently, making her look into his care-free eyes and it relieved her that he didn¡¯t take her words offensive.


    ¡°Go.¡± His approval was all she needed and she smiled gratefully, showing how much his words had eased her before turning and quickly heading to the back of her house.


    After she left, Roshan¡¯s gaze lingered on the house and it took a few minutes of pondering before letting himself take a step into the house.


    Tiny specks of light prated into the house through the opened windows, aiding him with their light. There were broken sses and almost all the furniture were gone, but yet he could still vision little Annalise running around the house with her tiny feet. A soft giggling escaped her lips as she made it to the kitchen.


    Following the vision, he found little Annalise sitting on the countertop, her cinnamon-brown hair flowing freely to her back, her big chocte-brown eyes looking bright and pure as they sparkled with mirth.


    She was arduously pounding some flower herbs in a small mortar like her whole life depended on it. She wiped the sweat from her forehead before letting out a ¡®phew¡¯ sound from her little lips.


    ¡°When mother returns tonight, she¡¯ll be happy to see I finished pounding all the herbs for her.¡±


    Roshan leaned against the side of the wall with his arms folded, watching the little Annalise converse happily with herself despite looking tired and all of a sudden, she vanished, only to here her giggling behind him and when he turned around, the little girl was twirling in her night dress that looked obviously big on her, so big that she looked adorably small inside of it, yet she was happy.


    She hopped from one corner of the room to another before jumping up a table and staring out the window, obviously expecting someone.


    Was it her mother? Roshan thought to himself and when the little girl finally moved away from the window, she ended up missing her feet due to her clumsy movement and fell from the table with a tiny scream.


    Roshan¡¯s eyes widened in rm as the next thing in his mind was to catch her but thankfully, there were piles of clothesying on the ground which aided her fall. The little girl quickly sat up, obviously stunned herself and Roshan couldn¡¯t hold back a chuckle seeing the funny look on her face.


    She hasn¡¯t changed.


    Just like before, the vision vanished and once again appeared in another corner as she went up the stairs with hasty feets. She never slows down when walking, even as a child.


    Shaking his head, he followed the little girl that went up the stairs, she ran into one of the rooms and when Roshan stepped in, the little girl was gone, which wasn¡¯t a surprise to him anymore.


    Taking further steps into the room, the wardrobes were open and different story books were lying on the table.


    ¡°This must be her room.¡± He concluded after seeing the funny drawings on the wall and the storybooks only added to his analysis.


    With a smile, he reached for the table and stared at the story books with an interested gaze. He didn¡¯t need anyone to tell him that she was a lover of storybooks, no wonder she keeps preaching to him about morals, she¡¯s read too many books.


    Looking away from the table, Roshan reached for the wooden drawer at her bedside. Crouching before it, he wanted to pull it open when a small chain locket that rested on the top of the drawer caught his attention. His eyes glimmered at the sight and before he realized it himself, he was already holding the locket in his hand.


    ¡°What is this?¡± As far as he knows, lockets are more of a personal jewelry that has a special meaning to its owner.


    Curious about what was special on the inside, he opened it and everything around him stopped moving, his pupils instantly constricted and it felt like an explosion just took ce in his head as he stared at the name written boldly and beautifully on the inside.


    ¡°Aveline??!¡±

 Chapter 133

    133 Puzzles And Clues


    Walking through the tangled weeds with stiff steps, the winds whistled through the grass and trees like they were telling stories about the loneliness of the dested environment, birds and other animals squeaked and chirped from the trees where they currently hid themselves, staying in the shades.


    Annalise took her time to gather herself, keeping her mind focused as she approached her parents graveyard and before she realized it, her feet had stopped right in front of it.


    The headstones stood proudly, diligently keeping to their duty as time wore away the messages they bore, dead flowers were being crumbled in the hands of Anna as she reced them with fresh ones. She always changes the flowers whenever they withered but due to the crises she¡¯s currently facing, it became difficult to keep to that duty.


    How odd it suddenly felt to stand before her parents graveyard in the dewy grass, knowing someday, she would never be able to leave it again, she¡¯ll end up just like them.


    The whole family of Mateo would be gone, her grandfather went by the name Boris and her father was the only son he had, in the end, all the Boris family would end up beneath the earth, with no survivors.


    The overwhelming grief that took over her after standing in front of the ce she never thought she¡¯d be able to step foot into again, made her knees buckle as they sank into the thick grass. She ced one side of her cheek against the cold stone to fill their presence and as always, she knew they were with her as her heavy heart was starting to weigh down a little.


    They must be watching her from the heavens but it didn¡¯t stop her from crying her eyes out. She was a weak daughter, she wasn¡¯t as brave as her father or courageous and strong-willed like her mother and she hated the fact she wasing to terms with it.


    She missed them so much and justing here only filled her head with happy memories of them.


    ¡°You know the best memories we tend to have makes us sad, cause we know they won¡¯t happen again.¡± Came the familiar voice of a certain someone, a very_familiar voice that rang in Anna¡¯s head for a few seconds and it made her eyes dte in disbelief. Having a rough guess on who it might just be, she slowly raised her head up, only to meet the chocte-brown eyes of a very familiardy and a quick gasp of shock left her lips.


    .....


    ¡°It¡¯s you again!¡± She bristled back in shock as she stared at the look-alike who leaned against the headstone, also on her knees, watching her and all of a sudden, her expression turned guilty.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let me interrupt you, go ahead and cry yourself to sleep.¡± Her sweet words sounded mocking rather thanforting to the ears and it didn¡¯t really sit with Anna at all.


    How is she here again???


    ¡°I must be imagining your presence, this is all just my head messing with me.¡± She closed her eyes as a sigh left her lips, quietly trying to convince herself that all this was just in her head, that thedy before her wasn¡¯t real, but when she opened them back, her look-alike was still there, waving in ady-like gesture.


    ¡°Did I leave?¡± She asked with a half-teased smile, earning a frown from Anna who has had enough of her strange mystifying presence.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m you,¡± thedy corrected as a matter-of-fact, ¡°so basically you¡¯re asking me what do ¡®we¡¯ want.¡± She rose to her feet, turning her back to the perplexed Annalise, ¡°so tell me Anna, what is it we want?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡±


    ¡°And you will never know, that¡¯s the problem we have Anna,¡± thedy said in a not so quiet tone, ¡°maybe until wey on our deathbed for the second time will we realize our hearts desire but by then, it¡¯ll be toote.¡±


    ¡°Second time?¡± Anna¡¯s hearing didn¡¯t fail to grasp that particr word and thedy turned to look at Anna with a knowing smile.


    ¡°What is it we want? Think, your parents are nevering back and you might just join them sooner than you know.¡± Her tone was as harsh as that of a serpent, frightening Anna herself but she quickly recovered from it, only to shake her head in cluelessness, still not getting it.


    ¡°He wants you.¡± She finally said with a lot of conviction, ¡°you want him too and you can¡¯t lie to me cause I¡¯m you, I know your deepest little secrets, I know every thoughts of yours, I also know what¡¯s going through your mind even as we speak, and your emotions, I feel them too, but I¡¯m done feeling sad for you.¡±


    There was a strange message behind her every word and Anna couldn¡¯t possibly grasp what she was trying to tell her. Who wants her? Who does she want? None of it was making sense and it was giving the already conflicted Anna a headache.


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    The deep familiar voice behind her startled her to her wits as she broke from her thoughts, looking forward, thedy was no longer there, like she just disappeared out of the blue and when Annalise turned around, Roshan stood at the far end of the graveyard as he beckoned her over.


    ¡°Roshan?¡±


    Quickly wiping her tears away with the hem of her dress, she got to her feet and stepped out of the graveyard, standing before Roshan who equally looked conflicted about something, leaving her worried.


    ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± She proceeded to ask the cier who was looking visibly confused about something.


    ¡°Quick question, how did this end up in your house?¡± He held out the locket in his hand for Anna to see, leaving her gaze to fall directly on it, but she appeared clueless as to what the locket was.


    ¡°A locket?¡± She squinted her eyes at it, ¡°did you buy it?¡±


    He shook his head before meeting her stare, ¡°apparently, I found it in your room.¡±


    ¡°My what?¡±


    Confused by his words and finding it queer, Annalise took the locket and opened it for herself, only to see the name of Aveline written boldly on it. Her heart stopped beating for a second as the name was more than visible to her shock-filled eyes.


    ¡°Aveline??¡± Switching nces from the locket to Roshan, she shook her head in skepticism, ¡°It¡¯s... it¡¯s not mine.¡±


    ¡°This just keeps getting confusing,¡± he ran his fingers through his hair as he looked up into the sky, exhaling through his nostrils as he tried to think things through before something finally crawled into his head and his eyes snapped open.


    ¡°The puzzles...¡± Roshan met her troubled stare before uttering, ¡°you were born with a meteor mark, a meteor mark theoretically means the sign of early rebirth ording to the Grimoire and if you were really reborned, if the words on those scrolls are valid, that means... you¡¯ve lived before.¡±


    Hearing him speak, the ce fell silent as they just stared and Anna suddenly ran out of words. Her mouth was open as though she wanted to object but before she could do that, the words of the seconddy clicked, ¡°second death?¡±


    Roshan couldn¡¯t help it himself, the clues, the words, her mark, Aveline.. they were all starting to click, ¡°could it be you were once Aveline in your previous life, I mean did we meet in the past?¡±


    Anna¡¯s heart drummed in rhythm at his questions, she didn¡¯t want to believe such a thing was possible but she would be a fool not to follow his clues. When she first saw Roshan, she found him familiar and those deja Vu that refused to leave her.


    Was it possible?


    Without saying a word to Roshan who anticipatedly waited for her answer, she turned and was about to leave when he grabbed her arm, stopping her.


    ¡°Wait, where are you going?¡±


    ¡°Euphrasia pce.¡± She quickly responded, ¡°I...I want to see someone.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t go there now.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Cause the gathering...¡± his voice suddenly trailed off but he said it anyway, ¡°Arlow¡¯s is dead.¡±


    ¡°W_what?¡± Those words shot through her brain with no mercy and her face paled at the news. He nodded, signifying he wasn¡¯t joking around, ¡°he diedst night.¡±


    ¡°Did you kill him?¡± The question left her lips before she even realized what she had asked, but Roshan remained mute, unwilling to respond to that.

 Chapter 134

    134 Spending The Night In An Inn


    ¡°H_how did it happen?¡± She changed her question and her tone came out softer. She knew the gathering had to be about something important but it never struck her mind that the gathering was meant for Arlow¡¯s death.


    ¡°Are you done here?¡± Roshan asked first of all, stealing a nce at the graveyard before shifting those gazes back to Annalise who nodded, still evidently swayed by the news of Arlow¡¯s death.


    ¡°Come.¡± Roshan gently pulled the dumbfounded Annalise along with him and they barely uttered a word to one another as they walked out of the house and making it to the outskirt of Draekharm vige


    Anna¡¯s mind was far from reality, it was all too much to handle and with Aveline and the locket in question, thedy who kept appearing before her, was she... Could she be Aveline?? Was it possible she kept it there in her room? Was she trying to tell her something?


    ¡°Stop.¡± Roshan¡¯s voice abruptly made her stop in her tracks and when she looked ahead, they were already standing behind the walls of the pce, leaving Anna¡¯s heart to jump into her throat and she nced around rmingly, her brain finally working that she wasn¡¯t supposed to be here.


    ¡°Why did you bring me here? I know I said I wanted toe but I didn¡¯t mean it, what if we...¡±


    ¡°We won¡¯t,¡± he assured her, ¡°and even if we did get caught, nothing will happen.¡±


    Anna was anything but enlightened by his words, he reached for her hand again and they quietly kept moving. Her anxiety was noticeable as her nails ate at her skin. Nothing about the pce has changed either after she left and once they made it to the gate, they hid at a corner to see pce guards guarding the front gate.


    Roshan clicked his tongue at the sight of new officials happily weing themselves in. Anna¡¯s heart stopped beating for a few seconds when Adryan stepped out of the gate to wee the nobles and their families.


    .....


    Her gaze remained fixated on him as he smiled charmingly at the officials before letting them in. She used to think Adryan was the most handsome guy in her eyes back then, but after meeting Roshan and his brothers, Adryan was no way near their level.


    Bryan approached Adryan and bowed politely in his presence.


    ¡°Your highness, when will you like us to conduct the search?¡± Asked Bryan as he raised his head up to meet Adryan¡¯s stare.


    ¡°Tomorrow will be better,¡± he suddenly hissed out while folding his arm behind his back,¡± Arlow admitted to his evil deedsst night, it¡¯s still shocking and father is already unwell ....¡±


    ¡°Now you realize the mistake you made by not trusting Anna?¡± Came the voice of Calista as she stood before her brother with a smile, ¡°You have no idea how the death of Arlow pleases me, isn¡¯t the weather lovely today Adryan?¡±


    Annalise felt all sorts of emotion swim inside of her after sighting Calista. It¡¯s been months and it feels like a whole eternity has passed since she saw her.


    She really wanted to go meet her, but knew she couldn¡¯t at this point in time.


    ¡°She¡¯s been wronged, you¡¯ve proved your point, that¡¯s why I¡¯ve conducted a search so the guards can go find her tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Yes brother, your conscience won¡¯t spare you if you don¡¯t.¡±


    A young noble finally showed up amidst them, smiling at the beautiful Calista as he took her hand in his, before cing a kiss at the back of her palm.


    ¡°And what is mdy doing, standing under the sun?¡±


    ¡°The sun? No not at all,¡± Calista shook her head with a smile, ¡°the weather today is of my taste rather.¡±


    The young noble just shook his head with a faint smile, ¡°this way, mother actually wants to speak to you before we take our leave.¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡± She nodded, ¡°then I shall go see what she needs.¡±


    ¡°After you.¡±


    A knowing smile crossed her lips as she looked at her brother, but she turned away from him and followed her suitor to go see his mother and escort them out.


    Anna on the other hand, was caught off-guard by all she just heard, still unable to believe it, she looked at Roshan who was smiling at her.


    ¡°Why are they trying to look for me?¡± She asked, but Roshan just tsked at her silly question.


    ¡°You¡¯re standing this close and still didn¡¯t hear a word he said.¡± He was almost cursing due to the look on his face, but Anna still waited for him to spill.


    ¡°Arlow admitted his wrongs to the whole Royal familyst night.¡±


    ¡°So you did kill him.¡±


    He shook his head, ¡°I only tortured him, but I didn¡¯t kill him.¡±


    ¡°What did you do?¡±


    His lips pulled up a bit, ¡°it¡¯s not something I¡¯d like to say out loud.¡±.


    ¡°From one to ten, how horrible was it?¡±


    ¡°Twelve.¡±


    Anna blinked in bewilderment, was it that horrible he didn¡¯t even pick from the number she gave him??


    ¡°He also admitted to the killings of those people in the river bank, as well as your falls and everything that has happened to you. In a fit of rage, I don¡¯t care who he is but he was killed by that guy.¡±


    He gestured for Anna to look at Adryan who stood at the gate and it didn¡¯t reallye as a shock to her. She still remembered the conversation he had with Arlow so he must have done it to save himself, but she wasn¡¯t going to let herself hold on to the grudges, there were little days left for her and she would rather use them to cherish happy moments.


    ¡°Shall I make my presence then?¡± She asked the cier who seriously pondered on it for a while before shaking his head, ¡°no, let them suffer in guilt for a while, it¡¯ll be fun.¡±


    Shaking her head at his option of ¡®fun¡¯, they both left the ce with a smile.


    They took a stroll around Euphrasia and Anna happily conversed with the demon as they held hands all through their walk. They visited ces where she wasn¡¯t recognized, ate many snacks and delicacies and even watched the sunset together.


    When it was getting tote night, they chose to stay in an inn for the night before heading back to Viscarrian in the morning. Roshan paid the innkeeper for a room only and when Anna refused, he twisted her brain on how many times they¡¯ve shared a room together and tonight wouldn¡¯t be any different.


    Falling victim to his words, she agreed and that wasn¡¯t the only reason, turns out she had her own ns at the back of her head.


    Showing up in thefy room giving to them since Roshan paid double for it, they were two night dresses neatly arranged for the both of them as itid on the bed and once again, Roshan was the first to use the bathroom before her.


    ¡°You can always join me.¡± Was his response each time she argued but it didn¡¯t matter today, she has her own ns up her sleeve.


    Later on, Roshan sat on the neat bed, waiting for the annoying woman to step out and when she did, his mind went nk.

 Chapter 135

    135 First Attempt To Pleasure I*


    Anna stole a nce at the handsome being who was battling with himself not to look in her direction. As much as he tried not to make it too obvious, it was and he suddenly got to his feet when the room grew tense.


    ¡°I...I..I need some fresh air, I¡¯ll go take a walk.¡± He didn¡¯t even look at her when he said those words and headed for the door, but Anna got to her feet, blocking his path and standing right before him.


    At this point, it was difficult not to look as his gaze took notice of her exposed legs and those smooth thighs of hers that were visible due to the short length of her silky night dress. His gaze traveled further as they stared at those tapered waist and how the dress held her there, seductively bringing out her delicate features and making him gulp involuntarily.


    The outline of her bosoms could still be seen and those beguiling shoulders, her swan neck, her pretty face that looked radiant under the flickering mes of the candle, her flowing hair, this is too much for a man like him to handle, she was messing with his mind. Doesn¡¯t she know the type of temptation she¡¯s drawing to herself??


    Anna on the other hand wasn¡¯t good when it came to things like this, she didn¡¯t want to fight it anymore and just like thedy said, she¡¯d be dead to even have the time to even regret it. She wanted this but how was she supposed to seduce this man??


    ¡°The thing is I...¡± should she tell him directly? She shook her head at the thought, she¡¯ll appear too cheap. Or should she....


    Roshan watched the youngdy as her conscience waged war with her mind, she absentmindedly nibbled her pink bottom lip in front of him and watching it get wet was a turn on.


    He licked his lips and looked away from the tempting woman and he could feel a sweat rolling down his back due to how he was retraining himself from pouncing on her, he was so hot he needed that fresh air badly.


    ¡°I have to_¡±


    .....


    ¡°You can¡¯t leave.¡± She finally said something, stopping Roshan once again who met her stare, ¡°I.. the thing is I...¡± since she couldn¡¯t say her thoughts to him and already anxious that he might walk out on her if she doesn¡¯t do something, she quickly leaned forward to give him a kiss on the lips and shifted back while covering her face with her palm, feeling embarrassed and leaving Roshan baffled as what she just did reyed in his head.


    Did she just kiss him??


    He looked at the flushed woman who was peeking at him through her fingers and just like that, he grabbed one of her hands, pulling her close and making her stand really close to him. A quick gasp left her lips. Their bodies weren¡¯t even touching but the heat emanating from the two of them had already thickened, it was torture to not have his body on hers right now.


    ¡°Do you have any idea on what you¡¯re asking of me?¡± He yed with a grave question as a cat yed with a mouse, hoping she knew the dangerous game she was getting herself into and reminding her early so she¡¯d back away, but instead of retreating from the handsome devil before her, she went ahead to wrap her delicate hands around his neck, standing on her toes so she could look him in the eyes more clearly.


    She could see his gaze was burning, burning with a fire that had only her reflection in it.


    ¡°I know exactly what I¡¯m doing.¡± And she does, she wanted to experience this feeling with him, she wanted to know what it felt like to be in the arms of someone she liked, so she took the risk and kissed the being without any warning.


    Roshan¡¯s eyes widened at first as he felt her lips move clumsily against him and a heat of desire spiraled inside of him. He wasn¡¯t a man who¡¯d let go of this opportunity to be with a woman he secretly craved for and returned her kiss.


    He cradled her neck in his hand as he kissed her, but it was slow, wet, erotically tantalizing that it made Anna¡¯s toes curl in delight as she anticipated for more.


    His other hand wrapped around her small waist, clutching her body against his till it became a second skin and a demanding heat coursed through Anna¡¯s system, like a boiling blood down to her core and when they finally pulled away, they were both catching their breaths, staring intently into each other¡¯s eyes as though searching for something. Roshan was still holding on to thest straw of his self-control in case she changed her mind but watching her lick her already wet lips, thest straw in him broke and he crashed his lips hard on her.


    A gasp left Anna¡¯s lips when he pushed her to the wall and the next thing, he had her trapped there, their lips were fused together as he ravaged the inside of her sweet mouth, tasting, licking, sucking, nibbling, doing everything he had imagined himself doing to her while Anna¡¯s hands traveled up his back, only to curl her fingers into his hair and her touch made him shiver.


    He pulled her body impossibly close to his and made her feel his hard on between her thighs. She stiffened for a moment, most especially when he rubbed himself against her and an uncontroble soft moan left her lips, but he swallowed it with his hot mouth on hers again.


    He pulled back to meet her stare with a fervent look in his eyes, ¡°you¡¯re driving me insane.¡± He breathed against her lips before feverishly iming them and feeling her soft body mold against his. Anna just had to keep up despite the fact she couldn¡¯t breathe.


    When he pulled back, he took her hands to the button of his shirt before whispering in a hypnotic voice, ¡°undress me.¡± And he captured her lips again, as though he might just die if he stopped kissing her and Anna was enjoying every bit of the moment as her core suddenly throbbed with need.


    Like he told her to, her hands anxiously reached to unbutton every button on his shirt, exposing the immacte fair skin that was hidden in those clothes and she was tempted to see more as she unbuttoned everything.


    Even Roshan had to pull back for a while after seeing her hands work on his buttons and the moment she was done, it wasn¡¯t the first time seeing his upper body but every moment never failed to leave her staring gloriously. It never really crossed her mind that a man like him would end up wanting someone like her. His toned body was a sight to behold and her gaze traveled through those stomach muscles until theynded on the ¡®V¡¯ shape down his torso.


    He¡¯s so hot!!


    She gulped and raised her head up to meet his taunting, yet sexy stare.


    ¡°Like what you see?¡± His body was clutched against hers again and Anna¡¯s mind had turned foggy with desires. Who knew such pleasures existed?? But what she didn¡¯t fancy was the throbbing feeling on her sensitive spot and she met Roshan¡¯s gaze with a blurry one, her face flushed like an early blooming rose.


    ¡°It¡¯s... it¡¯s ufortable.¡± She breathed out, leaving Roshan¡¯s face to bury at her neck as he kissed and sucked hard on it.


    ¡°What is?¡± His hot breath on her burning skin only increased the throbbing and she could feel something wet beneath her panties, leaving her to close her legs as she didn¡¯t understand what was happening to her body.


    ¡°Roshan...¡± She didn¡¯t know why, but feeling his hard member against her thighs, she couldn¡¯t help but move her hips as she rubbed against him, wanting to ease her throbbing and the low groan that escaped his throat took her by surprise and she stopped.


    He met her stare with a hint of warning swirling within them, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t do that princess.¡±


    ¡°But... it¡¯s ufortable.¡± She was talking about the throbbing between her legs, she wanted to suit it and Roshan finally grasped what she meant, leaving a tiny, yet mesmerizing smirk to adorn his lips.


    ¡°It¡¯s ufortable?¡±


    She nodded right away, and when he tried to pull back from her, she didn¡¯t give him that chance as her hands crumpled his shirt, holding onto him.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s too ufortable.¡±


    ¡°Need my help?¡±


    She hasn¡¯t even responded when she felt his skillful hands move from her thighs, sliding underneath her dress, peppering her skin and making her burn within. He shifted her panties before letting his fingers slide into her wet folds and Anna¡¯s legs sped against his hand, trapping his hand in there.


    Her eyes momentarily widened and her knees trembled when she felt him pump his finger in and out of her. On a normal rate she was supposed to find this disgusting but how in the heavens name did it feel so terribly good!


    ¡°Ah!!¡± She let out a yelp when he suddenly increased the pace, his fingers pumping faster and harder into her and she threw her head back, her back arched themselves against the wall and she buried her fingers into the skin of his shoulder.


    ¡°You¡¯re so wet.¡± His raspy voice whispered into her ear as he added another finger into her dripping core, filling her whole. He loved the fact she was able to get this wet for him, and good Lord how does one¡¯s moans sound so sweet, so pleasant, it only encouraged him to go on as his two fingers wrecked havoc inside of her.


    Annalise could barely keep up as her breathing became unsteady, she¡¯s never felt anything like this before and having Roshan be the one to experiment it on her body was a choice she didn¡¯t regret, he was so good and just before she could reach her first orgasm, he stopped.


    ¡°Not yet.¡± With his finger still buried inside of her, he didn¡¯t move again and Anna nearly cursed him for stopping on her like that.


    ¡°I stopped, what are you going to do?¡± He was torturing her and Anna didn¡¯t want him to do this to her.


    ¡°Roshan...¡±


    He kissed her lips softly before moving back, ¡°if you really want this, you¡¯re going to learn how to pleasure yourself.¡± His lips trailed the side of neck as he dropped tiny kisses on them, pulling her into his trance and taking her down with him.


    ¡°Pleasure yourself before me.¡± He took his fingers out of her and grabbed one of her wrists, ¡°show me what sinful things you do to yourself when you¡¯re alone, starting with this.¡± And he slid her own fingers straight into her core, leaving her eyes to widen as she met his stare.

 Chapter 136

    136 First Attempt To Pleasure II*


    ¡®Pleasure myself?¡¯ Those words rang in her head for multiple times until she felt her own hands being shoved into her panties and directly into her throbbing core.


    The handsome being slowly moved away from her as he stared at her flushed skin and he doubts he¡¯s evere across a woman so sexy in his entire years of living, this woman was creating a fire inside of him and his gaze fervently darkened when tilted his head at her, meeting her blurry stare,


    ¡°Pleasure yourself, let me see.¡±


    Just hearing him speak made her wonder what exactly she had gotten herself into, this man was no more than a predator who enjoyed ying with his prey before fully devouring them.


    However, she had asked for this, so she might as well face the consequences of her own decision, but how is she supposed to pleasure herself??


    Was he telling her to do the same thing he did to her? He literally shoved her fingers right into her core and the effects of it hasn¡¯t left her system, most especially seeing him stare at her like that, it was arousing and sent many sparks flying through her nerves.


    She threw all forms of inhibitions and did exactly what he did to her. Slowly, she took her fingers in and out of her that it left her knees growing extremely weak from the results of her action. She imagined the hands of Roshan instead, creating havoc inside of her and her eyes closed, feeling the nerve-racking sensation hit her hard and an uncontroble moan left her lips.


    Hearing her moan to herself nearly unleashed the wild side of Roshan as his own hardness throbbed for release, she bit her bottom lips hard while continuously thrusting her fingers in and out of her that Roshan was finding it hard to believe it was his innocent Anna.


    She looked so beautiful, so enticing and it was making him hard down there.


    .....


    ¡°That¡¯s it, pleasure yourself, take what¡¯s rightfully yours, faster Anna, faster..¡±


    His every word of encouragement only added to the heat of the moment and before she knew it, her movements quickened and she was unable to stop the moans that escaped from her lips. She really wanted to stop, he was staring at her while she did all these things without even blinking and it only made her even more aroused.


    When she was finally reaching the edge of ecstasy, he took unhurried steps towards her, reaching for thepletely flushed Anna before her weak knees could sink to the ground, holding her in his arms and making her look at him, his irises glinting with an impressive lustful stare.


    ¡°Good attempt for a first timer but like I said, we aren¡¯t done yet,¡± his fingers grazed the seam of her swollen lips and he met her stare with a devilish smirk, ¡°wee to my hell.¡±


    Anna finally realized how deep of a trouble she was in, he had stopped her from getting that ecstasy she so badly needed again, he was torturing her and making her reach orgasm, only to leave her unsatisfied till she begged him for it.


    Seeing her situation, Roshan picked her into his arms before taking her to the bed andying her down on it. She finally climbed up while Roshan followed in a predatory advance that the next thing in Anna¡¯s mind was to get away from him. Sensing her n, he grabbed her feet and drew her legs down when he realized she was getting too far away from him and a surprised gasp left her lips.


    She just found herself staring into his Hazel-green eyes as he hovered on top of her, trapping her below with his strong arms around her.


    Their breathing was unsteady and their chests heaved up and down as they gasped for some air.


    Before she knew it, he snapped his fingers and an invisible energy surrounded the whole room in a sh. Anna couldn¡¯t see it, but she had a feeling that snapping meant something.


    ¡°What did you do?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a sound barrier, people are sleeping, and with what I n on doing to you, I wouldn¡¯t want them waking up when they hear you scream and beg for me to stop.¡±


    ¡°You evil..!!..¡± she cursed and tried to push him off but he trapped both her wrists above the bed with just one of his hands, keeping her glued to the bed and defenseless against him.


    Roshan couldn¡¯t remember thest time his mind and body went this crazy for a woman. She was ring at him but he found it as a turn on while letting his finger trace the lines of her cleavages, down to the swell of her soft bosoms.


    ¡°Getting feisty?¡± He licked his powerful lips in an inviting manner, leaving Anna to crave for a taste as her own lips parted willingly. Thankfully, he didn¡¯t torture her on that part as he gave her the mind-blowing kiss she was dying to get and her hands wrapped themselves around his neck, pulling his bare torso down on her. Their tongues were tangling and dancing against each other¡¯s mouth as they hungrily feasted for what they wanted.


    Annalise didn¡¯t even realize what she had been missing out on until now, the feeling was unlike anything she¡¯s felt and it was painfully satisfying. She¡¯s read books, and it was now she understood what those women felt, the drumming heartbeat, his touch, his taste, his breath, everything.


    Pulling back once again, Anna¡¯s gaze slowlynded on the fading scar at his heart region and her fingers gently grazed the rough edges. At first she was hesitant to touch it, afraid she might hurt him but when he silently gave her his approval, she proceeded to touch the scar.


    It¡¯s been a long time since the scar has been there, she could still remember it and Anna¡¯s face disyed a look of concern as she looked up to meet his eyes.


    ¡°Did it hurt when you first got it?¡±


    He didn¡¯t respond to that question and he didn¡¯t need to, it must have hurt terribly to be stabbed in the heart and just thinking about it made her heart ache. Unaware of what took over her at thest minute, she lifted herself up a bit and ced a tender kiss on his scar, as though it¡¯d relieve him of the pain he had to go through and Roshan stiffened a bit when he felt her lips on his chest.


    His heart raced violently against his chest and drummed in his ear by her own action. He never really saw thating and feeling her sweet mouth on his bare chest, an overwhelming feeling took over him, a very strange sense of belonging engulfed his mind the moment Anna lifted her head up to meet his surprised stare.


    ¡°What¡¯s that so¨C¡± and he kissed her hard before she couldplete her words, swallowing her next word and damn it! He could kiss her all night.


    Annalise, who was about to ask who¡¯s heart was beating so loudly in her ear, was silenced with a kiss she never sawing and her brain automatically shut down. Her eyes sealed shut and she reciprocated against his kisses, returning the neediness as he pressed his warm body on hers, their hearts beating in rhythm as they took whatever they wanted from each other.


    With one hand trapping both her hands above her head, Roshan¡¯s free hand went to work as they roamed her fragile skin and just like before, those mischievous fingers slid through her panties just to reach her clit which was now aching for release and he dug his two fingers in at the same time.


    A breathless gasp left her lips as her eyes snapped open and somehow, she figured out his intention when the candles went off.


    Just as he wickedly nned, he made poor Annalise scream, moan and made her make all the sounds she could possibly make as he mercilessly dealt with her through the night, unwilling to spare her even a little break.

 Chapter 137

    137 Fading Scar


    Roshan stood before the dressing mirror, studying the scar in his chest and to his disbelief, it was starting to fade with no signs of a new one appearing. He could barely see the signs of the scar and his skin was back to being wless, that was if he¡¯s seeing clearly and the early morning sleepiness weren¡¯t blinding his vision.


    Normally, when the scar fades, a new one appears as his punishment, making it difficult for the scar to bepletely gone and he has to live with it for many years. His father had ced this harsh punishment on him when he refused to kill that rabbit in his childhood.


    He still remembered the painful stab in his chest, the sword his father had used wasn¡¯t any normal sword, he couldn¡¯t heal after being stabbed directly at his heart region, that¡¯s how he lost it and killed his father without any ounce of mercy, and he¡¯s been living with the scar ever since.


    But today, it was actually fading and there was no new scar appearing.


    ¡°But how is this... even possible?¡±


    When it didn¡¯t make any sort of sense, his mind instantly diverted tost night when Anna lovingly kissed him there and a soft shade of pink colored his ears.


    He recalled vividly their whole escapadesst night and it was one of the best nights he had. They didn¡¯t do anything too extreme, but what she made him feelst night was....


    He looked into the mirror and saw he was smiling to himself which was very unusual for him.


    It couldn¡¯t be she was healing him, could it??


    .....


    He turned to look at the woman who was still sound asleep on the bed, her brown hair spilled on the pillow in waves and she looked so demure under the covers of the bed sheet. Roshan¡¯s gaze was filled with warmth after hearing her steady heartbeat and normal breathing.


    Reaching for her bedside, he watched her face for a few seconds. The sun rays seeping in through the window casted a luminescent glow on her smooth, harmless face, her eyes were closed and her scanty longshes rested peacefully on her cheeks, her pink lips were luscious and swollen fromst night and he couldn¡¯t help but bite his bottom lip, recollecting the blissful moment they shared.


    Fighting the urge to steal a kiss from her, his eyes inadvertentlynded on the locket on the table and he picked it. Opening it, he stared intently at the locket before shifting his gaze to the sleeping beauty.


    ¡°Aveline..¡± when he whispered the name, a vague memory of him putting the same locket on someone¡¯s neck yed in his head, followed by a giggling that sounded just like Anna as she turned around to hug him. Normally, the recollection would give his scarred heart a heartache, but now, it only made his heart beat in a pleasing way and just staring at Anna increased the pace.


    ¡°I guess we have met before.¡±


    ~


    ¡°Yes you heard me correctly, Roshan is back!¡± Lady Odette candidly said to the terrified Gretta who trembled inside her cell, slowly grinding her teeth to keep her rage intact and her fingers curled themselves against the iron cells, leaving her skin to burn but she didn¡¯t mind.


    Her hair was a mess on her head and her clothes were covered in dirt and sand, her eyes were red from excess crying and she looked no different from a helpless maid who was suffering in the hands of her lord.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care anymore.¡± Gretta admitted while swatting Lady Odette¡¯s word away, releasing her fingers when it was starting to burn her skin a little deeper, ¡°so what if he¡¯s back, I¡¯m already being punished aren¡¯t I?¡±


    Lady Odette let out a mocking scoff, feeling sad for her niece as she might not know how worse things can get, ¡°you speak like you have no idea who Roshan is, this is the heavens punishment, not Roshan¡¯s.¡± She critically reminded.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care Aunt!¡± She yelled out her frustration, ¡°the family ball is approaching and I¡¯m here, in a cell, I mean just look at me!¡± She stretched out her arm, wanting her Aunt to see how bad her condition is, ¡°I look like an old haggard woman when otherdies of my status are busy visiting expensive stalls and paying a visit to the seamstress, just to get a good dress!¡±


    Lady Odette really felt like pping some sense into Gretta after hearing her speak rubbish, ¡°you¡¯re talking about a family ball when your life is at stake?¡±


    *It¡¯s better to die than not attend, father won¡¯t even care if he finds out about my condition,¡± she grimaced, ¡°everyone will be here, I mean what if they show up and ask for Gretta, then they¡¯ll here she¡¯s in a dungeon, facing hardbor, Azazel won¡¯t hesitate to embarrass me and he¡¯ll ruin my reputation.¡± Gretta really felt like crying and looked at her Aunt with pleading eyes.


    ¡°Get me out of here, this ce is making me lose my morous reputation, I¡¯m a beautiful woman from a respectable home, this can¡¯t be happening to me.¡±


    ¡°Silly brat! What were you thinking going after Anna¡¯s life in the first ce?¡± Lady Odette half-scolded her and it made Gretta¡¯s face fall in displeasure.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t my intention to kill her I promise, Azazel is being cruel to me and Roshan might be ten-times worse when he finds out. Don¡¯t leave me here Aunt, get me out.¡±


    Sighing to herself after seeing Gretta¡¯s innocent pleading face, she finally crouched before Gretta¡¯s cell. A bit hopeful her Aunt would get her out, she tried to touch her but was instantly stopped mid-way.


    ¡°Not that I despise you, but you¡¯re somewhat.... in fact very much dirty at the moment and I wouldn¡¯t want to ruin my dress.¡± Lady Odette curtly pointed out, crushing Gretta¡¯s heart and she quickly changed the subject.


    ¡°I have a n, and the chance of it working is high, but the chance of you epting it is pretty low.¡±


    ¡°Tell me Aunt, I¡¯ll do anything!¡±

 Chapter 138

    138 Importance Of A Family Ball


    Azazel showed up in Gemma¡¯s chamber when the day was starting to be clear and brighter. He¡¯s been out with Gravion throughout the whole night till morning, making ns for the family ball that he wasn¡¯t excited for, rather, it left his mind disoriented.


    Reaching Gemma¡¯s princess-like chamber, he found the little one happily ying a game of chess with Levi and quietly leaned on the hinges of the door, watching them with his hands in his vest pocket.


    Levi sighed deeply after seeing his little sister y the ck pawn in the wrong direction and he lifted his eyes from the game to look at her.


    ¡°Gemma, for the seventeenth time today, stop ying in the wrong direction, I¡¯m the ck pawn, you¡¯re the white one!¡± He pointed out with a quick exnation of the game, but Gemma snickered silently at his frustrated reaction before moving the white pawn like he told her to.


    ¡°Uhm... . Levi,¡± Azazel finally called, gaining the young Demon¡¯s attention as he looked his way. Levi¡¯s brows instantly rose as a look of surprise sparkled in his eyes. Somewhat surprised to find Azazel around.


    ¡°Azazel, you¡¯re here?¡± His brows suddenly creased in suspicion, ¡°but you¡¯re on duty today.¡±


    ¡°I know, but have you seen Roshan? Tried using the mind Array to reach him but he¡¯s not responding to me.¡±


    Levi shook his head in full honesty, ¡°no, I haven¡¯t seen him since yesterday, have you checked his chambers?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s not there.¡±


    .....


    ¡°What of Anna¡¯s chamber?¡±


    ¡°I knocked, no response.¡± He clicked his tongue in obvious displeasure as the thought of where that bastard had suddenly vanished to invade his mind, not just with himself but with Annalise too.


    As always, he just won¡¯t listen and stay put.


    ¡°If you were going to miss me sooner, you should have left me a note.¡± Came Roshan¡¯s usual sarcasm that made Azazel roll his eyes and the look on his charming face wasn¡¯t a happy one.


    ¡°Idiot!¡± He silently cursed before turning to look at his brother who had a wicked smirk on his lips. Annalise was by his side and when he met her gaze, she quickly bowed her head politely.


    ¡°A lovely morning to you, your highness.¡± She greeted with a harmless smile and for a sec, Azazel could actually smell Roshan¡¯s scent on her. His scent was all over her actually but Azazel didn¡¯t dare to react, he just gave a nod of his head in response before meeting Roshan¡¯s stare, ending whatever form of conversation that might start between him and Anna.


    ¡°You, me, in the sr room, now.¡± Were his words to Roshan before he finally turned and left.


    With his reaction alone, Roshan knew his brother too well to know he was about to get seriously scolded or lectured on something, except this time around, he also has a piece of scolding to give that brother of his.


    Annalise didn¡¯t fail to notice the tensed air that followed Azazel and turned to look at Roshan with a look of concern, ¡°is everything alright?¡±


    Roshan didn¡¯t respond for a second that felt like eternity to Anna. He met her stare and pulled her cheeks lightly, ¡°it¡¯s Azazel, we know how to handle ourselves.¡±


    Looking at the chamber where Levi and Gemma were seriously ying chess, he gestured for Anna to go join them using his brows, ¡°they¡¯re the only ones I can trust you with, stay with them.¡±


    Annalise curiously peeked into the chamber and saw Levi and Gemma, who waved at her in a heartwarming manner and beckoned her toe join them. A relieved smile crossed her lips at their kind invitation and when she turned to look at Roshan, wanting to say something to the cier, he had already left.


    She took a deep breath when an unsettling feeling rested in her heart, trying to brush it off and refusing to let herself get worried about things like this before proceeding to join the two Demons who were still bickering over a game of chess.


    She sat beside Gemma who Levi was constantly suffering himself to teach, watching them for a while longer before gathering enough courage to ask.


    ¡°Is everything alright between the two brothers?¡± She didn¡¯t want to pry at all, but this was something she couldn¡¯t stop herself from asking, but Levi only shrugged it.


    ¡°I gave up understanding those two for a long time, but if I should guess, it¡¯ll probably be about the family ball approaching.¡±


    ¡°Family ball?¡± That instantly piqued Anna¡¯s interest and Levi nodded again with an anticipated smile.


    ¡°Family ball is when most of our families gather for a celebration, something like a get-together, along with a few guests that hold no importance to me.¡± He briefed, earning a smile from Anna who found such events to be fun, a family get-together?


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that supposed to be nice? Meeting your families, spending quality time together and-¡± Anna¡¯s talk was instantly cut short by Levi¡¯s cute chuckle and he raised his head from the chess to look at Anna with an interesting glint shing in his amber eyes.


    ¡°You¡¯re pretty cute with such thoughts, but we¡¯re Demons Anna, no one¡¯s attending the function so they can ¡®bond¡¯ with the family, half of us hate ourselves if you want me to be more specific and the rivals have been toxic. There¡¯s always something called, keeping to the status of your lineage and never letting it drop.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Anna¡¯s face was contorted with confusion as she barely understood the meaning of what he just said to her, ¡°what does that mean?¡±


    ¡°It means holding up to the high reputation you have of being an Astaroth without letting it drop, the Astaroth family hate to mingle with the middle ss, talk more of the lower ss, even if you¡¯re a family member who happens to be poor, you can¡¯t step on the same carpet that a family with a high status walks on. It¡¯s regarded as disrespectful and shameful.¡±


    Anna¡¯s gaze lowered to Gemma who was childishly ying with the pawns on the chessboard and she couldn¡¯t imagine such a sweet girl like Gemma would someday grow up to have the same character as Gretta.


    ¡°That¡¯s why I told Aunt to bring my sister here,¡± Levi suddenly added like he knew what Anna was thinking, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want my sister growing up with such mentality as the rest of the Astaroth family and having you here, might just be the blessing she needs and who knows, she might start talking again.¡±


    Levi¡¯s hopeful words really warmed Anna¡¯s heart and she could see from his gaze that he genuinely cares for his sister. She had been meaning to ask that tempting question on why Gemma couldn¡¯t speak, but was afraid of opening deep wounds.


    ¡°Gemma¡¯s a sweet girl.¡± Sheplimented with a hearty smile before letting her face frown in worry, ¡°but if the family ball isn¡¯t meant for bonding, what actually happens there? What¡¯s the importance?¡±


    Levi sighed at her question, ¡°just families talking about themselves and wealth, it¡¯s more like apetition. Everyone will definitely show up in their best dresses, or maybe flex about how many kingdoms they¡¯ve conquered, how many ves they have, oh and if I¡¯m not mistaken, this should also be the time when Roshan has to pick a mate from one of the beautiful daughters of the highest officials that will be present.¡±

 Chapter 139

    139 Fool A Fool


    Annalise shifted ufortably on the bed at the mention of Roshan having to pick a mate, it struck her deeply to the very chord in her system and she looked at Levi with a gaze that visibly showed her displeasure.


    ¡°A mate?¡±


    Levi nodded, not looking her way as his own gaze were focused on the chessboard, making him oblivious to her sour expression, ¡°yes, Roshan has to pick a mate since he¡¯ll need a strongdy to stand by his side when he rules Viscarrian, after he lost hisst ma-¡± his voice suddenly trailed off thest minute when he realized he nearly made mention of Aveline and his shoulders tensed. Only then did he lift his head to look at Anna who was still staring at him, waiting for him to finish.


    Annalise had a rough guess on what he wanted to make mention of, if she guessed it right, Levi was about mentioning Roshan¡¯sst mate, but strangely, he¡¯s not saying a word now.


    ¡°Did Roshan have a mate before?¡± Since Levi had suddenly lost his voice, Anna wasn¡¯t going to let that question slide and even Gemma tilted her head up to look at Levi, waiting for him to respond and the poor demon felt trapped.


    ¡°Uhm...I....I don¡¯t know...if...¡± Levi could feel a sweat roll down his neck as his tongue suddenly twisted in his mouth, he was clueless on what excuse toe up with and just staring at Anna as she anticipated his response -could it be she knows Roshan¡¯sst mate??


    Does she know about Aveline??


    ¡°Why do you ask?¡± He quickly turned the tables around Anna, reversing the question at her and the already anticipating Anna waspletely taken aback by it, leaving her mute.


    ¡°Oh..uhm..¡± she straightened herself, looking away to avoid meeting Levi¡¯s quizzical stare and she tried not to think too much since Demons are fond of reading people¡¯s minds.


    .....


    She rubbed the back of her neck while letting out a nervousugh, notpletely sure if she should show the locket to Levi or not, or maybe Azazel? ¡°I was just curious.¡± To say she was curious was an understatement, she was anxious to figure out if Roshan had a mate or not. Not only that, even Roshan can¡¯t recall if he once had a mate, which is very queer to her.


    ¡°But.... Why does he need a mate now?¡± She could hear the displeasure in her own voice and really wished there was someone who can shut her up before she says something stupid.


    Everything that happenedst night was supposed to be a one time thing, with no feelings attached and she made that decision very clear to herself, but after experiencing the blissful feeling of being with him, just thinking about another woman ending up in his arms like that and getting to do all those things with him made her want to throw something at the devil himself.


    She didn¡¯t want to remember the feelings, she didn¡¯t want to remember his touch but even her body tends to betray her in the worst ways. What was he doing to her??


    Her hands crumpled the sheets as she tried to keep her vexation intact, absentmindedly nibbling her bottom lip and she silently hissed when it stung her.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Levi¡¯s voice broke Anna from her train of thought, startling her at the same time. When she looked at him, it turns out both Gemma and Levi were staring at her and she quickly released her gripping fingers from the sheets, letting a smile light her lips.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±


    ~


    Sitting in the sr room, Roshan interestingly toyed with a dice as he threw them up in the air, only to catch them back in his hands and stare at the number itnded on in case it reached a six, but to his disappointment it didn¡¯t, leading him to toss it up again.


    Azazel stared at the demon who seemed to be in a good mood for once, which is both weird and frightening. His darkened aura was pleasantly calm today and the white-haired Enigma wasn¡¯t sure if he should take that as a green or a red light.


    ¡°Where were you yesterday?¡± He finally threw the question at the cier who just kept tossing the dice and catching it back in his hands. His face looked lighter than most days and Azazel hated to admit that his brother was looking way handsome than him at the moment.


    ¡°I went to torture an imprudent scumbag in Euphrasia,¡± came the cier¡¯s response, ¡°sadly I couldn¡¯t kill him myself, but it was fun seeing him cower like a fool.¡± A yful smile adorned his lips but Azazel wasn¡¯t in the mood to deal with Roshan¡¯s unserious attitude at the moment.


    ¡°Okay, I believe that but what happened after, did you really spend the night with your maid?¡± As much as he knew the truth already, he wanted to hear it from Roshan¡¯s own mouth.


    Roshan threw his head back, closing his eyes and looking even more rxed, ¡°what¡¯s it to you?¡±


    ¡°When are you going to realize that falling in love with that human will only bring you trouble?¡± In case Roshan didn¡¯t notice it, Azazel did. If he went to Euphrasia he could have easilye up with a disguise and sneak in to see if truly they hold the valerian sword, the sword that can easily cost him his life but this brother of his is just¨C


    The cier smiled his brother¡¯s way, as though he just finished reading Azazel¡¯s thoughts and he hadn¡¯t forgotten about the sword, he could never forget it even if he wanted to.


    If there was one thing he learnt from histe mother was patience, it¡¯s always best to let the sleeping dog lie before making a strike. He hadpletely forgotten about the morals she taught him but after spending time with the annoying woman, she made him realize a few things without knowing it herself.


    ¡°She is a trouble ma.¡± He added, only to earn a frown from Azazel.


    ¡°Roshan!¡±


    ¡°Fine.¡± He rolled his eyes and sat straight, ¡°it was nothing serious okay? No emotions attached. We were both in need of it and so we went for it.¡± He exined and anybody watching them at the moment would picture them as a husband trying to convince his wife that he wasn¡¯t having feelings for another woman.


    Azazel eyed him suspiciously, still not believing his words to a hundred percent, ¡°really? Are you sure there are no emotions attached to it? You can¡¯t lie to me, the mating mark is still on her.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll fade, like I said, we never took it extreme so the mark will fade.¡±


    ¡°Good.¡± It was only after his reassurance that Azazel¡¯s demeanor finally calmed. Roshan who equally had a piece of scolding to give his brother decided to change his mind. He wanted to ask his brother about Aveline, about the locket, about the strange memories he¡¯s been having recently but something told him to figure out himself.


    When he woke up in the temple, he knew a part of his memory was missing because he couldn¡¯t remember most of the things that happened except for the killing of his parents and how he suffered, but he didn¡¯t bother because the only thing that rang in his head was revenging their deaths and his punishment.


    Clearing his throat and pushing that thought aside, he also had to confront his brother on something else.


    ¡°I have one question though?¡±


    Azazel raised a brow at him, ¡°which is?¡±


    ¡°Gretta is facing hardbor, is she not?¡± He finally popped the question at the white-haired Enigma, leaving his pulchritudinous face to gradually pale to a slightly noticeable rate and he quickly turned away, avoiding Roshan¡¯s knowing stare.


    ¡°And who told you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not so dumb that I won¡¯t figure it out myself. She¡¯s equally responsible for the poisoned drink and those acts of hers the other day were mind blowing, don¡¯t you think? I mean it¡¯s pretty shocking to see Gretta stand up for a ¡®maid¡¯ as she would put it and so my suspicioun grew.¡±


    ¡°Roshan...¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s actually good to act like a fool so you can fool a fool, that¡¯s why I had the letters Gretta imed to have found in Freya¡¯s chamber be looked into further and if Freya really made those notes, then the ink would have proven it, but I guess Gretta wasn¡¯t too smart on that part.¡±


    ¡°Let her be Roshan, she¡¯s already facing punishment.¡±


    ¡°That is not my business,¡± he heartlessly skipped it, ¡°but a murder for murder makes two equals right?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll give it a second thought.¡±


    ¡°You are unbearable!¡±


    ¡°Just say you love me.¡± He winked.


    Meanwhile, in Lady Odette¡¯s chamber, the cunning woman had ordered a maid to call Annalise from her chambers and it didn¡¯t take too long for Anna to show up as she bowed politely in front of her.


    ¡°Greetings.¡±


    Lady Odette really thought she could hide her hostility towards the human girl but after seeing her show up in her chambers, it became difficult to control the sneer that was spreading across her red lips.


    ¡°Anna dear.¡± She began in a very calm tone that didn¡¯t sit well with Anna¡¯s instinct.


    ¡°You asked for me.¡±


    ¡°Yes I did.¡± She took a sip of her white wine before keeping it on the table and turning her attention to Annalise.


    ¡°It¡¯s about Gretta.¡± She began, ¡°If you aren¡¯t busy, I need you to follow me to the dungeon.¡±

 Chapter 140

    140 Keeping Up With The Act


    ¡°Why the dungeon, if I may ask?¡± She politely questioned with a considerable daring, curiously meeting the gaze of Lady Odette and it took a while of silence before she got to her feet, standing before Annalise who instantly lowered her gaze, since meeting the gaze of someone like Lady Odette can be considered impolite.


    ¡°Come with me.¡± And she walked out, brushing past Annalise who turned to see the elderly demoness leaving her chambers already.


    Her brows creased in puzzlement as she wondered what sort of trap she might be getting herself into. No one fancy¡¯s her presence in the Viscarrian pce, not even the maids, so it¡¯s just baffling that Lady Odette summoned her without any warnings.


    Reassuring herself that all is well, she took a quick step out of the chambers and followed Lady Odette¡¯s footsteps. Based on the direction they took as they made it through the corridor and down the long stairs, Anna knew they were heading directly for the dungeon as the elderly demoness had said but her main concern wasn¡¯t their impending destination, she was more worried about what they were going to do there.


    Reaching a divided path, Lady Odette took the left path in silence while Anna quietly followed like a hypnotized puppet. She wanted to raise a question but there was this feeling crawling through her senses that forced her to remain quiet.


    The path was lit with fork torches and candles. She tried recollecting how frightening the dungeon looked like in Roshan¡¯s childhood memories and it was one of the scariest, blood and human flesh were the only thing that spoke about the horrors of the dungeon, except this particr route they took, seemed more personal, or even private and the cells were empty.


    ¡®Did they renovate the dungeon?¡¯ Thought Annalise to herself as she stared at the empty cells, only to stop directly in front of one since Lady Odette halted as well. Ady was locked in one of these cells, hugging her knees and burying her head between them. Her hair was a terrible mess and there were slight traces of fresh injuries around her arm that were slowly starting to heal.


    When she slowly lifted her head up, Anna¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief and a shocking gasp left her lips.


    ¡°Lady Gretta?!¡±


    .....


    ~


    Just when Roshan felt happy that his conversation with Azazel was over, uncle Evan decided to steal a little piece of his time with his nostalgic presence, speaking about the family ball and the amount of guests they were to expect on that day.


    Unfortunately for Evan, Roshan wasn¡¯t interested about the family ball or what they n on doing there, he even walked out on him to prove his point while Azazel just hummed a mockery song for his uncle, adding to his already frustrated mood that was caused by Roshan.


    ¡°He has no say in this, it¡¯s part of the family tradition and he¡¯s going to have to pick a mate during the family ball, whether he likes it or not.¡± Uncle Evan sounded final and there was no turning back, that boy really needs to have a mate and not just any mate, but a beautiful mate from a strong, powerful and reputable family that¡¯ll only make the Astaroth family stand stronger in power.


    For the first time, Azazel was starting to anticipate the family ball, awaiting the drama that might spurt if Roshan goes against the family rules again.


    Reaching Anna¡¯s chamber, the cier knocked on the door, waiting for the annoying woman to answer him but surprisingly, he didn¡¯t even get a response.


    He knocked again, but when the result still came out the same, he opened the door and walked in, only to find her chambers neat but empty of her presence.


    Her floral scent still lingered heavily in the room when he inhaled it, making it known to the handsome demon that it hasn¡¯t been too long since she stepped out.


    ¡°Where did she go?¡±


    The disappointment didn¡¯t bother to hide itself as it disyed visibly on his face. This woman was really making him chase after her, sooner orter he¡¯s bound to cut those legs of hers so she stays in one ce. All the time he was conversing with Uncle Evan, his mind kept drifting to the annoying woman and it became difficult to listen when all he wanted to do was be by her side.


    And now that he got that chance, she¡¯s nowhere to be seen.


    Closing the door and already thinking of where he¡¯d go to find her, a maid walked past and she bowed her head politely at his presence, not daring to meet his gaze.


    ¡°Your highness.¡±


    ¡°Have you seen the human maid?¡± He asked right away, and to his quick relief, the maid nodded.


    ¡°Lady Odette had asked for her a few minutes ago.¡± The maid informed him and Roshan¡¯s expression turned grim at the information, she¡¯s withdy Odette??


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure your highness, but I think they were heading to the dungeon.¡±


    ¡°You can leave.¡±


    The maid nodded and walked away. After her dismissal, Roshan let out a frustrated sigh as hebed his fingers through his hair, inhaling deeply to maintain his building rage before exhaling through his parted lips. He wasn¡¯t wrong when he said that woman was a trouble ma. She really doesn¡¯t know who to avoid and when to avoid them.


    Why would his Aunt take Anna to the dungeon???


    ~


    ¡°Forgive me Anna, it wasn¡¯t my intention to hurt you.¡± Gretta pleaded with teary eyes as she looked up to meet Anna¡¯s dumbstruck stare, ¡°I admit my wrongs and I feel ashamed for what I did to you, please let bygones be bygones.¡±


    ¡°But I¡¯m not holding anything against you.¡± The confused Annalise finally said something, not until Lady Odette suddenly chose to interfere.


    ¡°How is that possible? She poisoned your juice, and has admitted it to you herself. Surely there must be some punishment you wish to throw on her part.¡± Lady Odette pointed out with a convincing appearance etching to her face, to the point they reached her midnight ck orbs and spoke of her false considerability.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take whatever punishment you give me.¡± Gretta was already on her knees, holding on to the hem of Anna¡¯s dress as she pleaded for mercy and her actions were leaving Anna in pure bafflement.


    ¡°I know I wasn¡¯t good to you, and I know how big of a mistake I¡¯ve caused, punish me if you see fit Anna.¡±


    ¡°But_¡± she tried to move back a bit, avoiding Gretta¡¯s grip on the hem of her dress and notpletely sure of what she should make of the scene in front of her. Gretta poisoning her juice in the first ce wasn¡¯t a shock to her, but watching her admit it and beg before a maid for mercy was another thing.


    The Gretta she knows would rather die than bring herself this low to a maid.


    ¡°You were the victim, so it¡¯s your right to punish my foolish niece for acting so despicable, what is your choice Anna dear?¡± Askeddy Odette who had a look of remorse on her face, but Anna doesn¡¯t think she has a say in any of this.


    ¡°Why should I do that when she¡¯s already being punished?¡±


    ¡°Then save me from the hands of Roshan,¡± Gretta quickly chimed in with a pleading gaze, ¡°I heard you¡¯re the only one who can convince him to let me go.¡±


    ¡°But..¡±


    ¡°Gretta!¡±


    It felt like the soul harboring inside of her was spiritually forced out of her system as the hairs on her body stood at attention, hearing Roshan call her name in such a menacing tone that it sent prickles of fear coursing through her nerves.


    When they all turned to look in his direction, he was standing not too far from Gretta¡¯s cell and all of a sudden, his fists clenched tightly at his side.


    Gretta, who was the first to notice it felt her throat instantly close up at his action, making it difficult to breathe as an invisible force seemed to squeeze the air out of her lungs and she let out a panicked cry, sprawling to the ground as she choked for some air.


    Anna¡¯s eyes horrifically widened at the sight, watching Gretta struggling to breathe like a dying fish onnd, her hands clutching to her own neck but how could she stop the choking when she couldn¡¯t even touch what was choking her??


    To heighten the situation, Roshan¡¯s fist balled tightly as he closed her throat even tighter, the pain contorting her ghastly face as he showed the young demoness no mercy with the intention of ending her life.


    Anna turned to look at Roshan who was staring daggers at the demoness and her eyesnded on his palm that was angrily clenched at his side.


    Was he doing this???


    ¡°Stop.¡± Her brain finally worked and she hurried to his side, trying to open his palm but he didn¡¯t let her until his eyesnded on the worried Annalise.


    ¡°You¡¯ll kill her, stop, please.¡± She begged. He had the intention of ignoring her at first but seeing her pleading doe eyes, he let out a controlled sigh and released his palm.


    Gretta who already had tears swimming from the corner of her eyes, finally coughed when the aching in her throat suddenly reduced. She gasped for air as her chest burned in response to the aches that surpassed her throat.


    Lady Odette waspletely taken aback by the sight in front of her, ¡°Roshan, you could have-¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t talk to me.¡± He instantly shut her up, making it clear to the elderly demoness who was dumbstruck by the anger in his tone, despite how hard he tried to control it.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Grabbing Anna¡¯s wrist, he took her out of the dungeon before she could say a word to him and only after his presence had faded did a relief look wash over Gretta¡¯s face.


    ¡°Aunt! I...I thought you said this_ would work??¡± She was nearly yelling as she gasped for air in between her words, realizing she could have died but Lady Odette was nowhere sorry for her niece.


    ¡°It will, this is all part of the n, but you need to be a little more patient and keep up with the act.¡±

 Chapter 141

    141 Teasing Gone Wrong


    The dibobted Annalise found it difficult to decipher what just happened in there. She really wanted to know what all that was about but how could she even speak when Roshan kept dragging her through the hallway, barely minding if the guards and maids were watching them.


    ¡°Roshan...¡± She tried to get his attention but his grip that was like ws against her tiny wrist tightened. Azazel who was getting ready to leave for duty caught a glimpse of Roshan taking the human girl up the stairs, the look on his face showed he was displeased about something and that made Azazel shake his head helplessly.


    Taking her up the stairs anding to a halt when they reached the empty corridor, he let go of her wrist and when Anna closed her ears with her palm like she knew a scolding would be next thing she receives, the cier didn¡¯t say a word as he looked at her.


    She opened an eye to see he was staring at her, but he wasn¡¯t scolding her. It made her even more nervous because if he wasn¡¯t scolding her, then surely she¡¯s bound to expect something even more treacherous.


    ¡°Rosh~¡±


    ¡°Go to your chambers.¡± Was a response she never really expected and when she tried to speak, he turned and walked away, leaving the dumbfounded Annalise to stand all by herself in the corridor.


    He¡¯s leaving just like that?


    ¡°Wait.¡± She took quick steps to his side, blocking him from leaving and he met her stare with a raised brow, silently asking why the annoying woman had stopped him.


    Anna didn¡¯t need him to say anything for her to know he was mad at her, his facial expression was enough to convince her but why wasn¡¯t he scolding her? That¡¯s what bothered her most.


    .....


    ¡°Why are you upset with me? What did I do wrong this time?¡± To be honest, she still doesn¡¯t have a clue on what she did that has gotten him this upset and Roshan really couldn¡¯t believe she was asking him an obvious question.


    ¡°What did you do wrong?¡± He clicked his tongue and really wanted to say something to the annoying woman who looked lost in all of this, but restrained himself from speaking as he might hurt her feelings in the process.


    ¡°You did nothing wrong.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re lying to me, if you want to lie at least make sure to get it right.¡± Came her remark and his way of talking to her somewhat changed because he was sounding more formal than usual.


    ¡°Why won¡¯t you tell me?¡±


    ¡°Why should I bother when nothing I say is hardly taken seriously by you.¡± He responded in a not so quiet tone, ¡°I told you to stay with Gemma and Levi cause they¡¯re the only ones I trust with your safety. Not everyone here has a good motive Anna and I wonder when you¡¯lle to realize that those two are but green snakes in green grass!¡±


    He wasn¡¯t hiding his anger this time around and it baffled Anna to see him react like this.


    ¡°What could I possibly have done?¡± She countered back, finding the situation to not be her fault in the slightest, ¡°she asked for me and I can¡¯t just turn her down after knowing her position in your family. it¡¯d bepletely rude of me to ignore, whether or not I mind the fact that she doesn¡¯t appreciate my presence, I¡¯m a maid.¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± he didn¡¯t deny it and pointed at himself while looking straight into her eyes, ¡°my maid, not hers or anyone else out there, it¡¯s notpulsory for you to listen.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re scolding me like I¡¯m the one in the wrong and it¡¯s not fair!¡± At first his actions had left her taken aback but he was making everything sound like she was the careless one in all of this and she wasn¡¯t going to take it. She was only being respectful and she couldn¡¯t understand why it had him riled up like this.


    Besides, they didn¡¯t even touch her.


    Roshan wanted to say something else but after seeing her hurtful expression like his words had really affected her, he remained silent and this was why he didn¡¯t want to say anything in the first ce, but he made no attempt tofort her.


    She needs to understand that staying with those two will only bring her trouble and he was only scolding her for it because he¡¯s genuinely worried about her safety. If they did something to her he wouldn¡¯t have been able to handle it but then, she doesn¡¯t seem to understand that side of him, neither is he ready to exin himself or his feelings to her.


    She had the right to assume whatever she felt like.


    ¡°Forget it, I¡¯m done with this.¡± He uttered in a low tone before walking past her and not even turning around to look at her as he made it down the stairs.


    Anna¡¯s heart clenched in sadness and she swallowed the ufortable lump that was starting to fill her throat, leaving her chest to ache as she watched him leave.


    Must he always be so hard on her??


    The day slowly went by with the two of them not bothering to cross paths after their argument, Roshan kept himself upied with matters of the pce and he barely paid attention to his uncle that brought up the discussion about the barrier that was slowly starting to break, thus, leaving them open to any attack from their rivalries.


    Anna on the other hand spent her time with Ba and Gemma as they indulge themselves in exciting conversations that sessfully distracted her mind from the issue with Roshan, except, it didn¡¯tst long like she hoped it would.


    She did everything and even spent time with Levi who apanied her through their pce garden and he was also another fun demon to be with, a cute one too who wasn¡¯t as hot-headed like the cier himself.


    Great, now she¡¯sparing!!


    When the days finally darkened, Anna decided to pay the demon a visit, knowing his temper would have calmed by now.


    She made it to his chambers on the third floor and gathered enough courage before knocking on the door. Apparently, he had sent a maid to get him juice, giving Anna the opportunity to use this as an excuse to see him.


    As always, he didn¡¯t respond whenever she knocked on the door and she nibbled her lower lip, wondering if he knew she was at the door or not.


    ¡®He couldn¡¯t have stepped out so quickly again, could he?¡¯ she inwardly thought to herself before opening the door and taking her head in.


    Thankfully, one of the chandeliers hanging above the ceiling bathed the room in a warm blue light, aiding her sight to a tolerable extent and when she studied the chamber further, she caught sight of a figure, resting on the couch at the corner of the room, his hand helped in supporting his head as he seemed to be asleep?


    Coming in and closing the door as quietly as she could, she walked up to the being who appeared to be asleep, but she wasn¡¯tpletely sure since his hair was covering his face.


    Going on her knees and dropping the tray of juice on the table, she tried to see his face clearly as she tilted her head to the side, wanting to be sure if he was asleep but he barely shifted or reacted to the presence of someone in his chamber.


    ¡°Is he really asleep?¡± Before she knew it, her hands had already reached for his face, gently moving his hair to the side and tucking it behind his ear, leaving his gorgeous face to be even more visible before her eyes.


    His eyes were sealed shut, leaving those dark feminine longshes she grew jealous of to restfortably on his cheek, his expression looked soft, especially under the blue light of the chandelier and Anna hadn¡¯t even realized that she was starting to admire him. It¡¯s still somehow hard to believe that this same man had kissed her and made her experience things she never really knew of or felt until that night.


    ¡°You look even more handsome in your sleep, Roshan.¡± She whispered before yfully poking his cheek with her finger and thankfully, he didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°Are you really asleep? Huh? You scold me and then decide to sleep? Are you that heartless?¡± She poked his cheeks again while holding back a giggle, currently enjoying how she teased him.


    ¡°You¡¯re so lucky I can¡¯t find a paintbrush, if I did, you won¡¯t be able to recognize yourself tomorrow morning.¡± She poked his cheeks again except this time, he unfailingly caught her wrist, startling Annalise as she gasped in ordance to her startlement.


    Roshan¡¯s eyes flickered open and she found herself staring right into those beautiful hazel-green eyes that appeared tired, yet carried a silent warning that made her gulp in fear.


    Roshan stared into her shock-filled eyes as she wasn¡¯t expecting him to wake up from a mere touch and he raised a taunting brow at her.


    ¡°You were saying.¡± His voice brought her back, as though asking her to repeat her statement and a nervousughter left Anna¡¯s lips as she shook her head in denial.


    ¡°Oh me? I...I wasn¡¯t saying anything, his highness was asleep, I was onlyplimenting how handsome his highness looked while sleeping. Ever heard of cherry blossom flowers? That¡¯s what I think about whenever I see your face. Your parents must be such beautiful people to have birthed you. There¡¯s really no one like his highness in the entire¨C¡±


    ¡°Shut up.¡±


    And Anna instantly kept quiet, already aware of the fact she was rambling rubbish and a feeling of embarrassment took over her as she avoided his gaze. She didn¡¯t need anyone to tell her she was in huge trouble now.

 Chapter 142

    142 Guests At Night


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± His tone came outzy and deeper than usual, sounding fresh as a spring verdure that could pleasantly capture the attention of anyone, and it left Anna blinking unstoppably as she tried to save herself from the man who still had her poor wrist in his grip.


    Her eyes instinctivelynded on the tray of juice she had ced on the table before Roshan and her brain finally clicked, giving her a quick idea on how to avoid his iing punishment if she didn¡¯t say something to him.


    Unknown to her, Roshan¡¯s mind had been flooding with her face and presence even before she stepped in. He was tempted to go meet her and end their argument when he couldn¡¯t stand the distance, but then, he¡¯d appear as the weak one in her eyes and chose to forget it, convincing himself he¡¯d talk to her tomorrow.


    He sent a maid earlier to go get him juice, hoping to cool his mind with it but who knew he¡¯d be expecting to see the one his eyes were longing to see after their argument.


    She came by herself and it left a warm feeling spreading across his chest to see her here.


    Although a naughty side of him secretly wished she came here to seduce him.


    ¡°I_I came to give you some orange juice,¡± she used that opportunity to release her hand from his grip and shifted the tray closer to him, ¡°the body needs juice to refresh the system and you¡¯ve been overworking yourself¨C¡±


    ¡°I never sent you for juice Anna.¡± He reminded her, his gaze trapping hers without even blinking and leaving her mute like a nun. At this point, Anna really felt like melting herself in that gaze of his.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    .....


    Snapping her mind back to reality, Anna finally dropped the silly act of hers and suddenly pulled at her ears in an adorable manner, looking remorseful like a little child about to plead for misbehaving.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired of being upset with me?¡± Her big doe eyes met his, ¡°you didn¡¯t speak to me or even bother to see me. I¡¯m sorry if I offended you but it really wasn¡¯t my fault. I¡¯ll make sure to follow your orders from now on. Please don¡¯t punish me.¡±


    She leaned back as she closed her eyes shut, already anticipating a scolding or a heartless retort but all she got was a low harmless chuckle from the cier who watched her.


    She opened her eyes to peek at him, and he barely looked offended in the slightest, leaving her stunned as she was already expecting to be thrown out of his chambers.


    ¡°Who said I was mad at you?¡± He asked and she lowered her gaze.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t need anyone to tell me, I figured it out myself.¡± She tantly stated and he silently contemted her words before leaning close without warning, only to stop when his face was a few inches away from her.


    ¡°I see, what else did you figure out?¡±


    Anna¡¯s eyes remained wide when he drew his face so close to hers and she forgot to speak, watching him stare at her like he could read through the inner depths of her soul. It only made her heart race rapidly in return.


    She was about to say something when the sound of carriages stopping just outside the pce drew their attention. Their gazes uniformly shifted to the window, wondering who it might be that showed up in Viscarrian, at this hour in particr.


    rmed, Roshan got to his feet and went to steal a nce at whose carriage had arrived at his pce, only to catch sight of not just one, but five fancy-looking carriages stopping before the front yard.


    His brows furrowed into puzzlement as he wasn¡¯t informed about having guests sote at night.


    ¡°Is everything alright?¡± Anna proceeded to break the silence, curious about what was happening on the outside.


    ¡°Wait here.¡± Was all he said to her before leaving his chamber and Anna had to remain there, all by herself and the moment he closed the door shut, she hurried to the window, peeking through the curtains to see who had shown up.


    Heading downstairs, Roshan could already hear the young feminine voices of women as the doors to their carriages were opened by the coachmen.


    ¡°Finally, I thought we wouldn¡¯t make it tonight.¡± One of the youngdies expressed her fatigue as she stepped out while another just proudly looked away, staring at the huge pce before her.


    ¡°Viscarrian pce huh, I recall being here when I was eight.¡± She boasted, earning rolling eyes from different directions and thest carriage, a man and a woman got down together.


    Uncle Evan,dy Odette, Gravion and evendy Letitia were present at the entrance, waiting to wee them with a pretentious smile on their lips.


    ¡°What the hell is going on?¡± Roshan muttered to himself, hiding away from the corner of the stairs but Levi chimed in with a knowing smile.


    ¡°For the family ball,¡± he informed Roshan who was startled by his presence, ¡°but they came earlier than usual.¡±


    ¡°Too early.¡± He added, seeing as thedies and women gave themselves airy kisses while the men shook hands.


    ¡°Aunt Letitia, I love your dress!¡± One of the youngdies named Roselineplimented with a bright smile, ¡°the designs are eye-catching, do introduce me to your seamstress someday.¡±


    Letitia smiled before ushering them in, ¡°this way, the preparations will be starting tomorrow.¡±


    After the introduction, one of thedies bearing Erica couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°I¡¯m sorry but where is his highness? It¡¯s quite disappointing to see they aren¡¯t here to wee either of us.¡±


    ¡°Azazel is barely avable,¡± Lady Odette responded, ¡°as for Roshan, I can¡¯t say, but none of them were informed about the unexpected visit so we can¡¯t me their absence.¡±


    Gravion cleared his throat before proceeding to speak, ¡°you must all be tired from your journey, we¡¯ve arranged maids that¡¯ll apany and see to your requests.¡±


    ¡°Oh how lovely!¡± Lady Irisplimented their hospitality, staring at the maids lined up for them. ¡°What are you waiting for? Quickly get my boxes from the carriage outside and be careful not to drop them, they¡¯re worth a lot.¡±


    The maids quickly hurried to do exactly as they¡¯d been told, even the coachmen weren¡¯t left out as they had to carry some boxes too.


    ¡°Good to have you all here.¡± Uncle Evan added while the young demoness, Roseline, just sighed heavily, ¡°Indeed, I can¡¯t wait to tell you my journey, it was both stressful and enjoyable...¡±


    Roshan and Levi watched the guests from a hidden corner and just shook their heads.


    ¡°Sigh... this is going to be one hell of a family ball.¡±

 Chapter 143

    143 Magical Fated Bells


    Still peeping from the window and staring at the fancy-looking carriages outside, the admiration in her eyes wasn¡¯t hidden and she knew whoever showed up definitely had to be important people.


    The sound of the door closing behind her made Annalise flinch away from the window and when she spun around, it was Roshan who walked in, lighting her face with a smile after seeing he was alright.


    ¡°You¡¯re back.¡±


    As relieved as she was to see he was alright, she didn¡¯t fail to notice his calm mood had surprisingly deteriorated after stepping out. His expression looked somewhat gloomy and distant, most especially when he lifted his head up to meet her gaze.


    Did something happen?


    Standing before him, she tried to lighten the moment and pointed at the window, ¡°those carriages outside are very beautiful, your guests must be very important right? I couldn¡¯t see them since they already stepped in and¨C¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re here for the family ball.¡± He cut her words short with their reasons foring, not fancying the way she was praising them and he went to sit back on the couch in silence.


    ¡°The family ball?¡± Anna pondered on the name until it became even more familiar to her ears, Levi had mentioned something about the family ball and she was smiling again.


    ¡°The family ball! Levi told me about it earlier, it¡¯s when your families do a get-together by holding out a grand celebration, even guests are allowed toe and I_I also heard you¡¯ll have to pick a mate during the event, am I right?¡±


    .....


    Roshan met her gaze to see the woman was smiling and it only irked him further as he cursed her silently in his head, was she happy about the fact he¡¯d have to pick a mate???


    ¡°You don¡¯t mind?¡±


    Anna forced her smile to remain intact, she should be happy for him, maybe the event will make him find his true mate and she wouldn¡¯t have to worry about him when she¡¯s gone, that way, she was sure someone would take good care of him in her absence.


    ¡°Why should I?¡± She went on her knees beside the couch Roshan was sitting and tried to envision the family Ball with a glow in her eyes, ¡°so many beautiful demoness will be present, there¡¯ll be lots of dancing, treats and everyone will show up in their finest dresses, then there¡¯s the girl, walking through the crowd, searching for the one that wouldplete her and then..¡± she looked up to meet Roshan¡¯s stare, ¡°that¡¯s where youe in.¡±


    She got to her feet and twirled at the lovely imagination, ¡°it¡¯ll be like one of those sweet fairy-tales, Can humans attend?¡±


    Roshan shook his head helplessly at the words this woman was currently saying, she was HIS mate, he gave her that mark on her neck and despite it being idental, he couldn¡¯t change fate and here she was, saying all this to him, it hurt his feelings to see she wasn¡¯t bothered about it, but refused to utter a word against it.


    Noticing his sour mood and how his expression continuously darkened as she spoke, the smile on Anna¡¯s lips slowly vanished and he looked ufortable for some reason, cutting her off guard. Was he feeling guilty about what transpired between them at the inn??


    Quietly crawling on her knees and reaching for the couch where he sat, she tugged at the sleeve of his robe and when he looked at her, she tried to remainposed and cleared her throat.


    ¡°Are you feeling bad about what... what happened at the inn?¡± She questioned, but before he could respond, she looked away from him, ¡°you don¡¯t have to worry about that at all, it was a one time thing and besides, I was the one who took the first initiative so you don¡¯t have to stress yourself over it, I¡¯ll even keep my lips sealed about¨C¡±


    Before she knew it, he grabbed the back of her head, turning it so she could face him and with no time to react, she let him kiss her lips.


    That act of his took her by surprise and when she tried to pull away, he refused as his hands cradled her neck, keeping her head in one ce while ravishing her lips.


    His lips were relentless on hers as he kissed her hungrily, as though punishing her for something and knowing their actions weren¡¯t right in the slightest, Anna kept trying to pull back, freeing herself before her own mind goes foggy but his lips on hers was like a ma that was difficult to get rid of.


    ¡°Stop resisting.¡± He breathed against her lips before iming them again. His mouth was no different from a hot liquid descending down her throat and Anna sighed into the kiss.


    He pulled back after making sure he¡¯s left the annoying woman breathless and he stared straight into her eyes, his gaze hot and intense that it left Anna falling into his trance again.


    ¡°Unless the mark fades from your neck, no one has the right to be my mate Anna, no one.¡±


    Anna didn¡¯t dare to argue with him, he made it clear that she wasn¡¯t supposed to fall in love with him, so why was he acting like this?


    ~


    The next day, Gemma happily hopped into her Aunt¡¯s Letitia¡¯s chamber with a bright smile, wanting to say hello to her but upon reaching there, she was nowhere to be seen.


    Not minding it since it was her Aunt¡¯s chamber, she decided to linger for a bit, and she wouldn¡¯t want to crosspath with those new faces she saw having breakfast downstairs, new people always terrified her.


    Another reason why she had her breakfast in the bed chambers instead of with the family.


    Sitting on her Aunt¡¯s study table, she swung her legs yfully, knowing they didn¡¯t reach the ground while her eyes scanned the books on the table. Her touchy fingers scrolled through numerous books, finding each and everyone of them boring and when she got tired, she opened the cupboard, wanting to see if there are any interesting story books there but her eyes widened in amazement after seeing something else.


    With her hazel eyes glistening with a mesmerizing look, she picked a golden bell that was tied with a red knot and admired it for a few seconds.


    She remembered the bells very well, they are magical fated bells.


    Her Aunt had stolen them from those djinns when they went hunting, but their use was still unknown to the confused Gemma who was attracted due to its beauty.


    Looking into the opened cupboard, her eyes scanned through the remaining bells, three of those were tied with a blue knot and the remaining two were tied with a red knot.


    ording to what she reads in books, red also signifies love so the ones with red knots must be the love bell.


    ¡°Gemma.¡±


    The little one froze after hearing her Aunt call her so abruptly and she quickly closed the cupboard, hiding the bell with a red knot in her royal garment before turning to look at Aunt Letitia with innocent hazel eyes.


    ¡°You¡¯re here?¡± She strode up to Gemma who was still sitting on the chair at her study table and she nodded with a smile.


    ¡°It¡¯s good you¡¯re here anyway, I just called the seamstress toe make you a lovely dress for the family ball that¡¯ll be happening three days from now, you¡¯d love a dress right?¡±


    She nodded with an exciting grin on her face before jumping down from the chair.


    ¡°Careful now or you¡¯ll hurt yourself.¡± Letitia reminded her and she behaved with a guilty smile.


    ¡°Meet Ba, she¡¯ll take you to your¨C¡± Letitia wasn¡¯t even done speaking when Gemma raced out of the room, startling thedy Letitia herself.


    ¡°This child.¡± She sighed, going to close the door.

 Chapter 144

    144 Faint Ringing Of A Bell


    Studying the Grimoire in his bedroom chamber, Roshan still found it difficult to ess the mysteries behind the Grimoire. Most especially the missing letters.


    It¡¯s quite unusual for a Grimoire to lose letters without any notice. If the words were fading, he would have understood but every other word was still visible on the damn scroll.


    His lips twitched to the side, if he doesn¡¯t figure this out soon, he might as well be saying hisst goodbyes to Anna and that was thest thing he wanted. She doesn¡¯t deserve such a harsh punishment all because her soul chose to leave some Limbo. He wasn¡¯t familiar with the rules of the limbo like Azazel was but if there was one thing he came to know about the limbo, is that a soul doesn¡¯t just leave without having some motive.


    He got to understand that after reading through the books in Ark Ville.


    Sighing dejectedly as his brain was already giving up on the stupid Grimoire, he fell back on his bed with his right hand resting on his forehead. His eyes were sealed shut as he tried to calm his fired brain, stopping himself from overthinking and getting worked up but then, something clicked at thest minute.


    His eyes instantly snapped open as a significant concept spread through his brains and he sat up once again. His gaze traced the empty space below the Grimoire, where the solutions were meant to be written. Despite it being in, something told him it wasn¡¯t.


    The missing letters..... what if the words didn¡¯t fade, what if the words weren¡¯t erased like they said, what if they were hidden?


    The probability of it being possible was a clear 50/50 and he was willing to risk it all. To save the one woman who showed him genuine care and affection, he doesn¡¯t mind risking his life as well cause in the end, he knew everything would be worth it.


    A knock on the door broke him from his train of thoughts and the one person he guessed to be at the door was Annalise.


    .....


    Keeping the Grimoire under his pillow, he adjusted his night robe and brushed his fingers through his messy hair, making sure he looked good enough before clearing his throat and rxing on the bed.


    ¡°Come in.¡±


    The door opened as expected, but the bright face that popped in wasn¡¯t the face of Anna, but it was the face of Levi as the enchanted being smiled his way, letting it spread across his features till it reached his eyes.


    ¡°Brother, I¡¯m nody but that doesn¡¯t mean this innocent man can¡¯t fall into your temptation, you know.¡± He joked and Roshan only rolled his eyes in response. The disappointment was obviously visible on his face, giving Levi a hint that this brother of his was probably expecting someone else.


    ¡°Go away, I¡¯m not in the mood to be disturbed by the likes of you.¡±


    ¡°I never see you chase Azazel away all the time.¡± He low-key mumbled. He was used to being chased away though but he was someone with feelings too, he¡¯s bound to get jealous seeing Roshan hang around with Azazel most of the time, but not with him.


    Still lingering at the door, Roshan¡¯s right brow rose in Levi¡¯s direction, silently asking what he was waiting for.


    ¡°Be remorseful for once and invite me in.¡± He was half-scolding the cier who was really oblivious to the fact his feelings were hurt.


    ¡°Levi..¡± Roshan really has no idea what to do with this clingy demon. He only wished Anna was this clingy.


    ¡°Fine, fine.¡± He raised both his hands in clear surrender, ¡°we¡¯ll have it your way.¡±


    ¡°Good, you¡¯re going to dress up and do a horse race with me. This is a family ball and we shall be bonded in the right way.¡± He made it very clear to the cier, ¡°I¡¯ll get Azazel as well, for once we need to hang out as brothers, and this is the perfect time.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean perfect time?¡±


    ¡°Some of the family members arrived this morning, not sure if you¡¯re aware but skip that part, I made a challenge with them, a very harmless horse racing challenge.¡±


    ¡°Levi..!!¡±


    ¡°Before you yell at me,¡± he quickly interjected, ¡°it¡¯s a challenge for guys only, thedies can watch if they¡¯re interested but I¡¯m more interested in hanging with my two brothers, so get out of that bed and stop staring at me like that. See you downstairs¡±


    Without waiting for Roshan to vent his iing frustration on him, he quickly stepped out of his chamber, leaving the cier alone to himself.


    He hasn¡¯t even gone to see any of them, but could feel a terrible headache starting to strike his head just at the mere thought of it. Sadly, he couldn¡¯t avoid it, sooner orter he¡¯s bound to run into them.


    And pick a mate?? He scoffed before getting out of bed.


    ~


    At the dining.....


    ¡°Thank you for helping me clear the table¡± Ba gratefully thanked Anna who followed her to the kitchen to drop the used tes and cup in the sink.


    Anna shook her head with a smile before responding, ¡°it¡¯s nothing, just d I could render you some helpful service.¡±


    ¡°I really appreciate it, with the family ball approaching, we¡¯re going to have our hands full in these three days.¡± She informed with a whisper while reaching to wash the tes on the sink.


    ¡°I hate to agree,¡± Anna nodded in agreement while helping her rinse, ¡°more guests showed up this morning anddy Odette made me attend to almost all of them.¡± Anna didn¡¯t hide her exhaustion. She was eager to greet Roshan this morning, but got stopped bydy Odette who asked for her help in attending to the guests.


    ¡°That was mest night,¡± Ba understood her point, ¡°yours is actually far better than mine, those hot-looking demon guys didn¡¯t seem to demand too much, the young demoness I attended to yesterday, I think her name was Roseline, she¡¯s a true demoness, she had issues with almost everything I did yesterday, if I had my way, I would have kicked her back to wherever she came from.¡±


    Anna giggled at Ba¡¯s displeased reaction, ¡°specs on being a maid, you get to see new characters everyday.¡±


    ¡°Tell me about it.¡±


    Theyughed together before continuing their conversation.


    ¡°It¡¯s saddening we¡¯ll have to attend to the female guests from now on.¡±


    ¡°Female guests?¡± Anna didn¡¯t quite grab that.


    ¡°The males will be separated from the females, a time for the males to hang out more and the females to know one another better.¡±


    Hearing her speak, Anna¡¯s heart dropped in her chest. ¡°That means we¡¯ll also be separated from the male demons?¡±


    ¡°Correct, we might be sent to work for the demoness instead, our days of working have just begun.¡±


    Anna tried not to let her uneasiness disy, she won¡¯t be able to see Roshan for a whole three days??


    But if they¡¯re separated, how is he going to pick a mate if he doesn¡¯t even spend time with them? Not that she fancied the idea but it felt more appropriate if he was meant to pick one.


    ¡°But...¡±


    Before she got a chance to voice out her words, Gemma ran into the kitchen, tugging at Anna¡¯s dress to gain her attention.


    It startled both Ba and Annalise who weren¡¯t expecting her sudden presence, and in the kitchen too.


    Looking at the cute demoness who yfully tugged at her dress, Anna finally crouched to her level, wondering what brought her here.


    ¡°Is there something you want? Do you need some juice?¡±


    Gemma shook her head before bringing out the pretty golden bell from inside her sleeve, she showed it to the confused Anna with a mesmerizing glint in her eyes.


    ¡°A bell?¡±


    Anna took it from her small hands since the little one was offering it to her and when she wriggled it from side to side so it¡¯d ring, it was as stiff as a rock.


    ¡°It¡¯s not ringing.¡±


    Gemma made a love sign with her hands and pointed at the bell.


    ¡°A heart?¡±


    She shook her head again and made the love sign, leaving Anna to shake her head with a knowing smile.


    ¡°We can y a game of charadester, right now Ba and I are busy and......¡±


    She shook her head once again, making the love sign with her hands and wanting Anna to guess the word.


    Seeing the little demoness was being persistent, Anna could do nothing more but agree to her wishes.


    ¡°Okay, uhm is it love?¡± As far as she knows, if it wasn¡¯t a heart, then surely it had to be a love sign.


    As expected, Gemma nodded and suddenly pointed at the bell, leading Anna¡¯s gaze to fall directly on it.


    ¡°Love bell?¡±


    Her smile broadened and she nodded, Anna stared at the golden bell that had a red knot tied to its stem.


    ¡°What does it do?¡±


    At that moment, Roshan made it to the top of the stairs, waiting for Levi to show up when he indubitably locked gaze with Anna who met his stare from the downstairs kitchen.


    Suddenly, the bell rang faintly in the ears of Anna.

 Chapter 145

    145 Unnecessary Beef


    The faint ringing of a bell didn¡¯t seize to stop when Anna¡¯s gaze remained locked on the cier, neither did the sound of her heartbeat drop as it drummed repeatedly against her chest, leaving her flustered.


    But the bell... like another sense of deja Vu had hit her, she could swear she¡¯s heard something simr to this before, except, instead of feeling over the moon that the love bell rang, an uneasy feeling swept through her system instead.


    Funnily, Roshan didn¡¯t avert his intense gaze either, as though both were lost in the eyes of one another, searching for something despite being so far apart.


    Only when the confused Gemma tapped Anna lightly by the arm did she break from her trance.


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    She met Gemma¡¯s stare, her hazel eyes were filled with questions that made sense to Anna and when she looked at Ba, the puzzled maid was also staring, exchanging nces from the stairs and Anna, probably confused by her sudden ckout.


    ¡°Everything alright?¡±


    ¡°I_The bell_it rang.¡± She stuttered, finding it very strange cause she didn¡¯t even wriggle it this time around.


    ¡°What?¡±


    .....


    ¡°I heard it, it was faint, very faint.¡± She stared at the golden bell in her hand before wriggling it again and when she did, it was as stiff as it was before. Gemma imed it was a love bell, but why wasn¡¯t she convinced by it?


    Looking up once again, Roshan was no longer standing at the top of the stairs, making her wonder if it was her imagination or if she was overthinking.


    ¡°Where did you get this?¡± She asked Gemma who smiled guiltily and Anna tried to keep herselfposed as she spoke.


    ¡°Come on, it¡¯s not nice to take people¡¯s things without permission, you can get in trouble because of this, be a good girl and return it safely to wherever you took it from, okay?¡±


    A little disappointed that she had to return it, Gemma nodded regardless before taking the bell back and exiting the kitchen.


    Anna got to her feet, looking conflicted for some reason and she snapped out of it when she felt a hand gently ced on her shoulder.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    Seeing it was Ba whosevender eyes shed with genuine worry, Anna smiled at her concern before shaking her head.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine. It¡¯s really nothing to worry about.¡±


    ¡°You had me worried for a sec, isn¡¯t that what humans call it when you try to show concern?¡±


    Anna nodded, ¡°yes, but you don¡¯t have to be worried, something just...did you really not hear the bell ring?¡±


    Ba truthfully shook her head, ¡°I didn¡¯t, if I did I would have said something, are you sure you didn¡¯t just imagine it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not important anyway, we should hurry up with this and get done with the rest so we can finish on time.¡±


    ¡°Well...if you say so.¡± Although Ba was obviously not convinced, she chose not to pry in further and the earlier conversation continued.


    ~


    At the Pce Field.....


    ¡°Hey, the green-eyed boy finally decided to brace us with his presence. Shall we offer him a bow?¡± Came the charming, yet scornful voice of a young demon with reddish brown hair as he rested his back against his white stallion, folding his arms and staring at the cier whoposedly walked past him.


    ¡°I¡¯d rather have you save it for when next you hire a governess to teach you colors properly.¡± Roshan¡¯s monotonous, yet nonplussed response made the cocky smile on Grayson¡¯s lip fade and his emerald green eyes darkened as he dropped his act.


    The snickersing from different directions made Grayson send a death re towards the remaining Demons standing at a corner and they maintained themselves, not daring to offend their ¡®assumed¡¯ leader in the slightest.


    ¡°I see, your tongue still has a silver lining attached to it.¡± He feigned contemtion as he nodded his head slightly, ¡°after everything that has happened to you I thought you¡¯d lose the right to speak,¡± he sighed in disappointment, ¡°I guess my father was very linient with you.¡±


    Roshan stopped before a beautiful dark stallion, standing before Levi and Azazel who attended to their own horses.


    ¡°Lenient?¡± Roshan let out a bitter scoff before approving, ¡°yes he was, that¡¯s why I returned the favor by giving him an arm.¡±


    ¡°You fucking A**hole!!¡±


    ¡°Hey hey.¡± Levi stood between two of them before Grayson couldy a hand on his brother. Obviously, Roshan had hit a nerve by mentioning his father and unlike Grayson who looked like someone who wanted to tear Roshan apart, the cier was enjoying the moment as a sinister smile curved his lips.


    What a good way to start the morning.


    ¡°Rx.¡±


    ¡°Rx?? That son of a bitch..!!..¡±


    ¡°No one¡¯s here to draw blood Gray.¡± Levi straight-out interjected, reminding the angry red-haired demon with a serious gaze, ¡°besides, Roshan didn¡¯t start any of this, you chose to pick an issue and he gave you what you asked for. So deal with it.¡±


    One of the guys resting in a corner close to his horse suddenly intervened, ¡°isn¡¯t this meant to be a family bond?¡± He tried not tough at the thought, ¡°we might as well end up dead before the main event.¡±


    Grayson ignored the remark, he had a lot more to say to the trio¡¯s standing in front of him but forced himself to remain quiet as he unclenched his fist, exhaling the anger that evaporated out of his mouth.


    ¡°I¡¯ming for you,¡± he pointed a finger at Roshan, sending him the clear message, ¡°due to our borders being distant and my reign of bing the next Duke, you were spared from my wrath but within these three days, I¡¯ll make sure you bleed.¡±


    ¡°Like how I made your father bleed?¡± He raised an inquiring brow, finding the topic even more interesting and Grayson almost lost it when his eyes went bloody red, but the presence of Lady Odette, Gravion and of course, the demoness approaching the field forced the angry red-haired Demon to keep his cool as he backed away.


    ¡°What a good boy.¡± Roshan added after seeing his cousin lower his guard at the sight of higher Demons.


    ¡°Has it started already?¡± Roseline chimed in with a sweet smile as she saw the guys all gathered in the field. Her Auburn hair was tied in a long ponytail, swinging from left to right due to the calm and satisfying wind blowing in the field.


    ¡°Sister, you¡¯re not so blind to see they¡¯re just getting ready,¡± Melrose, her sister curtly pointed out while eating some grapefruits from a small oval tter she held.


    The heavy air that was starting to loosen, made it clear to almost everyone that a fight could have broken out. It was filled with such unexinable rage but looking at everyone present, no one seemed to hold a grudge.


    Taking their seats on the modified stone chairs at both sides of the field, Roshan got himself on his horse, his eyes scanned through the people present and to his disappointment, Anna was nowhere to be seen amongst the maidens that followed suit.


    Thedies on the other hand were by far taken by the looks of Roshan and their mouths were left agape, most especially by Roshan¡¯s physical appearance and Roseline couldn¡¯t help but blink in admiration.


    ¡°Is he the one?¡±


    ¡°To my delight, yes.¡± Lady Iris, who sat beside her happily responded, only Melrose didn¡¯t have the look of infatuation in her eyes but she couldn¡¯t deny his appearance wasmendable.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t anyone tell me??¡± Roseline half-panicked, ¡°hearing he was half Demon, I wasn¡¯t expecting such a majestic appearance!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re being dramatic, the rest of them are actually just as noble.¡± Melrose calmly pointed out, but Roseline swatted her words away.


    ¡°I see them everyday, that is not my business.¡±


    Almost everyone rolled their eyes at her words, ¡°you mean, if I get to be his mate, I¡¯ll marry him?¡±


    ¡°Read the history of Family balls if you¡¯re this clueless.¡± Lady Laura half-taunted.


    Everyone noticed his gaze was shifting to their direction, as though he was searching for someone and Roseline leaned close to whisper to her sister.


    ¡°Who is he searching for?¡±


    ¡°How am I supposed to know?¡±


    ¡°Is he searching for me?¡± She grinned at the thought, shing her white teeth as she waved at the nonplussed Roshan who was baffled by it.


    ¡°It¡¯s obviously not you,e down from your high horse Rose.¡± Lady Iris couldn¡¯t hold back her irritation as she eyed Roseline who barely paid her any attention.


    ¡°Say what you like, unfortunately you aren¡¯t worth my time.¡±


    ¡°Of course, even my wardrobe collection has more value than you.¡± Lady Iris¡¯s sharp retort stung like a bee to a human flesh, leaving Roseline¡¯s expression to fall like someone whose face got sshed with mud.


    Unwilling to act rude in front of everyone, most especially his highness, she cleared her throat and adjusted herself.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to pretend like I didn¡¯t hear that.¡±


    Laura¡¯s fox-like eyes widened at Rose¡¯s unexpectedeback, ¡°as shocked as I am by your quick forgiveness, you wouldn¡¯t want to lower yourself before his highness, seems to me your brain works only in the morning, care to share the secret?¡±

 Chapter 146

    146 Going Swimming


    Anna¡¯s chamber.....


    Sluggishly making her way towards the bathroom, the interior part of it authomatically lit up once she opened the door. Her bathroom chamber wasn¡¯tpletely big but Anna had to admit that the maids in Viscarrian were justifyingly given nice rooms.


    With this little enjoyment, one can easily tolerate the attitude of most of the Astaroth¡¯s family without having the thoughts of quitting.


    Making her way to the silver sink that was apanied with a mirror on the wall, Anna didn¡¯t let her exhaustion wear her downpletely as she reached for the sink on time, cing both her hands on the wall to steady herself and instinctively closed her eyes.


    The wave of nausea trying to hit her repeatedly didn¡¯t help situation, Ba had eagerly informed her about the horse race happening at the pce field and suggested they sneak and hide to watch, but unfortunately, Anna didn¡¯t feel too much in good health to apany her new friend and so, pleadingly dismissed herself after they were done with the remaining chores, like arranging the Masters bed and handing out clothes to theundress so she can get them washed.


    Turning the tap on, streams of clean water flowed out into the sink, echoing through the bathroom itself and Anna wasted no time cupping her hands before it, filling it with the cool water and sshing it repeatedly on her face, hoping the iing dizziness would vanish after she was done.


    Redoing the same process for the fifth time, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a few minutes. Her head seemed to spin, even in the darkness as her eyes were still sealed shut from the dizzy effect.


    ¡°What¡¯s.... happening?¡± She whispered, touching her head lightly, as though it¡¯d ease the iing headache and she hissed when nothing seemed to be getting better.


    If she wanted to pass out, she was used to it and knew how it felt like, but at this current moment, it turned up in double.


    .....


    Her stomach flipped and churned in difort, instinctively letting her hand rest on her t belly and she looked at her sorry self in the mirror. Her face was turning paler and her eyes were starting to look sick.


    She doesn¡¯t recall eating anything bad this morning, she only ate some poached eggs and avocado. That was it, so why was she?


    The difort that twisted her system made it¡¯s way up her throat, it was so rapid that the next minute, Anna found herself coughing into the sink. She grabbed a small white towel that rested at the edge of the sink and coughed into it.


    Her throat burned and and as much as she wished to stop coughing so violently right now, she couldn¡¯t, as though the ufortable churning in her stomach was making her cough out whatever was causing it.


    Her eyes were already watery the moment it stopped and she didn¡¯t know how to thank the heavens for making that awful feeling dissipate. But her relieve was cut short when her eyes horrifically widened at the sight of her own blood on the towel.


    Frantically, her eyes shifted to the sink and it also had traces of her blood. Looking into the mirror, the trickle of blood that stained the corner of her lower lip made Anna¡¯s face turn morbid as the towel fell from her numb grasp to the floor.


    Her ears hummed tremendously in disbelief as her shaky fingers reached to touch the blood stain at the corner of her lips and she wasn¡¯t imagining it, it¡¯s actually.....


    ¡°B_b_blood??¡±


    Struck by the sight in front of her, she turned the tap on and washed the blood away from the sink, rinsing the inside of her mouth and sshing water multiple times over her face.


    She was already coughing blood?? How many days were left??


    Returning to her bedroom, she anxiously reached for her dressing table and picked the notepad resting on it. Flipping it open, she hadn¡¯t marked the date of yesterday and today, and if she did, today was meant to be the tenth day!


    ¡°Two days in Euphrasia is equivalent to a day in Viscarrian.¡± That means she¡¯s spent four days in total??


    Closing the notepad after marking the dates, her expression was obviously gloomy but she shook her head, not willing to let herself be depressed by the feeling. Instead, she took a deep breath and nodded in understanding, this was her fate and there was no use in hiding it.


    If the heavens really needed her soul then she¡¯d give it to them, besides, the heavens have a reason for doing anything and sooner orter, everyone will forget her existence and she wouldn¡¯t need anyone crying over her loss.


    Getting to her feet after convincing herself, she would rather rest to ease her exhaustion than bother about this.


    Hours slowly passed by in Viscarrian, days turned into night and Anna just found herself turning on the bed, unable to get any sleep as her eyes remained wide-open.


    She subconsciously heard different knocks on her door at different time but the hell! She just wanted to be left alone and so she ignored every one of them.


    Turning and flinging the duvet cover off her body, she sat upright on the bed with an unsatisfied expression disying on her face. Refusing to step out for the whole day since Ba already informed her that the males will be seperated from the females, she see¡¯s no reason to go out when knowing she wouldn¡¯t find Roshan anywhere.


    Sighing at the thought of it as her shoulders dropped, her eyes indubitably shifted to her wardrobe, changing her sad mood and something interesting popped in her head. She wasn¡¯t able to test all the dresses she bought in Ark Ville due to how little time they had to spend outside and since she had nothing else to do, she might as well use that to keep her boring self busy.


    Getting out of bed, she twirled to her wardrobe in a princess-like manner, opening it up and staring at the beautiful dresses she carefully arranged on each set, feeling somewhat proud by the beautiful dresses she has achieved so far.


    Since she was still unsure of her death day, she might as well test every set of clothing in her wardrobe, make the rest of her living worthwhile and maybe somehow, if luckily, get to experience the happiness with Roshan.


    Picking a dress from her wardrobe, she wasted no time undressing herself, flinging them to the bed and putting on the new dress she bought.


    She looked at herself in the dressing mirror and observed the lc-coloredce she wore, it had a heart-shaped neckline and the straight-cut skirt fitted it perfectly as it moved freely with every little move of her hips.


    cing her hand on her waist, she couldn¡¯t imagine what the maids would think if she wore something out like this to work. They¡¯d probably take her to be a sneaky thief cause no maid can afford something this expensive.


    Feeling satisfied with the times she enjoyed the dress, she switched to another one, testing and rocking each one of them in her bedroom without any hint of shame, anyone that looked princess-ish, she would mimic the personality of a princess, if it was a warrior or healer, she acted each one to herself.


    She was out of sight to everyone, giving her the opportunity to freely disy a bit of her madness.


    Going through her wardrobe to change again, her eyes caught sight of a red sexyce nightwear. She stared nkly at it before reaching to take it out of her wardrobe set.


    ¡°When did I buy this?¡± If she remembered correctly, thedy of that stall packaged just the right amount of dresses she bought. She doesn¡¯t remember purchasing something like this, could it be she added this by ident?


    ¡°And I can¡¯t give it back.¡± She muttered to herself, knowing she might not return to Ark Ville anytime soon.


    Well, this can also be considered good luck, the nightwear is actually very sexy, making her wonder what it¡¯d look like if she wore it instead.


    Smiling with a mischievous glint in her eyes, she undressed herself again and wore the nightdress. Looking at herself in the mirror, her eyes widened seeing how the outfit looked on her.


    It had a long V-shaped neckline that exposed some little flesh of her bosoms, along with her cleavages and like that wasn¡¯t enough, the redce covering her fleshy bosoms was a see-through.


    She can visibly see her womanly flesh from looking at the mirror and just below her bosoms was a small ribbon tied with a red strap, the length of the dress flowed to her thighs and luckily, there was a thin silk that hid what the length of thece could have revealed.


    Her smooth legs were exposed and Anna barely believed the sight of her own body, she never imagined she could look this sexy, in her entire life and with her hair down like this, it only added to her enthralling sight.


    Before she could react, there was a sudden knock on the door, startling Anna to her wits that she nearly jumped out of her own skin. No no she wanted to remain in her skin.


    Knock! Knock! Knock!


    ¡°Who is it?¡± She asked, wanting to know if it was safe to open the door or not, but then, the males have been moved from the corridor to the opposite side of the pce walls.


    Was it Ba?


    ¡°Is that you Ba?¡±


    She got no response but whoever it was kept knocking repeatedly. Strange, was it one of the demoness? Or could it possibly be Lady Odette?


    The knock came even louder this time and Anna was left with no choice but to grab the jacket of the dress and wrap it around her body.


    ¡°I¡¯ming.¡±


    Reaching for the door knob, she turned it open and popped her head out first, wanting to see who it was and to her shock-filled eyes, it was no one other than the cier.


    Obviously he was about to knock again but stopped mid-way the moment she opened the door. A foxy smile curved his lips after seeing the shock-stricken Anna stare with goggled eyes.


    ¡°Ro-I mean your highness!¡± The panic in her voice wasn¡¯t hidden despite her attempt, but it was toote to stop herself when staring at the pulchritudinous being in front of her.


    ¡°Why..why are you here?¡± Still keeping only her head out from the door while the rest of her body remained hidden inside, Roshan¡¯s right brow rose in confusion.


    ¡°Why am I here? Shouldn¡¯t you invite me in first?¡±


    ¡°No!¡± She stopped him from opening the door, leaving him baffled by her defensive act but seeing her actions might be misjudged, she tried to think of something else.


    ¡°My chamber is a mess at the moment and I wouldn¡¯t want to inconvenience his highness in my chamber Soo...¡±


    ¡°Not like it matters but that¡¯s not the issue anyway.¡± He didn¡¯t ponder over it.


    ¡°Why are you here then?¡±


    ¡°To get you.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°So we can go swimming.¡±

 Chapter 147

    147 The Underground Pool


    ¡°Swimming?¡±


    Anna blinked in surprise at his strange offer, ¡°your highness I....¡±


    ¡°Too formal.¡± His clipped tone stopped her mid-sentence, indicating she shouldn¡¯t use that word, most especially when they¡¯re alone like this.


    Apart from that, he has no interest in being part of the royalty, and secretly hates being addressed as one.


    Annalise awkwardly cleared her throat, noticing his not so pleased reaction and she instinctively kept her gaze lowered.


    She was flustered, no doubt and Roshan wasn¡¯t oblivious to it.


    ¡°Let me in.¡± He really had no interest in stepping inside her chambers in the first ce, he just wanted to steal a little piece of her time with a little swim, but seeing his annoying woman act so flustered for no particr reason, at least to his knowledge, he was curious about what she was carefully hiding from him.


    As expected, her eyes widened in dither at what didn¡¯t sound like a request, but an order,ing from the cier himself. Out of conscious will, she nearly backed away due to how authoritative his tone could be.


    ¡°But you can¡¯t...¡±


    .....


    ¡°One...¡±


    He didn¡¯t even count to three before pushing the door open, leading the flustered human to hide behind the door as her palms impulsively covered her face, silently wishing she could turn invisible or disappear from his presence.


    Anna didn¡¯t dare raise her head to look at him the moment he walked in, the sound of his boot as he surveyed her chamber made her heart race and each step mystifyingly electrified her trembling nerves.


    Roshan¡¯s mind had predicted one of his useless cousins to have invaded his mates room and he was already nning what coffin to buy the bastard if he found anyone inside, but fortunately for them, it was just his annoying woman, dressed in a....


    His eyes slightly widened after turning around to look at the frangible woman, hiding behind the door, but instead of acting shocked, his sinful lips curved to the side in a mischievous approach, sizing her up as he remembered this dress vividly.


    Anna wasn¡¯t even looking at him, but she could feel his burning gaze trace her from head to toe.


    ¡°I see..¡± his deep amused tone jolted Anna back to reality and when her hands mistakenly peeled from her eyes, she was staring at the cier whose dangerous eyes were fixed on her, except he was enjoying the flustered reaction he got from her.


    ¡°Was this the mess you created?¡± This wasn¡¯t just a mess, but a very hot one, because it had left his mind jumbled with all sorts of primal thoughts, a very thirsty one that nearly summoned his fangs, but he kept his control in check, unwilling to let himself break loose just like that.


    Anna was half tempted to chase the naughty demon out of her chambers, but recalling what happened at Euphrasia and the fact he¡¯s already touched her, she saw no need to drive him away, or maybe she should before he swallowed her whole at thest minute.


    Puzzledly, she noticed his gaze was fixed on a certain part of her body and she didn¡¯t dare to follow it, he was currently eating her up with those glinting eyes of his, it was enough to stimte her insides further.


    ¡°W_what are you staring at?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m proud of you,¡± he humorously responded, ¡°your breasts seemed to have gotten slightly bigger from the first time I saw you.¡±


    ¡°You pervert!¡± She hadpletely forgotten the jacket of her nightdress didn¡¯te with a strap, she foolishly got lost in his captivating gaze that she didn¡¯t realize she had fully exposed her nightdress to his demanding eyes.


    ¡°I had a feeling you bought this to seduce me, guess I was right, it looks....¡± His eyes greedily roved over her, from top to toe, then up again before meeting her gaze with a sexy, yet taunting smirk, ¡°...rather provocative on you.¡±


    Anna¡¯s face flushed at his genuine, yet dishyment, her heart fluttering like they were pretty butterflies dancing around them, ¡°I_ I didn¡¯t wear this for you, you¡¯re certainly mistaken on that little concept of yours.¡±


    ¡°The concept that every word of mine turns you on?¡±


    He took a step forward, leaving Anna to take one step back and she looked away from him, unwilling to let herself fall straight into his trap and get eaten mercilessly.


    ¡°You¡¯re delusional.¡± She denied.


    ¡°But you¡¯re already red,¡± he pointed out, ¡°I did say the color red suits your face, but I was mistaken,¡± he tsked, ¡°it doesn¡¯t suit your face, but the whole of you instead.¡±


    ¡®please stop talking.¡¯ she wanted to plead, she¡¯s never had a manpliment her to this extent and hearing theme from the indifferent Roshan only thrilled her nerves.


    Was it just her, or is the room starting to burn with something hot?


    ¡°Pardon but you aren¡¯t even supposed to be here, the males are separated from the females for three days straight, so you should leave before anyone sees you while I head to bed.¡±


    She wanted to escape from his sight and using thest act of escape she coulde up with, she tried to walk past him, only for her hand to be abruptly grabbed by him and he gently pulled her back, sliding his hand down until his long beautiful fingers wrapped her wrist.


    ¡°Where are you going? I did make mention of swimming, princess.¡±


    ¡°First it was a baby girl, then an annoying woman, now I¡¯m a princess.¡±


    ¡°I know, you happen to surprise me in the craziest way that I have a list of nicknames lined up for just you.¡±


    ¡°Leave my chamber¡¯s.¡±


    ¡°I own every chamber.¡±


    She seriously hated how he has suitable responses to her every word, and her stupid heart won¡¯t calm down, satisfying the cier cause she knew he could hear it.


    They can¡¯t do this anymore, he¡¯s meant to pick a mate within three days, she doesn¡¯t want to end up being the third wheel that ends up ruining the rtionship of two people.


    ¡°Roshan..¡±


    ¡°Still ying hard to get?¡± He tilted his head at her before releasing her grip, ¡°fine then, we¡¯ll do it your way.¡±


    Seeing as he backed out, Anna¡¯s suspicions grew, knowing he had something else nned, ¡°what do you mean?¡±


    ¡°My aunt is approaching your chambers and she should be here in the next two minutes.¡± He informed.


    ¡°What?!¡±


    ¡°Let me help youplete that, what will she think seeing us both here, in our night clothes, she can assume the worst of the night don¡¯t you think?¡± He inquired with a wicked smirk stering his face.


    She hadn¡¯t even realized it until now and truly, he was dressed in his royal ck robe and the straps were done to her relief, else she¡¯d be expecting a hypnotizing sight that¡¯d leave her redder than a ripened tomato.


    ¡°She can¡¯t see you here!¡± Anna panicked after noticing the gravity of their situation, knowing how big of trouble things could get if they were caught together, not just by anyone, butdy Odette!!


    ¡°Thene with me,¡± he cooly suggested, looking the opposite of Anna who was really panicking, ¡°let¡¯s go swimming, or do you want us to wait here and she barges in?¡±


    ¡°You..!!..¡±


    She cursed the being silently in her head, keeping her mouth shut as her head was the only safe ce she could kill him countlessly.


    ¡°Time is ticking.¡±


    ¡°Fine, swimming.¡± It was a hasty decision Anna had to make.


    A triumphant smile adorned his lips and he held her hand, only for the two of them to instantly vanish out of sight and like Roshan had predicted, Lady Odette barged into the room, but with Roseline by her side and the angry look on Lady Odette¡¯s face switched into bafflement.


    ¡°Where is she?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not here?¡± Even Roseline was taken aback, ¡°believe me Aunt, I swear I saw his highness walk in here.¡±


    Roseline tried to prove her point, but after seeing the chamber empty of their presence, she didn¡¯t want to believe that something like that was possible.


    ¡°Let it be Rose,¡± Lady Odette dropped the issue, ¡°your mind is probably ying tricks with you, Roshan can¡¯t possibly be interested in a simpleton.¡± She stated.


    ~


    When the whole blur that swept through Anna¡¯s vision gradually dissipated, she could feel her naked feet touching the smooth, cool sand.


    Regaining her sight properly, before her very eyes was a green forestry behind her, but there was no water around as the ce she happened to be drawn into was an underground cave.


    Surprisingly, they were standing outside the cave.


    ¡°Where is this ce?¡± She whispered after figuring her voice echoed through the walls of the cave, but Roshan only found her reaction adorably funny.


    ¡°Hmm, I think we need to explore deeper in order to find out.¡±


    ¡°Like an adventure?¡± Her eyes glistened with half curiosity but he didn¡¯t utter a word and just walked straight into the cave.


    Despite it being beautiful and peaceful where she stood, Anna couldn¡¯t possibly let herself be left alone and followed the cier into the cave.


    Trailing behind him, her legs were no longer touching the smooth sand the moment she walked in. The cave was mystifyingly bright with fireflieszily lingering about.


    She wanted to ask where exactly he was taking her to but just remained quiet and obediently followed.


    After a few minutes of walking, they stepped into an open area and in the middle of it was a huge pool, Anna¡¯s brown eyes widened in stupefaction at the sight of the pool in front of her.


    The pool was filled with gem-blue sparkling water that left a mesmerizing sight, as tiny strands of soft light bathed the top with its little sparkles, like a diamond blessed with inner fire. She¡¯s heard of how streams and rivers were the liquid soul of pure beauty, but this one was glowing.


    Many fireflies fizzed through the beams of the light, their wings, a glitter that looked so magical, Anna could hardly believe it.


    Was all this real?


    The air, so refreshing she let out a satisfying breath as she closed her eyes, not until she felt a certain someone standing behind her.


    ¡°Like what you see?¡±


    She nodded with a genuine smile, ¡°it went past my expectations.¡± Her face suddenly turned cautious as something clicked, ¡°but I don¡¯t know if my fear of water still haunts me.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t think about your fears Anna, just enjoy it.¡±


    Slowly, he reached and pulled the loose jacket of her nightdress off her body, exposing more of her skin to his greedy gaze and to Anna¡¯s shock, he snaked his hand around her waist and pulled her body against him, so close that she could feel her back pressed against his hard chest.


    He leaned in, dropping a soft kiss at the nape of her neck and his silky dark hair draped on her shoulders, tickling her skin.


    ¡°Ready?¡±

 Chapter 148

    148 Need*


    Sitting at the edge of the pool, Anna slowly dipped her feet into the water, creating a small wave that gradually expanded till it vanished. The turquoise-blue water felt cool to the touch, sending electrifying shivers coursing through her body and Roshan stood at the opposite side in silence, watching her trying to get ustomed to the feeling of water again.


    Liking the pleasant feeling of the cool water against her feet, her legs were no longer testing but ying with it as she caused several sshes by swinging her legs into the water, letting out a cute giggle, as though she was enjoying it.


    A relieved sigh silently left the cier¡¯s lips when her mood lightened. Azazel helped a lot in getting rid of that spirit, that probably helped with easing her fears of water too and his own heart fluttered seeing her happy. She looked no different from a little child who just got gifted a new y toy


    Standing on the opposite side, Anna lifted her gaze up to say something to him, only to see the devilish being was already loosening the straps of his robe.


    What stunned her more was how incredibly handsome he looked tonight. No doubt, Roshan was a very handsome young man with an ethereal beauty and she was sure he knew this very well.


    But she wasn¡¯tpletely spared, his hair was a mess on his head, in other words, it¡¯s always a mess when he had to take care of it himself, yet they added a bit of seductiveness as the twinkling lights in the underground pool flickered, radiating his features.


    She just wanted to curl her itchy fingers into the depth of his soft hair again and good Lord! When he lifted his gaze to meet her stare, those Hazel-green eyes! The lush lips. Majestic appearance.


    Looking this handsome should be a sin!


    Hearing her dreamy thoughts in his mind, Roshan couldn¡¯t hold back a sly smile and decided to add to the effect as he seductively ran his fingers through his hair, taking it back and a few long strands stubbornly returned to fall at his face.


    .....


    Anna pictured his side view clearly and her jaw almost dropped, those long darkshes she¡¯s been envying were looking so.....he looked ethereal!!


    Her eggs cried shamelessly, imagine having a child for such a man, they¡¯d be a blessing to the eyes of people.


    Gulp!


    Unlike her who just sat at the edge, staring, Roshan submerged into the pool after taking his robe off and flinging it to the corner of the cave.


    He swam towards her side and once he got there, he let his hand out for her, gesturing her to take it but the shy Anna anxiously nibbled her lower lip, feeling hesitant as many negative ideas popped in her head.


    ¡°Trust me, you¡¯ll be fine.¡± He assured her, most of all he was here with her, so she basically has nothing to worry about.


    Feeling at ease due to his words, she ced her hand in his and all of a sudden.


    *SPLASH!!*


    She was dragged into the pool. Annalise let out a short cry as she hadn¡¯t expected that and quickly brought her head out of the water, clinging to the cier and wrapping herself around him, her legs desperately wrapped around his waist while her hands found their way around his neck.


    He chuckled at how quick she was to seek shelter and Anna¡¯s heart raced wildly in her chest, both in excitement and in panic. That was quite frightening and fun at the same time as she wiped the water off her face.


    ¡°The water is harmless.¡± He assured her. On the contrary, she should be worried about him instead and what he ns on doing to her.


    She was already soaked after being dragged into the pool and feeling their heated bodies pressed against one another like this, only increased his stimuli. Her dress clung to her body like a second skin, desirably showing off her womanly curves and hugging him like this- skin to skin- only tortured the cier as her soft bossoms were undeniably felt against his chest.


    Anna slowly pulled back after recovering from that intense pull, feeling extremely heartened that Roshan was around for her to hold on to. She met his eyes and noticed something strange, something darker brewed in those irises, it burned rather, almost like an anticipation of the night that chipped the tension mounting in her chest.


    ¡°Your...Your eyes are burning.¡± Her voice was faint when she tried to speak, not until his hand reached to cup the side of her right cheek, slowly grazing his thumb over the corner of her lips as she sumbed willingly to his gentle touch.


    ¡°My eyes aren¡¯t the only thing burning Anna,¡± there was a note of mirth in his voice and everything went oddly quiet, like the moment of silence between lightning and thunder as no one refused to shift gazes, waiting to see who¡¯d initiate the first move.


    Before Anna could rethink her decision of not having this moment with him, his arms were around her, holding her in ce and she felt the rush of helplessness fill her from within, the sinking yield to surrender when he bent her head across his arm and kissed her softly.


    He felt the fire in there, the heat, they poured into him, he found her just as hungry for him, as he was for her. Unreserved fire and passion struck him and then with a swift gradation of intensity that made her shiver and cling to him like the only solid thing on Earth, his insistent mouth parted her shaking lips, his hot, wet tongue reached to open them up, sending wild tremors along her nerves and making her feel an unexinable sensations she never knew her body was capable of experiencing.


    When he pulled back to meet her gorgeous stare, Anna was the one who ced a hand upon his cheek this time, letting her fingers graze through the contour of his mouth.


    ¡°Roshan..¡± she wasn¡¯t even sure why she called his name, but she knew she needed something from him and the next minute, he crashed his lips hard against hers, stealing her breath and giving it back in a tititing manner that made Anna¡¯s head spin and her heart exploding into tiny specks of love dust.


    Her hands impulsively wrapped themselves around his neck, pulling him down on her and eliciting a soft, low groan from his throat. His demanding tongue plunged against her lips, tasting her, finding her tongue and intertwining it with his. His fingers buried itself into the back of her wet hair, grabbing a handful of it and keeping her head in ce while he devoured her non-stop, with no intention of backing away.


    Who needs air when they are both having a moment of their lives.


    Her fragile body melted impossibly against his, to the point he could feel her, he could feel the fullness of her, he felt the press of those firm, soft breast of hers against his chest as they were both driven by the feeling


    Need.


    The need to touch, the need to be touched, to savor, to take and give.


    Hunger surged within him and he delved the length of his tongue into her mouth, earning a pleasing sigh from Anna as her back was arched against the acrylic walls of the pool, the water sshing softly to their intimate moment and Anna shockingly found herself wanting more of it.

 Chapter 149

    149 All Of You*


    It wasn¡¯t supposed to be like this, this wasn¡¯t what going for a swim was supposed to feel like. However, she enjoyed it even more and didn¡¯t want it to stop. She felt like she was floating in a dream, a sweet fantasy dream that was so far from reality.


    This sinful pleasure he was making her crave, she was not the type who stood for it, but found herself loving it while being in his arms.


    Anna seriously ached, ever since he touched her there, she¡¯d been longing to feel his hands inside of her, or maybe feel something even more than that. She desperately strained her body against his, strained against his solid muscles after being blindly driven against the acrylic walls and having all of him pressed hard against her limber body.


    Tantalizingly, she felt his warm hands on her bare skin, she was still in the nightdress, but the touch of his hands that were like feathers against her trembling skin, sent another burst of heat heading straight to Anna¡¯s core and it ached as a small sound escaped her lips.


    Their pants and Anna¡¯s sweet moans echoed through the quiet cave and against the ssh of water that stopped directly at their waist.


    Roshan couldn¡¯t exin how much he enjoyed her reaction as his skillful hands slid underneath the hem of her nightdress, pulling it up so his itchy fingers could feel the softness of her warm skin. He stopped around her waist and teasingly reached to sought out the curve of her small waist with his thumb and index finger, moving upward to feel the arch of her ribs and so they continued their dangerous movement until those hands closed in on her breast.


    Another breathless gasp left Anna¡¯s lips after feeling where his hands had stopped and she met his gaze, there was a fervent need in his eyes as they burned with raw desire and the side of his lips curved into a sexy foxy smile, leaving the flushed woman in his arms to bite her lower lip in restraint.


    ¡°Don¡¯t hold it in,¡± he seductively whispered, ¡°it might be your first time, but you¡¯re driving me nuts.¡± He bit her earlobe, it was a little painful but the pleasure of it made Anna close her eyes to savor the moment, but everything seized when his working hands slowly massaged the soft flesh of her breast.


    A low whimper escaped her as he continued the stimting process till her nipples turned hard from it. Anna¡¯s fingers grabbed a handful of his hair as she jumped from the delicious torture of his hands on her womanly flesh.


    .....


    ¡°Ah! Roshan!¡± She moaned and cried out his name when his hands closed in further on her nipples, giving it a little pinch before proceeding to flick his thumb over the surface.


    Anna¡¯s legs squirmed underneath the water as he kept twiddling and kneading her lovely bosoms till she cried out from the insane pleasure racking through her nerves, to the point she felt something wet and hot roll down to her thighs.


    ¡°Hmm, I wonder what part of you isn¡¯t so sensitive to my touch.¡± His voice was like honey melting from theb as he whispered sexily into her twitching ears, it sent wild tingles sparking through every part of her and she trembled once more, hoping he doesn¡¯t say something that might make her insides ache painfully.


    He gave her another mind-blowing kiss, swallowing her moans and enjoying the feeling of her breast in his hands, enjoying how he made her squirm uncontrobly till she was calling out his name and whimpering pleadingly in his mouth.


    Anna writhed with an intensity that burnt like a steady me and she only managed to get herself back when he stopped.


    They were both panting when he released her from his breath stealing kisses, but the torture wasn¡¯t over just yet.


    His hands moved and rested on her waist, while he nted sweet, butterfly kisses from her jaw, down to the nape of her neck and licking the bite mark that was almost fading from her skin, already getting tempted to bite it once again and redo the mark.


    Seeing it fade caused a painful stab in his chest and his eyes roamed over it.


    He didn¡¯t want it to fade, he wanted it to remain there, as a warning sign to everyone who¡¯d dare to touch her in the future, making sure they know she belongs not just to anyone, but to him.


    ¡°Anna..¡± he began softly, ¡°I want to see all of you Anna.¡± His voice was almost pleading as he pulled back to meet her blurred stare, ¡°let me.¡±


    Staring into his dreamy eyes that were now filled with glistening passion, Anna knew there was no going back once she agreed. The fact he wanted to see -all of her- made her cheeks burn and she wasn¡¯t even aware of the fact that she had instinctively nodded her head in approval.


    Leaning in to drop kisses along her corbone and leaving a glistening track on it. Anna has expected him to use his hands and pull her nightdress off her body but instead, he used his teeth as he let the hand of her dress slide from her shoulder, down to arm, before reaching to do the same to the next.


    The moment he was done, Anna¡¯s bare bosoms were visible before his greedy eyes and a wicked smirk curved the side of his lips, leaving Anna to cover herself with her hands when his taunting gaze was making her burn.


    ¡°Stop staring at me...like that.¡± She muttered, feeling extremely shy since it¡¯s the first time she was opening her body to a man but she involuntarily gasped when his hands reached to tear her hands off her naked breast, trapping them against either sides of the wall.


    ¡°Why? I only stare when I tend to like what I see.¡± He responded.


    ¡°Liar! you always taunt me about..¡±


    ¡°I always taunt you cause I enjoy the reaction you make,¡± he leaned in, ¡°and if you want me to be honest, you¡¯ve always looked perfect before my eyes, regardless of what I say.¡±


    ¡°But...¡± the words left her lung when he leaned over to kiss the flesh of her breast, sending sparks of electricity straight to her core.


    ¡°Your breasts are one of my favorite parts in your body, they are cute and inviting. I¡¯ve always liked them moderate¡± He sucked tenderly at her flesh, leaving a breathless gasp to escape her lips and when he reached for her perked nipples, a cunning smile appeared.


    ¡°And your nipples, they are pink and hard for me.¡± He unexpectedly blew soft air into them, forcing Anna to try and break free from his hold and before her very eyes, she watched him im one of her nipples into his ferocious mouth.


    ¡°Ah!¡± The world seemed to stop in her head as he sucked and flicked his tongue over her hard nipples. Anna moaned out loud and tried to squirm free, but his hands were holding hers, trapped against the wall while he tortured her nipples with his mouth and tongue, not caring about the world.


    After having enough of the first one, he went for the other one and continued the same process until she was writhing against him. He loved everything about her and just hearing her moan for him sent blood rushing to his lower member.


    Never had Anna imagined that someday, someone¡¯s mouth would be on her nipples like this, and howe it felt so torturably good! Her blood pounded as they reached the aching in her thighs and she threw her head back when his mouth dealt with her nipple and his hand teasing the other nipple.


    Goodness!


    ¡°Roshan..!¡±


    He pulled back to meet her stare, sliding his hands over one curved hips and feeling the heat of her thighs in his hands. Anna jumped at his unexpected touch and felt her hips involuntarily lift themselves as his fingers touched the aching flesh in between her thighs.


    Her legs closed in action but he forcefully spread them apart with his fingers.


    ¡°Don¡¯t Anna, spread your legs for me.¡± He coaxed in a low tone.


    Using his other hand, he shifted thece away by pulling it down and out of her body, leaving it to sink to the depths of the pool. Her bare body waspletely visible before his hungry eyes and she lifted her hips to subconsciously assist him.


    He pulled her into his hardness, pressing it into her hips as he wrapped her weak legs around him.


    He groaned at the feeling, knowing this was way past his control. He wanted his hardness inside of her, he wanted to feel her tight walls clenching against his member.


    ¡°Guess we¡¯ll have to finish this in the bedroom.¡± He added with a sexy smile, making her aware of what he meant by mentioning the bedroom.

 Chapter 150

    150 An Orgasm**


    In the dimly lit chamber that belonged to Roshan, the candles set on the table crackled against the silence of the night, already melting halfway as the soft wistful breeze swayed its yellowish-orange light back and forth.


    Climbing up the bed while he stood at the foot of the bigfy mattress, Anna¡¯s eyes raked over the sexy cier as his hands reached to loosen the straps of his night breeches, pulling the straps free.


    Every lineament of his glistening body was clear as though the sculptor had taken an ample amount of time to get such a perfect image in his head.


    They were both soaked from the pool and their skins visibly flushed from their make-out session. Anna tried to be thoughtful and suggested they¡¯d dry up first, so they don¡¯t wet the bed but the impatient demon dismissed the idea, iming the bed would end up getting wet either way.


    ¡°If you keep staring like that, don¡¯t me me for pouncing on you.¡± He temptingly warned and Anna feebly averted her gaze, her cheeks blooming with the vibrant color of a red rose and her naked body was hidden under the duvet that covered her up to her chest.


    Roshan couldn¡¯t wait to get a taste of the lovely woman in his bed. Since the very first day heid eyes on her, despite all the hate he imed to have for her during those crucial times, she refused to get out of his head even when he tried.


    Instead of leaving, she invaded his mind further and pierced him deeply till his heart beat out of control, till their connection grew stronger.


    And now, she was in front of him, on his bed, looking more beautiful than a thousand pretty women put together.


    When he reached to pull his breeches down, Anna¡¯s hands instinctively flew to her eyes to his surprise, covering them as she¡¯s never seen what the lower member of a man looked like, but when she felt it against her earlier.....she knew he was big.....or so she thought.


    .....


    The color on her face spread to her ears and he noticed, giving him an idea of what was really happening to his annoying woman.


    His princess is shy.


    ¡°Open your eyes Anna.¡±


    She shook her head. She really thought she was ready for this, but when his hands proceeded to take his breeches off right before her gaze, her heart sped and a little feeling of anxiousness consumed her.


    Noticing her hesitancy, he didn¡¯t bother to take them off and instead of just shocking the life out of her with his manhood, just like the water, he was going to let her get ustomed to it, so she can be morefortable and y with it herself when she¡¯s ready.


    When they are both ready.


    Climbing up the bed, Anna, who thought he had gone stark naked in front of her stiffened in her position, still not daring to look at him and she could feel every part of the bed sink when he crawled upwards, only to hover above her.


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    He chuckled lightly as the sound of her heartbeat rapidly increased in his ear and he gently tore her hands off her face. Her big round eyes widened when she met his gentle stare and when her gaze dared to lower down, to her relief, he was still wearing his ck breeches that were obviously wet from the water, but with the straps loosened, that ¡®V¡¯ shape sign down there made her shiverpulsively.


    She lifted her head to meet his gaze and a low seductive chuckle escaped his chest.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re scared of the monster down there.¡± His enthralling deep voice teased, but Anna found them rather challenging, leaving her fingers to clutch tightly against the base of the duvet and she stubbornly denied.


    ¡°I¡¯m not, I¡¯m just not ready yet.¡± She low-key mumbled, but she saw no reason as to why she whispered it, cause he heard it regardless of how low she tried to sound.


    ¡°Ready for what? To see? Feel? Or y with it?¡± He asked, his fingers reaching to flick her limp hands off the duvet and she impulsively released it due to the quick sting.


    This demon!


    ¡°You..!!..mhhmmn!¡± He sealed her lips with his, shutting her up and ending the iing argument that would have spiraled between two of them.


    She moaned sweetly into the kiss, tasting him with equal reciprocation as her head lowered to the pillow. Their tongues fighting for dominance in each other¡¯s mouth and Anna had to admit that he was such a good kisser.


    In one swift movement, he flung the duvet off her body, leaving her bare before him but Anna was so lost in his sweet kisses and consumed by the heat of them to even realize this. The sound of their neverending kisses echoed in the quiet chamber, followed by the flickering of the candles and it was one of the best romantic sounds Anna has heard.


    Pulling back a bit from the woman whose eyes seemed to beg for more, his thumbzily drew circles around her hips, eliciting a soft gasp from her luscious mouth and then those working hands moved up her side to her ribs.


    ¡°You¡¯re so soft.¡± His voice half-cracked as he continued to inspect every line of her beautiful naked body, as though she was going to ruin him with how desirable she turned out to be. A primal urge to im herpletely roared in his mind and a low dark chuckle escaped him, apparently feeling crazy before lifting his sexy gaze to meet her vulnerable stare.


    ¡°I want to make you cry,¡± his fingers teasingly grazed her sternum, sending prickles of awakened fire burning at exactly where he touched. ¡°But.... when it starts to feel too good..¡±


    ¡°Roshan..¡± she instinctively rocked her hips against him after hearing him speak, feeling his manhood against her aching flesh and it only aroused her further.


    She wanted to be touched, she craved....she needed it, but he was torturing her by deliberately ying with her body to his satisfaction.


    ¡°Yes?¡± He responded like a cunning fox, waiting patiently for his prey to beg, just to be mercilessly feasted on. ¡°Do you want me to stop?¡±


    He walked his fingers down her sternum to her navel, before doing something she never imagined as he brought his mouth to her navel, kissing it slowly, unhurriedly before sticking out his tongue and rolling it tentatively into every corner of her navel.


    A soft uncontroble moan escaped her lips, but she bit her lower lip hard after that when he refused to end this delicious torture of his. Just feeling his tongue eat at her navel made her eyes roll to the back of their sockets and her back slowly arched with her legs spreading apart in response to his words.


    ¡°Should I stop?¡± He asked again, but Anna shook her head, begging him not to stop what he was doing but the wicked being pulled back, leaving Anna to cry out in displeasure.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t hear you.¡±


    ¡°I said don¡¯t stop.¡± She desperately yelled to her own embarrassment, meeting his stare and all of a sudden, his hands slid between her heated thighs and she cried out a half sob of pleasure when he touched her moist aching flesh, driving her into an iplete euphoria that made her head fall back to the pillow.


    ¡°You want my fingers in there?¡± He rubbed his thumb lightly against her opening, watching her every reaction as she squirmed underneath him. Her own fingers grabbed the bedsheet as she moved her hips against his hand, wanting to have them inside of her as her opening leaked with her juices.


    He smirked at the result before pressing his thumb deeper and it knocked the breath out of Anna, he didn¡¯t stop and continued to y with her opening till he parted them and flicked her swollen bud with his index finger.


    ¡°You¡¯re so beautiful down there, fortunately I¡¯m the only one capable of seeing just how wet you can get.¡±


    ¡°Roshan...¡± her voice was pleading this time around, it was throbbing badly down there and his actions were only making it worse. She wanted him in there, but he was making her suffer for it, making her beg as her hips moved themselves against him.


    He withdrew his fingers and stared at her opening with a fervent need. She was dripping and he wanted a taste of it, a taste of her in his mouth and when he met her gaze, Anna didn¡¯t need anyone to tell her she was done for.


    What ravaged her head was, ¡®what does he n on doing to me?¡¯


    Before she got a chance to retreat, he pulled her against him and spread her legs apart, resting himself in the middle and Anna watched with widened eyes as his mouth found her throbbing core.


    ¡°Ah!¡± She felt her insides explode into tiny fragments when he ced a kiss on her opening, starting off slowly, with a gentle rhythm before thrusting the length of his tongue into her.


    All Anna could feel at the moment was his touch, she could feel the irresistible heat that moved inside her, leaving her to arch her back in reaction as a desperate cry tore from her parted lips.


    How the hell was he doing this?? Was it even hygienic?? But then she was too speechless to say a thing, nearly mindless as his tongue f****d her hole.


    Her hands reached to grab a handful of his hair, unsure of whether to pull him in or push him away.


    She was breathless and almost losing it when his tongue rolled against her swollen bud, teasing it, tasting her leaking juice and savoring the moment as a guttural groan escaped him, vibrating her sensitive spot.


    Anna tried to close her legs, but he spread them wide apart and trapped them with his hands while eating her out like someone who had been starved for days. It didn¡¯t take too long before the mindless Anna spasmed before him, feeling her energy seep out along with her climax but he didn¡¯t stop and continuously devoured the woman who was now crying out in pleasure.


    Good Lord! How to make it stop before she ends up dying. Not from the meteor mark this time, but from intense pleasure.


    It wasn¡¯t after he made her climax for the second time did he release her and Anna¡¯s limp body dropped to the bed.


    He finally lifted to look at the exhausted woman who was still convulsing from the effect of her second climax and she weakly met his stare, her chest heaved, their breathing ragged and she felt sticky against the bedsheet.


    Anna barely knew how much time had passed, but she was staring at the ceiling now.


    Breathless.


    ¡°What in the heavens name was that?¡±


    ¡°An Orgasm.¡± He responded before lying next to her, ¡°when the body can¡¯t handle any more of the pleasure, it explodes like a storm, crackling through your fragile body like lightning. Did you enjoy it?¡±


    The warm kindling blood burned her cheeks in embarrassment and she turned the other way. She wasn¡¯t looking at him, but she could picture that dreamy smile on his lips, feeling his gaze heat her bare back.

 Chapter 151

    151 Past Normal


    Euphrasia....


    When the sun finally rose to the sky, Calista escorted her future mother-inw to the big golden gate with a smile on her glowing face, watching her step into the fancy colored carriage while her son nted a tender kiss on Calista¡¯s cheek, his way of bidding his fiancee goodbye for the day before stepping into the carriage that was behind his mother¡¯s carriage.


    Only after the carriage had left did the sweet smile on her pretty lips gradually fade, turning into one of visible gloominess as her shoulders dropped. Sighing deeply to herself and taking a deep breath, she turned around, heading back to the pce and dragging her feet through the foyer.


    ¡°You know, you¡¯re getting married to a very handsome, gentle and strong noble from one of the powerful kingdoms out there.¡± Came the sweet soprano voice of ady who spoke behind her.


    Turning around at the sound of the familiar, yet annoying voice, the gloominess on Calista¡¯s face turned into one of irritation, seeing thedy who actually spoke to her was no one other than her brother¡¯s new wife.


    Lady Yulia


    The young daughter of the famous Viscount living in White town.


    Her Auburn hair was cut short and she was dressed morously, always making herself stand before the crowd as three to four maidens escorted her.


    Standing before Calista in the foyer, her straight face finally warmed into a friendly gesture.


    .....


    ¡°Forgive my manners, greetings to youdy Calista.¡± She smiled, but Calista saw no reason to be friendly with someone she obviously didn¡¯t fancy in the pce and her demeanor remainedposed, neutral.


    ¡°And what is it to you?¡± Calista asked, still not sure why Lady Yulia who barely speaks with her in the pce, right from the moment she stepped in as her brother¡¯s wife, chose to start a conversation now.


    ¡°From the look on your face it is seemingly obvious that you have no interest in this marriage.¡± Lady Yulia feigned empathy before dismissing her maids, ¡°I found myself in your shoes before, well I used to be in them... that was until I met your brother.¡± She blushed a little, earning rolling eyes from Calista who was getting bored of the conversation and Yulia quickly recovered herself.


    ¡°What I¡¯m trying to say is, you¡¯re lucky to have someone like Archer and he¡¯s going to be the next Grand Duke of Prestine hills.¡± She leaned closer to whisper, ¡°I¡¯d say grab this opportunity, you shouldn¡¯t let someone who¡¯d hold a powerful position in the future slid past you.¡±


    ¡°Forgive me but I¡¯ll have to refuse.¡± Calista curtly turned her down, ¡°you know, hearing you speak I hope you didn¡¯t just marry my brother based on his status now, you aren¡¯t that senseless to probably have the same mentality as most women of our ss right?¡± She giggled lightly in between, as though she was trying to make it sound like a joke and falling for it, Lady Yulia joined her inughing.


    ¡°Not at all, I was just feeling concerned, you know,¡±dy Yulia switched tongue, ¡°after living a luxurious life it¡¯ll be difficult to settle with someone less, so I was just showing concern, based on the fact we¡¯re families now.¡±


    Calista nodded in understanding, pretending to believe where Lady Yulia was actuallying from.


    ¡°That is sweet of you, but unfortunately, I dream of marrying someone whom I genuinely love, Lady Yulia. I want to experience a love marriage and not a marriage of convenience.¡± She exined in case Yulia was still having selfish thoughts in her head, ¡°just like you and Adryan, your marriage is based on actual love right?¡±


    Lady Yulia chuckled at her quizzical remark, ¡°is there something like fake love, dear sister-inw?¡±


    Calista just smiled without responding, to be honest, she keeps seeing those blue eyes y in her head, but whoever it is still hasn¡¯t made himself known to her. She saw him behind the bushes while making it past Draekharm vige, and also saw him in Draekharm vige for the second time when she had to deal with Arlow.


    Could it be he stays in Draekharm? Will she see him again if she goes there?


    A sudden snap at her face broke Calista from her train of thoughts and Yulia was staring at her with a puzzled expression.


    ¡°Everything alright with you?¡±


    Calista¡¯s fragile heart raced at Yulia¡¯s question, she wanted to respond but didn¡¯t fully believe she was alright. She¡¯s been having this urge to run into the owner of those spellbinding, yet empty blue eyes that held no emotion.


    Maybe she¡¯s still troubled about not thanking him. That is probably the case.


    She¡¯ll visit Draekharm vige tomorrow and see if she can find him, so she can thank him for saving her the other day.


    ¡°Everything¡¯s finedy Yulia.¡±


    One of Calista¡¯s maids suddenly made her presence known and she bowed before the two princesses.


    ¡°Mdy, breakfast is being served at the dining, his highness requests both your presence in the dining hall.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Amelia, we¡¯ll be there shortly.¡±


    The maid left with a relieved smile after receiving Calista¡¯s warm response. Cascading every other thought away, the graceful Calista looked at Yulia with an inviting smile.


    ¡°Shall we?¡±


    ¡°I think we shall.¡±


    And they both left.


    ~


    Sitting on his throne made from dried bones and skulls, Luderick just finished draining the blood of another helpless being, sinking his fangs violently into his victims neck and sucking him dry until the struggling man who was in painful agony went limp in his hold.


    Tossing the useless body aside, Luderick could feel his powers growing stronger the more he kept sucking out the blood of innocent people.


    The color in his eyes were even turning redder by the minute, so red that the usually white spot in his eyes were also turning dark red.


    Freya, who stood at a corner with horrific eyes, watched as the Demon threw the 13th dead body into the rest of the pile of bodies he had drained dry in front of her.


    He held the paper that was handed to him earlier on with an envelope, staring at the words boldly written on it before a dark chuckle escaped his bloody mouth, echoing through the underground building and sending shivers running through Freya¡¯s nerve.


    ¡°How lovely,¡± he began, ¡°a family ball is being held, and no one bothered to invite me.¡± He tossed the paper away before slouching against his stone-made throne.


    ¡°Only my son hasn¡¯t discarded me from the family yet, he¡¯s such a fool.¡± Anotherughter left his chest as it tore from his lips, as though he found the situation to be extremely funny.


    Meanwhile, Freya was more concerned about Luderick going insane due to the fact he¡¯s been practicing way too much dark magic and drinking almost a hundred human blood a day, leaving her to get rid of the bodies and burying it outside the dungeon that was a graveyard.


    This was way past normal and he has made her do things she felt too ashamed to even say.


    Gathering enough courage, Freya dared herself to speak as she asked, ¡°my lord,¡± she didn¡¯t have the strength to meet his menacing gaze.


    ¡°ording to the family ball histories, won¡¯t his highness get to choose a mate at the end of it?¡±


    She¡¯s discussed something like this with a few maids in the pce back then and she was wondering why his highness Roshan would need a mate when Aveline was standing right in front of him.


    It¡¯s obvious his family doesn¡¯t approve of their rtionship, they never approved of it back then, so it¡¯s not possible they¡¯d approve of it now.


    ¡°Indeed you¡¯re right.¡± Luderick sounded more amused rather than aggravated by Freya¡¯s words, ¡°I even forgot about that.¡±


    He suddenly sat straight, he¡¯s been nning on attending the family ball after getting the note but knowing his nephew too well and what that imprudent scum is capable of doing, it¡¯s not in his ce to step into that pce and make it out alive.


    He was capable of dealing with everyone else in that kingdom, but Roshan was another mad man he couldn¡¯t possibly dare to crosspath with.


    At least not now.


    ¡°Get ready Freya.¡± He began in a serious tone this time around, ¡°on the main event day of the family ball, we¡¯ll be paying a visit to the human girl.¡±


    Freya¡¯s expression paled, knowing he was referring to no one else but Anna.


    ¡°You still need her blood?¡±


    ¡°Her blood is ten times more effective and sweeter than the blood of these filthy humans.¡± He eyed the corpse at the corner before rising to his feet.


    ¡°The main day will keep Roshan busy, leaving his little human by herself, and that¡¯s when we¡¯ll strike.¡± His eyes glinted darkly, speaking of the iing chaos that will surely happen if he gets his hands on the human girl. She¡¯spletely defenseless while being human and he¡¯ll watch her plead for mercy again.


    Freya gulped her dry saliva and realized her throat had dried up at the thought of what Luderick ns on using Anna¡¯s blood for.


    She has to inform his highness Roshan about this. She doesn¡¯t know how she ns on doing it but she has to see Roshan any way possible.


    Anna was kind enough to help her and she still owed it to her.


    Thinking about it now, she wonders if Roshan has seen the locket she left in Anna¡¯s old home, or if he has even gone there to be able to see it.


    She wasn¡¯t someone who fancied the heavens but right now, they needed to protect Anna from the hands of this evil man.


    Sitting back on his throne, a sinister smile curved his lips, ¡°I hope you enjoy a game of hide and seek, human.¡±

 Chapter 152

    152 Eerie Feelings Of Tomorrow Night


    Viscarrian....


    Standing in front of the wide dressing mirror, Anna stared at herself as she studied the in ck long sleeve cloth she was wearing.


    Roshan had made her wear one of his shirts and she had to admit that it looked really big on her. The length of his shirt alone was getting past her thighs, making her wonder exactly how different their height really was as she tilted her head to the side in curiosity.


    As if he just red her mind, the cier came to stand behind her, his hands habitually resting in his breeches pocket as he looked down on the woman who was almost hidden in his shirt, making her look cute and adorable that he had the urge to squeeze her in his arms like she was one of those soft toys.


    The sight of the handsome being standing right behind her made her heart triple beat almost at the same time, but it didn¡¯t stop and increased the pace when he rested his chin on her shoulder, his hazel-green eyes looking baby-ish and almost too innocent that she was tempted not to leave his side at all.


    Clearing her throat to calm her racing heart a bit, she began, ¡°do I really have to wear this?¡± Not that she didn¡¯t like it, it was cozily warm, shielding her from the morning cold and she could smell him from his shirt alone, but what if someone sees her wearing it while she sneaks back to her chambers, surely they¡¯d figure everything out, most especially Lady Odette.


    ¡°You can change into something else if you don¡¯t like it.¡± He added in that addicting deep voice of his, that only sounded deeper and more alluring when he woke up from sleep.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± She quickly cut him off, a light blush creeping onto her cheeks due to how fast she was to clear his judgment.


    ¡°I¡¯m just saying that today¡¯s going to be a very busy day, everyone should have been up by now, the decorations and preparations for the family ball must have begun already and I...I can¡¯t be seen outside like this.¡± She carefully pointed out, making him understand what she was trying to pinpoint here.


    .....


    ¡°You don¡¯t want everyone to discover we had a moment of pleasure?¡± He straight-out said what she had been trying not to say herself and the color on her cheeks blossomed even more, knowing he did it on purpose.


    A slow smile curved his lips after seeing her reaction and he nuzzled against her neck, sending sweet tingles through her veins to her heart that it made Anna feel she was floating with the clouds above.


    It felt as though he wanted to say something, and she wondered why she herself was anticipating something as well.


    Was he going to ask her to stay?


    Her heart leapt at the thought.


    And just like she had randomly guessed, Roshan didn¡¯t want her to leave just yet, he wanted to tell her that so badly but yet, he might as well be asking for too much. She was a big distraction to his mind and body and he has a lot of things to get busy with starting from today, and with the scroll, he needed a clear mind to be able to handle it.


    But then, the urge to cuddle against her warm self and enjoy howplete she made him feel was too tempting to let it get past him. He wanted to spend more time with her, he didn¡¯t want her to leave.


    She did this to him, she got him addicted.


    ¡°Is there something you want to say?¡± Her dulcet voice broke him from his thoughts and he moved away from her neck, shaking his head.


    ¡°No. If you can¡¯t sneak out, I can get you back to your chamber, if you¡¯re stable enough for it.¡±


    Anna pressed her lips together, feeling a bit disheartened that he doesn¡¯t wish for her to stay a bit longer, but she shook the uneasy feeling away, knowing they both had a lot to do today and wasting anymore time could lead to them getting caught.


    After convincing herself with those terms, she nodded with an understanding smile.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯m ready. I¡¯ll have to attend to one of the demoness this morning so I must leave.¡±


    Despite trying to sound alright, Roshan could send her hesitation and made her turn to look at him. Anna tilted her up, meeting his stare.


    ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡±


    She shook her head with a faint smile, ¡°nothing actually.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve spent too many times together for me to fall for that unconvincing word, tell me.¡±


    Hearing him speak so softly like he was genuinely concerned about what was going on through her mind, the faint smile on her lips faded and the worriedness he felt from her were now visible before him.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know why but...¡± she hesitated, ¡°I don¡¯t have a good feeling about this family ball happening tomorrow night.¡± She admitted.


    ¡°Why? What happened? Is it about me picking a mate?¡± He asked. If that was the case then he really has no interest in picking one of those women and never will. He was willing to convince her but to his surprise, it wasn¡¯t that.


    ¡°That¡¯s not the issue.¡± She shook her head in response, still obviously worried as her heart felt uneasy, ¡°I have this strange feeling that something bad is going to happen tomorrow night.¡± She admitted before lowering her gaze and pinching the skin in her palms.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know why but...¡± her voice was already trembling, she¡¯s never felt anything like this but somewhere, deep down, she could sense something appalling and she has a feeling that it¡¯s going to center around her.


    ¡°Anna.¡± He cupped her cheeks in his palm, lifting her face so she could look at him and when she eventually met his stare, they weren¡¯t filled with the iciness she always saw in them but they were warm andforting, easing her heart a little bit.


    ¡°Nothing will happen.¡± He assured her, ¡°If you still feel frightened during that day then I¡¯ll make sure to have Levi apany you, along with Gemma if it makes you feel any better.¡± Roshan barely had the slightest idea of how to console people, he never did but after lingering around this woman, he had learnt a few things on how to eventually console someone, most especially when they¡¯re genuine and it seems to have worked because she was smiling now.


    ¡°I¡¯d like that.¡± She nodded with a grateful gaze but never was she expecting to be kissed by him.


    It left her eyes open wide when she felt his soft, but cool lips pressed against hers. It wasn¡¯t harsh or rough likest night, it was gentle, almost like a sweet caress that sent her toes curling in reaction and she impulsively closed her eyes to savor the moment.


    Her eyes only fluttered open the moment he pulled back and to her surprise, she was back in her chambers, alone with Roshan nowhere at sight.


    He must have brought her back while they were kissing and vanished the moment he pulled away.


    Her heart felt like it¡¯d explode into tiny speckles if she didn¡¯t calm it but she was so happy that it discarded every uneasy feeling from her system.


    Taking a deep breath, she reminded herself that this wasn¡¯t the time to daydream, but to get ready before one of those demoness came knocking at her door.


    Adhering to her rmed thoughts, she had already taken a bath in Roshan¡¯s chamber and all she had to do now was to change.


    Rushing to her wardrobe, she brought out one of her in Coral-colored gowns and wore them. As expected, a knock came on her door no sooner than she was done dressing.


    ¡°Coming..¡± she hurried to go open it and it was Ba who stood at the front of her door, earning a smile and a beautiful, yet scornful gaze from Ba.


    ¡°You silly human, I¡¯ve been knocking on your door since yesterday, what happened to you?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry if I worried you, see I_¡± Anna was in the midst of exining things to her when Ba dropped a basket of clothes in her hands.


    ¡°You aren¡¯t forgiven just yet but unfortunately today¡¯s a busy day so I can¡¯t hear the full gist right now.¡±


    ¡°Whose clothes are this?¡± Anna proceeded to ask and Ba smiled, ¡°they are fordy Melrose, I just got them from theundress and since you¡¯re in charge of Melrose¡¯s chamber today, you have to hurry out now and attend to her incase she needs something.¡±


    ¡°Who are you attending to?¡±


    ¡°Lady Iris.¡± She was about to gist Anna about something before realizing they had work to do and her demeanor turned half-serious, ¡°don¡¯t make me talk Anna,e on before the head-maid gets here, you¡¯re lucky you haven¡¯t met her. She acts like the second woman in charge, now move it.¡±


    ¡°Yes ma¡¯am.¡± Anna giggled heartily at Ba¡¯s act of being bossy before exiting her room with the basket of clothes and heading up the stairs to finddy Melrose¡¯s chamber.

 Chapter 153

    153 Died For Love


    Getting to Melrose¡¯s chamber, Anna took a few seconds deep breath before raising her hand and knocking on the door. To her quick delight, she was granted ess to step into the chamber after hearing her e in¡¯ response.


    When she stepped in, another maid she wasn¡¯t quite familiar with was dressing thedy¡¯s hair, running the many fingers ofb into her hair before neatly pinning it to the back.


    Melrose¡¯s expression was rather calm as her attention was more on the maiden who fixed her hair up, but Anna didn¡¯t fail to grab the information from Ba that she can be quite hauteur when messed with.


    ¡°Good morningdy Melrose!¡± Anna greeted politely while dipping her head in a low bow.


    ¡°You¡¯rete.¡± Came Melrose¡¯s less offended and straight word as she wore pearls of bead bracelet on her wrists. Anna had already sensed it but before she got a chance toe up with an excuse, Melrose suddenly added, ¡°a maid already told me you weren¡¯t feeling well today, the fact you¡¯re human made me believe that so I¡¯ll let it slide, but do keep it in mind that I¡¯m not a fan of workers beingte.¡±


    She looked at Annalise through the ss mirror and saw the human still has her head in a polite low bow.


    ¡°Thank you for your mercy.¡± She heard her say.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°Annalise.¡±


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯ll call you Ann instead, long names tend to stress me out.¡± She returned her gaze to an opened book resting in front of her dressing table before flicking her wrist in Anna¡¯s direction.


    ¡°You can proceed with whatever is left for you to take care of.¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± Anna quickly dropped the basket by the side of the bed. Sitting on both knees on the cool marble tiled floor, she began to fold the dress, feeling relieved that the demoness she¡¯s currently attending to is rather smart and knows how to interact with people.


    It hadn¡¯t been too long Anna started before Melrose closed the book she was reading and darted a nce at the maid who was done with her hair, and was currently focused on the jewelry she had to put on her.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been working here for a long time right?¡± Melrose suddenly asked the maid who met her stare from the mirror and she nodded.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°How true is the rumor that his highness Roshan once had a mate?¡± Melrose wasn¡¯t the type who indulged in gossip like her sister Roseline, but since she¡¯s inevitably part of thedy¡¯s who might end up being chosen as Roshan¡¯s mate, she might as well know the history about his love life.


    Asking him directly when they eventually meet was a no go, she¡¯s heard how easy it is to get him irritated and that was thest thing she wanted for herself.


    Anna, whose full concentration was on the clothes she was folding, felt everything in her system automatically pause at Melrose fortuitous question. She didn¡¯t believe it was possible until the maid responded.


    ¡°It¡¯s not a rumor mdy, it is true.¡± The maid confirmed it with a whisper, ¡°but she passed away a long time ago.¡±


    ¡°What happened to her?¡±


    ¡°None of it actually happened in the pce but based on the story we heard, she died for love.¡±


    Anna¡¯s ears twitched at the new information and her heart drummed frantically in her chest, it was somehow funny to her that Melrose hadn¡¯t dismissed her yet from her chambers, either she didn¡¯t mind it, or she must assume she wasn¡¯t capable of hearing them.


    ¡°Died for love?¡± Just like Melrose, Anna waspletely taken aback by it but since she had her back against Melrose, her expression was fortunately hidden.


    ¡°What exactly happened?¡±


    The maid shook her head sadly before speaking, ¡°his highness didn¡¯t get to live afortable royal life in the pce, like his older brother Azazel. I wasn¡¯t here during his childhood but I heard he suffered immensely in the hands of not just his father, but sir Luderick as well.¡± The maid didn¡¯t hesitate to tell the gist, ¡°not a day would pass when his highness didn¡¯t get a scar on his body and he would always confine himself in the darkness of his chambers, which has turned into a habit now.¡±


    As the maiden spoke with a pityced in her tone, Annalise could recall the memories she had visioned of him, locking himself in his dark chamber, sobbing silently with fear until his powers gets out of control and then he¡¯d fall into an ufortable slumber when his eyes could no longer stay open.


    Weak, alone to the point she felt his loneliness in those memories.


    ¡°His highness left the kingdom some years ago without any announcements, but ording to Luderick, he was the one who gave his highness the freedom to go look for his mother.¡±


    ¡°What a liar.¡± Anna half mumbled in disgust while folding the clothes. That evil man knew that if the people figured out a young teenage demon escaped his grip, it would be a shameful embarrassment to his face.


    At this point, Anna was no longer concentrated on the clothes she was folding, her mind, body and soul was on the story the maiden kept telling.


    ¡°It was during his journey his highness ran into his mate, I can¡¯t recall her name but she helped him locate the vige his mother once stayed in and that was Euphrasia.¡± The maiden added while Melrose listened attentively, ¡°I never saw her, but I heard she was a very beautiful and brave demoness who yed many awful Demons, using a sword gifted to her by some powerful priest.¡±


    ¡°The two of them were very much in love based on what I heard but despite being away from the pce, his problems never left him and many obstacles separated them until one certain day when she did something that went against her duty of holding the sword and the heavens struck.¡±


    A breathless gasp left Anna¡¯s lips after hearing the maiden speak and the hairs on her skin stood at attention, sending prickles of fear running through her veins to her heart.


    ¡°The sword that was gifted to her was a valerian sword, a sword only she was capable of controlling but I¡¯m not sure how the rumors went but, it was said that she abused the power of the sword and instead of controlling the sword, the power of the sword controlled her and it led to the deaths of people.¡±


    The more the made spoke, the more Anna could feel the terror, as though she could picture the scene in her head and that¡¯s when it struck.


    ¡®that dream.¡¯ Her eyes horrifically widened at the recollection of the dream she had in Ark Ville, the dream where she saw herself killing several people with a sword and it made her headache, her heart racing in her chest like it had a goal of escaping her chest.


    ¡°She killed a lot of people,¡± the maid continued as she wore Melrose¡¯s ne for her, ¡°....leading the heavens to stop her themselves since she was a powerful demoness, but when his highness tried to stop her himself, she stabbed herself instead with the de after realizing what she did to the innocent people, unable to deal with the guilt.¡±


    The maiden shook her head in pity, ¡°It was said that if she hadn¡¯t stabbed herself, she would have killed his highness. It was a decision that concerned life and death, she had to choose between taking her own life, or that of his highness, but her love for him didn¡¯t let her get tempted by the sword and so she took hers, that¡¯s why it¡¯s said that she died for love.¡±


    ¡°Wow.¡± Melrose found it difficult to believe such a thing really happened, that the secret rumors were actually true and for the first time, she felt touched. ¡°What happened to his highness after that?¡±


    ¡°His highness lost it, he was shattered by her death and the fact she died to save him. It negatively affected him as well as his mentality, that¡¯s why he can¡¯t remember it, he lost every memory that was associated with her. His mother and sister got killed after that, from then on, he became the cold, heartless, merciless being that we all see him as today.¡±


    Anna hadn¡¯t even realized it but when she felt something wet roll from her eyes down to her cheeks, she reached to touch it and saw it was her tears.


    She was crying!


    Only then did she realize her heart was aching terribly, she felt cold for some reason and couldn¡¯t exin why all of this was even happening to her. All this deja Vu and unexinable recognition that shows up in her dream. It was driving her crazy, most especially after listening to the story that matches her dream.


    Why do they only appear to her??


    ¡°And you really don¡¯t know the name of his mate??¡± Melrose wasn¡¯t sure why, but she was interested in knowing the name of thisdy that happened to capture the heart of Roshan.


    ¡°I can¡¯t remember but I think....I think her name was Aveline.¡±

 Chapter 154

    154 Missing Bell


    Melrose found herself pondering on the name and she pressed her lips tightly together, unsure of why the history of Roshan¡¯s love life was somehow bothersome, yet so touching.


    On the other hand, Anna had frozen against her spot after hearing Aveline¡¯s name being mentioned and she instinctively got to her feet, looking like someone who just got shot with a bullet and her head was currently spinning in circles.


    Aveline??


    Aveline was Roshan¡¯s mate??


    How is that... all those dreams she¡¯s been having, the dream about thedy with a sword who looked just like her, the strange man who called her Aveline, all those feelings of deja Vu that won¡¯t leave her.


    It wasn¡¯t supposed to make sense, but it suddenly did.


    When Roshan red the Grimoire to her in Ark Ville, it said something about her soul leaving the limbo, thus, leading to her quick rebirth but in order to be reborned, surely one must have lived before and died, right?


    As unbelievable as it was, could it.... could it be she was.... Aveline?? Was this why the old physician told her about the forbidden temple back in Euphrasia??


    A sudden chill shocked her spirit like the vibration of a bell, and her heart jumped in her chest after hearing a voice speak behind her.


    .....


    ¡°Is everything alright?¡± Askeddy Melrose in a calm tone, who had seen Anna get to her feet from the mirror, she assumed the shock-stricken Anna must have spotted something under the bed.


    Immediately, Anna schooled her expression before turning around to look at Melrose who was still waiting for her response.


    ¡°N_no, it¡¯s nothing. I identally poked a finger into my eye and just felt the need to stand up properly.¡± She came up with another lie and Melrose believed it, noticing her eyes were visibly filled to the brim with tears, and they looked somewhat red.


    She must have poked herself really hard then.


    ¡°You should probably go take care of that, I don¡¯t need a one-eyed maid in my chamber, wash your face ande back when you feel better, she¡¯ll carry on from where you stopped.¡±


    Melrose got to her feet after signaling to the maid who attended to her hair and jewelry to get her bed ready. Anna gratefully bowed her head before leaving the chambers and she didn¡¯t even realize how she needed to be out of there until now.


    Hurrying through the busy corridor that was being decorated with lights, chandeliers, as well as flowers, Anna made sure to hide her face while walking past. She wasn¡¯t ready to be questioned about why her eyes were watery when deep down, she felt like her heart was being stabbed.


    Getting to her chambers sessfully, Anna quickly closed the door behind her, leaning her back against it and sinking to the ground as the tears flowed freely from her eyes down to her cheeks, looking unsure of why she felt like this.


    When the maid told the story, she felt strange, as though the maid was indirectly talking about her and every pain the maid mention of, Anna could feel it sting her heart, like she was the actual person in pain and the stab, it all felt too familiar, like she was the one who got stabbed and none of it was making any sense right now.


    She closed her eyes to recollect herself, brushing her fingers into her hair cause it felt like she was going to go crazy with the way her head was spinning. She felt oddly cold and her hands were icy and mmy as death when they came in contact with the skin on her face.


    What was happening??


    Was she Aveline?? Why can¡¯t she remember her past life?


    Thatdy that always showed up before her, thedy that looked exactly like her, where was she??


    Annalise was never really bothered about the idea of Roshan having a mate or if he didn¡¯t back then, but hearing Aveline¡¯s name being mentioned and the puzzles fixing themselves, it made her heart drum in anticipation and she wasn¡¯t liking it.


    Who is Aveline?


    ~


    Letitia¡¯s chamber.....


    ¡°Where did it go?¡± Letitia searched her drawers with an anxious look on her face, obviously worried about something as she opened all the books on her dressing table, flipping through the pages and looking for something, only to be left disappointed when it wasn¡¯t there.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure I kept it here, where did it go?¡± She hissed, already getting frustrated as the sight of one bell was nowhere to be seen. She had kept all six in the cupboard of her dressing table and now, she can¡¯t find one of those bells tied with a red knot.


    ¡°I need to return those bells back, where could thest one be?¡±


    At that moment, Gemma slowly walked in while carrying that guilty innocent look on her face, standing before her Aunt who was seriously searching for something and not looking her way.


    ¡°Not now Gemma dear, Aunt is very busy.¡± Letitia already knew Gemma was here to disturb her with her childish antics but unfortunately, she¡¯s got no patience for that right now.


    Despite telling it to her, Gemma still refused to leave and when Letitia saw her little niece was making no effort to leave, she turned around to look at her.


    ¡°What is it Gem_¡± she paused after seeing the little one lower her head guiltily, her big hazel eyes focused on her shoes as she drew circles on the tiled floor with her feet.


    ¡°I know that look youngdy, what mischievous thing did you do this time?¡± Letitia questioned, her arms folded with her gaze strict, wondering if Gemma had ruined the decorations outside or broken a window somewhere, but shockingly, it was none of those options as Gemma stretched her hand forward, opening her palm and revealing the bell that was resting on it.


    ¡°This child!¡± Letitia felt her heart in her throat after seeing the bell she was looking for in Gemma¡¯s little hand. Her face paled and she wasted no time taking it from her grip.


    Gemma¡¯s head remained low, she knew her Aunt was ring at her and that was the expression she didn¡¯t have the courage to see.


    ¡°Why did you take this? Do you have any idea what it is you were holding?? When did you start learning to take things that aren¡¯t yours?¡± She scolded the child who trembled a little at her harsh tone, but she was familiar with it, knowing how her Aunt gets when offended.


    She really was sorry for taking it, but had no idea how to say it and just kept her head bowed.


    ¡°Did it ring?¡± Letitia questioned further, and to her relief, Gemma truthfully shook her head, indicating it didn¡¯t and that brought Letitia¡¯s rmed expression to a normal re and she returned the bell back to her cupboard.


    ¡°Next time, don¡¯t take things without seeking permission from the owners first, you need to understand that what you hold may be threatening to your life and you shouldn¡¯t go around taking things because they are pretty and shiny, am I making myself clear?¡±


    Gemma nodded in response, wanting to show how sorry she was cause she never expected her Aunt to get this upset, but instead, her Aunt dismissed her from her chamber, leaving Gemma¡¯s expression to somber as she quietly left, obviously saddened by the scolding she just got from her Aunt and she ran to her chambers, holding back her tears.


    When Gemma had left, Letitia stared at the death bell she had safely returned to her cupboard and nothing could exin how relieved she was to hear it didn¡¯t ring in the hands of her little niece.


    If it did, then nothing could have stopped the consequences that came with the ringing of a death bell.


    She has to return them back to their rightful ce before it gets into the hands of anyone again.

 Chapter 155

    155 Not The Words


    {Music Rmendation; Memories by BrunuhVille}


    ***************


    ¡°Roshan my man, you¡¯ve been sitting here staring at that paper all day, let¡¯s go blood hunting for a while.¡± One of his distant rtives, ke, suggested after taking a seat beside the cier who lit up a candle.


    ¡°Or do you prefer soul hunting?¡±


    Roshanzily darted a nce at the young man whose eyes glowed like blue coals, his red hair was short and shaggy on his head as he shed a signature smirk at the cier. He was giving off that bad boy vibe that Roshan never trusted.


    ¡°Using the family ball as an opportunity to feast for blood, aren¡¯t you?¡± He hummed a question that made ke snort through his nose, he re-adjusted his coat as he turned sideways, away from Roshan¡¯s knowing stare.


    ¡°You and I know we¡¯re getting absolutely nothing out of this family ball, besides, you and Grayson are at it again.¡± He neutrally pointed before clicking his tongue, ¡°thedy¡¯s will be on their best behavior since you¡¯re going to pick a mate and I¡¯m just waiting for the drama that¡¯ll ur.¡±


    Roshan didn¡¯t respond to his monotonous words, but a slow revealing smile curved the corner of his lips as he returned his gaze back to the Grimoire on his table.


    ke wasn¡¯t as close to him as Azazel and Levi were, but neither did they despise one another. ke was more of a free person and he was someone who enjoyed going against the rules, something they both shared a great familiarity with.


    .....


    Apart from that, ke was more of a wild demon, even when his parents trashed him for being rough and saw him as good-for-nothing, he remained dedicated to his duty as a warrior of Viscarrian, but kept drinking and partying to emotionally stabilize his mind till he finds himself in bed with some seductress he always, ¡®identally¡¯ picks up on his way home.


    They only started conversing when he saved the wild Demon from being punished by thunder, and they¡¯ve kept their rtionship neutral.


    Yeah, you can say most of their lives are very much messed up when born as a demon.


    But you learn to live with it, and get ustomed to the tragic part of your life till you no longer view it that way.


    ¡°Hey, what are you doing anyway?¡± ke finally leaned in to steal a peek at the scroll the cier was currently focused on and Roshan just sighed in response, obviously tired as he rxed morefortably on the chair.


    ¡°I¡¯m in the middle of something.¡±


    ¡°If it doesn¡¯t concern the kingdom¡¯s affair, Gravion would be getting your ass whipped since Luderick is no longer avable to do it.¡± He tauntingly whispered. His smile broadened to the point his fangs were visible to the cier¡¯s gaze, but Roshan didn¡¯t fully give him a listening ear as he brought the burning candle forward to the scroll.


    ¡°Tryna burn the paper or something?¡± He questioned with a quizzical look this time, seeing Roshan lower the candle to an empty unwritten space in the Grimoire.


    ¡°Something like that.¡± He subtly responded as he moved the candles gently at the empty space, being extra careful not to burn the paper but also making sure the heat from the me was felt on the empty space.


    ke¡¯s couldn¡¯t hide his concern seeing how drained Roshan looked, he¡¯s been frustratingly busy ever since he stepped out of his chambers, he had to meet with one of thedy¡¯s this morning, then indulged himself in some sword practices, and other practices that tested his demonic skills, harmful practices and he was only given a break for just few minutes.


    Obviously the demon needed rest but here he is, dealing with some scroll that he himself doesn¡¯t understand.


    ¡°What¡¯s so special about this scroll that you can¡¯t leave it for another day, get some rest.¡± ke began, hoping to sway the cier into getting some rest, but the stubborn being just continued with what he did, not minding the words of ke, as though he didn¡¯t hear it.


    ¡°Hey.¡±


    ¡°Shut up and don¡¯t interrupt me, you sound like my mother right now.¡± Roshan¡¯s deadpan response rendered the red-haired demon mute. He was starting to wonder why he even spoke up cause it finally urred to him that there was nothing that could convince the hotheaded half devil sitting beside him, as long as his mind was already made up.


    Roshan, whose attention was focused on heating the paper, watched with hopeful eyes as the empty space slowly began to show a light-brown color, surprising ke who wasn¡¯t expecting a result like that.


    The color was faint, barely visible but as he patiently continued, those colors became clearer, and clearer until he realized that those colors were actually written words and a half look of triumph shed in his eyes.


    He was right, the words were hidden! What he was seeing now has to be the solution to getting rid of that mark.


    ke¡¯s eyes slightly widened after seeing the magic his cousin was currently doing. Hidden words in a paper?? How¡¯s that even possible? He was somehow amazed and finally understood why the cier was so focused on it.


    When Roshan was done, he blew out the mes from the candle and set it aside on the table before dusting the paper to get rid of what looked like ashes.


    ¡°Is this some secret message to a hidden chest or something?¡±


    ¡°Obviously not.¡±


    When ke cut his eyes back to the cier who was smiling as though he won some trophy or defeated a rival, he just shook his head, unsure of whenst he saw such a pure smile disy on the young man¡¯s face. He looked like he just finished figuring out all theplexities that were bothering him.


    Based on his reaction, ke was more than curious to read what wasbeled on the scroll, but felt he¡¯d be trespassing into something that doesn¡¯t concern him.


    ¡°Did the words really mean that much to you?¡±


    ¡°Not the words ke,¡± Roshan disagreed, still keeping that bewitching smile that was enough to leave one daydreaming, ke¡¯s could bet he doesn¡¯t even have a clue how striking his smile looked right now, ¡°the words mean nothing to me, but they do to a certain someone.¡±


    ke blinked in puzzlement, ¡°what?¡±


    ¡°Forget it, you won¡¯t understand.¡± He finished reading it and scrolled it back up. If this was the only way to keep Anna alive, then he doesn¡¯t mind taking this step to save her. He would fulfill his promise, no matter what.


    Getting to his feet, he stepped out of his chambers.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡± ke facepalmed, that demon keeps ignoring the fact he has to rest, he won¡¯t get this opportunity if Gravion and the higher Demons send for him again.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± He went after him.

 Chapter 156

    156 Saved


    After being given the chance to regain herself, Anna was able to push that thought out of her mind as she wiped her face clean with a towel, stepping out of the bathroom and standing before her dressing mirror.


    She looked at her face in the ss mirror and that strange feeling returned. The more she stared at her face, the more the thoughts of Aveline kept reeling in her head and she closed her eyes, exhaling softly to ease her tensed body before opening her eyes again.


    ¡°This isplicated.¡± She breathed out as she tried to make sense of the situation.


    Okay, let¡¯s say she was Aveline, theoretically, if she was, why did Levi and Azazel keep mute if they recognized her all this time?? Not just the two of them, but his family in particr.


    No one said a thing to her about who Aveline was and despite being known that she was a reborned mate of Roshan, no one said a thing and ignored the meaning of her return.


    Not that she was aware of why her soul left the limbo in the first ce but if Azazel was in charge of the limbo, then there¡¯s no doubt he knew everything right from the beginning, and it only started to hurt that he kept it from her and Roshan.


    But why is he hiding it? He even told her to keep shut about Aveline the day Roshan passed out the moment he kissed her, and he called her Aveline too.


    Not once, but twice!


    Why??


    .....


    If Roshan can¡¯t recall his past, it¡¯s obvious he still feels Aveline¡¯s presence, even without his memory and if her death really affected him to the point he lost the memory¡¯s associated with her past life, how can she die again, knowing fully well that he won¡¯t be affected this time around, or maybe even worse.


    Anna felt conflicted as the thought suddenly hit her, her fingers dug into the folds of the towel and she couldn¡¯t push aside the feeling that something terrible will happen, she felt a storm brewing but was unaware of what to expect from that storm. All of this is pretty much unusual to her, but it couldn¡¯t mean she was a demon in this life as well, right??


    Her lips tilted down when she cracked her brain, her eyes squinting into contemtion as though she was getting to something and that¡¯s when her gaze returned to the mirror.


    Staring at herself, she took a step back and demonstrated with her hands on how the force left her palm in Ark Ville, pushing her hand forward.


    She still remembered vividly how that strange energy shot through her palm like a quick bolt, unintentionally hitting that assassin to the point she couldn¡¯t help but cringe at the sudden recollection. She hoped he was fine though.


    Shaking that part of the scene away from her head before she feels more remorseful, she stretched her right arm forward to see if the same energy would shoot out from her palm but to her disappointment, it didn¡¯t.


    Inwardly convincing herself to try again, she stretched her hand before the mirror but nothing happened, making her face frown in displeasure and now, it was making her question if that force even happened or if it was a figment of her imagination.


    Maybe she should find Azazel first, if she really was Aveline, then he¡¯s the only one capable of telling her that and he¡¯s going to have to tell it to her face.


    A look of determination glinted in her eyes and she stepped out of her room. The males have been divided from the females which meant they stayed at the opposite side of the corridors, but how will she be able to locate Azazel¡¯s chamber without stepping into the wrong one??


    Well, however it goes, she has to find Azazel so he can tell her the truth about her past life.


    Going down the stairs till she made it to the downstairs hallway, it was looking extremely splendid with the decorations, but Anna had no time to admire as her aim was making it to Azazel¡¯s chamber.


    Going up the second stairs in a hurry, her footwear slipped from her feet, falling to the ground and when Anna turned around to go get it, someone got it before her, but before she got a chance to thank the person, she watched her slipper¡¯s get thrown into the courtyard, leaving her dumbstruck and she met the cunning stare of Roseline.


    ¡°Oops, I guess my hands slipped.¡±


    Seeing it was no one else butdy Roseline, Anna couldn¡¯t retaliate. If it was actually one of these maidens, then someone would have gotten a hot p for throwing her favorite shoe like that, most especially when she¡¯s not in the mood to get picked on.


    Already aware of the fact she might get insultive if she opened her mouth, Anna wisely remained quiet and just hopped on one leg, going to the courtyard where Roseline had thrown it to get her shoe.


    The maidens working couldn¡¯t hold back their snickers andughter as they watched her go.


    Unknown to Annalise, Roseline wasn¡¯t done with her just yet as she followed the hopping Anna to the courtyard. With the intention of disgracing her even more, she broke a few yed pots filled with flowers on Anna¡¯s path, forcing her toe to a stop and she met Roseline¡¯s stare, obviously stricken by it and silently asking what that act was all about?


    ¡°Go on, get your shoe.¡±


    Seeing the sharp shards of broken y pots, Anna knew if she ends up stepping on those broken y pots, she might as well be preparing some herbs to clean the injuries she would sustain from them.


    Dropping her second feet to the ground, she doesn¡¯t mind stepping on a little dirt to reach her shoe. She¡¯d wash her legs once she got to her chambers.


    At this point, all the maidens were peeping to see the drama Lady Roseline had caused and the rest of the demoness stood at the top of the stairs, watching the scene and already concluding on how she intends to suffer the innocent maid.


    ¡°Rose can never change,¡± Melrose added with pity, ¡°who knows what the innocent maid did to her this time around.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re worried about the maid?¡± Lady Iris giggled softly before looking below, ¡°she¡¯s just a maid anyway, be quiet and watch the drama instead.¡±


    Meanwhile, at the courtyard, Roseline was very much aware of the eyes on them, making her smile in half triumph because this was what she wanted, to embarrass the human maid.


    This maiden dared to make out with her future mate! The fact she had seen his highness go into her room only proves that.


    She¡¯d teach her a very good lesson that when she hears the name Roseline, she¡¯ll shiver in fear.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Roseline asked after seeing the maid walk with both her feet through the dirt, the dirt she had been nning to avoid stepping on.


    ¡°No more hop hop, miss froggy.¡± She mocked, but seeing as Anna was barely affected by her words and ignoring her constantly, it made her insides boil and before Anna knew it, she was being pushed.


    ¡°You need to listen when I¡¯m talking to you! You shameless slut!¡±


    ¡°Ah!¡± Anna instantly lost her bnce, and to her greatest horror, there was a piece of broken y in front of her, one capable of causing her serious damage if she fell on it, except, it wasn¡¯t her body that aimed for it, but her face as she kept falling and when she closed her eyes, expecting the stinging, agonizing pain that¡¯d follow her fall to the ground,


    Someone instantly grabbed her wrist at the nick of time, saving her from the fall and pulling her back in such a swift manner that he effortlessly picked her from the ground into his arms.


    Anna, whose eyes were tightly sealed shut, anticipating the terrible pain, felt herself being pulled into the arms of someone and when she tore her shaky palms from her face, wondering who had saved her. She looked up to find herself staring into the hazel-green eyes of a certain cier.


    Her heart skipped a beat.

 Chapter 157

    157 Do You Like Me?


    If Roshan had to be honest, the pce wasn¡¯t even meant to be his destination. He had training to handle outside the pce but was tempted to steal a peek at that annoying woman¡¯s face before he leaves, cause he won¡¯t possibly see her until when he returns tonight.


    But little did he know that his choice would end up saving his woman from a dangerous fall, witnessing how she was maltreated by one of the demoness he was meant to pick as a mate and the look in his eyes darkened.


    Anna on the other hand, stared at Roshan in a daze, a bit shocked and surprised to find him lingering in the pce, but he wasn¡¯t looking at her, his gaze was fixated on the woman who dared to hurt her in the first ce.


    Several gasps could be heard from the background as no one expected Roshan to show up, most especially Roseline whose face had paled, making her look no different from a ghost.


    Wasn¡¯t his highness meant to be in training? What is he doing here???


    Roseline was very much aware of the death rays beaming in her direction. Swallowing her inexistent saliva, she reced her nervousness with a smile.


    ¡°Uhm... Roshan...I mean your highness...this girl actually....¡± She wasn¡¯t even given the chance to exin herself when Roshan rudely turned his back against her, obviously not interested in her hearing her silly excuse cause he witnessed it all himself.


    With Anna protectively secured in his arm, the cier slowly bent to pick up her shoe for her, and when Annalise wanted to retaliate and stop him from doing it, his deepmanding tone made her freeze against him.


    ¡°Be still.¡±


    .....


    Anna couldn¡¯t help but blink in puzzlement, from his icy tone alone, she could detect he was bottling up his rage, but was he mad at her, or thedy Roseline?


    And knowing how Roshan gets when upset, Anna obediently listened and just held on to him like he wanted her to.


    He picked her shoe from the ground and ignoring everyone else around as though they weren¡¯t even there, he took Annalise out of the courtyard and up the stairs, in his arms, in front of the maids and demoness whose mouths were left hanging agape.


    Roseline couldn¡¯t believe the scene in front of her, she was so close to getting her revenge on that woman, but once again, Roshan stepped in to save her, andpletely ignored her presence like she was a pile of trash he couldn¡¯t bear to look at.


    All for a maid???


    Her hands balled into fist and she instinctively yelled at Roshan who was taking thedy up the stairs, pointing a finger at them.


    ¡°You can¡¯t just act like you never saw me here!¡± She said, making sure he gets aware of how much his ignorant attitude had hurt her feelings, for goodness sake she would be his future mate, she could feel it but that doesn¡¯t mean she¡¯ll stand for this attitude of his as well.


    ¡°Forgive my manners,¡± Roshan responded without turning back to look at her, ¡°but I don¡¯t give things that hold no importance to me too much attention, cause they don¡¯t interest me.¡±


    ¡°So you mean that thing in your arms matters more than me?!¡± To say her heart had been stung deeply was an understatement. How can he possibly say such a thing to her??


    She¡¯s heard about how arrogant his highness can actually prove himself to be, but never did she know that his heartlessness could reach the point he doesn¡¯t care about her feelings in the slightest.


    He was embarrassing her in front of everyone!


    ¡°If you¡¯re curious to find out how much she means to me, then I dare you to call her a thing in my presence again.¡± The darkness in his tone came and faded like a wreath of mist at eve, leaving Roseline to uncontrobly shudder at his words and as expected, she didn¡¯t dare to test his patience.


    Meanwhile Anna was left to blink simultaneously at the man who had her in his arms, dumbstruck to see Roshan speaking to one of the demoness in that tone. He really made it clear that he cared more about a maid than a high-ss demoness, even overlooking the fact that the demoness was more prettier than her and might end up being chosen as his mate.


    As shocked as she was, her heart fluttered like they were butterflies tickling her on the inside. It made her wonder if his emotions rte to the fact she was Aveline as well.


    Finally shutting the demoness, Roshan headed up the stairs and Roseline, who had solidly been rooted to her spot, heard someone snicker and when she looked up the stairs, it was the rest of the demoness.


    ¡°Oh my, I have to say out of all the dramas you enjoy causing, this was one of the best, Weldon!¡± Her sister, Melrose, pped for her with a taunting look and Roseline felt like sinking to the ground right now.


    Showing up in Anna¡¯s chamber, Roshan finally made her sit on her bed. Anna wanted to say something but she stopped when she noticed him crouching on one knee, wanting to help her with her shoes and she took her leg back before he got a chance to wear it for her.


    ¡°No, you don¡¯t have to do that, I can put it on myself.¡± Anna quickly suggested, unwilling to let him help her this far since he¡¯s helped her enough already but the cier didn¡¯t even act like he heard a word she said, grabbing her right foot and holding it in ce.


    ¡°Don¡¯t shy away, it¡¯s not the first time I¡¯m helping you put on your shoes, silly woman.¡± And with that, he slipped her shoe right in. It was a perfect fit, just like when the prince was putting on the shoe for Cindere and smiling at how perfect it was.


    That was exactly how Anna envisioned their moment right now to be and her cheeks flushed.


    There really was a time when they couldn¡¯t even stand each other, not like that haspletely changed but it had reduced to a tolerable rate, leaving her head ringing with a question and Roshan let go of her feet.


    ¡°Uhm Roshan.¡±


    He lifted his gaze to look at the woman who instantly looked to her left, avoiding to meet his eyes and he understood why, noticing the visible blush on her cheeks. He wanted to tease her for being so cute, but realized he has to head back before everyone starts looking for him.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°I...I want to ask you something.¡±


    ¡°Then hurry up, I need to be somewhere at the moment.¡±


    ¡°Do you like me?¡±


    At that question, Roshan¡¯s head went nk.

 Chapter 158

    158 The Real Mate


    Roshan¡¯s mouth was left hanging as his lips parted. It looked like he wanted to say something, or that he had something to say but there were no words that came out of it, as though he was still stricken by the sudden question that unfailingly repeated itself in his ears.


    ¡®Do you like me?.....¡¯


    Surprisingly, he had only started thinking about that now. The reason he went after the woman sitting in front of him was practically because she interests him in ways he couldn¡¯t possibly say, she annoys him to the fullest, no doubt there but he couldn¡¯t imagine raising a finger at her, nor will he let anyone else touch her while being alive.


    The littlest things she does or says grabs his attention unlike anything else that even mattered, he always had the urge tofort and console her whenever she was down or sad. And most times, he hated himself for it cause he wondered if her life would have been positively different if she didn¡¯t meet him at all, if he never met her and now, she¡¯s caused this strange uncontroble beating in his chest.


    Can all this be considered as likes?


    But why was she asking?


    Anna, who stared at the dazed, speechless demon in front of her, bit her lower lips to stiffen her anxiety. She was beginning to wonder if she did the wrong thing by asking him such a direct question and her own heart slowly dropped with nervousness.


    There¡¯s a big difference between liking someone and just fulfilling sexual needs and she needed to know which part he currently stood on, to know if she¡¯s on the safer side as well, to know how much distance she has to keep away from him so he doesn¡¯t get affected by her death again.


    ¡°Do you?¡± She pried.


    .....


    At this point, Roshan had no answers to give, he didn¡¯t really feel that word to be honest, more like he was expecting an even dumbstruck question but if she was currently asking if he liked her, then she should have asked him this way back in Ark Ville, cause right now, he didn¡¯t only like her, he considered her more special than that. So what was the use of saying it now?


    Human emotions, he still has trouble understanding it.


    ¡°Anna..¡± he held both her hands in his, gently rubbing his thumb over the base of her palm and it sent sweet tingles straight to her heart. He wasn¡¯t even looking at her but she could tell her simple question had left him conflicted.


    Was it good? Or a bad thing?


    Before he got a chance to utter a word to the anticipating woman, whose big doe eyes were fixated on him, a sudden knock on the door interrupted them both, making their heads turn towards the direction of the door.


    ¡®So close!¡¯ Anna grimaced inwardly. She was at the verge of hearing his response but who in the heavens¡¯ name chose to interrupt now??


    Please don¡¯t be Roseline! Anyone but Roseline! But then, what if she got hold of the elderdy of the pce??


    A light chuckle snapped the panicking Anna from her thoughts and she retracted her gaze to the handsome man who was shaking his head at her.


    ¡°Calm your poor heart, it isn¡¯t either of them.¡± He assured the already perplexed woman who freed her hands from his.


    The fact he just responded to something she didn¡¯t even say out loud made her eyes widened in stupor and it constantly reminded her that she had to stop thinking whenever she was around this man.


    ¡°Come in.¡± Roshan gave the orders and when the door opened, a young man stepped in and to Anna¡¯s relief, it wasn¡¯t Roseline or Lady Odette, but one of Roshan¡¯s trusted guards who was fully dressed in his armor, like someone prepared to go for a war and it struck Anna¡¯s curiosity.


    ¡°Your highness, the others have arrived and your presence is needed to continue the rest of the training.¡± Lorenzo quickly and politely informed with his head bowed, secretly raising his head a little and signaling with his eyes that things could get really serious if his highness didn¡¯t show up.


    Getting the signal, only Roshan was able to understand the meaning of the looks his loyal guard kept secretly casting his way and it disturbed his already lightened mood.


    ¡°Wait outside.¡±


    ¡°Sure thing, your highness.¡± After confirming Roshan got the message, he closed the door, giving the two people some privacy again and Anna instantly got to her feet, still surprised to see the guard in full armor and her brows knitted.


    ¡°He¡¯s dressed in armor, what sort of training are you putting yourself into?¡± Questioned Anna but as expected, Roshan nonchntly brushed it off with a shrug of his shoulders.


    ¡°Nothing important, just something to keep me busy with.¡± He sounded neutral, but Anna didn¡¯t take it to be aspletely neutral as he tried to put the situation in.


    ¡°Are you sure?¡±


    Roshan let out a hiss at her persistent inquiries before turning around to look at the woman whose eyes were filled with genuine concern. Obviously she was worried and he knew, but he didn¡¯t think he was worth any of it.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± he faintly responded, ¡°you should stop thinking about me a little too much and think of yourself.¡± He hummed, but Anna was actually off on his point there.


    ¡°Meaning?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t let them use you as a trash they can dump just cause you¡¯re a maid, even maids deserve respect cause they¡¯re people too.¡± He couldn¡¯t say he was any different, but he had hope.


    He barely rtes with any of the maids or servants in the pce except for Anna, but that doesn¡¯t mean he had the right to treat them like used dumpsters.


    He has experienced how difficult life can be without money, you have to work day and night just to earn even if it¡¯s a dime, and he did all those things while blending as a human in Euphrasia, and it wasn¡¯t easy. So basically, the poor people have his respect way more than those born with a silver spoon..


    Anna blinked in bafflement, still not understanding exactly what Roshan was trying to pinpoint, ¡± so you¡¯re saying...?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m saying you should strike,¡± he rified while meeting her startled stare, ¡°stop tolerating, even tolerance has its limit¡¯s Anna but you¡¯re too good for your own sake.¡± He admitted, ¡°not everyone deserves the kindness you give and sometimes, you need to let them experience that little dark side in you.¡±


    ¡°But they¡¯re meant to be your mate and they¡¯re important guests too.¡± Even if their actions are uncalled for, it doesn¡¯t change the fact that she¡¯s still a maid and nothing more than that. She might be Aveline in the past but she was Annalise in this life, an Euphrasia n, a maid to the future leader of Viscarrian.


    It ends there.


    ¡°Who¡¯s the one with the mark?¡± He questioned tantly but the woman he was currently talking to folded her arms with a firm look, still unshaken.


    ¡°It¡¯s fading.¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯s still there,¡± he pointed out before taking a step towards her, towering over Anna whose height was just reaching his shoulder, ¡°cause it¡¯s fading doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s gone.¡±


    He leaned closer, searching her eyes with interest and it made Anna¡¯s heart elerate. He could hear it loud and clear what his mere presence does to her, he could feel it and he could tell the sweet fantasies scheming through her head. He sexily raised a brow.


    ¡°I think we both know who the real mate is.¡±


    He was tempted to give her a kiss, or maybe one on her cheeks, or even her forehead, something to make her daydream about him till he returns but he was afraid of himself.


    Because a kiss from her can dangerously lead to the both of them getting tangled up on that bed and doing things that would make her cry and grant her the inability to walk and work for days.


    ¡°How do you know I have a dark side?¡± She suddenly asked with twinkling eyes, it left him baffled for a few minutes to the point he couldn¡¯t hide it.


    ¡°What?¡±


    Out of all the things he¡¯s been saying to the annoying woman, only that was able to grab her attention.


    ¡°Well, there¡¯s always a dark side to every angel.¡± He added, and he sort of felt it in her. His princess was more than capable of stepping up her game if she wanted, she just needed a little push and he really doesn¡¯t mind giving her that.


    Anna was puzzled, does that mean he sees her as an angel? Before Anna got a chance to ask him about that, the cier turned around and headed for the door, already done for the day.


    ¡°Wait, you never responded if you liked me or not?¡± Anna reminded him.


    ¡°Ask me tonight.¡±

 Chapter 159

    159 Tasting Revenge (I)


    Holding a small ss bowl in her grip, Anna skipped through the hallway while humming something in a sweet melodious tone. Her pretty face glowed against the light of the hung chandeliers and her ponytail swayed left and right as she skipped like a happy child, only to exit the hallway.


    Her change of mood unfailingly left the busy servants baffled as they watched her go, obviously dazed to see her unexpectedly happy when most of the time, she was rather disturbed or always carrying a look that expressed the burden on her head.


    ¡°Why is she so happy?¡± Asked a maid who was busy adorning the stairs with lovely bouquets. After the embarrassment Lady Roseline caused earlier, she didn¡¯t expect Anna to recover so quickly from it and to find her this jovial was startling.


    ¡°Who wouldn¡¯t be after ending up in the arms of his highness.¡± Ba dreamilymented while batting hershes and twirling around, but the maiden she was speaking with just rolled her eyes in jealousy and continued her work.


    ¡°The head maid informed us about the little party happening at the courtyard tonight, basically for the females only so we better hurry up and start the arrangements.¡± She added thest pieces of flowers before walking out on Ba who giggled at the maid¡¯s failing attempt to hide her jealousy.


    She was tempted to rub salt into her wound, based on the fact she was among the maidens whoughed at Anna¡¯s earlier predicament, but didn¡¯t find it necessary since the table just turned.


    At least his highness also cared about the human maid, else things would have gotten really ugly ifdy Roseline seeded in her ns.


    ¡°Ba, hurry up, we need to set the chairs in the courtyard!¡± Came the yell of another maiden who walked by with a set of trays in her hand and Ba quickly got back to work.


    Arriving at the courtyard, the broken pieces of pots had been cleared away and to Anna¡¯s relief, everyone had peacefully returned to their usual duties, minding their business and barely looking in her direction.


    .....


    At least she wanted to think that way.


    Staring at the path ahead, Anna thinned her lips while squinting her eyes to see the beautiful colored garden that came after the bridge. Lady Melrose had sent her to pick some berries from the garden, saying she was craving for some since she was a lover of berries and Anna believed it, knowing how many times she¡¯s seendy Melrose eat berries in the pce.


    But this time, she wanted them freshly picked from the garden which is also a good thing, they¡¯re actually sweeter when picked and even if she didn¡¯t want to pick them, the kitchen was already out of berries.


    Fortunately for Anna, the Lady Melrose doesn¡¯t seem to hold any grudges against her despite witnessing what happened to her sister downstairs, and her attitude towards her has remained neutral, just like before.


    The way that made them feelfortable with one another.


    It was difficult to exin how relieved she felt because she already assumed Lady Roseline would use her sister to get back at her in the worst of ways, but maybe Lady Melrose isn¡¯t as horrible as the rest of them.


    A pretty smile enchanted her lips to her face and she continued on her skip as she made her way into the neat courtyard.


    A huge ss fountain was beautifully ced in the middle of the courtyard, it was incredibly beautiful that Anna had to stop in her steps in order to steal a look at it.


    Its centerpiece was a cier, involuntarily reminding Anna of a certain cier himself. The look in his eyes most times tends to remind her of this cier, most especially with the way he looks at her, it never fails to leave ice running through her veins.


    Even his aura was no different but heart-warmingly, he doesn¡¯t seem to look at her with those cier eyes anymore, as though she had somehow created an inferno that was hot enough to melt those icy ssy stares of his.


    She asked him a question earlier, and the fact he didn¡¯t even wait to respond to her important question only made her see him as heartless. He seemed in a hurry but then, he promised to give her her response tonight.


    She yfully red at the fountain instead and pointed a finger at the cier, ¡°you promised me tonight, so you have no other choice but to give me your answers tonight.¡±


    She made it clear to the cier and only when she was met with an awkward silence from the background did she realize she was talking to a fountain and she blinked.


    She was seriously scolding a fountain??


    Looking around to make sure no one spotted her silly act, she cleared her throat and turned away from the fountain. It¡¯s obvious she¡¯s been thinking a little too much about that man and the fact he knew without even being there somehow annoyed her.


    ¡®stupid brain, focus on getting those berries!¡¯ she silently scolded herself and continued her journey to the garden with a sweet humming sound.


    When she was finally starting to approach the garden ahead of her, she could hear flowing streams that broke the path in two, with an oaken bridge giving easy ess to the garden, but before she got a chance to step on the bridge, someone stopped her with a quick yell.


    ¡°No, don¡¯t!¡± Came the rmed voice from a gardener who was busy cutting a grass into shape, but had stopped after seeing Anna approach the unsteady bridge with the intention of stepping on it.


    Hearing the voice, Anna instinctively paused in her steps and raised her head up to look at the middle-aged-man who had stopped her.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t walk past the bridge,¡± he informed her, ¡°the bridge is cracked and can copse if you step on it. It¡¯s yet to be amended and no one¡¯s allowed to walk on it to avoid falling it apart.


    ¡°Oh.¡± Anna couldn¡¯t hide how dumbstruck she was at the news and instantly took a safe step back.


    She bowed in appreciation to the middle-aged-man who had warned her on time, ¡°thank you for stopping me.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not a problem, but you should be more careful and watch where you¡¯re stepping on to avoid trouble in the future.¡± He advised and Anna politely nodded in understanding, knowing she actually has hasty legs.


    Looking at the bridge, Anna could vividly see the cracks and she couldn¡¯t possibly have imagined herself sinking to the water below. That¡¯ll be another embarrassment of the day and she can¡¯t risk getting embarrassed twice.


    Cautiously, she took another part that led to the garden, but then paused in her steps, as though something had hit her, leading her eyes to widen into contemtion.


    The oaken bridge has a crack and it¡¯s not stable. If anyone steps on it, then obviously they¡¯d fall into the water beneath it so the effect of the fall won¡¯t be critical.


    ¡°Right?¡± She outwardly questioned while rubbing her temples, imagining a funny, yet mischievous scene in her head. A funny one to be a lot more specific and it was just the best way to get her revenge on thedy Roseline.


    A mischievous smile curved her lips at the recollection of the demoness having a little get-together in the courtyard tonight. It would be the right time to make Lady Roseline pay back for the humiliation and since Roshan doesn¡¯t seem to have a problem with it, why should she?


    She hated the fact he was right about how tolerable she was based on everything and it shouldn¡¯t be that way.


    Ignorance is also not a bad thing but sometimes, you need to stand up for yourself and prove to them that your silence doesn¡¯t literally mean you¡¯re weak.


    Since she was born, she had grown up with the mentality of tolerating everything that happens in her life, hoping that things will get better as time moves on cause she had watched her mother tolerate a lot of mishaps and usations.


    But nothing changed, it only made her realize that if they had struck back all those years ago, things wouldn¡¯t have been so hard for them.


    Like they say, you learn everyday and she¡¯s going to begin her practice starting with those demoness who tend to think they¡¯re better than everyone. Who thinks humiliating someone because they¡¯re of higher society adds to their name.


    She¡¯s going to stand up for herself and get her revenge on what Roseline did to her. Not just Roseline, but anyone who dares to embarrass her without any valid reason.


    Folding her arms at the motivation she bestowed on herself, she felt more prepared than ever and was suddenly anticipating for tonight to finally arrive.


    ¡°This should be fun!¡±


    She held back her giggle and headed into the garden.

 Chapter 160

    160 Tasting Revenge (II)


    Standing at the balcony of the pce, Roshan¡¯s gaze was fixated on the beauty of the evening sky, looking lost in an endless perspective as he barely blinked.


    For the first time, he was starting to notice the beauty of the sunset and he only took his time to notice it today, due to the fact Anna usually gets lost in it most of the time and now, he understood why.


    The clouds are painted in ever-changing colors as they turn from bright orange, to hot pink and then looking magically as green as jade as minutes pass by.


    Indeed it was a beauty to reflect on.


    A light wind swayed the trees in the garden in a soft rustling caress, it brought a surge of new memories and emotions that invaded his soul like a tempest, to the point hisshes flickered in reaction.


    ¡°You asked for me.¡± Came the voice of an indifferent demon who stood at the entrance of the balcony, staring straight at the cier who¡¯s warm gaze remained fixed on the beauty of the sunset. He barely turned around or looked the least curious to see who had stepped in, as though he already knew who it was.


    ¡°Yeah.¡± His calm, subtle response left Azazel surprisingly puzzled as he arched his right brow. He didn¡¯t fail to notice his brother¡¯s tone sounded faint, quite lower and less authoritative than usual.


    He moved farther to stand beside him, equally letting his gaze fall to the evening sky and he seemed pretty clueless on why Roshan was staring at it so intently, except for the fact the air in the balcony was weing and soft as milk, he didn¡¯t find anything special about it.


    ¡°You just got back, shouldn¡¯t you be resting for tomorrow?¡± Azazel broke the peaceful silence with his snoopy question, turning his blue eyes to look at the pulchritudinous being who¡¯s gaze was still focused on the evening sky.


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± He rolled his eyes while feeling the wind whistle against his ears. It was nothing but a little training he has today, yet everyone keeps insisting he rests and treating him like a child.


    He¡¯s got a lot on his mind at the moment to even think about resting.


    ¡°Why¡¯d you send for me?¡±


    ¡°I need a favor from you.¡± He directly said to the icy demon and somehow, Azazel had already sensed it to be his reason. If Roshan doesn¡¯t need something from him, then they won¡¯t even be having this conversation.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°I figured out a way to get rid of Anna¡¯s meteor mark.¡± He apprised, finally turning his head to meet Azazel¡¯s indifferent stare, ¡°but I need your help in order to get rid of it. You¡¯re the one in charge of the limbo, so you y a major role in it.¡±


    At the mention of the limbo, Azazel¡¯s gaze turned a bit serious and his face paled a little. Roshan was already done asking for his favors but even when Azazel sensed he¡¯d stille back, never did he see this particr favoring.


    Roshan figured it out???


    How??


    ¡°What do you need me to do?¡±


    ¡°ording to the solution which I don¡¯t need to tell you how I knew about it, a meteor mark can only be gotten rid of if someone chooses to im the tragic fate for himself...¡± he briefed and suddenly paused in his words, expecting Azazel to figure out the rest by himself but the white-haired demon just blinked.


    ¡°And...¡±


    Seeing he still wasn¡¯t getting it, Roshan opened it up to him, ¡°I need you to switch our fate before the dayes, I¡¯m willing to take that burden of her which means, Anna won¡¯t be the one dying anytime soon, I will.¡±


    ~


    At the courtyard...


    Everyone was seated on the round table at the courtyard, happily conversing and sharing interesting stories about their childhood that led to some of thedy¡¯s giggling in reaction.


    The servers quickly cleared the tables while Anna stood behind Melrose, obediently attending to her needs and the same went for every other guest present in the courtyard.


    Lady Iris picked up a napkin neatly ced by her side of the table and dabbed the corner of her lips in ady-like manner, before returning her gaze to Lady Odette who sipped from her ss of wine.


    ¡°Aunt, since our arrival, we haven¡¯t seen Gretta anywhere, or was she not informed of our presence too?¡± Asked the curiousdy Iris and Laura who sat opposite her table, nodded in agreement.


    ¡°I agree, Gretta always said something about how breathtaking she¡¯d look at the family ball and her tongue was always so sharp about it. It¡¯s funny we can¡¯t find her around when the day is already so close. Did she change her mind?¡±


    At the mention of Gretta,dy Odette stopped with her drinking and all eyes were currently fixated on her, waiting to hear about the whereabouts of Gretta and she just smiled, dropping her cup on the table with a light click.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry, Gretta will be here tomorrow for the family ball.¡± She outrightly assured them and said nothing more.


    Anna, who was pouring a cup of berry juice for Melrose, hesitated a bit at the mention of Gretta being avable for the family ball tomorrow.


    Her brows wrinkled in obvious consternation due to Lady Odette¡¯s promising words. Isn¡¯t she locked in the dungeon and currently facing hardbor? How does the elderdy n to make her presence even possible?


    Roseline on the other hand, quietly ate her delicious carrageen pudding without adding to the matter, unwilling to be part of the conversation happening and it didn¡¯t miss her sister¡¯s notice.


    ¡°Sister,¡± Melrose sweetly called, ¡°tomorrow¡¯s the main family ball day, and you¡¯re being so negatively quiet. Tell me, how do you n on getting prepared since you¡¯ve decided to be his highnesses mate?¡±


    The rest of the demoness looked away while some avoided making eye contact but in all, it was just a funny attempt to stifle theughter that continuously bubbled inside of them.


    Lady Melrose can be heartless sometimes, after everything that happened downstairs, must she remind her sister about it.


    ¡°Oh! That¡¯s true!¡± Lady Iris teasingly added, ¡°since Roseline sees herself as the future mate, then we can all be her bridesmaid for the wedding, don¡¯t you think? I mean his highness chose a¨C¡±


    ¡°Thank you for your concern,¡± Roseline rudely interjected her with a smile, ¡°but save it for the rest who need it when I do eventually get picked.¡±


    Meanwhile, Anna felt really ufortable about the new topic Melrose had chosen to put forth. She didn¡¯t need to look before realizing the death stares that were sent her way were from Roseline.


    The cluelessdy Odette and Aunt Letitia exchanged nces, obviously looking unfamiliar about the topic being disclosed before them and when Roseline got a chance to spill the beans on Anna, she instantly yelled.


    ¡°Look! His highness!¡± She pointed towards the balcony where Roshan and Azazel stood together, obviously having what looked like an extremely serious conversation, but the demoness were too excited by the sight of them to even notice.


    ¡°His highness!¡± Roseline was the first to get to her feet after sighting him ahead. She would use this opportunity to apologize to his highness and settle the little argument they had earlier.


    ¡°Your highness!¡± Since thedy¡¯s barely got a chance to see him due to a lot of controversial issues, they were significantly lightened that they got a chance to see him before the night of the ball, even though they couldn¡¯t reach him.


    ¡°They don¡¯t seem to hear us.¡±


    Roseline pointed at the bridge, ¡°maybe they¡¯ll hear us from there?¡±


    Out of excitement, all thedy¡¯splied and ran towards the bridge, except for Melrose who thinks they are acting out of elegance and remained seated with Aunt Letitia and the few important guests that joined the little celebration.


    The gardener wanted to stop them from going through the bridge but was pushed aside, leading to his fall and Anna wasted no time going to assist him. Surprisingly taken aback by the unnecessary push.


    ¡°Are you alright sir?¡±


    ¡°The bridge is unstable, I tried to warn them but I got this in return.¡±


    Anna had seen it herself and it was high time those demoness learnt their lessons. She felt d the gardener couldn¡¯t stop them and now, more than six demoness were standing on the bridge, waving at both Roshan and Azazel who finally nced in their direction.


    ¡°Your highness, it¡¯s me Roseline!¡± She pointed at herself, wanting Roshan to look in her direction and all of a sudden.


    ¡®CRACK!¡¯


    The first cracking sound spoke of the bridges failing strength to hold them for much longer and instead of adhering to the sound, they were captivated by the sight of Roshan and Azazel to even take notice and suddenly.


    ¡®CRACK! CRACK!!¡¯


    ¡®SPLASH!!¡¯


    The screams ofdy¡¯s falling to the water below the bridge caught everyone¡¯s attention.

 Chapter 161

    161 Revealing The Truth About Anna


    ¡°Do you hear yourself?¡± To say he was the least shocked was an understatement. Roshan¡¯s unforseen decision had totally left him blinking in disbelief, but the cier¡¯s expression remained indifferent and frustratinglyposed.


    He didn¡¯t me Azazel for thinking he soundedpletely stupid right now, on the contrary, who in their right mind would wish death for themselves? But then again, his uncle didn¡¯t call him a psycho for nothing.


    ording to the scroll, the curse can only be reversed as long as someone else is willing to reap the curse for themselves, and since Anna¡¯s safety has be his number one priority, he¡¯s willing to sacrifice his life to make sure she stays alive.


    Yes, he¡¯s crazy enough to decide something like that.


    ¡°Will you do it?¡± He pushed on, returning his gaze to Azazel and the white-haired demon was more than tempted to punch his brother in the face, just maybe, he mighte back to his senses after receiving a few blows.


    ¡°Hell no!¡± He refused without thinking twice, but it only made Roshan click his tongue in visible annoyance. He might be asking for a favor but neither does he fancy the idea that he¡¯d be refused so abruptly.


    ¡°You do know that response won¡¯t work for either of us, Azazel, you¡¯re going to do it, if it appeals to you or not is basically your own cup of tea.¡±


    He rified, leaving no space for arguments and suddenly went back to staring at the darkened sky again.


    He shoved his hands into the pocket of his breeches, enjoying the scenery in front of him but if he even bothered to steal a nce at Azazel¡¯s direction, just once, he¡¯d see for the first time the genuine concern that portrayed his imperturbable face,


    .....


    ¡°Forgive me but I won¡¯t partake in this ¡®favor¡¯ you¡¯re asking of me.¡±


    Azazel also turned away, feeling upset and visibly conflicted about the absurd favor Roshan had brought to him without warning. This was why he never wanted Roshan to figure out the truth about the mark from the beginning, because he was fully aware that the reborned Aveline would eventually be the death of him someday.


    He had kept all the truths rted to the meteor mark sealed, so how did Roshan even figure it out???


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you like her?¡± Asked Roshan whose mind had equally been rampaging on how many times his brother had constantly refused to help Anna get better.


    ¡°This is not a matter of likes Roshan.¡±


    ¡°Then what¡¯s the issue? As far as I¡¯m aware, it¡¯s my life, why are you so worked up about it?¡±


    ¡°Because.... I didn¡¯t want to say this before but since you¡¯re willing to force it out of me, then I¡¯ll tell you.¡± He finally dropped his guard, rubbing his temple slowly and gently as though trying to keep his brain in check, but the main reason for it was to buy himself some time topose himself.


    Exhaling through his nose and staring idly at the sky, he began.


    ¡°Anna¡¯s soul is a special soul, you¡¯re very much aware of that by now,¡± he licked his lips and let out a soft hiss, like he felt cold, ¡°her soul left the limbo due to the unexinable st that happened while you away in Euphrasia.¡±


    ¡°And just like every other victim who was unfortunate enough to bear the meteor mark, they¡¯re days in the world are numbered so they can return, but Anna¡¯s soul is different.¡±


    Roshan, who was resting against the edge of the balcony and paying attention to Azazel¡¯s words, lifted a brow in puzzlement.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡±


    ¡°In her past life, Anna.... Anna was Aveline.¡± He confessed, lowering his gaze and trying to force himself to keep speaking.


    Meanwhile, time seemed to slow down for Roshan who¡¯s eyes momentarily widened at his brother¡¯s confession and he instinctively moved away from the edge. The look on his face didn¡¯t fail to hide his shock and just hearing Anna being referred to as Aveline made his soul shake and waver in a mystifying way.


    Without giving him time to recover, Azazel continued, ¡°Anna was Aveline and if my memories aren¡¯t ying games with me, she wasn¡¯t just Aveline, she was a half demoness, just like you.


    ¡°She was special even in her past life, Aveline was nothing more but a strong woman who fought for what was right and as many admired, they were equally haters too. She possessed a sword, gifted to her and she used it well, until one saddened day when things went out of control and she had to kill herself to sustain peace, knowing her presence would cause impending doom.¡±


    ¡°Wait_wait....hold up...¡± Roshan spoke up, his head was currently banging at the moment and the more Azazel kept speaking made different shes rain on his head, it was too much! But then...


    Anna was Aveline???


    His heart sped uncontrobly as the locket in her old home shed in his eyes, the times he had impulsively called her Aveline without knowing who bore the name and all this freaking time, it was actually Annalise.


    ¡°How do you even know this?¡± He wasn¡¯t asking, his tone was demanding as he took a step towards Azazel who remained rooted to his spot, unfazed and barely bothered about the iing anger he sensed in Roshan.


    ¡°Sometimes the heart knows what the mind refuses to ept.¡± He lifted his gaze to look at the visibly dumbstruck Roshan.


    ¡°She was your mate.¡±


    What happened next happened too fast and all Azazel knew was that he was roughly backed against the wall, the side of the jaw felt soar, as though he got punched on the face and he believed that was the case when he spat out blood.


    ¡°Tell me everything!¡± The look in Roshan¡¯s eyes burned with untold fury as his eyes turned bloody red, the more Azazel revealed it to him, the more the shes appeared vividly in his head and all he could see was Anna¡¯s smiling face, even as she dropped dead with blood flowing from her stomach and staining her white dress.


    ¡°Tell me!!¡± He raged, his eyes were almost watery, but Azazel just licked the blood from his lips, avoiding Roshan¡¯s stare but if he wanted to be honest, that blow hit him hard.


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you,¡± he admitted, ¡°Anna was once your mate.¡± He repeated it, and it took a lot of self-control not to smash the Demon against the wall.


    ¡°You knew all this time, yet you fucking kept it to yourself!!¡±


    ¡°What should I have done?¡± His blue eyes glinted with a sudden seriousness that stunned Roshan for a few seconds, and he continued.


    ¡°No one except me understands fully what losing Aveline did to you and your health, you lost itpletely to the point your memories of her had to be wiped out. You loved her so much that it ruined youpletely, you were like a dead man walking and nothing could be done to get you back together.¡±


    He sighed, already feeling like an emotional mess, ¡°I don¡¯t understand human emotions but Levi and I knew how difficult it was for us to get you back, but then your mother and your sister, they died due to the sword and you were trapped.¡±


    ¡°You came home all of a sudden, with Aveline in your arms that Levi and I found it difficult to believe she was Aveline. Levi was ecstatic to tell you everything when he figured it out, but then she bore a meteor mark and her life span was cut short. Tell me, did you expect us to still reveal the truth to you after what you made us experience when you lost her once??¡±


    Azazel¡¯s tone wasn¡¯t so calm anymore as he countered back, ¡°I have no regrets keeping it from you cause out of every person living in this damned pce, you¡¯re one of those people I seriously care about so go ahead and kill me if you want, but I am not fulfilling that absurd favor of yours.¡±


    A silence that seemed heavy and dark, filled the air the moment Azazel was done, and every moving thing was brought to a halt and nothing seemed to work as they refused to break their hard stubborn gazes.


    Azazel had already expected the worst but to his bewilderment, Roshan slowly freed his cor and moved back, giving the demon some space to recover from the tension and all he had just poured out.


    ncing at the entrance of the balcony, Levi stood there, frozen in shock as he seemed to have witnessed everything that took ce.


    He could tell the hit had affected Azazel in some way and when he wanted to step in and make sure both brother¡¯s were alright, Azazel shook his head, signaling with his eyes for Levi to keep a distance.


    He didn¡¯t want to leave but seeing Azazel send him a warning re, he dejectedly lowered his head and left the balcony.


    When he was finally out of sight, a certain someone stretched out his hand for him, leading Azazel to look up and when he did, it was Roshan.


    ¡°Let me help you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not a weakling like you, I can help myself up.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± Roshan didn¡¯t argue, his eyes were back to normal but he didn¡¯t take his hand away, still offering it to Azazel who finally held it in a brotherly manner and lifted himself up to his feet.


    ¡°How¡¯s your jaw? I must have hit it too hard for a weakling.¡± He tsked, but that seeded in revealing a small smile on Azazel¡¯s lips.


    ¡°Bastard.¡±


    ¡°I hate you too.¡±


    Rolling his eyes at Roshan¡¯s response, he was about to say something when an exciting girly scream interrupted them.


    Looking below, it was the demoness and Roshan¡¯s mood slowly dissipated, hearing them call at him but then, his eyesnded on the bridge they stood on, leaving his brows to knit together.


    ¡°Hey Azazel, didn¡¯t the gardenerin about the bridge~¡±


    *CRACK! SPLASH!!*


    Roshan wasn¡¯t even done speaking when the bridge broke and sent the demoness falling into the water below. Both their eyes widened at the sight and suddenly.....


    Pfft!!


    Roshan was the first to break the chain ofughter and no sooner, Azazel joined.

 Chapter 162

    162 Are You Coming With Me Or......


    Quietly exiting the courtyard and leaving unnoticed, Anna instantly took to her heels without giving it a second thought, running through the hallway like a mischievous child who was fully aware of what she had done, and deliberately escaping the consequences of her actions.


    Anna didn¡¯t need anyone to tell her she¡¯d be med for everything that happened in there, most especially by Roseline and Lady Odette, so it was best to flee from the scene while she had the chance.


    Well, to be fair she had nned on it but it seems like they were already destined to encounter the bridge even before she couldmence her actual n.


    Stifling herugh as she ran through the decorated hallway, a small yelp left her lips when someone unceremoniously grabbed her arm, dragging her into a secluded corner that¡¯d make it impossible for anyone to notice their presence and before she knew it, she felt her back against the cold wall, staring into the hazel-green eyes of a certain cier.


    All she heard was a quick gasp that uncontrobly escaped her.


    Her eyes had widened in rm as she wasn¡¯t expecting such action but after realizing it was no one else but Roshan, her chest heaved in relief and she nearly hit him for scaring the wits out of her like that.


    ¡°Looking for me?¡± He asked with a foxy smile, but Anna lovingly pulled at his cheeks before shaking her head to his disappointment.


    ¡°Not at all your highness, I was hiding from Lady Roseline and the rest.¡± She giggled lightly while stealing a peek at the hallway, just to make sure no one wasing before returning her gaze to Roshan.


    ¡°I see..¡± he hummed, ¡°did you take my words too seriously, young woman?¡± He had suspected those demoness wouldn¡¯t crowd themselves against an unsteady bridge like that, unless a particr someone had done something to ruin their elegance.


    .....


    And to prove his words correct, he caught her snickering in the background after that.


    ¡°Anna.¡± As expected, she could hear Ba call out to her, but before she got a chance to respond, Roshan suddenly ced a finger to his lips, indicating she shouldn¡¯t say a word and knowing what the naughty demon was capable of doing if she disobeyed, Anna obediently remained quiet.


    ¡°Anna.¡± Ba¡¯s footfalls could be heard as she walked through the hallway, searching for Annalise and it got to a point when she finally stopped with a look of confusion etching her face.


    She ced her hands on her hips, as the human maid was nowhere to be seen.


    ¡°Where did she go?¡±


    Anna could hear her say but there was no time to respond, Roshan didn¡¯t let her and instead, she felt his hand slide around her waist, pulling her close till her handsnded on his chest and she could feel it against her palm.


    His racing heartbeat pulsed through her palms as he refused to shift gaze and just held it like he was staring into the most precious jewel he¡¯s everid eyes on.


    It made her heart race in return as she shyly avoided his stare.


    ¡°I should check her chambers first.¡± Ba suggested to herself before going up the stairs. When her footfalls could no longer be heard, Anna tried to escape from the clutches of the young man who had her trapped with him, but his hand around her waist didn¡¯t give her that chance.


    ¡°Why are you here?¡± She whispered while meeting his intense stare, ¡°If someone sees you here then we¡¯ll both be in trouble, go now.¡± She tried to drive him away before some nosy maid makes her way in, but Roshan was adamant on staying as he grabbed the hand she was using to push him away.


    ¡°I came here to steal you away from them, I can¡¯t leave if you refuse toe with me.¡± He made it clear in a firm whisper, giving her a choice that it¡¯s either she leaves with him, or gets caught in the act with him.


    But the truth was, he didn¡¯t mind getting caught with her. He doesn¡¯t fully remember the memories of Aveline but he could see her face, that pretty delicate of Anna in his head, her smile and many other memories rting to Aveline and he just wanted to kiss her, hug her, shower her with all the love he couldn¡¯t possibly give to her back then, before she died but he would make sure that she stays alive in this life, even if it meant him dying.


    From today, he would make sure she experiences only happiness, even if he wasn¡¯t capable of giving one, he would try his best to make sure she stayed happy.


    ¡°Are youing with me or....¡± His other free hand suddenly reached to loosen thece that held her cloth from her bosom to the belt around her waist, and Anna felt her heart would burst from her chest if she didn¡¯t stop him.


    When she didn¡¯t respond to his question, he loosened the first row ofce, snapping her eyes open to the reality that would befall on her if she remained quiet.


    ¡°Wait!¡± She squeaked, leaving the cier to lift his sexy gaze from thece he was slowly undoing to meet her flushed face. She looked like an innocent creature that he couldn¡¯t wait to corrupt.


    ¡°I¡¯lle with you.¡± She breathed, feeling her heart drum rapidly against her own ears and only then did she feel his hand let go of thece in her dress.


    ¡°Good choice.¡± He pecked the corner of her lips, leaving her heart to jump in excitement and he was the first to step out from the corner they currently hid themselves in, surveying the area to make sure no one was nearby before beckoning Anna over.


    Holding her hand, they quietly left the pce, exiting through the main door like some young lovers who were being extra careful not to be caught by the elders roaming the household.


    Sessfully making it out of the pce, Anna spotted a ck horse waiting at the front yard. They stopped before the horse and Anna¡¯s brow knitted into puzzlement.


    ¡°Are we going somewhere?¡±


    He nodded while giving the horse a pat and rubbing its head to calm it down, ¡°Are you familiar with riding a horse?¡±


    Anna nodded her head in response, but then her eyes suddenly glinted in amusement, ¡°and I did ride Nichs in his animal form,¡± she smiled heartily at the recollection, unaware of the fact her response had left Roshan¡¯s brow furrowed in half displeasure, his eyes narrowed, almost usingly that it wiped the smile of Anna¡¯s lips.


    ¡°What?¡± She asked, blinking cluelessly.


    ¡°And when did this happen?¡± The jealousy in his tone wasn¡¯t hidden to Anna¡¯s surprise, more like he didn¡¯t even try to hide it as he took a step forward, leaving Anna to retreat back.


    ¡°I was tired and he offered me a ride out to kindness.¡± She exined, not particrly sure why she was even proving her loyalty to him but no sooner had she taken a step back did he grab hold of thece in her dress again, leaving her eyes to google and daring her to take another step away from him.


    ¡°Roshan!¡± She warned, but her tone came out in a feeble manner, yet he was unfazed while his gaze silently challenged her.


    ¡°Be a good girl ande here.¡± He tilted his head at her, knowing she couldn¡¯t refuse and if she dared to take a step back, thece of her dress woulde off.


    He wasn¡¯t evil enough to undress her here, he was just testing his luck to see if she¡¯d fall into his trap and not distance herself from him.


    One thing he hates after demons is her absence whenever she isn¡¯t around him.


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    To be honest Anna really felt like breaking the authority he had over her. He was ying such a dangerous game with her and sounding so neutral about it that she was tempted to disobey him. But looking at the sole of her dress, disobeying him also brought its consequences as herce would be stripped off her.


    Grimacing inwardly at herck of courage, Anna couldn¡¯t risk letting herself be exposed and she did as he told her to, obediently reaching for him and wanting to free the ropeyce from his grip.


    Why did she even wear a dress like this today??


    ¡°Let go!¡± She made an attempt to bite his hand but he lifted her chin up with his other hand, making her meet his stare and capturing her lips without thinking twice about it.


    Anna¡¯s heart exploded the moment he kissed her, she could still feel his hands on the ropeyce and as he mischievously pulled it backwards, it drew Anna closer to him to the point she felt his thumb rubbing against the flesh of her bosoms.

 Chapter 163

    163 Lace Problem


    ¡°Speaking of another man while standing before me will do you no good.¡± He said after pulling away from the breathtaking kiss they just shared.


    Anna¡¯s eyes rtively widened after seeing his hands reach to fix thece on her front dress, but she instinctively ced her hand on his, stopping him and refusing to let him do any of this.


    ¡°I_I can do it myself.¡± She tried to sound as firm as possible, shaking her head and indicating she doesn¡¯t need his help with it, but he casted her disapproval aside and kind-heartedly helped her fix thece of her dress properly, deliberately ignoring her remark.


    ¡°You still have this attitude of not showing appreciation whenever I choose to help you.¡±


    His beautiful gaze was fixated on her dress as he carefully pinned thece to a small hole meant for it, expertly bringing it out and doing the same to the next.


    Anna wasn¡¯t really concerned about the fact he was trying to help her, but they were standing outside the front yard where they can be openly spotted by anyone, even the guards that normally take control of clearing the front yard.


    Why doesn¡¯t he seem to understand that??? And does he even know the process of fixing a woman¡¯s dress?


    ¡°Roshan¨C¡±


    ¡°My authority still stands.¡± His clipped tone threw her off guard and when she met his stare, a slow smile tainted his lips.


    .....


    ¡°Done.¡±


    ¡®He¡¯s done?!¡¯ thought Annalise as her eyes went round.


    Looking down at her dress, he didn¡¯t just fix it, but fixed it more perfectly that it left her blinking in surprise.


    How is he...how is he familiar with a woman¡¯s dress??


    Instead of thanking him, her eyes constricted as she met his gaze, narrowing it into an usatory slit that left Roshan staring nkly, unsure of what he had done to get such looks from her.


    ¡°Did something happen? Is it too tight?¡± Those were the first thing that popped in his head but to his surprise, that wasn¡¯t the case as she shook her head, still giving him those stares that made him feel like hemitted some sort of crime.


    ¡°It¡¯s not tight, it¡¯s actually perfect.¡± But based on the tone she used in responding, he didn¡¯t seem to find her happy about it.


    ¡°Then what¡¯s the problem?¡±


    ¡°You fixed it perfectly, that¡¯s the problem!¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Roshan blinked in puzzlement, obviously taken aback that she was moody all because he fixed herce properly. There was nothing that was said between the two of them after that, even the sound of crickets making their noises could be heard from the garden bushes in front.


    Anna folded her arms, looking away from him while twisting her lips in displeasure. She stole a nce at the cier who wasn¡¯t asking her why she¡¯s all moody all of a sudden, he wasn¡¯t even looking at her to be precise and she had to urge to walk out on him.


    ¡°Are you really not going to say anything?¡± She broke the silence, gaining Roshan¡¯s attention back and he shook his head.


    ¡°Nope.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Cause it¡¯s never a good idea to tell a woman to calm down.¡± He admitted, avoiding her gaze for the second time and Anna pointed a finger at him, her mouth hanging agape at his words.


    ¡°You..!!.. How many women have you possibly spent your time with to even discover that?¡±


    Her question made him look at her and he blinked, obviously dazed by her question.


    ¡°What?¡±


    Anna averted her gaze, almost grimacing as a thought suddenly hit her, ¡°I should have known this, you learnt to fix ady¡¯s dress and also know the do¡¯s and don¡¯ts about women, I should have known you had more women around you.¡±


    ¡°What are you saying?¡± Rather than taking her words seriously, he found them surprisingly funny due to her reaction. She looked like a child who¡¯s favorite toy got snatched away from her and he couldn¡¯t help but admit she looked too cute.


    Cute enough to make her heart palpitate in his chest.


    Anna returned his stare with a re and folded her arms at him, ¡°don¡¯t talk to me, just you watch and I¡¯ll make sure to meet a lot of handsome noblemen in this lifetime so I can¨C¡±


    ¡°And this is why I shut you up, silly woman.¡± He tossed a cloak at her which she caught out of involuntary means.


    ¡°But I¡¯m not done yet.¡± She countered, but he didn¡¯t bother to say anything in response.


    He couldn¡¯t believe she was making such a stupid choice all because he knew how to handle ady¡¯s dress and... it¡¯s not even worth getting worked up about but then again, he¡¯s never going to understand this creatures called women cause they weren¡¯t even made to be understood.


    ¡°Put it on.¡±


    ¡°But I haven¡¯t finished my words yet, you interrupted me.¡±


    ¡°Cause I have no time to listen to the rubbish you nearly spat out so just put the cloak on so we can leave.¡± He said, already turning away from her not until he heard her sniffling to herself and it left him speechless.


    This woman!!..!. He couldn¡¯t even yell at her properly.


    ¡°What is it now?¡± He sighed.


    ¡°You¡¯re scolding me again, do you do this to every other woman whoes to you?¡± She wasn¡¯t asking a question, she sounded using as she pointed a finger at him and only then did it ur to him that maybe, maybe she was jealous of the ¡®other women¡¯.


    ¡°No I don¡¯t do this.¡±


    ¡°That means you only scold me?¡± She was nearly shattered after hearing him say that and he shook his head.


    ¡°No, I mean... seriously..¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t care about me?¡±


    ¡°Of course I do,¡± he admitted, ¡°you mean a lot to me than any other woman could and if I didn¡¯t, you wouldn¡¯t even be standing here with me right now, cause I easily get irritated with things that hold no importance to me.¡±


    ¡°Do you like me then?¡±


    ¡°Saying I like you isn¡¯t enough Anna, I admit I¡¯ve had women in my life but none of them can possibly bepared to you, I have no memory of them but I can¡¯t even get you out of my head for a second.¡± He confessed, meeting her watery brown eyes and Anna¡¯s heart skipped when he looked deeper into her, as though he was searching for something and just like that, the tenderness that glimmered in his irises for her made her feel weak on the knees.


    He continued, ¡°I¡¯ve never given a single being my energy but I was willing to drain them all out just to save or even please you, you matter that much to me so don¡¯t even think aboutparing yourself to the other women out there.¡±


    He hated it, at first he found it funny at the beginning, carrying the mindset that she was messing with him but when she started to go deeper, joke or not he didn¡¯t find it funny anymore and it stung him to see herparing herself to them.


    ¡°And also you don¡¯t need to meet different men in your lifetime, speaking about them in front of me isn¡¯t healthy to me at all.¡±


    ¡°It pepper¡¯s me,¡± he admitted in a carking whisper, ¡°I can tolerate anything else, but I won¡¯t stand and listen to you talk about another man, or the fact that something I say reminds you of someone who isn¡¯t me.¡±


    ¡°Am I really not allowed to speak of another man?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± His clipped and straight response threw Anna off guard and the look on his face showed he was serious about it, ¡°I guess I¡¯ll have to prepare a space for you in my chamber¡¯s where only my eyes are capable of seeing and shielding you, I don¡¯t trust the intention of other men out there.¡±


    And he meant it, if he eventually leaves the world then he¡¯d make sure Levi keeps an eye on her, protects her, most especially from the men that would dare to take advantage of his woman when he¡¯s gone. She died once and he had a feeling it had something to do with him, he wouldn¡¯t let her do the same in this lifetime.


    Annalise on the other hand could barely utter a word as she heard him speak, there was nothing in his tone that proved he was faking it, and the look in his eyes made her believe he was actually serious about everything he just said to her


    A light wistful wind blew by, fluttering their hairs and bringing along the silence that came with it, as well as the unsaid emotions that neither could possibly utter.


    ¡°So you do like me.¡± She suddenly smiled amidst the tension she herself had caused, giggling at Roshan¡¯s dumbstruck reaction as he equally went through everything he had said.


    His eyes widened slightly and his face turned morbid, realizing she actually tricked him into revealing his emotions.


    ¡°Let us go.¡± She shyly wore the cloak he had given her and left the frozen Roshan, making her way to the beautiful dark horse and sitting atop of it. She bnced herself properly before turning her attention to the flustered demon.


    ¡°I¡¯m waiting for you.¡±

 Chapter 164

    164 A Silent Wish


    Getting on the back of his horse, Roshan settled himself properly behind the flushed woman who sat at the front. He didn¡¯t need to see her face to know it was blooming like a flower, and the crazy part was that he was too flustered to even tease her.


    The horse suddenly let out a soft grunt as it took a step back, leading Anna to instinctively hold onto the reins, but to her quick surprise, Roshan¡¯s hand enveloped hers, securing it properly as they both held the reins together.


    Looking over her shoulder to see the man who made her heart race, he met her stare almost immediately and Anna reflexively turned her head away from him, feeling her heart elerate at the mere sight of his gorgeous eyes.


    ¡°Ready?¡±


    She nodded with an anticipated smile and together, they pped the reins, earning a neighing sound from the horse as it stood with the back of its legs, its front legs raised high in the air that it gave out a clear picture of a romantic horse ride.


    ¡°Hyah!¡±


    The horse took to its heels as it galloped towards the big iron double door gate. Anna watched as the gate gradually split open with a groaning sound, making way for the horse to exit the front yard and s! They were out of the pce.


    Annalise could feel the cold wind p at her face as the horse galloped through the lit up paths, the air felt cold but she didn¡¯t mind as she was more than excited to be riding a horse with Roshan, and plus the fact he was naturally warm so she could lean onto him if she felt colder.


    Annalise¡¯s heart continuously fluttered as she lifted her gaze to see Viscarrian itself.


    .....


    The town¡¯s were more developed than that of Euphrasia, the houses were beautifully built in rows and to her surprise, not everyone was asleep as she watched little children chase themselves with water balloons, and some of them were even climbing trees and purchasing things from a neighboring stall.


    ¡°Get down from there!¡± She heard a woman yell to her son who had equally climbed a tree.


    All the houses were vibrantly lit up, and everyone seemed to be upied with one thing or the other, like it was a normal routine and they all looked just like humans, no horns or anything to physically differentiate them.


    Except for the children who excitedly yed with their powers and got themselves into little tournaments. Someone even teleported right before Anna¡¯s eyes and she watched with adoration like someone who hadnded in a fantasy world, just like the story books she always read.


    She could see unfamiliar nk gazes darting towards their direction as the horse rode by, and Anna finally understood why Roshan had given her a cloak. He was equally wearing one himself and if she wasn¡¯t wrong, he was trying to hide their identity under the cloak, so no one would recognize them.


    ¡°Focus Anna.¡± Roshan¡¯s maic voice broke her from her thoughts and Anna quickly fixed her gaze to the path ahead. Unbeknownst to her, Roshan had noticed her every reaction as they rode through town, leaving a satisfying smile to adorn his lips.


    Taking a left turn, Anna figured he was no longer following the town¡¯s path which left her a bit disappointed, cause she wanted to know why everyone was so awake and why every home was beautifully lit up, as though there was some celebration going on.


    ¡°Where are we going?¡± She asked through the wind that swallowed most of the high notes of her voice, but Roshan kept quiet as he directed the horse on which part it should take, his hands still securing Anna¡¯s hands on the reigns, making it look they were riding the horse together.


    When the path was starting to get lit by golden fireflies resting on flowers, it magically epassed either side of the earthly path and thousands of those fireflies scattered like specks of dust when the horse galloped by.


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened in reverie, her mouth hung agape, seeing the uncountable fireflies that lit up the path as they rode by on the horse, it was so magical that pure adoration painted the face of Anna.


    No sooner did they get past the fireflies, Roshan finally made the horsee to a stop. He got down first, before assisting the happy Anna down as well.


    She couldn¡¯t exin how much she enjoyed the sweet fun ride, and she was ready to fill his ears with everything when her gaze traveled to where he had suddenly brought her.


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± Anna asked in wonder, but Roshan held her hand in his, pleasantly intecing their fingers together and he led her through a hidden path in some thick green bushes.


    As they kept walking, Anna¡¯s gaze carefully scrutinized the area. It sort of felt familiar as the sound of crunched leaves reminded Anna of the wistful, shredded tapestry of autumn. She wanted to throw more questions at him but shook away the idea. He hasn¡¯t even responded to all the questions she¡¯s been asking him on their way here, so it¡¯s best she remains quiet and see where he¡¯s taking her to.


    Sessfully making it past the thick bushes, they finally came across an open area as he led Anna in. To his gratification, her eyes widened in reverence as she moved forward and it was nothing more than the beautiful sight of Viscarrian.


    The houses were scattered below and brightly lit, looking like ant hills with colorful lightings. Based on the fact they stood at the highest peak, the houses below looked so small that Anna felt she could grab one with just her hands.


    The stars twinkled brightly in the dark blue sky, adding to the beauty of the scenery and the grasses felt cool to Anna¡¯s feet, to the point she couldn¡¯t resist the temptation of sinking into it.


    ¡°This is beautiful.¡± She breathed in wonders, obviously marveled by the breathtaking view in front of her, she could hear a stream running somewhere and the sweet chirping of birds as they flew from one tree to the other.


    Roshan sat beside her on the grass and Anna turned her blooming face to the cier who stared at the beautiful city below.


    ¡°How do you know so many beautiful ces?¡± She asked and Roshan just rxed himself, resting his back on the grass and his hands serving as a pillow behind his head.


    He softly began, ¡°the people of Viscarrian celebrate mid-winter fest every year. Once it¡¯s nearing winter, the people of Viscarrian would light up their homes and bask in the warmth that came with it. It¡¯s a time when families remain indoor to enjoy the wintering. I normallye here during such festivals, to watch the lit city when I was pretty much younger.¡±


    Anna smiled at the new info and returned her gaze to the city below, ¡°the people of Viscarrian aren¡¯t really harmless,¡± she honestlymented, ¡°I guess we¡¯ve been hearing the wrong stories all along.¡±


    Roshan just shrugged it off before sitting up, he candidly added, ¡°not hundred percent wrong, just like humans, there are equally the good and the bad in this world. During the years of human very and the heated war between kingdoms, my father ruled as an autocratic leader and he made sure to silence his people while he did as he pleased, abducting humans and forcing them to work for him.¡±


    He sighed at the ufortable memories, ¡°Azazel was meant to lead after our father passed away, but then he got chosen to keep an eye on the limbo, leaving the responsibility I never wanted to fall on me. My family was divided and it still is, but there¡¯s nothing that can be done to build it back, so rather than keeping it divided, why not destroy it?¡±


    Anna shook her head in disagreement, ¡°you don¡¯t need to destroy anything Roshan,¡± she opposed softly, ¡°a family¡¯s bond is the strongest bond out there, so I won¡¯t advise you to break it up due to the division your father caused.¡±


    ¡°Rather, it¡¯d be better if you fix up the damages your father had caused, take the role Roshan and be king.¡± She advised, ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll make things right and seed in bringing your people closer to the life of the pce, hiding away from it won¡¯t fix things and I¡¯m sure you know this better than I.¡± She ced aforting hand on his shoulder.


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand,¡± emotions shed across his face as he stared nkly at what was ahead of him, ¡°if I be ruler, I¡¯ll have to go by the rules, and my father was smart enough to implement it in ways that can never be changed, even if I have all the powers I can get.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because you see it that way, if you look at it more clearly, you¡¯re more challenging and the Roshan I know is capable of aplishing anything as long as he sets his mind to it. Nothing is impossible as long as you¡¯re ready to face it head on.¡±


    She rested her head on his shoulder, ¡°I don¡¯t want to force you, but I need you to think hard and clear about all I¡¯ve just said, and then make up your mind.¡± She looked at the city below, ¡°your people need a leader, and don¡¯t you think they¡¯ve been deprived of your leadership for a little too long now.¡±


    She met Roshan¡¯s stare with a teasing smile, and he was tempted to look at the lit-up city below, notpletely sure of what to make of it.


    ¡°I see.¡±


    ¡°I know you¡¯ll be a good leader, but you need to see yourself as one first, and I know I¡¯m nothing more than a silly human who makes mistakes, but I¡¯ll be here to support you as best as I can.¡±


    The look in his eyes wavered at her sweet reassuring words and he couldn¡¯t stop himself from kissing the top of her forehead, ¡°you know, I was starting to wonder where my life had gone wrong, but I just realized that I was waiting for you to make things right.¡±


    Anna smiled, but at that moment, a shooting star shed by, leading Anna¡¯s eyes to widen in marvel at the sight.


    ¡°Roshan, a shooting star, let¡¯s make a wish.¡± She excitedly dragged him forward, making them kneel before the shooting star and Anna cupped her hands excitedly, closing her eyes as she silently made a wish from the depths of her heart.


    Seeing her cute gesture, Roshan proceeded to do the same as he closed his eyes, making a wish just like the annoying woman had asked him to.


    At this point Anna could feel it, that maybe things were just starting to get better for the both of them.

 Chapter 165

    165 Nosy Human!


    Euphrasia....


    The next day, Calista made her way into Draekharm vige like she said she would, in search of the owner of those blue eyes that constantly haunts her, except her soon-to-be husband had chosen to escort her on the way, leaving her with no other choice but to agree, based on the fact he had been effortlessly kind to her.


    ¡°Where do you intend on going?¡± Archer popped ast minute question the moment the carriage brought them to the busy market of Draekharm, and Calista could recall seeing the owner of those blue eyes here after getting past Arlow the other day.


    But she can¡¯t go around searching if Archer continues to trail her every move. They weren¡¯t even married yet and he was already portraying the habits of a clingy husband.


    ¡°I hope you don¡¯t mind waiting here? I promise I won¡¯t take too long.¡± She requested nicely, leaving the blonde-haired man sitting beside her to arch his brow in inquiry.


    ¡°I don¡¯t mind as long as you inform me of your whereabouts, so I know where to look for you in case you don¡¯t show up anytime soon.¡±


    He was thoughtful on that aspect, but then again, Calista doesn¡¯t think she was a child who can get lost easily, most especially in Draekharm.


    ¡°I just want to get something.¡± She opened the carriage door, ¡°I¡¯ll be back before you know it.¡±


    ¡°But take the guar¨C¡±


    .....


    The door was shut even before he got a chance to utter a word of retort. Archer just shook his head while keeping himself seated in the carriage, but his mind was eager to know what she came all the way here to buy that she couldn¡¯t possibly get in the pce.


    Making her way through the busy crowd, Calista partially covered her face with a purple scarf, leaving only her warm blue fox-like eyes visible to the gaze of everyone and of course, Calista was a beauty that couldn¡¯t beprehended with.


    ¡°Miss, what¡¯s a beautiful woman without beautiful ornaments topliment her beauty even more?¡±


    ¡°Young Miss, I have the finest dresses for pretty women like you,e take a look!¡±


    Despite hiding her face to lessen the attention, her eyes gained many admiring stares as she was called toe purchase something, but it was still a lot better than revealing her whole face to the crowd.


    Walking to and fro, Calista searched for the familiar blue eyes she always sees in Draekharm. She felt stupid for even doing this despite knowing her fiancee was waiting for her in the carriage. She had someone whom she¡¯s bound to get married to, but now she¡¯s here in search of another man.


    If she even see¡¯s this person, what will she say to him?


    ¡®excuse me sir but I can¡¯t seem to forget the blueness of your eyes, mind helping me out?¡¯


    He¡¯ll think she was some crazy stalker, and as she tried to convince herself that this whole thing was pointless, she continuously kept searching for him as though her body was opposing the thoughts in her mind.


    Suddenly, she spotted someone in a red cloak, hiding in the shadows of the busy street and to her quick surprise, no one seemed to even notice the presence of someone there, they just walked by without even ncing or even bothering to steal a look in that particr area.


    Curious, Calista took a few steps towards that direction and fortunately, the person who hid there with his arms crossed hadn¡¯t noticed her presence, and when a ray of light shed through his direction, Calista¡¯s eyes widened and her heart thumped for some reason.


    ¡°It¡¯s him.¡± The moment she whispered it, a carriage suddenly rode past her, blocking her path and when the carriage left, the stranger in a red cloak disappeared from the shadows, leaving Calista to blink in disbelief and she pointed at him.


    ¡°Wait!¡±


    She instantly followed him, taking to her heels as she went after the man who was currently walking through the many crowds, but howe he moved faster than her who was basically running to catch up with him??


    And most importantly, he seemed to be after something, or someone.


    ¡°Mr.¡± She called out, but he just kept moving until she saw him step out of the crowds and strangely followed a more secluded path ahead.


    Calista stopped in her tracks, seeing the guy in a cloak make his way through the forest path and it got her curious. Wasn¡¯t all forest paths banned from being stepped into for the meantime?


    ¡°Where is...he going?¡± Callie thought to herself as she stopped running to catch her breath, she couldn¡¯t remember thest time she ran this fast, and this far too.


    Any normal person would have turned back and avoided the forest path, but Calista was determined to meet that man, else she might not be able to get rid of him from her head.


    Taking a deep breath, she followed the secluded path and ventured into the forest. As she walked with quiet steps, the trees grew thicker and taller by thest minute that it left Calista thinking she made a wrong choice by agreeing to take this direction.


    What if they were thugs around, or even Demons?? What if he was a thug??


    Crossing her heart over her chest, she was ready to give up on finding that man. She had turned around to leave the forest when something caught her eyes at thest minute.


    It was the sight of a red cloak and her eyes widened after seeing the being hold out his long silver sword, and before him was ady who trembled.


    ¡°Your highness!¨C¡±


    ¡°Shut up!¡± Azazel¡¯s tone made the trembling Freya keep shut, his face was hidden under the cloak and Calista, who hid in the bushes, couldn¡¯t believe what her eyes were seeing.


    ¡°Listen to me, I_I have s-something to say.¡± Freya began in a stammering tone but as she looked up to meet Azazel¡¯s stare, the look in his cold silver blue eyes made her flinch like someone who just got poured with cold Arctic water.


    ¡°You work with Luderick now, trusting you is the biggest mistake I¡¯ll find myself making.¡± The distaste in his tone was so menacing that even Calista trembled, as though he was talking to her.


    Was he really a thug? But then what is this energy she senses around him??


    His grip against the hilt of his sword tightened, and he was more than ready to stab the low demoness with it when Freya said it out.


    ¡°If you kill me here then you won¡¯t be able to figure out Luderick¡¯s n and what he ns on doing to Anna.¡± She revealed almost immediately, leaving Azazel¡¯s glistening sword to stop mid-way before it could even pierce her heart.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Anna?!¡± Calista got to her feet out of impulse, hearing Anna¡¯s name being mentioned by these two strangers but when both eyes turned to her direction, she realized she had said it a little too loud.


    Azazel looked at the woman who¡¯s pretty blue eyes widened in shock as she equally met his.


    ¡°It¡¯s you.¡± Azazel sounded surprised himself, but due to Calista¡¯s presence, it gave Freya the opportunity to escape as she instantly teleported herself elsewhere, but it was toote to stop her when Azazel recovered from thedy¡¯s presence.


    ¡°No! Damn it!¡± Azazel cursed after realizing she had escaped for the umpteenth time today. She was saying something about Anna but what was it??


    Turning his attention to thedy who had ruined his chance of getting the truth out of her, he saw she was already fleeing from the scene, which was obviously a bad choice.


    Calista barely knew what happened over there, it felt like some sort of unbelievable dream had been yed in front of her. How did the girl disappear?? Who were those people??


    ¡°Ah!¡± She tripped over a twig that was ahead and fell to the ground with a little cry. She wasn¡¯t even done recovering from her fall when a pair of ck boots stood before her.


    With her heart racing in rhythm, she slowly lifted her gaze up only to meet the pair of blue eyes ring down at her.


    ¡°Nosy humans!¡±


    ¡°There she is!¡± Came the words of a guard who had spotted Calista make her way into the forest and no sooner, Archer joined, only to see his future wife in the hands of a stranger and his eyes widened.


    ¡°Calista!¡±


    ¡°Archer!¡±


    Before he could reach her, Azazel instantly grabbed the human by her hand and vanished before anyone could get to them.


    ¡°No!!¡±

 Chapter 166

    166 The Missing Princess


    It all happened too fast, so fast that the next minute, Calista found herself in apletely different environment as she sank to the cold tiled floor.


    No- it looked like a bed chamber if her eyes weren¡¯t deceiving her, but there was little time to study the ce when a sword was intimidatingly ced directly at the nape of her neck, earning a quick shocking gasp from her.


    Lifting her gaze up, she met the icy cold stare of a white-haired Enigma except, her eyes widened in visible admiration at the handsomeness of the man standing in front of her.


    He had taken his cloak off, revealing his face to the frozen woman who barely blinked as she remained seated on the tiled floor. Her face was still partially hidden by the purple scarf, leaving only her fox-like eyes visible to Azazel¡¯s indifferent stare.


    ¡°Who are you?¡±


    His calm demanding tone snapped Calista back to reality and she was only starting to realize that whoever this stranger was is more than capable of ending her life. To prove her point, he almost took the life of someone if she hadn¡¯t foolishly interrupted him and got herself into this mess.


    Without waiting for even a second, she opened her mouth to speak, ¡°Annalise.¡± She called her name, recalling perfectly how the strangedy mentioned Anna¡¯s name to the stranger who had abducted her out of her will.


    Is it possible they knew Anna? Is Anna still alive??


    ¡°Where¡¯s Anna?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Does that exin your irrelevant snooping on things that hold no concern to you? She got away due to your repellent presence!¡± Azazel didn¡¯t hide the irritation in his tone and he would have figured out something from Freya if this human didn¡¯t interrupt at thest minute.


    Today was the family ball, the moment Roshan gets to decide a mate and eventually bes the ruler of Viscarrian. He wanted everything to go perfect for his brother, thus, leading to his sudden visit to Draekharm in search of Freya, and he lost her all thanks to this snoopy human omnipresence.


    Calista¡¯s mouth hung agape at the usation he just threw at her, but unfortunately the being doesn¡¯t seem to look friendly in the slightest and is capable of ughtering her in pieces if she dares to offend him.


    He didn¡¯t need to say it, his icy cold stare gave her enough warning. It had to be him who saved her the other day, she was sure about it.


    ¡°You can¡¯t me me,¡± she muttered with a considerable daring, ¡°I wasn¡¯t holding your hand or stopping you from going after her, you were charmed by my beauty and lost focus, so me yourself.¡±


    ¡°Listen..!¡± He made sure the cold de rested on her pale neck, making her flinch in rm and he crouched down to her level, obviously annoyed and barely hesitant on showing it as he looked deep into her aquamarine colored eyes.


    ¡°I can¡¯t kill you cause even your death won¡¯t be enough to satisfy me for what you made me lose today.¡±


    Calista felt her heart in her throat at the mention of death and she obediently remained seated on the ground, unmoving as the coldness of the sharp de on her neck sent her skin prickling in fear.


    Would the man who saved her really have the intention of killing her, or does he not recognize her at all??? He was looking at her with such disconcertment in his eyes that it made her wonder if she made a mistake.


    No, she shook her head mentally, breaking off the uncertainty that was starting to cloud her mind. She couldn¡¯t be mistaken on this one, this very eyes of his proves that.


    ¡°You just stumbled into a Demon¡¯s den,¡± Azazel heartlessly broke the news to her, ¡°maybe after a few punishments, you¡¯ll learn to mind your business if you make it out unscathed.¡±


    And he got to his feet, turning around to leave the chamber when Calista got to her feet as well, suddenly recognizing the gravity of her situation.


    ¡°You can¡¯t lock me in here!¡±


    ¡°Watch me.¡± And he closed the door shut at her face, making her bristle back in startlement. He locked it from the outside and kept hold of the key.


    Only when she was left alone did his earlier words ring in her head, ¡®you just stumbled into a Demon¡¯s den.¡¯


    Her eyes finally widened.


    ~


    At the Euphrasia pce, Adryan quickly put on his cmys as he stepped out of his chambers, barely uttering a word to his worried wife who watched him leave. He didn¡¯t even wish her well, neither did she get a ¡®goodbye, I¡¯ll be back soon¡¯ from him, or a little disy of affection that proved his concern, and it left her feeling gloomy as she closed the door after he stepped out.


    The whole pce has been in a constant uproar after getting the message that a demon had abducted their princess, and quick tension arose from everyone as they moved helter skelter. Worried faces and looks of concern were portrayed on the faces of the maidens, most especially those who work for the princess personally.


    The fury shing in Adryan¡¯s eyes wasn¡¯t hidden as he walked through the hallway, and amongst all the guards that followed him from behind, only sir Bryan was bold enough to begin the conversation as he handed Adryan a map.


    ¡°How do we even find the princess if we can¡¯t locate the main territory of those Demons?¡± He thoughtfully questioned, but Adryan only hissed as another guard threw his sword for him, which he expertly caught and hung around the side of his waist


    ¡°We¡¯ll search every crook and cranny until we find my sister, I¡¯ve had it with those Demons.¡± He opened the map that was handed to him. So far he¡¯s got the information about the magical borders opening which meant, there was a possibility that the territories where those Demons shelter themselves must be revealed.


    ¡°Should I bring the¨C¡±


    ¡°Bring every necessary weapon except the Valerian sword,¡± he gave his orders, ¡°I¡¯m yet to separate it from its holster.¡±


    ¡°As you say.¡±

 Chapter 167

    167 Scrumptious


    Viscarrian Pce.....


    ¡°You know I don¡¯t have to eat in order to gain strength right?¡± Roshan candidly reminded the stubborn woman who went ahead to ce a breakfast tray on his table.


    ¡°I know.¡± Came her cute short response. It made him aware of the fact it wasn¡¯t the first time he was saying something like this to her.


    ¡°But...¡± she turned around to look at him, ¡°it wouldn¡¯t hurt to feel like a human once in a while, let¡¯s not forget you¡¯re half human too so basically this tummy of yours would need to have a taste of human nutrients.¡±


    She gave his structured abdomen a light tap, indicating he should eat something before stepping out. The family ball is happening tonight, where they¡¯ll be guests and many family rtions gathering to enjoy the moment, and she didn¡¯t need anyone to tell her that Roshan would be drained even before night time.


    So she made him breakfast, she was aware of the fact demons don¡¯t need human food to sustain but that ured to pure-blooded Demons only. Since Roshan is half Demon, the situation can¡¯t be inly the same for him, which is why she chose to try it out today.


    Roshan on the other hand, was a bit startled when she tapped his abdomen with her soft palm. What heightened his hormones was when he felt those inexperienced hands of hers go under his shirt to touch his bare abdomen.


    From the look on her face, he could tell she didn¡¯t do it with any nasty intention in mind, but he couldn¡¯t stop the fire she was consistently starting to awaken inside of him.


    Thest thing he wanted was for the annoying woman to touch him, cause he doesn¡¯t trust the self-control in him at the current moment, and he might just be tempted to bite her neck and mark her at the spot if she touches him again.


    .....


    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll eat.¡± Even his tone wasn¡¯t stable anymore as he swallowed the primal desire to eat her instead.


    ¡°Yayy!¡± Anna¡¯s face beamed with joy and she quickly reached for the breakfast tray she had kept on the table, sparing Roshan from her sweet floral scent the moment she distanced herself away.


    ¡°I made you strawberry pancakes with some syrup and sausages added to it, it¡¯s a greatbo you¡¯ll like it,e.¡±


    She made the cier sit on the big mattress, keeping the tray beside him and he watched in obvious surprise as the silly woman took a slice from the pancake, ready to feed it to him with a fork.


    ¡°Here.¡±


    Without arguing, Roshan willingly took the slice into his mouth and Anna watched in anticipation as the being slowly chewed on the food, waiting like a happy child who was about to recieve the end result of her work.


    But to Anna¡¯s detectable stare, his expression slowly contorted into something that she couldn¡¯t possibly understand herself, almost neutral, with no single glint or a smile to show he liked it.


    Did he not like it?


    ¡°What happened?¡± She asked the moment he was done chewing, but that perplexed look on his face didn¡¯t dissipate in the slightest.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I feel something is missing.¡± He said to her, meeting her nk stare as she innocently blinked at him.


    ¡°Missing? Do you not find it appealing?¡± She asked but Roshan just gestured for the woman to take a bite from the pancake


    ¡°Taste it yourself and tell me.¡±


    At this point, Anna¡¯s beamed look slowly faded. She was sure she made it right, and ording to what she heard, Roshan was pretty fond of strawberries which is why she added it to the list on her pancakes.


    Did the maid lie to her? She hasn¡¯t seen Roshan eating strawberries before though.


    Nevertheless, the dispirited Anna reached with a fork to take a bite out of the pancake and the moment she took one slice into her mouth, Roshan suddenly lifted her chin up, making her meet his gaze and the next thing she knew was his lips crashing hard on hers as he deftly invaded her mouth.


    Not wasting even a second.


    Anna¡¯s eyes went round and it took a lot of willpower to still hold the te of pancakes in her hand, unwilling to drop them due to the shock that had electrified her system.


    The sweet vor of the pancake got mixed with their tongues as Roshan tentatively imed the pancake from her mouth, letting its heavenly sweetness absorb them both and Anna felt her grasp against the te tighten, with Roshan kissing her here and there with no intention of stopping.


    She had the urge to hold on to him, to kiss him back and relish in the sweetness. She wanted to cover the torturing distance he had kept between their bodies, but the tes in her hand weren¡¯t giving her that chance.


    ¡°Mmmm...¡± she moaned into the kiss as an unknown ecstasy happily overwhelmed her mind like an unexpected, exquisite thought, and she had to admit that the vor tasted much sweeter with their tongues entangled like this.


    Pulling back, she watched as the sexy demon licked his lips with satisfaction before uttering, ¡°scrumptious.¡±


    Her cheeks burned and she became instantly flustered after hearing him say those words to her, as though it was the best thing he had tasted and her bashfulness chose to disy itself now.


    ¡°As always, things tend to taste even more savorying from you.¡±


    ¡°Was that why you asked me to taste it instead?¡± Her heart was beating in a sweet tempo ording to Roshan that it pleased him greatly.


    ¡°From the scent of the pancakes, it was mouthwatering enough to eat, I just needed to spice it up a little.¡± He added with a wicked grin, giving her a chance to think it through and realizing he had tricked her into taking a bite.


    ¡°You..¡± her voice trailed off before the scolding in her tone could present itself. She was too flustered to even say a word to the scheming fellow and just got to her feet, dropping the te back on the tray and keeping a safe distance from him.


    ¡°Eat your breakfast, I-I have many things to do downstairs.¡±


    ¡°You always leave when things start to get interesting.¡± He temptingly took another slice into his mouth, not denying the fact that Anna made the pancakes perfectly. It tasted too good not to eat, but he wished he could get a chance to eat it all from her mouth instead.


    ¡°Care to join me?¡±


    ¡°No thank you.¡± She cleared her throat while keeping her expression firm, but the blush color on her cheeks really gave her emotions away, leading the cier to chuckle in a low hypnotizing tone.


    ¡°Thank you for refusing, I¡¯m stingy enough not to share it with you, I had no intention of giving you in the first ce but I had to act out of mannerism.¡±


    This demon!!


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter, it just proves you like my cooking which is enough to leave me heartened for the day.¡± She stuck out her tongue at him, the same way she did in Ark Ville that always irked him up, and today was no different.


    ¡°Wait till I deal with that mannerless tongue of yours.¡± If things were like before, he would have been plotting to cut that tongue out of her mouth, but right now, he wanted to do more than just ¡®cut it out.¡¯


    The forewarning in his eyes gave Anna the hint that if she doesn¡¯t leave, then she shouldn¡¯t expect to step out until tonight.


    And she understood what he meant by that.


    ¡°You¡¯re evil!¡± With that, she ran off and closed the door behind her, escaping the sinful ns that demon had for her.


    Roshan always loved watching her y hard to get most times, it made hunting her down even fun and tonight, he was going to shock everyone with what he ns on doing at the family ball.


    ¡°Tonight is a night of reckoning.¡± He hummed to himself, but a sudden knock on the door interrupted his moment. He hadn¡¯t even given the permission to step in before the white-haired Enigma walked in, startling Roshan with his unexpected heavy presence.


    ¡°And what happened to you?¡±


    Azazel was about to speak when he saw the cier eating some pancakes and his voice unexpectedly trailed off at the sight, visibly baffled by the sight of Roshan eating and he seemed to enjoy it.


    His eyes squinted in surprise, when did Roshan start having breakfast??


    ¡°Don¡¯t even question me,¡± Roshan hinted as he continued to eat his delicious pancake, ¡°you¡¯re in my chamber¡¯s, I get to do the questioning.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t even want to know.¡± Azazel hissed before shaking off the picture he was weed with.


    ¡°Why are you here then?¡± Roshan began as he met his brother¡¯s gaze, and the moment Azazel was done exining it to the cier, he asked.


    ¡°Where is she?¡±

 Chapter 168

    168 The Milk Angel And Her Pail


    ¡°Here.¡± Letitia secretly handed the bells to Evan who stared in confusion, looking lost andpletely clueless on the bells being handed to him.


    ¡°What do I do with this?¡± He asked but Letitia instantly snapped her eyes at him, signaling he should keep his tone down before everyone else hears. Luckily, they were both alone in the sr room and she had kept the doors locked to avoid anyone from barging in.


    ¡°You really have no clue on what toning down your voice means.¡± She eyed the man who wasn¡¯t ready to deal with any early morning madness from Letitia herself. It was going to be a busy day today and he wouldn¡¯t waste his strength on starting an argument with her.


    ¡°Why so secretive?¡± He inquired, ¡°Gretta already revealed the meaning of the bells to us, so I see no reason to tone down my voice.¡±


    ¡°Listen..¡± Letitia looked at the bells in his hand before meeting Evan¡¯s quizzical stare, ¡°those bells are not safe here, it would be a wrong idea to keep them in the pce knowing it could get into the wrong hands, are you understanding my point?¡±


    ¡°If I say yes will you let me leave?¡± He prompted, but Letitia just sighed in disappointment. If it was in her, she would have returned the bells herself and not bother about meeting Evan for help, but unfortunately, she has things to sort in the pce and therefore, can¡¯t leave.


    ¡°You¡¯ll be heading to the central library to get some books for the council, am I correct?¡±


    ¡°And?¡±


    ¡°I need you to hand these bells to the librarian, saying you took it from a pack of djinns.¡± She firmly instructed, leading Evan to shift his gaze to the six golden bells in his grasp.


    .....


    ¡°Why the librarian?¡±


    ¡°Apparently he¡¯s the keeper of the bells. I would have gone myself but I¡¯m tied in the pce, just get rid of it and I¡¯ll reward you with something profitable when you return.¡±


    ¡°Then it¡¯s settled.¡±


    Letitia¡¯s expression finally calmed, knowing how easy it is to make Evan act as long as he gets something in return, ¡°don¡¯t forget, and make sure it doesn¡¯t ring while you head anywhere, most especially the ones with a red knot.¡±


    ¡°I know the meaning of the bells, you don¡¯t have to worry.¡±


    ¡°Good.¡±


    After getting that part settled, Letitia finally opened the door and walked out, followed by Evan who waited five minutes for her to disappear from the corridor before taking his leave.


    ~


    Anna quietly stepped into Gemma¡¯s chamber and saw the little one sitting on her bigfy mattress, drawing something on a piece of paper without lifting her gaze.


    ¡°Ba?¡± Anna softly called, seeing Ba stand at the other side of the room, equally staring at Gemma while holding a tray of milk, and Ba wasted no time hurrying towards Anna¡¯s direction after seeing here in.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening? You sent for me?¡± Anna softly uttered the moment Ba reached for her side, and thedy exhaled tiredly through her nose while returning hervender eyes back to Gemma¡¯s direction.


    ¡°I need you to help me give her this,¡± Ba requested, ¡°she¡¯s been somber since yesterday and refused to y like usual. I brought her her favorite milk, thinking it would cheer her up a bit but she¡¯s not even answering me.¡±


    Ba whispered the situation to Anna whose brows knitted in worry. ¡°Not answering you?¡±


    Anna found that part hard to believe as she returned her gaze to Gemma, she was quietly drawing something on a piece of paper, and the look on her face barely showed one who was disturbed.


    ¡°Bring the tray, I¡¯ll give it to her myself.¡± Anna willingly took the tray from Ba who smiled in appreciation.


    ¡°Thank you, you¡¯re one of her favorites so I¡¯m sure she¡¯ll listen to you, if she remains like this, then her Aunt Letitia won¡¯t let me live.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry.¡± Anna assured her, ¡°I¡¯ll handle Gemma, you can carry on.¡±


    Nodding to Anna¡¯s words, Ba finally exited the chamber, leaving Anna to face the little demoness who had barely raised her head up to meet her stare.


    Demons were known for hiding their emotions pretty well, and Anna sensed the same could go for her as well. Despite the mask she wore, Anna knew there was something bothering Gemma to remain like this.


    ¡°Gemma.¡± She softly called while taking a step towards her bedside.


    Hearing Anna¡¯s sweet voice, Gemma¡¯s ears instantly perked up and she raised her small head to look at Anna whose concerned expression lessened as a smile formed on her lips.


    ¡°Can Ie join you?¡±


    At first Gemma only blinked, and when Anna was starting to think she might refuse, the little one nodded her head while shifting a bit, making space for Anna to sit on her bed with her.


    Her actions relieved Anna to some extent, but the look in Gemma¡¯s expression hadn¡¯t faltered in the slightest. Her face lost a bit of its colors and despite trying to remainposed, Anna could tell something wasn¡¯t right.


    Dropping the tray in front of her, Anna sat beside Gemma who met her stare. Knowing the situation, it¡¯d bepletely inappropriate to start the conversation with what was bothering her so instead, Anna tried to cheer her up.


    ¡°Look what I brought for you, drinking pure milk has always been your favorite soe on, have it.¡± Anna brought the milk forward, but to her quick disappointment, Gemma shook her head, refusing to take it and it left her baffled.


    ¡°You don¡¯t want milk?¡±


    She didn¡¯t respond, but Anna chose not to dwell in it as she smiled at her again.


    ¡°Do you want juice then? Should I get you your favorite?¡±


    She shook her head.


    ¡°What about breakfast? Are you hungry?¡±


    And Anna got the same unhelpful response from Gemma who looked away. Anna couldn¡¯t make out what the issue was but chose to handle it calmly with her, knowing she was a child and therefore, should be handled with genuine care.


    ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± Anna softly began with a concerned look, ¡°are you feeling sick?¡± She felt Gemma¡¯s forehead with the back of her palm and her temperature was naturally warm.


    ¡°Did someone scold you? Are you feeling bad about something? If you won¡¯t tell me then we¡¯ll keep staring at ourselves like this, we¡¯ll go on a hunger strike together and we¡¯ll both miss the family ball.¡±


    At Anna¡¯s words, Gemma suddenly hugged her to Anna¡¯s surprise, wrapping her arms around her and leaning against her. Her small head rested on Anna¡¯s stomach and her lips trembled like someone who was fighting back her tears.


    ¡°Gemma?¡± Anna gently pulled her back to stare at her face and she could see for herself the worry in Gemma¡¯s glistening hazel eyes, and she looked sad about something.


    ¡°No no, don¡¯t cry.¡± Anna gently cupped her puffy cheeks, seeing the tears that were pooling in her eyes and she sniffed.


    ¡°My little Gemma is no cry baby,e.¡± Anna pulled her into her arm, embracing the little one while lovingly rubbing her back to ease her a bit.


    ¡°Do you want to hear a story?¡± Anna sweetly asked as she helped her tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear, but despite not getting any response from Gemma, she began telling the story.


    ¡°This is a story about a milk angel and her pail.¡± Anna whispered it to her before continuing, ¡± Once upon a time, Patty, a milk angel was heading to the market, fully disguised as a maid while carrying a pail of milk on her head. On her way, she began calcting the amount of people who¡¯d buy her precious sweet milk, but after making it to the market, no one was willing to buy the milk from the disguised angel. They all said they didn¡¯t want to buy....¡±


    Anna continued the story without stopping, and after some time, to Anna¡¯s gratification, Gemma was actually listening while remaining in theforting arms of Anna, and there were no tears in her eyes as she quietly listened.


    ¡°Then all of a sudden, a rich little girl walked up to the maid and was more than happy to taste the milk the maid had brought. So she paid for a whole cup and do you know what happened after she drank the milk?¡±


    Gemma shook her head, waiting for Anna to say and Anna smiled at her anticipation, ¡°the maid revealed herself to be the milk angel, and told the little girl that the milk was a gift from the heavens and that her day shall be blessed with happiness after drinking the milk.¡±


    With that, Anna picked the ss milk from the tray and showed it to Gemma, ¡°are you going to ignore the heavenly milk that I brought for you? Just like the little girl, you¡¯re one of the lucky fellows to be getting a special milk today, are you going to ignore it?¡±


    Gemma quickly shook her head and pulled away from Anna, taking hold of the ss milk and drinking it to thest drop. Anna smiled in triumph after watching her drink the whole thing and she only brought the cup down after emptying it.


    ¡°Good girl.¡±


    Anna took the cup from her little hold and smiled with determination, ¡°just you wait and see, now that you¡¯ve finished the heavenly milk, you¡¯ll have an angel who¡¯ll be by your side, to guide and protect you and also ensure you stay happy, that is the reward of taking the milk.¡±


    Finally, Gemma smiled at the news of having an angel watch over her, and her eyes expressed her happiness as the bright color gradually returned to her face.


    ¡°Are you hungry now? Do you want a taste of some heavenly breakfast as well?¡±


    She nodded, leading Anna to kiss her forehead before getting to her feet. ¡°I¡¯ll go get it then.¡±


    Picking up the tray, Anna turned around to leave, and as she made it to the door, she heard a cute, sweet appreciative voice behind her.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±

 Chapter 169

    169 Leave My Pce!


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    Hearing the sweet little voice speak behind her made Anna halt in her step. The little voice repeated itself in her ears, leaving Anna¡¯s already big eyes to go bigger as the realization hit her.


    Did Gemma just speak??


    Turning around to look at her, Gemma was back toying on her bed, and her gaze was fixated on the book she was yfully sketching on. Only when Anna turned around did the little one raise her head from the book to look at her.


    ¡°Did...did you say something?¡± Anna asked with a hopeful glint in her eyes, waiting for Gemma to say just anything in response, but unfortunately, the little one just stared nkly at her, tilting her head to the side while her lips remained shut.


    From her reaction, she seemed clueless and didn¡¯t look like she understood what Anna had just asked, leaving the little hope that built itself in Anna¡¯s heart to quickly dissolve into nothing.


    If Gemma didn¡¯t say anything then, who did? Or was it her head ying tricks on her again?


    ¡°Never mind that,¡± Anna brushed it off with a smile, ¡°carry on.¡±


    Gemma only responded with a nod of her head before returning her gaze to the book. With a sigh, Anna finally exited her chambers and the moment she shut the door behind her, Gemma¡¯s lips curved into a smile.


    .....


    ¡°I must have imagined it.¡± Anna convinced herself as she made it through the corridor. Maybe her anticipation to hear Gemma speak for once made her mind automatically think she did.


    Or maybe not?


    Her slim brows pulled themselves together in silent contemtion. She walked past a few maids, getting lost in her thoughts and wasn¡¯t expecting to bump shoulders with one of the maids, but it seemed intentional because the maid was harsh in her attempt as though she had nned to bump into Anna.


    It made Annalise stumble back a bit, visibly taken aback by the shoulder bump and the ss on the tray she held fell to the ground, shattering in pieces as shards of broken ss were nowying on the ground.


    ¡°Oh no!¡±


    Ignoring the maid who had rudely bumped into her, she went down on both knees and began picking up the shards of ss into the tray.


    Behind her she could hear a maid giggle, ¡°look, if it isn¡¯t the devoted maiden of Euphrasia, or Viscarrian maybe? I¡¯m confused.¡± She whispered to the second maiden who had escorted her, but made her whispering loud enough for Anna to hear.


    ¡°It¡¯s not easy to be a maid in two different pces, and most especially His Highness¡¯s personal maid.¡± Said the other, but Anna continued to ignore it as she carefully picked the broken pieces into a tray.


    ¡°I heard she serves most of the men in the pce, as far as I know, none of his highnesses are keen to women, she must have used some sort of magic spell, it¡¯s possible she could be a witch.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not even that pretty, I wonder what his highness even sees in her, there was a time he could barely stand her and now.....who knows what she might have done to him.¡±


    ¡°Are you blind? She dresses more nicely than us, and that bracelet she wears costs a fortune, she must be serving as a seductress, don¡¯t you think?¡±


    The more they kept speaking, the more Anna¡¯s blood boiled like boiling water that was about to spill from a pot.


    She¡¯s had it with these maidens!


    ¡°Pardon.¡± She got to her feet, turning around to look at them and they didn¡¯t hesitate to meet her stare.


    ¡°I also have something to share with you,¡± she began as she took a step towards the two maidens who eyed her from head to toe.


    ¡°Which is?¡±


    Anna smiled while rubbing the corner of her lips with the base of her index finger. ¡°I heard that his highness ims you both are aplete eye sore to his gaze, which is why he never sends for you.¡± She began, leaving the detestable looks on the maidens face to fall.


    ¡°W_ what?¡±


    Anna nodded, ¡°believe me, I¡¯m his personal maid so I¡¯m most likely to hear this sort of thing,¡± she tapped one of the maidens on her shoulder, gaining her attention.


    ¡°You¡¯re Cyris right? Your case is even worse than hers, basically you¡¯re nothing more but a jobless, backbiting, bitter.....¡±


    ¡°How dare you?!¡± She raised her hand to p the human who dared to insult her to her face but to her surprise, Anna had caught her wrist before the p could reach her face and instead, the maid was the one who received a hot p from Anna who was no longer smiling.


    The sound of the p resonated through the corridor that the maid who had escorted her little friend, froze at her spot after witnessing her getting pped by Anna.


    The maid who got pped couldn¡¯t even scream as the unexpected pnded on her left cheek. A bit traumatized from it, she looked at the human who had the effrontery to raise a hand at her and this time around, Anna was the one pointing fingers.


    ¡°Don¡¯t ever test me,¡± she warned with a serious glint in her eyes, ¡°there¡¯s a reason why I keep quiet but it¡¯s not because I¡¯m foolish, trust me I know when and how to use my hands when ites to dealing with senseless people like you.¡±


    ¡°You..!!¡± The maid barely knew what to say, she hadn¡¯t recovered from the shock of being pped, nor did she know the ever so quiet Anna was capable of retaliating this far.


    ¡°I have met many jobless people like you who know nothing other than to run their useless mouths and say bitter words just to instigate someone. Well, you¡¯ve messed with the wrongdy and this p serves as a warning to the both of you.¡± She pointed at the two of them, making it super clear.


    ¡°Don¡¯t ever cross paths with me else you won¡¯t like the oue of what an ordinary maid is capable of doing, do you understand that?¡± She was nearly raising her voice at them, not minding if they¡¯d be heard or not.


    ¡°You pped me?!¡±


    ¡°And I won¡¯t hesitate to do it again, like I said you would hate to get me angry. So mind the words thate out of those mouths of yours, else I¡¯ll help you shut them up myself.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡±


    The deep voice that spoke behind Anna made her flinch a little, and as she turned around to see who it was, Roshan was unhurriedly heading towards her direction.


    The look on his sculpted face was stoic, making him look fearful and beautiful at the same time as he walked like a king. He only stopped walking after stopping beside Annalise who lowered her head, a bit taken aback by his presence and was obviously not expecting him to show up at a time like this.


    Was she in trouble?


    ¡°Your highness.¡± The maidens bowed, while the other maid who was pped instantly feigned tears.


    ¡°M_morning your highness.¡±


    Roshan¡¯s expression didn¡¯t falter at her condition and he exchanged nces between Anna and the maids before letting out a sigh and shoving his hands into his pocket.


    ¡°You.¡± He directed that word at Anna who met his stare.


    ¡°Me?¡±


    ¡°Hitting a maid is not allowed in the pce.¡±


    Anna lowered her head based on the seriousness in his tone. She knew the rules, but it wasn¡¯t her fault either. Regardless, she chose to swallow it.


    ¡°Forgive me your highness, I¡¯m ready to face whatever punishment I deserve for my actions, but I¡¯ll admit that I have no regrets for what I did.¡± She retorted politely, not backing down, but his next words left her surprised.


    ¡°Leave my pce.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± She met his indifferent stare. Meanwhile the maidens who were watching couldn¡¯t hold back a triumphant smile as they watched his Highness say those words to his personal maid.


    Anna didn¡¯t understand why he was saying these things to her, not until he turned around to look at the maidens who instantly hid away their smiles.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear me?¡± Those final words snapped from him like a whish, causing their faces to fall ashen as he directed that question at them.


    ¡°Us?¡±


    ¡°Do you need another p before getting your brains to work properly?¡± His words were like a scimitar against their ears and their hearts dropped.


    He was actually kicking them out!!


    ¡°But your highness...¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t been dumb to all the rumors spreading in the pce, but like they say, ignorance is bliss.¡± He returned his strict, piercing gaze to the trembling maidens who lowered their heads.


    ¡°I witnessed everything, and watching you getting pped wasn¡¯t giving me enough satisfaction but getting rid of the negative things in the pce shall begin starting from today.¡±


    ¡°Forgive us your highness, we didn¡¯t mean any of what we said, where should we go??¡± They immediately went on their knees, begging for forgiveness but Roshan was unfazed.


    ¡°You should have thought of that before daring to p her in the first ce. Now leave my sight and get out before I throw you out myself.¡±


    ¡°But..¡±


    ¡°Guards!¡± At Roshan¡¯s call, two guards showed up at the corridor in less than a minute and they bowed their heads after standing in his presence.


    ¡°Your highness.¡±


    ¡°Get rid of them, and make sure you search their belongings before letting them leave.¡±


    ¡°As you say your highness.¡±


    Anna, who was dumbstruck by everything happening in front of her, watched as the guards took the pleading maidens away. It attracted gazes as most people showed up to see the embarrassed maidens being taken away.


    Once they were alone, Annalise finally shifted her gaze to Roshan who stood before her, he gave her head a gentle pat before uttering proudly.


    ¡°Good job.¡±


    A!nna smiled in relief, seeing he wasn¡¯t actually upset with her and she mumbled, ¡°for a moment there, I thought you were angry with me.¡±

 Chapter 170

    170 Questioning The Princess


    Anna smiled in relief and her heart eased after seeing he wasn¡¯t actually upset with her, ¡°for a moment there, I thought you were angry with me.¡±


    She mumbled, but Roshan said nothing in retort.


    He could detect from her low tone that his way of approach had frightened her a bit and it wasn¡¯t surprising, beingpared to his nature. Well, he was nowhere upset with her but rather, he was upset with those ignorant maids for daring to eveny a hand on his Anna.


    Spreading fake rumors wasn¡¯t necessarily the only bad thing that had been happening in the pce, there were a lot more insects he had to get rid off before they turned his pce roof upside down, and he was only starting to realize howpulsory it was to take charge.


    He noticed everything, but didn¡¯t say a word, plus Lorenzo and head maid were dutifully keeping him up to date about the issues in the pce but no one knew this. It was better to act ignorant in front of everyone, that way they¡¯d foolishly make a slip, but there were just too many slips these days that the disappointment he felt was enough to fill a drum.


    All hell would have broken loose if in turn those maidens seeded in touching Anna but instead, his annoying woman had surprised him today by boldly stepping up for herself and giving those silly maidens what they truly deserved.


    The way she spoke back didn¡¯t particrly sound like the quiet, shy Anna he knew, almost like there was another side of her that had been emotionally unleashed and it had him thinking back to Aveline. Most especially Azazel¡¯sment on how his previous mate wasn¡¯t someone to be trifled with and it only piqued his interest now.


    Was Anna really that bold in her past life? He really wanted to remember it all, but maybe not remembering it also has its advantages.


    ¡°I¡¯m not upset.¡± His tone cooled as he cupped her cheeks in his palm, staring deep into her chocte-brown eyes, ¡°I¡¯m actually really happy to see you take a stand for yourself.¡±


    .....


    And he meant it, Anna could see the proudness in his hazel-green eyes that it left her poor heart beating in a tempo again. She hates when it does that cause she couldn¡¯t handle the rhythm of her own heart atimes.


    She smiled in return at his words before looking away and facing sideways. Her expression contorted into one of great positivity as she uttered, ¡°to be honest, I have no idea how I did that, even my actions tend to surprise me most of the time, but in a good way.¡±


    Roshan¡¯s heart lightened at the bright look on her face, most especially the positivity she carried in her tone as she spoke. They were both bathed in the golden glowing lights of the chandeliers that hung high above the ceiling, and Anna¡¯s face appeared more exquisite since her hair was packed in a ponytail, making her look like an angel incarnate, to the point it left the cier gazing with adoration.


    This woman really has no mercy when ites to his heart, if only there was a way to make it stop beating so rapidly, but what can he do? He¡¯s defenseless at the moment since she had somehow stolen his heart for herself.


    ¡°I¡¯ll have to leave now.¡± He said to her, ¡°I¡¯mte for training and also one more thing.¡± He snapped his fingers as though he just remembered something at thest minute.


    ¡°Don¡¯t overwork yourself before tonight.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± She asked, but he just shook his head in response. ¡°Just don¡¯t do it, I don¡¯t need you getting tired before tonight and please listen to my words this time.¡±


    Anna was curious and was ready to question the cier further, but figuring he wasn¡¯t going to tell her since she¡¯s already asked once, she could onlyply and nod her head in response.


    ¡°Okay.¡±


    ~


    ¡°Keeping me locked here will do you no good,¡± Calista made the effort to begin a conversation with the white-haired Enigma who just browsed through a book while sitting at his study table, giving her 0% of his attention and since the moment he stepped in, he hasn¡¯t even nced her way.


    Calista wasn¡¯t dumb enough to not realize that. Her situation at the moment was partially her fault since she had followed him into the forest without thinking twice about it. But never did she expect that the man who saved her was actually a demon! She hade up with so many options but a demon???


    Him??


    She¡¯s always pictured them to have the worst physical appearance and she had seen some for herself. But shockingly, how can this handsome man who looks like he had been specially sculpted by the heavens im to be a demon without even bothering to bat an eye.


    Even his side view was enthralling as the outline of his face spoke volumes and it made her wonder if he was aware of his own charms.


    But, if they were Demons who looked no different from humans, does that also mean that there could be many Demons roaming Euphrasia, disguised as a normal being??


    ¡°Excuse me.¡± She tried to gain his attention by waving her hand in his direction but unfortunately, he was deliberately giving her none which irked her for some reason.


    ¡°You need to let me go.¡± She got to her feet with her blue eyes fixed on him. If he really was a demon then she certainly has nothing to do with demons, especially one as ignorant as him but as expected, she was only weed with a silence that embarrassed her further.


    No sooner had she said those words did the door open, startling Calista and another ethereal being walked in. He shut the door behind him and Azazel finally closed the book he was reading, lifting his gaze to look at the cier who finally showed up before the human bursted his eardrums.


    ¡°I was going to ask what took you so long but nevermind that since you¡¯re already here.¡± Azazel¡¯s calm tone as he spoke to the stranger who walked in made Calista blink at him. So he wasn¡¯t really deaf or blind, he had seriously ignored her!


    Roshan¡¯s gaze shifted to the woman whose face was half hidden with a scarf and he folded his arms at her.


    ¡°Who are you?¡±


    ¡°Seat.¡± His authoritative tone made Calista heed to his words and she sat down on the bed with no arguments, silently praying in her head that they don¡¯t end up using her for some silly ritual that the Demons were fond of doing.


    Roshan took a step towards the woman who was sitting on the bed while Azazel just watched, a bit surprised to see how the human was listening to Roshan but not even him.


    Has he gone that soft??


    ¡°Take off your scarf.¡± Came the order from Roshan.


    ¡°W_why?¡±


    ¡°Take it off or I¡¯ll do it myself.¡±


    He sounded imperturbable, but there was a hint of arrogance in his tone that added to the dark aura he brought along with him, and before she knew it, her hands quickly reached to loosen the scarf.


    She took it off before meeting Roshan¡¯s indifferent stare and he crouched to her level on the bed, ¡°you¡¯re the princess of Euphrasia.¡± He began with a neutral tone and Calista was more than stunned to realize a stranger or rather, Demon was familiar with her.


    ¡°Who...who are you?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure my name would be of any use to you so let¡¯s begin with the question that I have for you.¡± Rising to his feet, he grabbed a chair from a corner and brought it close to the foot of the bed before sitting on it.


    Calista gulped down her inexistent saliva as she retreated on the bed, whoever this man was sure had her attention now.


    ¡°Where¡¯s the Valerian sword?¡± He questioned.


    Calista could tell the young man before her wasn¡¯t here to y games, his gaze was strict and entirely fixed on hers in ways that sent shivers crawling up at her spine and she didn¡¯t respond, as though she knew that if she lied, he would figure it out.


    Roshan on the other hand, already dismissed the idea of seeing whoever his brother had brought, but after getting the hint that his brother didn¡¯t abduct just anyone but the princess of Euphrasia, he was here to reap the benefits of it.


    No doubt, taking their princess meant war and he wondered what went through his brother¡¯s mind that he had to bring her here. But then, it was also an advantage to him because if the pictures he saw in the House ofte Sir Steve turned out to be the Valerian sword, then he was going to get the answers from the princess herself.


    ¡°Will you speak?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll only speak if he asks me instead.¡± She instantly pointed at something, or rather someone behind Roshan and when the cier turned to see who she was pointing out, he was surprised to see she was actually pointing at Azazel.

 Chapter 171

    171 A Glimpse Of Hope


    ¡°You wish to answer to him?¡± The surprise in Roshan¡¯s tone wasn¡¯t one he could possibly hide and to settle it all, the human nodded her head in affirmation without opening her mouth to speak.


    Her gaze slowly retracted to the Enigma who was currently ring daggers at her under the veil of his cold blue eyes, obviously not liking where the conversation was heading and he threateningly tilted his head at her.


    Calista didn¡¯t need any further warning before averting her gaze from his direction, almost like his gaze was enough to force her innocent soul out of her human body, and she couldn¡¯t risk doing something that would bring that disturbing thought to pass.


    However, Roshan wasn¡¯t particrly sure of what to make from this sudden request and leaned his back on the chair.


    His first initial thought was that the human would try as much as possible to escape his question, but what he got in return had left him visibly baffled......and strangely thrilled as he shifted his gaze to the white-haired demon who stood at the entrance of the chamber, unmoved and barely uttering a word.


    ¡°I¡¯ll only answer to him.¡± Calista pointed in his direction once again, keeping to her words and it made Azazel¡¯s brow knit into a frown. Not like she had seen him smile ever since he brought her here but that menacing frown he gave her instantly made her recoil her fingers back.


    She had to admit internally that they both scared the wits out of her. If it wasn¡¯t for the neatly adorned chamber they had kept her in, she would have seen them as escaped souls from the underworld.


    She was just a human princess who got curious about those blue eyes ying in her head, she just wanted to know who¡¯s eyes it belonged to and why she couldn¡¯t get it off her head.


    How was she supposed to figure out that the end result would be finding herself in a Demon¡¯s den, and in the hands of not just one, but two strikingly handsome men iming to be Demons.


    .....


    ¡°So you¡¯ll only speak as long as he¡¯s asking the question? Is that it?¡± Roshan had to ask again, wanting to remind her of her own statement in case she ns on backing out.


    Calista ced a hand on her poor chest, feeling the rate of her heart palpitate through her palm in anxiety, but she tapped it lightly before mustering up the courage to respond,


    ¡°It¡¯s a possibility I¡¯m hoping you¡¯ll give a try.¡±


    Roshan clicked his tongue at her deceptive tone, he was starting to wonder if the women in Euphrasia were born differently from normal women out there.


    First he had to deal with Anna who shared her own stubbornness and now, the princess of that kingdom isn¡¯t any different. Or maybe because it has something to do with the people of Euphrasia having a long time rivalry with Demons.


    But the situation altogether wasn¡¯t pointing at him, it was pointing at Azazel which sort of piqued his interest. The princess doesn¡¯t look like someone who wants trouble, but it seems she¡¯s unaware of the trouble that came with talking to Azazel.


    Her choice was trouble on its own.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯re in an off position to still make a choice? Princess?¡± There was a hint of sarcasm in the cier¡¯s tone that Calista found disapproving, she couldn¡¯t even hide the sour look that crossed her face at his words.


    Was he challenging her?


    ¡°If you¡¯re from royalty then you¡¯ll understand where I¡¯ming from.¡± She sat properly on the bed, avoiding the gazes of the two baffled men who were more than shocked by her responses.


    Most especially Azazel who happened to be taking it a lot more seriously than the cier.


    ¡°Okay I¡¯m done with her.¡± He made up his mind. Azazel doesn¡¯t think he can stand this annoying human for one second but halted in his approach when Roshan raised a finger, stopping him from taking any harsh steps on thedy who retreated instantly on the bed.


    He looked really bitter about her presence and that was one thing Calista couldn¡¯t understand. But why was it so surprising? His hate wasn¡¯t supposed to shock her, but it did.


    He was a demon and she was a human. Aplete contrast that will never be epted. The name of her kingdom was enough to even justify his reasons.


    ¡°Have you no shame?¡± She said to him after retreating to the far end of bed, knowing he can do anything to her if she provoked him now.


    ¡°Coming at a woman just cause you¡¯re pissed.¡± She pointed out in a deceptive tone while meeting his irked gaze.


    Clearly he has no interest in talking to her and instead of just staying here and listening to the haughty woman rant non-stop. Azazel said nothing and exited the room with quick steps.


    ¡°Hey.¡± Roshan called at him, but his brother didn¡¯t respond and just left without looking back, not even once.


    Roshan was stunned and his pupils dted slightly.


    He wanted tough at Azazel¡¯s reaction but knew he had to hold it in before it ruins hisposed demeanor. His brother wasn¡¯t someone who interacted with women every now and then like Levi, he rarely speaks with Anna and avoids women as though they are some sort of gue to his humanity.


    But after witnessing his reaction today, it was rtively funny to see the ever-so-calm Azazel get worked up by a woman he just abducted.


    Why he abducted her still makes no sense to him though.


    Roshan didn¡¯t mind returning her back to Euphrasia if she was a normal being, but unfortunately for her, she had to be the princess of Euphrasia which means he could get some valuable info from her about the Valerian sword.


    Info¡¯s like where it is kept, who is holding it before he knows exactly how to make a clean n on stealing it back.


    But clearly, she¡¯s a woman with choices, she wants Azazel to ask the questions and not him. Who in the world still gets picky after abduction?


    Now he has to convince the unconvincing Azazel to y it out. Not because he was left with no other choice, but he was interested to see how it¡¯d all end once Azazel agrees.


    ¡°Stay here.¡± With that, Roshan got to his feet and exited the room, locking the door behind him before going after Azazel.


    Calista let out a deep breath the moment she felt their presence dissipate and she stood up to her feet. She nced at the chamber but unfortunately, there was no way to escape from this ce as the doors and every other exit were locked.


    ¡°Even the windows are jammed.¡± She muttered with her blue eyes glistening in disappointment. Figuring a way out of here turned out to be even more difficult than she had expected it to be.


    She knew her brother must be searching for her, and Archer must have delivered the news of her kidnap. Her brother wasn¡¯t someone who¡¯d take this issue lying down and she only hoped her sick father wasn¡¯t aware of it as well.


    If her brotheres here and causes another war then...


    ¡°No.¡± She shook the thought away as a look of concern dawned on her, she has to leave before her brotheres here. This was the Demon¡¯s den and anything can happen.


    With that in mind, she quickly hurried towards the curtains and tried to open the windows from there, but it refused to budge. The more she struggled, the more she felt her energy gradually slipping away from her system and when it was starting to get too tough with no positive results, she stopped.


    Her chest heaved up and down, indicating how breathless she was from the struggling and her hands found themselves to her hips.


    Shattering the windows with something hard didn¡¯t sound like a good idea and the noise would have alerted everyone, which is something she wants to avoid to remove further attention her way.


    This time around, Calista made sure to study the ss before touching it, curious to know if it was really jammed or not. But the ss glinted sharply under her gaze the more she stared, and the ss was only starting to look mystical as though someone had ced a spell on the window.


    Was it that grumpy head¡¯s doing?


    She inwardly grimaced at her bad luck and just when she was about to give up, her eyes suddenly caught a glimpse of someone taking a walk in the front yard. There were two of them, leading Calista¡¯s eyes to squint in an attempt to picture them clearly.


    One was dressed in a luxurious outfit, while thedy walking beside her held a bowl of grapes, following her around and when she looked closer, her blue eyes dted in shock.


    ¡°Anna??¡±


    Without waiting for a second, she began to bang on the window, ¡°Anna!¡±

 Chapter 172

    172 Fading Beauty


    At the front yard of the Viscarrian pce, Lady Melrose had chosen to take a little stroll in the front garden, feeling that the morning weather was pleasantly chilly and she was in a great mood to take a walk¨Cor so it seemed.


    Making her way through the concrete path with Anna sticking by her side, she unnningly paused in her steps after catching sight of the beautiful flowers that were almost withering at her left side. Their petals were no longer looking sulent and half of them were drying up greatly.


    The sight of the withered flowers didn¡¯t really appeal to her tranquil gaze. She suddenly crouched and plucked out one of the dry flowers with such care and gentleness.


    It was a rose flower that was already getting past its season but to Anna¡¯s amazement, the withering flower gradually bloomed in her hands until all the petals were looking fresh and attractive once again.


    ¡°Winter is approaching really fast,¡± she softlymented before shifting her red eyes to the rest withering flowers, ¡°look, the beauty of the flowers are already fading, sooner orter, no one will be tempted to take a walk in the front garden and the flowers will be ignored like they weren¡¯t even here.¡±


    Anna, who had willingly apanied thedy to the front yard, carefully followed the gaze of Lady Melrose and saw she was staring at the withered flowers, but Anna wasn¡¯t sure if it¡¯d be out of respect to give her logic response or if she should just remain quiet and not utter a word.


    Melrose buried the stem of the bloomed flower in her hands, back into the earthly ground that was beautifully fabricated with shiny stone blocks.


    ¡°The same goes for everything out there in this pathetic world we live in.¡± She apathetically added, ¡°once they notice the beauty in you fades, you¡¯ll be reduced to nothing but an invisible skeleton in the eyes of those you once thought were your admirers.¡±


    ¡°Pardon my manners,¡± Anna politely intervened as she didn¡¯t agree with that fact of hers, ¡°but true beauty isn¡¯t something that can be visibly seen just by staring alone, myte mother always told me that true beautyes from the heart and should always be pictured that way.¡±


    .....


    When she was little, Anna always had the impression that the birthmark on her forehead made her very ugly. Back then, she used to think the children of Draekharm refused to y with her because they found her ugly, but her mother was always there to advise her on the most important things.


    A sad mocking chuckle left Melrose¡¯s lips after hearing Anna¡¯s words and she raised her shoulders high after standing straight, her pretty glowing face sneakily contorted into one of visible disdain but Anna didn¡¯t think that look was meant for her.


    ¡°It¡¯s funny how you humans think you¡¯re the only ones who suffer in the world.¡± She tsked at the sphemy, ¡°but in truth, if you only read the books that everyone else is reading, then it¡¯s not surprising that you¡¯d assume what everyone else is equally assuming.¡±


    Based on her words, Anna could candidly tell that there was something bothering her. Ever since she came, she has been less excited about the family ball or even jubting like her sister on who gets to be the mate of his highness. She has shown less interest in all of these things and acted out of mannerism, but if she wasn¡¯t interested, why did shee?


    ¡°I¨C¡±


    ¡°The family ball is starting tonight,¡± a faint smile tainted her lips at the thought, ¡°but it¡¯s extremely clear to me that I¡¯m not the mate of his highness, neither do I believe it¡¯s going to be any of the demoness, and it leaves me even more curious to figure out who his highness might end up picking tonight, aren¡¯t you also anxious to figure it out?¡±


    She diverted her stare towards Annalise who froze a bit at the question, but before she got a chance toe up with an appropriate response, Lady Roseline chose to intrude as she appeared from who knows where with a soft giggle.


    ¡°How is she supposed to know? After All, she¡¯s just a maid.¡± Roseline reminded her sister while heading towards their direction and Anna couldn¡¯t help but roll her eyes internally at the supposed deceptive retort.


    ¡°Roseline, you¡¯re here as well,¡± Melrose proceeded to change the subject before her sister turned it into something else, ¡°did you alsoe to take a stroll? We could have taken one together.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯te for a stroll,¡± Roseline shook her head, bringing her to the main reason of why she even came here, ¡°I came to ask if you¡¯d be interested in following me to the capital. Mother and father sent lots of gifts to the ministers who¡¯d be bringing them over for the celebration tonight, and I wanted to go check them myself.¡±


    ¡°Oh! That means we¡¯ll return tonight with the ministers then?¡± Melrose inquired while Roseline nodded her head in response, still waiting for her sister¡¯s approval.


    ¡°Sure, why not?¡± Melrose¡¯s eyes expressed her willingness to follow and she turned her attention to the mute Anna.


    ¡°You may leave now, the stroll was satisfying and I appreciate thepany you offered.¡± Lady Melrose finally dismissed her and Anna smiled at her sincere words before bowing and leaving the demoness to themselves.


    ¡°I really can not understand why you¡¯re so soft with her?¡± Roseline finallyid out herint the moment Anna left.


    Seeing her sister so calm with the human maid only ruined her mood of going to the capital city and Melrose had sensed her sister¡¯sint even before sheid them out.


    ¡°Do Iin when you treat them the way you want?¡± Melrose inquired, ¡°how I choose to treat anyone has nothing to do with you my dear sister, you handle them the way you want, I handle them the way I want, so shall we leave?¡±


    Roseline¡¯s bitter expression turned sour at her sister¡¯s retort and without saying a word, she stormed off, leaving Melrose to fall behind.


    Calista who had been trying to get Anna¡¯s attention all this time, figured how unfruitful her ns turned out to be as she watched Anna exit herself from the yard, entering through the main door and that somehow stunned her.


    She was more than happy to see Annalise alive and well, she wanted to speak to her and ask her how things were, but the questions that popped in her head and the current situation she was in gave her enough mixed feelings already.


    How did Anna end up in the Demon¡¯s den? Why isn¡¯t she escaping and why aren¡¯t they going after her? From the look on Anna¡¯s face, she happened to smile at one of thosedies before stepping into the pce.


    Was she not scared? Are thosedies human or demons??


    Calista didn¡¯t want to reel her head with much negativity and could only hope Anna was still the Anna she knew.

 Chapter 173

    173 Responsibilities


    Sittingfortably in the main chamber hall, Roshan was seated at the head seat with his legs crossed, posing in a manner that gave off that powerful vibe as he nced at a report file in front of him.


    Not only that, he had been informed that the higher Demons were here to see him for some particr reasons, showing up unannounced and ruining his chance to speak with Azazel.


    As always, they surrounded the long rectangr table that had chairs on each side and the air around them was rtively tense. None of the higher Demons said a word to the cier as his strict gaze and sudden disy of power has left them all speechless.


    As far as they know, whenever they brought an issue before him, he somehow manages to ignore the problem and discards it like it had nothing to do with him, but currently, he showed an opposite behavior to that side of his.


    Roshan carefully went through the file, his gaze raking over the paper and he didn¡¯t need to lift his head up before knowing their gazes were concentrated on him.


    ¡°The temporary governor of old Town is nning to switch position.¡± One of the higher Demons began as his voice resonated audibly in the quiet chamber. ¡°Since there has been ack of adequate resources in Old town, he requests to be shifted to another region, your highness.¡±


    The matter was brought forth before Roshan who found the request to be extremely silly.


    ¡°Shifted to another region?¡± He closed the file, ¡°his job as the governor is to provide those needs to the people of old Town, not escape his duties since my father thought he was more experienced to put him in charge....¡±


    ¡°But your highness,¡± one of the higher Demons strongly interjected, ¡°I think you should very much consider his option.¡±


    .....


    ¡°And why should I do that? He can alwayse to the pce to ask for the necessaries which he never did, so why now?¡± Roshan was ready to hear justifying and reasonablements from the Demon council, even Gravion whom he expected to challenge him was engrossed in a file he was studying.


    The mattersted for a pretty long time and Anna, who had been passing by countlessly due to some errands, was starting to worry that Roshan would have less time to get prepared for tonight.


    The door was left ajar, making it possible for her to steal a peek at the handsome cier who seemed to be handling the situation pretty well, and the look on his face remained stoic as he made his preference clear to the higher Demons sitting before him.


    ¡°The capital of old Town needs a new governor, and not some rat nning to escape from his responsibilities. It¡¯s about time I make certain changes to my father¡¯s rules which everyone must adhere to, unless they are ready to drop the position of being a higher Demon and getting out of here.¡±


    His watchful gaze shifted from one higher Demon to another as they all remained ufortably shut, refusing to oppose his words and be stripped of their high positions.


    When his gaze shifted to the door, he caught sight of Annalise peeping in his direction and her eyes widened the moment they locked their gaze.


    Rosha perceived her sweet floral scent while in the middle of a conversation and he knew she was close by. Just as expected, the woman was actually right there, watching him with her big brown eyes.


    Realizing she¡¯s been spotted by the cier as they locked gaze, Anna instantly flees from the door before she gets punished for eavesdropping.


    ¡°Your highness, is everything alright?¡± Asked one of the Demon¡¯s who noticed his fixed gaze was on the door and he shook his head, taking a swallow as the deep urge to go over that woman slowly tried to ovee him.


    He needed to stay focused at this time.


    ¡°Nothing is wrong,¡± he returned his attention to the higher Demons, ¡°if that is settled, I¡¯ll look into the capital of old Town myself, and thene with a conclusion at the end of it all, but I will need everyone¡¯s suggestion during that time and a few who will volunteer toe with me to view the capital ourselves.¡±


    There were whispers amongst the higher Demon as they contemted his words, obviously stunned that he needed their suggestions too since his father was the type who ruled like an authoritarian.


    ¡°Very well.¡± Gravion responded after clearing his throat, ¡°once his highness is sure of what to conclude on, he can count on us.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll appreciate it then.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll take our leave.¡±


    The higher Demons rose to their feet, bowing their heads at the same time before departing from the chamber. Roshan indulged in a minute conversation with Gravion before he finally exited the chamber and once they were gone, Roshan remained in the chambers and tried to sort out the problem in the file.


    Being the ruler of Viscarrian came with it¡¯s responsibilities and that equally required his time and attention. He knew he wasn¡¯t ready for any of this due to his own trauma back then, but now that he was able to picture the situation clearly, ying games was basically over.


    They n on crowning him after the family ball cause ording to them, who is a king without a Queen?


    Hours passed by exponentially and Anna who had been stalking aroundtely realized he hadn¡¯t left the chamber yet. She has never seen him this busy before and the matter he appeared to be working on must be a serious one as heid a map on the table.


    ¡°Is he ever going toe out of there?¡± She whispered to herself with a look of worry reflecting in her eyes. After making sure that the chamber he was in was really empty, she quietly stepped in to see what he was seriously working on and the guards who were positioned by his side made her stop in her steps.


    Roshan lifted his gaze to look at the beautiful woman who chose to distract him with her presence and when he saw she wasn¡¯t any steps forward, it took a while before he realized that his guards were limiting her froming anywhere near him.


    ¡°Will you excuse us?¡± Came his order to the guards who bowed their heads in affirmation.


    ¡°No one is permitted to enter until I say otherwise.¡± He added, making the guards aware that they shouldn¡¯t let anyone in before letting them exit the council chamber.


    Once they shut the door behind him, Anna took another step towards Roshan who stretched out his hand for her.


    ¡°Come.¡±

 Chapter 174

    174 Taming A Monster To Sleep


    Seeing his gesture, a happy smile warmly spread to Anna¡¯s delicate face, showcasing itself in her gleaming brown eyes and she immediately reached for his hand, letting it cover her own slender fingers.


    ¡°Is someone missing me a little too much?¡± His tired tone resonated softly as he made the woman sit on hisp, gently wrapping his arms around her and resting his chin on her shoulder. They were in an intimate position that made them look no different from lovers who just can¡¯t bear to be apart from one another, despite beingpletely flustered and flushed.


    Anna¡¯s heart drummed in her ears the moment he made her sit on hisp, she would have avoided it if his actions was something she senseding.


    She didn¡¯t have this intention in mind when she chose toe see him, in fact she didn¡¯t even think about it, she only wanted to be by his side and watch him work, hoping he¡¯d finish early so he can leave, but this man always seems to think otherwise.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t.... Aren¡¯t you working on something?¡± She tried to change the subject while staring at the map heid out on the table, and she was able to picture it more clearly as different sectors on the map were circled with red colors.


    The map was a sign thatbeled the location of different cities and at the top of it was the name of the cities as a whole, written in block letters.


    ¡®VISCARRIAN¡¯


    ¡°Why are these cities circled?¡± She asked while pointing at one of the cities on the map, and Roshan¡¯s gaze slowly shifted to the area she was pointing, his chin still resting on her shoulder as he continuously inhaled her sweet scent.


    ¡°These are the ces I n on visiting, major issues happen to being from those circled areas and I was hoping to pay those ces a visit and see things for myself.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Major issues like what?¡± She prompted with her gaze still fixed on it. Anna wasn¡¯t willing to let her mind get distracted from the close proximity between her and Roshan, but the being was holding her so close against his body as though he feared she would escape from his grip if he decides to let go.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about it,¡± he brushed it off with a nonchnt tone, ¡°these are the duties that I have to take care of myself, don¡¯t bother your mind on it.¡±


    ¡°But I am bothered,¡± she admitted while adjusting herself properly against him, ¡°you haven¡¯t stepped out all morning and it¡¯s almost evening, you told me not to get tired before tonight and I¡¯m following your orders, so I advise you do the same.¡±


    ¡°This is something that concerns my people,¡± he thoughtfully added, ¡°I can only rest when I¡¯m done aplishing it.¡± He stated before letting his pretty brows crease in a logical manner, ¡°you see this area,¡± he pointed at the small drawing of hills that wasbeled as Stone Gale, ¡°there¡¯s an issue of the people falling low in resources, and there has been news of human very going on too.¡±


    ¡°Human very??¡± Anna¡¯s eyes widened in revealing shock at the mention of that and he nodded, ¡°but not everyone is aware of it, the reason why most Demons feast on blood mostly is to energize themselves, I understand that part from a meaningful view, but....¡± He tsked,


    ¡°The problem is when you start to feast on blood almost everyday, you get to enjoy the power thates with it, but too much of everything has always been associated with bad.¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°Some people are starting to practice dark magic with it, using human blood as the sacrifice and it¡¯s one of the rituals my father implemented.¡± He began, ¡°Demons share a link with magic, and if used wrongly can trigger great consequences.¡±


    ¡°That means the people here are into human very, not for the pleasure of it but to enhance their dark magic?¡± She carefully put her question in a way that¡¯d make her understand if his response was a yes or no.


    ¡°Yes,¡± he responded, ¡°same reason why I don¡¯t taste your blood every day, cause it can lead to dire consequences since your blood is more unique than most humans out there.¡±


    ¡°So what do you n on doing once you go there?¡± She asked, her face carrying a serious expression as though she was the one leading the issue, and her calcting gaze was fixed on the map.


    ¡°Well, I n on getting those involved arrested, as Demons our magic is already dark enough, crossing the limits can be very fatal and I can¡¯t risk letting the innocent ones be tainted as well.¡±


    Anna nodded her head in understanding and leaned against the map, staring at all circled areas with her narrowed eyes, ¡°are all the circled cities into human very?¡±


    ¡°Each one has their own headaches actually.¡± He exined, ¡°so you see, I need to put time and energy into this before something gets out of hand. To put it all, I might bete for the family ball.¡±


    ¡°But I want to help you.¡± She looked at him over her shoulders and the man had leaned his back against the chair, meeting her gaze before tilting his head.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t something.....¡±


    ¡°I know I¡¯m not hundred percent skilled like you.¡± She admitted before looking at the map again, ¡°but I want to help, basically this is going to be a burden for you and since it concerns human life as well, I want to contribute to something.¡±


    Roshan couldn¡¯t see her face since she had looked away from him, but the slightest movement she made whenever she moved her hips against him or adjusted herself properly in his legs, made him regret having her sit on hisp


    He had ignored it at first, silently iming he could handle it but then, when his mind diverted into different scandalous possibilities, he felt his blood rush down to his lower member with no mercy.


    She wasn¡¯t even doing it intentionally but it made his body react whenever she moved, and the monster in between his legs was starting to get eager, which is not a good thing, especially at a time like this.


    He didn¡¯t have the guts to tell her to stand up, what if she mistakes his intention?? But at the same time he didn¡¯t want her to stand up at all, he was enjoying the feeling a little too much and it tortured him immensely.


    ¡°Look, we can make ns together, I¡¯ll be...¡± Anna kept chattering non-stop while Roshan was silently dealing with a dilemma as his body heated up in reaction. After that night they shared, he has no n to take things too far with them, not until he legally ims her as his but with his self-control slowly seeping away, he was confused on what to do.


    ¡°And we¡¯ll...¡± Anna¡¯s voice suddenly trailed off when she felt something hard poke her from underneath her dress and her brows pulled together in puzzlement, notpletely sure what it was.


    She shifted a little, hoping to avoid the ufortable poking but the more she shifted against him, the hard thing refused to leave.


    ¡®what is that?¡¯ thought Annalise to herself, she didn¡¯t see anything on hisp before sitting on it, so what was poking her from underneath her dress.


    She shifted again.


    ¡°Stop moving!¡± Roshan finally said something as a low groan escaped him, startling the confused Anna who was visibly clueless on what was going on, and when she looked at the cier over her shoulders, her eyes widened and she gasped.


    The man she thought had been listening to her all this time, appeared to be struggling with himself, and quite badly too as he bit hard on his lower lip to control himself, meeting her stare at the same time and Anna was left speechless by that sexy view of him.


    When she felt the hard thing poking her hadn¡¯t left yet, her brain finally clicked and based on Roshan¡¯s visage, she finally knew what it was that was touching her down there, leaving her eyes to widen for the second time.


    Flustered, she immediately tried to stand up but Roshan held her back, making her sit on hisp once again and a short gasp left her lungs.


    ¡°R_Roshan.¡±


    Her face burned but the man was nowhere letting her go as he moved her hair to the other side of her neck, inhaling her floral scent from her exposed neck like it was a drug he got addicted to before shamelessly uttering..


    ¡°Your one mistake was moving around me and exciting the monster down there, as your punishment, you aren¡¯t allowed to leave without taming it back to sleep.¡±


    **********


    To my wonderful readers out there who still stick with The Devil¡¯s Temptation¡¯, the one¡¯s whoment and the ghost readers, thank you so much for giving DDT a chance! ^^ and I hope your supportsts till the end <33

 Chapter 175

    175 Human-figure Shadow


    ¡°Punishment?¡± Anna couldn¡¯t help but frantically ponder on the type of punishment he was referring to. It was also a way to keep her mind distracted from the hardness that made her feel ufortable as she remained seated on hisp.


    ¡°Yes, so tell me, how do you n on taming it back to sleep? Hmm?¡± His warm breath tickled her exposed neck and Anna¡¯s face turned red like that of a lobster, knowing exactly what he meant but the main issue here was, she wasn¡¯t aware of how she was supposed to calm it down.


    Roshan, who sensed her shifting slightly away from his hardness, pulled her against him once again till her back came in contact with his chest. His member¡¯s twitched at the abrupt, yet torturing movement and he couldn¡¯t exin how good it felt.


    He stifled another low groan as his eyes closed and all he wanted was for the woman in his arms to touch him there, grind him hard until he could no longer bear the blissful ecstasy that came with it.


    ¡°I_I¡¯m not familiar with that technique,¡± Annalise feebly admitted while her nervous finger held onto the material of her dress, squeezing it in her palms to stiffen her nervousness, that was until she heard the cier speak into her ear, in a low hypnotizing tone.


    ¡°Get up.¡± His arm that carefully held her to him by her waist, slowly released her from its solid grip, and when Anna realized she was no longer held down against him, she immediately got to her feet, but didn¡¯t dare to run from the chamber.


    ¡°Won¡¯t you like to see the sleeping monster you¡¯ve chosen to awaken?¡± His deep velvety voice made Anna curious to see his hardness, even if it¡¯s just once, but as always, she fought the temptation again and forced herself to shake her head in refusal.


    But she found it pointless because even if she denied her curiosity, Roshan could make out her true feelings just by her reaction alone.


    ¡°Turn around.¡±


    .....


    He ordered with a lustful stare, but Anna was able to reason properly about the situation and knew that if they did anything out of their selfish desires, they might as well forget about attending the family ball.


    After thinking things through, she turned around with stiff movement, and when she did, Anna raised her head up and diverted her stare towards the door, leading her eyes to widen and her lips parted.


    ¡°Lady Odette!¡± She gasped.


    ¡°What?¡±


    The moment he turned around to see if truly Lady Odette was actually there, Anna seized the opportunity and instantly took to her heels, making it to the door before Roshan could realize the awful stunt she had pulled on him.


    ¡°Anna..!!¡±


    Sheughed heartily at his frustrated reaction, ¡°we aren¡¯t allowed to get tired before tonight, so I am just following your orders.¡± She yfully bowed before waving at the obviously annoyed Roshan and fleeing from the room.


    Roshan couldn¡¯t help but wonder if he¡¯s willingly gotten himself into some big trouble by having undeniable feelings for that annoying woman. Of course, she only shows up to torture him without fulfilling the rights that came with it.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see how long you y this game with me.¡± He quietly uttered before looking at his raging hard-on, then throwing his head back as he leaned against the chair.


    He¡¯ll have to take a really cold bath if he ns on getting himself back together, but once he makes her legally his, she¡¯ll never be able to escape him like this.


    Despite his strained expression, a smile managed to reach his lips at the thought.


    ~


    It was already past sunset in the Viscarrian kingdom and at this particr time, guests were already arriving for the family ball with their fancy carriages, and the ones who arrived this early were those rted to Roshan¡¯s family.


    It was going to be a hectic day and everyone was currently busy, doing one thing or the other but no one must be spotted idling around.


    Meanwhile, Reba was getting Gemma prepared for the family ball as she dressed her up beautifully in a long flowing royal blue gown, leading Gemma to smile brightly at her new dress.


    ¡°You are so beautiful.¡± Baplimented the little one before receiving a high five from her, and she couldn¡¯t exin how Gemma¡¯s lightened mood had eased her.


    She remembered seeing Gemma all somber for a whole two days but as always, Anna sessfully worked her magic on her and now she was back to smiling again.


    ¡°You know what the princess needs?¡±


    Gemma shook her head at Ba¡¯s question.


    ¡°She needs a beautiful tiara toplete her dressing, I¡¯ll go get one from Aunt Letitia since she handles all your tiara, she¡¯s well aware of how much you¡¯ll break them if she left it in your care.¡±


    Rising to her feet, Ba left the bowl of warm water she had brought to use and cleaned Gemma up, ¡°but you remain here okay?¡±


    Gemma nodded without saying a word and with that settled, Ba exited the room.


    Gemma was left alone in her chambers and yed with the bowl of warm water kept in front of her, hitting her hands in the water and causing a ssh that made her giggle silently at the effect.


    She was enjoying her time all by herself, unaware of the fact that someone had sneakily stepped into her room through her opened window.


    Gemma continuously caused a ssh, a big grin enchanted her cute face but it onlysted for a few minutes when she saw a strange human-figure shadow on the ground and she paused.


    Her hazel colored eyes narrowed at the shadow that remained unmoving behind her. For some reason, a grip of fear took over her heart cause she knew she saw Ba leave through the door.


    So who could this be?....


    When the shadow hovered above her, a quick gasp left her lips and before she could turn around to see who had invaded her room, the shadow grabbed her neck, keeping her head in ce as the Shadow¡¯s palm instantly covered her mouth.


    Gemma instantly panicked and tried to say something, but the hand sping her mouth was giving her no opportunity to do that, and the next thing she heard was...


    ¡°Pika-boo.¡±


    The candles instantly went off.

 Chapter 176

    176 My Aveline


    After getting the beautiful tiara from Aunt Letitia herself, Ba made her way back into Gemma¡¯s chamber, already feeling excited to put it on for Gemma and imagining just how she¡¯d look having a tiara on her head.


    ¡°Gemma, I got the perfect¨C¡± Ba¡¯s voice instantly trailed off when her gaze shifted to the ce she had left Gemma and to her surprise, she wasn¡¯t there anymore, leading Ba to stop in her steps.


    ¡°She¡¯s not here?¡±


    Staring at the bowl that was left in the room, she could see sshes on the ground, indicating Gemma had done something mischievous while she was away, and a knowing smile creeped onto Ba¡¯s face.


    ¡°Gemma..¡± she called her name almost melodiously, ¡°I know you¡¯re hiding somewhere....¡± She pretended to search, knowing very well how Gemma was fond of ying hide and seek at times like this.


    ¡°Hmmm... now where can the little one possibly be? Is it....¡± Reaching for the foot of her mattress, Ba instantly went on her knees to look under the bed.


    ¡°Gotcha!¡± She had nned to surprise Gemma with those words, knowing how much she would giggle each time she said it, but to her biggest surprise, Gemma wasn¡¯t under the bed like she had thought.


    ¡°She¡¯s not here.¡± Ba couldn¡¯t hide her puzzlement after seeing Gemma wasn¡¯t under the bed, and she rose to her feet with a skeptical gaze, surveying the room and everything was just as it used to be, the candles were still lit and burning halfway.


    Everything was intact except for the strange emptiness she felt in the room.


    .....


    ¡°No no,¡± she mentally shook her head, Gemma must be hiding somewhere else then.


    ¡°Gemma.¡± She instantly went to search the bathroom, but she wasn¡¯t there. She searched the big wardrobe where she kept her dresses as well, in case Gemma had outdone herself and hid there, but to her displeasure, she wasn¡¯t there, leaving a look of uncertainty to y on Ba¡¯s face as she closed the wardrobe back.


    A slow dreadful feeling was starting to creep inside of Ba but the thought in her head felt too impossible to actually be true.


    ¡°Gemma... I know you¡¯re just ying with me but it¡¯s enough now, okay? You win this round, so you bettere out before your Aunt scolds you again.¡± She tried to keep her tone yful incase Gemma was really messing with her, but unfortunately, she got no response.


    And it was unlike Gemma to remain hidden after hearing the name of her Aunt being mentioned.


    ¡°Gemma!¡± She called out, searching the whole room because she was sure Gemma didn¡¯t step out, she had left her here before stepping out.


    So where could she possibly have gone?


    ¡°I¡¯ll be in big trouble if I can¡¯t find Gemma, it¡¯s unlike Gemma to disappear like this, if she isn¡¯t here then...¡±


    Ba¡¯s brows rose and a ray of hope suddenly returned to her heart as her mind drifted to Annalise.


    ¡°How can I forget, she must have gone to see Anna.¡±


    That was very much possible since the second ce she could guess Gemma to be was with Annalise. That little girl, she had told her to wait here, but she ran to her favorite maid.


    As much as it eased her mind a bit, her heart wasn¡¯t settled yet and she instantly left the room, going in search of Anna to make sure Gemma was with her.


    And if she was, she won¡¯t y with that little demoness for nearly giving her a heart attack.


    ~


    ¡°What is this?¡± Anna asked the cier who made her sit before her dressing table without saying a word to her. This man really likes to make people wait for him when he¡¯s meant to be getting ready at this time.


    She was sure almost everyone would be wondering where his highness disappeared to, not knowing he was actually in her chambers.


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    ¡°Quiet,¡± he silenced her softly before reaching for her drawer, opening it up and taking the locket that rested inside of it.


    Annalise had been curious as to why he suddenly showed up and was going through her drawer, only to see him bring out the locket she had safely kept in her drawer.


    The locket that belonged to Aveline.


    A smile adorned Roshan¡¯s lips as he saw the heart-shaped locket was safely kept, not only that, she had even polished it, making it look brand new and attractive to the eyes.


    ¡°You still kept it.¡± He said to her, meeting her gaze through the mirror and Anna shyly lowered her gaze, unable to meet his stare without feeling her heart jump in excitement in her chest.


    ¡°Mmmn.¡± She nodded.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Cause I couldn¡¯t get rid of it,¡± she honestly admitted before letting her gaze travel to somewhere that wouldn¡¯t lead her to meeting his beautiful warm gaze.


    ¡°A locket like this holds a special meaning, most especially for humans and I don¡¯t know why, but I had the urge to keep it.¡± She exined, ¡°it was difficult to let such a beautiful locket like this go to waste and I...I felt that...¡±


    ¡°The locket was gifted to you?¡± Hepleted her words, putting it as a question in case he was right and Anna¡¯s eyes instantly widened the moment he said what she couldn¡¯t utter herself.


    Standing behind Anna who was seated on the chair, looking at the man who had changed her lifepletely, he raised the locket up before uttering..


    ¡°Then shall we test it to see if it suits you.¡±


    Anna¡¯s heart fluttered at his words and her face uncontrobly bloomed as she exchanged nces between Roshan and the locket.


    ¡°W...what?¡± She said, sounding a little breathless as she wasn¡¯t expecting he¡¯d suggest something like that.


    Without saying anything else, Roshan carefully ced the locket on her neck, moving her hair to the side and as he reached to hook it up, visible images of this same scene yed in his head.


    Anna was sitting at a dressing table just like this one, but she was wearing a different dress, and just like the action he just portrayed, he had carefully ced the locket around her neck in the disying memories, earning an excited grin from the woman who made his heart beat uncontrobly.


    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful.¡± Her sweet voice filled his ears and the moment he was snapped back to the present, Annalise was staring at him with the same look he had just envisioned, with a glow in her eyes and she herself was admiring how pretty the locket looked on her.


    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful.¡±


    Roshan just stared as she reached to touch the ne on her neck, and Anna was filled with this unexinable joy inside her heart and before she could understand what was happening, she heard him speak.


    ¡°It is you.¡± Roshan¡¯s voice came out soft, holding emotions that when she looked into his eyes, she saw the longing he had for her inside of them.


    ¡°My Aveline.¡±


    A breathless gasp escaped Annalise the minute he called her Aveline.


    Could it be that he remembers her??

 Chapter 177

    177 Two Hours


    Minutes slowly passed by as even the air itself went still.


    Roshan and Annalise refused to break gazes as though they were reluctant on avoiding their hidden emotions, staring longingly into each other¡¯s eyes and when she stood up to her feet, Roshan seized her arm and pulled her against him without warning, sealing their lips with a sweet mind-blowing kiss.


    But Anna had somewhat expected it which led to her own hands wrapping around his neck as she deepened the kiss, not stepping down and kissing him like this was going to be herst time ever having this moment with him.


    He kissed her with such need as his tongue conquered every corners of her mouth, sucking and nibbling to the point she sighed into his needy kisses, feeling her body react positively to his touches to the point her knees buckled, but he stabled her with her hands snaking around her waist.


    He poured out his sealed emotions into the kiss without holding none back and Anna didn¡¯t even realize he had been leading her backwards until she felt her back against the cold wall. Her heart beat increased and pounded in her ears as her body felt like it was thrown into an inferno.


    She gasped into his kisses, trying to catch a little bit of breath but he wasn¡¯t giving her the chance as he feasted on her luscious lips without holding back. If someone even bothered to walk in on them that was thest thing he cared about, he only cared about the woman he was pleasing in his arms.


    His heart drummed wildly against his ears and he didn¡¯t wish to stop, he wanted to continue until he was done tainting the woman as his own.


    Anna, who was starting to think she¡¯d run out of air if he continued with his deep kisses, finally got the chance to catch her breath as he pulled back, but remained close as he rested his forehead against hers.


    ¡°All this time, you were my lost mate Anna.¡± He said, almost breathlessly as they tried to catch their breaths. Their chests heaved up and down as their heated breaths mingled with one another, yet no one was willing to separate from the other as they remained at a close proximity.


    .....


    ¡°Roshan....¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re my mate Anna, no one else, don¡¯t make me choose them, I want you.¡± He sounded almost pleading as he pulled back to meet her glistening eyes, wanting her to see and know just how serious he meant and Anna just stared back with the same adoration in her eyes, but nothing came out of her mouth.


    She swears if her life span wasn¡¯t so limited, she wouldn¡¯t hesitate to im Roshan for herself. She had gotten so used to his presence, his scents, his attitude, basically everything about him that it was even more difficult to part with him.


    She couldn¡¯t be selfish, if she dies then what will happen? He¡¯ll be left alone with no one to stay by his side and then what?


    After figuring out what happened to him when she once died, she couldn¡¯t risk letting him go through the same pain over again.


    She wasn¡¯t that selfish.


    ¡°Roshan...¡±


    He imed her lips before she could oppose his words, as though he knew the response he was going to get and when he was done leaving her breathless did he pull back, ¡°all this time I¡¯ve been waiting for you Anna, without even realizing it. I lost you once, I can¡¯t afford to lose you again, be my mate Anna, let me mark you.¡±


    He uttered with such honesty in his tone that it sent Anna¡¯s heart fluttering in disbelief, like she was dreaming of this moment, like it wasn¡¯t even happening but the best part of it was, it was actually happening.


    ¡°Let me mark you, it is you I want not them, the mate bond the other time was an ident, but I¡¯m standing before you Anna, and telling you from the depths of my heart that I....¡± His voice trailed off when a knock on the door interrupted him.


    ¡°Thedy in the room.¡± Came the voice of a guard who stood at outside, ¡°you¡¯re being requested by¨C¡±


    ¡°Tell whoever it is that she¡¯s busy with me.¡± Came Roshan¡¯s deadpan response that left the guard outside almost jumping out of his skin, based on the coldness in Roshan¡¯s tone.


    ¡°Your....your Highness....I didn¡¯t...¡±


    ¡°Get.Out!¡± His gaze was still locked on the speechless Anna, but every word of his was directed to the guard who stood outside.


    ¡°Yes, your highness.¡± The guard instantly left before the dark clouds hovering above his head strike him dead.


    Once his presence was no longer left, the cier rested his forehead against hers again, leading Anna¡¯s eyes to seal shut as she sumbed to his closeness.


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    ¡°I know you don¡¯t want to do this,¡± she said while taking each breath at a time, ¡°but Roshan, things are different now,¡± she painfully admitted, ¡°...I¡¯m going to die soon.¡±


    He shook his head, ¡°you¡¯re not dying,¡± he made her look into his eyes, ¡°you¡¯ll be here with me, we¡¯ll make things right and settle everything, but don¡¯t leave me again.¡±


    ¡°I....¡±


    He captured her opened lips as though he couldn¡¯t get enough of her, leaving Anna¡¯s head to spin with desire as her hands crumpled his shirt, she pulled his body against hers to the point not even a tiny space was left between their bodies.


    When they broke the kiss, Anna¡¯s hand still crumpled his shirt, not letting go and Roshan¡¯s gaze moved to her neck, staring at the area where he bit her before except the mark had faded.


    His eyes darkened with something that went past lust and before he could use the opportunity to bite the woman¡¯s tempting pale neck, a knock on the door stopped him from carrying out his n.


    Who was it this time around???


    ¡°Anna.¡± Came the voice of Ba who broke Anna from her trance, and she instantly let go of Roshan¡¯s shirt.


    ¡°Anna, can you step out a bit please? It¡¯s pretty urgent.¡± Ba quietly pleaded from outside, gaining Anna¡¯s attention and before Roshan could drive her away, Anna stopped him by making him meet her stare.


    ¡°You have to leave.¡± She said to him in a soft tone, ¡°please.¡±


    Roshan shook his head but Anna looked at him with pleading eyes, ¡°do it for me, Ba is someone who is really close to me and she needs my help.¡±


    ¡°One hour.¡± He said to her while grazing his fingers through the side of her left cheek, ¡°if you don¡¯te to me in the next one hour, I¡¯lle to you.¡±


    ¡°Make it two hours.¡± She said, ¡°Give me two hours.¡±


    Roshan was about to disagree, but seeing the look in her eyes didn¡¯t give him the chance, ¡°two hours Anna.¡±


    Anna nodded in agreement, ¡°fine,¡± she indicated with her fingers, ¡°I¡¯lle to you in the next two hours.¡±


    ¡°Promise?¡± He let out his pinky for her, reminding her that it was a pinky promise she shouldn¡¯t break.


    Smiling at the thought he still remembered what a pinky promise meant, she locked her pinky with him.


    ¡°Pinky promise.¡±


    A relieved smile finally adorned his lips, spreading to his eyes and bewitching his visage.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting.¡±


    With that, he vanished from sight, leaving Anna to fully catch her breath as she leaned her back against the wall, feeling her burning cheeks create a small heated pit in her chest.


    ¡°Anna.¡± The knock again brought her back to reality and Anna instantly adjusted her dress.


    ¡°I¡¯ming.¡±


    Looking at herself in the mirror, she wiped the tears that were about to drop from her eyes and made sure she looked presentable before going to open the door.

 Chapter 178

    178 Family Ball Trouble


    Ba¡¯s face proposedly came into view the moment Anna opened the door, but rather than acting surprised to see Ba standing before her threshold at a busy time like this, Anna just smiled as usual at Ba¡¯s unforeseen presence.


    ¡°Ba.¡±


    ¡°Forgive me if I¡¯m intruding all of a sudden¡± she quietly began with an apologetic tone, ¡°I understand that you must be busy and need to get ready but I was wondering....I was wondering if Gemma is with you by any chance?¡±


    Her sudden question made Anna¡¯s brow furrow and her forehead creased in puzzlement. She wasn¡¯t blind to the worry that Ba was failingly trying to hide, but her mind didn¡¯t really dwell on it until now.


    ¡°No, she isn¡¯t with me.¡± Anna finally responded, leading Ba¡¯s face to gradually pale since Gemma turned out to not be with Anna in the end, despite her wishful thinking.


    ¡°She¡¯s not with you?!¡± The unexpected panic in Ba¡¯s voice threw Anna off guard and judging from her ghostly expression, it was more than obvious that something was wrong.


    ¡°Why? Is there a problem?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s a huge problem, I¡¯m certainly doomed for!¡± Ba anxiously dered and was about to spill everything to Anna before shutting her mouth all of a sudden, as though something just popped into her head for a split second.


    She looked to her left and did the same to her right in case anyone was watching before getting into Anna¡¯s room and dragging the clueless Anna with her.


    .....


    ¡°What happened?¡± Anna proceeded to ask as she watched Ba shut the door behind her. A look of worry contorted her face as she moved away from the door and tried to keep her mind in check before uttering.


    ¡°Earlier, I_I was busy dressing Gemma up for the family ball, making her look really splendid and all, so I left her for a few minutes to go get something from her Aunt Letitia, and when I returned, she wasn¡¯t in her room anymore, I couldn¡¯t find her, almost like she just vanished.¡±


    ¡°Wait..wait, calm your heart Ba.¡± Anna tried to steady the panicked Ba as she slowly registered everything she just said to her.


    ¡°You can¡¯t find Gemma?¡± That sounded very strange to Anna, ¡°how¡¯s that possible?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± She shook her head, obviously looking lost on what to do, ¡°I¡¯ve searched the ces she visited the most in the pce, but she¡¯s not in any of them. She¡¯s not even with you.¡±


    Anna shook her head at that statement, unwilling to believe Gemma could just disappear like that. It sounded too impossible for her heart to even believe.


    ¡°Maybe she¡¯s hiding somewhere.¡± Anna suggested, ¡°You and I know how much she likes games, and Gemma can be very mischievous in this kind of thing, she must be somewhere around.¡±


    ¡°But_ I¡¯ve called her out and she always responds when I do that. If anything happens to Gemma, her family will have my head.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t think so negatively,¡± Anna tried to calm her down, ¡°we¡¯ll look for her together, she must be with one of the family members, or she must be with his highness Levi.¡±


    At the mention of the rest of the family, Ba also tried to reason in the same line with Anna, trying to shove away the fear of what the Astaroth family might do to her if they figured out she lost their little Gemma.


    ¡°Guests and other family members are starting to arrive,¡± Anna added, breaking Ba from her thoughts, ¡°it¡¯s possible she went downstairs to greet them, Gemma barely leaves the pce so she must still be around, we just need to find her, okay?¡±


    Due to Anna¡¯s reassuring words, Ba was able to recover to some extent before meeting Anna¡¯sforting gaze.


    ¡°Should we search for her together then?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d really appreciate that.¡± Ba responded while Anna smiled before cing a hand on her shoulder.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Together, they left her chambers to go find Gemma.


    ~


    Meanwhile in another chamber that stayed at the highest corridor, Calista remained seated on the big bed, looking bored and visibly lost on what to do.


    Her expression already gave away the idea that she had given up on escaping from this cage that man or demon had currently trapped her in.


    ¡°If I had powers I would~¡±


    She wasn¡¯t even done mumbling to herself when Azazel appeared in her chambers, startling and breaking the woman from her thoughts.


    His sudden appearance really left her heart hanging on her throat but after seeing it was him, her anxiety didn¡¯t dissipate either. Based on his exquisite royal attire, Calista couldn¡¯t help but blink at the handsomeness of the man standing before her.


    His looks could be described as drop-dead gorgeous most especially having those blue eyes of his stare at her with such low interest, not that she bothered but she sometimes wondered if the ice in his eyes would dissolve someday.


    Regardless of that, it didn¡¯t do anything but add to his charms and his facial look appeared soft, she didn¡¯t need to touch his skin to know they must be delicate, probably even more delicate than hers, he looked attractively fragile, but his icy aura would make one think twice about going near him.


    And his silvery white hair that cascaded down to his shoulders, added to his nobility and those full lips, she¡¯d bet they tasted as cold as his aura.


    ¡°If people could get arrested for looking this handsome, you¡¯d be arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment.¡± She quietly muttered as her gaze admirably swept over him from head to toe.


    But Azazel ignored her statement as that wasn¡¯t his main reason foring here. He didn¡¯t even want to be here but felt the need toe.


    ¡°You¡¯re familiar with the human named Annalise, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    At the mention of Anna, Calista immediately got out of bed to stand before Azazel with a smile. She had seen Anna for herself from the window and knew Azazel couldn¡¯t be talking about anyone else but her.


    ¡°Yes,¡± she nodded, ¡°she used to be my maid in Euphrasia, my closest maid and my friend, she was more like a sister to me¡± the warm remembrancested only for a while as her sweet smile slowly faded from her lips, ¡°but then, she got med for what she didn¡¯t do and was forced to leave Euphrasia, I never really thought I¡¯d see her again.¡±


    After getting the news that Anna stepped into the dark woods, almost everyone had concluded she was dead, since not even the guards were able to make it out till this day. But shockingly, she saw Anna and it left her head ringing with many questions that needed answers.


    Azazel rolled his eyes at her sympathetic gesture, if she thought acting all innocent would get her his attention, then she was obviously bluffing. Not that he cared, but she¡¯s doing a little too much to get his attention which is just weird and unlike the princess of Euphrasia.


    Her case waspletely different from Anna¡¯s cause she is the daughter of the King of Euphrasia, she came from the family of those who dared to lock his brother up in that disgusting old temple.


    ¡°Well, can you do something then?¡± He asked with a deadpan tone, leaving Calista¡¯s gaze to meet his unreadable icy stare.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s an event happening downstairs, I need you to remain here and don¡¯t make a sound, don¡¯t even speak, if you can make a zipper that will guarantee your silence then do it.¡± He instructed, ¡°I¡¯ll inform Anna of your presence when I see her, and if she¡¯s interested, she¡¯lle keep youpany.¡±


    Calista¡¯s blue eyes suddenly brightened at thest phrase of his words, ¡°you mean you¡¯ll send Anna here?¡±


    ¡°Yes, if you remain quiet and stop yelling like a hungry bird, if you n to leave here sooner and unharmed, then you¡¯ll have no choice but to listen to my orders.¡±


    ¡°Okay.¡±


    She readily agreed, and that was it, to Azazel¡¯s surprise.


    ¡°You just agreed?¡±


    ¡°Mmmn.¡± She nodded before turning away from him, leaving Azazel somewhat taken aback by it as he blinked in surprise.


    This woman was really confusing him with her attitude, his main confusion was the fact she carried no hate in her tone, as though she was enjoying this.


    He wanted to say something else to her but decided to leave it for after the event. His main objective for wanting to bring Anna here was so she could reveal about the Valerian sword to her. A very powerful sword that could only be wielded by Aveline, yet he feared it.


    Hopefully she reveals its whereabouts so Roshan canmence on how to fully destroy that sword. If Anna ends up wielding her sword again, if she survives the fate of her mark then, there was still primal doom that awaited them.


    ¡°Good.¡±


    Seeing he was done here, he turned around to leave before he heard her say.


    ¡°You look very handsome tonight sir, do send Anna over while you can.¡±


    And again, she left Azazel dumbstruck by her words which he ims to be nonsense. Without responding to herpliment, he vanished out of sight.

 Chapter 179

    179 The Envelope (I)


    The style of the banqueting hall was filled with lights and elegance the moment Freya made her way in. The walls and ceilings were embellished with rosettes, palmettes and every other fine centerpiece that spoke of its allure, impulsively dragging Freya in.


    Tiered crystal chandeliers glittered with soft lights, raining down on the murmuring guests who were neutrally conversing with one another. She could hear a small orchestra being yed somewhere the farther she stepped into the banquet hall, half caring about the fact she might be caught.


    She could see waiting staff circting the crowd to offer them their finest wines. Every person present was looking extremely splendid and she couldn¡¯t help but wonder which of the demoness his highness was meant to choose for a mate. If they were among the crowd or not and a tinsy little bit of jealousy made its way to her heart.


    ¡®urgh! What are you doing Freya!¡¯ she inwardly scolded herself while giving the back of her head a light p. This wasn¡¯t why she risked her life toe here where her presence wasn¡¯t needed.


    Thankfully, her powers were starting to get better since Luderick taught her a few spells on how to currently upgrade them, and instead of just daring to walk through the gate and be caught by those heavy guards, she transported herself in, knowing the safest ce to appear in the building since she was still very much familiar with it.


    And now she¡¯s here, in the presence of the guests who fortunately, haven¡¯t noticed her presence yet. Instantly, her rmed gaze quickly searched for someone she could talk to, so she can warn them about Luderick¡¯s n but unfortunately, there was no one she could talk to that was downstairs.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Anna?¡± She muttered to herself while trying to blend in with the crowd. She has never done anything like this but who knew that she¡¯d one day dress up extravagantly only to ¡®feel among¡¯ as she made her way into the crowd.


    ¡°The wines are as always refreshing..¡± she heard a man say to Uncle Evan.


    ¡°Could it be a mixture of human blood?¡± He was indirectly making fun of them, but Uncle Evan just shook his head without putting up a fight, his expression already signified he wasn¡¯t happy with that statement.


    .....


    ¡°Are you trying to imply something, Mr Harold?¡± He pushed with one of his eyebrows raised, but the middle-aged-man he was talking to just chuckled deeply and said, ¡°can¡¯t take a little joke, Evan?¡±


    ¡°Joking about something as off-putting as that isn¡¯t allowed, remember where you are and just enjoy the event like everyone else.¡±


    ¡°But that¡¯s exactly what he¡¯s doing.¡± Grayson walked up to the two men, turning his emerald green eyes to look at Evan who barely flinched at his presence.


    ¡°We¡¯re meant to bond Uncle,¡± he stated, ¡°not give low threats on such a special asion.¡± He shrugged it off, but Evan said nothing since he was also a bit scared of Grayson, knowing who¡¯s son he belonged to.


    Freya quickly left their view of sight before anyone noticed her. Even the rtives are here, but sadly she doesn¡¯t feel the family bond after listening to how rudely Grayson spoke to Evan. She could only wish not to run into such people on her quest to find Anna.


    ¡°Where is she?¡± Freya barely knew where to search as there were too many people present. If she doesn¡¯t get to Anna before she receives the letter then, she won¡¯t be able to do anything to help the situation.


    Suddenly, Freya¡¯s brows rose and her eyes widened when an idea popped into her head.


    Why didn¡¯t she think of this, Anna could only be in her room if she wasn¡¯t here. She¡¯ll just have to find Anna¡¯s room and inform her about Luderick¡¯s evil n.


    Yes!


    Without wasting any more time, she went up the spiral stairs.


    ~


    An hour passed by with Anna and Ba searching for Gemma everywhere in the building. They had even stood up the stairs to survey the crowd Incase Gemma was amongst them, but she wasn¡¯t there, leaving a worried feeling to creep straight into Anna¡¯s heart.


    Where could she be??


    ¡°We still can¡¯t find her!¡± Ba voiced out her fears the moment they were done searching and she was just as worried as Anna. They both liked Gemma personally and couldn¡¯t understand where she could have gone out of the blue without telling either of them.


    It was strange and there was no single thought that could exin the mystery of her disappearance.


    ¡°Maybe we¡¯re missing something here.¡± Anna uttered her thoughts out loud before returning her gaze to Ba.


    ¡°Where did you say you left Gemma?¡± She questioned, leading Ba to take a deep breath before uttering.


    ¡°I left her in her chambers.¡±


    ¡°Then let¡¯s go there, maybe there¡¯s something that could exin her disappearance, or a clue that might lead us to where she is.¡±


    ¡°But she isn¡¯t there, everyone must be wondering by now why Gemma hasn¡¯t shown up yet, what will I tell them?? His highness Levi will not spare me.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll find her,¡± Anna tried to keep herself positive about the matter, ¡°let¡¯s just go back to her chambers and see if there¡¯s something that can lead us to her whereabouts.¡±


    Nodding to Anna¡¯s words and keeping the little hope in her heart alive, they hurried back up the stairs and into Gemma¡¯s chamber.


    Just like Ba had left it, she came to meet it exactly the same way it was. Silent and empty of anyone¡¯s presence, except for Gemma¡¯s sweet honey-like scent that still lingered in the room.


    ¡°She¡¯s not here.¡± Ba enunciated as she watched Anna silently step into the room. Her eyes surveyed every corner until she was standing in the middle of the room, and Ba remained at the door.


    If Gemma was really here, it¡¯s impossible for her to have gone that far and even if she left the pce, almost everyone will be notified about it. So....


    From the corner of her eyes, Anna wasn¡¯t even done contemting on what must have happened when she caught sight of the opened window that pped from the breeze, gaining her attention and she instantly whipped her head to its direction.


    For some strange reason, something didn¡¯t feel right as Anna¡¯s gaze remained fixed on the opened window, the breeze outside whistled mysteriously against the hinges of the window, as though telling a dark secret and that¡¯s when Anna instantly called Ba¡¯s attention to it.


    ¡°Ba, when you left Gemma here, where the windows opened?¡± Anna could barely tell why she was asking, she didn¡¯t want to just conclude on the horrifying idea that had settled in her head, but it was obvious that Gemma¡¯s disappearance wasn¡¯t ordinary.


    ¡°No, I didn¡¯t.¡± Ba responded while standing beside Anna, ¡± Gemma¡¯s windows are never opened, she doesn¡¯t like the cold and prefers to keep her windows shut.¡± She briefly exined, adding to Anna¡¯s suspicion.


    ¡°Then howe that window is opened?¡± Anna pointed at the window, drawing Ba¡¯s attention to it and she would be lying if she said she noticed the opened window.


    ¡°It¡¯s opened?!¡±


    Without wasting any more time, they both rushed to the edge of the window and nced down, thinking Gemma must have yed and fell from the edge but to their half relief, that wasn¡¯t the case. It left them disoriented and confused.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand any of this, how is the window opened?? And why can¡¯t we find Gemma??¡±


    ¡°Listen,¡± Anna turned to look at her, ¡°can you do something for me?¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I need you to get his highness Roshan here, tell him it¡¯s urgent and that his presence is needed in Gemma¡¯s chamber.¡±


    ¡°But...¡±


    ¡°If there¡¯s really a problem, then only His Highness is capable of helping us, hurry now and go tell him toe, I¡¯ll be here waiting, in case I can find any more clues.¡±


    ¡°Okay.¡± With that, Ba left the room to go get Roshan like Anna had asked her to. Her mind was currently messed up that she was able to listen to anything as long as it brought Gemma back.


    Meanwhile, Anna remained at the edge, trying to understand what must have really happened here and as she turned around, she headed for Gemma¡¯s dressing table where the candle was still burning, almost reaching the end as the wax already melted to a solid form on the table.


    And that¡¯s when Anna spotted it. There was a white envelope that rested on the table, beside the burning candle. It was neatly kept there, as though whoever dropped it was sure that someone would walk into Gemma¡¯s room and notice the white envelope.


    ¡°Who dropped this here?¡±


    Curious, Anna picked the envelope and was surprised at how neat the person had handled it, and her mind didn¡¯t need to tell her twice in order for her to ssify the envelope as important.


    But why was it in Gemma¡¯s room??


    Based on the sudden disappearance of Gemma, and now an envelope in her room, it finally dawned on her that the envelope might be a message Gemma has dropped about her whereabouts.


    ¡°This girl...¡± Anna didn¡¯t know whether to inwardly scold her or wait for her toe back before scolding her. She quickly tore the top of the envelope, bringing out the pure white sheet that was left inside and surprisingly, it wasn¡¯t only the little note that was left inside, there was something else and when Anna dared to look into the envelope, her eyes widened in horrifying disbelief.


    Her expression turned grave and she instantly dropped the envelope to the tiled floor, taking a step back away from it while her palm instantly covered her mouth to stop herself from screaming.

 Chapter 180

    180 The Envelope (II)


    After a few minutes of sinking into utter shock, Anna¡¯sshes batted once as she blinked at the envelope on the ground. What she had seen still left her in an appalling daze, and the voices inside her head were already screaming....


    ¡®What did she just see?!!¡¯


    Taking a deep breath to ease the tremor that had taken over her at the sight of what was inside, she bravely took some steps towards the envelope and crouched on her knees to pick it up, feeling uncertain about what she had seen or maybe she imagined it due to her building panic, but to her ghastly expression, it wasn¡¯t her imagination when she looked inside the envelope for the second time.


    Slowly, she brought out the small strands of brown hair that were tied and kept inside the envelope, followed by a piece of torn thin fabric and she really wished that none of this evidence belonged to Gemma.


    Sadly, the scent of her hair and the torn little fabric wasn¡¯t something Anna could call a coincidence, and the cold wind that blew outside only added to Anna¡¯s fright, hearing it howl against the air in an unsettling way and she silently cried for Gemma.


    Without further dy, she grabbed the little note she had thrown away and quickly dusted it up. A part of the note was smudged with blood- ck blood and with apprehensive eyes, she silently read out the words that were written in block letters.


    ¡®YOUR LITTLE PRINCESS IS AT THE FOREST BEHIND AN OLD HOLLOW TREE, IT¡¯S OUR SECRET AND COME ALONE!! HUMAN! OR BE READY TO PLAN A CHILD¡¯S FUNERAL IN THE NEXT ONE HOUR.¡±


    ¡°Gemma!¡± She gasped with her hand flying to her mouth, unable to believe what she was reading and she impulsively dropped the paper on the table, obviously shaken and startled by it as she shook her head, her eyes growing wider in trepidation.


    That means someone really abducted Gemma! But who??


    .....


    It all sounded like a joke to Anna¡¯s ears, it felt like someone was ying a prank on her and that this wasn¡¯t really happening, but unfortunately, it certainly wasn¡¯t a joke anymore and that note proved it.


    Once again, Anna raced back to the window, darting her head left and right to see if she might spot anyone since outside Gemma¡¯s window led to a fence that sheltered the building, but there was no one present there which only made her heart race in worry.


    And the howling wind was doing absolutely nothing to help the situation.


    Who could have possibly dropped the letter then?? And why was the person telling her toe alone? Whoever it was even referred to her as ¡®Human¡¯, and as far as she knows, she¡¯s the only human currently residing in the Viscarrian pce.


    Shaking off the anxiety that was starting to cloud her senses, Anna tried to guess who could be responsible for the abduction of little Gemma and an unexinable anger consumed her heart. She¡¯s just a child for goodness sake! Who could be so despicable to kidnap a child?? What could the person want from a child??


    As those questions furiously rang in her head, it suddenly dawned on her that this person might not even be after Gemma at all.


    Whoever it was called her Human, which means the person has an idea about who she is, or is familiar with her. The fact that the person had specifically dropped the letter for her meant it¡¯s target wasn¡¯t Gemma, it was only using Gemma to get to her, but then why was she having a bad feeling about underestimating this person??


    What could this person want from her? It didn¡¯t make any sense and if she dares to tell Roshan anything, then the person might just hurt Gemma since it warned her not to tell anyone about this. At this point she was stuck between a rock and a hard ce.


    ¡°What do I do?¡± She anxiously paced back and forth while pinching the skin in her palm, feeling extremely nervous as her heart pounded in fear and worry. She always seems to carry her bad luck wherever she goes to and now, Gemma¡¯s the one suffering for it.


    Annalise felt stuck, how is she supposed to find the hollow tree? She doesn¡¯t know anywhere in Viscarrian so finding the hollow tree is another problem on its own.


    While pacing and thinking of a quick way out of this, Anna suddenly got an idea and quickly grabbed one of Gemma¡¯s books. She sat at the dressing table and scribbled a few words down on it for Roshan to see in case hees, knowing she won¡¯t be able to meet him since there wasn¡¯t much time left and hopefully, he¡¯ll be able to find her before anything happens.


    But one thing was for sure, she had to go alone just like the unknown person had instructed, then once she tricks this person into thinking she¡¯s really alone, by that time Roshan should have shown up, and she¡¯ll make sure to keep the person distracted before Roshan arrives.


    Agreeing with her abrupt n, she left the book open, keeping it close to the burning candle. After confirming it was a ce where Roshan could see it, she grabbed the little note and hurried out of Gemma¡¯s chamber, going down the stairs and heading for the exit.


    The unknown person gave her an hour toe find Gemma, if she doesn¡¯t leave now then there¡¯ll be no time to make it to this hollow tree.


    ¡°Lord help me.¡±


    Making it down the stairs, Roseline caught sight of Anna leaving the corridor and her brows knitted into a prying manner as she watched her go, as though someone was chasing her.


    ¡°Rose dear, I have to say if you get picked, I hope you won¡¯t mind inviting us for the wedding?¡± Another youngerdy of her status asked, drawing Roseline¡¯s attention to the fact she wasn¡¯t actually walking alone.


    She was having a light conversation with the guests as they strode past the corridor, using it as a way to tour them through the pce so they could drown in the beauty of a pce as majestic as Viscarrian.


    Another way of making them realize her importance in the royal family since many subjects aren¡¯t allowed in the Viscarrian pce.


    ¡°I certainly will, besides his highness won¡¯t be able to resist a beauty like me, there¡¯s a reason why my father named me after a rose.¡± She curtly responded with a smile, leaving thedy¡¯s she apanied to forcibly return the smile as well.


    ¡°Let¡¯s not forget, even Melrose is named after a rose too.¡± Lady Iris who showed up with her maid, added while eyeing Roseline from toe to head.


    ¡°Of course,¡± Roseline didn¡¯t disagree, ¡°she deals with nature and her favorite blooming Flowers are roses, that is why she¡¯s also named Rose, not because she¡¯s more beautiful than me.¡±


    Lady Iris had a better retort to give at that statement, but wisely held her tongue, choosing to keep her mannerism in check.


    ¡°Surely you know better.¡±


    ¡°I always do.¡± Roseline was enjoying how she could nder Iris for once, but right now she wasn¡¯t interested in dealing with Iris as her main concern was on the human maid.


    She doesn¡¯t look like someone who¡¯ll serve the guests and it doesn¡¯t seem like Lady Odette had called for her attention, so what was the rush??


    ¡°I¡¯ve always known there was something mysterious about her.¡± She mumbled before looking at the direction where Anna had stepped out from.


    ¡°If you¡¯ll excuse me.¡± She said to thedies.


    Curious, she headed for the chamber to figure out why Anna became so frightened after stepping out from there.


    ~


    Calista continuously paced back and forth in her room, waiting for Anna to walk in so they could talk about everything that had been happening, but after waiting for some minutes, there was no sight of Anna.


    ¡°Where is she?¡±


    Calista pursed her lips, it couldn¡¯t be that white-haired stranger was lying to her when he said he¡¯d get Anna here, could it?


    It was impossible for Anna to ignore if he told her about her presence, which means he hasn¡¯t told her yet, or is just trying to mess with her.


    Calista was ready tosh out her frustrations when she saw someone quietly step out of the pce from the corner of her eyes. It gained her attention almost immediately because she found the movement to be very suspicious, thus, leading her to look out the sealed window even more.


    Since it was made out of ss, she could see the outside view more clearly and that¡¯s when she saw that thedy leaving was dressed in a beautiful simple gown, but she had worn a cloak, leaving her face hidden so it was difficult to recognize the person.


    Confused, she squinted her eyes at the window, trying to get a better look at who it was, but thedy suddenly mounted on a dark-brown horse. A guard who stood outside already approached her, but since they were so far away, Calista couldn¡¯t eavesdrop on the conversation and watched as the guard went into the pce.


    Before she could conclude on what must be going on, thedy on the horse galloped her way through the opened big gate, exiting the Viscarrian pce and leaving the confused Calista baffled.


    ¡°Strange, the person leaving looked like Anna.¡± She muttered to herself, unsure of why she was suddenly bothered.

 Chapter 181

    181 Suspicious Roseline


    Inside one of the darkest chambers in the Viscarrian building, a certain chamber was left to dwell in it¡¯s usual darkness, with nothing visible and one could easily be blinded by the unfathomable darkness of the room if not for the opposite side door that was left slightly ajar, allowing the silvery-white moonlight to prate in and behind that door was were a certain cier remained seated.


    Tossing a dice up in the air and catching it in his palm, Roshan was sitting at the edge of the varenda, staring into space like he could see what lies ahead of him, absentmindedly tossing the small dice in the air and catching it once again.


    The wind fluttered his midnight-ck hair, giving it a swift caress as they made each strand dance to the direction of the howling wind.


    The beaming moonlight casted it¡¯s silvery glow on Roshan¡¯s bewitching face, that it¡¯d make an artist be tempted to pick up his paintbrush and paint such a celestial being as him. To say he was just handsome was an understatement, yet his expression appeared grim and unsettled.


    His mind was far from what was happening in front of him, he¡¯s barely been downstairs to see everyone, neither did he care to be there and at this settling point, he preferred staying here, he preferred drowning in his thoughts and cursing the world for being so cruel to him.


    Amidst his silent rage, he kept tossing the dice and catching it like it was his y toy. It helped him control his emotional state based on a few asions and right now, he wasn¡¯t ready to tolerate the presence of anyone.


    Not long after he made that decision did he hear a deep calm voice speak behind him, leading him to pause in his throw and catch game.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t youing downstairs?¡± Asked Azazel who stood at the entrance of the door, fixing his gaze on the being who remained seated at the edge, looking as though he was ready to break loose and unleash hell to the world.


    Roshan scoffed after registering the owner of that voice. Of course, his brother was the only person who was more than ready to ignore his warnings.


    .....


    Still keeping his gaze fixed on what was ahead of him, he didn¡¯t respond to Azazel¡¯s question, leaving the white-haired demon with no other choice but to take some steps into the veranda until he was standing at the edge where Roshan was sitting, but the cier barely turned his head to look at who was standing beside him.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t see you downstairs,¡± Azazel finally enunciated a conversation while following Roshan¡¯s ray of sight, ¡°figured you¡¯d be here.¡±


    ¡°What do you want?¡± From Roshan¡¯s grave tone, he was clearly not in the mood to talk to anyone, he didn¡¯t even want to see anyone as long as that person isn¡¯t Anna. He couldn¡¯t even trust anyone fully apart from her and now these people won¡¯t even give him some breathing space.


    He felt suffocated and wanted to wake up from this bad dream.


    ¡°I know this is difficult for you.¡± Azazel took a deep breath, understanding howplicated the situation must be for Roshan.


    After figuring out that Anna is his reborned mate, and still unable to be with her despite knowing everything must hurt deeper than being stabbed with a knife.


    But then, there was nothing he could do to change the fate of Anna. This was why he wasn¡¯t a person who really cared for love. After seeing what it did to Roshan those years back, he understood how scary love can be, and so he refrained from it.


    Roshan said nothing and continued to toss his dice, but when he caught it in his tight grasp, the maic aura surrounding him turned darker than the shadows of advancing death.


    He closed his eyes for some minutes to stabilize his powers, trying to get a hold of himself and Azazel wasn¡¯t immune to not having sensed his change of aura. It only made him realize that the cier looked visibly troubled about something.


    ¡°What happened?¡± He asked with a concerned frown, trying to draw Roshan¡¯s attention to him but the cier just clicked his tongue before looking the other way.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I just feel restless about something.¡± He admitted before tossing the dice again to calm his throbbing nerves. He felt unnecessarily tense and troubled, and whenever he felt like this, he tends to lose a little bit of control over his powers which exins the sudden threat in his aura.


    Something just feels wrong, but what???


    ¡°Is it because of the event?¡± Azazel proceeded to ask with an inquiring gaze, still not understanding what could leave Roshan¡¯s mind unsettled to the point it was affecting his powers as well.


    He didn¡¯t only sense the darkness in Roshan¡¯s powers, he could feel it and it was not a good sign.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± He quietly uttered, but before Azazel couldprehend the matter, he changed subject.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Levi?¡± He asked, finally letting his gaze settle on Azazel who stood beside him.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t seen him for a while.¡± Azazel responded, sounding surprised himself. Roshan¡¯s question made him realize he hasn¡¯t actually seen clingy Levi for some days now.


    Who knows where that demon went?


    Suddenly, a knock on his main door drew their attention, and Roshan was the first to roll his eyes, wondering who it was that was more than ready to annoy him further.


    ¡°If it¡¯s Gravion, please kill him before he pesters me.¡± Roshan quickly informed his brother who paid less attention to that statement.


    ¡°Now I understand why you were never made as the grim reaper.¡±


    ¡°I was born to cause destruction which includes taking lives, I don¡¯t really see much of a difference.¡±


    ¡°Come in.¡± Azazel directed those words to the person standing outside the door,pletely ignoring Roshan before they moved the conversation to how many souls Roshan has taken over the years.


    And that was a dark history he couldn¡¯t bring himself to remember.


    Roshan was expecting his aunt, Evan and possibly Gravion to show up, but to his surprise, it was a maid who walked in.


    ¡°Your highness.¡± She bowed her head slightly, keeping her gaze to the ground and hesitating to lift them up.


    Roshan and Azazel, who were puzzled by her presence, exchanged confused nces, not sure if she was here for either of them or if one of them had sent for a maid, but based on the looks they gave each other, it was obvious that none of them had sent for a maid.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Your highness, Anna has...I mean..Anna asked me to send for you.¡±


    She stuttered on her words, and as expected, Roshan got down from the edge at the mere mention of Anna¡¯s name, and for some reason, Ba couldn¡¯t hold back the sweat from running down her forehead as she took a step back.


    ¡°Where is she?¡± He asked, standing before Ba who fidgeted with her nails and she forced herself to respond.


    ¡°She... she¡¯s in Gemma¡¯s chamber, your Highness.¡±


    Without bothering to ask why Anna had sent for him, he stepped past Ba who immediately made way for him to pass. She wanted to say something else but Roshan had already left the room, leaving her to stand before Azazel who¡¯s serious gaze rested on her.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ~


    Making it to Gemma¡¯s chamber like the maid had told him, he quickly stepped inside since the door was already opened, but instead of seeing Anna, what he saw was a puzzled Roseline who stood in the middle of the room, and she had only turned around when she heard someone step in.


    ¡°Roseline?¡±

 Chapter 182

    182 A Letter In The Book


    When Roseline stepped into the room where Anna had raced out from, she didn¡¯t find anything out of ce, not like she knew what to expect when Anna had rushed out, but there was nothing that piqued her attention here, which only increased her curiosity.


    Having a little bit of doubt in her mind, she ventured deeper until she was standing in the middle of the room. Her gaze carefully swept through every angle of the room in case something was off, but there was nothing that raised her rm.


    How strange, there was practically nothing here, so why did the human maid leave so hastily?


    ¡°Or could it be she¡¯s going to meet someone in secret?¡±


    Folding her arms to specte more on it, her sensitive ears twitched when she heard footsteps behind her and without wasting time, she spun around to see who had entered, only toe face to face with Roshan who stood at the threshold, staring at her with an aporetic look, obviously not expecting to find her here.


    ¡°Roseline?¡±


    Her eyes widened at the sight of his highness in Gemma¡¯s room, he looked dressed for tonight, and as always he left her breath-taking by his appearance. Unfortunately, she wasn¡¯t giving enough time to reminisce on his enchanting appearance based on the odd looks he was giving her.


    It made her feel like she had done something bad that she herself wasn¡¯t aware of. Unable to deal with his taunting gaze, she decided to break the silence by clearing her throat and smiling his way.


    ¡°Your highness..¡± She bowed slightly before raising her head up, only to see the demon was making his way into the chamber, and when he kept taking further steps towards her, she involuntarily took one step back.


    .....


    ¡°You¡¯re..... you¡¯re here?¡± She asked, and only then did Roshan halt in his steps, but his gaze still held that of Roseline who was unsure of why he was giving her such suspicious stares.


    ¡°Why are you here?¡± He retraced the question back at her, but he wasn¡¯t asking in the slightest, he sounded demanding that it made Rose gasp due to the coldness of his tone. From his expression, it was obvious that he wasn¡¯t in a good mood and she didn¡¯t dare add more fuel to the fire.


    ¡°I.....¡±


    Before she could respond, Ba also stepped into the room with Azazel following behind, but to her surprise, there was no sight of Anna after she walked in, and her presence had interrupted the conversation between Roshan and Roseline.


    Seeing the maid who came to call him earlier, Roshan¡¯s attention was instantly diverted and the maiden¡¯s face paled in the absence of Anna.


    ¡°Where is she?¡± Roshan asked, turning around to look at Ba who was taken aback by Anna¡¯s absence.


    ¡°She was here.¡± She pointed at the spot where Roseline was standing, ¡°I swear to you we were both standing here when she told me to send for you, I wouldn¡¯t lie to his highness about something like this.¡± She truthfully said with her gaze fixed to the ground.


    ¡®What¡¯s happening? Where is Anna?¡¯ she inwardly panicked in her head.


    Roseline, who listened to Ba speak the truth, instantly felt she hadnded herself in big trouble foring in here, cause if Anna isn¡¯t here, then it was certain that everyone would me her for Anna¡¯s disappearance now, considering the fact she never really liked Anna.


    As though she had sensed it, she could feel the ripple in Roshan as his eyes turned icy cold.


    ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°I promise you I have nothing to do with this.¡± She honestly said to Roshan who was taking another step towards her, and she took one back, as though fearing he might crush her in pieces if he manages to get his hands on her.


    His aura at the moment was toxic, and her heart drummed in fear as an apprehensive look spread across her face.


    ¡°We have even bigger problems.¡± Azazel stepped in at the nick of time, interrupting Roshan who paused in his steps once again.


    ¡°Gemma¡¯s missing.¡± He critically informed, the rm and the seriousness in his tone made Roshan turn around to look at him, even Roseline was caught off guard by the news as her eyes involuntarily widened.


    ¡°How¡¯s that even....¡±


    ¡°Who is missing?¡± Came the unanticipated voice of someone, a voice that sounded familiar and a voice that nobody was expecting to hear at such a situation like this.


    Turning their heads in the direction of the door, Levi stood there, staring nkly at themotion happening in his sister¡¯s room. He just got back since tonight was the event he didn¡¯t n on missing, he made sure that he¡¯d make it tonight but why was everyone up here when the event was happening downstairs.


    ¡°Enzo!¡± Roshan called immediately, and within a few minutes of waiting, Lorenzo quickly walked into the room, bowing his head before Roshan who had summoned his presence.


    ¡°Your highness.¡±


    ¡°I need you to conduct a thorough search around the pce and outside the pce, see if you can find Gemma or Anna anywhere!¡±


    ¡°Yes, your highness.¡± After registering Roshan¡¯smand, he exited the room to inform the rest about it so they could split up and find the two missing people.


    ¡°I want to see the guard in charge of the main gate, I need a list of who has entered and exited the building before Gemma¡¯s disappearance, as well as Anna¡¯s!¡±


    Ba nodded in affirmation before leaving as well to go get the guard. Levi who watched themotion finally walked in. He still wasn¡¯t sure of what was going on but if his ears heard right then, he heard Roshan say something about his sister.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± He raised his voice a bit, ¡°where¡¯s my sister??? What disappearance is everyone talking about? Who disappeared??¡±


    ¡°Levi.¡± Azazel ced a hand on his shoulder to stop him from panicking, signifying with his eyes that he should calm down.


    ¡°We¡¯ll find her.¡± He assured him, ¡°none of us is aware of what¡¯s happening and you need to remain calm if you n on helping us settle this.¡±


    ¡°But....¡±


    While Azazel was dealing with Levi¡¯s quick trauma, Roshan had his gaze on Roseline who tensed up when he looked at her. She immediately shook her head, signifying she really had nothing to do with this, but Roshan just smiled, a very in sardonic smile that sent Roseline¡¯s heart hanging at her throat.


    ¡°If I don¡¯t find Anna or Gemma in the next one hour, I¡¯ming for you.¡±


    With that little threat resting in her brain and the deepest parts of her system, Roshan exited the room, followed by Azazel and Levi who appeared worried about their sudden disappearance.


    After they left, Roseline recovered from the fright Roshan had instilled in her and she knew he wasn¡¯t joking when he said he¡¯de for her. He was acting all normal but she wasn¡¯t blind to the madness dancing in his eyes when he uttered those words to her.


    He looked ready tomit murder as long as it brought Gemma and Anna back.


    ¡°How did I end up being centered in all of this?¡± She paced back and forth in the room, and when she was starting to think about leaving the room before any other suspicion fell on her, her eyes instantly caught sight of the open book that rested close to the candles and she halted.


    Weirdly, she was pushed into taking a look at the book before she left. Picking it up, there were a few words scribbled down on it, almost like a letter and when she was done reading, her eyes widened and she gasped.


    ¡°Should I show this to his highness?¡±

 Chapter 183

    183 The Party Is Over


    ¡°No.¡± She shook her head at the idea of showing it to his highness and heartlessly crumpled the note in her hand till her palm formed a tight fist.


    Why should she be scared about his Highness¡¯s threat when she has no hand in this? She certainly has nothing to do with Anna¡¯s absence and it¡¯s not like she got kidnapped, Anna had left the pce by herself, she saw her leave with her own two feet so she won¡¯t just stand and let his highness use her for any of this.


    Staring at the crumpled note in her opened fair palms, she ced it before the burning candles and fed it to the mes, watching the sides burn into ashes as her devious actions reflected before her own eyes.


    She wasn¡¯t sure why Anna would want his Highness to meet her at the old Hollow tree, but if she ns on fleeing with his Highness during the event, then there was certainly no way she was going to let Anna seed in her ns.


    Scanning through the rest of the notes and confirming that there were no other messages left, she quietly stepped out of the room while masking her expression with a look of concern, pretending to actually be worried about the disappearance of Anna and Gemma.


    At the banqueting hall that led to the ballroom, Roshan¡¯s guards had mixed themselves with the crowd as they searched for Anna and Gemma, but they did their best not to alert the guests present while dedicatedly continuing their search.


    However, the rest of the family weren¡¯t blind to notice the guards and unlike the guests who would assume this to be a normal routine, Lady Odette and the rest could sense something was off, that was until Roseline made her way down the stairs and joined them with a smile.


    Melrose squinted her eyes cautiously, looking unsure of what to expect from that smile on her sister¡¯s face, but Letitia wasn¡¯t caught up for the fake smile and asked in a whisper,


    ¡°Where did you go? And what¡¯s with the guards?¡±


    .....


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask His Highness Roshan?¡± She responded softly with a toned whisper, keeping her smile intact and making it look like they were all just having a normal conversation.


    ¡°Roshan has refused toe down the stairs,¡± Evan added with a look of disappointment, ¡°sometimes I wonder if it¡¯s necessary to put a leash on that demon to reduce his stubbornness. We¡¯ve been waiting for his presence and we sent Azazel to go get him, but even Azazel is nowhere present.¡±


    ¡°Something isn¡¯t right.¡± Lady Odette finally concluded before shifting her gaze up the stairs, her eyes staring intently at it before averting her gaze with a more calctive look.


    ¡°Does Anna have anything to do with this?¡± She asked Roseline who kept wearing a smile when deep down, she was nowhere settled. In Fact she wanted to avoid all the questions that came with the human maid but it seems that girl¡¯s name has a way of getting into the mouths of people.


    ¡°You guessed right Aunt.¡±


    ~


    After thirty minutes of searching the pce ground, Roshan stood at the balcony while staring ahead of him. The rage in his glinting hazel-green eyes was aplete contrast to the look on his face and when his grip tightened against the edge, they cracked due to the power of his grip before he finally exhaled to stabilize himself.


    ¡°Where are you Anna?¡± A look of worry contorted his facial features before spreading into his eyes.


    ¡°Your Highness!¡±


    A guard suddenly called, snapping the cier back to reality. Roshan turned around to look at the guard who called for his attention, and to his unexpected sight, they held Freya captive in their hold, dragging her forward with her hands already chained to her back.


    ¡°We caught her stalking around the room of the missing maid, your Highness.¡± The guard immediately informed, leaving Roshan¡¯s gaze to darken immensely and before Freya could say a word to the cier, he was standing before her and the next thing she felt was the inability to breathe as his hands clutched her neck, choking her and rendering her painfully breathless.


    ¡°I let you go and you dared toe back!¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t..... breathe..¡± her hands immediately reached to unw Roshan¡¯s hold on her neck, but his grip was too strong for a weak demoness like her to fight off.


    She tried to speak but her throat was closed and she violently gasped for air while trying to free herself from his wed grip.


    ¡°Listen...¡± she shut her eyes tightly as ck dots were starting to paint her vision, but before she could breathe herst breath, Roshan¡¯s hold around her neck lessened and he withdrew his hand, as though he already sensed she would die if he held her in that position for much longer.


    Freya immediately sank to the ground as her knees gave out, deeply gasping for air while cing her hand on her neck that was once held so violently like he wanted to crush all her bones.


    Roshan crouched down to her level, staring at her with cold hazel-green eyes that she immediately realized that this person before her wasn¡¯t Roshan. It was a heartless demon that had the intention to kill without batting an eye.


    ¡°Is your presence a little surprise from dear Uncle?¡± He asked sardonically, watching her try to catch her breath and Freya shamefully lowered her gaze at his heartbreaking question, shaking her head in response before lifting her head up to meet Roshan¡¯s stare.


    ¡°He... he doesn¡¯t...¡± she paused, trying to catch her breath, ¡°he doesn¡¯t even know I¡¯m here.¡±


    ¡°Then why are you here?!¡± Came his demanding question that made Freya flinch, and the guards who brought her in took a step back, giving the two some space.


    ¡°Taking lives has never been my problem, and if you have no wish to be a scapegoat tonight, then I advise you to start talking!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s about Anna.¡± She began, ¡°I¡¯m here to...to warn Anna.¡± She informed him with all honesty. Roshan remained mute for a few seconds before leaning in like a devil ready to seek out its victim.


    ¡°Warn Anna about what?¡±


    His way of questioning made Freya feel like she had fallen into the pit of hell, and she could feel the volcano waiting to erupt at Roshan¡¯s call.


    ¡°To warn Anna about Luderick,¡± she said, almost breathlessly due to the pain that stung her throat. His harsh hold was still affecting her but she knew if she doesn¡¯t speak now, she might as well be ready to receive a treatment far worse than this.


    ¡°Luderick... he¡¯s... he¡¯s nning something big, something chaotic and I don¡¯t know what it is, but in order tomence his evil n, he needs a special blood, he said he needed Anna¡¯s blood to do some ritual..I... I don¡¯t know much since he refused to tell me in detail, and he ns on striking tonight, that¡¯s why I came to warn Anna about it.¡±


    At the mention of ritual, Roshan¡¯s face paled gravely for the first time. His hands balled into fist and when he mmed them to the ground, a crack sound could be heard as tiny cracks split themselves with the aim of breaking, leaving Freya¡¯s eyes to horrifically widen and Roshan returned his gaze back to her.


    ¡°Where is Luderick?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± She honestly responded, ¡°he didn¡¯t take me with and that¡¯s why I came here, to warn Anna before he does something to her.¡±


    Tears swimmed in her eyes the more she spoke, ¡°I don¡¯t care if you kill me now, but Anna saved me once with the pill and I¡¯m just returning the favor, she doesn¡¯t deserve what Luderick ns on doing to her, you have to save her before she gets to him, please.¡±


    She sniffed, hoping Roshan would understand that she meant no harm towards Anna.


    It took a while before Roshan finally stood straight, and instead of killing her like he originally nned, he left her for the guards who were still present with him.


    ¡°Keep an eye on her.¡±


    ¡°Yes, your Highness!¡± They all bowed before Roshan exited the balcony.


    Downstairs, Azazel and Levi were also helping out with the search and most importantly, Azazel had done a scan amongst the people to figure out if they were any odd ones, but just like Levi, he got unlucky.


    ¡°Did you find them?¡± Levi asked after catching up with Azazel in the courtyard, but the white-haired demon shook his head, to Levi¡¯s disappointment.


    ¡°No sign of them.¡±


    ¡°Gahh!!¡± Levi groaned in frustration while running his fingers through his hair, ¡°this is gettingplicating by the minute, where could they be??¡±


    ¡°Attention!¡±


    The deep voice that resonated from the ballroom to the courtyard instantly drew Azazel and Levi¡¯s attention, making the two Demons exchange nces at the same time.


    ¡°Is that.....¡±


    Like they both thought of the same thing, they left the courtyard in a sh and showed up at the ballroom where everyone had gathered, and just like they had thought, the voice that spoke belonged to the the cier who stood at the top of the stairs, staring down at the guests who have long been waiting for his presence.


    ¡°Sorry to ruin the fun, but the party is officially over.¡±

 Chapter 184

    184 Getting To Know The Truth


    ¡°It¡¯s over??¡± He could hear murmurings amongst the crowd as they all carried questionable looks on their faces, some whispering to one another and some staring like they were seeing someone from another.


    Apparently, it was the first time most of the guests were having a closer glimpse at the devil¡¯s son as he just stood at the stairs, looking calm but holding the authority and dignity of a ruler, seeing as his tranquil gaze settled on them all.


    ¡°I am not in the best mood to continue this event,¡± he exined in a more audible tone that still left everyone questioning what the case might be. It was very strange for the family ball to be called off so abruptly and based on the history of Family ball¡¯s that ured in the Viscarrian pce, this is the first time that a family ball had to be called off.


    ¡°I apologize for the inconvenience, but it¡¯ll be certain to everyone that the event is only postponed for the time being, like I said, I am not in a suitable frame of mind to continue but I won¡¯t ignore your presence, which I thank you for. It was nice having this moment with all of you.¡±


    After he finished making his statement, even though a lot of people were still puzzled by it, they also appreciated the fact that he chose toe down and see all of them.


    Not only that, they equally understood since he barely came down the stairs when the whole event started, and knowing he would be the heir to the throne, no one could question his decision and could only bow their heads politely before taking their leave.


    As for the rest of his family, except Levi and Azazel, they were all struck by the ordersity he had in calling off the family¡¯s traditional ball. It has never happened before and to think Roshan would y a stunt like this on such an important asion was way more upsetting than beingshed out at.


    When everyone had sessfully exited the building, the elderdy was the first to raise her tone at the disobedient Demon who still stood at the top of the stairs.


    ¡°Where are your manners?¡± She started, ¡°ending the family ball without even being present was not your calling! This is a disgrace to our royal tradition. All you¡¯ve been doing is dragging the Astaroth name into nothingness! How disreputable of you to¨C¡±


    .....


    She involuntarily held her tongue when Roshan¡¯s cial stare fell on her. That calm look in his eyes had entirely vanished and he tilted his head to the side, patiently waiting for his dear Aunt to finish, but unfortunately, she didn¡¯t.


    ¡°Are you done?¡± He asked with a noticeable derision in his tone, ¡°I don¡¯t see how you get to question my authorities Aunt, considering the fact that you are nowhere near my level of power.¡± He added cynically, earning gasps from different angles as no one expected Roshan to hit a nerve with his retort.


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not too old to have activated your hearing loss Aunt, but that isn¡¯t even the point now.¡±


    He brushed it off beforeing down the stairs to stand before everyone. Azazel and Levi could already tell that this won¡¯t end well and his presence alone had left everyone tensed. Even the maids and servants have hid away due to his unbearable aura, as though he was the angel of death hunting for his next prey.


    Standing before everyone, Roshan¡¯s hazel-green eyes scanned each and every one of them, as though he was searching for something and that¡¯s when Gravion found the courage to speak.


    ¡°What is the issue that you had to call off the family ball without giving anyone a quick notice?¡±


    ¡°Anna.¡± He uttered, ¡°Anna is missing, and so is Gemma.¡± He responded to Gravion¡¯s question, earning several gasps from each direction as their hands flew to their mouths in disbelief.


    ¡°Gemma¡¯s missing?!¡± Came the shocking exim from Letitia who¡¯s eyes had grown apprehensively wide.


    ¡°What happened to Anna?¡±


    Ignoring all the questions they threw at him, Roshan¡¯s eyes scanned the demoness who stood together. One by one like he was still searching for something until his gaze fell on Roseline, and when she met his stare, an unreadable smirk formed on his lips.


    ¡°Come out.¡±


    All eyes instantly followed Roshan¡¯s ray of sight to see he was beckoning Roseline over. The rest of the demoness instantly gave way for Roseline since none of them wanted to end up in Roshan¡¯s bad books.


    ¡°I already said I have nothing to do with this.¡± She reminded him, but Roshan just stared like she uttered something foolish.


    ¡°I never asked if you were a part of it, or not. I asked you toe out.¡±


    Seeing as the demoness was still hesitant oning forward, he was done being lenient and to Roseline¡¯s shock, an unknown force dragged her feet forward till she found herself standing before Roshan, and when she thought that was it, he made her go on her knees, leaving everyone startled and he did all that with his eyes only.


    ¡°Now I ask..¡± he crouched before Roseline, ¡°where is the letter that you found in Gemma¡¯s chamber?¡±


    At the mention of the letter, Roseline¡¯s heart seemed to stop beating as she lifted her gaze to look at the cier whose eyes were still holding her in position.


    How did he know about the letter????


    ¡°What.... what letter?¡± She managed to ask, trying to hide the shock that had taken over her when he mentioned the letter to her.


    ¡°How does a letter look like Roseline dear.¡± His calm tone was currently scaring the wits out of her that she trembled slightly at his tone. Goodness knows how he got to figure out the letter Anna had left. She was super sure he never saw it before stepping out of the room, so how...


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯d rather save my energy than punish you, so just tell me where you kept the letter,¡± he demanded in a cool tone, ¡°and lying to me is pointless, cause I always figure out the truth based on how I tend to get it from you, so think about your decision carefully before trying to lie.¡±


    He was actually petting her right now, but for some reason it frightened her poor soul until her lips trembled in defeat.


    ¡°I....I burned it.¡± She confessed before lowering her gaze, but Roshan wasn¡¯t done yet as he lifted her face up with his hand. A look of seriousness shed in his irises that it sent a spine-chilling feeling up Rose¡¯s back.


    ¡°What was written on it?¡±


    ¡°I_I can¡¯t remember.¡±


    ¡°I can make you recall if it¡¯s difficult to remember what the letters held, but it won¡¯t be an enjoyable experience cause..¡±


    ¡°An old Hollow tree.¡± She blurted before she could even stop herself. She couldn¡¯t understand how someone can be so overly intimidating as Roshan, now she understood why many fear him,


    ¡°She wanted you to meet her at the old Hollow tree but I just assumed she was trying to flee with you and....¡±


    ¡°You know I didn¡¯t have the intention of punishing you,¡± he caught her off after getting the truth out of her, ....but now I¡¯ve reconsidered¡±


    ¡°Wait...what??¡± Roseline shook her head, ¡°I wasn¡¯t a part of this, you can¡¯t punish me!¡±


    Ignoring her protest, Roshan stood straight, walking away from her and his guards immediately held her down.


    ¡°If anyone pleads on her behalf, then you might as well join her in the dark dungeon!¡±


    And with that, he silenced all the words that could havee at him. At least he knew where Anna was and based on Freya¡¯s word, Luderick must be behind all of it.


    That skunk!!!


    Without waiting for even a second, he dashed out of the pce.

 Chapter 185

    185 A Knife To The Throat


    Somewhere in Viscarrian...


    Carefully walking her horse through the forest that paved way for them to pass, lonely cricket sounds can be heard from behind the trees, giving the dark quiet forest somepany, but in Anna¡¯s chest, her heartbeat was calm and steady, even though her mind and eyes remained at alert.


    The twigs were crunching under the horse¡¯s hooves as they ventured deeper into the woods. What aided the forest with a bit of light was the full moon that shone like silver against the darkness of the sky.


    The humming sound of the cold wind as it blew its frosty air, made Anna shudder slightly and she felt happy about the fact she wore a cloak, else she won¡¯t be able to survive how cold it was starting to get outside.


    And it wasn¡¯t even snowing yet.


    Judging from the directions she had gotten on the way, most of the people she interacted with on her way here led her towards this path, iming the old Hollow tree would be in this direction and she followed it. But after walking for what she assumed to be hours, there hasn¡¯t been any sign of a Hollowed tree nearby.


    ¡°Or did I make a wrong turn?¡± She quietly asked herself, feeling skeptical on whether it¡¯d be better to change route or if she should stick to this direction. Her mind was too preupied in finding Gemma to even worry about herself.


    As much as she tried to push those thoughts at the back of her head, she couldn¡¯t stop herself from wondering what the kidnapper might be doing to her. For the kidnapper to send those presents in the envelope only made Anna worry further, and because of that, her will to find Gemma grew stronger.


    The worried look on her face gradually switched to a look of determination as she stared ahead of what lies in the forest. No matter what, she would try her best to find this Hollow tree and ensure Gemma¡¯s safety.


    .....


    Building up her courage, she continued, knowing there was no turning back and the more they kept walking, the more she sensed a strange presence around the path, and to prove her point, the horse suddenly grunted as it¡¯s nose red a bit, rmingly taking a step back as though it wasn¡¯t willing to go any further.


    Sensing the horses fright, Anna could tell the stranger was close by, probably watching her from behind the trees in silence, but Anna made no move to scrutinize as she got down from the horse.


    Noticing its undeniable panic, she gave the horse¡¯s back a gentle rub in an attempt to calm it down.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± She whispered softly to the horse, keeping the tone of her voice low and slow. She knew that whatever brought her here was probably waiting in that direction that appeared denser from the rest. Else, why would the horse be so hesitant to move further.


    Taking a deep breath as she stared at the narrowed path ahead, she mustered up the courage and continued on foot without having the horse follow her. Based on how the horse kept rubbing one of its feet on the soiled ground, it almost felt like it didn¡¯t want her to go there, and when Anna tried to ignore, it blocked her path to her quick surprise, stopping her from going.


    ¡°It¡¯s dangerous right? Trust me, I know.¡± She softly said to the horse, ¡°but for Gemma¡¯s sake, I have to go.¡± She smiled at how caring the horse was, and maybe it got used to her since this was the same horse she rode on with Roshan the other day.


    ¡°Wait here and shhhh.¡± She ced her index finger to her lips, signifying that the horse should remain silent, and to her utmost relief, it did.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be back.¡±


    With that resolved, she moved past the horse and dared to take a step into the darker part of the forest. It was this dark cause the canopies were too big that they stopped any source of light from prating in, giving it that eerie and disturbing look.


    She felt goosebumps start to appear on her tender skin and her heart raced. This was crazy but she was doing it. She was determined to do it and also, she wanted to see the person who could stoop so low to kidnap a child, all in the name of trapping her.


    After walking for a few more minutes, she came across an open area and that¡¯s when her eyes widened.


    The tree before her was an old big tree that stood in the center, in order words, it appeared to be a dead tree that still stood alive in the middle of the forest, with not a single leaf on it. Scanning it further from where she stood, Anna¡¯s eyesnded on the main body of the tree that appeared empty, or hollow in the center.


    She couldn¡¯t tell if it was really empty since the inside of the tree appeared dark and nothing could be seen. Standing before an ancient tree like this, she felt like she was standing before history itself, but it was not the type that appealed to her heart.


    Something about the death of this tree made her think rationally, until a voice interrupted her.


    ¡°Look what we have here.¡± The deep dark voice resonated through the forest, leading birds to fly off from the branches they were resting on.


    ¡°Just as predicted. You¡¯ve always been an obedient little human after all.¡±


    ¡°Show yourself!¡± She raised her voice a bit while ncing at every direction she heard the voice from, already getting tired of this hide and seek game that the stranger was ying with her, ¡°I¡¯m here like you asked, but are you afraid to show yourself to an ordinary human?¡±


    Truth be told, he was scaring the wits out of her, but knowing how it was easy to smell fear, she chose to remind herself of the things the stranger had done, which in return, reced most of her fear with anger.


    ¡°Afraid?¡± That word seemed to have struck a nerve, ¡°I¡¯m right here.¡±


    Spinning around immediately, the sight Anna was weed with, wasn¡¯t a good one as the kidnapper stood not too far from the Hollowed tree, holding little Gemma in his grasp and threateningly cing a silver knife to her throat.


    ¡°No!¡± Came the rmed cry that left Anna¡¯s lips at the sight before her and she involuntarily stretched her hand forward as though she wanted to reach for her.


    Gemma remained in his arms, her eyes already red from crying a lot as her mouth was sped with Luderick¡¯s hand, and the other, holding a knife to her throat.


    She was scared.


    ¡°Gemma.¡± Anna softly tried to draw her attention to her, ¡°you¡¯ll be fine okay? I¡¯m here now, no one will hurt you. Just stay strong.¡±


    Lifting her gaze to Luderick, she wondered why she never suspected it¡¯d be him, but standing before him right now, she wasn¡¯t surprised.


    ¡°Let her go, I¡¯m here like you asked.¡± She said to Luderick, hoping he would lower the knife from Gemma¡¯s throat but he didn¡¯t do any of that. Infact, he looked ready to spill blood as his horrifically dark eyes remained on Anna.


    He was looking so....so different! In a scary kind of way she nearly asked what the hell did he do to himself???


    ¡°Listen...Lu... Luderick, she¡¯s your niece, you...you can¡¯t possibly hurt your niece, she¡¯s only a child.¡±


    ¡°If I do hurt her then it¡¯ll be your fault little human.¡± He agreed with himself, ¡°seeing as I can¡¯t hurt her, then if I do end up hurting her then you¡¯ll be the one responsible for her death.¡±


    ¡°What do you want from me?¡± Anna proceeded to ask the man who was now smiling deviously in her direction. It sent her stomach churning in return cause he was starting to look nothing like a human would. Even his aura was suffocating and if she wasn¡¯t mistaking, she sensed ck magic.


    ¡°Your blood.¡± He responded, ¡°give me your blood.¡±


    ¡°My what??¡±


    ¡°Over there.¡± He withdrew the knife from Gemma¡¯s throat so he could point at a small bowl that was kept on the ground, as well as the knife ced beside it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I came prepared. What I need you to do is simple, use that knife to cut yourself until that little bowl fills up with your blood.¡±


    ¡°No!¡± Anna refused before she could even process what her response would be, and a deafening silence followed as though her refusal had stunned him.


    How does he expect her to cut herself and give him her blood?? Was he insane??


    ¡°Don¡¯t make it harder than it already is human,¡± his gaze fell on the ne around her neck and his eyes surprisingly widened at the sight.


    ¡°Aveline.¡± He chuckled, ¡°I see you¡¯ve remembered your past self.¡±


    ¡°No wait!¡± He was about to slit Gemma¡¯s throat but stopped at Anna¡¯s quick cry.


    ¡°Why are you doing this?¡±


    ¡°No time for questions and answers,¡± his tone finally turned serious, ¡°do the needful or face the consequences.¡±

 Chapter 186

    186 A Little Taste Of Pain


    The forest grew silent once again, except for the non-stop wind that continuously rustled the leaves of trees and Anna felt stuck between making two tough decisions.


    Looking at the devastated Gemma who just remained trapped in Luderick¡¯s hold. The look in her watery hazel colored eyes were silently pleading for help, and it broke Anna¡¯s heart in pieces at the thought of what must be going through her head.


    If she eventually survives this, hopefully she¡¯ll be able to snap out from the shock of everything that has happened here.


    Frantically returning her gaze to the small red bowl on the ground, her eyes shifted to the knife beside it, bringing back images of when Luderick had stabbed her wrist with his own wed fingers. The remembrance equally brought the pain, leading Anna to impulsively wrap her fingers around that wrist, and she couldn¡¯t imagine herself going through it for the second time.


    ¡°This isn¡¯t how to do things Luderick!¡± She shook her head, trying to reason with the demon whose brows confusedly pulled together in a frown.


    ¡°Have you looked at yourself in the mirror? You¡¯re even worse than a dying man.¡± She outrightly pointed his predicament at him, not in hate, but in obvious pity, ¡°if you continue down this path then I can assure you that you¡¯ll regret it for the rest of your life.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m a demon human,¡± he boringly reminded her, ¡°demons are meant to be selfish, heartless, greedy for power, murderers. Myte brother was everything put together, he did everything right until he decided to bring that half demon into this world.¡±


    The resentment in his tone was enough to describe the hate he had for Roshan, ¡°I¡¯m not only after your blood human, I¡¯m also out to destroy everything that mattered to that ipetent fool and watch him plead before me, just like he did when he was a child.¡±


    ¡°Call him a half demon if you want but you can¡¯t force him to be one if he doesn¡¯t want to.¡± Anna responded, not holding back her words as she wouldn¡¯t take any foul words being said against Roshan.


    .....


    ¡°That¡¯s what makes him different from you,¡± she pointed an usatory finger at him, ¡°my Roshan is capable of fighting it whereas you are willing to sumb to the darkness brewing inside of you, and where has itnded you?¡±


    Her question only made the look in Luderick¡¯s eyes darken. ¡®Her Roshan?¡¯ seems like she really does remember being his mate, and as far as he knows, the Anna he once held captive was more of a cry baby than this.


    Where did the sudden boldnesse from??


    ¡°You need to watch the way you talk back at me, you human!!¡±


    He threatened in a low deep tone that made Anna flinch. Slowly, he traced the tip of the silver de along Gemma¡¯s face that she closed her eyes tightly, feeling the cold thing move through her cheek to her jaw line and she shivered in fear, almost at the verge of crying again as tears trickled down from her eyes.


    Instantly, Anna¡¯s mind was brought back to the situation before her. She got so carried away with defending Roshan that she forgot little Gemma was still in Luderick¡¯s clutches.


    ¡°If I give you my blood, will you let her go?¡± She quickly said before the lunatic did something treacherous.


    She wanted to be sure that Luderick wasn¡¯t messing with her this time around, and he nodded almost right away.


    ¡°You have my word.¡±


    ¡°But I don¡¯t trust your words,¡± she admitted before narrowing her eyes at him, ¡°how do I believe you¡¯ll let her go once I give you my blood? Make me believe that you won¡¯t hurt her once I give it to you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry but that is up to you.¡± He tantly told her, ¡°it¡¯s either you take the risk and trust my words, or don¡¯t and watch her young blood spill before your very eyes.¡±


    Anna¡¯s fist clenched by her side after hearing his response and she grew suspicious, her indecisiveness wasn¡¯t letting her give in, but if she has to drop her blood like he said, then Gemma must be freed from his clutches.


    Luderick, who still watched her movements with hawk eyes finally brightened when she made a move towards the bowl he had kept on the ground.


    His eyes widened in delight after seeing her go on her knees before the bowl and pick up the knife.


    Although Gemma couldn¡¯t speak, she wasn¡¯t blind or deaf to not understand what was happening and she shook her head, not wanting her favorite milkangel to spill her own blood for the sake of her.


    ¡°Stay still!¡± Luderick sternly said to the little one who was forced to remain still, and that caught Anna¡¯s attention as she red at Luderick, her own anger already disying in her eyes but she chose not to say anything.


    She has to be strong, she needed to prove to Luderick that she wasn¡¯t the same woman he had sent his ugly minions to abduct.


    Shifting her gaze towards Gemma, the look in her eyes finally softened and she assured the little one with a nod of her head, trying not to get emotional as well.


    ¡°Everything¡¯s okay, just close your eyes for me okay?¡±


    She shook her head, her tears flowing freely. She was too scared to even close her eyes and Anna tried to ease it for her with a smile.


    ¡°I¡¯m here remember, or do you see me crying? Don¡¯t be afraid and just close your eyes.... Or don¡¯t you believe your milkangel anymore? If you listen to her words you¡¯ll be free in no time, okay?¡±


    The tears were already swimming in Anna¡¯s eyes, but she didn¡¯t let them drop so as not to please Luderick in any way. After considering her words, Gemma finally closed her eyes and there was a reason why Anna asked her to do it.


    Returning her gaze to the small red bowl that was the size of a smallest cereal bowl, Anna slowly brought her hands forward, preparing herself for the pain she was about to experience and when she closed her eyes, she slit her palm with the sharp knife and bit her lower lip to stop herself from crying out in pain.


    Her palm instantly started to bleed and when she opened her eyes, she watched as her crimson colored blood painted her fair palm. They ran down her fingers to her fingertip and began dropping on the bowl.


    ¡°Yes!!¡± Luderick was already rejoicing as he watched her sweet blood that scented alluringly drop to the little red bowl.


    Sensing his distraction, Gemma opened her eyes to see what had happened, only to see Anna had indeed slit her palm and her eyes widened in rm. Without thinking, she bit Luderick¡¯s hand, leading the Happy demon to flinch as he yanked his hand away.


    ¡°Ouch!¡±


    Immediately, Gemma escaped from his clutches and ran towards Anna who was still letting her blood drop to the red bowl.


    Anna, who was busy dealing with the pain of her wounded palm, got distracted when she heard Luderick scream in pain, and when she turned her head to his direction to see what had happened, what she saw made her eyes lit up, when Gemma came running towards her and the next thing, she was hugging Anna who was surprised to see Gemma at her side.


    ¡°Gemma?¡±


    Anna moved her bleeding hands from the bowl and hugged the little one back with her uninjured hand before pulling her back to look at her crying face.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡±


    Gemma shook her head before trying to hold Anna¡¯s injured palm with her own small hands, but Anna hid it, not willing to let her see something so bloody.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, you¡¯re alright and safe.¡± Anna didn¡¯t know whether to cry or rejoice, but that thought was cut short when she met Luderick¡¯s ring eyes.


    ¡°You..!!..¡±


    ¡°Gemma, Run.¡± Anna immediately said to Gemma who was frightened by Luderick¡¯s advances.


    ¡°Run now, hurry! Leave this ce!¡±


    At Anna¡¯s word, Gemma immediately got to her feet and took off before Luderick could get his hands on her, leaving him and Anna alone in the forest.


    ¡°You aren¡¯t¨C¡± he tried to violently grab Anna but unfortunately for him, Anna had sensed he¡¯de for her, which was why she got prepared and before he could touch her, she stabbed his wrist with the knife she had been hiding behind her.


    ¡°Since you love watching others in pain, I figured you¡¯d have a little taste of it, now eat your own pain!¡±


    ¡°Arhh!!¡±


    Luderick yanked his hands back as the de of the knife had stabbed him deeply in his palm. Using the opportunity, Anna pushed him aside with all her might before running off in the direction where Gemma had followed.

 Chapter 187

    187 Death Trap!


    ¡°Are you sure this is the ce?¡±


    Adryan asked with a hint of uncertainty as they ventured deeper into the forest, with only two of his loyal guards following his trail.


    Before they stepped into Viscarrian, he made sure to take just two of his guards in order to lessen the suspicion they might encounter on the way, and he strictly ordered the rest to stay outside the border in case something goes wrong.


    To say he was surprised that the Demons evidently had a kingdom was an understatement and it left his mouth hanging agape.


    He was effortlessly taken aback by the sight before him after they crossed the magic border. Just like he was told, the barrier was indeed breaking but despite that, it still wasn¡¯t so easy to cross the invisible barrier without making use of some of their special artifacts.


    Their belief was that the Demons always hid in the shadows, they made it their home while ambushing from the forest in search of their next victim, and to think that belief was a partial lie made him curious to figure out more secrets about this hidden kingdom.


    To top it off, when they spotted a few demons walking down the path, they looked nothing like the Demon¡¯s they mostly yed in Euphrasia.


    They looked more....human!


    ¡°Your majesty.¡± Sir Bryan called his attention the moment they stopped before another horse in the forest. Confusion and bafflement painting the faces of the three men as they exchanged puzzled nces before fixing it back on the horse.


    .....


    ¡°A horse?¡±


    Adryan got down from his own horse to check out the charcoal-colored horse that was stranded in the middle of the forest. The horse didn¡¯t move when he approached it slowly, and he made sure to assure the horse that he meant no harm before taking any closer steps towards it.


    ¡°Who could possibly abandon horse¡¯s in the middle of the forest?¡± Questioned Bryan who equally got down from his horse, staring questionably at the ck horse before averting his gaze to the narrow path ahead.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Adryan responded, but before he could jump into thorough conclusions, something very pleasing invaded his nostril as he scented a familiar floral scent from the horse. A very uniquevender floral scent that left his brows knitting into puzzlement.


    ¡°This scent....¡± He muttered to himself, trying to remember where he perceived a simr scent as this, but sadly, his brain was refusing to click on the owner of that specific floral scent.


    ¡°Come on, we go on foot.¡± Adryan announced to the remaining two before taking the route that appeared denser. It appeared that the horse¡¯s too were unwilling to move further, which brought about his decision on finishing the journey on foot.


    The two guards took their weapons as well, including every other necessity that would be needed while going further.


    Adryan wasn¡¯t sure why he sensed those scents were familiar, but one thing he knew was that Demons had the ability to teleport and run faster than the wind, so it could only mean that whoever brought the horse was a human, and judging from the scent, he knew it was ady.


    But what sort of woman enters a ce as dangerous as this?


    ~


    Without stopping or slowing down on her pace, Anna kept running through the deep woods without considering the direction she kept taking.


    The crunching sounds of dried leaves echoed through the forest as she ran on them, but she just fixed her gaze on the path she kept taking, not looking back either or stopping to catch her unsteady breath.


    She wasn¡¯t really bothered as long as it got her away from that evil demon, but the forest seemed to have no end as she kept running.


    As for Gemma, she didn¡¯t worry too much about the little one cause she assumed she¡¯d know the route a lot better than her, and also, with her blood still dripping from her palm, the scent of her blood was more than enough distraction to lure Luderick away from Gemma¡¯s direction.


    Unfortunately, it¡¯s impossible to beat nature and when she realized she had run enough, she stopped in her tracks to quickly catch her breath, bending slightly with her hands resting on her knees.


    Living under the same roof with Demons seemed to have influenced her and she keeps forgetting she¡¯s a human, she couldn¡¯t run as fast as them but felt like she could.


    Brushing that off, she immediately scanned the area for a specific spot to hide and there was an enclosed space somewhere behind the trees, covered with leaves.


    Spotting the perfect hiding spot, she hid herself there and crouched on the ground to avoid being seen, just in case to secure her protection.


    Looking at her injured palm, Anna stared at her open flesh that was still bleeding, and it was only after she chose to examine it that the pain returned.


    ¡°Aish!!¡± She winced when she used a piece of her cloth she had quickly torn to tie her wounded palm with.


    She had slit herself a little too deep and if she keeps losing this much blood, she¡¯ll grow weak and even pass out from triggering the stupid mark on her head.


    ¡°How do I find my way out?¡± She muttered while ncing from tree to tree, then wisely decided to wait in her hidden spot for some extra minute.


    After an unknown amount of time of waiting, it didn¡¯t feel like anyone wasing and that relieved her a bit, which means Luderick didn¡¯t follow her, else he would have been here long before now.


    Slowly getting to her feet once again, Anna wasn¡¯t willing to take any more rest until she was out of here.


    Coming out of her hiding ce and standing on the earthly path, she continued from where she stopped, but didn¡¯t run since her limbs were already feeling weak.


    She picked up a thick broken branch from the ground for defense, in case any other hungry demons try toe for her blood.


    As she kept moving with the aim of finding the exit, she halted when Luderick stood ahead, and her eyes widened seeing he had truly followed her.


    ¡°You!¡± She took a step back.


    A devious smile formed on his lips and his eyes glinted with humor. Blue threadlike lines of vein inhumanly stretched from the skin of his eyes to his ears before disappearing from sight.


    ¡°Human¡±


    ¡°Stay away from me.¡± She pointed the heavy stick at him, ¡°forget the fact you¡¯re a demon I won¡¯t hesitate to smash your head if youe near me.¡± She threatened and took a cautious step back.


    Sensing he wasn¡¯t going toe after her, she turned around, getting ready to run when he unceremoniously uttered.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t this how fate works,¡± he began, ¡°I guess your lover figured it out and is here to find you,¡± he chuckled darkly, ¡°it¡¯d be so sad since he¡¯s going to die if you can¡¯t reach him on time.¡±


    With that unpredicted statement, Anna halted as he said those words, turning around quickly to look at Luderick who folded his arms.


    ¡°Roshan is here, and is looking for you, I feel his presence but he¡¯s unaware of the fact he¡¯s walked into a death trap.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Anna didn¡¯t fully understand and waited for Luderick to finish.


    ¡°What I mean is, if you can¡¯t get to Roshan soon enough, he will die.¡± He smirked evilly.


    ¡°It¡¯s already counting, go go go.¡± He said almost melodiously, as though he was enjoying the shock that stered her face and after hearing that, all Anna could think about was Roshan before she ran off again.


    But Luderick had no intention of going after her, he¡¯s got her blood and now he¡¯s waiting to see who¡¯ll die first.


    ¡°Will it be Anna? Is it Roshan? Or none?¡± Heughed, ¡°this should be fun.¡±

 Chapter 188

    188 His Behavior


    Back in the Astaroth household, every member of the Astaroth family, including the demonesses silently remained in the ballroom, looking like statues that had been frozen in time as different nonplussed reactions disyed on their faces.


    Evidently, Roshan¡¯s uneptable behavior had left the whole room feeling tense, like there was a heavy burden weighing down on all of them, and unluckily for them, no one could do a thing about it since he had the power to contradict their contention if he wanted.


    It was that power that came with being a leader, but Roshan never really considered being King in the first ce, he always avoided the topic whenever it was brought up, so when did he start acting like one?


    ¡°That boy...I really have no idea how to handle him.¡± Lady Odette kept cursing through her teeth as she paced back and forth, unsure of what reaction to make from all of this, and to think he canceled the event to save a human hadpletely ruined her mood tonight.


    She had her early suspicions on those two, but never really bothered to take it seriously since a human and a demon could never work.


    And here she was, feeling a bit joyful that one of the high ss demonesses would be picked as Roshan¡¯s mate, and that human maid will get to leave Viscarrian forever, but no, somehow that witch of a human always ends up ruining everything!


    ¡°Keep calm Matriarch, you¡¯re too old to stress your poor heart and just take a seat.¡± Evan said while gesturing for the elderdy Odette to take a seat, which in turn earned him a sharp re from her.


    ¡°What do you think? That I¡¯ll sit and watch as Roshan decides to do things out of proportion??¡± She was already taking her seat on the dinner table as she spoke, and that¡¯s when Gravion stepped forward to say,


    ¡°Let¡¯s not forget, the human maid was once his mate in the past, it is possible that he remembers her already.¡± As far as he knows, Roshan would be the least person to care about a missing maid, but look at what happened tonight, he called off the family ball at the mention of this particr missing maid.


    .....


    ¡°My thoughts exactly,¡± Letitia agreed with his words, ¡°but if he does recall, then I don¡¯t feel good about what to expect in the future. Not everyone is aware of his lost mate and their fate together had always been forbidden.¡±


    ¡°You see Aunt,¡± Azazel finally stepped in, ¡°when love is involved, not even the cier we all know to be Roshan can control it.¡±


    Hearing Azazel speak about love made everyone stare at him as though a different person was speaking, but regardless of their mortified gazes, he continued.


    ¡°Roshan is acting this way because he loves her. If he has realized it himself or not, I¡¯m not sure, but you all can tell from a single nce how much he loves this human, so don¡¯t bother yourselves with denying the truth. Rather than stay here and pour out your senseless frustration, do something meaningful and find Gemma.¡±


    After saying what he had to say to these jobless people, he vanished from the ballroom, followed by Levi who apanied him, but Azazel¡¯s words only left everyone staring in shock.


    Roshan loves who??


    ~


    Appearing in the forest where Roshan had left for earlier, Azazel stared at the old Hollow tree Roseline made mention of, but aftering here, he saw no one except for the young man who crouched before something on the ground.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see them here,¡± Levi whispered worriedly while keeping his eyes on the search, but Azazel was too focused on his own theories to pay attention.


    There was a pleasing scent that lingered with the air, a very unique rose scent that drew his attention, but unlike those who¡¯d immediately feel thirsty for blood, he was able to control his own and quietly approached Roshan with a slightly puzzled appearance.


    ¡°Did you find anything?¡±


    Roshan didn¡¯t respond, his livid gaze was fixed on the blood traces that stained the earthly ground, and when he touched it with his fingers to feel the texture of the blood, he felt as though something in him snapped and all of a sudden, the clouds above darkened as Roshan finally uttered.


    ¡°She¡¯s bleeding.¡± He responded coldly, although the panic in his voice was noticeable as he finally stood straight.


    When he got here, the first thing he smelt was her blood and it rmed all his senses at once. He knew what Anna¡¯s blood smelt and tasted like. No one could be more familiar with it than him, but that little analysis left his heart thundering rapidly in his chest.


    He could tell she was seriously injured based on the traces of blood that signified the path she took and his worriedness could not be mismatched.


    Is Luderick responsible for this? Was Freya right about his ns?? What did he need Anna¡¯s blood for???


    Where was Anna?


    The questions rampaging in his mind only worsened the situation cause there was no possible way he could get the answers to those questions.


    ¡°Roshan¨C¡±


    ¡°I need to find Anna before Luderick does more harm to her, I¡¯m seriously losing it here and damn it! I swear I will rip his head off if I get my hands on him!¡±


    His eyes expressed the raging madness that he was still controlling. He needed to keep his cool if he ns on locating Anna in this eerie forest and he wasn¡¯t going to leave until he finds her.


    ¡°I understand,¡± Azazel cooly said, ¡°but we can¡¯t start the search if you¡¯re having issues dealing with this aura of yours, and Luderick must have sensed your presence already seeing you couldn¡¯t hold in that dark force in you.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care if he knows I¡¯m here! He should run for his life cause I will make Grayson be fatherless after tonight.¡±


    As he poured out his anger, an unexpected rustling behind the bushes made Roshan stop mid-sentence, and both their gazes diverted to where the sound wasing from.


    Staring at the bushy covered path for a while and keeping silent, both Demons were prepared to face what was hiding there until Gemma slowly stepped out, suddenly falling to her feet and losing consciousness instantly.


    Their eyes widened, ¡°Gemma!¡±


    Levi was the first to reach for his sister as she remained unconscious, lifting her from the cold ground and cing her before hisp as he crouched, trying to wake up the unconscious little demoness.


    ¡°Gemma!¡±


    He felt his heart would reap from his chest when she wasn¡¯t responding, not until he heard Azazel speak behind him.


    ¡°She¡¯s fine.¡± He moved towards Gemma who remained unconscious in the worried Levi¡¯s arms. Her face looked pale and drained, revealing her weakness as she appeared exhausted, even in her state.


    ¡°She¡¯s weak, that exins her loss of consciousness.¡± Azazel assured Levi who was nearly at the verge of tears. But the anger in his amber brown eyes made him grit his teeth at the thought of what Luderick made his sister go through.


    ¡°He¨C¡±


    ¡°Take her back Levi.¡± Roshanmanded, sensing the anger in Levi but the demon was reluctant.


    ¡°Go back?? He abducted my sister..!!..¡±


    ¡°And she¡¯s safe, take her back and get her treated, Azazel and I will deal with Luderick, it¡¯s best to leave now for Gemma¡¯s sake and avoid more problems.¡±


    Debating on whether to listen or not, Levi chose to do as he said for his sister¡¯s sake, but one day he¡¯ll make Luderick pay for this.


    He finally agreed in the end before vanishing from sight.


    Azazel and Roshan locked gaze, and only their eyes seemed to do the talking before they sped off in different directions.

 Chapter 189

    189 Saving Roshan


    ¡°Roshan!¡±


    Stumbling through the forest path, Anna continuously called out his name when she lost the energy to run. She couldn¡¯t remember thest time she had to run this much and her legs were already aching. She felt tired, her exhaustion disying on her sweaty face.


    Her energy had beenpletely drained to the extent she fell on her knees when her fragile body could no longer take it. She remained in that position, trying to catch her unsteady breath and her vision blurred immediately.


    The trees appeared double before her eyes and they were moving in a way she found impossible toprehend, making her realize it was the effect of her disturbing dizziness and she shut her eyes tightly.


    She couldn¡¯t stop now after knowing Roshan¡¯s life is in danger, she needs to find him before something happens to him, or else, she won¡¯t be able to live with the guilt of not being able to save him.


    Forcing her limbs to help her get up to her feet, she continued to walk, staggering her way through the path and refusing to let her eyes settle.


    Thud!


    She fell to the ground again when her knees gave out, and she balled her injured hand into fist out of frustration, not caring about the pain as her brown eyes glinted with something unexinable.


    ¡°You can do this Anna, just keep moving.¡± She quietly motivated herself, staring at the long awaited path ahead and she wasn¡¯t going to give up as long as she was still breathing.


    .....


    Her main worry would be passing out before she can get to Roshan, she really doesn¡¯t mind that as long as she sees him and knows that he¡¯s safe.


    Getting to her feet for the second time, she continued on her journey, looking back from time to time and ensuring that no one was following her, but even if she didn¡¯t see anyone, she knew Luderick was watching her every move, except she didn¡¯t really care so far he¡¯s not stopping her.


    ¡°Roshan!¡±


    She called out again, forcing her eyes to remain open so she could see the path clearly.


    ~


    Adryan and the two guards finally approached an open path with their weapons raised, incase of any surprise attack that would await them, but to their bafflement, there was no one present there which made them lower their guard slowly.


    ¡°There¡¯s no one here,¡± Bryan announced to his majesty, but for some reason, Adryan¡¯s mind didn¡¯t ept it.


    ¡°No no¡± he shook his head, ¡°my instincts can¡¯t be wrong on this.¡± When they ventured further, he could sense a disturbing presence as though someone was secretly following them, but it was difficult to spot who the person was since the night was dark and that rendered the bushes a perfect spot to hide.


    ¡°Someone is¨C¡±


    Adryan suddenly silenced himself when he felt the presence of someone closing in on their direction, and when he turned to see if there was anyone, it didn¡¯t seem like it, but he could tell someone was approaching the path they stood on.


    ¡°Hide.¡±


    At hismand, Bryan and the rest immediately hid themselves behind the thick bushes, waiting for the presence they had had sensed to reveal itself, but to their shock, a young-looking ck-haired man stood in the middle of the forest, his eyes scanning the area, but fortunately for them, he didn¡¯t sense their presence.


    At first they were left confused on whether to associate him as a human or demon, but when the stranger brought his palm forward, a dark swirling light floated in his palm in a ck-purple light and before their shocking gaze, he mmed that hand to the ground, causing the earth to rattle and shake hazardously.


    ¡°A demon?¡± Adryan¡¯s mouth was left hanging agape at the sight of a celestial demon, who knew demons could also have such celestial beauty, but the dark aura was a different contrast to the fragility of his appearance.


    Adryan didn¡¯t mind whoever the demon was, he quickly brought out his bow and arrow and aimed it directly at Roshan who¡¯s gaze still searched the area.


    ¡°Your majesty!¡± Bryan¡¯s eyes widened, sensing what his majesty was about doing.


    ¡°Don¡¯t your majesty! It¡¯s too risky!¡± He whispered in rm, but Adryan was reluctant as visible anger shed in his irises, remembering that they were the ones who dared to abduct his sister.


    ¡°A demon has to die in order to leave a message to the rest of the Demons, never to pick a hassle with the royal family of Euphrasia.¡± He said coldly while aiming the extremely sharp arrow at Roshan¡¯s back.


    Meanwhile, the cier only stopped before this path when Anna¡¯s scent grew stronger, like he could sense her from here, thus, distracting his senses and leaving him unaware of the arrow that was pointing at him from the bushes.


    He decided to test how far she was from him, using his powers and despite the mate mark already disappearing from her neck, he could still connect with her to his great relief.


    Finally, Anna showed up to see Roshan standing there, calling out her name and the tears that filled her eyes after seeing he was alright, was enough to make her cry. She saw the worry in his expression, as though he was already frustrated that he couldn¡¯t find her.


    She quickly wiped her tears before they could drop from her eyes, not willing to let Roshan see her so haggard and she smiled happily for the first time since she stepped into the forest.


    ¡°Ro-¡± she wanted to call his name so he could see her, but stopped when her eyes caught a glimpse of the arrow that was being aimed in Roshan¡¯s direction from the bushes, and her eyes automatically widened.


    Luderick¡¯s words came swimming in her head in a constant repetition, and she could see the wielder was almost releasing the arrow from the bow and her heart stopped.


    ¡°No!¡±


    She ran towards Roshan¡¯s direction when the wielder finally released it. Shepletely forgot about the fact that she was weak, as though what she had just seen had triggered her nerves into working again.


    ¡°Roshan!¡± She called, and when he turned to look at the woman he was searching for, his eyes widened seeing she was running towards him, but before he could understand what was happening, Anna hugged him without warning while turning him around and before Roshan knew it, the woman froze in his arms when he heard something struck her back.

 Chapter 190

    190 A Dying Confession


    Everything around them seemed to stop moving, like a still pulseless world that appeared heavy and dark.


    Somehow, Anna had sessfully managed to reach Roshan, but in the end, she received the arrow that wasn¡¯t even meant for her, feeling the sharp thing pierce through her clothes anding in contact with her skin.


    It created a hole as it pierced a little deeper into her delicate skin, to the point she felt it strike her heart which made her eyes widen in reaction.


    The man who had her in his arms as she still hugged him, felt his own eyes dte momentarily as he saw the traces of blood that flowed from her back, painting her dress, then horrifyingly shifting his gaze to the arrow that connected with her skin, and it felt as though his own heart got stabbed after processing what just happened.


    She risked her life to save him??!!


    ¡°Anna?¡± He pulled back a bit to stare at her face that was still contorted from the shock of being hit with an arrow.


    He assumed all of this to be a nightmare, this wasn¡¯t happening but after seeing the blood that escaped her lips and rolled down to her chin, the anger he had been holding inside of him were unleashed as his eyes turned into a molten red


    Who the hell is responsible for this???


    Fixing his livid gaze in the direction where the arrow came from, all he had to do was stomp one of his feet on the ground, in a way that spoke of his anger and a crack appeared on the earthly ground, and soon enough, it began to spread rapidly as the ground started to break with each spread it took, heading for the bushy path were the person responsible for this was hiding.


    .....


    Meanwhile Adryan, who was in a state of shock after seeing how ugly things went, lost the energy to speak and it finally dawned on him that he didn¡¯t hit the demon, but Anna instead!


    He instantly felt oveed with a certain dread when he locked gaze with those molten colored red eyes, he thought he was staring directly at the devil himself and all his brain could process at that instant was to retreat from here.


    ¡°Run!¡±


    He announced after seeing the deadly cracks on the ground that headed for his direction, but the cracks were spreading too fast for them to escape it, leading Adryan to sink his leg into the breaking ground.


    CRACK!


    His left knee broke under the pressure of those cracks and a scream of agony escaped him. Bryan and the other guard tried to get his leg out of the crack that held him tight, but they felt if they kept dragging him, he might just end up losing his left knee as well.


    ¡°Stop!¡± Adryan yelled in pain when he felt their help was doing nothing more but worsening his situation. His leg was trapped against the deadly cracks and he knew that demon was responsible for it.


    Roshan actually had more in mind, to say he was furious was an understatement and he was beyond mad. As the cracks kept spreading, Roshan did something he never knew he was capable of doing as orange-yellowish light seeped out from the ground, but it wasn¡¯t just any light.


    It was fire, burning with a blistering fury as it escted from beneath the ground


    He wanted to annihte the person responsible for hurting his Anna but immediately got distracted when Anna herself ced a hand to his cheek, drawing his attention back to her and when he looked at her face, she was smiling at him, despite the immeasurable pain she must be going through.


    ¡°Stop.¡± She muttered while shaking her head slowly, ¡°don¡¯t... do it.¡±


    She sensed his anger, she saw it in his eyes and if he doesn¡¯t stop, he might just end up bringing hell to the world which was thest thing she wanted, for the man she loved to give in to his darkness, and to her relief, he seemed to listen as his red eyes turned normal and the fire that was starting to spread against the cracks disappeared.


    Despite being in his arms, Roshan felt his hold on her was weak, too weak and when he felt her slipping away from his embrace, he caught her once again and made sure he held her properly, kneeling to the ground while holding the half conscious woman close to him.


    ¡°Sss..Ahh!¡± Came the weak scream that left her lips when he gently pulled the arrow out, but the after effect had reduced the pain a bit, at least to a point where she can still speak.


    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine Anna, just hold on a little longer, I promise you this.¡± He said to her, but was unsure of how long she could hold on. She had lost too much blood already, and from the wound on her palm, and to the wound in her back, if she didn¡¯t get quick treatment then her chance of surviving was hanging on the thread.


    He could hear the sound of her heartbeat, gradually starting to slow down in an rming manner which wasn¡¯t a good sign, and the panic in him was starting to intensify.


    He wanted to get up when Anna¡¯s hand clutched his shirt tightly, stopping him from leaving and when he looked at her face that was starting to grow paler, he could see in her watery brown eyes that she didn¡¯t want him to go.


    ¡°S...stay, please.¡± She begged in a hoarse voice that weakened Roshan immediately and he stayed put. She didn¡¯t want him to go anywhere, not at a time like this, and the security she felt in his hold was one she wanted to enjoy, even if it was for thest time.


    From the look in her eyes, she looked more worried as she scanned him, only to release a sigh of relief after seeing that he got no injury from the arrow or anything, and that he was perfectly fine.


    ¡°You¡¯re... you¡¯re alright, right? Did you get hurt?¡±


    ¡°How can I possibly get hurt Anna?¡± His tone came out soft, yet sad as he touched her cheeks that were starting to get cold.


    ¡°You need help, I need to get help Anna, just....¡± He sounded so desperate that he couldn¡¯t evenplete his words. Can¡¯t she see that he was making her run out of time??


    ¡°No.¡± She shook her head with the same stubbornness that hadn¡¯t left her spirit yet, feeling her consciousness trying to slip away through her vision but she remained persistent, knowing she had a lot to say to Roshan.


    ¡°I...I can¡¯t make it, I¡¯m¨C¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not dying!¡± He silenced her with a sharp retort, not willing to ept the fate she had nned for herself.


    ¡°Roshan..¡± she smiled weakly, regardless of what he was saying to her and her chest heaved. She knew there was no time left before the darkness clouds her entire vision but she needed to make this moment memorable.


    ¡°Is Gemma alright?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s fine, and so will you but you have to stay with me. You didn¡¯t have to take that shot, I could have handled it but..¡± he hissed, feeling his hazel-green eyes redden as his heart felt stabbed by her condition.


    He just wanted to wake up from this and figure out that it¡¯s a lie.


    ¡°I...¡± her breathing remained uneven as she forced herself to keep talking, fighting the deep sleep that was trying to pull her eyelids shut and she guessed it was true, that it is possible to sense death knocking on the door cause at this moment, her senses were already slipping away from her.


    ¡°Roshan I....I..¡± her cold hands reached to touch his face onest time, wanting to feel it, imprint everything about him in her head so she never forgets him.


    ¡°I love you Roshan.¡± She confessed, leaving the man who held her in his arms to blink in disbelief, and she saw the change of reaction in his eyes, leading her to smile faintly.


    ¡°I...I..¡± she abruptly paused, there was nothing that escaped her lips at that moment and to Roshan¡¯s shock, her heart had stopped beating, and the hand that still touched his cheeks limply fell to her side.


    Her eyes were currently sealed shut.


    ¡°Anna!¡± He shook her, but got no response from her.


    ¡°You can¡¯t do this, stop ying this game with me and open your eyes, Anna!¡±


    Still no response, all he got was silence, a silence that left his heart breaking with each passing second as the rim of his eyes devastatingly pooled with tears.


    ¡°She¡¯s dead.¡± Came the grave voice of Azazel who stood at a corner, watching the scene with a sad gaze and when Roshan looked at him, Azazel barely knew what else to say to him.


    He couldn¡¯t even meet his brother¡¯s gaze.


    ¡°She¡¯s gone, I¡¯m sorry.¡±

 Chapter 191

    191 Confronting The Astaroth Family


    ¡°Why?¡± His voice came out in a low whisper when the truth appeared clear in front of him. He sounded dry and barely audible as he fought with the emotion¡¯s swirling in his chest, waiting to burst into pieces as he couldn¡¯t contain the ache.


    His hands, clothes and even his face where she had touched him were smudged with her blood, hitting him with the hard realization that she was really dead.


    ¡°She....she doesn¡¯t deserve this.¡± When he said it, a lone tear descended from his eyes as a sign of his heartache, rolling down to his cheeks and he instinctively hugged her cold body, finding it difficult to ept that his Anna was really gone.


    How can she leave him after saying she loved him? Who does that to the person they im to love??


    Seeing his brother so down to the point of tears, Azazel opened his mouth to speak, but there was not a single word that came out of it since he had no idea how to even begin.


    There was absolutely nothing he could say that would bringfort to Roshan. He had to admit that he was equally saddened by Anna¡¯s death, she took a big step by sacrificing her life to save Roshan¡¯s and to think a human was capable of doing something like this, despite knowing there was no turning back earned her his respect.


    He ced a hand to Roshan¡¯s shoulder, squeezing it lightly in a brotherly manner as it was the only attempt he could take tofort the devastated being, but Roshan didn¡¯t need thefort, he needed his Anna back.


    ¡°She can¡¯t die like this, she¡¯s not allowed to just die like this.¡± He kept saying, but even the thought of it was too good to be true cause each time he looked at her face, it was deathly pale, and her skin, it was icily cold as death, leaving not even a single feeling of life form inside of her.


    She was gone, forever.


    .....


    He touched her face, letting his thumb graze through her cheek affectionately before cing a tender kiss on her forehead. The sky above had darkened immensely, indicating Roshan¡¯s current mood as the crackling sound of thunder startled Azazel himself.


    ¡°We should head back.¡± He suggested, he didn¡¯t see Luderick anywhere in the forest, which means the demon had already fled, but whether he was able to get Anna¡¯s blood or not still remained unknown to him.


    If only they knew his hiding spot, he would have stormed in there himself to see what he needed the blood for.


    Letting out a deep sigh, Roshan¡¯s gaze trailed the visible damage he had done to the ground, and he no longer sensed the presence of those responsible for taking his Anna¡¯s life.


    Why did Anna stop him from killing them??


    Although it wouldn¡¯t bring back his Anna, it would have brought him some satisfaction that he was able to get rid of the people who killed her.


    He wanted to give them a slow and painful demise but even at death point this woman still wanted him to show mercy to them.


    Getting to his feet, he carried the Anna in his arms before vanishing along with Azazel


    ~


    In the Viscarrian pce, everyone was still wide awake, and the demoness who stood at a corner, couldn¡¯t help but whisper to themselves.


    ¡°I¡¯m a bit worried about everything happening, Gemma is back safely, but what about Anna and his Highness¡¯s?¡± Melrose asked, the concern etching to her tone as she looked at the rest of her fellow demoness, but Lady Iris just took her seat, unsure of what to make of the situation.


    ¡°I¡¯m just as clueless as you, that sister of yours really crossed the limits tonight, but I¡¯m heartened that she gets to spend a few days in the dungeon for her crime.¡±


    Lady Laura couldn¡¯t help but agree with satisfaction, ¡°she¡¯s been pampered a little too much by her parents now, at least his highness was able to deal with her, hopefully she¡¯ll learn from this once she steps out of there.¡±


    As saddening as it was for Melrose, they were all right. Her sister always loved to bring chaos wherever she went, but their parents would always find a way to put the me on her cause she¡¯s the eldest, which is why she¡¯s hoping greatly that the news of Roseline being locked in the dungeon doesn¡¯t reach her parents ears.


    She was about to say something else when Roshan unexpectedly showed up in the ballroom where they were all waiting.


    Everyone instantly maintained themselves the moment he showed up, including Evan and the rest, but what they weren¡¯t expecting was for Roshan to return with a bloodied Anna in his arms, leaving their eyes to widen at the sight.


    ¡°My goodness!¡±


    Several shocking gasps could be heard as Roshan gently dropped the body before all of them so they could see.


    ¡°Anna?!!¡± A look of mortification stered itself on everyone¡¯s faces, even the face ofdy Odette as the dead body was dropped on the ground for her to see, and to her shock, thedy was no longer alive.


    ¡°She¡¯s...dead?¡± Letitia had to fix her sses properly to ensure she wasn¡¯t illusioning the scene before her, but to her visible shock, it wasn¡¯t her imagination at all.


    ¡°What happened to her?¡± Asked the elderdy of the pce who was horrified by the sight before her. She¡¯s really dead!


    Roshan said nothing, the grief in his eyes and his devastation didn¡¯t let him speak, even the rest of the family were frozen by the dead body he had dropped before them, and they nearly asked if he was basically pranking them or if this is something serious.


    ¡°She died while trying to save me.¡± Roshan uttered in a weak tone, his eyes gloomy with many regrets as he stared at the body of the woman he couldn¡¯t even respond his feelings to.


    He hates himself more cause he couldn¡¯t even save her from this.


    ¡°I brought her here so you all can see that thedy you¡¯ve been holding unnecessary hatred for isying dead before you, ¡± after a long silence, a mirthless chuckle escaped his lips, ¡°she went out there in the dead of night to bring Gemma back, something most of you standing here aren¡¯t even capable of doing, she¡¯s the reason why Gemma¡¯s back and she¡¯s the reason why I¡¯m unharmed.¡±


    His voice was starting to rise as the anger in him was starting to break from his retrain, ¡°when Gemma was brought back I¡¯m sure not everyone had even gone to see her, but this woman here still asked about Gemma¡¯s safety despite having her life hanging on a thread. How can you possibly still hold so much hate for someone who has helped you all?¡±


    There was a look of disgust in his tear-filled eyes as he stared at everyone, as though their presence irritated him to the very core and he was just going to let it all out today,


    ¡°You all care about the name and status you build, but do you even have the tiniest clue of what¡¯s happening in thend you so im to hold a proudful status from? But then we¡¯re all demons so why should I hold a grudge, is that it??¡±


    There was this heavy brooding silence that filled the ballroom as everyone heard him speak. He was boiling with rage and no one dared to open their mouths and oppose him, except they wanted to have their own caskets in the making.


    ¡°She¡¯s dead, I¡¯m sure everyone is happy now, you all can celebrate. You wanted to get rid of her but I brought her here to calm your hearts cause there won¡¯t be any need for more evil plottings.¡±


    ¡°I admit I never liked her,¡± Odette spoke up while maintaining herposure, ¡°but I won¡¯t ept the way you speak to all of us, most of us here are still your elders. To be more precise, I never intended to take her life in any sort of way, but I did have the intention of throwing her out of the pce and¨C¡±


    ¡°And now you don¡¯t need to do that anymore,¡± he interjected matter-of-fact, ¡°we¡¯re still heading towards my point in the end so that silly excuse of yours won¡¯t be tolerated.¡±

 Chapter 192

    192 You Can¡¯t See Her


    The more he spoke to them, the more he realized how pointless it was to make them understand their wrong. Although some of them appeared remorseful, he didn¡¯t have the little strength to trust their deceiving faces.


    Rather, it only got him angrier by the second, and instead of wasting his saliva on these ignorant Demons, he¡¯d use this precious time to think of something, or anything that could help him get his Anna back.


    Saving his words since these people weren¡¯t even worth it, he proceeded to pick the lifeless body of Anna from the ground, carrying her in his arms and refusing to let anyonee near her.


    Before he walked out, he stopped and shot everyone a re. A look of insanity shed into the depths of his hazel-green eyes and everyone knew that they had awakened a terrible side in Roshan.


    ¡°If I see anyone near Anna¡¯s body, or her doorstep, then they¡¯ll exin to me the type of coffins they¡¯d wish to have personally made for themselves.¡±


    With that dangerous warning ringing in the ears of everyone present, he went up the long stairs, not giving a damn about the look on their faces.


    Some tried to speak and apologize for their wrong doings but no one was brave enough to utter a word to the demon who looked ready to ughter them in two.


    But most of all, Anna¡¯s death really came as a shock to everyone.


    ~


    .....


    ¡°Wait, where are you¨C¡± Calista stopped talking after seeing Azazel had surprisingly transported her back to Euphrasia. She couldn¡¯t understand why he was staring at her with such hatred, even more than the ones she saw in those icy blue eyes of his, and she was clueless on what happened or what she had done to deserve that look from him.


    He had showed up unannounced in the room he had locked her in, and before she could ask about the whereabouts of Anna, the Demon had grabbed her arm, forcing her to her feet and transported her back here.


    She should be happy that he brought her back, but for some reason, she wasn¡¯t because she knew very well that he had a reason for bringing her back to Euphrasia.


    ¡°Go.¡± He said to her, ¡°go back to your kingdom.¡± He wasn¡¯t smiling at all, and it wasn¡¯t that he usually smiled, but his face was contorted with a sneer that left her puzzled with many questions.


    ¡°Why... what happened?¡± She asked.


    ¡°What happened?¡± He tilted his head at her, ¡°didn¡¯t you want to return to your precious Euphrasia kingdom, so I brought you back.¡±


    As always his tone was calm, but then there was a message that came with every word he said to her, leaving her heart unsettled, and she wasn¡¯t liking the way he stared at her as though shemitted something treacherous.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t let me see Anna.¡± She pointed out, ignoring his own word and to be honest, she was more concerned about Anna than having to deal with this Demon¡¯s ill-like stare.


    ¡°Anna?¡± He questioned before letting out a low dark chuckle, ¡°you can¡¯t see her.¡±


    ¡°What!¡± Calista frowned, ¡°but you told me you¡¯d bring Anna to me, you told me I¡¯d see her again.¡±


    ¡°And I¡¯m saying you can¡¯t see her.¡±


    ¡°Why?!¡±


    ¡°Ask your brother.¡± Came his subtle response that muted Calista immediately, ¡°if you want to know why you can¡¯t see Anna anymore, then ask your brother.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Her brows furrowed, ¡°m_my brother?¡±


    ¡°Farewell.¡±


    And he vanished, leaving the baffled Calista to stand before the gate of the pce, and the moment Azazel vanished from sight, a guard who was guarding the big gate showed up the moment he heard voices, but he dropped his guard after seeing it was the missing princess standing outside the gate.


    ¡°Princess!¡± He eximed in surprise before hurrying towards her direction.


    Calista turned around to look at the guard who appeared happy about her presence and he bowed slightly, an ted look painting his young face.


    ¡°You¡¯re finally back!¡±


    ¡°Why?..what happened?¡± She asked the guard who seemed to be looking behind her from time to time, as though he was expecting someone to show up as well.


    ¡°Did youe alone?¡± The guard finally asked Calista who thought about her response before nodding her head.


    ¡°Yes... are you expecting anyone?¡±


    The guard¡¯s youthful face creased into confusion, ¡°Wasn¡¯t it his majesty that brought you back?¡± Asked the guard, ¡°the news of your abduction got to the pce two days ago, so his majesty and a few guards went to bring you back, but you¡¯re here alone.¡±


    ¡°M_my brother went to look for me?¡± She asked, and the guard nodded immediately.


    ¡°Yes my princess, he was extremely furious when he got to know that a demon had abducted you. Please pardon my words but you should be more careful when walking down the forest, it¡¯s still not safe out there and I¡¯m just saying out of concern.¡±


    ¡°Well, where¡¯s his majesty now??¡±


    ¡°He hasn¡¯t returned yet, that¡¯s why I¡¯m surprised to see you out here alone, did you escape?¡±


    Without answering to the nosy guard, Calista made her way into the pce and Azazel¡¯s words kept ringing in her head.


    If her brother had gone to look for her, then was he able to locate their hideout?? She saw Anna leave on a horse that night, wearing a cloak and she was in a hurry to leave like she was going to meet someone.


    Or did she meet Adryan secretly? Does Anna know she was in the hands of those demons? Is that why the demon brought her back?


    As much as she tried to make sense from it all, nothing seemed to click. If Anna did know about her kidnap, then surely she would havee to see her before going anywhere, or is her thinking all wrong?


    What does her brother have to do with her being unable to see Anna?

 Chapter 193

    193 Bring Her Back To Life


    ~


    Two days heavily passed by and the Viscarrian pce remained as quiet as a graveyard, with not a single sound being made. Even the gossiping maidens who always had something to talk about, lost the interest to even speak and everyone surprisingly carried on with his/her own business.


    In one of the chambers, Roshan remained seated on a chair that was beside the big mattress where Anna¡¯s body was currentlyid on. He had strictly ordered the maids to clean her up in the past two days, and even made them bandage her wounds neatly, also putting her into a neat clean dress that he got for her from Ark Ville, knowing how much she likes clothes from there.


    He stared at her face while holding her hand in his, as though he was waiting for the miracle that would bring his Anna back to life, but then he had to ept the hard truth which was a difficult thing.


    He doesn¡¯t want to ept it and his heart would clench tightly at the reality he was forced to face.


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t even get to say my thank you to her.¡± Levi, who was sitting at the edge of the bed, grimaced sadly as he stared at the lifeless body of Anna, still finding it shocking that the woman who risked it all to save his sister was now dead.


    When he got informedst night, he cried like a baby because out of all the humans he¡¯s crossed paths with in his lifetime, it was only Anna he happened to like alot.


    He could remember the times when they had funny conversations, or any other interesting conversations rting to Roshan. Even in her past life she was a jovial person, but then again, she always had toe face to face with death, not in one but in two lifetimes.


    What he couldn¡¯t forget was how loving and sweet Anna was to his little sister. He got sofortable with her appealing presence that he could leave the pce for weeks, without any worries as long as he knew that his sister was in Anna¡¯s care, but now, she¡¯s no more and it left him really heartbroken.


    .....


    He didn¡¯t even get the chance to thank her for saving his sister. It was this morning that he finally got the strength toe see her dead body, and it broke him in pieces to see that the information was indeed true.


    ¡°You know...¡± he began with a faint smile, ¡°I¡¯ve always liked Anna since the first day I saw her,¡± he admitted to Roshan before realizing what had just spilled from his mouth, ¡°I..I mean she was a really good friend.¡± He corrected himself before Roshan misinterprets his words.


    ¡°Although I¡¯m sure I¡¯m older than her, she treats me like the junior one among the two of us, but I didn¡¯t bother because unlike you and Azazel, she always made me feel weed and she listens to everything I have to say.¡±


    The smile on his lips slowly faded, giving him a somber expression as his eyes turned watery again, ¡°but who do Iin to about the two of you if she¡¯s gone?¡±


    He looked at Roshan who barely averted his gaze from her face and he said, ¡°you have to bring her back, she can¡¯t leave us just yet, I don¡¯t know about you but I want Anna toe back. She deserves happiness and life can¡¯t treat her this unfairly in two lifetimes¡± He whined childishly cause he couldn¡¯t let such a good person leave the world like that.


    ¡°And to thinkdy Odette is still alive....if only it was possible to switch lives.¡± He muttered to himself, but Roshan¡¯s ears didn¡¯t fail to grasp that, and only then did he slowly turn his head to the muttering Levi.


    ¡°Remember, she¡¯s the Matriarch, don¡¯t say such things cause I won¡¯t help you when she skins you alive herself.¡±


    ¡°But I¡¯m not wrong, the bad ones get to live longer while the good ones....¡±


    ¡°Levi..!!¡± Roshan growled, forcing the timid demon to seal his lips instantly and unknown to Levi, Roshan was actually considering that idea in his head.


    ¡®Is it possible though?¡¯


    Roshan could still remember the first time Anna got hit with an arrow, and that time she had freed him from the torture of the seal door. The only difference was that he had enough energy to use in saving her back then, but at this current moment, even if he ns on giving her all his energy, it still wouldn¡¯t be enough to bring her back, exempting the fact that her soul is no longer in her body.


    He spent the whole two nights thinking of ways on how a soul can be retrieved, although something like that has never happened before, he¡¯s heard stories of souls being retrieved in the past, and he also got to know from reading the books in the library.


    He barely slept a wink these past days as his mind was entirely focused on how to bring his deceased mate. He wouldn¡¯t let himself be the weak demon who ended up crying for his mate when she died, rather, he¡¯d use that energy and time to think of a way to bring his Anna back to life.


    So far, the results he¡¯s gotten weren¡¯t helping.


    He couldn¡¯t find any solutions in the books he checked from the library, he also tried to get a few info¡¯s by indirectly asking Gravion who was of no help either.


    Basically, retrieving souls has never been implemented and no one has ever tested it to know how true it is.


    But that doesn¡¯t mean he¡¯s giving up yet, he¡¯ll try his possible best to make sure he retrieves her soul back from where it is, no matter what it costs.


    She was ¡®his Anna¡¯, his loving mate. He missed her sweet voice terribly and these few days without hearing her bicker with him, orin about something made him realize how much he missed and longed for her badly.


    He felt unexinably lonely without her, his heart can¡¯t deal with this separation and it became difficult to think clearly without having her by his side.


    He loved her too much to let her go, and if she thinks she can leave him like this then she made a big mistake by making him fall hard for her, cause that won¡¯t happen.


    Showing up in the chamber, Azazel stood behind the cier who seemed to be in deep thoughts. He looked at Levi who shook his head, signaling he had no idea what the devil¡¯s incarnate was thinking.


    Letting out a deep sigh, Azazel could only hope that he doesn¡¯t lose his senses for the second time.


    ¡°What do you n on doing?¡± Azazel¡¯s voice broke the cier from his trance, but he didn¡¯t bother to look at Azazel and just proceeded to nt a kiss at the back of Anna¡¯s palm, before keeping her hand at her side and rxing on the chair he sat on.


    ¡°We won¡¯t be burying her.¡± He stated to Azazel whose brows creased in confusion.


    ¡°We won¡¯t?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± He tapped his beautiful long fingers against the arm of the chair, ¡°we won¡¯t be burying her cause I¡¯m going to bring her back to life.¡±


    ********


    Hello Readers!


    Here¡¯s an extra chap to show my appreciation on the gifts! PS as well as the GT! Thank you for the support and love you¡¯ve been showering on TDD. I¡¯ll be having exams starting from next week so I¡¯ll try my best to still keep up with my daily one/two update!


    Happy reading! <3333

 Chapter 194

    194 The River Of Three Crossing


    ¡°Anima est eterna¡±


    Roshan¡¯s fingers that rhythmically tapped the arm of his chair stopped after he uttered those words, ¡°that¡¯s the name of the book.¡±


    He casted a side nce at the muted Azazel who blinked at him. There were a lot of reasons to suspect the white-haired Enigma since it was partially possible that he might know something about the book, or the secret meaning it contains in its depths.


    He was going through the old books in the library when he came across that specific book, but not even a single word was tranted in English, and it took him hours to put the actual meaning of the book together.


    ¡°A soul is eternal.¡± Azazel instinctively tranted it, and it didn¡¯te as a surprise to Roshan whose lips just curved to the side in an unreadable manner. If he was genuinely smiling or not, it was impossible to tell.


    Letting his eyes scan the body of Anna, her delicate pretty face appeared as white as snow, including her skin and her usual cinnamon-brown hair was starting to turn a shade darker which he noticed in the past two days.


    It felt more like her body was undergoing some mysterious changes despite being dead. But it wasn¡¯t the type that appeared negative.


    Strangely, he seemed to be the only one who noticed it.


    ¡°If Anna¡¯s soul didn¡¯t return to the limbo this time around, that means she has no rebirth,¡± he logically pointed out, ¡°I¡¯m uncertain of how true this is, but once a soul has nothing to do with rebirth, they move through the river of three crossing in order to make it to the afterlife.¡±


    .....


    ¡°I did read on that,¡± Levi¡¯s ears perked, ¡°thest librarian we had usually gave me those sorts of books to read, and Aunt Letitia would sit me down to test me, stating every demon must know their origin.¡± He shuddered impulsively at the childhood torments, ¡°back to the topic, once a soul crosses the river of three crossing, then it can never be retrieved.¡±


    Based on his childhood knowledge, the river of three crossing meant a permanent disappearance. Which means any soul that makes it past the river of three crossings will have nothing to do with the mortal world.


    Forever.


    ¡°But it¡¯s not possible to retrieve a soul,¡± Azazel straight-out cut in with a cryptic look, ¡°like you said, there¡¯s no chance for a second rebirth in Anna¡¯s case, so the river of three crossings should be her souls destination, that is if she hasn¡¯t crossed it yet.¡±


    ¡°It takes three days to cross the river.¡± Came Roshan¡¯s direct response as he stood up from the chair, turning around to look at the puzzled white haired being.


    ¡°And that¡¯s where youe in, brother.¡± The cier added while cing a hand on Azazel¡¯s shoulder, but it only made his neat white brows knit into suspicion.


    ¡°Exin.¡±


    ¡°I need you to mess with the loop that connects the river to the world of immortality and mortality, and by that I mean.... you need to transport me to thest river.¡±


    ¡°What!¡± Azazel wasted no time in shaking his head in disagreement, not bothering to listen to the rest of the words his brother had to say, ¡°transporting you to thest river means trespassing, it¡¯s too risky and I¡¯m not bargaining with you on this one, no one has ever vited the rules and made it out alive, noway.¡±


    ¡°If Anna didn¡¯t die, you know I would have taken her ce based on what I saw on the scroll,¡± Roshan reminded him, ¡°we would have switched our fate and I¡¯d still carry her curse with zero percent chance of surviving it, but look, there¡¯s a fifty percent chance of surviving this one so why not take the risk?¡±


    Informing Azazel about it in the first ce wasn¡¯t his initial n, he actually nned on tricking the demon into taking him there, but then his guilty conscience wouldn¡¯t let him do it.


    ¡°So far your energy is weak,¡± Azazel turned around, not wanting to look his brother in the eyes and fall for his innocent tricks, ¡°and you¡¯re not a full Demon Roshan, you¡¯re half human too which gives you both the advantage and disadvantage of being a hybrid, your chances of surviving it are below fifty.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not a hybrid,¡± Levi got to his feet with a determined look on his enchanting face, ¡°if it¡¯s risky for Roshan then my chances of surviving should be higher right?¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t even make it past the first river, so seal those lips of yours and sit down.¡± Azazel sounded a bit cold when he gave Levi that retort, crushing the young demon¡¯s boldness like a timbrel cart crushes eggs.


    ¡°Why so hard on the poor guy?¡± Roshan made him turn around to look at him. No one ever said crossing the river would be a child¡¯s game and they both knew that. Trespassing alone would render him severe consequences since he has nothing to do with it, but what he couldn¡¯t understand was why Azazel was getting so worked up about it.


    ¡°You don¡¯t understand.¡± Azazel frowned, ¡°it¡¯s not as easy as it sounds, there are repercussions for entering the spirit realm and you might not survive it.¡±


    From the look on his face, Roshan could tell there was more behind this, or maybe there¡¯s something his brother knew but wasn¡¯t saying it.


    ¡°How do you know?¡±


    ¡°I know because I have the power to take lives, I¡¯m the person you¡¯ll end up facing if you go against the rules and if you end up going ahead with this, it¡¯s possible that I can kill you.¡±


    ~


    At the dungeon.....


    ¡°You mean Anna is dead??¡± Gretta¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief when Lady Odette and Aunt Letitia came to disclose the news not only to her, but to Roseline as well.


    ¡°How? When? How did it happen?¡± Gretta was eager to hear the full gist, same with Roseline who also nodded, waiting to hear it all out but Letitia wasn¡¯t as excited as them.


    ¡°She¡¯s dead, but I¡¯m not even curious about that, it¡¯s been two days already and there has been no sign of Roshan nning to bury that body.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t they say that a human¡¯s body starts to rot and smell really bad once they¡¯re dead?¡± She asked, already twisting her nose as though she could already perceive it.


    ¡°As always nothing sensible stilles out of that mouth of yours,¡± Gretta pushed her aside, ¡°why hasn¡¯t her body been buried yet?¡±


    ¡°That I¡¯m not sure,¡± Lady Odette shook her head, ¡°but knowing Roshan as much as I do, he must be nning something, but I¡¯m still yet to figure out what it is.

 Chapter 195

    195 Hang In There


    ~


    The moment Azazel revealed it to the two listening Demons, their faces gradually turned morbid as it all sank in, and there was this silence that followed, a very ufortable silence that didn¡¯t sit well with Azazel.


    ¡°The powers thate with being in charge of the limbo expands to the sides of the spirit. Everyone knows I¡¯m in charge of the limbo, but it¡¯s difficult to know the deep ess thates with being its guardian. I¡¯m the one who ensures that they cross the river, but the only difference is that I don¡¯t need to be there except when summoned.¡± His tone was soft as he exined it to them.


    The thing is, he could mess with the loop, not a problem but the powers associated with guiding the limbo was no different from the river of three crossing. Although it has never happened before, the risk of entering the spirit where you¡¯re not needed could bring serious consequences, and to put it simply, he¡¯ll be the one toy out those consequences since he¡¯s in charge.


    Not as Azazel, but as the protector of the realms.


    ¡°I advise you to change your mind on this,¡± he looked away from Roshan, keeping aposed demeanor, ¡°I know what I¡¯m talking about and I won¡¯t be able to stop myself from hurting you.¡±


    Roshan remained silent as he threw his stare somewhere else. He knew pretty much a lot of duties that came with handling the limbo, and they were never easy, but to think Azazel also had that power against the river of three crossing was just shocking to him.


    He rubbed his temple lightly with his index finger, notpletely sure about how to react to his brother¡¯s advice. But if he doesn¡¯t do it, and Anna crosses the river, then he¡¯ll never be able to get his mate back, and that¡¯s thest thing he wanted.


    He couldn¡¯t lose Anna after everything that has happened, he would rather die trying than not try at all.


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯m still going ahead with it,¡± he concluded, his tone sounding final as he met the gaze of Azazel. ¡°I understand your concern, but then I¡¯ll be nothing in this world if I know that I did nothing to save Anna. I¡¯ll take the risk, we¡¯ll go ahead with it and whatever I¡¯m faced with, as long as it gets me her soul back, then I¡¯m ready to handle it.¡±


    He said with all honesty, Anna had done so much for him and if there was ever a way to repay her back, it would be this cause if he doesn¡¯t do it, he might as well go into an emotional breakdown.


    From behind the door that was left slightly opened, Levi caught his little sister peeking from behind the door, her big round hazel eyes focused on the two Demons who kept talking, and then shifting it to the body thatid on the bed before looking at Levi who let his hand out for her.


    ¡°Come.¡±


    Seeing as she got permission, Gemma quietly walked in, which in turn gained her both Azazel and Roshan¡¯s attention. But after noticing their gazes were currently focused on her, she stopped in her tracks with the thought that they might send her away.


    ¡°Gemma.¡± Levi beckoned her over. mping her lips into an innocent thin line, she continued to head towards Levi¡¯s direction until she reached his side. She tip-toed to look at the body on the bed and that¡¯s when Levi carried her from the ground and sat her beside Anna, knowing that was the reason she came here.


    Her big round eyes scanned the body of Anna, and she was told that Anna was sleeping. It¡¯s been two days already but she hasn¡¯t woken up yet.


    When she looked at Levi for answers, he just smiled at her but said nothing.


    After what seemed to be a long pause, Azazel finally nodded, knowing there was nothing else he could say to convince the stubborn demon into changing his mind.


    ¡°Fine.¡± He agreed, returning his stolen attention back to Roshan, and the cier appeared rxed as he folded his arms.


    ¡°What should I expect?¡±


    ¡°The path before the river is guarded by two beasts,¡± Azazel quickly exined before a long staff suddenly appeared in his grasp, ¡°they¡¯re the ones who¡¯ll alert the heavens of your trespassing, and the moment I get informed, I¡¯lle there, not to help, but to end you.¡±


    As much as he wished not to go through with this, there was no other solution that he could suggest in order to change Roshan¡¯s mind. He could already imagine the injuries Roshan would receive but sadly, there is no turning back. All in all, he does admire Roshan¡¯s bravery in taking this step, and he¡¯ll try his best to not get carried away and help Roshan in getting his mate back.


    ¡°Are you really the one?¡± The cier couldn¡¯t help but ask, no matter how much they both disagreed on a lot of things, it was not in Azazel to ever hurt him, so if he says he¡¯ll be ¡®ending¡¯ him for trespassing, does that have to deal with the power of the heavens??


    Just as he guessed, Azazel shook his head before saying, ¡°no, it¡¯s not me, it is me but I won¡¯t be the one to do the talking, same way I judged Gretta when she tried to end a special soul, that¡¯s the same thing that will most likely happen there.¡±


    ¡°What is the rule?


    ¡°It¡¯s simple but difficult, get to Anna¡¯s soul before you die, only then will she return and if you do seed, I¡¯ll make an exception, but like I said, it¡¯s impossible to¨C¡±


    ¡°Let me decide on the impossible,¡± Roshan interjected, ¡°and you¡¯re only doing your duty so I won¡¯t me you for anything, but if I¡¯ll survive it or not, I don¡¯t care as long as I get to Anna.¡±


    He¡¯s received tortures that had cost him his life before, and this one won¡¯t be any different as long as he keeps his goal in mind, which was retrieving Anna¡¯s soul back.


    ¡°Are you sure you want to do this?¡± Levi worriedly asked, he doesn¡¯t mind taking Roshan¡¯s ce and going to get Anna, he¡¯s already lost one person he cared so much about, he¡¯s not sure he¡¯ll be able to handle losing Roshan as well.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine.¡± He assured him before turning around to look at Anna¡¯s lifeless body. Since this is the third day, his Anna must have reached the third river already, but she won¡¯t get to leave this world, not with him alive.


    ¡°Hang in there Anna, I¡¯ming to get you.¡± His tone sounded soft, but also held a promise that he was hell-bent on fulfilling.

 Chapter 196

    196 Unpunished


    ~


    Looking at her palms that seemed to glow with a luminous white light, she figured that it wasn¡¯t only her palms that were glowing, but practically every part of her body was illuminating this mystical white light.


    Looking ahead, Anna¡¯s eyes squinted in silent inquiries at the strange unfamiliar people walking in front of her, and their skins were also glowing with this same tremendous light that had left her staring in awe.


    cing a hand to the left side of her chest, it took a few more patient tests for her mind to ept the fact that she couldn¡¯t feel the beating of her heartbeat anymore, like there was nothing there and to be honest, she sort of felt empty on the inside, which was enough sign to give her the idea that she was dead.


    She¡¯s dead??


    ¡°Why did you stop walking?¡± Asked an old woman who had made it to Anna¡¯s side. Since the befuddled Anna wasn¡¯t expecting anyone to speak to her, the voice of the old woman had unintendedly startled her.


    She wasn¡¯t even aware that they could still speak.


    ¡°I..s_stopped?¡± Looking around at her environment like a lost puppy, It finally dawned on the dazed being that all these people were on a journey to the afterlife. They were currently walking through a bridge that didn¡¯t seem to have an ending.


    Below the bridge was a big river that burbled along its bed; it was so big that it left the disoriented Anna specting on where the river might end. There was nothing else except for the bridge and the river below, even the sky above appeared with a ray of bright sunshine.


    .....


    It all ended there.


    Atypically, everyone was silently following the bridge without raising any questions.


    Where does the bridge even lead to?


    ¡°Keep walking child.¡± The old woman¡¯s appealing, yet cool voice broke Anna from her train of thoughts. Since she had no idea on what she¡¯s meant to do here, with a nod of her head, she continued to walk through the bridge, but with the old woman keeping herpany.


    ¡°Where is this ce?¡± She proceeded to ask in a whisper that echoed softly, the strange environment was gravely quiet to the point Anna thought her whispering alone was too loud.


    ¡°This is the river of the three crossing.¡± The old woman responded lightly with a tranquil expression resting on her face, a face that had naturally wrinkled with age.


    ¡°River of what?¡±


    ¡°This is the river every soul in the world must cross in order to make it to the afterlife.¡± She added, leaving Anna¡¯s eyes to momentarily widen as she looked at the people who walked ahead of her, and those who walked behind her.


    The young, the old, the rich, the poor were all present and Anna found it shocking that this amount of people were really dead.


    ¡°You mean everyone here is.....dead?!!¡± The ¡®dead¡¯ barely came out audible as the shock of it all affected the pitch of her voice.


    Does that exin the mystifying glowing of their skins?


    She was dead!


    At the thought of her death, her mind immediately drifted to Roshan, his profile vividly disyed in her head like a dream and she was happy that she still remembered his face, his eyes, basically everything about him.


    But then, her expression steadily dropped and was reced with a dim look when an unknown sadness suddenly took over her thoughts, and crept into her system.


    This means she¡¯ll never get to see Roshan again??


    She could still remember everything, how she ended up in the forest, Luderick taking her blood and the whole devastating scenario just kept reying in her head. She saved Roshan from being hit by Adryan¡¯s arrow, but the results of it cost her her life.


    When she spotted Adryan in the forest back in Viscarrian, she wasn¡¯t given enough time to recover from the shock of seeing him, because there was an arrow pointing towards Roshan and that was the only thing her senses had picked up on.


    But what was he doing in Viscarrian? How did he even locate the ce?


    Unfortunately, she won¡¯t be able to get those answers since she¡¯s nothing but a soul heading to the afterlife. But, wasn¡¯t it said that the moment you step into the afterlife, you tend to forget everything that has to do with the mortal world, including the memories, love, pain, her parents, everything would be wiped off like it never even happened.


    ¡°You appear worried, is anything the matter?¡± The woman popped another question that brought Anna¡¯s attention back to her, and her brows creased in obvious befuddlement.


    ¡°How is it possible that I can still feel?¡± Although that wasn¡¯t her main problem, she chose to bring it up since that part was another mystery, but the old woman just smiled faintly as they continued to walk.


    ¡°The heart never stops feeling child,¡± she cooly said while keeping her eyes fixed ahead, ¡°it is the core existence of our everyday lives, so you can¡¯t expect it to stop feeling just cause you no longer have your original body.¡±


    Anna silently pondered on those words, or maybe it¡¯s her mentality that hasn¡¯t made her emotions fade yet.


    Could it?


    ¡°How long have we been walking?¡± She asked, but the old woman just shook her head and said, ¡°that cannot be predicted in a ce like this, but we have made it past the two Rivers, this is thest one and at the end of the river, everyone gets to start a new life somewhere.¡±


    ¡°A new life?¡±


    All of a sudden, the once clear sky above them suddenly started to darken when they neared the end of the bridge, but strangely, no one except Anna seemed to notice it.


    The clouds above had turned darker than a rainstorm, there wasn¡¯t any sign of rain, but Anna could see a sh of lightning in those clouds that rumbled angrily.


    Before she could take any step forward, a powerful lightning struck the next step she would have taken, leaving Anna to instantly bristle back and at that moment, she heard a thundering voice.


    ¡°Cursed by the heart! Thy mustn¡¯t go unpunished!¡±


    ¡°My curse???¡± Another sharp lightning struck the bridge, leading the panicked Anna to quickly stagger back and unknown to her, she already neared the edge of the bridge, thus, leading her to identally tumble backwards without warning.


    ¡°Ahh!!¡±

 Chapter 197

    197 The Broken Bridge


    The moment she stumbled back, Anna was quick with her reflexes and instinctively held onto the edge, hanging on for dear life while her body remained dangling below. If by chance she identally let¡¯s her hands slip, then she was going to drown in the river below her feet!


    ¡°Ah!¡± She let out a short cry when she tried to pull herself up, but felt weak when it came to using her strength like they had been sucked out from her system, which was frighteningly odd since she wasn¡¯t supposed to feel these things.


    The lightning above didn¡¯t stop with its terrible rumbling as those heavenly light shed within its depths, leaving Anna¡¯s eyes to widen in trepidation and she immediately tried to pull herself back up again.


    The thundering voice that spoke to her didn¡¯t seem to belong to a human being for sure, there was this power that came with the voice, like it carried weight, a power that made her tremble despite having no clue what it was, but how is she supposed to face what she can¡¯t even see??


    With one final pull, she sessfully pushed herself back up onto the edge. Taking a deep breath, she safely brought her feet to the front and jumped safely on the bridge¡¯s pathway, almost falling on her knees once again when they involuntarily gave out, but she ced a hand to the edge of the bridge in order to support herself.


    But after making it back on the ground, something shocking caught her attention and to Anna¡¯s quick surprise, the people who were currently walking with her earlier couldn¡¯t be seen, not even one of them as though they all vanished out of thin air.


    The loud rumbling and crackling sound of thunder startled the poor soul, and when she looked up at the once clear sky, the darkness of the cloud only worsened by the minute, but for some reason, it confusedly dawned on her that there might be another reason why the clouds had darkened so abruptly.


    Frantically looking around in case she spots anyone, even the old woman she was peacefully conversing with before all this happened was nowhere to be seen as well.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening??¡±


    .....


    Anna felt like she¡¯d lose her mind if nobody exined the situation properly to her. She was obviously the only person standing on the bridge as of now, but how the remaining souls also disappeared wasn¡¯t something she understood.


    Deep down, although she wasn¡¯t sure how true she meant to trust the entric feeling, she could feel the presence of another in this ce. Somebody else is here but where??


    The voice that said something made mention of her curse, leaving her big eyes to narrow into contemtion, but she was still cautious of the lightning that wasn¡¯t letting her walk through...... which means she¡¯s still cursed??


    But she¡¯s already dead isn¡¯t she?? What else could they possibly want from her??


    Balling her fist at her sides, Anna¡¯s eyes remained fixed on the path ahead. If she¡¯s able to cross this then she¡¯ll make it to the afterlife with all of her memories washed away, she¡¯ll forget everything about her past life and she might just forget her feelings for Roshan as well.


    Although it stung, it was still okay because knowing he¡¯s fine and out of danger is enough to free her from the worries, and it¡¯s possible that her love was only one-sided.


    He¡¯ll forget about her within a matter of days and everything will return to the way they were. Maybe this is the way things were meant to be, and she has no problem with it as long as it secures her Roshan safety, and knowing that he¡¯ll be happy from now on.


    Shaking away the heaviness she felt in her chest, she gave it a light pat as though it¡¯d ease the ache before letting her feet walk carry on with the journey, despite the crackling of thunders that seemed to oppose her decision.


    As she kept walking with nothing holding her back anymore, at the end of bridge lied a blinding white light, so bright that Anna had to look away, blocking the light with her palm as though she¡¯d lose her sight if she lets herself marvel at the sight.


    Closing her eyes, she slowly headed for the light that was already trying to suck her in, but before she could take a step in, she heard a voice that made her stop in her tracks.


    ¡°Anna!¡±


    Her closed eyes instantly snapped open at the familiarity of the voice. Her lips parted, giving way for a shocking gasp to escape from their sealing.


    That voice sounded too familiar, no no she couldn¡¯t mistake that voice for anyone else, there was only one person who was capable of calling her name in ways that took her breath away, ways that made her heart flutter and made her realize just how beautiful her name actually sounds


    Swirling around to see who it was, her eyes widened in disbelief the moment Roshan came into sight, but to her quick horror, Roshan had falling to his knees, he appeared weak and had severe injuries that prated through his clothes, like someone who had been mishandled with the des of a sword.


    When he looked up to meet her dubious and dumbfounded gaze, Anna also noticed the little cut he had just below his eyes to the left side of his cheek.


    ¡°Roshan??¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t go in there.¡± He said to her, but Anna had even forgotten about the afterlife as her gaze was solely focused on the being who was struggling to get to his feet. He appeared weak and tired, but his eyes glinted with determination that was a contract to his severe predicament.


    ¡°He¡¯s..... really here?¡± Anna muttered to herself in disbelief, she didn¡¯t want to believe it but how can she not when she was seeing him standing at the other end and looking at her with the same eyes she¡¯s admired since the first day she saw him.


    ¡°Roshan!¡± She wanted to go meet him, but before Roshan could warn her not to move a step towards him, it was toote and the bridge shook violently, leading Anna to fall to her feet and before her very eyes, she watched as the bridge started to break from the middle.


    It left her taken aback as the bridge kept breaking and breaking, only to stop before where Anna stood. The same thing happened with Roshan who just cursed silently in his head at the worsened predicament.


    With the bridge broken, it was impossible to make it to Anna who just stood at the other end, staring, but with no way ofing to him.


    Looking down the bridge, Anna stared at the water below, but then something she wasn¡¯t expecting to see started disying before her eyes as the water bubbled, except it bubbled with hot steams evaporating from it, as though it was..... BOILING???

 Chapter 198

    198 Getting To The Other Side


    ¡°It¡¯s..... it¡¯s boiling??¡±


    The turquoise-blue boiling river visibly reflected in her shock-filled brown eyes and she instinctively backed away, keeping a safe distance from the broken end to avoid future disaster.


    Roshan¡¯s gaze was also fixated on the bubbling water, he wasn¡¯t even close to it but could feel the heat as it evaporated from below. He had somehow, fortunately, made it past the two rivers that did this damage to him.


    But he felt happy to have made it on time before Anna¡¯s soul could go through the blinding passage, else everything he went through just to get her would have been a waste.


    Due to his trespassing and ending up in a realm of spirits, he encountered terrible tortures that he didn¡¯t even want to remember, and he¡¯s still surprised to find himself going despite being power drained.


    And worst of all, those beast guards weren¡¯t friendly either.


    Unfortunately, he isn¡¯t allowed to fight them which in return, earned him these severe wounds that weren¡¯t healing for some reason. Licking the blood from his lips, he forced his limbs to help him stand up and no sooner had he stood up did he feel a presence behind him.


    Like he already knew who it was, he clicked his tongue and didn¡¯t bother turning around, patiently waiting for the next stage he had to go through if he wanted Anna¡¯s soul back.


    Meanwhile, Anna¡¯s eyes widened and she thought she was imagining Azazel¡¯s presence too, but no, he was actually standing behind Roshan, holding a long powerful staff and for the first time, she noticed something was different about Azazel. His eyes were a bloody red and he emanated a strange power she sensed when she heard that thundering voice.


    .....


    Shifting his gaze to Roshan, he enunciated, ¡°are you still willing to go ahead with this, or save yourself the stress and go back to your world!¡± His voice sounded inhumane, one that Anna has never heard before and she waspletely lost on the discussion carried out by the both of them.


    After a long minute pause, the cier finally asked, ¡°What do I do next?¡± He has alreadye this far to back away. He¡¯d rather die than leave now when his Anna was just at the other end, waiting for him.


    ¡°I see, so you have made your decision then.¡± The voice wasn¡¯t pleased and the thunder crackled violently, but with no lightning strike since hurting Anna was no longer part of the deal.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Came Roshan¡¯s weak, but firm response.


    ¡°Fine.¡± Pointing the staff at the paths that were broken, a steel-like object began to grow from the area where the bridge had broken, elongating itself and growing further till it reached the other end.


    Anna just stared as the magic evolved itself before her eyes, and when she returned her gaze to Roshan, they were filled with many questions that she needed answers to, but he just smiled in a way that assured her he was fine, but based on his condition, she knew he wasn¡¯t.


    ¡°If you can get to the other end without losing your life, or falling into the heated water, then you can have the soul back.¡±


    Hearing that, Anna¡¯s mind pondered on it before she could grab what Azazel meant by it. Her soul?? He came to get her soul??


    Looking at the steel-like object that had formed a path for him, this was another torture since demons are more sensitive to irons and steel, not only that, the boiling river below is enough to heat the steel, making it scorching hot but that he could handle, the steel was his only problem.


    Regardless of his own thoughts, he proceeded to take a step and began walking through the heated steel. The moment he ced his feet on it, the pain that coerced from his feet sent his whole nerves throbbing in agony when it spread mercilessly into every part of his body.


    Nevertheless, he continued to walk and all Anna could do was watch as her eyes filled to the brim with tears, the only question that ran through her mind was...


    ¡®why is he doing this?¡¯


    Seeing how he tolerated the pain, Azazel pointed his long staff at the steel-like path and immediately, sharp spikes began to shoot up from the surface, prating into Roshan¡¯s feet and that was something he didn¡¯t expect, leading him to stop as his legs nearly gave out, but he wasn¡¯t allowed to fall, he had to keep moving.


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened as the tear she had been holding dropped from her eyes and she shook her head. Witnessing the devastating scene that disyed before her.


    This is wrong! No!


    ¡°Stop!¡± She quickly said to Roshan, ¡°go back please, this is life threatening, don¡¯t do it.¡± She shook her head, wanting him to stop but seeing her cry over him just made Roshan smile in her direction, a trail of blood ran down to his lips, and from the cut he had at the corner of his eyes.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t stop when you risked your life to save me,¡± came his response, ¡°what makes you think I¡¯ll do the same?¡±


    Knowing Roshan¡¯s stubbornness and how he would refuse to heed to her words, Anna turned her attention to Azazel who just watched with a firm demeanor, and she looked at him with pleading eyes, unsure of why he was doing this.


    ¡°Please stop hurting him, he¡¯s your brother he¡¯ll die if this continues, Azazel!!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother,¡± Roshan¡¯s weak tone interjected Anna, ¡°that¡¯s not my brother talking.¡± He told her, ¡°Azazel can never hurt me, that¡¯s just him doing his duty.¡±


    Recovering a bit, Roshan raised his feet up to get the spikes out, only to continue as he stepped on one spike after another, his feet was covered with wounds and his blood lingered on every spike he stepped on.


    Anna covered her eyes with her palm, unable to watch the scene before her and she felt like waking up from this horrific dream. This is too much for her to bear, and knowing Roshan he wouldn¡¯t let her join him in the pain.


    Seeing as his Anna had covered her eyes, it gave him a moment to let the pain disy on his face as those spikes showed him no mercy, it made it look like his feet had holes that were imprinted with blood.


    And the pain was another whole level of torture, like being stabbed with a sword, only to pull it out and get stabbed again.


    There was still a long way to go before he made it to Anna¡¯s side, and remembering his goals and keeping it mind, it gave him the Zeal to keep walking and after reaching a spot, his body could no longer take it. The spikes were too much and he was losing a great amount of blood.


    Peeping through her fingers to see what¡¯s happening, Anna noticed Roshan had stopped halfway, there were just a few more walks remaining before he made it to her side, but from the look of things, it doesn¡¯t seem like he can continue.


    ¡°Roshan..¡± she called out, gaining his attention and to Roshan¡¯s blurry gaze, he saw the woman had crawled to the end, stretching out her hand for him.


    ¡°Take my hand.¡±


    Seeing the delicate hand that was waiting for him to hold, he blinked a few more times to stabilize his vision before taking another painful step.


    He needed to reach for her hand.


    With an observing gaze, the demon kept persisting, letting a new information dawn on Azazel, that even though he was currently drained, the mentality of reaching for her hand was the only thing that kept him moving.


    His red eyes darkened as he watched, but Roshan just kept his gaze on the hand that was waiting for his hold, and he found himself still moving.


    ¡°You can do it, take my hand.¡± Anna tried to encourage him and keep his focus on her hand, it all seemed to be going well and just when he was about to take her hand, his own hand paused mid-way and his eyes momentarily widened.

 Chapter 199

    199 Am I Dead?


    He stopped mid-way, and everything around him seemed to stop as well. He didn¡¯t feel it from the beginning, but when his eyes slowly lowered to look at the staff that had prated through his chest, not only did the pain coerce through all his system, but it drained the little energy he had left, and he felt stranded.


    For a few unblinking seconds, Anna¡¯s gaze rested on the staff that had painfully connected to Roshan¡¯s chest, the tip of the staff was piercingly sharp and shaped like a spear, making it easier to be used as a weapon, but to think Azazel would use it on him, and he¡¯s so close to reaching her hand.


    Without anyone holding it, the long staff magically pulled itself out of Roshan¡¯s chest, leading the bleeding Demon to bite his lips in order to hold back the pain and Anna frantically shook her head at the sight she was forced to witness.


    The staff dutifully returned to the hands of its master and Azazel¡¯s red eyes glinted with something iprehensible as he watched Roshan struggle to keep standing. Although he wasn¡¯t the one doing all of this, Azazel¡¯s hold tightened against the staff, watching his brother bleed and being unable to do a thing about it.


    He has no control over his body, and has to abide by the rules of being its protector, but if Roshan doesn¡¯t cross it to the other end, he will die and losing his brother wasn¡¯t something Azazel was ready to face yet. Even if his body acted out of his own control, he was still the person responsible for causing Roshan this much harm and looks like he¡¯s got to the peak of it.


    ¡°Roshan.¡± His name barely came out audible from her lips as she watched him remain still, his hands which were currently stretching to reach hers had dropped by his side, and Anna didn¡¯t want to ept the reality that Roshan might die if he didn¡¯te to her.


    ¡°Roshan, l_look at me.¡± Her voice quivered, ¡°look at me, you can¡¯t give up yet just look at me.¡± She was already crying as she spoke, closing her eyes tightly and taking it as her fault that Roshan would end up suffering because of her. She¡¯s always done this, people who tend to mean the most to her, get hurt because of her and she just wanted to apologize for bringing them this much pain with her presence.


    Looking at the blinding passage behind her, if she¡¯s still able to go in there, then will Roshan be fine?? If she leaves this ce and enters through the passage then will all this stop?? Will everything end here??


    Meanwhile, Roshan who just remained still like an unmoved mannequin slowly felt his consciousness slipping away with every second, his vision had turned so blurry that everything in his sight appeared vague and confusing, he couldn¡¯t see the spikes that were still prating through his feet and the air felt cold.


    .....


    Sucking in a deep breath, he was already damaged to think he can continue this further. If he was a full Demon, then he might have been lucky, but being a half-demon didn¡¯t give him that amount of energy to carry on.


    Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth and his eyes were threatening to close, to give up, but when he raised his head up to see Anna, through his vague gaze, he noticed the woman was already heading into the passage of the afterlife, leaving his once heavy lids to snap open as he realized the gravity of the situation that was at stake.


    She can¡¯t go in there.


    ¡°Anna!¡± He called her name, making her stop once again and when she turned around to look at him, his expression had grown serious, so serious that it made the crying Anna stare in half-surprise.


    ¡°Don¡¯t.¡± He said and before her very eyes, he began to walk again, this time, keeping his gaze fixed on Anna as though she was the trophy he was waiting to achieve if he ends up winning through this stage.


    ¡°What?!¡± The inhumane voice that spoke was shocked to see the demon walking, despite being stabbed, injured, power drained, disheveled, his energy was currently dropping at a low point and yet he¡¯s still walking???


    For once, Azazel finally chose to take charge as he blinked, his eyes returning to the original blue eyes that Anna grew familiar with.


    Crouching, he ced a hand on the ground and Anna was starting to mistake his actions for another severe deed, not until she saw his body glow in the same luminous white light as her, and those glowing lights escaped him as they made they way to the the ground, leaving his body and going after the bridge that had been reced with steel.


    Those glowing lights followed the bridge and didn¡¯t stop until they connected with Roshan¡¯s body, giving him a power boost, even if it was little, and that alone was enough to energize Roshan for a short amount of time so he had to use it wisely.


    No longer caring about the spikes and the extreme hotness of the steel, the only thing he cared about was the image of the beautiful woman that wouldn¡¯t leave his head, and she was standing there, waiting for him with her arms stretched out again.


    The only difference was that he was able to reach for her hands at thest minute, and Anna wasted no time pulling him away from the spikes and into the safer side of the bridge.


    ¡°Roshan!¡± His legs gave out almost immediately as he sank to the ground, making him go on his knees and Anna instantly did the same, hugging the man who had seeded in reaching her side at thest minute.


    She pulled back, cupping his cheeks with her hand and making sure he met her gaze, but he appeared weak, with the look of passing out. Regardless, he persisted and kept pushing himself to stay awake.


    ¡°Did I make it? Or am I dead as well?¡± He asked, but Anna shook her head with a smile as the tears effortlessly ran down her cheeks.


    ¡°You¡¯re not dead at all, you made it.¡±


    Staring at her face like he still couldn¡¯t believe it, Roshan¡¯s hand slowly reached to touch her cheeks, gently wiping away the tears that blocked her pretty eyes and she smiled even more at his gesture, knowing that he wanted to confirm if he was dreaming or not.


    ¡°See? I¡¯m here with you.¡± She took his other hand so he could feel her face, but he was still struggling to keep his eyes open in order to see properly. Feeling the face of his one and only Anna, his brain could finally ept that he did make it, leading a small smile to form on his tired and sick-like face.


    ¡°Ahhh... I must appear so ugly right now, right?¡± The cier wasn¡¯t even feeling bad about his predicament, but is actually concerned about his looks??


    His words made Anna chuckle lightly despite how she tried not to show it, and she shook her head, cing a tender kiss at the top of his head and smiling at him, feeling a sudden warmth fill her system.


    ¡°Never.¡±


    She hugged him after that, unable to describe the happiness she felt to have Roshan in her arms again. Roshan finally let his eyes drop to a close while sumbing to Anna¡¯s hold and warmth. The familiarity left his heart beating and now, he realized how going through all of that turned out to be worth it.


    Azazel, who stood at the other end watched as the two embraced each other, and for the first time, his lips curved a bit, revealing a triumphant smile. The scene before him felt heartwarming, and this is the first time he was willing to acknowledge that.


    Hitting his staff on the ground with a loud bang, his eyes turned to the demonic red that showed the other side of him, and he pointed his staff at the two of them.


    ¡°You¡¯ve crossed the bridge,¡± the inhumane voice startled Anna, grabbing her attention and she lifted her gaze to look at the being who spoke, ¡°he¡¯s the first survivor to make it past the bridge and alive, and since hepleted it all without going against the rules of retaliation, what he seeks shall be given to him.¡±


    Smiling, Anna looked at the cier who was currently resting on her arms and his eyes were sealed shut. To her relief, his heart was still beating and that was enough for her to guarantee he¡¯s still alive.


    She wanted to do a lot of things, to say a lot of things, but in the meantime, all she could do is shower him with hugs, feeling grateful that he was alive.

 Chapter 200

    200 Her Return


    ¡°When you return to your world, you¡¯ll have no memory of this day.¡± Breaking the silence with his impable inhumane voice, the water below no longer bubbled with the same charged amount of heat. From the looks of it, it appeared like the water had cooled and was now flowing with a normal current.


    Lifting her gaze from the running river to look at Azazel, she clearly heard what he said about not being able to remember this day once she returns, but why shouldn¡¯t she remember how Roshan risked his life toe get her??


    This is basically one of the biggest steps someone would take for her, and Roshan has done that without thinking about himself. How will she remain grateful to him if she can¡¯t recall this day?


    ¡°But why not?¡± She asked, not shifting her gaze from Azazel who remained at the other side, his staff vanishing from his grip to assure of her of no further violence.


    ¡°This is not a ce for a human like yourself to remember.¡± He began to rify, ¡°You¡¯ve escaped it twice, which means you no longer have any business with the spirit realm, so you must return with no memories of it.¡±


    Hearing him out, Anna nodded her head slightly, understanding his statement to some extent, but that doesn¡¯t mean she¡¯ll forgive him so easily for hurting Roshan this severely. Even if it wasn¡¯t Azazel¡¯s doing, isn¡¯t it dangerous that his duty also possessed a strong hold on him? To the point he was capable of hurting literally anyone, no matter what that person meant to him.


    ¡°What about Roshan?¡± She changed the subject, since she gets leave, how will Roshan return?


    ¡°Leave him here.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    .....


    ¡°He¡¯ll return himself, but you¡¯re a soul, so you must return first to avoid furtherplications.¡±


    The more he spoke, the more Anna found it difficult to believe that she was really going back. It sounded so unbelievable to her ears, but it was actually happening. When she found herself here, she thought her story had endedpletely, and that there was no other way to change history or rewind time.


    But because of Roshan, he gave her the opportunity to return and be by his side like she wished for. It was all supposed to end with her death but now she understood that even the impossible can sometimes lead to the possible.


    Smiling at the thought, Anna looked at the face of Roshan one more time, he was still unconscious and his wounds hadn¡¯t healed yet, but it didn¡¯t matter, she¡¯ll treat him to his very best and take better care of him when hees back to meet her.


    Letting her thumb graze through his cheek, the love in her eyes reflected like a thousand stars shining in them, as though words were not enough to say what she felt at the moment, but she wouldn¡¯t hurry. Instead of wasting anymore time in this lonely ce, she should return quickly to see Gemma, Ba and everyone.


    Gently, sheid Roshan properly on the ground, keeping him away and leaving a safe distance between him and those fabricated bridges.


    After confirming that he would be safe where she left him, she took a step back, and was surprisingly directed to the blinding passage again.


    ¡°Go in.¡±


    Her brows creased in confusion, ¡°but isn¡¯t this the-¡±


    ¡°It was,¡± the voice corrected, ¡°but since he changed your fate, everything else changes with it, now go.¡±


    Staring at the blinding light without looking away, a smile that expressed many things disyed on her face and with that, she took a deep breath and finally went in.


    ~


    A monthter...


    It was already winter in the Viscarrian kingdom, the whole kingdom appeared quieter, like there was nobody that walked along the streets of Viscarrian, and the only thing heard was the cold howling wind as it rustled against the leaves of trees. The locals remained indoors, keeping themselves warm or making hot tea to get settled for the season.


    The air outside smelled fresh and pure, and the trees, houses were covered in nkets of snow, even the Viscarrian pce wasn¡¯t left untouched as everyone is forced to encounter the cold season, and it was blisteringly cold outside.


    At the front yard, a carriage had stopped by the side with servants loading bags into it. Lady Iris stood by the side of the carriage with a smile on her lips, she was beautifully dressed in a raven ck A-line long sleeve gown with a ck fur coat draping around her shoulder. She wore a fancy white handglove to keep her hands warm from the cold and she was getting ready to leave for her home.


    ¡°I¡¯ll have to take my leave now.¡± She bowed slightly at Lady Odette and Aunt Letitia who smiled at hermendable gesture.


    ¡°My family will be celebrating New Year¡¯s Eve in our hometown. I¡¯ll forward the invitations once they¡¯re made and send them over. I hope to see everyone on that day.¡± She elegantly invited, and knowing her way of approach was always the best when ites to inviting important guests, it didn¡¯t surprise her that the two women were impressed by it.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be d.¡± Came the response from Lady Odette which in return, earned a satisfied smile from Iris.


    ¡°Oh! And I hope Gretta will be able to make it this time, since she didn¡¯te for the-¡± she abruptly paused without finishing her statement, recalling how terrible the family ball finally went and she just smiled before things got awkward.


    ¡°I¡¯ll leave then.¡±


    ¡°Do send our greetings.¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    When the servants were done, the young demoness finally got into her carriage and the Coachman also lowered his head, a silent way of bidding them goodbye before starting the carriage and exiting the pce through the big gate.


    ¡°That reminds me.¡± Lady Odette turned her face and body to look at Letitia who was just about heading inside.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°A whole month has psed and there¡¯s still nothing that has been done to bury that human¡¯s body. Roshan can¡¯t be so absurd as to literally keep a dead body with him all his life.¡±


    Hearing the words Odette had to say, Letitia fixed her coat properly when the cold wind was starting to sting her skin and she cooly replied, ¡°I ept the fact she was treated unfairly, and I wouldn¡¯t mind making things right between the two of them if she was still alive, but the situation is different, she¡¯s dead and there¡¯s absolutely nothing to we can do to bring her back.¡±


    ¡°What do you say we n her burial then,¡± Odette suggested frankly, ¡°if we do then surely Roshan and the rest will not be able to oppose it.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Letitia folded her arms, ¡°getting on Roshan¡¯s nerves isn¡¯t something I¡¯d want to experience.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go have a cup of warm tea and see if we can find a solution.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯ll be much better.¡±


    After the brief conversation, the two women stepped into the pce.


    Meanwhile, in one of the locked chambers inside the Viscarrian pce, a certain room was brightly lit up with chandelier light, and burning candles hanging at the top of it.


    Anna¡¯s body remained lifeless on the bed, and just as always, she had been changed and looked after by the maid, and most times, Ba was the one who volunteered to take care of Anna¡¯s body, leaving the young lifeless maiden to look beautiful and neat with each passing day.


    Her cinnamon-brown hair that was left unpacked, slowly and mystifyingly began to turn a shade darker, starting from the tip and mixing itself with the other brown color of her hair, leaving her to have two beautiful hair color mixtures that brought out the beauty of her pale face.


    All of a sudden, her lips parted and her chest heaved as she took a deep breath, inhaling through her nostril and exhaling through her lips.


    The meteor mark on her forehead slowly faded and when she opened her eyes, those chocte-brown eyes shed a golden light.


    *********


    We¡¯ve reached a 200chap for TDT!! ..<

 Chapter 201

    201 Take Care Of Me


    Sitting at the dressing table, Anna¡¯s fingers hesitantly reached to feel the silver birthmark on her forehead, but looking at herself in the mirror like she was seeing anotherpletely different person, there was nothing there.


    Her forehead was evidently spotless.


    There wasn¡¯t any sign of the meteor mark and the word disbelief reflected in her brown eyes. She went further to press her thumb against her forehead and even rubbed it in a circr motion whilst she was hallucinating it¡¯s disappearance, but it wasn¡¯t her hallucination.


    Anna didn¡¯t know if she was supposed to rejoice or cry, or even do both.


    ¡°It¡¯s.... it¡¯s really gone!¡± She got to her feet after the happy exmation, staring at herself in the mirror and admiring how spotless her forehead looked without the mark. For once, she felt pretty without having to stare at her face through the mirror and see a silver mark that signaled her death.


    But with the meteor mark gone, does that mean the curse has been uplifted?? Her lifetime is no longer limited and she can live for many years and grow old like normal people?


    She jumped up with a girly squeal of excitement before settling herself down. She took a deep breath to restrain herself from acting crazy. Her heart was pounding with sheer excitement and it was too much for her to contain.


    She wasn¡¯t oblivious to the darker shade of ck strands that grew with her hair, she saw it clearly, but her heart was bursting with joy to even bother about that for the meantime.


    She barely remembers anything that happened or how this miracle disyed itself, and the only memory she could recall was dying in the arms of Roshan, and it ended here, but now she¡¯s here, alive and with the meteor mark gone!


    .....


    Even the wound she got from the arrow had already healed.


    All of a sudden, the excited Anna paused in her silent jubtion when an unknown feeling hit her pretty hard in the chest, catching her off guard and it made her brows knit into seriousness, unsure of what the unknown feeling meant.


    ¡°I_I feel like I¡¯m forgetting something.¡± She muttered candidly to herself. There was this unsettling feeling in her heart as though she had forgotten something really important, something she shouldn¡¯t have forgotten except it was difficult to tell what was causing the difort in her chest.


    She was still busy figuring out what the issue might be when she heard a clicking sounding from the door. rmed, she swiftly swirled around to see what had caused the click.


    Her observatory gazended on the door knob, and she watched it twist for three times as though someone was trying to open the door, one more twisting and the door finally unlocked with the same clicking sound she heard a few seconds ago.


    Remaining in her position, the door finally pushed open with uneven sound before her eyes.


    The first person that came in mind when the door opened was nobody else but Roshan, but when the person walked in, it turned out to be Azazel and Levi who were having a conversation, but stopped abruptly to the point of freezing in their spot after sighting Anna.


    With an unbelievable stare, Their eyes silently raked her from head to toe, seeing her stand on her two feet and staring at them with a pointed gaze.


    Levi¡¯s eyes dted and an unprepared gasp escaped his agaped mouth, he instantly tapped Azazel on the shoulder, looking like someone who had just spotted a ghost.


    ¡°I¡¯m starting to see things,¡± heined while nudging the dumbstruck demon by the arm. ¡°I think I¡¯ve developed a new supernatural that¡¯s making me imagine things.¡±


    ¡°Anna.¡± Azazel took a step forward, leaving the shock-stricken Levi behind and the Levi had the looks of someone who was about to faint at any moment.


    ¡°When did you wake up?¡± He asked calmly, and Anna just smiled, a bit taken aback by the genuine calmness in his tone as she bowed her head slightly at his presence, before raising her head up to meet his gaze.


    ¡°Not too long before you walked in.¡±


    ¡°She can speak!!¡± Levi intervened with his dramatic disy, finding it shocking that Anna was standing in front of him, which means Roshan wasn¡¯t wrong when he said he retrieved her soul all this time.


    He did it!!


    ¡°Pardon me,¡± Anna raised her head, indeliberately interrupting their conversation and she quickly cleared her throat, ¡°...if I may ask, where is his Highness?¡± Her tone came out meek as dove, when she asked, keeping her head bowed and toying with her fingers.


    Seeing her innocent gesture, Azazel just cleared the path for her, ¡°you¡¯d know better where to find him.¡±


    Fixing her gaze at the door, Anna¡¯s mind was still rebooting on a lot of things, but when it came to Roshan, they seemed to be a special file that properly secured every memories she has for him, and her


    Looking at Azazel with a grateful gaze, Anna ran out of the room with a lingering smile on her lips. Before Levi could go after her, Roshan grabbed the clingy Levi and made him stay by his side.


    ¡°Don¡¯t, let her see him first.¡± He suggested, and although Levi was a bit reluctant on Azazel¡¯s suggestion, it was actually a thoughtful one and it¡¯s been two weeks since Roshan revived, and he bets they both have a lot of things to catch up on.


    ¡ª¡ª-


    Bursting the door open, Anna¡¯s hopeful gaze fell on his room, her eyes ncing from one angle to the other incase she spotted the man she wanted to see more than anything right now, but to her disappointment, he wasn¡¯t in his chamber like she had predicted.


    The room was lit with only one candle, making it appear dim and it wasn¡¯t so easy for her eyes to adjust since she escaped the abyss.


    *Where did he-¡± she wasn¡¯t even donepleting her words when she felt two strong arms snake around her waist, pulling her close to someone till her back met his hard chest.


    A shaky gasp escaped her lips since she wasn¡¯t expecting such action and due to the person¡¯s hold, it was difficult to turn around.


    Her heart raced when the familiar scent reached her nostril, there was something temptingly spicy about it that it left her heart to quicken in reaction and she gulped.


    As she was about to turn and see who had caught her in his hold, the being didn¡¯t let her and instead, whispered right into her ear with his addicting velvety voice that sent her mind turning as nk as a paper.


    ¡°You said you¡¯ll take care of me,¡± he whispered, ¡°shall we begin?

 Chapter 202

    202 Flustered Moment


    Anna¡¯s brows automatically shot up after hearing the luring statement he made. Her breath hitched and her frame went still against his hard warm body.


    Her shoulders trembled slightly when his hot breath tickled her earlobe. The intense proximity between the two of them was making her visualize the deep meaning to his words, leaving discreditable thoughts to swoon in her head, and she grew flustered immediately, her eyes round with shame and before she does something that was out of ce, she freed herself from his clutches.


    ¡°When did I say that? Let go.¡±


    Hearing him chuckle in that low deep baritone voice that reverberated from his chest, it made her appear even more flustered while trying to detach his hands from her body, but the demon remained stubbornly persistent in letting her go.


    If only she saw the look in his taunting eyes, she¡¯d know that he has no ns of letting her escape his sight ever again.


    He turned her around with one quick move, surprising the flustered human who was now ensnared in his possessive clutches, giving her no chance to pull away from him, and when she lifted her gaze up, she gasped.


    The first thing her eyes met was his bewitching hazel-green eyes that stared right back at her, glimmering with the intensity of a found jewel, and Anna felt glued to those eyes of his, to the point it nearly sent her knees buckling when she could no longer handle the adoring look in those eyes.


    His usual midnight ck hair that plunged past his shoulder, was now reaching him at neck length, and a few locks cascaded down his visage, modifying his profile and he looked somewhat different without the long hair.


    Positively different and it stole her breath away. He appeared more mature, admirable and eye-catching. He reminded her of those Greek gods she once heard possessed such impable beauty that all she could do was blink in admiration.


    .....


    ¡°You_You cut your hair?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t like it?¡± He raised a pretty brow at her in silent enquiries, and Anna was already shaking her head, indicating that she didn¡¯t mean it that way before her lips instantly pinned themselves together, forming a thin line and silencing the iing words that were about to flee from her lips.


    She shyly lowered her gaze.


    Roshan looked good in basically anything, either in short or longer hair.


    But those soft silky dark hair she admired- she always loved getting her fingers tangled within its depth and feeling its soft texture, but that doesn¡¯t mean she wouldn¡¯t do it again if she got the chance.


    ¡°Took you long enough.¡± Roshan half scolded the woman who blinked at him, a bit taken aback by the drastic change of tone. Although it came out soft, the rigidity wasn¡¯t something she missed out on and she wondered what wrong she did this time.


    She just woke up and now he¡¯s scolding her for goodness knows what!


    ¡°What....what did I do?¡±


    ¡°Do you know what day it is?¡± He asked, but Anna defeatedly remained muted since she never bothered to figure out what day it was. Sensing another scolding if she dared to tell a lie, she meekly shook her head, looking as meek as a mouse while ying with her fingers.


    Ever since Roshan had gotten his hands on her, he released the woman from his clutches and she took a step back. The heat she felt while remaining in his clutches was reced with a cold after he let go, and she was starting to yearn for his warmth again, but unfortunately, it didn¡¯t seem like he was going to fulfill that wish soon enough.


    With both hands in his pocket, Roshan strolled to the window and opened the curtains, letting the morning light shine into the room, and Anna was instantly thrown off guard by the amount of light that seeped in from the window.


    But she noticed it, the chilly weather was proving something and it was now she understood why it became so cold.


    It¡¯s snowing???!


    Reaching for the window, she peered through and saw that it wasn¡¯t her imagination, the white snow had already formed a carpet on the ground outside and she didn¡¯t dare to open the windows, knowing the amount of cold air that would invade if she tried to.


    ¡°It¡¯s already winter season??¡±


    ¡°You were lifeless for a whole month.¡± Roshan¡¯s voice made her turn around to look at him. The cier was currently resting his back on the couch that was at the end of his room, arms folded.


    The brilliant yellowish light fell radiantly on him, and Anna¡¯s mouth nearly dropped open when he looked even more spellbinding under the light. The ck tunic he was wearing was a contrast to his wless milky white skin, making him appear like an angel in devil¡¯s disguise.


    His hazel-green eyes had a natural glow on their own, and Anna had to close her mouth before she ended up drooling, which would be embarrassing and she barely grabbed what he said earlier.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry you were saying-¡± she averted her gaze, scratching the back of her head and trying to focus on literally anything that wasn¡¯t Roshan.


    Roshan didn¡¯t bother repeating himself and only shook his head helplessly at her gawky and flustered gesture. She was alright, and that was all that mattered to him.


    He got so worried that she wouldn¡¯t return despite going through those terrible stages, but he felt grateful to Azazel for keeping his hopes alive, else he¡¯d have been aplete emotional mess.


    A whole month had passed and his wounds recovered the moment he returned, but when Anna didn¡¯t, he felt something he never knew once existed inside of him, and it was the pain of losing someone he truly cared about, more than his life.


    He thought he had killed the feeling, but this silly woman had to make him cry.


    ¡°It¡¯s not important anymore.¡± He brushed it off. His earlier n was to punish her for making him wait this long for her return, but seeing her now, he couldn¡¯t do any of that.


    He moved away from where he was sitting and Anna flinched when she realized he was standing right beside her. There was no hint of weakness in his expression as he stood tall and strong before her, making her appear so small with her petite frame.


    ¡°Come.¡± He let out his hand for her, waiting for her to take it, but the confused Anna just looked at his hand with questions before meeting his gaze.


    ¡°It won¡¯t bite.¡± He assured her with a tiny smirk, but Anna knew he just used it as a form to tease her. She ced her hand in his and he held it, gently rubbing his thumb at the front of her palm, but to Anna¡¯s surprise, he raised her hand up, cing a kiss on her palm without looking away from her eyes and her face instantly flushed.


    ¡°I have a little surprise for you.¡±


    Anna¡¯s ears perked at the mention of surprise and her face lit up. He has a surprise for her??


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Come with me.¡± Intecing their fingers, he took the flustered Anna out of his room.

 Chapter 203

    203 Surprise!


    Leading her through the corridor, Anna¡¯s mind pondered on what type of surprise Roshan must have nned for her. She tried to think of anything that would be a surprise to her, something that Roshan himself was capable of doing but Anna found it difficult toe up with anything extraordinary.


    Going down the stairs with their fingers still inteced, every part of the pce was brightly lit up with candles, the golden candle holders were twinkling with burning lights and all the curtains were closed, giving off the vibe of a hidden mystical underground pce.


    The servants were all busy with their usual duties, and as Roshan made his way through the second corridor, the servants immediately stopped what they were doing and bowed politely to his majestic presence.


    ¡°Greetings your highness!¡± They said in unison as he walked by, and when Anna followed suit, she waved at them.


    ¡°Hello everyone.¡±


    ¡°Hi Anna.¡± They neutrally responded and habitually returned to their duties, but all it took was a few minutes before one of the servants paused on what she was doing, her face paled in shock the moment she realized who she just saw and greeted.


    ¡°Was that Anna??¡±


    Looking at the rest servants, everyone was just as shocked as they turned around to see, watching her exit the corridor with Roshan by her side, and the tray one of the maids held fell from her grasp.


    ¡°Anna¡¯s alive??¡±


    .....


    ¡ª¡ª


    ¡°Where are we going?¡± Anna asked when he just kept making her walk through the corridor, but she didn¡¯t really mind since she got to be by his side, except she was really curious about the surprise he had for her.


    She couldn¡¯t remember thest time someone nned a surprise for her, so her eagerness was justified.


    Roshan didn¡¯t respond to her question, and it didn¡¯t take too long before he brought Anna to apletely dark room, except he stopped at the entrance, leading Anna to stop as well. Confusion and a look of uncertainty reflected on her face, and the confusion grew when he released her hand from his hold.


    ¡°Go in.¡±


    ¡°A_alone?¡± She hesitated on that part, notpletely sure why he brought her to a dark space. Roshan, who just stood beside her, sensed her anxiousness to go in alone, it disyed on her pretty face and she was back to working on her fingers.


    ¡°I¡¯m here, trust me and go in.¡±


    Looking at his face for some reassurance, Anna¡¯s heart eased and she figured she had nothing to worry about as long as Roshan was by her side. obediently nodding her head, she stole in a deep breath before stepping in like he told her to.


    She hadn¡¯t even stepped in too deep when the lights suddenly went on, and to Anna¡¯s unexpected surprise, rose petals began to rain down on her, leaving her lips to part in surprise and before she knew it.....


    ¡°Happy birthday!!!!¡±


    Came the joyful birthday cheers from Levi, Ba, Azazel, Melrose and even little Gemma as they stood in the room.


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened in full surprise when she saw the design that had been put into the room, and on the tableid a beautiful threeyer cake with candles, one that left Anna staring unblinkingly at the positive atmosphere in the room.


    She could swear to her life that this never came to mind.


    ¡°W_what??¡± Was the only thing she could say. Their surprise had left her breathless to the point she couldn¡¯t say something meaningful to them.


    Gemma was already running towards her direction, and Anna instantly went on her knees so she could give Gemma a big warm hug as she ran straight into Anna¡¯s open arms.


    ¡°I¡¯ve missed you so very much!¡± Anna said while hugging her tightly, and no sooner, Roshan also knelt beside her on the ground, giving the little one a wink when she pulled away from the hug.


    ¡°You did great!¡±


    Gemma proudly ced both her hands on her waist, waiting for her reward for getting everyone here on time, and Roshan knew exactly what she wanted.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t ruin the cake by dipping your fingers in it, so I¡¯m willing to make the exception.¡±


    He brought his hand forward, and Gemma shook it with a determined gaze, as though they were two business people who were forming an alliance and sealing it with a handshake, earning rounds ofughter from the people present.


    ¡°Happy birthday Anna!¡± Ba also hurried to her side, giving Anna a warm hug and feeling extremely happy to see that she¡¯s awake and well.


    ¡°I¡¯m so d to see you awake.¡±


    Returning her hug, Anna¡¯s gaze still held the surprise that she had been weed with and her heart swelled. Never in a million years did she think she¡¯d ever celebrate her birthday again, and to think they all did this¨C


    ¡°But how?¡± She asked, she didn¡¯t recall mentioning her birthday to anyone, so how did they know about it?


    Levi suddenly smiled with mischief, ¡°you can ask Roshan, he¡¯s the one who nned it all, we¡¯re just supporters.¡±


    ¡°Roshan?¡± She turned her head in his direction, but the cier was ignoring her stare and he rose to his feet. Anna did the same, unwilling to let him escape from answering her questions now.


    ¡°You nned it for me?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t ask him, ask me.¡± Levi intervened, earning him a death re from Roshan but he didn¡¯t mind, ¡°Roshan made us stay awake to decorate this ce all night. We don¡¯t know much about how humans celebrate birthdays so we took hints from a special guest, and Roshan even ckmailed us with Gemma to do his bidding, so everything was nned by him.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Melrose happily joined in, ¡°his highness put such great care into surprising you, I must say you¡¯re very lucky Anna.¡±


    Hearing them speak, Anna looked at Roshan who had refused to meet her gaze still, she noticed the slight blush that creeped into his ear and only then did she understand what was going on with him, leading her to chuckle silently at his act.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± And she meant it. She wished she could really say the words that spoke of how grateful she felt, and the fact he remembered her birthday touched her heart and soul.


    Roshan looked at her, and before he could utter anything to her, Gemma was already pulling down the hem of Anna¡¯s dress to gain her attention back. When Anna looked at her, she was eagerly pointing at the cake, indicating she wanted to have some and Anna smiled at her innocent cravings.


    ¡°Hey,¡± Roshan gained Gemma¡¯s attention, ¡°no misbehaving, or I call off our little deal, are we clear?¡±


    Gemma obediently nodded before running off to go meet Levi and Azazel. Seeing as no one is ready to interrupt, Roshan finally looked at Anna who was also staring at him, and he uttered, ¡°I know your birthday was actually at the end ofst month, but you said something about how it¡¯s been long you celebrated one so¡ª¡±


    He cut himself off when Anna quickly kissed his cheek without warning, baffling the cier since he didn¡¯t sense thating, and she looked away from him when her face reddened due to her own actions.


    ¡°You still remembered,¡± she shyly pointed out, ¡°and I¡¯m grateful for that.¡±


    He made her turn around to look at him, hands grabbing her shoulders gently and when she raised her head to meet his gaze, a cute smile curved his lips.


    ¡°Happy birthday.¡±


    She grinned and hugged him like a happy child, not caring if anyone was watching, but was interrupted when she heard a familiar feminine voice.


    ¡°I still need to be introduced too, howe I¡¯m not part of the surprise?¡±


    Hearing the familiar voice, Anna¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief and when she pulled back from Roshan¡¯s embrace, her face lit-up when she spotted Calista standing at the other end of the room, waving at her.


    ¡°Shall we cut the cake?¡±

 Chapter 204

    204 His Proposal


    ¡°Calista?¡±


    Anna¡¯s chocte-brown eyes lit up at the very sight of Calista, and her whole face beamed with happiness. She could barely conceal the delight she was feeling at the current moment, seeing everyone she missed terribly stand in front of her, and she became breathless with joy.


    The twodies happily embraced themselves with a hug, looking like two long lost sisters that were being reunited after spending many years apart. Anna felt she was still dreaming, Calista¡¯s presence was just too unbelievable, but hugging her like this made it clear to Anna that this wasn¡¯t her fantasy world, but she was actually experiencing reality¡¯s happiness.


    Pulling back, Calista noticed the tears that were starting to well up in Anna¡¯s eyes. She hadpletely forgotten just how emotional her Anna can really be. The youngdy can easily summon tears like one could summon a servant.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t changed at all Anna,¡± Calista began her teasing, ¡°you¡¯re still more of a cry baby like I remember you to be.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not crying.¡± She denied, quickly wiping her tears away, ¡°I¡¯m just overwhelmed with everything that¡¯s happening, I¡¯m not crying at all...¡± smiling, she eagerly held Calista¡¯s hand, ¡°but how are you here? How did you know I¡¯m here?¡±


    Seeing Calista here wasn¡¯t the shocking part, the shocking part is how she looks barely afraid to be amongst the demons she never wished to crosspath with. Obviously Roshan still has a score to settle with Euphrasia and might not be acquainted with any of the royal families.


    So how is she here? And less bothered about standing before such intimidating demons like Roshan and Azazel.


    Seeing the questions that glimmered in her eyes, Calista softly whispered, ¡°It¡¯s a story for another day.¡±


    .....


    Anna¡¯s face went nk with her response, she wanted to hear it now and notter. Noticing Anna¡¯s disapproving expression, Calista leaned forward to add, ¡°remember how we used to chat a lot in the garden while eating berries back in Euphrasia, when youe to visit, I¡¯ll tell you everything by then.¡±


    At the mention of visit, Anna remembered that she was totally free to enter Euphrasia now, since Sir Arlow had confessed his crime and cleared her name of the guilt. And again, it was all thanks to Roshan¡¯s doing.


    ¡°Oh my!¡± Calista suddenly eximed, throwing Anna off guard and the young princess¡¯s eyes widened in surprise.


    ¡°Your mark is gone!¡±


    After spilling what had gotten her so shocked, Anna¡¯s heart rxed since it wasn¡¯t a cause for rm and she nodded, feeling happy about it herself.


    ¡°Yes, I didn¡¯t see it when I woke up.¡± She exined, and Calista¡¯s hand flew to her mouth to stop herself from screaming out in joy.


    ¡°That mark was such a burden on you, I noticed something was different about you today and then the mark came into mind, you look great without having that mark on your forehead, forgive me but I despised it.¡±


    ¡°We both did.¡± Anna corrected, knowing how many times she refused to look in the mirror when she was younger all to avoid letting her eyes fall on the silly mark.


    Anna smiled but their conversation was cut short by Levi who chimed in with his presence, cing his hand around Anna¡¯s shoulder and smiled in Calista¡¯s direction, showing off his gleaming white teeth.


    ¡°Sorry to invade but some people are hungry for cakes, and I hope you don¡¯t mind me borrowing Anna for a minute.¡±


    Calista giggled lightly at his cute approach and nodded, ¡°of course.¡±


    He bowed, ¡°thank you princess.¡±


    Taking Anna away, the excited human just followed him and as they stood behind the cake, Anna lovingly pulled at Levi¡¯s cheeks as they ended up starting their own conversation, then Anna suddenly leaned in and whispered something into his ears that made his eyes brighten.


    Unbeknownst to her, her extreme closeness with Levi was forming a storm cloud at the top of Roshan¡¯s head. He just stood at a corner, watching them and when he noticed they weren¡¯t going to separate anytime soon, he walked towards both of them, gaining their attention as their gaze shifted to him.


    From his stoic look, Levi could tell the man was nowhere happy as he stood before the both of them, Levi quickly tried to exin.


    ¡°Roshan see.... Anna and I were just¨C¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s my woman.¡± He interjected, surprising Anna and everyone that was present in the room.


    ¡°And I don¡¯t fancy your closeness.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Separate!¡±


    Anna and Levi instantly shifted due to hismanding tone, keeping a good distance from one another. Although Roshan wasn¡¯t satisfied with the distance, he chose to let it be since Levi wouldn¡¯t make the same mistake ofing near his woman like that, except he wishes to go through the underground punishment for the second time.


    Azazel, who sat in a corner, just shook his head without saying a word. If anyone asks, he has no idea who these people are.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª


    When it clocked evening, Lady Odette remained seated in the dinning, having a cup of hot tea with Letitia by her side, and Gravion sitting opposite their table.


    ¡°How¡¯s the search going?¡± Letitia started the conversation, fixing her focused gaze on Gravion who shifted in his seat and sat straight.


    ¡°Poorly,¡± hemented, ¡°Luderick¡¯s hideout is difficult to find, we tried to see if we could locate him through his senses, but even his scent is hidden.¡±


    ¡°The advantage of ck magic.¡± Odette quickly analyzed, ¡°I¡¯m afraid that if he isn¡¯t caught soon, we¡¯ll be having bigger problemsing our way in the future.¡±


    Letitia sighed, her forehead creased into a frown, ¡°we¡¯ll focus more on figuring out where he¡¯s hiding, but inform the soldiers not to strike quickly, he¡¯s a foolish man but cunningly smart, we¡¯ll find out where he¡¯s hiding, then n on how to strike.¡±


    ¡°Well I_¡± Odette was about to make a suggestion when something up the stairs caught her eyes. Looking up, her eyes dted drastically, seeing Anna stand beside Roshan up the stairs, hand in hand and the cup of tea she held loosened from her grip, falling to the ground and startling Letitia and Gravion.


    ¡°Odette?¡±


    Letitia looked at her, and noticed how pale the face of Odette became, she looked dumbstruck from her expression and when Letitia followed her sight, she finally understood what had gotten Odette so bbergasted with shock.


    ¡°Anna?!¡± She got to her feet at the sight of Annalise, who stood beside Roshan and Letitia shook her head, unable to believe what she was seeing.


    Anna¡¯s alive????


    The maids were all peeping from different corners, murmuring to one another about the unbelievable sight before them, and they were hundred percent sure that Anna couldn¡¯t have faked her death, so how is she alive????


    Going down the stairs, Azazel and the rest stood at the top of the stairs with a mischievous look on their faces, already excited to watch what would happen next as Roshan led Anna down the stairs and into the dining room.


    Odette slowly rose to her feet, staring at Anna who was currently staring right back at her. She bowed slightly with a smile.


    ¡°Greetings.¡±


    At first they all thought it was their illusion, but hearing her speak to all of them, even Gravion was at loss of words as all he could do was just stare.


    ¡°You¡¯re alive?¡± Odette asked, her gaze raking Anna from head to toe, but Roshan responded in her ce.


    ¡°Not just alive, but she¡¯s alive and well.¡±


    ¡°How did this¨C¡± Letitia couldn¡¯t evenplete her statement, it was impossible to bring back the dead so how on Earth is Anna standing before them?? How is she alive??


    ¡°That isn¡¯t why I brought her down here, so save your questions for another day,¡± he silenced them, Anna who was feeling anxious about the gazes staring her way, suddenly felt her uneasiness dissipate when Roshan looked at her, ¡°..I brought her here so that you all can be a witness to something.¡±


    The servants who hid themselves in different corners, began to whisper to themselves after hearing the words Roshan had to say, and even Anna was confused by what he meant.


    She felt her heart instantly flutter when he kissed her hand in front of everyone, leaving Odette¡¯s eyes to widen and the viewers from upstairs cleared their throats, looking away since Roshan¡¯s intention can never be trusted.


    ¡°I want everyone to be a witness to what I have to say Anna, but I¡¯ll admit that I¡¯m not good at all when ites to pouring out emotions, neither am I good with the words, but what I do know is that I want to spend the rest of my life taking care of you and giving you all the love that you so desire.¡±


    The sincerity in his eyes and the devotion in his words made Anna¡¯s heart swell with joy, and he continued with the same loving tone that sent her skin tingling with delight, ¡°to be honest I never expected you, but who knew I¡¯d one day find it difficult to let you walk away from me.¡±


    He took a deep breath, ¡°You¡¯ve always been the source of my joy, and my greatest support when I needed one. You¡¯re my life Anna, and these days I got to spend without you made me realize how deeply in love I¡¯ve fallen with you.¡±


    At this point, Anna could no longer breathe, but all of a sudden, her brows narrowed when she watched Roshan go on his knees before everyone, and to her biggest surprise of the day, he brought out a beautiful golden colored ring and held it up for her to see.


    ¡°I know I¡¯m not perfect, I can be intolerable but I¡¯ll see to it that you remain happy with me, and I¡¯ll try my best to be a better man worth deserving you. I need you to tolerate me for the rest of your life. Like I said, I¡¯m not good with these kinds of proposals but what matters is that I love you Anna, so will you make me the happiest person alive and say yes to marrying me?¡±


    Several surprised gasps could be heard and Anna¡¯s eyes instantly went round in obvious shock, the bewilderment disyed in her eyes and she lost the ability to speak.


    Lady Odette and Letitia¡¯s face drained of all colors at the unexpected proposal.

 Chapter 205

    205 A Cold Night


    ¡°He¡¯s proposing?!¡± One of the maids eximed with a surprised gasp, looking awed to see his highness go on his knees, to propose a marriage not just to anyone, but to a human?? Soft murmurings flowed amongst the rest of the servants and their faces expressed shock and delight.


    Anna remained still like an unmoved statue, her delicate fingers clutching tightly to her dress, keeping her nervousness hidden as Roshan¡¯s word reyed a thousand times in her head. But along with it came the happiness that streamed through her heart and tingled her poor soul.


    ¡®Am I dreaming? I¡¯m definitely dreaming! This can¡¯t be real, I must still be dead and floating in my fantasy world again, that should be the case.¡¯ she inwardly told herself with a slight nod, this happiness she felt was too good to actually be true, and she didn¡¯t want toe out of her dream state just yet.


    Roshan proposing a marriage to her was like a dreame true, not just in front of her, but to everyone as a witness, and no words could describe what this act of his meant to her, it was one she wouldn¡¯t forget, even in her afterlife.


    Sensing her dy, Roshan¡¯s hope faded a little, he was starting to have second thoughts about her choice of agreeing to marry him, not until she extended her hand forward, grinning from ear to ear and she nodded her head.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Yes what?¡± He asked with a look of hope, wanting her toplete it and Anna lowered her gaze, feeling all mushy on the inside.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll marry you.¡± She shyly added. Roshan¡¯s face brightened at her response and he got to his feet. Holding her extended hand, he slipped the cute ring right in, and it was a perfect fit.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    .....


    Levi¡¯s loud p of congrattion was the first to go round before everyone else joined in, including the maids. Lady Odette didn¡¯t seem to approve of it, her face was currently twisted with rage at the abominable show disying in front of her, but to her greatest shock, Letitia was also pping for them.


    ¡°Are you really in approval of this??¡±


    ¡°When will you get rid of your hate, she deserves a chance, just let her be.¡± Letitia tried to console the Matriarch but she shook her head, unwilling to let herself budge and fall into the spell that silly humans had casted on almost everyone in the Viscarrian Pce.


    ¡°I am not giving my consent for this!¡± She strictly announced, gaining everyone¡¯s attention and silence returned, ¡°I really can¡¯t believe you all are agreeing to this, nothing has gone right with that girl here and¨C¡±


    ¡°And if you utter another outrageous word about my wife-to-be, then you might as well be ready to leave the Viscarrian Pce, cause she¡¯s going to be the Queen of Viscarrian, with or without your blessings!¡±


    Roshan¡¯s sharp decisive tone threw Odette off guard, he sounded serious with that shocking phrase of his and all Lady Odette could do was stare in disbelief, as though she never expected such attitude from Roshan, needless to think that he¡¯d want her out of the pce.


    ¡°Are you really saying that to me, don¡¯t you consider your family??¡±


    ¡°How can I consider you as family when all you do is ruin my chances of getting the happiness I deserve.¡± He retorted, ¡°you¡¯re a self-centered, poisonous toad that just hops on people¡¯s destruction, but not today Aunt, so you either learn to live with it or get the hell out!¡±


    He pointed at the main door, signifying the way out of the pce if she can¡¯t handle his rtionship with Annalise.


    Meanwhile, Anna¡¯s eyes widened at Roshan¡¯s reaction and how he stood up for her. She already knew the elderdy won¡¯t ept her union with Roshan, she sensed it all even before she said yes to him, but to think Roshan would send her out just so they could be together- her heart can¡¯t take all of this.


    ¡°This girl will bring you bad luck!¡± Odette spoke up, not willing back down, ¡°you¡¯re so blinded by this thing you call love to not see the truth.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care what the truth is,¡± he snapped at her, ¡°but the only badluck I see is you, cause you tend to ruin things for me with your stupidid-out facts, so just shut up and eat them, cause no one wants to hear it.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll regret this decision of yours Roshan, and when you realize it, it¡¯ll already be toote. Don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you.¡± Odette was beyond furious, Roshan had the audacity to speak to her with such disrespect and it¡¯s all because of the witch of a human, else how is she alive??


    Eyeing Anna with visible hatred, she walked off and headed up the stairs. Levi and the rest quietly made way for her to pass and when she was out of sight, Levi looked at Gemma who watched him mimic Odette¡¯s angry walk style and she held back a giggle, covering her mouth with her palm.


    Azazel, who wasn¡¯t a man known for smiling, felt his lips curve a little at Levi¡¯s imitation of Odette. He intended to look away but his eyes identally shifted, meeting the gaze of Calista who smiled his way, and his own smile vanished from his lips.


    Calista wanted to say something but he deliberately looked somewhere else, ignoring herpletely, but Calista still chose to speak as she moved closer to him.


    ¡°Unbreakable iceberg, can you take me back home.¡± She asked sweetly, hershes adorably batting at him and even Levi couldn¡¯t ignore how pretty the princess of Euphrasia looked.


    ¡°Azazel is so terrible with this,¡± he whispered to Gemma whose eyes narrowed as she watched her favorite Azazel ignoring such a nicedy.


    ¡°He¡¯s even worse than Roshan, if I was Azazel, I¡¯d sweep thedy off her feet, but again, I feel grateful that I¡¯m not Azazel, I mean look at her¨C¡±


    Gemma looked at her brother with one slender brow raised in suspicion, but Levi blocked her ears with his palm before hissing out. ¡°I forgot I was talking to a child, for once I feel d she can¡¯t speak,¡± he shuddered at the thought of what Azazel would do to him if he heard all these things he said to Gemma.


    Downstairs, Anna watched the Matriarch leave the dining room with such vexation, but Roshan blocked her view before Odette¡¯s rejection could sink into her heart.


    ¡°Don¡¯t stare too much,¡± he whispered, ¡°people like her will leave your eyes sore, I want your eyes on me Anna, no one else.¡±


    Smiling again, Anna reached out to hug him, and he embraced her, nting a kiss on her forehead and Levi and the rest suddenly crowded them.


    ¡ª¡ª


    Standing before the window in Roshan¡¯s chamber, Anna stared at the golden ring in her finger, gently rubbing her thumb along the side to feel its smooth texture. There was a small circr gemstone in the middle, adding to the beauty of the ring and Anna found herself smiling.


    ¡°And why¡¯s she smiling all to herself?¡± Came the voice of Roshan who stood behind Anna, and her heart skipped after realizing who it was, leading her to turn around and her eyes lit up at the sight of him.


    ¡°You¡¯re here already.¡±


    ¡°I wish I was here sooner,¡± he sighed before turning Anna around so they could watch the snow falling outside, as always his hands would link themselves around her waist, pulling her close to him but Anna didn¡¯t try to run away from his hold.


    The snow falling outside the window was a sight that only started to appear beautiful before Anna¡¯s gaze, the snow continuously fell straight and steadily from the sky, looking like angels that chose to finally visit the earth while falling with such grace and elegance, it was a remarkable sight that left a satisfying sigh escaping from Anna¡¯s lips.


    ¡°The snow is beautiful.¡± Shemented, and when Roshan didn¡¯t respond, she continued, ¡°am I dreaming?¡±


    To her surprise, Roshan ced a kiss on her cheek, leaving her eyes to widen and after studying her expression, he shook his head.


    ¡°If it was a dream, you¡¯d have woken up right after I kissed you, so it¡¯s not a dream.¡± He didn¡¯t stop, he continued to drop soft kisses along the side of her face, to her cheek and down to her jawline before going back up to start and Anna shivered from the intimate touch.


    ¡°Wait-¡± she freed herself from his hold, and to her surprise he let go. She turned around to look at him, and his intentions became clearer when he ced a hand against the window she was currently backing, trapping her there and it made sense now as to why he released her.


    His eyes were burning and before Anna could speak, he hushed her up.


    ¡°It¡¯s a cold night,¡± he uttered sexily, ¡°and I feel cold.¡± He leaned in, forcing Anna to shift back while pressing her back against the cold ss of the window and she flinched, but forced herself to remain where she was.


    ¡°Tsk! I guess I¡¯m not the only one cold,¡± he teased, ¡°how about we be each other¡¯s warmth tonight.¡± With that being said, the scheming being slowly began to unbutton, and Anna¡¯s face turned scarlet.

 Chapter 206

    206 Let Me Please You*


    Thump. Thump. Thump.


    That was the only sound Anna¡¯s sharp ears were capable of grabbing at the current moment. Her heart continuously pounded against her chest as Roshan¡¯s gaze held hers.


    One by one, Roshan¡¯s button came undone, but he didn¡¯t rush it, he wanted her dazed eyes to capture every slow sexy movement of his, and it appeared to be working because her face bloomed with a shade of rosy pink.


    She looked so cute that all he wanted to do at this point was kiss her, relish in the taste of her soft lips until he¡¯s had enough of her pretty mouth.


    He longed for the day he could finally have Anna as his, when he¡¯ll be able to hold her in his arms and kiss her with all the love he could possibly give till it left his imprint on her soft lips, and just thinking about it was already heightening his desire as he struggled to maintain his pace and not hurry.


    ¡°Wait-¡± Anna¡¯s frantic dulcet voice made him stop halfway, her hands instinctively reached for the cor of his shirt, clutching tightly to it and stopping him from unbuttoning everything at once. She didn¡¯t look at him, and her eyes remained focused on the exposed skin that was now visible before her, it left a tantalizing glimpse of his wless skin that impressively matched the color of his face.


    Biting her bottom lip to get rid of her nervousness, she lifted her shy gaze to meet his eyes, and in those eyes of hers glistened with some determination that Roshan has never seen before, like she wasing to a decision in her head on whether to go ahead with this or not.


    Knowing how quirky his lovely Anna can be, Roshan could tell she was about to oppose his offer of the night, but instead of opposing and scolding him for being shameless like she always did, Anna¡¯s hands reached for the rest button, to his own greatest surprise and she began to unbutton them herself.


    Roshan¡¯s eyes widened slightly, unable to hide how her unforseen actions threw him off guard. Her delicate fingers fidgeted on his buttons, undoing them till she got to thest button, and he heard her exhale through through her lips, as though she had been holding her breath all the while she worked on undoing his buttons, and she finally lifted her head up to meet Roshan¡¯s dumbstruck gaze.


    .....


    Anna didn¡¯t need him to say anything, he appeared speechless to even speak, indicating how her own act had left him frozen. He must be thinking what was wrong with her but Anna was ready to assure him that she knew what she was doing.


    Who would want to miss the opportunity to end up with a man like Roshan anyway, even the servants and the demonesss where jealous of her rtionship with Roshan, not that it mattered but Roshan had pleased her in ways she herself couldn¡¯t describe.


    Tonight, it¡¯ll be her turn to return the favor.


    ¡°You_ you¡¯re cold are you not? So I¡¯ll offer you warmth tonight.¡± She decided before holding Roshan¡¯s wrist and leading the cier to the big bed.


    She made him sit on it and the cier found himself sitting to her own ord and not his. Her face turned from light pink to a crimson due to what she nned on doing next and she took a deep breath to summon her courage.


    Facing him, and to Roshan¡¯s bewildered stare, she began to undress herself in the same slow motion Roshan used in unbuttoning his shirt, loosening the straps that held her dress together without shifting gazes from Roshan. Unwilling to break the unbearable tension their gazes held, she took it off and let it drop sexily to the floor.


    One by one, Roshan¡¯s heated gaze followed her movement until she was standing in only a thin chemise that exposed her skin and her underwear.


    The atmosphere in the room had gotten thin, and Roshan¡¯s arched brows made her feel she was taking a very dangerous step if she continued further. He looked like an insatiable beast about to pounce on her, but a sexy one at that.


    Ignoring his silent warning, she removed the pin that held her hair in ce, letting it plunge against her back down to her waist. Roshan¡¯s lips parted in silent adoration as his eyes raked over her exquisite body, starting from her gorgeous face, to her lovely neck and beguiling shoulders. Then down her figure since the chemise she put on was transparent, letting his eyes feed on her round bossoms that stood pert and her nipples protruding from the chemise.


    Her slender waist was one to die for and how they curved to form her sexy hips downward, Roshan involuntarily licked his dry lips. Her fair thighs were exposed to his hungry gaze and her underwear that hid the sweetest and most sensitive part of her was driving him nuts, he had to dig his finger into the mattress to restrain himself from devouring her roughly.


    Meeting her eyes again, she appeared innocent, although flushed and those chocte-brown eyes stared right at him and when she released her bottom lip she had been biting on, they looked pink, sulent, and moist that he had to close his eyes to get a grip.


    ¡®Fuck!¡¯


    Roshan felt he¡¯ll go mad if he doesn¡¯t get his hands on her. She looked so beautiful it was breathtaking, more beautiful than a thousand women put together and he felt warm blood rush to his lower member, already getting hard from just watching the little show she was putting on for him.


    ¡°Your beauty is torturing Anna, please, it¡¯s enough or I promise you I¡¯ll lose it and do things to your body that¡¯ll leave you petrified,¡± he growled, he was willing to do anything as long as shees to him and not torture him so badly with her distance.


    Then to his surprise, she finally got on the bed, crawling up to meet him where he sat and she hesitated for a few seconds due to his dark eyes that smoldered with sensual heat, and the room was already starting to thicken when they hadn¡¯t even started yet.


    His eyes were pleading, he wanted her to touch him and to his quick relief, she proceeded to slip his shirt right off his broad shoulders. He froze despite her light touch, and his upper body was now bare for Anna to see.


    Anna¡¯s marveling gaze started off from his neckline, down to the dip of his beautiful corbone and those sturdy chests that was enough to leave one drooling from the sight. Anna¡¯s gaze traveled down, taking in the magnificent sight of his manly pecs and abs, so chiseled as though they could slice through something and she involuntarily gulped.


    ¡°L-let me lead today.¡± She requested in a docile voice, ¡°let me please you.¡±


    Roshan was speechless with her sudden request. No woman has ever dominated him in bed before, mostly because they go submissive just from looking directly into his eyes, but this woman wants to take charge tonight.


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± He didn¡¯t want her to force herself into doing anything, but the thought of her wanting to take charge excited him for some reason, leaving him to wonder what she ns on doing.


    Without responding, she imed his lips while cupping his cheeks in her hand, kissing him and wasting no time invading his mouth with her tongue. Her soft lips on his and her flushed body pressed against his masculinity increased the pace for him, and he responded, kissing her with the same need as she sucked on his moist bottom lip, fondling it with her teeth before delving the length of her warm tongue straight into his mouth.


    Roshan was stunned with how good she was at kissing, she learned faster than he thought she would and he loved every minute of her sensual kiss. Her hands slid to the back of his neck, tingling his skin and reaching for his silky hair that stopped at neck length. She buried her fingers into it, taking the kiss deeper.


    The room grew hot with each passing second, and it smelled of sex while the cold snow continued to fall outside from the window.


    The woman who was currently on top of him, straddled herself between his legs and she was sitting on his crotch, leading Roshan¡¯s eyes to seal shut and at that moment, he felt her hands on the belt of his trouser.

 Chapter 207

    207 Hand-Job**


    Feeling those hands of hers on the belt of his pants, sent his nerves throbbing with the clear intention of her next act in mind, and he sensed her hesitation when those hands of hers stopped at the buckles of his belt, refusing to take any further move as though it had gone numb at thest minute.


    Anna¡¯s gaze lowered to the building bulge that was painfully hidden in his pants and she swallowed, hesitating a bit on how to pleasure him from there on. She¡¯s read lots of romance books where thedy gets to pleasure the male, but that doesn¡¯t change the fact that she herself was inexperienced when it came to things like this, and she was only anxious because what if she does something that might hurt him.


    Panting softly and taking a deep breath to steady himself, Roshan made Anna look at him as he lifted her chin with the tip of his index finger, and her head obediently followed his hand until she met his heated, but considerate stare.


    He was currently sweating from the intimate moment they both shared and his body glistened with sweat, making him look so devastatingly sexy that Anna had to admit inwardly that she¡¯s nevere across someone with such dangerous, and drooling sight.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to do what makes you feel ufortable Anna.¡± His reassuring tone made her look at him. He understood that all this was still new to her, and if she wasn¡¯t ready for it, he wouldn¡¯t let her force herself into doing it in order to satisfy him, he was willing to wait for her, cause in the end he knew it¡¯d be worth it.


    He wanted to assure her that it¡¯s fine if she wanted to back out, but he¡¯d prefer she backs out now since the me swirling through his system had cooled a bit, but to his quick surprise, thedy straddling him unbuckled his belt before he could say anything else, leading his eyes to snap open at her action and she boldly met his stare, not looking away.


    ¡°I¡¯m not ufortable at all.¡± She assured him with her beautiful voice that sounded as sweet as the sounds of birds when they sing, and she pulled his belt out, making his manhood harden further due to how smoothly his belt came off, not breaking gazes.


    Dropping it, Anna¡¯s gaze returned to the bulge in his pants and Roshan just stared at how she was observing it, like it was some unusual art that her innocent eyes were viewing for the first time.


    And it was.


    .....


    Getting off him, Anna got down from the mattress and went on her knees at the foot of the bed. Meeting Roshan¡¯s gaze, she patted the mattress, beckoning him to move closer to the foot of the bed, and the cier willingly did as she said.


    Seeing her on her knees like an obedient girl about to get tainted by him, made his head swoon with dirty ideas and he inwardly cursed at her allurement. His member twitched slightly at his forbidden thoughts and he just wanted her to touch him there, he needed to feel the warmth of her hand on his manhood, he wanted to know what her hands on him would feel like, and she was taking her time to make him lose his senses.


    ¡°Anna!¡± The strain in his voice reminded her that she was yet to aplish her goal and her eyes settled on his bulge once again.


    Unbuttoning his pants, she waited for a few seconds before pulling it down from his waist.


    Anna¡¯s eyes grew wider in rasp amazement when his manhood was let free from the barrier of his pants, and a soft sigh escaped Roshan when the relief washed over him, feeling the cold air meet with his exposed sex and Anna couldn¡¯t hide the shock and delight that glinted in her eyes.


    He was impressively big!


    The once big bulge appeared bigger as it stood at attention, and her eyes failed terribly at hiding how horrified and speechless she was at his size and length. He was so big and veiny from the erection that she doubts her dainty hands would be able to hold him properly, even if shebined both hands together it still wouldn¡¯t be enough.


    Noticing how bbergasted she was at the size of him, Roshan felt proud that he had left her speechless. Her already flushed face turned bashful and Anna¡¯s heartbeat quickened.


    ¡°Your boldness is about to be tested.¡± He challenged, and when Anna met his seducing stare, his eyes glinted with passion, those colorful irises expanding as he cocked his head at her, but Anna refused to let her nervousness get the better of her and so, she looked at his throbbing manhood that seeks her attention.


    With focus, her hands carefully reached for the ns of his manhood, staring at the red tip and Roshan shuddered from the warmness of her touch on his hard-on.


    Sensing his reaction, that was enough to give Anna some confidence boost and with a concentrated gaze, she held his blood-filled rod with both her hands, making sure her hold was gentle but firm at the same time.


    A sweat ran down her forehead as her eyes dimmed with full concentration, focusing her attention on his hard member like her life depended on it, before taking the second step by giving it a little squeeze.


    This simple action of hers caused Roshan¡¯s eyes to close shut and a quick tremor washed over him like an unstoppable hurricane, biting hard on his lower lip to stop any sound from escaping his mouth.


    Judging from his expression, Anna didn¡¯t know if she was hurting him or pleasing him like she wanted, and when she wanted to take her hands away so she can try again, Roshan moved fast, keeping her hands on his throbbing member and Anna looked at him with surprise, he was staring at her through the heaviness of hisshes and he was breathless.


    He was beautiful!


    ¡°Don¡¯t stop, you¡¯re doing great.¡± He encouraged with his voice hoarse and ragged, letting the hope return back to Anna¡¯s heart and she continued with her inspection as well as her mission to please him.


    His manhood felt springy to the touch, and she didn¡¯t know if it would be considered weird for her to admit that she doesn¡¯t dislike the feeling of his member in her hand. Rather, she enjoyed how touching him there exposed Roshan¡¯s weakness and this other side of him that she was experiencing for the first time.


    Continuing her hand-job, she tried to make ends meet, which in turn earned another gentle squeezing at the ns of his manhood and Roshan threw his head back. He wanted to curse out loud but was forced to hold it in, so as not to frighten his Anna who was finally making a move on him.


    ¡°Move your hands Anna.¡± He sounded desperate, but Anna wasn¡¯t done with her inspection just yet. She was beginning to notice how every stroke, how every caress of her hands on his raging member made the cier steal a quick breath and most times, he bit his lips so hard to the point it drew out blood.


    She continued touching, pressing, squeezing and trying to get familiar with his member but she was only suffering the poor Demon who was nearly at the verge of pleading for her to stop. It felt so good with her hands on him, yet so painful at the same time he thought he might just burst from the intense pleasure of it.


    Meanwhile Anna was so marveled with it that she looked like a baby who just found a new toy to y with, the way his member¡¯s reacted to her touch was fascinating, but when she heard Roshan groan due to her neverending inspection, she lifted her gaze up to look at him, and he was panting with his sensuous lips parted, his chest rising and dropping with each stroke until finally, her hands moved up and down.


    It was difficult at first to keep up with the rhythm since her hand was getting stuck between the skin of his shaft, but she remained persistent and moved her hands against his shaft, going up and bringing it down in a normal rhythm, and as she did that, her gaze remained fixed on the flushed Demon whose eyes closed.


    ¡°That¡¯s it Anna! Fuck! You¡¯re so good with this!¡±


    Seeing how he enjoyed the rhythm, Anna instinctively chose to quicken her pace, and as she did, Roshan felt his insides crumbling down to feet as her hand moved in a much faster rhythm that nearly broke him.


    There was something about his expression that Anna found difficult to look away from. She¡¯s never seen Roshan like this before, he was basically inplete euphoria as she continued, and hearing him groan and pant to the works of her hands, also made the pressure rush to Anna¡¯s own sensitive spot, and she closed her leg together to deal with the ufortable itch.

 Chapter 208

    208 Scared Of Tomorrow


    Watching him intently with her eyes gleaming in wonders, Anna cudgeled her brain on if she looked this good when she moaned in his arms the other night they made out, and a sudden tingle crept into her heart, traveling down to the sensitive spot in between her legs and she rubbed her thighs together, unable to understand what was happening to her body right now.


    And with onest rapid rhythm of her hands, Roshan clenched his jaw, his eyes tightly sealing shut as he orgasmed right in the hands of Anna. His once hardened member now turned soid in Anna¡¯s hand that it left her eyes goggling at the aftermath.


    His body trembled from the spasm and he fell back on the bed, his eyes glowing in satisfaction, trying to catch his shaky breath as the ecstasy overwhelmed him to the deepest part of his system, and he felt power drained when the heat in his body cooled down to a normal rate.


    Meanwhile, Anna who still remained on her knees on the floor, stared confusedly at the white warm sticky liquid that stained her hands, putting it into inspection and when Roshan noticed his Anna was staring at the result of his spasms, he sat upright, fixing his pants back in ce and he brought her hands forward, using a small white towel that was neatly folded at the side of his mattress to wipe it off her hands.


    ¡°Next time, I¡¯ll make sure to secure them inside of you, and not on your hands.¡±


    Anna unwillingly blushed at his dangerous phrase, and he pulled the flustered woman against him. A quick gasp exited her lips as her chest came in contact with that of Roshan¡¯s, and they were both sweating under the dim lights of the lit-up chandelier that hung in his room.


    ¡°You were good with your hands,¡± heplimented while tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear, and Anna had to meet his intense gaze that glittered with passion and just feeling her bosoms on his naked chest was already arousing him once again.


    He loved the feeling of her body against his and he doesn¡¯t think he¡¯ll ever be able to get enough, if possible, he would have dealt with her this night for making him cum so hard. And when she stared at the white substance with an inquisitive gaze, he found himself getting turned on.


    Holding her hand and letting his eyes rake through, he uttered, ¡°your hands must be tired.¡± He kissed it.


    .....


    ¡°You have no idea what you¡¯ve done to me.¡±


    His touch made her shiver as he grazed his thumb gently through the side of her face, and the looks she was giving him only made the heat he thought had left return to his system, and Anna didn¡¯t fail to notice it from his touch, making her brows crease in cognition.


    Is he not satisfied?


    Like he knew the question she had privately asked herself, Roshan hummed as he made the woman straddle him, and he was so quick with his movement as though she was a weightless paper that he could effortlessly toss around, except he treated her with care, like how one would treat an egg.


    ¡°You¡¯ve done well tonight,¡± his seductive tone made Anna shyly bring her gaze down, her heart thundering rapidly against her ribcage when he wrapped her hands around his neck, letting her soft body melt into his.


    The heat in the room still remained, and there was no sound that could be heard except for the fading footsteps that seemed to be heading to different directions along the corridor.


    Keeping every other thought away, the only thing that mattered to was the woman he had straddled before him.


    ¡°For now I¡¯m willing to hold on, I¡¯m willing to hold on to thest thing that¡¯s stopping me from pouncing on you Anna.¡± His eyes revealed what Anna thought to be animalistic desire and she gulped when the look in his eyes frightened her a bit, but excited her at the same time and she meekly asked.


    ¡°What¡¯s stopping you?¡±


    ¡°Our wedding night.¡± He tilted his head at her, wanting her to be aware of the adoration he has for her, as well as how wild he can go for her, to the point of crossing his limits if she tempts him to an unbearable extent, and the silly human, understanding the unsaid words that revealed in his eyes, made her face bloomed once again, and in order to hold back her bashfulness, she nibbled on her bottom lip to restrain herself.


    Taking her hand back, she stared at the ring on her finger, admiring its elegant beauty before looking at Roshan who watched her stare at the ring with such satisfying warmth.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid,¡± she admitted, lowering her hand and cing it around Roshan¡¯s neck, but her sudden words of fear had left his brow creasing into worry.


    ¡°What are you afraid of?¡±


    Smiling at how his expression has changed into genuine concern, she hugged him in a loving embrace, leaning into his body and letting the heat that seeped out from his naked upper bodyfort her soul. She sighed while keeping herself glued to him before uttering.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid to go to sleep, and wake up to realize that all these beautiful moments are nothing but my imagination.¡± She pulled back from the hug, staring at the beautiful ring in her hand again.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that this ring would also end up as a dream, and that everything never really happened, your confession, my birthday surprise, our intimate moment- Everything!¡±


    She had to admit she was scared of waking up to tomorrow, she wished the night would never end, but a wish like that was too good to be considered true, and¨C


    ¡°Stop thinking Anna.¡± He flicked her forehead, breaking her from her worried train of thoughts and she met hisforting stare.


    ¡°I¡¯m right here, am I not? Does it look like I¡¯m a fading fantasy?¡± He questioned softly before cing a tender kiss at the top of her forehead, and Anna¡¯s eyes instinctively closed at his warm gesture of affection.


    ¡°No one can take you away from me Anna, you¡¯re mine to hold, to love, to possess, and I¡¯ll make it legal with our marriage, whilst someone dares to court you, I have enough rights to dig his grave in front of you.¡±


    ¡°Roshan!¡± Her eyes widened, finding his phrase a little too much, ¡°you don¡¯t need to kill someone.¡±


    ¡°Then make sure they don¡¯te near you, cause I won¡¯t be able to promise that.¡±


    His honey-sweet tone made Anna¡¯s heart dance around her chest as she smiled at him, regardless of how she wanted to prove how serious she was about him not trying something like that.


    ¡°See?¡± He cocked his head, ¡°you fell in love with that part of me as well.¡± He pecked her lips, startling Anna who pulled back from their close proximity, and he clicked his tongue.


    ¡°You¡¯re wet.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    A mischievous grin stered his enchanting face and his right hand reached for the back of her head, his other hand gripping her naked thighs as he pulled her so close to his crotch, sending a jolt of electricity running through them, and a gasp tore from Anna¡¯s lips.


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s my turn to satisfy a naughty human.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not¨C¡± and her lips were captured before she could utter anything else, erasing whatever argument she nned on starting with him, and all of a sudden, he flipped her on the bed, leaving her to lie on her back while he stayed on top.


    ¡°I call myself foolish for never saying this to you, but I want you to know that you¡¯re the most beautiful woman I¡¯veid eyes on, and I¡¯ve never been more than happy to have fallen for you.¡±


    His words melted Anna¡¯s heart and he leaned in to kiss her. She ced her hand on either side of his shoulder, pulling him against her


    and they made out till every bit of their strength was drained.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª-


    When the sun rose to the cloudless sky, Anna remained awake, keeping her gaze locked on the sleeping Roshan who was asleep beside her.


    Her fingers yfully toyed with the locks of hair that fell at his face, then letting her index finger trace his forehead, traveling down to his nose and to his lips.


    ¡®It¡¯s not a dream then¡¯ her face brightened and that¡¯s when she heard Roshan speak in a sleepy rough voice.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you sleeping?¡± Hisshes fluttered, forcing his still heavy lids to open up so he could look at the lovely woman who was smiling at him.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you asleep?¡±


    She shook her head, indicating it was nothing and due to the smile on her face, Roshan had to believe her words. He gently pulled Anna into his arms, leading her to rest her head on his chest as she closed her eyes to sleep.


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you have an important meeting to be at?¡± She asked, and he nodded.


    ¡°There¡¯s still time.¡±


    The moment he said it, his eyes snapped open as though he just remembered something, and a mischievous glint shed in his irises.


    ¡°There¡¯s still time.¡±


    Looking at Anna who was now staring at him confusedly, he got on top of her, baffling the woman who was underneath him.


    ¡°W_what are you doing?¡± She asked, but he just smiled wickedly and suddenly buried them both under the duvet.

 Chapter 209

    209 Are You Gay?


    ~


    ¡°My back hurts, did you have to be so hard on me?¡± Leviid out hisint while bending his back a bit to give it a little stretch, his eyes forming an usatory slit at Azazel¡¯s direction.


    The silver-white haired demon sheathed his sword in ce, paying less attention to the usatory tone of Levi and leaned his back against the wall, arms crossed and keeping his lids shut.


    They were both standing in the training ground that was opposite the courtyard. It was the early morning of winter, when he was supposed to get some rest since he doesn¡¯t have to visit the limbo today, but unfortunately for him, Levi chose to ruin his sleep today of all days.


    The demon kept banging on his door, requesting that he trains with him and of course he ignored, but then, he forgot that even Demons could teleport because the next minute, the clingy Levi was in his room, sitting at his bedside and ruining his peaceful sleep with his unwanted presence.


    ¡°This is just a warning, never_ever, even when you¡¯re on death¡¯s door, never disrupt my sleep.¡± And he was serious despite keeping his tone calm and collected, but his pretty white brows furrowed, sending the message to Levi who understood immediately.


    Azazel had a gentle demeanor and physique, but his words and actions were aplete contrast to his physical appearance. When it came to swordsmanship, it was difficult to tell who amongst the two brothers were more violent. There were still good memories when Roshan, Azazel as well as him would sneak out to train themselves, and one time they ended up in big trouble because they identally destroyed a vige.


    With someone as smart as Azazel and Roshan who had amazing instincts with his own intellect, they sessfully escaped the punishment with Roshan causing a ruckus and Azazel using it to their advantage.


    Pressing his lips together, Azazel¡¯s brow arched in suspicion as he stared at Levi who seemed to be enjoying a private joke, and his eyes evidently narrowed.


    .....


    ¡°What are you thinking?¡±


    Levi shook his head, ¡°I was just remembering thest time we destroyed a vige.¡± He couldn¡¯t hold back a chuckle, ¡°Remember when we¡¯d always sneak away from the pce to go pay Roshan and his mother a visit, and then we decided to train together, which led to the ruins of a vige.¡±


    Azazel clicked his tongue at the funny, yet not-so-funny recollection. He has even forgotten something like that ever happened.


    ¡°To be more precise, Roshan was the one who destroyed the vige.¡± He corrected, they were still teenagers back then, and it was that time many mischiefs brewed within them. They were out practicing on how to focus magic on swords, and it was all going sessfully till Roshan¡¯s ability got the better of him, and in the blink of an eye an entire vige was gone.


    It took a whole month before they could get themselves out of that mess and Roshan was forced to restrict the way he used his powers.


    It wasn¡¯t that Roshan didn¡¯t have powers like the rest of them, but unlike them who had the ability to control theirs freely, Roshan doesn¡¯t have the energy to keep his powers in check. He doesn¡¯t use them since it triggers the darker part of his powers, hence, the reason why he barely trains with them.


    ¡°I¡¯m happy to see him happy again after many years of silent grieving,¡± Levi genuinely stated, his sword vanishing from his grip, ¡°and Anna¡¯s presence might do us more good than we think.¡±


    ¡°Meaning?¡±


    ¡°What I mean is, Roshan has found his mate, when are you going to find yours, hmm? Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s about time we hear of your love story?¡± He asked, yfully twerking his brows at Azazel who frowned at him.


    ¡°I¡¯m not acquainted with that word.¡±


    ¡°When is the pretty princessing?¡± He hinted, his toneced with mischief and that led to Azazel rolling his eyes.


    ¡°Do I look like her bodyguard?¡±


    ¡°Seems like, you¡¯re always giving the princess a cold shoulder and it¡¯s not nice, allow someone to defrost your heart a bit, else I¡¯ll start calling you Iceman and build an ice statue of you, made from real ice.¡±


    ¡°Fine by me.¡±


    ¡°Admit she¡¯s pretty, I¡¯ve noticed how you look at her sometimes, and if you refuse, I¡¯ll start to judge your sexuality preference.¡±


    ¡°Levi..!¡± Azazel really thought this demon cousin of his would have learnt his lesson by now, but he still speaks absolute nonsense to his face and it evidently annoyed him.


    ¡°Should I say it?¡± Levi challenged.


    ¡°I¡¯m warning you Levi!¡±


    ¡°Are. You. Gay?¡± He said it.


    That¡¯s it!


    ¡°You¡¯re seriously asking for a beating,e here!¡± Azazel made a move to grab the annoying demon, but Levi slipped away, already sensing Azazel¡¯s approach and with augh that only added fuel to Azazel¡¯s anger, Levi immediately ran off.


    Watching him go, Azazel was unwilling to let that sly Demon get away with his words, so he went after him.


    Exiting the training ground and chasing Levi up the stairs, the servants were all surprised to see both cousins chasing themselves around the Pce like the ce was some yground.


    Most of them even had to halt in what they were doing, finding it difficult to ept that the person chasing was Azazel.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know his highness was as yful as Levi.¡± A maid surprisinglymented in a whisper.


    ¡°Exactly, are you sure he¡¯s really ying?¡±


    Meanwhile, Levi enjoyed the chase because he couldn¡¯t remember thest time Azazel chased him with the aim to punish him. At the same time, he silently wished to not be caught by the hands of Azazel, else he¡¯ll be truly beaten up.


    Anna was making her way through the corridor, humming to herself and she was on her way to see Gemma when she noticed Levi running towards her direction, and she stopped walking.


    ¡°Anna, help me.¡± He immediately took cover behind her, startling the clueless Anna who had no idea what was going on, until Azazel came into view, and he looked somewhat furious too which made her freeze from the look in his blue eyes.


    ¡°Azazel?¡±


    Seeing Levi shielding himself behind Anna, Azazel could do nothing more but grit his teeth at his badluck, wondering why Levi got so lucky with escaping his torture.


    ¡°Is..is everything alright?¡± Anna asked, unsure of what was happening and from the looks of Azazel, he looked like he wanted to beat poor Levi who was making the face of a victim for Anna to see.


    ¡°I did nothing wrong, he¡¯s trying to bully me.¡± Levi reported, pointing at Azazel who nearly dragged him out, but Anna was able to stop him on time, keeping Levi protected behind her.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Anna tried to bring Azazel¡¯s attention to her, and he stopped.


    ¡°You have no idea what he said to me, I¡¯m not leaving till I deal with that demon behind you.¡±


    ¡°Liar! What did I say? Huh?¡± Levi threw the question at him, knowing it¡¯d be impossible for Azazel to shamelessly spit those words out, and he was right, cause Azazel could only stare without having the courage to say it.


    ¡°You can¡¯t say it cause I did nothing to you, tell him to leave me alone.¡±


    Anna who was stuck in the middle of these two demons had no idea what to do, she¡¯s the one who¡¯s supposed to be hiding behind Levi, not the other way round. She¡¯s just a human! What¡¯s she supposed to do??


    ¡°Uhm Azazel¨C¡± while trying toe up with something to save Levi from Azazel¡¯s hands, to Anna¡¯s delight, Roshan was heading their way with Enzo by his side, he looked prepared to go for the meeting but his conversation with Enzo halted when he noticed themotion in front of him.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening here?¡±


    ¡°Thank goodness you¡¯re here.¡± Anna said to him, ¡°apparently Azazel is trying to end Levi so¨C¡± her eyes signaled that he should handle the situation before Azazel eventually ends up hitting her instead of Levi.


    Shaking his head helplessly, Roshan walked towards Anna and held her wrist, pulling her aside and making her stand beside him, thus, leaving Levi open to Azazel¡¯s attack and the stranded demon felt his eyes widen.


    ¡°Problem solved.¡±


    ¡°Ah!!¡± Levi ran off and Azazel continued the chase.


    ¡°Get back here!¡±


    Roshan and Anna watched the two of them, and Anna looked at Roshan, signifying that he was supposed to help Levi as well.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, he won¡¯t die.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡±


    ¡°Nope.¡±


    Her eyes widened at his unhelpful response, silently asking if he was serious, but Roshan just gave a half-shrug, ¡°he¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    Anna couldn¡¯t believe him, ¡°You two really need to start treating Levi right.¡±


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C


    A bonus chap for crossing 200 powerstones!! The love is appreciated! ????

 Chapter 210

    210 Adryan¡¯s Condition


    In Euphrasia...


    Helping her father into a better sitting position, Calista carefully ced a pillow on the headboard, making sure it was ced correctly before proceeding to help her father rest his back on it, so he¡¯d be morefortable.


    ¡°How¡¯s your position father?¡± She asked, wanting to make sure he wasfortable with how she made him sit, and when her sick father nodded his head to show he was at ease with his position, Calista smiled in relief and sat at the edge of his bed.


    She picked the bowl of hot medicinal soup that a maid had kept on the table beside his bed, and returned her attention to her sick father whose eyes were closed.


    ¡°Father, it¡¯s time to have your soup so you can feel better, the physician rmended it and he said you¡¯d get better when you start taking them regrly.¡±


    ¡°Callie my child,¡± her father¡¯s feverishly weak tone got to her, his face appeared pale and it stung her heart to see him so sick. He¡¯s been down with this sickness for months now, and there has been no improvement, whatsoever, despite having the best physician look into his health.


    The old physician suggested this medicinal soup that¡¯ll strengthen his bones a bit, and it¡¯ll serve as a painkiller whilst her father feels anymore pain, and right now, all she can do is hope and pray that her father gets better soon and recovers from his ailment.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to stress yourself with this type of things,¡± he disapproved, shaking his head slightly, ¡°send a maid to do this, you must have a lot of important things to do, your marriage with Archer is still on, the invitation cards are being printed, even if I have to die, I want to be able to witness the marriage of my- beautiful daughter before I leave the world.¡±


    He suddenly coughed after making those heartfelt remarks, startling Calista who impulsively rubbed his back in a soothing manner, an attempt to help stop the coughing and within a few minutes, her father calmed.


    .....


    ¡°You speak too much father,¡± she queried softly, her heart almost flying from her chest due to how violently he coughed, ¡°you¡¯re my father, and it¡¯s not stress if a daughter volunteers to take care of her lovely father now, you should stop talking and let me feed you the soup before it gets too cold.¡±


    ¡°Where¡¯s your mother?¡± He asked weakly while trying to hold in the rest coughs, ignoring everything his daughter just said to him and Calista was forced to respond.


    ¡°Mother will be back tonight, she left the pce for something important this morning and will be sure to return before it gets dark, now let me feed you.¡±


    Taking a spoon full of the hot soup, she gently blew cool air into it, in an attempt to reduce the heat before feeding it to her father. To Calista¡¯s delight, he opened his mouth to receive the soup, which in turn earned a smile from Callie who was prepared to feed him another spoon full of medicinal soup.


    ¡°See father, once you take your medicines like this, you¡¯ll feel better and be able to walk on your own two feet again.¡± She encouraged with a hopeful glint in her eyes, feeling hundred percent sure that her father would escape it alive, but the solemnity of her father¡¯s demeanor showed he wasn¡¯t as hopeful as her.


    ¡°Callie...¡± he began, ¡°I think this is just the way of the heavens punishing me for my wrong doings.¡± He took a deep breath, his toneced with regret and Calista shook her head in disapproval, holding her father¡¯s hand in hers.


    ¡°What are you saying father?¡±


    ¡°No Callie,¡± he shook his head, ¡°I am not a good father, neither am I a good king.¡± He admitted, panting softly since his breath wasing out short. The violent coughing had left his chest burning in reaction and he closed his eyes for a second, gathering enough strength so he could speak again.


    ¡°Mateo was a good man who brought great justice to Euphrasia, he helped Euphrasia in many ways, and I was so blinded by the trust I had for Arlow, I judged an innocent person wrongly.¡±


    Calista wanted to tell him that it was enough, that he should stop talking before he starts coughing again, but she couldn¡¯t do it. It felt like her inner self restrained her from speaking, as though letting her father free his heart from this was the best option.


    ¡°Father, Arlow is to me for everything, he was never in good terms with Anna¡¯s father to begin with, although I never met Anna¡¯s father, but with Arlow¡¯s attitude towards Anna even at her young age, I could tell it was more than just hating her personally.¡±


    ¡°Mateo never made mention of Arlow¡¯s hostility towards him, and I was foolish enough not to recognize it myself.¡±


    ¡°No no.¡± Calista shook her head, ¡°stop ming yourself for everything that happened, let¡¯s not remind ourselves of the past, you need to take your medicine or else you won¡¯t get better.¡±


    ¡°Where¡¯s your brother?¡± He asked another question, looking at his daughter this time around and Calista dropped the bowl of soup on the table, her demeanor a bit downcast at the thought of her brother.


    ¡°He¡¯s still recovering... everything will be fine father.¡± Calista put on a smile to ease her father. But in truth, she was worried for her brother who tends to do foolish things without thinking about it.


    Nobody asked him toe look for her, and he even dared to step into the Demon¡¯s den only to return with a broken leg. His knee was so badly damaged that Calista feared he might not be able to walk again. Most times the guards give her information about his Highness waking up in the dead of night, and screaming that a Demon with red eyes was trying to end his life.


    Whatever happened to him back there must have frightened him to the point he still dreams about that particr Demon. But she wondered which demon her brother was talking about, she wondered which Demon was capable of frightening her brother to this extent.


    Was it Azazel? Or Roshan?

 Chapter 211

    211 Conjuring ck Magic


    Viscarrian...


    Three insane looking men were presented before Roshan in the council chamber by his guards, disrupting the meeting they were having, and these men were forced to go on their knees, bowing their heads in front of Roshan and the higher Demons who were present in the council chamber.


    The three men were dressed in rags and they were trembling nervously after being brought in the presence of His Highness and the most powerful demons with the highest ranks, known as the higher Demons. They were currently sweating and shaking like someone who had been drugged.


    Roshan continuously nced through a paper that was handed to him earlier by the demon council. His expression was stoic and unreadable as his eyes scanned through every word written on the file. He then dropped it on the table before him, creating a bang sound that got everyone¡¯s attention, and all gazes shifted to him.


    His presence made everyone remainposed as to the main reason why they were all here. Roshan made it obvious that he wasn¡¯t here for games, neither is he here for those unnecessary chit-chat he normally wastes his time having with them.


    ¡°Why did you bring them here?¡± He asked, rhythmically tapping his fingers on the table and barely turning his head to look at Enzo who was leading the guards that brought the three ragged men before his presence.


    Silence reigned in the council chamber, except for the rhythmical tapping of Roshan¡¯s finger¡¯s that intimidated everyone, leaving them staring like a rabbit in a wolf¡¯s den, and Enzo boldly took a step forward, politely keeping his head in a low bow.


    ¡°Your highness, these men are involved in human ve trading,¡± he reported, ¡°we visited one of the capital city and did thorough investigation like you asked. We got vital informations about the ve trade happening, to put it simply your highness, they¡¯ve been conjuring the deepest ck arts of magic and this three peasants are the leaders of the ve trade.¡±


    Roshan finally turned his attention to the three men who were trembling like jelly¡¯s. The higher Demons present also turned their attention to the three men who kept their heads lowered. With his brows arched, Roshan proceeded to ask.


    .....


    ¡°Why are they dressed in rags?¡±


    ¡°This is just a disguise, your highness,¡± Enzo informed, already feeling disgusted himself, ¡°they wander in the streets like beggars and use the slightest opportunity they get to kidnap human children, using their blood toplete the sacrifice of possessing strange dark powers, your highness.¡±


    ¡°And why are they still alive?¡± Getting to his feet after receiving such abominable information, Roshan¡¯s sword magically appeared in his grasp. He strode to one of the peasants brought before him and before anyone could sense what he nned on doing....


    SLASH!!!


    ¡°Ahh!! Your highness!!¡± The man¡¯s cry of agony resounded in the council chamber when Roshan expertly shed his arm, drawing out blood, and it left several gasps flying from all directions.


    The man clutched his wounded arm tightly as his blood flowed down to his arm, and Roshan¡¯s eyes narrowed observingly.


    Roshan¡¯s main reason for hurting him wasn¡¯t to directly cause him pain, he wanted to see the color of the man¡¯s blood in order to confirm if truly they were into ck magic, and to his darkened gaze, ck blood oozed from the man¡¯s arm, clearing Roshan¡¯s doubt.


    ¡°I see...¡± came Roshan¡¯s calm response, and he looked at Enzo whose head was still dipped in a bow.


    ¡°Shall we end them, your highness.¡±


    ¡°Not yet.¡± He turned around, heading back to his seat, ¡°if they¡¯re into ve trading and all that, make them speak up about who their buyers are, and their rivalries, to be clear, every market has apetition don¡¯t they?¡±


    ¡°Your highness!! Please spare us.¡± The second man amongst them pleaded for mercy, ¡°we only wanted to have the powers that¡¯ll help us in protecting our children, please your highness!¡±


    ¡°And I¡¯m assisting you, by helping your children get rid of you.¡± He deadpanned, he couldn¡¯t believe they had the audacity to utter children when they dared to take the lives of other people¡¯s children. There are many ways to make them suffer if he wanted but wiping out every demon who conjured excessive ck magic was his first priority, so as to avoid tainting the innocent ones of Viscarrian.


    ¡°Get them out of my sight.¡± Roshan ordered, ¡°and I want answers before tonight. If they still don¡¯t speak after torturing them, don¡¯t hesitate to inform me about it.¡±


    ¡°Yes, your highness!¡±


    With that, they dragged the three men up to their feet and out of the council chamber. Roshan turned a deaf ear to their pleading voices and returned his attention to the demon councils who remained seated in silence.


    The atmosphere had tensed greatly, and most of them were even scared to breathe due to Roshan¡¯s imposing aura and unshakeable atmosphere. Yes they all agreed that he should take the lead and be the heir to the Viscarrian throne, but no one expected him to possess the same deadly aura as his father.


    The only difference was that Roshan handled it differently than his father did. He even changed most of the rules his father had implemented and no one could oppose since he came with obvious persuasive facts, and they could only grit their teeths and swallow their objection.


    ¡°Where were we?¡± Roshan¡¯s brows creased into concentration, trying to recall their earlier conversation before he was interrupted. He snapped his finger when he finally remembered, and the air went still when an unfamiliar glint shed in his eyes.


    ¡°That¡¯s right, I was asking about the whereabouts of Luderick and if anyone has seeded in locating his hideout.¡± Leaning forward, he ced both arms on the table, intecing his fingers together and focusing his gaze on them.


    ¡°Answer me this, why haven¡¯t I gotten any positive responses yet?¡±


    It was obvious that Luderick was hiding himself from him, but that didn¡¯t lessen his fear because he was sure Luderick will definitelye for Anna if he ever finds out that she¡¯s alive, and his major fear was letting Anna fall into the hands of his evil uncle again.


    Where could he possibly be hiding??

 Chapter 212

    212 Getting A Massage


    Remaining in the quiet council chamber after everyone had left. Roshan rested his legs on the table, keeping them crossed and leaning his back against the chair to rx himself properly.


    He rubbed his forehead with his palm, feeling exhausted from the issue he had to settle concerning Luderick, and a soft weak sigh left his lips. He wasn¡¯t used to doing this sort of thing and his body was starting to ache a bit. Since it¡¯s his first time taking serious charge on Viscarrian matters, he has to learn to get used to it and that involves being wise in every decision he had to make, but the stress that came with it wasn¡¯t one he expected.


    Closing his eyes and taking his head back so he could regain some of his strength, he suddenly felt a pair of soft hand rest on his shoulders, giving it a satisfying squeeze with the right amount of pressure, and he found himself sighing at the relief it sent from his shoulder to his body, as though it reduced the heaviness weighing on them.


    He smelled her presence, and his lips curved into a knowing smile when he opened his eyes to see it was no one else but Anna. She was wearing a warm smile on her pretty face that made his heart flutter in reaction, and he didn¡¯t even realize how much he missed her till now.


    ¡°Your highness.¡±


    ¡°When did youe in?¡± He took her hand that was currently massaging his shoulder, dropping a kiss on it before letting his gaze fall to the woman who was standing behind the chair he sat on.


    ¡°A few minutes ago,¡± she responded, ¡°I knew you didn¡¯t sense my presence and it was easy to tell from your weariness.¡±


    ¡°Forgive me, I didn¡¯t expect-¡±


    ¡°I see no reason for you to apologize,¡± she cut him off before he couldplete his statement, ¡°I¡¯m not hurt by it, I¡¯m just worried that you shouldn¡¯t stress yourself over it too seriously to avoid affecting you mentally.¡±


    .....


    Taking her hands back, she ced them back on his shoulder, ¡°which is why I¡¯m here to help relieve you the best way I can, and that¡¯s by giving you a massage.¡± She herself was sounding more than excited to help him, he left early this morning and it was already getting to noon.


    When she went to his chamber and saw he hasn¡¯t returned yet, she chose toe here and check if they were done or not, and thankfully, the guards assigned outside the council chamber informed her that the higher Demons left not too long ago, and since they were aware of her rtionship with his highness, they let her in without needing to seek permission from Roshan.


    She saw how extremely down he was and this was just the first meeting. Roshan didn¡¯t grow up with learning how to rule a kingdom by his father, rather he was learning to survive instead of being taught how well he needed to rule his kingdom, so it wasn¡¯t much of a surprise that he¡¯d be weakened on his first time, and this is why Anna was more than willing to support him in anyway she could possibly be of help.


    Roshan felt his system rx when she continued with her massage, her touch were like feathers and his body would react whenever she squeezed his shoulder tenderly, he sensed how careful she was as though she was being extra careful not to overdo and hurt him, and he just smiled at how she took his care into consideration.


    ¡°Feeling better?¡± She asked, and he nodded, his eyelids were sealed shut as he silently enjoyed her hands on him, and Anna smiled, feeling happy that he loved her massage, and his facial expression only encouraged her to continue.


    ¡°If you keep up with this, I might as well be falling asleep sooner than I think.¡± He joked, letting his eyes flutter open and Anna saw no problem with that.


    ¡°Then sleep if you want to.¡±


    He shook his head, ¡°I have to leave, there¡¯s something important that I need to address in the other towns, plus I¡¯ll be visiting the governors to pick a date for when we¡¯ll take the problems in Viscarrian into discussion.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re leaving??¡± Anna¡¯s eyes widened in obvious shock, and she looked out the window, it wasn¡¯t raining snow anymore but it must be freezing outside.


    ¡°But the temperature outside must have dropped greatly, and-¡±


    Roshan¡¯s hand reached for the back of Anna¡¯s head and he pulled her head down to his face until their lips met for a quick kiss.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine.¡± He assured her. Even if he seeded in silencing the worried woman, it wasn¡¯t enough to make her worries disappear.


    ¡°When will you return?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be back before midnight.¡± He promised, but it gets even colder at night and that didn¡¯t settle with Anna.


    Anna wasn¡¯t the only one feeling it, even Roshan wasn¡¯t happy with the idea that he¡¯ll be returning sote at night. He wasn¡¯t even crowned yet and his time with Anna was already being limited.


    He remembered how he never got to see his father for a whole week when he ruled as king, except he foundfort in his father¡¯s absence. But he can¡¯t possibly say the same for Anna.


    A knock on the door interrupted their silent moment. Anna nned on shifting away but Roshan took hold of her arm before she could leave, letting it drape on his shoulder and he saw no reason why she had to hide when he was going to marry her soon.


    ¡°Come in.¡±


    A guard walked in, but after seeing his Highness wasn¡¯t alone, he proceeded to bow his head to avoid seeing what his eyes shouldn¡¯t.


    ¡°The carriages are ready to leave, your Highness.¡± He informed.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be out soon.¡±


    ¡°Sure thing, your Highness.¡± And he turned around to leave, closing the door behind him.


    Roshan finally got to his feet, stretching a little before turning around to look at Anna who was busy scanning him with worried eyes.


    ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re okay to leave?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not so weak Anna, I¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    His mantle that rested on the arm of the chair he sat, caught Anna¡¯s eyes and she quickly reached for it.


    ¡°Put this on.¡±


    ¡°My arms hurt, assist me.¡± He feigned pain, meanwhile his main intention was to make his lovely wife do it for him.


    Anna shook her head helplessly before helping him put on his mantle and fixing it properly, she stood in front him, viewing Roshan who appeared noble and with the features of a good king, a handsome one at that.


    ¡°Make sure to keep warm, and stay near a firece when having your discussion, and make sure you don¡¯t stand outside in the cold for too long.¡±


    ¡°Yes mother.¡±


    ¡°What??¡±


    He quickly pecked her lips before she could say anything else, startling her and leaving her cheeks tinted pink.


    ¡°Sleep in my room tonight, so I know I have something to run home to when I¡¯m done.¡± He winked sexily before giving her cheeks another peck and leaving the council chamber.


    Anna was speechless as she watched him exit the chamber, unable to utter a thing and in the end, she felt a solemn sense of happiness as her lips contorted to a smile.


    ***************


    Special thanks to Ariana_Sawyer, Robin_Williams_7418 and Ashley_Bridges_2516 for the golden tickets!! ?????

 Chapter 213

    213 The Nightmare


    ~


    The sounds of heavy boots stomping through the underground building echoed loudly in the forgotten quiet path. From the look of the ce, it appeared to be an abandoned building with several dark tunnels, each leading to different areas of the building, and the owner of those stomping boot sounds was heading into one of those tunnels.


    With a chain hanging around his shoulder, and his hand holding a small ss vial in his grasp, Luderick yfully twirled it in his fingers as he headed for the same door he had been visiting for the past few months. The tunnel was cold and dry, and each breath Luderick took led to cold smoke escaping his mouth.


    He had seeded in getting the right amount of blood he needed from that low-life human. He was a bit worried at first since she didn¡¯t fill the bowl to a satisfactory amount, but luckily for him, the ones on the bowl was just enough to make him aplish the second part of his n.


    Standing before the giant door, the brown double door magically opened for Luderick to step inside. He didn¡¯t even need to lift a finger, as though the door had already gotten acquainted with his presence and he proudly stepped in, the door closing shut behind him.


    He had told himself repeatedly that he wouldn¡¯t visit this dead ce until he gets Anna¡¯s blood, sinceing here would be a waste of use and of course, he didn¡¯t want to annoy whatever he nned on conjuring with too much of his unbearing presence.


    Looking at the coffin that rested in the middle of the room, it was already being nketed in white snow, and a slow, cunning, revealing smirk formed on Luderick¡¯s lips as he took a few steps towards the coffin.


    A strange whispering wind softly blew by, as though informing Luderick about something only he was capable of understanding, and his pure ck eyes glinted with insanity.


    ¡°Atst.¡±


    .....


    He stopped in his steps after standing before the coffin, wiping off the snow that rested on the top and letting his fingers run through the coffin board as a look of aplishment shed in his eyes. He has been eagerly waiting for this day and it took him a whole month to prepare Anna¡¯s blood for this.


    ¡°I brought you a little present.¡±


    He suddenly opened the coffin, causing a strange unpleasant air to escape from the opened coffin, and when he looked inside, his eyes widened slightly at whaty there.


    The broken skeleton of someone was ced in the coffin, and it was arranged ording to how it should be in the system of a human being. It appeared lifeless, and there was something about the skeleton that called Luderick¡¯s attention to it, that was his main reason for taking the coffin when he escaped Viscarrian.


    But what got to Luderick was the weird-looking worms that sheltered themselves inside the eyes and nose of the skull, and it made Luderick¡¯s nose wrinkle in disgust.


    ¡°This is an even more horrid sight than I imagined.¡± He cursed underneath his breath.


    Unfortunately, he needed to keep the coffin open for what he ns on doing. He has already wasted too much time with nning his goals and getting Anna¡¯s blood. He can¡¯t possibly afford to waste anymore with this, leaving him with only one option and that was to take the next step now.


    Taking a deep breath, Luderick began to utter strange chants under his breath, chants that were barely audible to the ears and as he continued uttering those dark magical chants, strange symbols magically started to round the coffin, lighting it up in a dark purple-ish glow but he didn¡¯t stop.


    Opening the vial half-filled with Anna¡¯s blood, he carefully poured the red liquid on the forehead of the skull, and that part where the blood had touched glowed in a strange light that spoke of chaos, unspeakable chaos that would be unleashed to the world, earning a satisfying smile from Luderick.


    When he was done chanting, he quickly closed the coffin and used a chain to keep it in ce so it doesn¡¯t snap open, and the moment he was done chaining the coffin, the coffin immediately jerked, gaining Luderick¡¯s attention and it stopped.


    A few silent seconds passed by, the coffin jerked again, as though whatever was trapped inside was trying to force its way out, and it jerked for the third time, with more violence intended and it stopped.


    ¡± Today is not the right day toe out, let¡¯s wait until tomorrow.¡± He said, before letting out an evil dark chuckle, stepping out of the room and closing the door behind him.


    ~


    Meanwhile, Anna who was sound asleep kept tossing on the bed like someone who was having a terrible nightmare.


    She turned to the left when disturbing chants began sounding in her head, and she turned the other way in an attempt to get rid of those chants. But it seemed like the more she tried to ignore it, the louder it became like a haunting luby.


    ¡°Nngh! Go away!¡± She whispered, instinctively covering her ears and trying to get rid of the strange voices in her head, but all that was to no avail. Vague images shed before her and what she saw was an unfamiliar dark ce, she couldn¡¯t make out where the ce was, neither was she familiar with it, but there was something lying in the middle...


    It looked like a coffin, or maybe not?? When Anna¡¯s mind abruptly zoomed in on the coffin, there was something inside, or rather someone and when those eyes opened, it glinted in a bloody red.


    ¡°Anna!¡±


    A frightening gasp tore from her lips when someone shook her, and her eyes instantly snapped open. Fear gripped her heart and when she turned to the soothing voice that had called out her name and saved her from that nightmare, she found Roshan lying beside her, his brows furrowed into worry as he searched her face.


    ¡°Anna?¡±


    He saw the panic that red in her big eyes as her gaze remained locked on him, it was cold, but his Anna was currently sweating as though she had been battling with something. He didn¡¯t need anyone to tell him that she was having a nightmare, afterall he was the one who woke her up from it.


    He proceeded to ask softly, his toneced with concern, ¡°are you alright?¡±

 Chapter 214

    214 Paying A Visit


    Anna steadily averted her gaze from his, a sense of fear gnawed at her stomach and her mind remained unsettled, like there were thousands of unexinable thoughts running in them. She kept staring at his room like she was in a new unfamiliar strange ce. She was sweating and her fingers clutched tightly against the base of the duvet, the shock evident in her brown eyes.


    ¡°Hey.¡±


    It was only after Roshan made her look at him did she gain herself a little bit, and she pressed her lips tightly together, forming a thin line. Her eyes carefully raked over him, and she exhaled freely when her brain processed it to be Roshan lying beside her.


    ¡°Roshan?¡±


    He was dressed in his night robe to her surprise, and Anna couldn¡¯t recall if she saw hime in. She remembered sitting on the bed and restlessly waiting for his return, feeling worried that he was starting to spend a longer time outside.


    When she fell asleep herself still didn¡¯t ring a bell in her head.


    ¡°Having nightmares again?¡± He asked, keeping his voice low and calm, and it took a few seconds of pondering before Anna nodded her head in response, tears gleamed in her eyes as she silently expressed how the dream had frightened her. She didn¡¯t understand the dream, neither can she remember it but it left her heart hammering rapidly against her chest.


    ¡°Come here.¡±


    Roshan pulled her into his arms the moment he noticed how the terror had streaked her,forting her with his warm presence and Anna melted in his embrace, unable to go back to sleep as she just remained awake in his arms, trembling slightly while her eyelids where tightly sealed shut.


    .....


    ¡°It¡¯s just a dream,¡± he consoled in a soothing tone, ¡°don¡¯t be frightened, and go back to sleep.¡±


    Arching her head up, she looked into Roshan¡¯s eyes and hesitated for a few seconds before opening her trembling lips to speak, ¡°will..... you ever leave me?¡± She asked a question that made Roshan¡¯s brows knit in puzzlement.


    She was unsure of why she asked something so absurd when he literally loves her, but there was this unknown dread that made her guts twist in fear, and she was afraid of being separated from Roshan again.


    ¡°I¡¯ll never leave you Anna,¡± he assured her before pulling at her nose cutely, ¡°don¡¯t trouble your brain with all these negative thoughts, and try to get some sleep instead.¡±


    Pulling her into his hold again, Anna smiled, feeling even more rxed and at ease since she had Roshan to hold on to. Heforted her all through the night till she eventually fell asleep.


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª


    The next morning.....


    Roshan had to leave the Viscarrian Pce as early as dawn for something important that came up regarding Luderick. Unwilling to disturb Anna since she was still sound asleep on the mattress, he decided to leave a note on the bedside table, exining his whereabouts just in case she wakes up and doesn¡¯t see him around.


    When Anna was done reading the letter he had dropped for her, she released a sigh before letting her shoulders drop in displeasure, and the look on her face didn¡¯t express any happiness as her brows creased slightly, her eyes already distant from the present.


    He left earlier today than any other usual day, goodness knows what time he returnedst night that he had to leave again. And she bet he didn¡¯t sleep well since he spent the night trying to ease her to sleep, and now he¡¯s gone without even having enough rest and she can¡¯t help but me herself for this again.


    She sighed for the second time when she felt a headache creeping its way into her head and she rxed. She knew she wasn¡¯t supposed to stress herself like Roshan told her to, but what can she do when her thoughts majorly revolve around his well-being??


    ¡°Urgh! Why do I feel so dizzy.¡± She muttered, cing a hand to her forehead and keeping her eyes closed for a few minutes in order to stabilize herself. Since she woke up, she¡¯s been feeling unnecessarily dizzy and she couldn¡¯t understand why.


    ¡®Maybe it¡¯s still effects of the meteor mark?¡¯ she inwardly thought to herself. Whenever she stresses her mind too much, she ends up triggering the meteor mark which leads to dizziness, and although it¡¯s gone, it might take time for her body to get used to acting normal without having the meteor mark make her head spin.


    Giving herself a mental shock, Anna chose to keep herself brightened today, and since there was nothing for her to do with Roshan not around, maybe this is the right time she paid Calista a visit.


    They only saw on her birthday and it was for a brief moment. Since she¡¯s free today, she might as well use it to spend quality time with Calista, and hopefully, she meets Calista in the pce since the princess can be a bit fond of taking the carriage through town.


    Getting to her feet, Anna quickly hurried to do her morning duties, and by that we¡¯re talking about brushing her teeth, taking her bath, washing her hair and getting herself dressed in a beautiful ck gown thatid on her bed, also putting on some warm cloak made from thick fur to keep herself sheltered from the cold.


    When she was done dressing up, she stepped out of the room, and luckily for her, she ran into Azazel who was strolling through the corridor, and he also halted at the sight of Anna.


    ¡°Greetings, your highness.¡± She bowed with a charming smile disying on her lips, but Azazel shook his head in disapproval before uttering cooly.


    ¡°I never liked being addressed with that word, Azazel will be much preferable.¡±


    ¡°Really?!¡± Anna was surprised, and her eyes that had gone round in stupefaction proved that. She wasn¡¯t close to Azazel as she was to Levi, and she was most of the time afraid of him despite how calm and presentable he always appeared.


    She was genuinely happy that he was starting to talk with her more frequently, which is why she was able to summon enough courage to ask for his favor.


    ¡°Your high- I mean... Azazel,¡± she corrected with a happy smile, ¡°can you do me a quick favor by taking me to the Euphrasia pce, I_I want to pay princess Calista a visit and was wondering if you could-¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to ask,¡± Azazel cut her off, ¡°you¡¯re part of the Astaroth family now, and my brother¡¯s future wife, so don¡¯t hesitate to ask me for anything, and I¡¯ll provide it as long as it¡¯s within my capabilities.¡± He assured her, and Anna¡¯s eyes expressed her silent joy before she bowed her head gratefully.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    ¡°Are you ready to leave?¡±


    She nodded. Holding her wrist, Anna moved to stand beside him, and in no time, they both vanished from the corridor.


    ********


    Hello Readers!


    We just crossed 200priv unlock, if we¡¯re able to make it to 300priv unlock before the end of the month, I¡¯ll give a mass release of 4 to 5 chapters at the beginning of next month (New Year) <3333


    Happy Holidays!

 Chapter 215

    215 Luderick¡¯s Hideout


    Standing in front of the big golden-colored gate of the Euphrasian pce, Anna looked at Azazel with a grateful smile, then bowed her head slightly to show her genuine respect to him.


    ¡°Thank you for bringing me here.¡± She said in appreciation, and Azazel just responded with a slight nod, although he didn¡¯t smile, the look on his face showed that he had no problem bringing her here, and it eased Anna¡¯s heart to see they were both getting on well.


    After ending their conversation, Anna quickly turned around so she could head into the pce, but suddenly stopped in her steps as though she just thought of something, leading her eyes to brighten in reaction to the warm thought.


    Turning around to look at Azazel, he was about to leave, but before he could do that, Anna hurried back to him, stopping him from leaving just yet and Azazel¡¯s gaze naturally fixed themselves on her.


    ¡°Do you want toe in as well?¡± She asked, thinking it would be impolite to leave him standing outside the cold after he brought her here, but Azazel shook his head in demurral, his demeanor still the same and he didn¡¯t look excited or anxious about it, he was that enigmatic.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure Calista would like to see you again, and you don¡¯t have to worry about being a demon, I¡¯m sure no one will even have a hint since you¡¯re no physically different from humans.¡±


    She suggested, but apart from wanting Azazel toe with her, she was very anxious to step into the same pce that had nned her execution, and she wasn¡¯t sure she¡¯d be able to go in by herself, all alone without having shbacks of that very awful day she had to flee.


    ¡°I have something important to attend to,¡± Azazel came up with an excuse, ¡°forgive me if I sound rude by turning down your favor, but I won¡¯t be able to-¡±


    ¡°Anna?!¡± Came the surprised tone of Calista who was standing at the front yard, and when Anna turned around to look at her, Calista¡¯s face brightened with delight to see it was really Annalise.


    .....


    She was finding it a little boring staying inside the pce with nothing to do, and since she couldn¡¯t get rid of Azazel¡¯s face from her head, she decided to take a little walk in the front yard that had been adorned with snow itself.


    A few servants could be spotted sweeping the snow away from the threshold and clearing the concrete path. Calista didn¡¯t know she¡¯d get to be surprised with the presence of the two people her mind had been thinking of non-stop.


    Anna waved at her from outside, and Calista immediately called the guard.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you at your post? Go! Open the gate for them!¡±


    ¡°As you say princess Calista.¡± The guard hurriedly went to open the gate for them.


    Anna looked at Azazel who was looking at her as well, his disinterest toe in with her wasn¡¯t something that Anna could ignore, but she couldn¡¯t let him leave just like that.


    ¡°You muste in and have even if it¡¯s a cup of tea before you leave. In the Euphrasian pce, we don¡¯t let important guests leave without treating them to something.¡±


    Holding Azazel¡¯s wrist, Anna dragged the baffled white-haired demon with her, and they both stepped in through the gate. Azazel wasn¡¯t particrly sure how he was supposed to avoid this when Anna had dragged him in without warning. He wasn¡¯t ready to see that talkative princess but how can he say it without sounding rude?


    The guards and the servants felt their jaws drop the moment Anna walked in. Those who were sweeping were more than shocked with her presence, to the extent their brooms fell from their grasp, which they hurriedly picked back up before the head-maid spots them.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the cursed Anna?¡± Whispered a servant to another.


    ¡°She looks so different!¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯s the stranger with her?¡±


    ¡°Anna.¡± Calista¡¯s arms were wide open for Anna, and the grinningdy didn¡¯t hesitate to embrace her as the two of them hugged affectionately in a sisterly manner.


    ¡°Surprised?¡± Anna asked after pulling away and Calista nodded with the excitement disying in her blue eyes.


    ¡°More than surprised.¡± Her gaze shifted to Azazel who was standing beside Anna, and he was already giving her looks that she shouldn¡¯t say a word to him, but then, Calista wasn¡¯t the type who listened to him in the first ce.


    ¡°I¡¯m even more surprised to see you here.¡± She directed her words at Azazel who frowned immediately.


    ¡°Care for some tea?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯d love to.¡± Anna responded on his behalf.


    ¡°It¡¯s cold out here, let¡¯s go inside.¡±


    Calista turned around and headed into the pce, and as she did, Azazel suddenly realized the benefits of staying behind. With Calista inviting them both, he¡¯ll find the perfect opportunity to take a look in the pce, and figure out where the Valerian sword is kept.


    As much as it hurt his ego to even agree to stay, the advantage that came with it was the only thing pushing him forward.


    Anna was the first step to go in, and Azazel followed afterwards.


    ¡ª¡ª¨C


    ¡°What is this ce?¡± Roshan¡¯s voice echoed repeatedly as he made his way into the underground tunnel, his guards following behind him as they scanned the danky area as well.


    It smelled of dead vermin and along with it came another very unpleasant smell that nearly made Roshan throw up. Demons had a sense of smell that made every scent five times stronger than that of a normal human being.


    The walls had w marks on them, as well as blood stains that caught Roshan¡¯s every attention, and he took each mark into careful consideration.


    Early this morning, Enzo had critically reported on sensing strong ck magic somewhere in Euphrasia, and who¡¯s magic could be so toxic if it isn¡¯t Luderick¡¯s.


    Making his way in, the ce was definitely unhealthy, even for animals, and he didn¡¯t miss the graveyard that was right behind the underground building. Even the spirits here aren¡¯t at peace with the energy, which means Luderick was definitely here.


    ¡°So he¡¯s been hiding in Euphrasia.¡± Roshan muttered to himself, still trying to understand Luderick¡¯s main intention here, but his thoughts were disrupted when one of his guards suddenly rushed over to him.


    ¡°Your highness,¡± the rm in his voice caught Roshan¡¯s intention immediately, and when he stood before Roshan, he bowed his head.


    ¡°There¡¯s something I think you need to see, your Highness.¡±

 Chapter 216

    216 The Owner Of The Coffin


    Leading the way for Roshan, the guard who had ran to him earlier suddenly went through another different- darker tunnel that carried a bizarre dynamism, and Roshan followed after realizing he hasn¡¯t scouted this area yet, quizzically wondering what lies at the end of this particr tunnel, and he hoped whatever his guard saw was going to be worth his time checking.


    Luderick was nowhere to be seen in the empty building, and the cier himself was already feeling eager that he would see his uncle face to face after a long time, and possibly finish the battle from where they started before it even got to this. But it still surprised Roshan that Luderick always manages to flee before he arrives, as though he was already aware that they¡¯de looking for him.


    Roshan and his guards halted when they stood before a big wooden double door, but whaty inside wasn¡¯t even one of their biggest problems. There was no door knob, or any door handle that would ease someone into opening the door, as though someone had gotten rid of it. And based on how tightly it was jammed, Roshan could easily conclude that the door was locked, his eyes observing it from top to bottom as he took a step back.


    ¡°Break it open.¡± Hemanded.


    Two of his guards stepped forward at his order and gave the door a powerful hard kick, leading the door to immediately jolt open, to the extent the hinges of the door broke due to the pressure applied to it. An eerie silence followed after the door was forced open, revealing the inside to everyone standing at the threshold.


    Roshan quietly stepped in, and when his guards nned on following him in, he quickly raised his hand, making them stop in their tracks and they dutifully waited outside. There was something disturbing about this particr room he ventured into, so for everyone¡¯s safety, it¡¯d be wise enough if he took a look at it alone.


    Stepping deeper into the empty room, Roshan¡¯s gaze traveled up the walls that had the same blood stters on them, except they had dried up with time, and it felt as though Roshan could hear the screams of those innocent people as Luderick drank them dry, he could sense the things that has happened here and they were unutterable.


    The look on his face expressed his disgust as he averted his gaze from the bloodied wall.


    ¡°Your Highness, are you sure you don¡¯t want us toe in?¡± Asked Enzo, who was more concerned with helping his Highness solve these puzzles, but Roshan shook his head before letting out a sigh.


    .....


    ¡°No,¡± he articted conscientiously, ¡°if I need you I know when to call you in, keep on guard for anything outside and stay alert.¡±


    ¡°Yes, your Highness.¡±


    Enzo and the rest of the guards remained where they were just like Roshan had ordered, and they made sure to stay at alert, their hands reaching for their sword, just in case, to be prepared for any unexpected surprises.


    Roshan continued with his investigation, his eyes scrutinizing the room carefully, and when he turned to look at whaty in the middle of the dark foreboding room, he noticed a brown coffin, a coffin big enough to fit a human body inside of it resting there.


    He stopped walking, as though the sight of a coffin lying in the middle of an empty room had thrown him off guard, and his eyes widened slightly. There was a graveyard at the back of the building, he saw it on his way into the building and that made his brows crease in cognition


    Did Luderick stupidly decide to dig one out?


    The coffin was closed, and there was this odd lingering presence that filled the entire room the moment his eyesnded on it. He didn¡¯t understand the aura he felt in this ce, and the presence he sensed wasn¡¯t the type he¡¯d sense when Luderick was nearby, which means someone else was here?


    ¡°But a coffin?¡±


    Why would Luderick need a coffin??


    Reaching for the middle of the room, Roshan wasted no time opening the strange coffin, but to his even greater shock, there was nothing inside of it. It appeared empty and neat like it had never been used before.


    ¡°Its empty?¡±


    Roshan was more than confused at this point. He doesn¡¯t know what he was expecting to find inside the coffin, but the emptiness had left him with many more questions. Driven by the will to get some answers, Roshan closed the coffin and looked at the coffin board, hoping to find any imprint of who the owner of the coffin belonged to, and what year the owner died, but to his disappointment, there was nothing written on it.


    ¡°Darn it!!!¡± He got to his feet and stepped out of the room. The seriousness in his expression had turned so cold that even his guards who were standing outside, shivered slightly when he walked by, and they could tell their Highness was not in a good mood at all, leaving them wondering what the situation might be.


    They silently followed him out without uttering anything, afraid they might say something that would lead him into unleashing their anger on them.


    ¡°Enzo.¡± Roshan called his name, and the guard instantly rushed to his side, walking beside him and keeping to his pace.


    ¡°Yes, your Highness.¡±


    ¡°Bring the coffin to the pce, lock it somewhere in the dungeon and keep it under serious surveince.¡±


    Roshan wasn¡¯t sure why, but he has a feeling that whoever owned that coffin would definitely want it back.


    ¡ª¡ª-


    Standing at the top of an abandoned tower that was half destroyed, a youngdy peered out through the window, looking at the snow coverednd and she inhaled deeply while closing her eyes, unsure of thest time she got to breathe and enjoy the cold air of nature.


    Exhaling through the lips, her moment of reunion was interrupted by Luderick who stood behind her, watching the woman smile to herself while staring out the window. Her chocte-brown eyes appeared empty with not a single emotion disying in them, despite carrying an expressive smile on her lips.


    ¡°We still have unfinished business to deal with.¡± Luderick informed, reminding thedy that she was brought back to life for a reason and shouldn¡¯t get swayed with reality already.


    Turning around to look at Luderick, her eyes glinted sharply.


    ¡°I want my coffin back.¡±

 Chapter 217

    217 Seeing Adryan (1)


    ~


    Striding through the exquisite hallway with Anna and Azazel following behind, the twodies happily indulge themselves in a friendly conversation while the less interested Azazel was more focused on how to escape from the two women, so he can search the pce and figure out where the Valerian sword is kept.


    The servants that walked by with their heads bowed politely greeted them, and their gazes were most of the time fixed on Anna or Azazel who barely noticed their dumbfounded reaction.


    ¡°Forgive me but why is everywhere so....dull?¡± Anna asked after she was silently done inspecting the pce. They already had their tea and while they did that, Anna noticed how somber the pce appeared, like there was no one around despite knowing how busy the pce of Euphrasia easily gets. She asked about the physician as well, but was told he went to observe a prayer.


    ¡°What can I say?¡± Calista began in a bleak tone, her forehead forming a thin line due to the unfavorable situation urring in the pce, ¡°nothing has been going right since the moment you left. Father is sick, and mother has been trying her very best to take care of him. Adryan¡¯s still recovering and I¡¯m lost on how to deal with everything happening.¡±


    ¡°His Majesty is unwell?!¡± That part came as a quick shock to Anna, unbeknownst to the twodies, Azazel had used their medium of distraction to sneak off as he quietly followed another direction, heading up the stairs unnoticed.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Calista nodded, ¡°he¡¯s beening down with a strange fever for the past two months. The physician has been of great help to father¡¯s illness, and he even provides the herbs used in treating Adryan¡¯s wound.¡± She added, sounding grateful to the physician else, she would have given up just like her mother.


    Pressing her lips together at the thought of Adryan and his condition, Anna looked at Calista with a requesting gaze.


    ¡°Where¡¯s his Highness Adryan?¡±


    .....


    ¡°In his chamber.¡± Calista responded. Her brother had basically refused to see anyone, not even his wife was permitted to enter his room and since he¡¯s meant to be ruler, Calista couldn¡¯t let him have an emotional breakdown when the war was only beginning.


    ¡°Can I see him?¡± Anna requested. She has seen exactly what Roshan did to him, and no doubt, Adryan would have been burnt alive if she didn¡¯t stop Roshan on time.


    To Anna¡¯s surprise, Calista shook her head in disapproval, a look of indignation contorting her facial features, ¡°no Anna, he tried to kill you, remember? So let him regret his every action, he needs to realize that he¡¯s treated you unfairly and for that, you won¡¯t see him.¡±


    ¡°But he wasn¡¯t aiming the arrow at me,¡± Anna quickly exined, ¡°I just took the hit, he never nned on hitting me intentionally.¡±


    ¡°Well he still hit you Anna and you died,¡± Calista still remained unshaken with her response, ¡°besides, I¡¯m not sure his wife would fancy her husband being close to another woman.¡±


    ¡°His wife?¡± Anna¡¯s eyes widened in obvious discernment, ¡°Adryan¡¯s married?!¡±


    Calista nodded, her pretty face crinkling into one of irritation, ¡°I loathed her since the first time we crossed past, you might not know her but she¡¯s annoying when saying sweet things.¡±


    Anna just blinked, she wasn¡¯t sure why the news of Adryan getting married had stunned the life out of her, but fortunately she wasn¡¯t feeling bad about it either. If she was still her former self, who didn¡¯t know Adryan¡¯s true feelings for her till this day, she¡¯d bepletely shattered by now.


    ¡°I just want to see him.¡± Anna pushed on, she wanted to settle things once and for all rather than hiding herself from everyone, and again, the meteor mark is gone, so there¡¯s absolutely nothing that can be said to her.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure he¡¯ll be ready to see anyone,¡± Calista admitted, ¡°he¡¯s yet to ovee the shock of what happened to him, the fact he nearly lost his life, and he keeps having nightmares of the person who tried to hurt him. The physician said he¡¯s having a problem handling it mentally.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯ll be fine.¡± Anna consoled while cing aforting hand on Calista¡¯s shoulder. She knew that despite trying to prove herself strong in front of everyone, Calista must be deeply worried about her brother, even if she ns to act just.


    ¡°Let me see him first.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡±


    Anna nodded, earning a half smile from Calista, and the princess straightened herself again.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll take you to his chambers.¡±


    Calista was willing to show her the way, but Anna shook her head, ¡°I¡¯m not a stranger in the pce I grew up in, I¡¯m still acquainted with the directions and haven¡¯t forgotten, but I¡¯ll need your help with something.¡±


    ¡°Tell me.¡±


    ¡°Can you help me find Azazel?¡± Turning around, the twodies finally took it into consideration that the charming white-haired demon was nowhere to be seen.


    ¡°I think we might have lost him.¡± Anna pointed out worriedly, but Calista gave her an assuring look.


    ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯s around somewhere, I¡¯ll go look for him and bring him to you so he doesn¡¯t enter the wrong ces.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡± Anna smiled gratefully, ¡°I¡¯ll go now.¡±


    After that, Calista and Anna departed.


    Annalise went up the stairs, still using her memories of the pce to locate Adryan¡¯s chamber and she doubts she could easily forget it. When she was still little, they¡¯d y games together just outside his room, and his royal parents didn¡¯t mind it at all when he yed with a mere servant like her.


    He wasn¡¯t only her childhood friend, but they did a lot of things together that made their friendship grow stronger, so strong that if she was told things would eventually end like this, she¡¯d call that person a terrible liar. Whenever Adryan trained, he made sure Calista and herself were present to learn with him, he motivated them, and was always avable to show his unconditional support whenever she needed one.


    Just how did he change so drastically??


    Stopping in front of the door that led to his bedchamber, Anna¡¯s gaze remained fixed on it for a while, as though she was pondering on whether or not to leave. She grew anxious all of a sudden and her heart drummed, knowing that she hasn¡¯te face to face with Adryan since he returned.


    Taking a deep breath, with the choices right in front of her, she proceeded to knock on the door, but an angry voice spoke from the other end, startling her to her wits.


    ¡°Whoever it is should get away from my door! I thought I made it clear not to be disturbed?!! Leave or else¨C¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s... it¡¯s me.¡± Anna quickly spoke up, cutting him off before he could finish his words that expressed his silent pain.


    ¡°It¡¯s Anna.¡±

 Chapter 218

    218 Seeing Adryan (2)


    An unbeatable silence followed when Anna was done mentioning her name. She heard nothing else, not even a e in¡¯ from him, and she was genuinely concerned if he had done something to himself or not. After waiting for a minute and slowly giving up, Anna finally heard his voice.


    ¡°Come in.¡±


    At his permission, Anna opened the door and walked in. She stepped into his room, quietly closing the door behind her like someone who was being extremely cautious not to make a noise. But as Anna ventured in further, she noticed the pieces of broken ssying on the ground, leaving her forehead to crease worriedly at the sight.


    What if someone identally steps on these broken shards? There were basically all over the ce, and Anna could easily tell Adryan had started throwing things in a fit of rage again. Carefully walking past them, she headed for the mattress where Adryan was sitting on.


    He was sitting up on his mattress, leaning his back against the headboard and for a split second, Anna found him unrecognizable due to his current state. At this point, he was looking haggard, his brown hair was a total mess on his head, his eyes had turned red-rimmed from crying to himself all day, and his bandaged leg was stretched forward against the mattress.


    When Anna came into full view, the corner of Adryan¡¯s eyes crinkled in half-disbelief, but when she moved closer and he saw her face more clearly, his crinkled eyes widened tremendously at the sight of her. When he heard her voice, he thought he was daydreaming as usual, he thought her ghost was here to haunt him, but seeing her stand in front of him erased all of that.


    She looked different from the Anna he knew, she was glowing and appeared more youthful, she was dressed in an elegant off-shoulder raven-ck gown with puffed long sleeves, putting on the matching cloak and her unusual ck-brown hair was stylishly tied in a ponytail, making her appear decent and attractively beautiful.


    The mark he usually see¡¯s on her head were gone, and she looked nothing like thedy from a low-status anymore. She looked more like a gothic Queen due to the dress she was wearing, adding to the mystery revolving around her.


    At themendable transformation in front of him, a lone tear descended from his red-rimmed eyes, rolling down to his cheeks, and he shamefully lowered his gaze, feeling extremely foolish with himself that he felt like hitting himself all day.


    .....


    Anna fell speechless the moment he broke down in front of her, and she nearly asked what the matter was, but managed to seal her lips on time. He looked nothing like the Adryan she once knew, he appeared helpless in front of her, and Anna couldn¡¯t help but pity him. Regardless, she chose not to reveal it and kept her demeanor firm, unwilling to show any sympathy towards him.


    ¡°You¡¯re alive.¡± He articted breathlessly, still finding it unbelievable, cause he saw her state before his guards had taken him away. The arrow had aimed straight for her heart, so how is it possible she survived it? He was happy she did but he was still wondering how the magic happened.


    Anna said nothing in response, the look in her brown irises made him realize that he wasn¡¯t in a state to even talk to her, but regardless of how guilty he felt, he continued, ¡°are you here to kill me for what I did to you?¡±


    He asked, because he saw no better reason for her toe into his room without having this intention in mind. He knew what he did to her, so it¡¯s neutral for him to expect his death in her hands.


    As though responding to his words, Anna moved forward to pick the knife that was resting on his side table. Adryan¡¯s gaze didn¡¯t miss her action, neither did he react, he didn¡¯t have the strength to, and he wasn¡¯t going to plead or stop her from doing what her mind intends to do to him.


    ¡°What makes you think a man like yourself deserves to die in my hands?¡± She quizzed, holding the knife by the hilt and keeping her piercing gaze on Adryan who still hasn¡¯t refused to meet her gaze. He felt he had no right to look at her, he didn¡¯t deserve it and he understood her hatred towards him, which is why he was willing to ept any form of punishment from her.


    ¡°Do as you wish Anna, I won¡¯t stop you.¡± He gave her the go-ahead, closing his eyes and waiting for the urrence that would fall on him. Anna¡¯s hold against the hilt tightened, and she moved to stab Adryan with the knife in a quick skillful move.


    STAB!!


    Adryan¡¯s eyes tightly sealed shut as a shaky gasp escaped him. He was expecting the searing pain that came along with the stab, but he felt nothing to his quick surprise, leading his eyes to open and instead of him being stabbed, Anna had stabbed the headboard instead, just close to the side of his head and she left the knife there.


    He met her emotionless gaze, a bit stunned she didn¡¯t kill him, and Anna uttered in a dry tone.


    ¡°I¡¯m not here to kill you, that¡¯s the major difference between us.¡± She told him before permitting herself to sit beside his bed. Adryan didn¡¯t think he had felt more terrible in his life as he did today. Hisshes were wet from the tears trying to escape his eyes, and he still didn¡¯t look at Anna.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± That was all he could say, he felt so terrible like a thousand ants were biting the guilt out of his heart.


    ¡°How¡¯s your leg?¡± She asked, ignoring his words of apology. Adryan¡¯s gazended on his leg and he let out a sigh when the wound still ached, he had dislocated his knee-bone when his leg got stuck to the ground, and he¡¯s been having nightmares of that day ever since, he even see¡¯s the stranger responsible in his room most times, which exins the broken sses cause he kept throwing things at the shadowy figure.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Looking at his leg, it was fully bandaged from his knee to the sole of his feet, but Anna couldn¡¯t tell if he was healing or not.


    ¡°Can you move it?¡±


    He shook his head, ¡°it¡¯s still badly damaged.¡± He told her, ¡°the physician said something like I might not be able to walk again, but it all depends on how well my leg responds to treatment.¡± He exined and even tried to move his leg for Anna to see, but he gave up before he tried properly.


    ¡°You will walk,¡± Anna assured him with a straight face, ¡°but my words won¡¯t help if you don¡¯t help yourself first, youck nutrients, and you¡¯ve been in bed for heaven knows how long. Calista told me everything, and if you think avoiding everyone will make you feel better, then you¡¯re only hurting yourself.¡±


    She looked at the untouched meal on his side table before returning her gaze back to him, ¡°remember how Calista and I always told you how good of a king you¡¯d be when you grow up,¡± Anna said to him, ¡°you broke your arm once while trying to learn how to ride a horse, and that Adryan still got up despite the torture and pain it brought. He feared nothing and always did the best he could to remain strong, and he was his father¡¯s pride.¡±


    She looked at him, sizing him up with her indifferent stare, ¡± that was the Adryan I knew, you¡¯re not Adryan, what happened to the real Adryan?¡± She asked, ¡°I¡¯m not here as a stranger if that¡¯s what you¡¯re thinking, but as your childhood friend, the one whom you normally sneak out withte at night to y games with, that is the person sitting in front of you, so talk to me.¡±


    Slowly, he raised his head up to look at Anna, and he saw no hatred in her twinkling eyes, indeed, she was staring at him the same way she always looked at him when they were younger, and it only summoned more tears down his eyes, leaving his eyes to shimmer in reaction.


    ¡°When I left Euphrasia..¡± he began with his eyes closed, ¡°the ce father took me to, I was still younger when I was told to join the military by the man who ruled that kingdom, and since father had this rule of putting discipline in the heir to his throne, I had to leave, and I got influenced negatively.¡±


    ¡°I know I hurt you deeply Anna, you were waiting for me toe save you, but I was aware of everything Arlow did to you, I knew he framed you up from the start but I was blinded by ego and the major difference between us.¡± His voice grew tight, and Anna turned away from him, swallowing the lump in her throat to keep herself from tearing up as well.


    ¡°I let the rumors get to my head, they called you cursed and I believed it, they said you¡¯d bring bad luck if I ever got married to you and I believed it, they called you inhuman and I¨C¡± he stopped, smacking his forehead at his own stupidity.


    ¡°It took me a while to realize the biggest mistake I made, Anna, and it was letting you go and betraying your trust from the very beginning.¡± He looked at her, but Anna had turned her face away, trying to still maintain her demeanor and keeping herselfposed.


    ¡°No amount of apology can make you forgive me, I know, but I¡¯m grateful you came to see me Anna, despite the fact I nearly took your life with my own hands.¡±


    He sounded genuinely sorry, and he looked emotionally traumatized. Anna felt d Calista hadn¡¯t seen him yet, else she¡¯d be even more dispirited by all of this.


    ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, can I ask you something?¡± Adryan raised a question, and Anna remained mute for a while. She finally looked at him, her face void of all emotions.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°How did you end up in the Demon¡¯s den?¡±

 Chapter 219

    219 An Old Friend


    Anna¡¯s brows snapped together at his question, ¡°how beneficial is that information to you?¡±


    ¡°Beneficial?¡± Adryan¡¯s brows furrowed slightly, ¡°no no, I didn¡¯t mean it like that,¡± he shook his head, seeing as she¡¯s misinterpreted his intention, ¡°what I meant to say was your presence in thend of Demons hade as a shock to me.¡± He quickly exined before she got the wrong idea.


    Last time he heard of Anna, she ran into the dark woods, and almost everyone thought she had died after crossing the boundary and going in, but to his biggest surprise, he saw her in thend of Demons, and she bravely took a hit for the frightening red-eyed demon that tried to end him at the spot.


    When did she be close to Demons despite knowing their history? Did going into the dark woods made her encounter them? Was that why the guards Arlow¡¯s sent to fetch her didn¡¯t return?


    ¡°I could tell you,¡± the corner of Anna¡¯s mouth quirked up as she finally said something, ¡°but I¡¯m not sure how capable you are to handle it.¡±


    She turned her head to Adryan who¡¯s face went nk. There was something dark about her tone, and it made Adryan shudder impulsively like he truly wasn¡¯t prepared to hear it. He¡¯s aware of the Demon that was sealed, and he¡¯s also aware that it escaped, but if the Demon isn¡¯t there anymore, why is the dark woods still dark???


    It is said that the sealed Demon was the reason why the woods appeared dark, a sign that led to many avoiding what lies in the dark woods, so if the sealed Demon isn¡¯t there anymore, how can the lingering darkness be exined??


    ¡°Are you.....one of them?¡± He asked, and she tilted her head at him.


    ¡°Do I look like one?¡±


    .....


    His mouth snapped shut before the words he nned on saying could slip out. If Anna was a demon or not, he couldn¡¯t tell and he didn¡¯t want to know. Practically, Anna had been a mystery right from childhood, and that was why he took interest in her, because he wanted to unwrap the mystery that covered her true nature.


    But when people started to frighten him with those strange mysteries surrounding her, that she wasn¡¯t human, that she was a cursed girl who only knew how to cause havoc, it got to him. Some even made mention of her mother not being aplete human like her daughter, so those things got to his head and he chose to get rid of her before time ran out.


    Noticing how mute he was, Anna suddenly got to her feet, and her movement snapped Adryan back to reality, and to his surprise, she was heading for the door.


    ¡°Wait- you¡¯re leaving already?¡± The questions slipped before he could bite his tongue, and based on how he sounded, it was clear he didn¡¯t want her to leave just yet.


    Anna halted in her steps, without turning around to look at him, she said, ¡°I¡¯m done with you, I need to see his majesty since he¡¯s unwell. You should focus more on getting better and making sure you walk again, nobody wants a leader who¡¯s bound to his bed.¡± With that being said, she walked out his room, shutting the door with a bang sound and Adryan blinked, obviously taken aback by Anna¡¯s sudden personality.


    She was the weak type, always tolerant with every behavior used on her, and she was the girl who hid herself inside a shell. Her change of personality although shocked him to the core, he was actually impressed with it, and he¡¯ll see to it that he earns her forgiveness.


    Stepping out of Adryan¡¯s chamber, Anna was on her way to see his Majesty next when she ran into Lady Yulia who was about to step into Adryan¡¯s chamber, and the twody¡¯s unintentionally bumped into one another.


    Yulia was holding a bowl of soup on a tray, but some of it had poured out and stained the tray, leaving her to raise her ring eyes on the person who dared to run into her.


    ¡°Do you have eyes at the back of your head?¡± Anger overtook her face, and Anna, who didn¡¯t mean for any of this to happen, was about to apologize when Lady Yulia suddenly raised a hand, rudely silencing her.


    ¡°Save your apologies, I¡¯ve ran into enough miscreants for a day, nobody seems to know how to do things right in this pce.¡± She vexed, eyeing Anna from head to toe with a strange look, and it finally dawned on her that she hadn¡¯t seen a face like this in the pce before.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± Her suspicious gaze shifted to the door where Anna had recently stepped out from, and it made Yulia grow even more suspicious, seeing the unfamiliardy had stepped out of her husband¡¯s bedchamber.


    ¡°Don¡¯t fret, for I¡¯m not a threat.¡± Anna assured her, and judging from the looks the unknowndy kept casting her way, Anna didn¡¯t need anymore hints to know she was Adryan¡¯s wife, and they had just met, but thedy already ced a bad image of herself in front of her.


    ¡°I was about leaving, you may carry on with whatever it is you n on doing.¡± To put it simply, she was in no mood to deal with a jealous woman and there were a lot of things going through her head at the moment to start an argument.


    ¡°Hold on.¡± Yulia grabbed Anna by the arm, wanting to stop her from leaving but what she didn¡¯t expect was to feel a current run through her own arm, like that of strong electricity branching through her system, and she quickly let go of Anna¡¯s arm like someone who just got electrified, a small yelp escaping her lips as she took a quick step back away from Annalise.


    What was that??


    With round eyes, her gaze quickly studied Anna who stared back at her, and although she appeared really pretty, there was something strange about her that Yulia couldn¡¯t put together, and most of all, the unfamiliardy wasn¡¯t even smiling when she called her back, making her annoyance known to Yulia.


    ¡°You...you still haven¡¯t answered me.¡± Yulia asked again, and this time around, Anna was forced to put up a smile, unaware of what had really happened to Yulia.


    ¡°I¡¯m just an old friend¡± with that, Anna turned around to leave, no longer listening to the words of Yulia, and as she made her way down the stairs, Yulia watched her go with an inquisitive gaze till she was out of sight, still pondering on what she meant by an ¡®old friend.¡¯, but how was it possible she got electrocuted after touching her??


    That part had definitely frightened her.


    Meanwhile Adryan has not been in the mood to see anyone for the past few weeks, he wouldn¡¯t even let her see him, but shockingly, thisdy entered without Adryan screaming at her face.


    ¡°Something¡¯s definitely fishy.¡±


    At the thought of that, Yulia instantly went into Adryan¡¯s chamber, hoping the strangedy hasn¡¯t done something to her husband.

 Chapter 220

    220 Drunk Anna


    Returning back to Viscarrian after spending almost half the day there, Annazily dragged her feet along the corridor, feeling worn out from her visit to Euphrasia, but her face was flushed with bliss, and the good part of today was how no one tried to butcher her when she showed her presence in the pce, even his majesty and the Queen were surprisingly happy to see her.


    To celebrate her reunion with Euphrasia, Calista made them eat some unique snacks the kingdom usually prepared during this season, and they drank some sweet wine too, which led to her current state as a sheepish grin appeared on her face. She had forgotten just how intolerant her system can be when it came to those types of drinks, and she felt grateful to Azazel who lingered long enough to bring her back.


    Giggling to herself like she just thought of something funny, Anna quickly pped her palm over her lips to quiet herself before anyone heard. After looking around and making sure no one saw herughing to herself, she continued to drag her feet with the side of her body pressed against the wall, and she didn¡¯t stop walking till she made it to Roshan¡¯s chamber.


    Entering his room, Anna spotted the charming being sitting at his study table, legs crossed and looking so enthralling she blinked. He seemed to be going through some paperwork, but had stopped when Anna walked in. His soft expression slowly changed when he saw the state she was in, and his eyes evidently narrowed as he looked at her from head to toe before meeting her eyes.


    Anna¡¯s brown eyes brightened after making eye contact with him, surprised to find him around when most times he¡¯s never around at this hour. She wanted to go meet him, but stumbled on her feet before she could get to him. Luckily, Roshan had gotten up on time to catch the silly woman before she ended up kissing the tiled floor.


    Falling right into his protective strong arms, Anna¡¯s face beamed with a smile at his familiar warmth, she inhaled his scent before locking her hands around him, keeping herself in that hugging position, and in turn, Roshan rolled his eyes, sensing that his princess had gone ahead to get herself drunk.


    ¡°How are you drunk?¡± He asked, not looking pleased about her current situation. He was literally up, waiting for her so they could discuss how they want their wedding arrangements to be made. He noticed they were taking their time with this and he¡¯s already getting tired of waiting, but from the look of things, he¡¯ll have no other choice but to postpone that discussion for another day.


    Tilting her head up, Anna noticed his handsome face had turned slightly grim, he wasn¡¯t looking happy and she knew exactly why. She didn¡¯t intentionally n to get herself drunk, she was already halfway through the drink before Calista told her to slow down, informing her that it had some liquor mixed with it, but the wine tasted too sweet for Anna to just put it away.


    Lowering her head guiltily, she innocently mumbled ¡°Calista was happy to celebrate my reunion, so we made a toast.¡± She exined, pulling away from him and fumbling with her nails, ¡°it was a small toast, I promise I didn¡¯t do it on purpose.¡± She looked at him, hoping he¡¯d believe her, and Roshan released a helpless sigh before cupping her cute cheeks in his palm.


    .....


    ¡°You know your body can¡¯t handle drinks like that, what if something were to go wrong? I want to call you dumb but I¡¯ll scold you properly once you¡¯re sober.¡± He softly said to her, but Anna had gotten used to the warning that also came with the gentility of his tone.


    ¡°Harsh.¡± Anna screwed up her face, knowing he¡¯d definitely scold her once she bes sober and the corner of Roshan¡¯s lips lifted into a side smile.


    He would have scolded her, but how can he do that when she appeared more adorable and vulnerable when drunk. Her face was temptingly flushed and her luscious lips were painted red, an imprint from the wine she drank and he would have kissed her as her punishment, but not tonight, he needed to be a gentleman.


    ¡°I¡¯ll prepare a warm bath for you, it¡¯ll help you regain yourself a bit, and after that you go straight to bed, am I clear?¡±


    She nodded her head obediently, not putting up a fight and Roshan made her seat on the mattress.


    ¡°Wait here, and don¡¯t move.¡±


    She nodded. Roshan was starting to feel more like her babysitter at this point. Turning around, he went into the bathroom to go arrange the tub for her. After he left, Anna finally revealed a smile, hugging a pillow as she felt all mushy inside.


    Roshan going to prepare the tub for her made him look sweet despite sounding so serious about it, or maybe because she¡¯s found almost everything he did sweet these days.


    Or is it because of the sweet wine?


    Few minutester, Roshan stepped out of the bathroom and headed to one of his drawers, and since he barely used it, he kept most of Anna¡¯s stuff in there. He brought out a towel and walked back to thedy who huped the moment he reached for her side.


    ¡°Here.¡±


    Anna recieved the towel, ¡°thank you.¡±


    ¡°Go and soak yourself in the tub, and don¡¯t fall asleep while you¡¯re in there, if you don¡¯t step out within the limited amount of time I¡¯ll give to you, I¡¯lle in to get you out myself.¡±


    He knew he sounded somewhat strict but he was only saying this out of concern, if she ends up falling asleep, the water might get cold before she wakes up, and he doesn¡¯t want her shivering all through the night because of it.


    Anna nodded her head with a lingering smile on her red lips, but instead of leaving, she wrapped her arms around Roshan¡¯s neck, surprising the cier himself, but he managed to keep a straight face.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Do you know I have the most handsome fiance in the world?¡± She pulled at his cheeks tenderly, ¡°he¡¯s very handsome and even when he scolds me most of the time, he still does the sweetest things to make me feel better.¡±


    She staggered back a bit, but Roshan¡¯s hand quickly went around her waist, keeping her steady and she suddenly hugged him to his bafflement, standing on her toes so she could hug him properly, ¡°I love you Roshan, don¡¯t be upset with me, I promise not to drink till I die.¡±


    Roshan, who had been trying to keep up with his act, fell right into her irresistible cuteness, and he pulled her back before dropping a kiss on her forehead.


    ¡°I¡¯m not upset,¡± he held her by her two shoulders, making her look into his eyes with a sulking expression.


    ¡°And I¡¯m not saying you shouldn¡¯t drink, just don¡¯t drink too much when I¡¯m not there with you.¡± He reprimanded softly, and she nodded, knowing he was only looking out for her wellbeing.


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°I_I can¡¯t predict if I¡¯ll fall asleep or not,¡± she truthfully said, ¡°so I don¡¯t forget, why not soak in the tub with me?¡±

 Chapter 221

    221 Getting Some Sleep


    ¡°No.¡±


    Roshan refused even before he got a chance to think of an appropriate response, obviously stunned she was boldly requesting something like that, and with such a naive expression too. To be clear, he wasn¡¯t refusing to bathe with her for his sake, but for hers instead.


    Agreeing to her innocent wishes doesn¡¯t literally mean he¡¯ll let her enjoy the tub peacefully, her harmless request can lead to more than just taking a bath and he didn¡¯t want to wear her out. She¡¯s already tempting him enough as it is, and he¡¯s still holding on to his self-control.


    ¡°You won¡¯t forget, and if you do, I¡¯lle get you out myself, now go on.¡±


    Anna¡¯s facial expression dropped at his refusal. She looked like a puppy that got ignored when asking for a walk from its master. To her, Roshan was only refusing to bathe with her because he was still upset.


    ¡°But....¡±


    ¡°No buts.¡±


    He suddenly picked her up in princess style, surprising the annoying woman and Anna¡¯s lips automatically sealed shut, her eyes growing wider at his unexpected move. Without either of them saying a word to each other, he carried her to the bathroom, gently kicking the bathroom door open and taking her in.


    Once they arrived, he dropped her to her feet before leaving her there and turning around to leave. He stopped walking when he reached the door and suddenly looked at Anna over his right shoulder.


    .....


    ¡°Remember, no sleeping.¡±


    He closed the door before Anna could say anything else to him, and her shoulders drooped at his rejection. Unfortunately for her, she already epted to tolerate his behavior forever, so it would be no use toin now since she loved him too much to even do that.


    Shaking her head at her own helplessness, she proceeded to undress herself, taking her clothes off till she was standing naked before the tub that was filled with warm water. She tied the towel around her waist before submerging into the water, and sitting on it since it wasn¡¯t too deep.


    The moment her skin came in contact with the warm water, it felt satisfying and so soothing to the touch like the soft feeling of clouds. Anna immediately felt her tensed self rx. A sigh left her lips and she instinctively closed her eyes, wanting to epass her inner self with the rxation of the water, but Roshan¡¯s warning made her eyes snap open immediately, and she sat up.


    She remained in the water till her skin was starting to turn flushed, cupping some of it in her hands and washing her face with it, as well as her hair till they smoothly slicked to the back. She kept causing a ssh in the water while messing with all the bubbling soaps and how incredibly good they smelled, and all this tantics was a way to keep herself awake and not sumb to the rxation of the water.


    Meanwhile, Roshan¡¯s mind was back in business as he returned to his study table, sitting on it and critically recalling what happened at the abandoned building he visited in Euphrasia. Those bloody marks, the toxic aura and then the coffin that had nobel on it appeared strange. If Luderick did dig those coffins then he¡¯d be sure to know, but based on the coffins outlook, it didn¡¯t look like something that was buried.


    ¡°What is Luderick¡¯s goal here?¡± Roshan muttered to himself with his brows furrowed in indication, and a thin line formed itself in between his brows.


    He looked at the little sketches he made on the table, and even got books that exined in details the meaning of what sort of magics Demons tend to hold with dead corpse, and he figured out the word.... Necromancy.


    The art of bringing the dead back to life, and such deadly practice came with a heavy price since it involves a lot of dark mechanisms included. But when he found the coffin, it was empty, which could only mean his uncle had flee with the body inside of it, or has done the process of conjuring the body back to life.


    The thought made Roshan ufortable, and he felt he needed to discuss this with Azazel since his brother has more knowledge concerning dead souls, and since he¡¯s also responsible for every soul, either living or dead, it¡¯s possible his brother might know a thing or two about this kind of dark arts.


    Leaning his back against the chair, minutes ticked by and he continued to try and fix the puzzles together, but felt his brain pause when the bathroom door creaked open, and Anna stepped out.


    She was wearing a night dress that appeared big on her, hiding every features of her body and she looked adorably small before his eyes, in other words, she looked really cute, most especially seeing her wet hair flow straight to her back in those unusual colors.


    ¡°You¡¯re done.¡±


    Anna nodded with a yawn leaving her lips, her eyelids appearing heavy by the second, and she barely spared Roshan any minute before heading to the bed like she was done for the day, climbing on it and covering herself up with the duvet.


    ¡°Come and get some sleep.¡± She stretched out her hands for him, beckoning the enchanting being to join her in bed since she won¡¯t get a good sleep without sleeping in his arms.


    At the mention of sleep, the fatigue from his journey since this morning crawled back into his system, like someone whose body got triggered after hearing the magic word, and he felt he needed to sleep as well since he had to deal with a lot of things tomorrow.


    Rising from his seat, Anna¡¯s face blossomed with a smile when she saw him heading to the bed, and she quickly shifted for him to lie down as well. The moment he did, Annalise wasted no time clinging onto him and closing her eyes to sleep.


    Roshan couldn¡¯t hide the smile that adorned his lips at her movement, and he stroked her half-dried hair tenderly, twirling a part of it around his fingers till he noticed the darker shades that mixed with the brown shades of her hair, not that he didn¡¯t notice it before but he thought it was a trick of the eyes, but looking at it closely, it caught his attention immediately.


    ¡°ck?¡±


    When did Anna start dying her hair??

 Chapter 222

    222 A Lady At The Door


    Returning to the underground building atte midnight, a displeased expression carved itself on Luderick¡¯s face, right after stepping into the room and finding the coffin gone. There was nothing in front of him, and he gnashed his teeth as his fists furiously clenched at his side.


    ¡°It¡¯s gone??¡± His eyes widened at the empty sight in front of him, wondering how it was possible when he had left that coffin here. Not too long did he make his shocking outburst, did a fellow being walked in as well, also keeping her gaze fixed on the empty sight in front of her.


    Her hair fell across her shoulder, down to her back in brown and darker shades. She was wearing apletely ck dress that gave off an ufortable and disturbing aura. Her hair was covering her face, but despite that she could still see clearly.


    After observing the room, she tilted her head up, her hair effortlessly moved away from her face, revealing a beautiful visage that had a striking resemnce to Annalise.


    ¡°It¡¯s gone.¡± Thedy muttered to herself, sounding more calmer than Luderick who was feeling anguished at the disappearing coffin, and his abnormal dark eyes turned darker with distaste as he punched the wall to relieve himself, giving it a damaging crack.


    ¡°I knew that mad Demon woulde looking for me, but I never assumed he¡¯d be smart enough to take the coffin with him.¡± He uttered, finding that to be a little worrisome, but thedy beside him didn¡¯t seem to panic at all, instead, she looked at Luderick with the same innocent gaze that Anna was mostly fond of giving.


    ¡°You look more traumatized than me Luderick, I didn¡¯t know you had a wish to sleep in a coffin.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not the issue!¡± He red, and the innocent look on thedy¡¯s face vanished. It was obvious she was only messing with Luderick and her face instantly went deadpanned with not a single trace of emotion disying on her face, for a moment she looked nothing like Annalise while wearing such an expression.


    ¡°No need to fret, we¡¯ll just head to the pce and get it back.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Head where???¡± Luderick¡¯s brows rose, as though thedy had brought up a very stupid suggestion before him. But from the look on her face, she doesn¡¯t appear to be making a joke as she studied her own fair hands.


    ¡°The Viscarrian Pce.¡± She made her voice more audible, ¡°surely he must have taken it to the pce, so we¡¯ll just pay them a visit and get it back.¡± She sounded like she was paying a visit to an old friend, but Luderick wasn¡¯t silly enough to fall for her antics.


    ¡°I really want to call you Aveline, but you failed to hold her expression despite carrying her face.¡± Luderick wasn¡¯t one to give sweet talks, he had gotten Anna¡¯s blood specifically for this reason, but it appears the soul he brought back to life already has a dark history of her own.


    ¡°Call me Aveline.¡± She turned away from him, letting her eyes scan the room for anything they were probably missing out on, but there was nothing.


    Today she had to sleep without her coffin and it silently angered her from within since her body can¡¯t do without it, and she wasn¡¯t going to let such repeat itself ever again. She might have been conjured to life, but she¡¯s still glued to that coffin, and unless she finds a way to rid herself of it, that coffin sticks with her soul.


    Her chocte-brown eyes turned a molten red, a strange glowing energy hovered in her palm in the form of a red light, and she smirked, seeing her powers were still intact.


    But her body was unfavorably weak, she needed to consume souls in order to get stronger, and it¡¯s Luderick¡¯s mission to satisfy her with as many souls as she wants, in return for whatever he wishes to seek from her.


    ¡°So, we¡¯re going to sneak in and get you that coffin?¡±


    ¡°Maybe.¡± She pondered while pressing her index finger to her cheek, ¡°but there is one thing I¡¯m sure of, the girl must visit my coffin, I was wondering how I¡¯d get that part of the job done, but that half-Demon made it easier by taking it with him.¡±


    ¡°When we¡¯re done with all of this, you must tell me what you know about the dark woods.¡± He made his first assignment known to her, and she doesn¡¯t seem to object despite wearing a nk expression.


    ¡°The dark woods?¡± She smiled, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you exactly what I know about the dark woods, but right now I¡¯m hungry for blood.¡± Her eyes darkened, ¡°get me food.¡±


    Smirking devilishly, Luderick vanished in an instant, leaving the assumed Aveline to stand alone in the dark room, and her red eyes glowered in a silent threat, her teeths gritting in anger as she tried to keep her powers stable.


    ¡°I aming for every one of you Demons! Await my return dear Roshan! I¡¯ll make sure you suffer a fate worse than death!!¡± A thunder pped loudly above the darkened sky, signifying the boiling rage that was bottled on the awoken Demon.


    Not only did she hear it, but the thunder sound woke a lot of people in Euphrasia, leaving them frightened cause it was winter season, yet the sound of pping thunder could be heard.


    ¡ª¡ª-


    A quick gasp escaped Anna¡¯s lips the moment Ba shook her by her shoulder, breaking Anna from her train of thoughts and she turned her attention to the maid who was folding her arms at her.


    ¡°Did you even hear the things I¡¯ve been saying to you?¡± Ba questioned, one of her brows slightly arched as she looked at Annalise who was trying to regain herself, acting half-embarrassed with her actions.


    ¡°I_I cked out for a second there, you were saying?¡±


    ¡°We were talking about the right dresses to choose for your wedding with His Highness, and also what date you¡¯d think would be more suitable to hold the wedding.¡±


    ¡°Oh, yes.¡± Anna responded, but barely sounded as excited as Ba who was willing to get all the information down so they don¡¯t miss anything when the wedding is near.


    Anna wasn¡¯t feeling down because of her wedding with Roshan, she was happy about the preparations but at the same time, something else was bothering her, something she couldn¡¯t understand and she found it difficult to get it out of her chest. It all started this morning when she woke up earlier than anyone else in the pce, and it became difficult to go back to sleep.


    She felt dizzy some of the time, but had managed to pull through. Right now, she was having breakfast with the Astaroth family, and everyone was present in the dining room at Roshan¡¯s orders.


    ¡°Hey Anna, let¡¯s go for a grand wedding where everyone is invited, there¡¯ll be lights, drinks, food¨C¡± Levi kept listing as he stuck his fingers out one by one, and Anna smiled faintly at his sweet suggestions, not until Azazel gave the young Demon a smack at the back of his head.


    ¡°Hey!¡± He red at Azazel who was busy enjoying his breakfast with such elegance that made him appear even more gentle, one wouldn¡¯t believe he was capable of hitting anyone.


    ¡°Keep quiet, and allow thedy to choose herself. It¡¯s not your wedding, is it?¡±


    Gemma, who was sitting opposite their table, giggled with her hands on her mouth, watching her favorite brothers annoy one another again.


    ¡°I¡¯m giving her suggestions, you¡¯re just looking for an opportunity to bully me.¡± Heined, but Azazel didn¡¯t react.


    ¡°I won¡¯t deny.¡±


    ¡°Stop, the both of you, or else you both will give my Anna a headache with your silly excuse for a love y.¡± Roshan finally intervened, and the two gentlemen nearly froze like statues at Roshan¡¯s statement.


    ¡°You call that love y??¡± Levi grimaced loudly, and he almost sulked, ¡®of course, everyone hates me in this pce, I¡¯ll just have to run away if I n on living longer.¡¯ he thought to himself.


    For the first time, Anna felt a healthy family bond while watching the three brothers and she looked at Gemma who was sitting beside her, and the little one also seemed to be enjoying the show. But it would have been better if Lady Odette and the rest joined them for breakfast, but recently, Odette has refused to cross paths with her, talk more of seeing her in person.


    Roshan, who¡¯s gaze finally shifted to Anna, noticed her mood didn¡¯t appear as lively as before. He moved his chair closer to hers, and his sudden movements made Anna look at him.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± He asked, and Anna smiled at his concern before nodding her head.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? Is the whole thing feeling a bit rushed to you?¡± He wanted to know so he could decide if he should postpone the discussion again, but Anna shook her head.


    ¡°Not at all, it¡¯s not rushed at all, I guess it¡¯s because of too much drinking.¡± She came up with an excuse, and Roshan was obviously not buying it till Levi intervened.


    ¡°What are you doing? Have mercy on the singles sitting on this table with you. I don¡¯t need to be reminded of my lonely self.¡±


    Ba silently chuckled while looking away, and Roshan was about to break Levi¡¯s heart with a retort when a guard showed up at the dining table, bowing his head before Roshan.


    ¡°Your Highness.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the issue?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s ady at the door requesting to see His Highness and Mdy.¡±


    ¡°Ady?¡± Roshan¡¯s brows furrowed, and from his facial expression, he didn¡¯t look like he was expecting someone.


    ¡°Who is it?¡±

 Chapter 223

    223 New Chambein


    ¡°Who is it?¡±


    He asked with his brows knitted quizzically, cause as far as he knows, he has no ns to meet anyone today, most especially ady. Looking at Anna for answers in case she was the one who invited someone, she also appeared as clueless as him.


    ¡°Your Highness, she says she¡¯s the new Chambein appointed by the third prince.¡± The guard delivered the next information, one that no one was expecting to hear and their eyes went round in surprise.


    ¡°Hmm?¡± All eyes shifted to Levi who was about sipping a cup of hot tea, but had stopped mid-way when he noticed all eyes were now fixated on him, as though they were waiting to hear his response in ordance to the news being brought before them.


    ¡°What?¡± Levi spoke up, ¡°yes I appointed a Chambein for Anna cause I feel she needs someone to help her in the pce, but you don¡¯t have to worry, she¡¯s a very nice woman, and human too.¡±


    ¡°What??!¡±


    Thatst information hadpletely shocked them out, including Annalise whose jaw nearly dropped open at the mention of humans, and Levi couldn¡¯t help but gulp nervously at the strange res sent his way.


    Did he do something wrong?


    ¡°How did you get a human toe here?¡± Azazel asked with curiosityced to his tone, but Levi just scratched his head, unsure if he should speak or not, but keeping quiet will be even worse.


    .....


    ¡°Well.... I identally ran into her in Euphrasia when I...uhm...¡± he suddenly lowered his gaze and his lower lip trembled in hesitation. No, there¡¯s absolutely no way he could tell them his reason for going to Euphrasia, that¡¯s his biggest secret and if they ever figured it out, they¡¯ll probably kill him at the spot without hearing him out.


    ¡°I...I was on my way to satisfy some physical need when I ran into this strange woman, and she said she needed a job, she was on her knees, begging me for one and since she had no shelter, I couldn¡¯t just leave like that.¡±


    ¡°So you brought her here? You fool!¡± Azazel mmed his fist on the table, leading it to rattle and the cuisines on the table shook, startling Levi who bristled to another seat, in fear Azazel might hit him again. He was sweating despite telling the half-truth, he wasn¡¯t a fan of lying, and each time he did, it silently broke him on the inside.


    ¡°What could I have done? I really tried to chase her away, but she said she knew I was a Demon, and she doesn¡¯t really mind working with us. She sensed my kindness and was pleading, I couldn¡¯t just leave her, she looked and sounded really nice too.¡±


    ¡°You little delinquent!¡±


    ¡°Hold on.¡± Roshan¡¯smanding tone was the only thing stopping Azazel from hitting Levi in the face, and the terrified Levi shifted past three more seats to avoid Azazel¡¯s dangerous clutches.


    Turning his attention to the guard who was patiently waiting for his response, Roshan finally gave his orders.


    ¡°It¡¯s freezing outside, let her in.¡±


    ¡°As you wish, your Highness.¡± The guard left. Azazel¡¯s gaze averted from Roshan to the te on his table, and he didn¡¯t look happy about Roshan¡¯s wishes.


    ¡°I don¡¯t approve of this human.¡± He said his mind, not having a good feeling about it. What he didn¡¯t like at all was his brother¡¯s approval to let thedye in, who knows what intention she has in mind?? And Levi is too gullible to believe anything from a stranger.


    ¡°Why so? We haven¡¯t addressed her yet and you don¡¯t approve of her already?¡± Roshan questioned inquisitively, and with a snap of his fingers, the servants rushed to clear the dishes from the table.


    ¡°You know exactly what I¡¯m talking about,¡± Azazel retorted, ¡°because I ept Anna doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯ll ept another human.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not possible, what about Calista?¡± Levi inquired out of pure curiosity, but what he got was a straight re from Azazel.


    That was his answer.


    Azazel had opened his mouth to utter more when the presence of an unfamiliar woman made him hold his tongue. Everyone turned their attention to the woman who stood before them, and the muted Anna looked at her as well.


    She appeared to be a middle-aged woman whose cinnamon-brown hair was tied in a neat bun. She was wearing a simple dress that made her look no different from a local civilian, and as she stood before them, she dusted off the snow that had coated her dress before keeping her head in a low respectable bow.


    She sensed their omnipotent power, and she didn¡¯t need anyone to tell her who these three Demons were. From the aura they emanated, she already knew.


    ¡°Greetings.¡± Her voice came out cool, calm and with no sense of hesitation, as though their presence barely disturbed her, which Roshan and the rest found strange for a mortal.


    Eyeing the middle-aged woman from head to toe, and to head again, Roshan asked. ¡°What is your name?¡±


    ¡°My name is Agnes, and it¡¯s an honor to stand before the royal Demon family.¡± She politely responded, surprising everyone on the table, and for a moment there, Anna thought that voice sounded quite familiar to her ears.


    ¡°Agnes you say?¡± Roshan¡¯s expression turned stoic, ¡°what brings you here?¡±


    ¡°I know my presence has caused a lot of disturbance, I apologize for that. The third prince was kind enough to ept me, but he already warned me that his other brothers might not approve.¡±


    ¡°Then why are you here after knowing that already?¡± Azazel didn¡¯t bother to hide that her presence was not weed, he¡¯s basically in her thoughts but she seems to carry no evil intentions in her head.


    ¡°I am in need of a job, I am nothing but a mere woman trying to survive the harsh world, and I¡¯m desperate to earn.¡± She exined, but there was something about her voice and the way she spoke that made Anna feel a little strange. She didn¡¯t know why she felt like this, but she could tell the woman was saying the truth.


    ¡°You¡¯re here for a job?¡± Roshan looked at Annalise, silently asking what she thought about it. Anna turned her attention to the middle-aged woman, wanting to question her herself.


    ¡°Can you raise your head up please?¡± At Anna¡¯s softmand, she raised her head up to meet Anna¡¯s gaze, and just like Anna, she possessed the same chocte-brown eyes as her, and she nearly gasped at their slight physical appearance, except the face was the only thing differentiating them.


    Looking into her eyes, Anna couldn¡¯t erase the feeling that she¡¯s met the woman before, but where??? That face doesn¡¯t look familiar at all, but this feeling...


    ¡°Have you worked in a pce before? Where do you stay in Euphrasia?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m from Draekharm Vige,¡± she responded, ¡°but I left a long time ago to find shelter in another kingdom. I haven¡¯t worked in a pce before, but I have served families of higher nobles.¡±


    ¡°Draekharm Vige?¡± Anna¡¯s eyes widened at the mention of her vige, but she has no memory of this woman in her vige, nor does she remember running into someone like this in Draekharm. Draekharm Vige is rtively small, so it was easy to get to know one another.


    ¡°Why work with a demon if you¡¯ve worked for higher nobles?¡± Azazel quizzed, not finding her words believable. The middle-aged-woman squared her shoulders and vocalized.


    ¡°Demons pay more, I¡¯m only here to earn.¡±


    Anna¡¯s gaze didn¡¯t shift from the woman, and despite how calm she sounded, Anna felt there had to be a main reason for hering here. Demon¡¯s paying more was one thing, but that doesn¡¯t justify her actual reasons foring to work here.


    ¡°What do you think Anna?¡± Roshan directed the question to her, and Anna looked at him with a faint smile before turning her attention to thedy.


    ¡°ept her.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± Azazel looked at Anna, and before he could refuse, Roshan beat him to it.


    ¡°If Anna doesn¡¯t have a problem with it, then you¡¯re hired.¡± He said to the woman whose eyes gleamed with relief, ¡°but, you have one day to prove your capabilities as Anna¡¯s new Chambein, and if she doesn¡¯t like your work, you¡¯ll have to leave, and never return.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for the opportunity given, your Highness.¡±


    Lady Odette who watched the scene from the upstairs hallway, only grew irritated that another human gets to stay in her pce. As if having one isn¡¯t enough nuisance. She¡¯ll have to think of something quick before Humans start to fill her home.

 Chapter 224

    224 Appalling Energy


    Walking through the corridor, Azazel let out a soft hiss to maintain hisposure, still not finding it very wise of Roshan to ept a mere human into the pce. He¡¯s even more surprised that she wasn¡¯t attacked on the way here by those ugly soulless, and other evil Demons that wander in the forest of Viscarrian.


    ¡°Still thinking about that woman?¡± Roshan¡¯s sonorous voice snapped Azazel back to reality. Without looking at Roshan, he kept his mind fixated on the path his brother was leading him to.


    ¡°I still think you shouldn¡¯t have epted that human into the pce.¡± Azazel stood by his unchangeable decision. At first he thought Roshan was going to kill the woman when he sent the maid to let her in, but instead of that, he epted to let the woman work for Anna.


    It wasn¡¯t wrong to help the woman, if Roshan even chose to give her some money so she could leave, then he has no problem with it, but letting her stay wasn¡¯t one he¡¯d easily approve of.


    ¡°I see, so you think Anna and I have made the wrong decision then?¡± Roshan inquired, but Azazel licked his dry lips, still not looking at Roshan to help him confirm the answers for himself.


    ¡°I¡¯m only being cautious, a human who isn¡¯t afraid of our presence, and even chooses toe work here, how can you not find that suspicious?¡±


    Going down the underground stairs, the guards in charge of watching the door finally opened it up for Roshan and Azazel to enter, and the door was closed right after they did, and it was leading them into the dungeon.


    ¡°It¡¯s suspicious.¡± Roshan admitted, ¡°and I¡¯m sure Anna¡¯s aware of it too.¡± He logically added, but that only left Azazel to look at him with narrowed eyes.


    ¡°Then why ept her if you both knew? I know Anna¡¯s kind at heart, but there are other ways to help her out than this.¡±


    .....


    Roshan¡¯s dagger suddenly appeared in his grasp, ¡°leave it to Anna and I, I agree she¡¯s kind, but if the woman really hase here for a mission against us, then we¡¯re interested to see what it is. If she came here just for money, or something else.¡±


    Or even possible, she could be sent by Luderick toe check out where the coffin is hidden using Annalise.


    Shaking his head helplessly, knowing Roshan won¡¯t listen to him. He decided to focus on the main reason why Roshan brought him to the dungeon.


    ¡°Why are we here?¡± He asked while surveying the areas himself. Inside some of the cells, he could hear the nking of chains as though someone was struggling to free themselves from it.


    The same sound came from almost all the dungeons, and in some, Azazel could spot a few guards dealing with a set of Demons and trying to force them into saying something.


    ¡°Speak up if you don¡¯t wish to die in the hands of a fellow Demon! Where did you learn to practice dark arts??¡± A guard yelled at one of them before giving his victim a loud p across the face.


    Azazel barely flinched at the sight, and ahead, they were making their way into the dungeon of torture. Several Demons who had studied ck art were being severely punished.


    Some were tied to a chair with chains, and they were seated on nails that had been attached to the chair, the stench of their blood lingered in the air and it was already making Azazel nauseous. He couldn¡¯t remember thest time he stepped inside the dungeon, and maybe he never really did since they brought bad memories for him.


    ¡°Why are we here?¡± He asked again, he was looking at Roshan this time around, and the cier took a turn through the left part without flinching, already immune to everything that was happening in front of him. The cries, the agony, they needed to feel the intense pain so they understood how their victims felt when they inflicted the same punishment on innocent lives.


    ¡°I want to show you something.¡± Roshan finally responded, but he was starting to sound serious, leading Azazel to also keep a face, and as they kept walking, Roshan led him through a caged door, but this part appeared quiet, with light torches hanging on each side of the bricked walls.


    When they got deeper, a coffin was starting toe into sight, and before Roshan could go close to it, Azazel stopped him all of a sudden, holding his wrist and pulling him back. The look on his face had changed slightly at the mere sight of the coffin.


    ¡°Don¡¯t go near it.¡±


    As Roshan suspected, he knew Azazel¡¯s instincts would kick in once his brothery eyes on the coffin, and just like he said, Roshan remained where he was, not daring to take another step towards it. Instead, it was Azazel who moved closer to the coffin.


    ¡°Where did you get this?¡± He asked, letting his eyes rake through the structure of the wooden-brown coffin in front of him.


    ¡°It was found in Luderick¡¯s Hideout, but there was no one in it.¡± Roshan casually informed, and without asking for permission, Azazel went further to open the lid of the coffin, and just like Roshan had said to him.


    It was empty.


    Crouching in front of the coffin, Azazel ran his fingers through the coffin board, trying to connect with it and see if he could understand the appalling energy swirling around it. It was the only thing here, but the energy it carried spoke volumes, terrible volumes and he closed his eyes.


    A few seconds passed by with Azazel still studying the coffin. All of a sudden, his brows knitted worriedly, and his forehead creased as though something bad just popped into his head. To Roshan, there¡¯s never any good that came with Azazel¡¯s power.


    ¡°The coffin-¡± his eyes widened, ¡°Anna isn¡¯t safe with the coffin here, keep it as far away from her as you possibly can.¡±

 Chapter 225

    225 Agnes¡¯s Touch


    ¡°Is there anything you wish for me to take care of Mdy?¡± Agnes proceeded to ask after she was done arranging the Lord¡¯s chamber. It was advisable to test her working capabilities in order to judge her urately, since she deals with chambers mainly. Ba suggested the Lord¡¯s chamber would be a good ce to start since it¡¯d require for the new maid to put more effort.


    From Anna¡¯s fair observation, the woman did a remarkable job when ites to taking care of a household. The room appeared neat and sparkling tidy. The chamber was already neat before, but there was some touch the maid added that Anna found the room to be neater than before.


    For that, Anna was indeed impressed.


    ¡°No, there¡¯s nothing more.¡± Her soft response was what came next as she lowered the book she was reading, so she could look at the middle-aged-woman who kept her head in a low respectable bow.


    All of this sudden respect felt extremely new to Anna, she could remember how she was the one who did most of a maid¡¯s duty, but she never imagined that a day wille when she will be the one to make servants do her own bidding.


    It felt a bit ufortable and since Anna wasn¡¯t fond of it, she didn¡¯t really need someone to take care of her things since she¡¯s more than capable of doing them herself.


    ¡°Are you sure Mdy?¡± Agnes asked again for second confirmation, and Anna nodded with an honest smile, already aware of why she took a second confirmation.


    ¡°Yes, you just arrived, so I think you should get settled first and then we can talkter.¡± She asserted thoughtfully. Agnes slowly raised her head up to look at Anna, and she smiled warmly as a sign of her gratitude to Anna¡¯s kindness.


    ¡°Thank you for weing me in.¡±


    .....


    ¡°The pleasure is mine, you may leave now.¡± Anna dismissed the new maid before turning away to read the book she was holding, sitting morefortably on the dressing table while the maid bowed once more before turning around to leave.


    Once again, that disturbing dizziness Anna had felt was starting to trouble her again, most especially her sight. The pages on the book she was reading appeared blurry, and it was difficult to make out the words written in them. Closing the book in annoyance when the frustration started to kick in, she let out a tired hum before cing a hand to her forehead, her eyes closed and she said nothing more.


    Agnes¡¯s face immediately contorted into a worrisome expression after taking notice of Anna¡¯s predicament. She was about leaving when Anna¡¯s movement made her stop to see if she was alright.


    ¡°Is everything okay with you, Mdy?¡± She asked, still standing at the threshold and waiting for Anna¡¯s permission toe in or not.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Anna opened her eyes, but her vision still wasn¡¯t stable. Apparently there was supposed to be one mirror on the dressing table, but she was seeing two mirrors.


    She could feel a headache trying to cloud her senses and none of this was exnatory. What¡¯s happening to her all of a sudden??


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± Agnes asked again when thedy didn¡¯t respond. This time, she took a step in, forgetting that she needed permission to enter thedy¡¯s chamber, and she was standing behind Annalise whose eyes were closed again as she tried to deal with the headache and dizziness at the same time.


    ¡°I¡¯m just_¡± Anna¡¯s voice trailed off. When she opened her eyes again, she was looking into the mirror, but instead of seeing the usual brown eyes she possessed, her eyes were shimmering with an usual golden glow swirling in her irises.


    Her eyes changed color??


    ¡°M_my eyes???¡±


    A shocking gasp tore from Agnes¡¯s lips when she saw the difference in Anna¡¯s eye color. She wasn¡¯t as shocked as Anna who no longer cared about her dizziness when her eyes at the moment were apletely different color.


    ¡°What... what happened to my eyes??¡± She leaned forward to the mirror so she could look at it properly, in case she was dreaming or not.


    ¡°You need to calm down Mdy.¡± Agnes reached for her side the moment Anna started to panic. The shock and fear were written on her face as she studied her eyes in the mirror, and it appeared she wasn¡¯t seeing things.


    Her eyes changed color!!


    ¡°But my eyes-¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re panicking, you need to calm down or it might affect you even more.¡± Agnes hinted worriedly when she noticed the dressing table vibrate magically on its own, as though it¡¯d violently break if too much pressure was applied to it, and if Anna doesn¡¯t calm down, not only will the tables break, but the windows and shelves and basically everything in the room would shake and shatter noisily.


    ¡°Mdy.¡±


    Agnes stood behind the chair Anna was sitting on and began to massage Anna¡¯s head for her.


    At first, her unexpected actions had taken Anna by surprise, she wanted to ask what thedy was doing, but as the soothing massaging continued, Anna felt her system rx gradually from the woman¡¯s touch, her eyelids appeared heavy while her head was currently having a moment of her life.


    The vibrating stopped, and Anna¡¯s golden eyes turned normal when she rxed against Agnes¡¯s touch.


    ¡°Are you fine Mdy?¡±


    Anna wanted to respond, she wanted to ask what sort of rxing technique this was. It was just a massage, but the familiarity of her touch didn¡¯t skip Anna¡¯s heart. It reminded her of someone, and when she managed to lift her lids up so she could look at Agnes, she appeared to be genuinely concerned for her health while continuing the massage.


    Who is this woman?


    ¡°Are you feeling better?¡±


    Anna¡¯s attention shifted to her face in the mirror, and her eyes had returned to their original color again. But she was starting to feel sleepy and couldn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°This massage_¡± she looked at Agnes through her heavy lids. ¡°This massage feels familiar.¡±


    At the mention of familiar, the woman massaging her tensed at the spot, and her hands stopped like someone who just got caught in the act.


    ¡°For a second there, I thought someone really close to my heart was touching me.¡± She admitted before looking at the frozen Agnes.

 Chapter 226

    226 A Price To Pay


    ¡°Who are you?¡± She asked, as far as she knows, there¡¯s only one person close to her who¡¯s massage felt this soothing, and she¡¯s also the person who taught her to give suchforting massages too.


    As much as she tried to think, her brain wasn¡¯t helping the situation. It felt like her headache got worse the more she tried to think of the familiar person. Thedy said she¡¯s from Draekharm vige, and the familiarity she felt towards her....


    Is it possible she knows the woman??


    ¡°You_¡±


    Before Anna could figure out who¡¯s touch had a familiarity to that of Agnes, thedy had already sensed it and immediately ced a hand on Anna¡¯s head, keeping her touch gentle with no intention of harming her.


    Instead of massaging, her hand remained at the top of Anna¡¯s head, as though she was silently casting a spell. She uttered a few words under her breath till Anna¡¯s eyes finally closed shut, letting her fall into a sweet slumber since her eyelids became unbearable to carry.


    She was asleep.


    A relieved sigh escaped Agnes¡¯s lips after confirming Anna had fully passed out. She waved a hand at Anna¡¯s face, but she didn¡¯t budge, neither did hershes flicker in the tiniest of movements, indicating she had fallen deep into the sleeping spell.


    Agnes sank to the tiled floor, wiping off the sweat that was starting to form beads on her pale face.


    .....


    ¡°It¡¯s good she¡¯s asleep.¡± Agnes muttered with relief, instinctively cing a hand to her chest to help calm her spirit. If she had taken too long to work out the sleeping spell on Anna, then surely Anna would have figured out her identity a little too early than she nned she would.


    ¡°Her powers are already starting to awaken, which means Nichs was right from the start.¡± She eximed softly, staring at Anna¡¯s face and checking with a smile on her lips. She had witnessed Anna¡¯s mysterious powers herself, her eyes turned golden out of the blue, and Agnes couldn¡¯t help but ponder on it.


    Thest time she saw Annalise, it was a tragic incident that took ce many years ago- but now, she¡¯s grown up so well to be such a beautifuldy.


    Agnes couldn¡¯t rid her mind of this, even though she sensed his Highness making his way towards this particr chamber, she wanted to keep staring at Annalise, to hold her and tell her how sorry she was everything, but unfortunately, now isn¡¯t the right time to get emotional, else it¡¯d ruin her n.


    She just got here, so it¡¯s not in her ce to start cking. She wouldn¡¯t have known Anna¡¯s whereabouts if it wasn¡¯t for Nichs, as well as the iing dangers that surrounded Anna. She¡¯ll have to inform Nichs that she¡¯s gotten into Viscarrian, and then they can both work out the next step to their n of protecting her.


    The door to the room opened at thest minute, followed by a silence that alerted Agnes of who just walked in.


    Roshan stepped inside his chamber, closing the door behind him, but he found no one in the room except for Annalise who was sleeping soundly on the bed, properly covered with a duvet.


    He leaned his back against the door at the relief that overwhelmed him, closing his eyes after seeing his Anna was safe and sound.


    After what Azazel told him about that silly coffin, he came right here to ensure his Anna was safe. Azazel made mention that Anna might fall into a trance if he kept the coffin anywhere near her, so he rushed down here to make sure none of that had happened, and to his greatest relief, she was alright.


    Walking away from the door, he crouched before her bedside, staring at her face as she slept peacefully and his heart throbbed with the need to shadow her from the pains of the world.


    All he wants is to make Anna happy, that¡¯s why he hasn¡¯t bothered her with the strange scenarios that¡¯s been going on. But with this new found situation arising and finding her in the middle of everything, he was starting to have doubts on if he¡¯d be capable of dealing with it all.


    Luderick has awakened only the heavens know what, and he was sure they had a reason for not striking already. His main problem wasn¡¯t even Luderick anymore, he was more worried about the dead being his uncle had gone ahead to bring back to life.


    Why will Anna fall into the trance of a mere coffin? Even Azazel couldn¡¯t give him a detailed exnation as to what connection his Anna could share with someone else¡¯s coffin.


    He can¡¯t take the coffin away, but the least he could do is keep it far away from Anna.


    He¡¯ll have one of his cousin¡¯se take the coffin away and put it under tight security. He was going to keep it entrapped so he gets to see the owner of the coffin face to face.


    ¡°I won¡¯t let you be dragged into my problems again.¡± His tone was as soft as a whisper, like he was making an honest promise


    ¡ª¡ª¡ª


    At the top of the tower, snowkes slowly dropped from the sky, only to be assisted by the wind that blew it in through the window,nding gently on the palms of Aveline who smiled at the little snow resting on her white palm.


    ¡°Do you know why I enjoy the winter season so much?¡± She asked Luderick who just hid himself in the shadows, currently dealing with his own problems as he groaned in pain.


    Aveline barely flinched, she just kept smiling sweetly at the snowke resting on her palm, and paying no attention to Luderick who gritted his teeth in anger and agony, a chord of vein appeared on his neck as another sharp cry of pain tore from his lips.


    ¡°How cruel, you aren¡¯t even answering me.¡± Aveline feigned victim, not turning around to look at Luderick who was struggling on the ground.


    ¡°Poor thing,¡± she tsked, ¡°it seems you¡¯ve forgotten that you can¡¯t just take without repaying for what you took.¡± She reminded Luderick, finally looking at him and going to kneel beside him on the ground.


    He appeared helpless as he tried to stand on his feet, but ended up falling to the ground again as though there was a ma holding him in ce.


    ¡°You used blood art to bring a dead soul to life,¡± she showed the struggling Luderick the snowke on her palm, ¡°I¡¯m not one of your useless soulless that you can summon freely, summoning a high rank Demon like myselfes with a price you see.¡±


    Luderick¡¯s dark eyes disyed the pain his body was currently going through as he red at Aveline, and the chords of green and ck veins in his neck and face kept throbbing like strings waiting to be cut open. The pain was torturably unbearable, one couldn¡¯t possibly imagine such a pain for himself.


    Aveline appeared unbothered and made Luderick look at the snowkes instead, ¡°From now on, you¡¯ll have to follow my orders. This is just the little price you have to pay, you¡¯ll have to be broken.¡± And she brutally crushed the snowkes in her palm.

 Chapter 227

    227 Learning Swordmanship


    Anna¡¯sshes fluttered shakily as her forehead creased in sheer disturbance, as though there was something diforting bugging her in her sleep, and she was trying hard to wake up from her slumbers. She could hear inaudible whispers in her head, they sounded so ominous but she couldn¡¯t grab a single word that was being said to her.


    The whispering grew louder, and louder, and louder, and louder till it became too much to bear! Her eyes snapped open without warning, giving her the same golden colored eyes that sent her nerves skittering with strange energy, but she didn¡¯t panic, all it took was a deep calm breath to make her eyes turn normal.


    She didn¡¯t even open her eyes like how a normal person would when they wake up after sleeping from morning till noon, her eyes just snapped open like someone who escaped hypnotism.


    She was fully awake, and she barely felt sleepy.


    Sitting up on the mattress, the headache that didn¡¯t seize to leave her alone since this morning was no longer felt. Touching her head to confirm if it was really gone, she felt no pain at all.


    ¡°It¡¯s gone.¡± She was internally happy about it but also found it strange at the same time. She could barely recall everything that happened and she has no memory of how she got on the bed.


    ¡°What happened?¡± Her voice sounded hoarse like someone who was waking up in the early mornings.


    She recalled asking the new maid to go get settled for the day, and apart from that, she barely remembers what happened after the maid had left.


    ¡°Why can¡¯t I remember?¡±


    .....


    Her moment of thinking was disrupted when Roshan stepped out of the bathroom, wiping his shiny ck hair with a towel. He was wearing only his ck breeches while his upper body was exposed to Anna¡¯s frozen gaze. Roshan only spotted her awake when he stopped cleaning his hair with the towel, and he met Anna¡¯s dumb stare.


    ¡°Awake, I thought you nned on sleeping till daybreak.¡± He joked, and Anna finally realized what he meant as she looked out the wide ss window to see it was already getting to noon, and the reality of it sent shock jabbing through her system.


    She was asleep for that long???


    ¡°I_I didn¡¯t know the day would go by so fast.¡± She stuttered, still taken aback by it.


    She finally got out of bed, and Roshan had no issue if she chose to sleep or not, but he knew Anna doesn¡¯t sleep so long and he was worried for a second there, but with her breathing and her heartbeat still normal, he knew she was alright.


    ¡°Feeling better?¡± He asked, and she nodded her head before looking at him, only to realize she was still talking to a half naked man.


    He had already turned around and headed back to his wardrobe to pick a shirt, cing the towel around his neck like someone who just returned from a workout. His broad shoulders and muscles flexed themselves when he reached to pick a shirt, and Anna¡¯s face flushed instantly at the wless sight of him.


    The night they had shared together came rampaging her already stressed head, and she turned away from Roshan to hide her flustered look, but that didn¡¯t stop the crazy imagination from popping into her head, most especially when she felt that immacte body of his herself.


    ¡®Snap out of it!¡¯ she inwardly scolded herself, letting out a soft exhale before turning around to look at the cier who had already put on a shirt, and he continued to wipe his hair clean.


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    He looked at her through the dressing mirror, but Anna instinctively averted her gaze as though she knew she¡¯d get extremely flustered if she met those hazel-green eyes of his.


    ¡°How¡¯s the new maid?¡± She asked, trying to brush off whatever silly thoughts that were slowly trying to invade her mind, and Roshan turned around to look at Anna, leaning against the dressing table with his arms crossed.


    ¡°She¡¯s been handy,¡± he said the honest truth, ¡°she carries no negative vibes, but I¡¯m sure she has a purpose foring here, I¡¯m just having trouble figuring out what.¡±


    Anna nodded in agreement, ¡°when you agreed to let her work here, I knew you had your reasons for doing that.¡±


    ¡°I had two reasons.¡± Roshan corrected, ¡°the first is obvious, keep your friends close, your enemies closer, but I sense no form of hatred on her side, which leaves me even more curious about letting her stay. As for the second reason, I wanted someone new, someone who doesn¡¯t know about the sequence of events that urred in the pce to take care of you. I don¡¯t trust these maids, and Ba¡¯s already handling Gemma and a few things in the pce.¡±


    ¡°Keeping you around someone who feels no jealousy towards you should make youfortable, plus she¡¯s human too, so it might be easier for interactions.¡±


    Anna appeared startled after hearing the things Roshan had to say, to be honest, she never really thought about that until he said it.


    ¡°But if you¡¯re ufortable with her presence in the end, you¡¯re free to get rid of her.¡± He added, giving her the right to do as she pleased.


    At first, Anna did have a second thought on letting the new maid stay, but after hearing things from Roshan¡¯s side, she was determined to also figure out who the maid is and why she¡¯s here. It¡¯s very unusual to show up in a kingdom taken by Demons and not be scared, Anna knew how many months it took for her to adapt here.


    ¡°Mhhmmn.¡± She smiled gratefully at Roshan, and he returned it back, making Anna blush profusely since he looked breathtaking whenever he smiled at her like that.


    ¡°What are you thinking?¡± He arched a brow at her, and Anna nibbled on her bottom lip, shaking her head in response, Indicating she wasn¡¯t thinking about anything, but she keeps forgetting that the Demon could easily read her mind if he wanted to.


    The scheming fellow moved away from the dressing table, standing before Anna who had to tilt her head up to meet his dazzling eyes.


    ¡°I thought of something,¡± he reached for Anna¡¯s cold hands, warming it up with the heat of his palms as he inteced their fingers together, ¡°you¡¯re good with sword¡¯s, so how about you start training with Levi, starting from tomorrow to improve your techniques.¡± He suggested.


    He¡¯s seen her fight before, and it would be wrong to let such talent go to waste. Levi and Azazel train every morning, they¡¯re capable of teaching her the basics and a few other special techniques that can make her improve. Plus, it¡¯d be beneficial so she can stand her guard against minimal dangers without needing the help of anyone.


    Anna¡¯s eyes brightened at his suggestion, and she was smiling as though she couldn¡¯t believe he was suggesting something she¡¯s been dreaming of for a very long time, and that is to improve on her sword skills. She never really bothered to say anything since her dream to learn swords were bing unreachable, but Roshan was typically offering it to her on a golden tter.


    ¡°Really?!¡±


    He nodded, ¡°you¡¯re naturally good, and I¡¯m sure Levi and Azazel wouldn¡¯t mind helping you out,¡± and if they did, he¡¯d just have to ckmail them with something.


    She was grinning now, ¡°thank you! Thank you! Thank you!¡± she hugged him, ¡°I promise not to misuse this opportunity you¡¯ve given me.¡±


    Her sudden jubtion stunned him, he¡¯s been thinking about this too but he thought women were the type who are afraid of wielding a sword. He even thought he had to do a lot of convincing to get his Anna to master swords.


    There was a time she told him she was interested in swordsmanship, but he assumed her interest would have faded by now. Clearly he was wrong, because the silly woman was more than happy to learn.


    She never seizes to surprise him.


    Tilting her head up so he could look into her sparkling brown eyes, he slowly lowered his head so he could kiss her, and just when their lips were inches away from touching, three knocks on the door made him stop, interrupting his moment.


    Anna held back a chuckle, seeing as he¡¯s always interrupted whenever he wanted to have his way with her. But unlike her who found the situation funny, Roshan didn¡¯t as he let out a frustrated hiss, clicking his tongue.


    Can¡¯t someone find a better day and time to interrupt him?? Whenever he wants to enjoy himself with his beautiful Anna, that¡¯s the right time for all his enemies toe together and jinx his day.


    ¡°Who is it?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Your Highness, there¡¯s someone here to see you.¡± A guard informed him from the outside, and Anna¡¯s brows knitted.


    ¡°Another person?¡± She looked at Roshan.


    ¡°I¡¯m busy, if whoever it is can¡¯t wait, they should leave.¡± Was his response to the guard before he turned his attention to Anna and made her fall back on the bed, surprising her with his unexpected act.


    ¡°Ah! Roshan_¡±


    He got on top of her before she could escape, and she really couldn¡¯t believe he was still going ahead with this.


    ¡°Someone¡¯s waiting, what if the person actually leaves?¡± She said, trying to remind him that it could be important, but the hungry, predatory look in his glimmering eyes made her feel like shrinking away from sight.


    ¡°Trust me, that person can¡¯t leave since I was the one who sent for him, now stop talking and let me kiss you.¡±


    Anna¡¯s heart drummed and her stomach fluttered by how boldly he said it, she couldn¡¯t speak anymore, giving Roshan the opportunity to finally devour his prey.

 Chapter 228

    228 A Thief In The Pce


    ke¡¯s arrived in the Viscarrian Pce ten minutes ago, and has been standing in the foyer since then. He was sure one of those pretty maidens would have treated him well if he ran into them, but sadly for him, he met Roshan¡¯s guards instead.


    Those guards weren¡¯t even kind enough to offer him a seat so he could rx his legs. Not that he was tired, but isn¡¯t that how he¡¯s meant to be treated since he¡¯s a guest? At least someone would have shown him some humility.


    ¡°Why do I get this feeling you made me wait on you on purpose?¡± ke questioned when the cier finally made his presence known in the foyer. ke squinted his eyelids into an usatory slit till the cier was standing in front of him.


    Roshan¡¯s hazel-green eyes raked over ke¡¯s and it was obvious he hadn¡¯t changed. His red hair was even messier than that of Roshan¡¯s, and he had a scar that ran from his left eye to his eyebrow. The bad boy also pierced his eyebrow with a tiny golden ring, and that was enough for Roshan to know he hasn¡¯t changed.


    Unfortunately he possessed good-looks that madedies turn a blind eye to his personality.


    ¡°You did it, didn¡¯t you?¡± ke¡¯s pushed on, and Roshan didn¡¯t n on denying it.


    ¡°You had to wait, was I supposed to wait on you instead?¡± Tapping ke¡¯s shoulder in a brotherly manner, feeling good to see him, he led the red-haired Demon outside the pce so they could talk more there.


    The white snows had clumped together on the ground, creating a nket of snow that expanded to the gate and outside the gate. It was shivering cold outside, to the point ke couldn¡¯t stop his teeth from chattering in reaction as he rubbed both sides of his arms to warm himself up. The blistering wind fluttered their jackets and their hairs danced to the direction of the breeze.


    Stepping on the snow, each step they took left footprints behind. The cold was barely their problem since they have more issues to worry about.


    .....


    ¡°Have you taken what I asked of you?¡± Roshan proceeded to the main reason why he sent for ke¡¯s in the first ce, and the red-haired being nodded, taking each step with Roshan as they strolled through the concrete path, the snows swept away by the servants.


    ¡°Yeah, my men are already getting the coffin out and taking it through the back door.¡± He asserted, and Roshan¡¯s demeanor rxed after hearing ke¡¯s was already on it.


    ¡°Good, I¡¯m d you chose to help me watch it for a few days.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re family, of course I¡¯d help.¡± Was ke¡¯s response as he shoved his hands into his jacket pocket, but Roshan knew ke¡¯s too well to fall for his pretense.


    ¡°Don¡¯t sleep on the coffin kes.¡± He warned, and that led to ke¡¯s eyes widening as though he was offended by that statement.


    ¡°Well that¡¯s an usation.¡±


    ¡°I know you ke¡¯s, there¡¯s a reason why I¡¯m entrusting it in your care despite knowing you tend to sleep in one. Keep away from that coffin, I only need you to watch it, not experiment on it.¡±


    ¡°Fine, but why keep it with me?¡± His brows snapped together as he just realized he¡¯s yet to know why he¡¯s epting to do this favor for Roshan.


    ¡°I can¡¯t keep it here, it¡¯s dangerous to Anna and I don¡¯t want her near it.¡± Roshan exined, and ke seemed to understand to a passive extent what his cousin was trying to insinuate, and so he didn¡¯t dive in deeper.


    ¡°I see.¡± He shoved his hair back away from his face, ¡°how long am I supposed to watch the damn coffin then?¡±


    ¡°A day or two, at least till the owner of the coffin shows up. I have no idea what Luderick has awakened but I get a feeling I shouldn¡¯t underestimate it. Keep the coffin under tight security and I¡¯ll be at your ce tomorrow tonight.¡±


    ¡°No problem then,¡± he found Roshan¡¯s wishes eptable, ¡°I¡¯ll be expecting you if that¡¯s the case.¡±


    ¡°Then we¡¯re done here.¡± Roshan looked at the red-haired being who was staring back. He spread out his arms for a goodbye hug but what he got was a punch on his shoulder from Roshan.


    ¡°Argh! You devil!¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t do hugs, say hello to your mother for me.¡± And he walked out after that, leaving ke to grimace as he kneaded his shoulder to ease the soreness Roshan¡¯s unforgivable punch had caused.


    ~


    Later in the night, Anna was busy reading a storybook to Gemma in her chamber. The little one¡¯s eyes were already drooping to a close as Anna continued to tell the story with a soft rxing tone.


    ¡°....the hunter nearby was throwing out his to the dove, hoping to catch it. Guessing what he was about to do, the ant quickly bit the hunter on the heel. Feeling the pain, the hunter dropped his, and the dove was quick to fly away to safety.¡±


    Her voice was like a soporific spell, enough to send Gemma to her sweet slumbers. When Anna was done reading the short story of the Ant and the Bird, Gemma was already fast asleep.


    Smiling, Anna quietly rose from her seat and proceeded to tuck Gemma in bed, covering her up properly. She also checked the windows to make sure they were properly locked before blowing out the candles and exiting Gemma¡¯s chamber.


    She was heading to her own room, and everyone was already asleep since it was night time. Unfortunately, Gemma had refused to sleep till she reads her a bedtime story, and that¡¯s why she¡¯s still awake.


    The candles were still brightly lit up, burning against the candle wax so it was easier for Anna to see and make her way to her own room.


    But before she could head up the stairs, someone suddenly dashed out from a corner in ck cloak from up the stairs, leading Anna to pause in her steps, and whoever it was appeared to be making his way down the stairs in a hurry too, as though the stranger was in a dilemma to get out of the pce.


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened at the sight of this strange person, and already thinking it might be a thief, Anna didn¡¯t bother to climb the stairs and remained hidden below, shielding herself behind the stairs. Apparently where she was hiding, a servant had forgotten a broom, which means it was the only weapon Anna found usable at the moment.


    Picking it up, she waited for the right moment for the thief to make his way by, and when the person got close, Anna stepped out from her hiding spot, and didn¡¯t waste a second before she began hitting the strange person with the broom as hard as she could.


    ¡°Ouch! Hey! Stop!¡± The stranger tried to shield himself from her beatings but Anna didn¡¯t stop hitting the person out of fear.


    ¡°Thief!!¡± She raised an rm, wanting to alert everyone that someone had broken into the house.


    ¡°How dare you break into the Viscarrian Pce, just watch as I-¡±


    ¡°Anna, wait!!¡± The person under the cloak quickly voiced out before Anna could deal with him. She had already raised the broom above her head to descend it down on the thief, but had stopped mid-air when the person mentioned her name.


    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± The person removed the cloak from his head, and Anna¡¯s eyes widened in shock when she realized whom she had just hit.


    ¡°Levi?!¡±

 Chapter 229

    229 Late Midnight


    ¡°Why are you up sote? And why are you dressed like a thief?¡± Anna threw questions at him, lowering the broom she held and throwing it aside, but she was speaking too audibly, it scared Levi that she might awaken everyone if she kept talking with such high pitch.


    ¡°Shhhh!! Reduce your tone.¡± He ced a finger to his lips, silently begging her to reduce the volume of her voice, and his actions did nothing but confuse the baffled Anna even more, as though her presence had frightened him immensely.


    Her heart nearly ripped out of her chest when she thought he was a thief. She got so worried that she had to handle a thief all by herself, she decided to focus her strength on making sure she weakened him. No doubt, she impaled Levi with the broom many times before he got the chance to speak. She was sure he must have been hurt from the whole broom whipping and now she felt guilty for her actions.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± She took a step forward to check him out, making sure he didn¡¯t get seriously hurt from the way sheshed the broom at him. He got a small cut at his upper cheekbone, but it healed in no time, and he was perfectly fine again, his skin looking as wless as it always did.


    ¡°You scared me,¡± Anna admitted, releasing a sigh that helped ease her heart, ¡°I really had no idea it was you, I thought a thief had broken in so I panicked. If you hadn¡¯t spoken up I would have seriously hurt you, why were you sneaking around the pce like that?¡±


    She felt extremely bad for hitting Levi, but she wouldn¡¯t have done that if he wasn¡¯t sneaking around like some ghost. Her main objective right now was getting answers as to why he¡¯s sneaking in with a cloak sote at night.


    ¡°Anna_¡± Levi¡¯s trembling lips parted as he tried to exin his situation to her, but before the words could slip his lips, he stopped, recalling the terrible things that might ur if he dared open his mouth to speak.


    No! He shook his head mentally.


    Not to her.


    .....


    After getting rid of the panic Levi had caused in her heart, Anna finally noticed that the ever jovial Levi who never fails to carry a bright smile on his lips had tears in his eyes. His amber eyes were shimmering with real tears, despite how he fought with himself to hold them back, and the sight of his expression threw Anna off guard.


    ¡°Levi?¡±


    Realizing she had seeded in noticing his tears, he bobbed his head, refusing to meet her concerned gaze as they stood right in the middle of the hall that led to the upstairs.


    ¡°What_What happened-¡± she took a step closer to him, wondering what the problem was, and if his tears had something to do with where he was going.


    ¡°Anna...¡± sadness clouded his soft features. He was so close to leaving the pce tonight. He had assumed everyone would be at sleep at this specific time which is why he used the opportunity, but he ran into thest person his mind ever thought he¡¯d meet.


    How will he escape from this? What can he do to make Anna keep quiet about tonight?


    ¡°Is something wrong?¡± Meanwhile Anna was more concerned about why Levi appeared so devastated for the first time. His glowing happy stares were now clouded with pain, secrets and regrets as he looked at Anna, but before she could guess why, he broke her from her chain of thoughts.


    ¡°Levi?¡±


    ¡°Why are you still awake?¡± Levi tried to switch the question, but Anna wasn¡¯t a fool to let herself fall into it.


    ¡°And why are you dressed like this? Are you going somewhere oring from somewhere?¡±


    ¡°Shhhh!!¡± Levi silenced her when she spoke a bit too loudly again, ¡°stop or you¡¯ll wake everyone up.¡± Thest thing he wanted was to draw too much attention to himself, and he doesn¡¯t want anyone to see him like this, he¡¯s hid his part of the pain from everyone and it still bugs him that Anna got to see him like this.


    ¡°Can you not speak of this to anyone,¡± his glossy eyes looked pleading, ¡°can this remain between us both, please Anna.¡±


    His actions were surprising Anna herself, but before she could give her response as to why he wanted her to do something like that, she heard a familiar deep voice speak behind her.


    ¡°What are you doing there?¡±


    She gasped since she wasn¡¯t expecting someone to show up. Turning around, she noticed Roshan standing at the top of the stairs, looking down at her as he questioned her curiously.


    But why was he asking her, can¡¯t he see¨C


    Turning her head so she could look at Levi, the Demon had surprisingly vanished out of sight, leaving Anna¡¯s words to hang in her throat as she had no idea what to say to Roshan, seeing as Levi was nowhere to be seen.


    He left? Where did he go? He was standing right here??


    ¡°Anna.¡±


    She spun around to look at Roshan who was still waiting for her response, and he was alreadying down the stairs to meet her.


    ¡°Everything alright?¡± He asked, he was actually waiting for her so they could go to sleep together, but since she didn¡¯te, he decided toe find her himself.


    ¡°Yes, I am fine.¡± She assured him, ¡°I thought I saw someone, that¡¯s all.¡±


    Shaking his head hopelessly at her words, he reached to pick the woman in his arms, surprising Anna as her face flushed in astonishment, and he was taking her up the stairs.


    ¡°It¡¯s obvious you need sleep.¡± He said to her, but Anna knew he was messing with her like always. She wrapped her hands around his neck, gently clinging onto him as he carried her up the stairs, but that didn¡¯t stop her mind from wandering exactly where Levi disappeared to.


    ~


    Back in Euphrasia, Calista was pacing restlessly in her chamber, unable to get some sleep since she kept dreaming of a certain someone and missing him badly. She bit at her nails, walking back and forth as she tried to find a solution to this madness of hers, but everything around her stopped when Azazel surprisingly appeared right in her room.


    Her eyes widened at his majestic presence, and as always his enchanting face was emotionless as he met her worried gaze, his eyes looking no different from an actual ice, as though it had been frozen and carved into the perfect eye size.


    It looked empty.


    Smiling at his presence, Calista didn¡¯t bother to think twice as she ran into his arms, hugging him out of the blue and leaving Azazel¡¯s body to tense at the physical contact.


    ¡°You came.¡± Was the only thing she could say. To be honest, she¡¯s been feeling a little downtely and needed someone to talk to. Archer had been trying his best tomunicate with her, but what can she do when she¡¯s not interested in being with him.


    Her heart was silently yearning in pain for one person, and just when she couldn¡¯t stop thinking of him, he appeared right before her like a dreame true.


    ¡°Hands off me.¡± His cold tone brought Calista back to reality. Her eyes snapped open and the lingering smile on her lips slipped. Recalling exactly what she just did, she realized that she had hugged a man right in her room.


    ¡°Ah!¡± She pulled back almost immediately, keeping a distance from the white-haired being who¡¯s demeanor hadn¡¯t changed. Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment and she felt like pping herself across the face. She really saw no one else to hug but Azazel?


    What will he think of her??


    ¡°F_forgive me, I_I got¨C¡±


    ¡°Save it.¡± He clipped her off, ¡°I¡¯m not concerned about any of that, neither does your personality or what I think of you bothers me in the slightest way.¡±


    As always, he ends up crushing her heart with his solid responses, and she couldn¡¯t understand why he hated her like this.


    ¡°I don¡¯t like being interrupted when I sleep, currently you¡¯re bugging me, you¡¯re thinking a little too much about me to the extent I¡¯m being summoned.¡± He looked out the window before looking at her.


    ¡°It¡¯ste midnight, why aren¡¯t you asleep?¡±

 Chapter 230

    230 The Bitter Truth


    ¡°You....you knew I was thinking about you?¡± Calista¡¯s cheeks turned redder in embarrassment, and she bobbed her head when he tried to look at her. If he knew she was thinking about him, does that mean he knew everything that her mind had been thinking rting to him??


    ¡°Princess Calista.¡±


    Calista¡¯s head whipped in his direction, and she met his coal blue eyes. She knew exactly what he did there by calling her princess, trying to draw the line of formality between the two of them.


    ¡°The more you think about me, the more disturbed I get.¡± He pointed out, ¡°we¡¯re two different people, so I must advise you to rid whatever feelings or thoughts you have of me.¡±


    ¡°But¨C¡±


    ¡°Your wedding will be happening in a month¡¯s time,¡± he cut her off with that reminder, ¡°it¡¯s improper to think about another man when you already n on getting married to someone else, for I have nothing to do with you.¡±


    He made his feelings clear. To say he was shocked she could summon him just by thinking about him was an understatement. He could hear the rapid beating of her heart even when he wasn¡¯t close to her, he could perceive her scent that was no different from fresh lilies, and when she hugged him he didn¡¯t like the feelings he got.


    What more signs could he need to stay away from her.


    ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to return your feelings for me,¡± she asserted, feeling her innocent heart getting stabbed at his indirect rejection, ¡°you call it improper as though I can control my mind and stop it from doing what it wants, I have tried.¡±


    .....


    ¡°Keep trying.¡± Came his indifferent retort as his eyes bored into hers, and Calista couldn¡¯t believe that was all he had to say to her. She could feel sadness churn inside of her with how apathetic he treated her.


    He really has no care for her.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you like me?¡± She asked, not willing to let her heart be shattered so easily by Azazel. She was told he was a man of ice, and his heart was even more frozen than that of Roshan¡¯s, but was it to this extent.


    ¡°Stop sounding desperate,¡± he tilted his head at her, ¡°remember this, I¡¯m only being nice to you because you¡¯re Anna¡¯s closest friend. She sees you like a sister and I see her as family. That is the only thing that keeps meing whenever you summon me. Stop it, cause I can¡¯t promise I¡¯ll be this polite when we cross paths again.¡±


    ¡°But you aren¡¯t allowed to hate me without a reason.¡± Calista countered back, still daring to speak despite the warning Azazel kind-heartedly threw at her. Her hands balled into fist by her side when Azazel¡¯s gaze darkened, and fear immediately grasped her heart.


    ¡°What did you say?¡± He took a step forward, and Calista instinctively retreated, taking a step back as the air in the room suddenly thickened.


    ¡°I can¡¯t hate you without a reason?¡± He let out a low dark chuckle that made Calista squeak in fright, but she covered her mouth with her palm so he wouldn¡¯t hear.


    Of course he would, he¡¯s a Demon.


    ¡°You¡¯re scared.¡± He stopped walking, ¡°I have every reason to despise you and your family, princess. I haven¡¯t seen your parents, but I hate them too, and you want to know why? It¡¯s just a little unforgivable hatred that brews within me,¡± he turned around and headed for her study table, taking a seat without permission.


    ¡°Your Grandparents are the reason for everything.¡± He licked his cold lips, ¡°I mean they killed Roshan¡¯s mother because she had an affair with a Demon king, they killed Roshan¡¯s sister because she was half-demon, and they wanted to take the life of Roshan if he hadn¡¯t escaped. Two innocent lives gone.¡±


    He rxed on the chair, looking at the youngdy who was staring back at him with glossy eyes, ¡°I¡¯m telling you a story so listen attentively to it. Few yearster when your father became King, your annoying brother was still a baby by then I suppose, Roshan had grown up and leveled quickly to avenge his family, I would have done the same, even worse, but all he wanted was the sword used to kill them, just the sword and he would leave, but your father turned it into war and many lives were lost. Roshan was locked up in the forbidden temple for being wrongly used and med for taking the life of someone, so tell me, why should I like you when your face only brings back memories I hate?¡±


    Like a ss shattering into pieces, that was how Calista¡¯s heart broke as she sank to the ground. The hostility in his tone and his hatred was something she couldn¡¯t deny, cause he was showing it. His tone alone proved that.


    This part of the story with Demons, no one told her about Roshan¡¯s predicament with her family. The rumors that spread across Euphrasia were stories of how the demon caused Mayhem and took innocent lives, but no one told her that he lost his family in the hands of her Grandparents.


    ¡°That sword, your grandparents hid it with a cksmith didn¡¯t they? But your parents retrieved it and are keeping it with them as part of a Demon¡¯s weapon, somewhere in this pce.¡± He let out a soft hiss, ¡°the truth is I can never like you, princess, even if I force myself to, the feud is insatiable, I¨C¡±


    He was about to spit out more venoms, but held his tongue when Calista began to weep to herself, hugging her knees as she couldn¡¯t take anymore of it. Seeing her break down all of a sudden with tears spilling from her closed eyes made Azazel realize he had spoken a little too much than he should.


    ¡°Damn it!¡± He threw his head back, rubbing his forehead as he closed his eyes to literally calm down. He forgot just how emotional humans can literally be, and seeing her like this made him ufortable.


    ¡°I warned you not to let me speak.¡± He said, ¡°and now you¡¯re crying.¡±


    Calista said nothing, she sniffed and silently remained where she was. Azazel looked at her through hisshes as she kept herself at a corner, she was wearing a white nightdress and looked like a cute marshmallow if it wasn¡¯t for the color of her ck hair.


    Standing up from the chair, he walked towards Calista and squatted down, peering at her sad, yet delicate face, but she refused to look at him, which was understandable.


    ¡°I¡¯m bad news for you, so heed to my advice, marry Archer or whoever he is and forget about your infatuation, cause I¡¯ll do nothing except hurt you.¡±

 Chapter 231

    231 Basic Training (1)


    The next day, Anna got dressed and made her way into the training ground, guided by Ba who led the way for her. She had woken up as early as Dawn so she could catch Levi and Azazel in training, but after showing up in the training ground, not only Azazel and Levi where present, but most of the royal warrior guards as they stood in a uniform line in four rows, drawing out their swords and making a fighting pose.


    ¡°One has to remain dedicated to their practice if they have no wish of cking off in a battle field, maintain a stance!¡± Azazel hit his staff on the ground, and all the warrior guards did a uniform stance at the same time, disying their skills.


    ¡°Hah!¡± They thrust their swords forward and remained in that stance, looking like immovable statues. Azazel¡¯s gaze took each of their stance into notice as he walked in their middle, making sure everyone maintained the right stance.


    ¡°Adjust your feet.¡± He said to a guard and used his staff to move the guard¡¯s feet forward, and it was obviously a hard stance since some of the guards had issues remaining in that torturing stance.


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened in spection at the training that was going on. The morning sky was beautifully blue and it seemed all the snow had been swept away from the training ground. The air was naturally cold which is one of the reasons Anna came prepared for today.


    She was so excited she didn¡¯t think about the cold and rushed here toe join them.


    Looking at Ba who had an infatuated look on her face, the maid was currently admiring how His Highness took charge of the training with such authority and boldness.


    ¡°His Highness is so good.¡± She purred, leading Anna to shake her head at Ba¡¯s flushed expression as she admired Azazel from where she stood.


    Meanwhile Levi was leaning against a pir, standing all by himself and sharpening his sword till it sparkled.


    .....


    Just the sight of him reminded Anna ofst night, and everything she thought was a figment of her imagination came rushing back. His expressionst night hasn¡¯t left her head yet, but seeing him now, he looked nothing like the devastating being she witnessed. He was whistling to himself while happily taking care of his sword, enjoying the cold weather that fluttered his hair and outfit.


    ¡°Mdy, I think you should go now so you can begin training.¡± Ba said to her, and Anna took a deep breath before nodding her head in agreement and going down to meet them.


    ¡°A sword is made for one purpose, to kill, but if it is for the good or bad, all are determined by whoever wields it.¡± Azazel boldly made his statement while correcting the stance of another guard as they took a different position at the perfect time, maintaining a straight line.


    Anna¡¯s presence in the training ground made Azazel halt in his speech, and when the guards took notice of her entrance, all heads immediately bowed at her presence as they stopped training, startling Anna who wasn¡¯t expecting such a wee from them all.


    ¡°Greetings, Lady Anna.¡± The guards uniformly greeted. Already aware of her status as His Highness Roshan¡¯s future wife.


    ¡°Oh.¡± Was all Anna could say, she was unsure of how she was supposed to respond to this type of greetings, but luckily for her, Azazel stepped in.


    ¡°Rise, you¡¯re making her ufortable.¡± He ordered the guards who immediately stood straight at hismand.


    Holding back the training, Azazel¡¯s attention fixed on Annalise as she stood before him, bowing her head with a smile on her lips.


    ¡°Greetings.¡±


    ¡°You came.¡±


    She nodded, feeling happy that Azazel was already expecting her, ¡°yes, I was afraid I wouldn¡¯t wake early but thankfully I¡¯m here.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s good to see you here, but my hands are full, Levi doesn¡¯t appear busy so he should be able to assist you with the basics first.¡± He pointed out before looking at Levi who was still whistling to himself.


    ¡°Levi.¡±


    At the mention of his name, he stopped whistling and turned to look at Azazel who had called for him so abruptly, but when he spotted Anna standing beside him, his amber-colored eyes brightened, looking surprised to see her here.


    ¡°Anna¡¯s here?¡±


    He sheathed his sword in ce before marching to go meet them. Turning his body so he could look at Ann, he bowed his head respectfully before smiling in a friendly approach that reminded Anna of a calm summer.


    ¡°It¡¯s so early in the morning, you should be getting some rest and not biting your skin with the cold.¡± He pointed out with concern shing in his eyes. At first Anna had no idea how to respond despite what happenedst night.


    He¡¯s acting so freely like nothing happened at all. It couldn¡¯t be her imagination, those scenes were too vivid to be a dream.


    ¡°I am here to train,¡± she informed Levi, ¡°Roshan gave me permission to join you all in training, so I¡¯m here.¡±


    Azazel nodded as well, indicating she was right, ¡°I need you to teach her the basics,¡± he turned to Levi, ¡°she might be skilled already, but it¡¯s necessary she goes through the basics, she¡¯ll advance further and we¡¯ll get to know what situation her Swordsmanship level is, and then know how to fully begin.¡±


    ¡°Not a problem,¡± Levi ced a hand around Anna¡¯s neck, standing right beside her and giving Azazel a thumbs up with his other hand, ¡°I¡¯ll teach her what I know, you can trust me on that.¡±


    ¡°Not like I have a choice.¡± Was Azazel¡¯s indifferent response before he left them alone to go focus on the guards.


    Rolling his eyes at Azazel¡¯s statement, he swatted his words away and looked at Anna who silently kept staring at him with questions in her eyes, as though she was trying to figure out something, or wondering if she could ask him something.


    ¡°If you wanna talk, let¡¯s not do it here.¡± Levi¡¯s voice finally made Anna blink, but his reaction towards her suspicious stare remained gentle and sweet, like he understood, and that made Anna feel a bit guilty as she lowered her head.


    ¡°There¡¯s a more quiet ce to train, let¡¯s go there before we get infected by Azazel¡¯s leadership strictness.¡±


    Returning Levi¡¯s smile, Anna obliged to his words and followed him.

 Chapter 232

    232 Basic Training (2)


    Standing under a big brown leafless tree that was coated with snow, away from the rest of the others, Levi handed Anna a wooden sword she could use to practice.


    ¡°I find it unnecessary to use real swords since we¡¯re only getting into the basics.¡± He exined his reason for picking a wooden sword, and Anna had no problem with it. Instead, she found it very understanding since she herself couldn¡¯t raise a sword to Levi, at least not now.


    Levi also held one for himself as he took a step back, keeping a distance between them just Incase he ns on giving an example on a specific attack.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I need to get into too much detail since you already have a clue on what the basic techniques of Swordsmanship are.¡±


    He took a stance, ¡°there are eight different basic attacking angles in sword fighting- the first is; straight down from the top,¡± he showed an example of that technique, ¡°straight up from the bottom, diagonally down to the left, diagonally down to the right, diagonally up from the left, same thing with the right, and thest is a left and right strikes which are horizontal.¡±


    Anna watched him take up those attack stances, slowly and perfectly in order for her to follow and understand his movements. She¡¯s never seen Levi wield a sword before, this is her first time watching Levi handle a sword, and she was impressed by how he took each step into consideration. He made it look so simple as she watched him, and his aura had always been less toxic and more graceful.


    ¡°If you¡¯re able to perfect those stances into swordfighting, you¡¯ll be much harder to beat.¡± He assured her with a genuine smile before hanging the wooden sword on his shoulder.


    ¡°Your turn.¡±


    Anna took a deep breath as she tried to remember everything he¡¯s said till now, she was indeed nervous and excited at the same time. Her skills were nothingpared to Levi¡¯s cause she witnessed his strength and stamina, he always acted like the crazy one amongst the Astaroth family but who knew he was actually a master of swords.


    .....


    Aiming her wooden sword in the air and following Levi¡¯s technique, she could still recall the steps in her head, making it easy for her to follow them. Levi approached her a few times and corrected her posture, reminding her that she had to keep her eyes and arms at lower guard.


    While he continued to watch her, he took notice of her steps and each of her skills had their unique movements. Whenever she made a mistake, she had to start all over and it continued that way till her body was starting to get acquainted with the right basic techniques, even if that meant she had to run out of air in her lungs.


    ¡°You¡¯re a quick learner, I¡¯m impressed.¡± Leviplimented, and Anna took a minute pause to catch her uneasy breath, before smiling in appreciation, ¡°it¡¯s thanks to you, your ways of teaching are actually easy to follow, although I¡¯ll admit that I was able to remember a few of the basics I learnt in Euphrasia, so it was beneficial.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s advance to the next one then, see if you can use any of those techniques on me.¡± He suggested, ¡°I¡¯ll keep it defensive, it¡¯s left for you to give it all you got so I know if you¡¯re ready to move on to the next level.¡±


    ¡°Should I? I really don¡¯t want to hurt you.¡± She admitted in a meek tone, but Leviughed at her genuine concern. Finding it funny and sweet that she thinks she can hurt him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯re using wooden swords anyway and I¡¯ll keep myself protected,e at me.¡±


    Gripping her wooden sword tightly by the hilt, Anna lunged her attack at Levi, keeping the basic techniques he taught her in mind and using them to her advantage. But Levi blocked her hit with his wooden sword before she could process her next attack, leaving Anna¡¯s eyes to widen at his quick defense.


    But she wasn¡¯t done yet.


    Anna pivoted her attack and tried again, but Levi took arge step back, avoiding the wooden de of her sword that kepting at him inmendable speed, and he seemed to be enjoying it. Seeing him smile like that proved she wasn¡¯t adding too much effort.


    ¡°Don¡¯t go easy on me, apply as much pressure as you can, if you keep up with being soft, then I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll have no chance against Azazel.¡± As far as Levi knows, Azazel and Roshan can be quite brutal when challenged.


    The shing continued as both engaged in a sword battle. Levi was fast when it came to blocking, and his glinting sharp eyes could detect her movement, making it easy for him to parry her attack and use it to his advantage, but he didn¡¯t and loyally kept to the defensive side.


    ¡°You¡¯re talented, you¡¯re putting the basic techniques into good use, but what you need to work on is your speed,¡± he corrected her as he dodged all her movements, ¡°you need to be aware of when to speed up, and when to reduce your pace, or else you¡¯ll give your opponents the upper hand, like this¨C¡±


    And Levi finally made a move as he redirected her sword by pushing it aside with the right amount of pressure, making it slip from her grasp and before Anna knew it, his sword had aimed for her throat, but he paused there while Anna froze in surrender.


    ¡°See?¡± He quickly withdrew his sword, to Anna¡¯s relief, ¡°your pace needs to be worked on, you¡¯re good in all aspects, but you have a hard time knowing when to make the right amount of strike.¡± He exined. ¡°Do you get it now?¡±


    Anna proceeded to pick up her sword from the ground before nodding her head, ¡°knowing when to strike, I¡¯ll try to keep my focus on that, shall we go again?¡±


    Levi smiled brightly, enjoying the training session himself, ¡°as long as you¡¯re ready.¡±


    And they both shed again.


    At the top of stairs that led to a balcony, Roshan stood there, silently watching the friendly duo between Levi and Annalise, and his lips tugged into a smile when he noticed how determined she was to get it right.


    ¡°Your Highness,¡± a maid showed up at the balcony, keeping her head in a bow as she stood before Roshan.


    ¡°Speak.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been keeping an eye on the new maid like you asked. I saw her go into her chamber this morning, and after waiting a few minutes I went in as well, only to see she¡¯s no longer in her chamber, your Highness.¡±


    ¡°No longer in her chamber?¡± Roshan turned to look at the maid, ¡°did she step out?¡±


    ¡°Not at all your Highness,¡± the maid shook her head with honesty, ¡°I was keeping watch incase she did, but when I sensed she wasn¡¯t going toe out, I went in, only to find her room empty of her presence, and I get the feeling she¡¯s vanished.¡±


    Roshan found it impossible to believe, not that he didn¡¯t trust the words she said but it¡¯s possible she¡¯s making a mistake, ¡°a human can¡¯t vanish just like that,e with me.¡±


    He left the balcony to go see things for himself, and the maiden happily blushed at the fact she was able to speak and apany his Highness.

 Chapter 233

    233 Don¡¯t Think I¡¯ve Forgotten


    Stepping into the servants quarters, most of the maidens were stunned to see his Highness showing up in their main quarters for the first time. It had been announced that his Highness was making his way into their quarters a few minutes ago, but no one believed it until they saw him for themselves.


    ¡°Your Highness!¡± They stood at either side of the pathway, lowering their heads in a bow as Roshan walked by. The other maiden clinging to his side like a horn to a bull, secretly smiling and feeling important as everyone bowed in unison.


    ¡°Where is her chamber?¡± Roshan proceeded to ask, snapping the maid from her daydream and the maid quickly led the way for him. They walked past many rooms before stopping at the fifth room on the left side, and when the maiden opened the door, there was another maid waiting inside the chamber.


    The maiden was sitting on the bed, but when she spotted his Highness make his way into the room, she immediately got to her feet and bowed her head, not meeting his gaze as her heart sped incredulously at the presence of Roshan.


    ¡°Your Highness.¡±


    The presence of another maid in the room didn¡¯t make sense, and the maid who followed him here briefly exined, ¡°I asked her to keep watch incase case Chambein shows up, but it¡¯s obvious that she isn¡¯t here your Highness.¡± The maid politely informed Roshan, hoping he believes her now.


    Roshan¡¯s gaze surveyed the room, but he didn¡¯t sense the maids¡¯ presence at all, nor did he sense any magic being used in his property.


    Is she really not here??


    Before he could say something, the bathroom door suddenly opened, startling the maids who immediately hid behind Roshan for safety reasons, but to everyone¡¯s surprise, it was no one but Agnes who stepped out, fully dressed, but the presence of his Highness and two maids in her chambers threw Agnes off guard.


    .....


    ¡°Your...your Highness?¡± Her eyes widened, and she bowed her head immediately. The two maids who were more than willing to prove that the Chambein was fake news, felt their jaws drop open the minute she stepped out of the bathroom.


    ¡°She was in the bathroom?!¡± Eximed both maids as the mere sight of her shocked them to the core.


    Roshan folded his arms, looking at the two maidens with a demanding stare. He had directly told them to keep an eye on the new Chambein in case she makes a slip, but now they¡¯ve made him look like the fool in front of her.


    ¡°Is there a problem, your Highness?¡± Asked Agnes, ¡°if you¡¯re here concerning Lady Anna¡¯s chamber, I have done my duty and taken care of the needful. You are free to judge my work and I¡¯ll ept whatever results given to me, if I¡¯m allowed to stay and work, or if I¡¯m incapable and deserve to leave.¡±


    The two maidens opened their eyes so wide one would fear it might fall out. They had checked the bathroom themselves when they came in, they could swear she wasn¡¯t in there when they arrived. So how did she take a bath and end up in the bathroom???


    Roshan¡¯s re made the two maidens flinch back, and they kept a good distance from him since his Highness could easily erupt the unquenchable irritation they had forced on him.


    Closing his eyes to think of something else, Roshan returned his attention to Agnes who¡¯s head was still kept in a low bow. She carried not a single negative vibe, but if she wasn¡¯t here to harm anyone, then why can¡¯t he read her mind??


    ¡°What is your decision, your Highness?¡± Agnes¡¯s calm tone reminded Roshan that he gave her a day to do a good job, and that day has already psed.


    ¡°Indeed you¡¯re right, that¡¯s why I¡¯m here.¡± He turned the tables, freeing himself from future suspicion. If he had stepped into the room alone, then his presence would have alerted Agnes. Luckily he brought in two maids, reducing whatever thoughts the Chambein must have of him.


    ¡°Miss Agnes, you¡¯re staying in the Viscarrian Pce.¡±


    ~


    When the yellow sun had risen properly to the blue sky, Anna and Levi sat together on a bench. They had just finished training for the day and Anna was trying hard to catch her breath.


    ¡°You¡¯re taking in a lot of air, are you sure you¡¯re fine?¡± Levi began by asking a sincere question. Noticing he was worried for her, Anna smiled and shook her head, reassuring him that she was alright.


    ¡°It¡¯s just you were too fast for someone like myself to catch up with.¡±


    ¡°Demons are naturally fast, I¡¯ll slow down a bit for you so you can gain more insights yourself.¡±


    He thoughtfully suggested, and Anna¡¯s face beamed. The air surrounding two of them was a friendly one and since they were done with training, Anna figured it¡¯d be the right time to ask.


    ¡°Uhm Levi.¡± She looked at him, but the young Demon was childishly ying with the wooden sword as he twirled it in his hands.


    ¡°Last night_ where were you going to_st night?¡¯ She found the courage to ask, and at the mention of what happenedst night, Levi stopped tossing the sword, as though a current had run through him and it was expected.


    ¡°Don¡¯t think I¡¯ve forgotten, you told me not to mention it to anyone, and you vanished when Roshan showed up at the stairs.¡±


    He ran away from sight, and that part had stunned her even more. Looking at Levi now, his lips disyed a smile that didn¡¯t reach his eyes, cause he made a slip and revealed the sadness he¡¯s been hiding_ and still trying to hide it.


    ¡°It¡¯s normal to be curious Anna,¡± Levi softly cut in as he kept his sword away, ¡°pretend you never saw mest night, thinking about such things can be harmful to your health, most especially when they have nothing to do with you.¡±

 Chapter 234

    234 Going Out Tonight


    From his tone, it was obvious he didn¡¯t want to discuss where he was heading to, not even to Roshan or Azazel, and Anna didn¡¯t think it¡¯ll be right to force it out of him if he isn¡¯t ready to share it, but that doesn¡¯t mean she¡¯ll stop bugging him aboutst night. One way or another, she¡¯ll have to get him to open up to her.


    Going into her chamber to clean up for the day, Anna¡¯s gazended on Roshan who was slouching on the couch with his eyes closed. Feeling happy to see he had woken up, she closed the door and hurried to the couch he was sitting on, going on her knees before him as she tapped his knee.


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    ¡°How was training?¡± His eyes opened to look at the woman sitting on the ground, and she was currently sweating since Levi chose to start another training session with her.


    ¡°It was good.¡± She brightly responded, ¡°Levi reminded me of the basic techniques and he told me I learnt fast¡ª¡± she began her chattering, talking non-stop about how the training went, her first few failures and then how she seeded in the end.


    Roshan listened to the youngdy¡¯s chattering with a faint smile, hearing her speak about the in¡¯s and out¡¯s of the training like a little girl who just won a trophy. He¡¯s never seen her talk this fast and this long too, she was carrying a big smile on her lips as she exined it all to him, to the point she made a few gestures of some of her training that she learnt.


    ¡°I see, so you did well on your first day.¡± He summarized it all in one sentence, and Anna let out an embarrassing chuckle before dipping her head.


    ¡°I must have spoken too much but I got excited.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not a crime to feel excited, if you did well then you should feel proud about it. And by that I mean you should get up from the floor, sit.¡± Roshan gave the empty space beside him a pat. Anna got to her feet and sat beside Roshan. He wanted to pull her close to him but the silly woman resisted, shaking her head in refusal.


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯m a mess, I¡¯m sweaty, I don¡¯t want to¨Cwait!¡± She wasn¡¯t even given a chance toplete her words before he pulled her into his arms, trapping her against him as his hand snaked around her slender waist.


    ¡°And what makes you think something so trivial is worth my bother?¡± He arched an eyebrow, but despite getting flustered, Anna still found it ufortable to cling on him like this when she¡¯s in a morning mess.


    He smelled fresh with his Woody spicy scent while she was the opposite.


    ¡°Roshan.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be going out tonight.¡± He finally informed her, and that made Anna¡¯s brows knit into a curious frown as she looked at him.


    ¡°Going where?¡±


    He noticed her displeased reaction the moment told her, but he made her adjust in the same position they were before, wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder.


    ¡°I have something important that I need to work on, so I¡¯ll be leaving tonight.¡±


    ¡°When will you return?¡±


    ¡°Tomorrow morning, if I¡¯m able to wrap it up on time.¡± He was going to check on ke¡¯s and make sure the coffin was safe. The owner can¡¯t go a whole week without resting in that coffin, and four days have gone by since they got hold of it. It¡¯s possible that within these three days, the owner has toe find that coffin if it doesn¡¯t want its skin to shed.


    ¡°But¨C¡± Anna didn¡¯t fancy the idea of him leaving tonight, she knew it had to be about some royal meeting but if he keeps going out like this, won¡¯t he run into Luderick??


    He¡¯s still out there and Anna wasn¡¯t peaceful with letting him leave.


    ¡°Can Ie with?¡± She asked, moving away and turning to look at Roshan, ¡°I promise I won¡¯t be of any disturbance, I just want to be around you and make sure you¡¯re safe.¡±


    This was the reason why Roshan doesn¡¯t want her to get involved, she¡¯s not even aware of his reasons for going out tonight, but wants toe with.


    ¡°You¡¯re talking like I haven¡¯t been outte before,¡± he kissed her knuckles, ¡°or are you scared you¡¯re going to miss my presence? You don¡¯t want me to leave?¡±


    She nodded her head, hoping he¡¯d stay back for her sake, but that thought died when Roshan shook his head.


    ¡°I can¡¯t fulfill that wish of yours today, stay with Gemma so you won¡¯t miss my presence too much, and if you need anything, you can ask Agnes to help you sort it out.¡±


    ¡°The Chambein?¡±


    He nodded, ¡°that reminds me, I epted her toe work here.¡± He had forgotten to ry the news to Anna, but felt thankful he remembered at thest minute, and Anna¡¯s eyes widened in surprise.


    ¡°You did?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sorry I didn¡¯t ask for your opinion before making such an abrupt decision, the situation¨C¡±


    She ced a finger to his lips, silencing him, ¡°I understand, I don¡¯t mind at all that you epted her to work here, I think she¡¯s nice and I¡¯m sure you had your reasons foring up with this decision, so your apology isn¡¯t necessary.¡±


    She assured him. Him epting Agnes wasn¡¯t the reason her heart was fluttering at the moment. The fact he considers her decision and opinions to whatever situation they were in really warmed her heart. It showed that her own opinion mattered to him, and she couldn¡¯t be any grateful for that.


    After her return, her rtionship with Roshan has grown stronger, and their bond felt unbreakable. Her arguments with Roshan were always endless in the past, but now, they seem to understand each other better than before, and would rather talk things out rather than argue over it. He hasn¡¯t even marked her yet, but the thought of how much their bond will be when he finally does made her face bloom uncontrobly.


    ¡°What are you thinking?¡± Roshan asked, tilting his head to get a better view of Ana¡¯s face that had turned red all of a sudden, and a mischievous glint danced in his eyes after realizing what was going through her head.


    ¡°N_Nothing.¡± She stood up from her seat, looking away from him.


    ¡°I need to get dressed for the day, if you¡¯ll excuse me.¡±


    ¡°When you¡¯re done, we still have something to talk about?¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    .


    ¡°Our wedding invitation cards.¡± He told her, ¡°Levi and Ba brought many suggestions on how the wedding cards should be printed, so I need you to take a look and pick one.¡±


    The butterflies in her stomach hadn¡¯t stopped pping due to her earlier thoughts, and Roshan decided to make it worse.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you pick?¡±


    He shrugged, ¡°I¡¯m not good in those aspects. I¡¯ll dly go with whichever one you find suitable, remember I want you to feelfortable with the arrangements, and if you¡¯re okay with it, then I have no issues with it either.¡±


    Anna just stared as awe transformed her face, he was really putting her first above everything, did he love her that much??


    ¡°I¡¯ll_I¡¯ll look at it then.¡± She smiled.

 Chapter 235

    235 Satisfying His Curiousity


    ¡°You said that to her??¡± Levi screamed out after Azazel told him everything that happened at Calista¡¯s ce, but never did he see Levi¡¯s outbursting. It made him look like hemitted some serious abomination.


    Thankfully, the guards he had been teaching already left the training ground, else he would have been casted by Levi who can¡¯t keep his tone down.


    ¡°How can you say that to ady, not just anydy, but a beautiful kind princess like Calista.¡± Levi couldn¡¯t believe it, he felt like strangling Azazel right now for hurting Calista like that, but the Enigma himself barely showed any remorse.


    Azazel wasn¡¯tpletely surprised afterwards, Levi naturally has a soft spot for women. If it was possible, Levi wouldn¡¯t mind getting married to all the beautiful young women heys eyes on.


    ¡°I was being honest with my feelings.¡± Azazel defended himself, ¡°I don¡¯t pretend to like someone.¡±


    ¡°Well you sure are good at pretending to hate someone.¡± He shot back, baffling the dumbstruck Azazel who couldn¡¯t understand why Levi was angry at him over it. He had his reason, he didn¡¯t want her to keep daydreaming about something that will never happen, so he ended it there, once and for all, but he gets med for saving her from an even worse heartache.


    ¡°What should I have done then? Lead her on further when I know I don¡¯t feel the same?¡± He crossed his arm, looking at Levi who appeared to be boiling in his own fury. One would think his head was about to erupt fire.


    ¡°You¡¯re a man whose heart was forged with ice, we know that, but that doesn¡¯t mean everyone has to witness how cold you can really be. What were you thinking, even if you didn¡¯t like the princess you could have used it to your advantage.¡±


    Levi let out a sigh, he wasn¡¯t happy Azazel broke Calista¡¯s heart so ruthlessly, but at the same time, Azazel could have used her love for him to his greater advantage. Wasn¡¯t he a Demon for crying out loud??


    .....


    ¡°Exin.¡±


    ¡°The sword,¡± Levi pointed out, ¡°if only you retaliated her love just once, she would have helped you search for the sword and even give it to you. Since it¡¯ll be difficult to wander in their pce freely, Calista could be a great advantage to helping us get the sword, but you¡¯ve decided to ruin the whole thing.¡±


    ¡°Then get Anna to do it,¡± Azazel stubbornly suggested, ¡°but I did what I did, no need crying over spilt milk.¡±


    ¡°How can someone be so heartless?¡± Levi red, ¡°someday, when you eventually fall in love with someone and watch how she breaks your heart, then you¡¯ll learn.¡±


    ¡°Never gonna happen.¡± He sounded too rxed as he countered back, and it was gradually eating Levi up. What can he possibly do to stir Azazel up, even if it¡¯s for a little time?


    ¡°That means you have no n on getting married in the future?¡±


    ¡°Marriage isn¡¯t meant for everyone, stop bothering me with irrelevant talks, I need to go watch the limbo, I need to be more alert since Luderick has decided to bring back a dead body to life.¡±


    ¡°Uncle did what?¡± That part threw Levi off guard, and from his aghast expression, it was obvious Roshan hadn¡¯t said anything to him yet.


    Dang it!


    ¡°Keep what I said to yourself, we¡¯ll talk more when I return, I¡¯mte as it is.¡±


    Before Levi got a chance to say exactly what he had in mind, Azazel vanished from sight, leaving Levi to stand alone in the training ground. It took him a few seconds of pondering to register this new information in his head, and he gasped.


    ¡°Uncle brought back a dead body?¡± The color on his drained at the news.


    ~


    Aveline satfortably on her throne made from skulls of human¡¯s she¡¯s devoured. Once, the throne belonged to Luderick, but with Aveline¡¯s presence, she had decided to take his seat as well.


    Her fingers dripped with blood from a mortal she just finished tearing into pieces, and her elongated nails shrinked to their normal size. She licked the blood from her fingers, feeling satisfied with the amount of human souls she¡¯s absorbed, and her skin appeared more wless as the cracks on her face and skin healed immediately.


    ¡°What about your coffin?¡± The impatient Luderick stepped in, getting tired of watching the silly Demon enjoy her meal, hence, he had to interrupt Aveline¡¯s feast as she paused at the sound of his voice. A look of irritation clouded her features as she whipped her head in his direction, her red eyes fading and returning to the normal chocte-brown eyes that made her appear innocent.


    ¡°I could kill you for interrupting my meal without permission, Luderick, but I have to remind myself that you¡¯re too useful for me.¡± She truthfully said, not happy about the idea herself before rising from her seat.


    ¡°The coffin is no longer in the pce.¡± He told her, thinking she¡¯d panic since she needed to get her coffin back, but Aveline didn¡¯t seem bothered by it as her skin still appeared wless, ¡°I¡¯m not worried about that, his Highness is so desperate to catch me in person, but he¡¯s not the only one with a couple of tricks up his sleeves.¡±


    Luderick¡¯s brows knitted, ¡°what do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°I mean,¡± she revealed a menacing smile, ¡°If he wants to see me that badly then I have no problem satisfying his curiosity. He¡¯s going to see mee for my coffin, but like I said before, I need to somehow get rid of Anna so I can take her ce.¡± She hinted.


    ¡°So you n on...¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡± She giggled excitedly, ¡°everyone will be in for a surprise when Anna disappears out of the blue. I¡¯m having their new year presents wrapped up already.¡±


    Luderick wasn¡¯t aware of what he¡¯d be getting himself into after awakening this Demon. He hated her to the very core of his rotten system, but he liked the way she thinks.


    ¡°Let me in on your ns.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t only let you in, my dear Luderick, you will be involved, just wait for tonight.¡± Sheughed, revealing her sharp white fangs.

 Chapter 236

    236 Think Before You Act


    ~


    Anna was heading back up the stairs when Agnes approached her. The maid was already waiting at the top of the stairs when she spotted Anna making her way up. Keeping her head in a bow when Anna stood before her, she asked.


    ¡°You seem tired, Mdy, I¡¯m done re-adjusting the bed, should I make you something warm to help your system rx a bit?¡±


    Anna kept mute as she looked at the maid. Indeed, she felt tired for some reason, but she had managed to pull it off without letting anyone know about it, so how did the new maid figure it out with just a nce.


    Was it her face?


    Anna shook her head, politely refusing her kind offer, ¡°I am alright, I had to check out a few arrangements for my wedding, but I never expected that I had to go through a long list, I guess I¡¯ve over-stressed my mind again. I¡¯ll just get some rest.¡±


    ¡°Then allow me to make you some soup, you¡¯ll feel warmed and sleepfortably after taking it, it¡¯s very medicinal and you¡¯ll like it.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to stress you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m a maid, I may be incharge of the chambers but your health is also my priority. His Highness asked me to take good care of you until he returns, so please don¡¯t refuse and let me get them for you.¡±


    .....


    She sounded earnest, her tone was even more rxing, and since she insisted, Anna didn¡¯t think she had the right to refuse any longer.


    ¡°Alright,¡± she smiled faintly, ¡°I¡¯ll be in my chamber in case you¡¯re done making it.¡±


    Agnes¡¯s face brightened, she appeared to be in herte thirties but still looked young in a mature way. But Anna couldn¡¯t rid the feeling of knowing her from somewhere.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go make some for you.¡±


    ¡°Hold it there.¡± Came the voice of Lady Odette as she strolled through the corridor toe meet the two women. As always, she held her head with pride and carried a look of displeasure and obvious irritation, enough sign for Anna to realize that there was going to be trouble with her presence.


    ¡°Good morning Matriarch.¡± Anna politely bowed her head, showing her signs of greetings to Lady Odette before raising her head up.


    ¡°You there.¡± She ignored Anna¡¯s greetings, turning her attention to the maid who still kept her head in a bow.


    ¡°My room is untidy, and since you appear jobless to be having unnecessary discussions on the stairs, go and clean it up.¡± She strictly ordered, but to her surprise, the maid didn¡¯t flinch.


    ¡°I do not wish to disrespect your orders, but His Highness has made it clear to my ears that I shall attend to his future wife and no one else.¡± Agnes ryed the message of Roshan to her, but Lady Odette felt aggravated by it, embarrassment seeped into her bones that a maid had refused her.


    This is the first time a maid has dared to go against her orders.


    ¡°Are you disobeying me??¡±


    ¡°I am just following His Highness¡¯s orders since I¡¯ll be at the risk of losing my job, and I was just about to go make some soup for Mdy here.¡±


    ¡°Do you have any idea who I am??¡± Odette wasted no time in raising her voice at the maid, ¡°how dare you refuse me for a simpleton like her!¡± Sheshed, ¡°I asked you to go tidy my room, go do it now! And know this, it must be sparkling neat or else that would be the end of your job.¡±


    ¡°Forgive me for interrupting but It is not necessary to send her to do it,¡± Anna intervened, ¡°there are many other maids who are capable of getting your chambers cleaned up.¡±


    ¡°And when did I ask you to speak, you witch!¡± She cursed, startling Anna who blinked at what Odette referred her to.


    ¡°W_what?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not a fool, because everyone else has fallen under the spell you put on them, doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m also weak to fall directly into your trap.¡± She rified, ¡°first you dared to ept Roshan¡¯s proposal, and now he¡¯s let you bring another human into the pce, what are your ns? Cause I won¡¯t fall for your act.¡±


    Agnes, who listened to how rudely Anna was being treated by Odette made her a bit angry. It¡¯s not like Anna did anything to deserve such words from her. Plus, Anna is currently weak at handling all this morning drama, and she could tell the olddy was doing it on purpose.


    ¡°When will you believe me when I say I have no ulterior motive against anyone.¡± For once, Anna really wished Odette would kill this hatred she had for her, else how will they live as a healthy family if this keeps going on. It didn¡¯t surprise her Lady Odette outrightly ignored her greetings, but Odette is still an elder to her, and greeting her will always be the right thing to do.


    ¡°If you really want to prove that to me,¡± Odette sped her hands behind her back, ¡°then leave this ce, leave Viscarrian without looking back, exit Roshan from your life and then I¡¯ll believe you.¡±


    Anna was willing to do anything to get rid of her hatred, but the request she had brought was too difficult for Anna to blindly ept.


    ¡°I¡¯ll ept other conditions, but certainly not this one,¡± she firmly refused, ¡°I love Roshan and I won¡¯t leave him to please your biased wishes.¡±


    ¡°Then my attitude with you won¡¯t change,¡± eyeing Anna, she turned her attention to the maid who stayed by Anna¡¯s side.


    ¡°And why are you still standing here?!¡±


    ¡°Forgive me.¡± Agnes kept her head in a bow, ¡°but I can¡¯t displease his Highness.¡±


    ¡°You.. indigent!...¡± She raised her hand, wanting to deliver a p to the maiden¡¯s face and making her aware of her ce, but a look of shock disyed on Odette¡¯s face when Anna caught her wrist on time, stopping her from hitting the innocent maid who¡¯s eyes were already sealed shut as she expected the p.


    Odette¡¯s eyes widened when Anna red at her. She looked at her wrist that was still held in Anna¡¯s tight grasp before meeting her eyes again.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let the little bit of respect I have for you crumble to the ground, cause you won¡¯t only hate me then.¡± She threw Odette¡¯s hand away, making her stumble back a bit, not realizing the amount of energy Anna had used in throwing her hands away, and she looked like a ghost caught in a headlight.


    Did Anna just..????


    ¡°There are many maidens who are willing to tidy up your chambers, Roshan has personally assigned the Chambein to me, so it¡¯s not actually Roshan¡¯s, but my choice if I want her to go ahead with it or not, I get thest say.¡±


    ¡°You dare throw my hands away like that??¡± Odette was enraged, ¡°I see, bing a member of royalty must be quite entertaining for you, since you¡¯ve begun to grow livers.¡±


    ¡°Before you judge someone I advise you work on your manners first.¡± Anna shot back, ¡°she¡¯s a living being, not your toy that you can hit whenever you feel like it. It¡¯s the respect I have for you that hasn¡¯t made me retaliate, but that doesn¡¯t give you the right to mishandle it.¡±


    Anna has had enough of it, her cup has been long filled but she didn¡¯t want to disrespect an elder since she wasn¡¯t taught to behave that way. But today, it was crossing the limits.


    She looked at Agnes who appeared surprised that Anna had saved her from getting hit, ¡°go, get me the medicinal soup you talked about and bring it to my chambers.¡±


    ¡°Yes mdy.¡± Agnes quickly left to go make it. Meanwhile Odette could do nothing more but watch the maid go, obviously taken aback by Anna¡¯s other side she hasn¡¯t witnessed before.


    ¡°I¡¯ll give you my respect when you earn it,¡± Anna continued, turning her attention to Odette, ¡°until you learn to treat people the right way they should be treated, no one will value you, because she¡¯s a maid doesn¡¯t mean she¡¯s a rag you can step on, you have no idea what she might be in the future, or what help she might render to you in the future, so think, before you act.¡±


    Odette was speechless.


    ¡°If you¡¯ll excuse me.¡± And Anna bowed her head before taking her leave.

 Chapter 237

    237 A Mask They Put On..


    ¡°Here¡¯s the soup Mdy.¡± Agnes dropped the tray on her bedside table, and took two steps back away from her.


    Anna sat up on the bed, she looked at the soup that was evaporating with heat, followed by the pleasant smell that came along with it, signifying it was still hot, but that was what she needed right now to ease her system. Too bad she had to run into Lady Odette and instead of pleasing the elderdy of the house, she ended up heightening the feud between them. Just hopefully, Lady Odette will take her advice this time around and understand she means no harm.


    Carrying the tray and cing it on herp, Anna used a spoon to fetch a spoonful before taking it into her mouth. She didn¡¯t mind the hotness, she liked the feeling of it burning her tongue, and feeling the warmness go down her throat was unusually satisfying, but apart from that, the soup actually tastes good.


    ¡°It¡¯s very nice.¡± Annaplimented before taking another spoonful into her mouth, and a glowing smile etched itself of Agnes¡¯s lips as she lowered her head further, feeling happy that Anna enjoys the soup she made.


    ¡°I told you you¡¯d find it appealing, I¡¯m d you like it.¡±


    ¡°When you said medicinal, I thought it¡¯d be something bitter,¡± Anna guiltily admitted, ¡°I was already having second thoughts but this isn¡¯t bad at all, you¡¯ll have to teach me how to make one.¡±


    ¡°Teach?¡± Agnes looked at her, her eyes widening with surprise.


    Anna nodded, ¡°yes, just for situations where you might not be around.¡±


    ¡°As long as you have no problem learning from the hands of a maid, then I¡¯ll dly teach you.¡± She sounded delighted to teach Anna, that way Anna can take the soup, and it won¡¯t only ease her system, but help her keep her powers stable.


    .....


    ¡°No need to sound like that.¡± Anna looked at her, finding it to be normal, ¡°I was once a maid myself, I worked as a maid in two kingdoms, so I understand your point.¡±


    ¡°A maid??¡± Agnes sounded shocked, and Anna gave a slight nod in response, ¡°yes, it¡¯s a long story, but my point is, you don¡¯t have to be so formal with me, I get the feeling you¡¯re a very nice person, and you¡¯re older than me, I just want mutual respect from the both of us, and all will be fine.¡±


    Agnes understood what Anna was trying to say, and she kept her expression polite, but on the inside, she was nearly tearing up due to how thoughtful Anna was. If only her powers didn¡¯t awaken all of a sudden, Anna won¡¯t be feeling weak all the time.


    ¡°I wish the other woman had a mentality like yours.¡± Agnes added, remembering how she was nearly pped today by that vicious woman, but even though Odette was rude and went out of line, Anna didn¡¯t know if she should me anyone of them for it, even Gretta.


    ¡°I guess my situation is because I understand how your mind works,¡± Anna¡¯s shoulders rxed, ¡°I¡¯ve been in your shoes before, I¡¯ve been treated harshly myself, so it¡¯s much easier for me to have a mentality like this. But I can¡¯t say the same for them.¡± She folded her arms, ¡°they grew up where money can never be scarce, peer group is another reason they act this way towards the lower standards, and they¡¯re Demons as well, they have everything, but not even money can provide them the happiness they seek, even if they fake it.¡±


    Anna doesn¡¯t know their history, at least not all of it. Everyone has their own trauma in life, even if they never showed it. Like Roshan for example, one could rebel him with the word evil without knowing what made him that way. As for Levi, he always smiled, and was ready to cheer others up, but for the first time, she saw tears and sadness in his eyes.


    Gretta, it appeared she was raised to be a troublesome demoness, either that, or she¡¯s merely jealous of the love and attention she gets. Anna didn¡¯t know what word would be better to emphasize the whole Astaroth family. To her, their current expression is just a mask they put on to hide their actual feelings.


    She was starting to wonder if the people outside were like that. Roshan made a statement when she rode past Viscarrian for the first time, something about how things aren¡¯t always as they seem, and now, she was curious to see how everyone lived on the outside.


    Noticing Anna was drifting too deep into her thoughts, Agnes decided to break the chain of whatever she was thinking about.


    ¡°I agree.¡± Agnes finally said something, snapping Anna¡¯s attention back to her, ¡°you can¡¯t judge without knowing what someone has been through in the past, but I¡¯ll admit that the woman earlier is just naturally rude.¡±


    Anna half-chuckled, noticing the displeased look on Agnes¡¯s face, ¡°you shouldn¡¯t say that out loud, walls have ears you know, and I can¡¯t save you if you¡¯re found guilty.¡±


    ¡°Understood,¡± Agnes got the information, ¡°please finish your soup.¡± She said, bringing Anna¡¯s attention back to her meal, and she nodded, taking another spoon of it.


    ¡°I was going to finish it without you having to tell me, it¡¯s that good.¡± Annaplimented further as she continued to fetch a spoonful, leading Agnes to smile at how easy it was to converse with her.


    The hotness had reduced a bit, making it easier to go down her throat, and now she regretted letting her tongues burn.


    ¡°When you¡¯re done, do get some rest.¡± Agnes suggested, but now that she said it, Anna didn¡¯t feel like resting anymore.


    ¡°I¡¯ve lost interest,¡± she admitted, finishing her soup and putting it away, ¡°I want to do something else.¡±


    ¡°Something...else?¡±


    Agnes wasn¡¯t expecting Anna to change her mind already. Her forehead furrowed in curiosity as she picked the tray from the side table, wanting to return it to the kitchen.


    Did the soup work that fast?


    ¡°What do you want to do?¡±


    ¡°Tell the Coachman to get a carriage ready, I want to ride across Viscarrian today.¡±

 Chapter 238

    238 Visiting The Alchemist Shop (1)


    Stepping out of the pce and breathing in the warmth of the sun, Agnes had already informed the Coachman to get the carriage ready like Anna had asked, but to Anna¡¯s surprise after stepping out, two guards were waiting for her, including Ba and Agnes who stood beside the carriage.


    ¡°What is going on here?¡± Anna asked after stepping down from the stairs and taking little strides to stand in front of them. She doesn¡¯t think she understands what¡¯s happening here, and Ba was the first to exin things to her after noticing her unquestionable confusion.


    ¡°How can you forget that you¡¯re getting married to royalty, Mdy, you aren¡¯t allowed to leave the pce without taking at least two guards with you.¡±


    ¡°Guards?¡± Well that was new.


    Ba excitedly nodded before letting Anna mentally picture the scene herself, ¡°Soon you¡¯ll be referred to as Queen Annalise of Viscarrian, by then, you¡¯ll have to have at least four carriages following you. Isn¡¯t that amazing?¡±


    Ba was trying to make her know her importance and how things have started to change for the better for her, but the thought of it made Anna ufortable as she dealt with her nails. She doesn¡¯t need anyone following her about, she just wants to take a look around Viscarrian and then return back before evening.


    ¡°But I don¡¯t¨C¡±


    ¡°His Highness will have our heads if we let you leave alone,¡± Ba caught in with that reminder, ¡°so just do as we say, Agnes and I are apanying you as well, I¡¯ll show you the best ces in Viscarrian and tell you a lot about it too.¡±


    The carriage door suddenly opened in the middle of Ba¡¯s persistent speech, revealing Gemma who had pushed the door open herself, and she waved at Anna, letting her know she wasing along as well.


    .....


    ¡°Oh boy.¡± Anna muttered underneath her breath. A simple alone trip has turned into a family trip.


    But now that she thought about it, it doesn¡¯t sound bad.


    ¡°Alright then.¡± She agreed, knowing she won¡¯t feel bored with having them around. The Coachman opened the carriage door for Anna to enter, Gemma was already seated, and Anna sat beside her.


    Agnes and Ba followed suit while the two bodyguards stayed with the Coachman. Inside the carriage was incredibly fancy, and the neighing sound of the horse made them aware that the carriage is about to ride of.


    ¡°This is so exciting!¡± Ba eximed, she couldn¡¯t remember thest time she stepped out of Viscarrian. And when she did, it was mainly to get stuff from their market district, and she had to return early too.


    When they left the pce, the carriage rode them through the snowy path, and different unfamiliar people had stepped out of their homes. They appeared to be going somewhere and most of them were dressedvishly, getting into their own fancy carriages.


    Gemma peered out through the window, watching it herself, and Anna, out of curiosity joined her. She noticed the people they had passed would pause on what they were doing to look at their carriage, and it got to a point Anna was forced to look away.


    Ba let out a simperingugh due to how nervous Anna quickly got, ¡°you don¡¯t have to worry about them.¡± Ba reassured her, ¡°trust me, they¡¯re nicer than you think.¡±


    ¡°No no, I¡¯m not thinking about that.¡± Anna shook her head, letting Ba know her body reaction was being misinterpreted.


    ¡°Then what troubles your mind? Truth be told, is there a day that goes by when you aren¡¯t bothered about something?¡±


    ¡°That is not true.¡± Anna denied, ¡°I am just wondering if they¡¯ll ept me into their kingdom since I¡¯m human. I haven¡¯t interacted with any of them before, and won¡¯t it be shocking that a human chose to marry a Demon?¡±


    ¡°None of the royalties interact with people who aren¡¯t up to their standards, it¡¯s not allowed, except if you¡¯re a worker in the pce, or a maid.¡± Ba enunciated, releasing a sigh since she wasn¡¯t a fan of such rules as well.


    ¡°Being born in a royal home is like weing you to the prison cell that was beautifully arranged for you, so you have nothing to do with the outside world. I heard His Highness Azazel was locked up for more than a hundred years so he wouldn¡¯t interact with anyone. The difference was made to have a clear line.¡±


    Ba told the story, and Anna looked out at the unfamiliar houses they kept passing.


    ¡°Does that exin why they never visit the pce?¡±


    ¡°Very much yes,¡± Ba asserted, ¡°Lady Odette will never allow it. If the people have a problem they either tell it to the guards who ry it to his Highness, or send a letter to the councils, but the council will only respond if they think it¡¯s necessary to be looked into.¡±


    ¡°So they pick out the ones they think are important?¡±


    ¡°Yes, they¡¯re responsible for looking into the problems before rying it to His Highness.¡±


    ¡°Wait, how do you even know all this?¡± Anna asked. She knew Ba enjoyed gossip but she was only interested in gossip if it interested her.


    ¡°Enzo told me.¡± She revealed while rxing on her seat, ¡°he¡¯s closer to His Highness and the councils, so most times when I tend to run into him, I make him tell me stuff.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t things like that meant to be confidential?¡± Agnes finally butted in, still not sure how it made sense when affairs like that are meant to be secrets.


    ¡°Well, I have my ways.¡± She smiled guiltily, before looking at Anna with a pleading look.


    ¡°Please don¡¯t tell His Highness I said this to you.¡±


    Her sudden reaction made Anna blink twice, and she chuckled, ¡°I didn¡¯t n to, I¡¯m also interested in the affairs of the pce, just make sure to hint me on anything important when you¡¯re told.¡±


    ¡°Won¡¯t His Highness not like it?¡± Agnes asked, but Anna nodded her head truthfully, ¡°he won¡¯t, but I know His Highness is extremely busy, so I want to be aware of what he does, it¡¯s possible I can be of help to him, no one can tell.¡±


    ¡°Ipletely agree.¡± Ba was in one with that idea.


    The carriage continued to ride downtown, the sun was already starting to melt off the snow from the branches of trees, but Anna knew how deceiving the weather can be. It might even get snowier tonight, and she wanted to be in thefort of her bed tonight, where it¡¯ll be warm.


    She looked out the window with Gemma, and outside the district. Anna saw a lot of people gathering against a building. They were all dressed in noble attires, meaning whatever was happening there only involved the influential ones.


    ¡°Stop the carriage.¡± She informed the Coachman who immediately halted at the sound of her voice, stopping the carriage at her orders.


    ¡°Huh? Why did you tell the Coachman to stop?¡± Agnes asked, and Anna¡¯s face looked out the window again, ¡°seems like something is happening there, I want to go see.¡±


    Confused, Ba looked out the window, trying to understand what Anna was talking about, but after seeing the building, her eyes brightened.


    ¡°Oh! It¡¯s that time of the year when the famous son of an alchemist visits Viscarrian to hold a small ceremony to exhibit his countless sesses since he became an alchemist.¡±


    ¡°I see.¡± Anna hummed, ¡°is it okay if I take a look?¡±


    ¡°I suppose, this shouldn¡¯t be a problem since most higher Demons of great ranks are present, I don¡¯t think Lady Odette will have a problem if she got to hear about it.¡±


    ¡°But is it safe?¡± Agnes questioned thoughtfully, ¡°since Anna is human, I hope no one will have a problem¨C¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry,¡± Ba assured Agnes, ¡°she¡¯s the future wife of His Highness Roshan so no one can dare harm her. Even if they have bad intentions in mind, they¡¯ll think twice beforeing near her, but I doubt they¡¯ll have a problem with her presence.¡±


    Agnes was relieved after hearing things from Ba¡¯s side, ¡°okay then, but I¡¯ming with her.¡±


    ¡°We both are, and you¡¯re safe too since you¡¯re a human as well, we¡¯ll just take a quick look and leave.¡±


    After confirming everything for themselves, the Coachman opened the carriage door, and Ba along with the rest were the first to step out before Anna.


    Due to the fanciness of their carriage, and its difference to that of other carriages, it was easy to tell that it came from royalty. All eyes swept their way, and Anna felt nervous for a few seconds, silence followed after that, not until one of the unfamiliar crowd uttered.


    ¡°Ah! Isn¡¯t she the new bride of His Highness?¡±


    ¡°Make way for her to pass you delinquents!¡± Another stranger in the crowd yelled at them, and before Anna knew it, the path was instantly cleared for her to pass, to her surprise.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Ba pushed the stiff Anna forward a bit, and Anna began to move, holding Gemma¡¯s hand as they walked side by side. Agnes and Ba followed behind.


    ¡°Mdy thinks it¡¯s best if you wait outside.¡± Ba said to the guards who were about to follow them. Anna was already ufortable as it is, and she didn¡¯t need the presence of the guard to make Anna feel even more nervous.


    ¡°Why do you get to tell us that?¡± A guard said to her, and Ba frowned, ¡°I was just thinking about grabbing some snacks for you guys, but since you decide to be stubborn¨C¡±


    ¡°Stubborn?¡± A guard interrupted her, ¡°we were just asking a question, of course we¡¯ll wait back, right?¡± The guard asked his fellow guard who hated how Ba always ckmail them with things like this.


    ¡°Fine.¡±


    ¡°Good.¡± She happily turned away and followed Anna into the alchemist building.

 Chapter 239 - 239 Visiting The Alchemist Shop (2)

    239 Visiting The Alchemist Shop (2)


    The Alchemist shop is a wooden, sprawling single story building, with a white shingled roof and a smooth stone floor. It looked decent on the outside, but more grand on the inside after Anna had stepped in, holding Gemma¡¯s hand and keeping her by her side.


    The air inside smelled magical when she breathed in, and several candles were lit and ced on the candle stand, brightening the whole ce. The fancy dark blue curtains were opened, making way for the light outside to pour into the room, and she could see everything more clearly now.


    Anna could still hear chattering from the people who waited outside, hoping to get in soon before the Alchemist¡¯s son leaves for the day. She would have stood in line like the rest of them, waiting to go in, but thanks to her sudden rank in Viscarrian, she was granted quick ess.


    She was more surprised that they knew about her, meanwhile she knows none of them.


    Making her way in, several hunting trophies lined themselves against the walls like a disyed cauldron collection. A grandfather clock hung against the high top of the walls, and Anna got curious about how someone was even capable of reaching up there.


    Did they use adder?


    There was a rectangr wooden table that was ced in each corner of the room, potions, poultices, tonics and other loose ingredients were ced on the table, and Anna studied each one with pure amusement glimmering in her brown eyes.


    Things like this actually exist?


    A lot of people who had seeded in getting in elegantly walked by, conversing with themselves as they stopped to admire one of the trophies. There were dozens of shelves that had books of different kinds, and Anna noticed how most of the people each picked a book freely to read.


    .....


    ¡°I heard the young Alchemist wrote some of the books here himself.¡± Anna heard ady whisper to anotherdy who appeared surprised by the information.


    ¡°Really?!¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s very talented, and he¡¯s made so many progressions in such a short time during his quest to be a true Alchemist. His father must be proud.¡±


    Hearing thedy¡¯s genuinely admire the Alchemist made Anna curious to see who that Alchemist was. He sounds like a nice person since they happen to talk about him with such honesty


    Is he a Demon too??


    ¡°The Alchemist himself isn¡¯t here.¡± Ba suddenly broke the silence between them, and Anna had almost forgotten she had people walking with her.


    ¡°Why?¡± She turned to look at Ba.


    ¡°He¡¯s not here doesn¡¯t mean he¡¯s blind to everything happening in his territory.¡± Ba exined, sounding impressed herself, ¡°It¡¯s one of his interesting tricks as an Alchemist, although I really want to see him, and I¡¯m hoping he graces us with his presence.¡±


    ¡°Then would it be alright if I pick a book to read?¡± First things first, Anna didn¡¯t want to do anything that might offend this person since he could be watching like Ba said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll have a problem with it,¡± Ba gave a half shrug, ¡°who wouldn¡¯t want people to read their hard work.¡±


    ¡°Fair point.¡± Anna agreed with her statement. Holding Gemma by her hand so she wouldn¡¯t slip off and wander into the crowd, Anna decided to take her along so they could both search for books together.


    ¡°Hey Agnes, since she¡¯s busy, shall we take a look at those potions, the purple colored one over there looks so alluring.¡± Ba pointed a potion on one of the tables, taking Agnes along with her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t touch them, it might not be allowed.¡± Agnes reprimanded Ba who was just about toy a hand on it, but stopped after Agnes¡¯s thoughtful warning.


    A smile worked its way to Anna¡¯s lips, seeing Ba and the new maid get along pretty well. It reminded her of how friendly Ba was to her when she had no one to talk to in the pce, and it was a warm moment she would never forget.


    Returning her attention back to the books on the shelves, Gemma had her gaze on thest row of books, since she could only pick from there. Spending a lot of time with Anna got her interested in reading about new things, and at her young age too. Even if she couldn¡¯t say anything, she was more educated than a lot of people who could actually speak.


    ¡°Hmmm, what book should I pick?¡± Anna quietly asked herself, letting her eyes scan through every row of books that was neatly ced on the shelves.


    Gemma was the first to pick a book, she showed it to Anna who was impressed to see Gemma was more than interested in reading as well.


    ¡°You want to read this?¡±


    She excitedly nodded her head. Anna collected the book from her small grip and looked at the title.


    ¡®SPIRITS OF MAGIC.¡¯ it suddenly clicked as Anna¡¯s ears perked up.


    ¡°I see, so you want to read on it to develop insights about your unawakened powers, is that it?¡±


    Again, Gemma nodded with a bright smile, looking happy that Anna understood her reason for picking the book. She felt Anna understood her a lot more than Ba did.


    ¡°Not a bad choice.¡± Anna looked fascinated by her choice. If Gemmaa continues to read and gains more knowledge on her powers, she might just awaken them in her early stage, and that will be a happy moment to witness, especially for Levi.


    Anna¡¯s eyes shifted to Agnes and Ba who were seated on a chair, still checking out the ingredients on the table and having discussions that she couldn¡¯t hear. Anna could swear her ears were extremely sensitive in the past, but now they just work on their own, making it their decision to hear something from afar or not.


    ¡°How about you go sit with Aunt Ba and Agnes so you can readfortably,¡± Anna squatted down, handing the book back to Gemma. ¡± I¡¯ll join you right after I find myself a book, okay?¡±


    Luckily, Gemma didn¡¯t put up a fight and willingly agreed. She ran to meet Ba, showing her the book while bouncing on her toes. Anna watched as Ba carried her so she could sit on the chair in their middle, and now their attention was focused on the book Gemma had brought.


    Knowing Gemma was safely with them, Anna continued to scan through the rows of books on the shelves, moving to the next shelf if she found nothing that grabbed her interest.


    There isn¡¯t a book that is capable of stealing her attention here, even though they all had unique names she¡¯s never seen before, none of them felt like something she could read.


    ¡°Hmmm, what about this one?¡± She randomly picked out a book from the shelf, mainly because of its book cover that had pictures of an attractive symbol.


    ¡°TALES OF TWO BLOOD¡± she read out the title, but it sounded more like a story rather than an educational book on magic. She looked at the author of the book and the name was decently written below.


    ¡°Marcus Edeven.¡± Her forehead furrowed as her brows knitted with interest.


    Due to her inquiring mind, Anna opened the book to the first page, wanting to see what it¡¯s all about, but what she didn¡¯t expect was to feel an unexinable energy shoot through her system like a quick bolt skittering through her every nerves, and her eyes immediately turned golden in color as they dted.


    Her powers were awakening.


    She involuntarily gasped at first, a bit stunned by what just coerced through her system but before she could mentally grasp herself, she unexpectedly realized she was no longer in the Alchemist shop. Rather, she saw herself looking right into Euphrasia like a vision. It felt like she was running, running to get somewhere at full speed.


    Anna tried to stop it, but she couldn¡¯t, she couldn¡¯t stop what was running in her head. If she was the one who kept running she didn¡¯t know, but to her shock, she saw the vision take her straight into the dark woods, it was the same, still filled with an eerie vibe and it didn¡¯t stop there, her mind kept running till she found herself standing before the forbidden temple, where she had once helped Roshan escape from, and her breath quickened.


    Her chest rose and fell with rapid breathing, anxiety gripped her hard, not until the book she was holding fell from her hand to the ground, only then did those visions disappear from her mind, and her eyes turned normal.


    The thudding sound of the book hitting the ground snapped Anna back to reality. She gasped and found herself in the Alchemist shop again, with everyone walking freely and some even greeted her, but she was too spaced out to respond.


    ¡°What...what was that?¡± Her voice trembled.


    ¡°Be careful with the things you drop, Mdy.¡± A voice came from behind her and Anna immediately panicked.

 Chapter 240 - 240 Visiting The Alchemist Shop (3)

    240 Visiting The Alchemist Shop (3)


    Turning around in one swift movement to look at the person who startled her without warning, a youthful-looking silver-haired man crouched to his knees, picking up the book that had fallen to the ground before rising to his full height.


    He dusted the book, getting rid of whatever dirt must havee in contact with it before letting his dark orbs settle on the frozendy.


    ¡°If the books here don¡¯t interest you, I prefer you kindly return it back to the shelve than showing your disinterest by dropping my work to the ground.¡± He stated, turning sideways from Anna and shifting the book into its rightful ce on the shelf.


    Did he just say his work??


    Anna¡¯s eyes widened like a saucer the minute he indirectly introduced himself to her, and she gave a low bow out of self instinct, feeling embarrassed that he noticed her expression all this time she¡¯s been scanning through.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, I didn¡¯t mean to drop¨C¡±


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± His clipped tone cut her off as he arched a quizzical brow at her, making Anna tilt her head up to look at him, barely understanding what he meant by his question.


    ¡°If people see you bowing to amoner like myself, then your rank will be seriously questioned, and I don¡¯t think we both want attentions drawn to ourselves.¡± He sounded neutral, but in all, he was kind-heartedly giving her advice on how to act in front of people her ss.


    Anna got the hint, and immediately stood straight before anyone noticed her bowing her head to the young Alchemist. He was a charming young man, but everything about him evolved in a mystery she found odd.


    .....


    ¡°I_I¡¯m not used to this,¡± she admitted, ¡°I just wanted to apologize since it wasn¡¯t my intention to drop your book, I¨C¡± her voice trailed off when the images of the vision she saw flooded her brain, and it sent another frightening tingle crawling up her spine.


    Why did she see the dark woods? And why did the templee into sight after she opened the book?? She¡¯s had dreams before, but this was totally different.


    ¡°Nevermind that_¡± she hesitantly brushed it off, not willing to bring her worries to someone she just met, ¡°you¡¯re Marcus Edeven then, son of the great Alchemist, am I right?¡±


    ¡°And you¡¯re Lady Annalise, daughter ofte Sir Mateo, soon-to-be wife of His Highness Roshan, am I right?¡±


    Anna blinked in disbelief, her jaw nearly dropped open after hearing him speak about her like he¡¯s known her for a long time, and a smug smile appeared on Marcus¡¯s face, seeing he had sessfully left her speechless.


    ¡°H_how do you know?¡± She finally managed to ask, but Marcus just shrugged and said.


    ¡°I just know.¡±


    Looking around, Anna finally took it into notice that everyone still carried on with whatever they did, not sparing her or the Alchemist they were dying to see a single nce, and it didn¡¯t feel right, rather she found it strange that they hadn¡¯t noticed the young Alchemist yet.


    ¡°Why is everyone¨C¡±


    ¡°They can¡¯t see me.¡± He asserted, leaning his shoulder against the bookshelf and stuffing his hands in his pocket. His dark orbs held mysteries that made her ufortable whenever she stared into them, and his responses only made her more confused instead of convincing her.


    ¡°What do you mean by that? You_You¡¯re not a ghost are you?¡± She asked, hoping that wasn¡¯t the case. Only ghosts are capable of not being seen by people, and if they can¡¯t see him, doesn¡¯t that make him a ghost??


    Can she see Ghosts??


    ¡°I¡¯m not a ghost, I¡¯m an Alchemist.¡± He reminded her. The words Ba said to her about the young Alchemist being capable of knowing what¡¯s happening in his territory finally clicked, and her eyes widened in stupefaction.


    ¡°Ah! That means Ba was right.¡± She eximed a bit too loudly, making heads turn in her direction due to her sudden outburst, and she instantly kept quiet, covering her mouth with her palm as she noticed all eyes were now on her.


    ¡®Gosh, you really draw the worst attention to yourself Anna.¡¯ she inwardly scolded herself, feeling her cheeks lit up faintly in embarrassment.


    Seeing her reaction, Marcus¡¯ eyes glinted with interest before he shifted from the shelf he was solely resting on.


    ¡°I shall take my leave, I don¡¯t want the future Queen to be considered crazy on her first visit to my shop. It¡¯s not a good way to start our rtionship.¡±


    ¡°But you must have appeared to some right? Everyone is actually waiting to see you.¡± She quietly said to him after all gazes were no longer focused on her.


    She found it weird talking to someone only she could see and no one else, but she was left with no other choice.


    ¡°They should keep expecting,¡± he sounded amused by it, ¡°I don¡¯t usually show myself, you¡¯re the only person I¡¯ve revealed myself to for today, and that is enough, I don¡¯t need more audience.¡±


    He turned away from her, preparing to take his leave, ¡°I¡¯m hoping this won¡¯t be ourst meeting, Lady Annalise.¡±


    ¡°Wait.¡± Anna stopped him before he could leave, blocking his path so he wouldn¡¯t walk away, and she was cautious not to make her movement too obvious to avoid being pictured weird.


    ¡°That book- what is it about?¡± She finally asked, but Marcus decided to y the dumb game as he appeared clueless.


    ¡°What book?¡±


    ¡°Tales of two blood, you wrote about it yourself, you¡¯re the author.¡± She took a deep breath, trying to shake off the after effects of what the vision had done to her senses.


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°I want to know what is about, when I touched it, something happened and I can¡¯t exin what it was. Can you tell me what the book holds? What is the content?¡±


    ¡°The content is about the tales of two blood, that¡¯s it.¡± He nonchntly responded, not taking it as seriously as Anna was expecting him to, and he wanted to walk out again, but Anna stopped him for the second time, not understanding his subtle response.


    She wasn¡¯t going to let him leave until he answered her. She got that vision right after she touched his book, and why would he suddenly show up right after that? It could only mean he knew exactly what happened to her.


    ¡°Please,¡± she whispered, ¡°I got a vision, so I need to know what the content is, or if you can just let me leave with the book¨C¡±


    ¡°No book leaves my territory,¡± he firmly responded before sizing her up with his gaze, ¡°I wonder how a human is capable of getting visions, why should I believe you?¡±


    ¡°I know what I saw.¡±


    ¡°What did you see?¡±


    ¡°What is my gain after I reveal it to you?¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t know if you don¡¯t try.¡±


    ¡°But¨C¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t understand the vision when you don¡¯t understand yourself. You¡¯re pretty good at knowing a lot about other people, but it¡¯s not the same when ites to you.¡± He pointed out, Anna¡¯s forehead creased in confusion.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    He sighed, looking up at the ceiling before bringing his head down to look at the nked woman, ¡°first figure out who you really are, thene back to me for more answers.¡±


    ¡°You¡­¡±


    And he walked out with his hands sped behind his back, not turning around even once to look at her. He mingled with the crowd without them knowing, and before her eyes, he faded until she no longer saw him in view.


    ¡°Who I really am??¡±


    When Anna returned back to the pce, she dismissed everyone and went straight to her room, took a shower, changed into her night dress before proceeding to lie on her bed, covering her body with the duvet.


    She stared up at the white colored ceiling, unable to get some sleep and she turned her head to the side, staring at the weather through the ss window, and it was already night time.


    Roshan won¡¯t be returning till tomorrow morning which means she has to sleep by herself tonight.


    She sighed, covering herself even more as the room started to get colder, but she couldn¡¯t tell if it was because of the actual cold, or because she yearned for Roshan¡¯s warmth.


    Her mind drifted to what the young Alchemist had told her in the afternoon, and she sat up on the bed when his words started to rey in her head.


    ¡°What does he mean by who I really am?¡±


    Her lips tugged into a thin line as she tried to understand the meaning to his words. At that moment, her eyes indubitably shifted to her pillow, and she caught sight of a book that was underneath it.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    She doesn¡¯t remember keeping a book there.


    Curious, she brought it out to see what book it was, or maybe she had left it while reading to sleep and forgot about it.


    After bringing it out, she turned it to the front cover, and her eyes widened after realizing which book it was.


    ¡°My goodness! It¡¯s the book!¡±


    She eximed, suddenly getting to her feet.


    But he told her he couldn¡¯t give it to her, and she never took it from his shop either, so how did it end up in her room??

 Chapter 241 - 241 Someone’s Coming

    241 Someone¡¯s Coming


    In Euphrasia¡­..


    Calista made her way through the marbled tiled floor as she kept a straight face, the sound of her shoe cking against the ground as she strode past the hallway, made her presence known. There were guards positioned in each corner of the pce, and each of them bowed when she walked by.


    Despite keeping calm in her demeanor, her heart was racing tremendously and she felt nervous on the inside. She was wondering if Azazel would show up like she asked him to. After what happened between them, she felt her presence made him ufortable, thus, leading to her own unsettlement.


    ¡®please be there,¡¯ she uttered in her head.


    Going up to the balcony after letting out a soft breath, she stepped in, and to her relief, found Azazel waiting for her there.


    Calista¡¯s heart skipped many beats when Azazel¡¯s face came into sight. He was leaning against the edge of the balcony and his silver-white hair fluttered with the breeze. His blue eyes were locked on hers and Calista could swear she saw something move in them.


    ¡°You asked for me.¡± His voice broke her quickly from her trance, and she blinked at him, shocked and surprised that he actually came.


    She had been so scared of contacting him again after theirst encounter together in her room, just thinking about the words he said to her made her heart sting, and she was reminded of how her feelings were hurt.


    She never nned on disturbing him again, but when Levi spoke to her about the Valerian sword, he said things that made her wary of it, and suddenly told her to meet with Azazel. He assured her that only Azazel was capable of exining the dangers of the sword better.


    .....


    She never expected Azazel would show up if she called him again.


    ¡°I..¡± she took a step forward, standing before Azazel and keeping her head low, ¡°I wanted us to talk about the Valerian sword, if you don¡¯t mind.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± He arched a brow at her, acting surprised that she was suddenly interested in the sword.


    Of course, he was expecting her to hate him after everything he said to her that night. He thought she¡¯d never want to see his face again, but she summoned him again, at night time and he grew suspicious.


    Will she get revenge?? Why did he evene??


    ¡°Forgive me if I keep disrupting your sleep.¡± She apologized like she just read his mind, ¡°the thing is, I can only speak freely with you, without any disturbances at night, that is why I chose to call you over by this time.¡±


    She exined truthfully. If Azazel bes a regr guest that everyone was fond of seeing during daytime, no doubt, suspicions about her rtionship with Azazel will definitely arise, and she wasn¡¯t ready to answer her father¡¯s question on why she¡¯s seeing another man when she¡¯s already engaged to Archer, she has no strength to start thinking of a lie.


    Neither does she want to put Azazel in any trouble.


    ¡°What do you want to know about the sword?¡± He asked, cocking his head to the side so he could look at her face. More like he was trying to conclude on something, and the only way he could get that answer was if he saw her face.


    Looking up at him, she took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders, keeping her emotions aside since that wasn¡¯t why she called him here.


    ¡°I want to understand this sword, how harmful is it? What are its powers?¡± From the beginning sheid eyes on that sword, she never liked the energy she got from it, whilst she distanced herself from it.


    Ever since the sword was brought, no one has been able to unsheath it. Her brother has tried countless times but it was to no avail. They had to call the best swordsmith to take a look at it, but nothing was detected, nor could the reason behind the sword be known.


    Azazel noticed the question in her eyes, he no longer saw that infatuated look she usually gives him, which means she didn¡¯t summon him over to just see him, but to truly inquire about the sword.


    He was supposed to be fine with it, he preferred her like this, but then why is he not satisfied by it.


    ¡°The Valerian sword is not any normal sword, it was carved by a priest back in the days,¡± he began, ¡°the sword can only be unsheathed by its wielder, but it has only caused more harm than good.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Calista¡¯s brows knitted, taking his words into consideration.


    Azazel turned around, looking up at the night sky before continuing, ¡°Anna used to be a reborned Demoness named Aveline.¡± He broke the news, leading her pupils to dte at the mention of Anna being reborned.


    ¡°Anna used to be a... w_what??¡± She froze at the news, oveed by the news of Anna once being a demon.


    Wait, is rebirth actually real???!!


    ¡°Aveline was the wielder of the Valerian sword,¡± Azazel carried on, not minding the shock she was in, ¡°..but things got out of hand and she caused a massacre. In the end, she died and was reborned as the Anna we all know. The same sword was used to kill Roshan¡¯s family, because the sword isn¡¯t only capable of hurting Demons, but it¡¯s capable of destroying our souls, making it impossible for Demons to be reincarnated again. Whoever used it on Roshan¡¯s family_ since the person is already dead, I can¡¯t figure out how he was able to unsheath it.¡±


    Calista listened attentively. The news of Anna being a Demon in her previous life hasn¡¯t left her head yet, but she had to listen to the other side of the story too.


    ¡°But wait, the sword can only be used if separated right, but since it hasn¡¯t been unsheathed, doesn¡¯t that mean the sword is harmless?¡±


    ¡°Exactly, which is why all of you are still alive.¡±


    ¡°Wait_what?!¡± That part threw her off guard, and her dumbstruck reaction was what Azazel was aiming for, and she gave it to him.


    ¡°Anna and Aveline are different now, because Anna isn¡¯t a demon, she¡¯s human. But I¡¯m afraid she¡¯s still capable of unsheathing the sword, and if she can¡¯t control it, many lives will be lost.¡±


    ¡°Like the end of the world?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s called world domination.¡±


    ¡°Ohkay.¡± Calista barely knew what to say, she was having little time digesting everything Azazel just said to her, and if she hears more she might just pass out from it, what could be worse than world domination?


    ¡°The dark forest.¡± Azazel responded to her thoughts, and she whipped her head at him, surprised he answered her.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve been too focused on the Valerian sword, no one is noticing that the dark forest is still dark, despite Roshan not being there.¡±


    ¡°We have noticed.¡± She proudly said it, not liking how he made her family sound unserious before her presence. ¡°It¡¯s just the reason behind it is still unknown, but I feel everything has a connection.¡±


    ¡°What are these connections?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t say,¡± she turned away from him, taking a few steps forward, ¡°there was a poem written about the dark forest, and it was mainly because of the demon that resided in it.¡±


    ¡°Who wrote the poem?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± she turned to look at him, ¡°but it¡¯s been a long time, the poem still existed before I came into the world, but if Roshan isn¡¯t there anymore, I think the poem itself has a deeper meaning than what we¡¯ve been reading it by all along.¡±


    It was obvious she was getting into something, and Azazel was interested in hearing this poem that wasposed.


    ¡°Do you still remember it?¡±


    ¡°I can never forget it.¡±


    ¡°Then can you say it for me?¡± He requested. Their conversation felt mature, and every ill feeling was being casted aside.


    ¡°The poem goes like_¡±


    ¡°Calista?¡± Came the voice of someone that seemed to be heading for the balcony.


    Calista¡¯s eyes widened when the familiar voice called her name for the second time, and she looked at Azazel with full rm.


    ¡°You need to leave, Archer is heading up here.¡± She quickly whispered, trying to shoo Azazel away, but the man barely moved an inch from his position.


    ¡°Your future husband?¡±


    She nodded, ¡°please leave before he sees you.¡±


    ¡°What is he doing here?¡± The question slipped out before he could shut himself up, but Calista was too focused on getting Azazel to leave to notice his tone.


    ¡°He usually spends a day or two in the pce, you know, like a way for us to interact and get to know one another, ahhh.. I¡¯m speaking too much, go now!¡±


    ¡°Calista.¡± Archer called again, but Azazel still hadn¡¯t left, and Calista felt like disappearing herself, he seemed to be enjoying her sudden turmoil.


    ¡°Why are you doing this? I summoned you didn¡¯t I? I¡¯m asking you to leave now before he sees you.¡±


    ¡°And what if I want him to see me?¡± His coal blue eyes glinted.

 Chapter 242 - 242 Light Footsteps

    242 Light Footsteps


    ¡°If he sees you, your reason foring here will surely be misinterpreted,¡± she quickly said, ¡°aren¡¯t you a man of royalty yourself? I don¡¯t have to exin everything in detail to you.¡±


    ¡°Correction, we¡¯re from different royalties, different royalty means different rules.¡± He snapped his finger at her face, startling her as she blinked with obvious perplexity. His attitude right now wasn¡¯t something she¡¯d want to handle, especially at a time like this.


    ¡°We¡¯re not done with our conversation,¡± he cocked his head at her, there was not a single trace of smile on his lips as gestured towards the balcony door with his brows, returning his gaze back to her, ¡°get rid of him instead, not me.¡±


    He was stubborn, and relentless on not leaving the balcony.


    Azazel pretty much understood her situation, he would have left if she didn¡¯t stop trying to chase him away.


    He¡¯s never seen someone who was capable of shooing him away like this, all in the name of hiding him from another man. Most especially when it was a woman who imed to like him. He doesn¡¯t understand women¡¯s minds, this minute she¡¯s begging for his presence, the next minute she¡¯s chasing him away.


    ¡°I can¡¯t do that.¡± She shook her head in disagreement, already running out of time


    ¡°If you won¡¯t leave, then I will.¡± And she turned around, heading to the exit, but he suddenly grabbed her by her arm, stopping her abruptly from leaving, and she looked at him. The shock and confusion was visible in her pretty fox-like eyes.


    ¡°Where are you going?¡±


    .....


    ¡°I¡¯m going to get rid of him so I can get rid of you.¡± She freed her arm from his hold.


    He might not be worried about himself, but she was for him. She hasn¡¯t said anything to Azazel but Archer can be a bit possessive when ites to her. If Archer catches them up here, she couldn¡¯t imagine what will happen, she didn¡¯t even want to imagine the scene.


    Azazel withdrew his own hand like someone who got shocked to reality, he looked taken aback that he held her back from leaving, when on normal days, he was the one fond of driving her away. This sudden act of his waspletely unlike him.


    Was Levi¡¯s word getting into his head again?? He should stop paying attention to what that silly demon had to say, cause it¡¯s clear he¡¯s been affected by it.


    He watched Calista exit the balcony in a hurry, her pleasant scent was the only thing that lingered in the air, reminding him of her presence. She already left, but he was still curious to see what this Archer looked like, and what he wanted.


    Unwilling to take his leave cause she told him to, he exited the balcony through the door, secretly following her trail.


    ¡ª


    ¡°Calista!¡± Archer kept calling as he wandered around the pce, looking visibly confused about where his princess would have disappeared to without a trace.


    Fortunately for him, the guards informed him she wasst spotted heading up the balcony, and so he headed there, wanting to make sure she was alright and fine.


    Making his way up the stairs that led to the side of the balcony, he kept calling her name, and he only stopped when Calista stepped out of the balcony before he could enter, startling them both as they nearly bumped into each other.


    ¡°Archer it¡¯s you.¡± She smiled his way when she realized it was him, and Archer¡¯s expression gradually rxed when she finally showed up.


    ¡°There you are.¡± He walked up to the princess who bowed her head slightly before his presence.


    ¡°You called for me?¡±


    ¡°Where have you been?¡± He asked, letting out a sigh of relief, ¡°your brother and I are up on something regarding the dark forest, so he wants you in his chamber. You¡¯re smart when ites to cing two to two together, so we need your help.¡±


    He stated his reason for calling out to her.


    ¡°Oh.¡± Calista blinked in surprise as she processed his words in her head. She thought Archer was here to act clingy towards her like he¡¯s always done, but to her relief, that wasn¡¯t the case tonight.


    ¡°Of course.¡± She nodded with a beaming smile, ¡°I¡¯d be delighted to help, and it¡¯s good to see brother working on himself again. He¡¯s more focused on the route of everything, and no longer interested in opening that sword.¡±


    She was even more surprised that her brother was willing to let her be a helping hand. Back then, her brother felt he didn¡¯t need her help, he didn¡¯t need anyone¡¯s help to be more precise, so it was heartwarming to witness his sudden change.


    Archer nodded in agreement, ¡°yes, he was a mess when he returned with a broken knee, but hey, it¡¯s never toote to get back on the right track. And seriously-¡± he suddenly cupped Calista¡¯s cheeks in his palm.


    His touch was gentle and his eyes disyed what he really felt for her.


    ¡°You¡¯ll give me a serious meltdown if you go missing like that again. It¡¯s not safe to wander alone, and don¡¯t use the pce as an excuse.¡± He silenced Calista before she could speak. ¡°Your brother¡¯s wife said something about running into one, so be careful and stay cautious of your surroundings, okay?¡±


    Calista said nothing. She hated to admit it, but she doesn¡¯t like how Archer treats her. He¡¯s so concerned for her that he makes her feel guilty each time she looks at him. She doesn¡¯t deserve Archer, but how will she tell him she doesn¡¯t want to go ahead with this? Her father¡¯s blood pressure might shoot up if she says anything or dares to speak against the marriage.


    Her heart ached, she wished she felt these feelings for Archer, but sadly, he¡¯s not the one her heart wants.


    Hiding her emotional turmoil with a smile, she released Archer¡¯s hands from her cheeks, gently patting the back of his palm before meeting his warm gaze.


    ¡°I understand, I¡¯ll listen to you from now on, but can we leave, brother must be waiting and he might not like it if we show upte.¡± She changed the subject. She was desperate to escape this guilt and shift her mind into something else.


    ¡°Alright.¡± He agreed. Holding Calista¡¯s hand in his, he inteced their fingers together before they both made their way to the direction to her brother¡¯s chamber.


    Unknown to Calista, Azazel secretly watched them from a corner. He knew he made a good choice by telling Calista to marry Archer. He just witnessed the man¡¯s care and affection, and that¡¯s something he could never give Calista. She doesn¡¯t belong in his type of world, he was sure she wouldn¡¯t be able to handle it.


    He got what he wanted, but why wasn¡¯t he happy with it?


    When they inteced fingers before his eyes, there was something in him that snapped, and it was beyond his control. Unlike Roshan, he could control his demons, and that was the only thing capable of stopping him from going over there and separating their hands from one another.


    He really hoped it wasn¡¯t what he was thinking that made him react this way, he wouldn¡¯t allow it.


    ¡ª-


    Opening the coffin that was safely kept in a one lit room, Roshan stared at its emptiness. He sensed that inescapable darkness hovering around it, one that didn¡¯t appeal to him in a positive way.


    ¡°Did you sleep in it?¡±


    ¡°Is that an usation?¡± Questioned ke¡¯s as he turned to look at Roshan, pretending to be hurt by it.


    ¡°It¡¯s a question, you answer it, or get punched in the face, pick one.¡±


    ¡°You really are a bastard,¡± he chuckled lightly, ¡°and no,¡± he responded after his chuckle had died down, ¡°I didn¡¯t go near it, I kept it in one of the safest rooms in my home, so there¡¯s nothing to worry about.¡±


    ¡°Good.¡± He closed the coffin back, ¡°now we wait, if the owner¡¯s going to show up or not.¡±


    ¡°How will they know it¡¯s here?¡± kes didn¡¯t want to believe they¡¯ll be dealing with a spy who follows their every movement.


    ¡°One always knows the road to their home ke¡¯s, whoever it is wille.¡±


    ¡°Howe you¡¯re so confident about that logic?¡±


    ¡°Just my instincts.¡± He took a step forward, ¡°if the owner doesn¡¯te for it, it must have changed it¡¯s vessel, or¨C¡±


    ¡°Roshan,¡± ke uttered his name all of a sudden, sounding a bit rmed as his ears twitched. When Roshan silenced himself up, he could hear the light unhurried footsteps of someoneing in their direction.


    The only problem was no one except them where in the house, which could only mean-


    ¡°I think your visitor is already here.¡± Whispered ke¡¯s as he backed away from the door, the door he was sure their guest would use to make an entrance.

 Chapter 243 - 243 Turning Demon

    243 Turning Demon


    Those light footsteps stepping on the tiled floor became closer, and closer, and closer, until suddenly, it stopped at the entrance of the door.


    kes and Roshan remained silent as they waited for the imposter to reveal its face- but nothing happened. Their ears were attentively alert, just in case they perceive any soundsing from another direction.


    ¡°Do you think it left?¡± Whispered ke¡¯s as he stood beside Roshan, already prepared for a fight. His elongated nails were looking ready to tear at the flesh of something, while Roshan wisely brought out his daggers instead, slowly taking them off from the side of his belt to avoid alerting their sneaky imposter.


    ¡°Do you hear that?¡± Roshan¡¯s ears twitched when a creaking sound was made. From the door, the sound moved to the walls, like there was someone trying to break it from the outside. The creaking sound got louder, followed by an unwee bang that sent the floor shaking due to the intensity of that bang.


    The coffin was still in ce, and Roshan could tell that whatever was outside definitely didn¡¯te alone. He could sense it, the presence of soulless wandering just outside the room.


    ¡°Roshan! Behind you!¡± ke yelled in rm. When Roshan spun around to see what kes was warning him about, the wall behind him bursted open, and the next minute, a soulless was sent flying his way, leading the two of them to fall to the ground.


    ¡°Damn it!¡± Roshan cursed as the soulless tried to bite him with its ck razored sharp teeths, but he gave the ugly creature a hard head bump, throwing it off him before getting hold of both his daggers.


    He sliced off the Soulless head in the blink of an eye, and his hazel-green eyes glinted sharply.


    More of them rushed into the room, surrounding Roshan and ke who kept the coffin within their reach. No one else except Luderick can be responsible for waking up these dead bodies, and it was obvious they were here for the coffin.


    .....


    There was another presence in the room, one that wasn¡¯t familiar to Roshan in any way. His eyes nced back and forth, wanting to sight whoever owned this ominous aura, but he saw nothing.


    ¡°Keep them away from the coffin.¡± Came his orders. ke twisted his head a bit as they made knuckle sounds, getting prepared to enjoy the fight as his eyes switched into a bloody red.


    ¡°On it.¡±


    And the two demons lunged their attack at lightning speed.


    Heading down the stairs, Aveline¡¯s expression remained rxed, she barely seemed bothered about being caught, neither did she care as long as everything happening went ording to her n.


    Luderick walked beside her as they both headed down the stairs together. Aveline¡¯s brown colored eyes were a dark red, she appeared distant, and the only thing helping her find her way through the stairs was her instincts.


    ¡°Is it time?¡± Luderick asked, wondering if they could seed in their ns, and a menacing smile curved Aveline¡¯s lips to the side.


    ¡°It is.¡±


    Luderick didn¡¯t want to believe Aveline was capable of doing what she said she would, he didn¡¯t want to believe she could fool his cousin as she said she proudly said she would.


    Was she even powerful enough to do something like that?


    ¡°I need you to distract them from my coffin.¡± She stopped walking after they¡¯d made it down the long wooden stairs.


    ¡°Get them away from it, even if it¡¯s for a few minutes, they shouldn¡¯t stay near it while Imence my next n.¡±


    ¡°As you wish.¡± Luderick bowed before leaving Aveline to herself, he went back up the stairs while Aveline continued to smile cynically, already enjoying the moment.


    Roshan and ke¡¯s have gotten rid of half of the soulless, their main objective was to keep the coffin as far from the soulless as possible, so they focused more on the coffin, than on the soulless.


    ¡°Ahh~ by now I thought you¡¯d have ditched those swords and fought like a real demon.¡± Came a familiar voice that Roshan could recognize anywhere and he stopped fighting.


    Whipping his head in the direction of the voice, Luderick stood at the window, watching the fight with a yful smirk on his lips, and the sight of him only led to Roshan breaking his focus.


    ¡°You!¡± His voice was murderous as he turned his attention to Luderick, recalling what his uncle had done to Anna at the forest. He couldn¡¯t kill him then since he has to stay beside Anna, but now~


    ¡°You¡¯re still weak,¡± Luderick concluded almost pitifully, ¡°using swords rather than facing them demon to demon, I thought you¡¯d be brave enough to have control of your powers my dear nephew, considering what I did to your lovely human wife.¡± He smirked devilishly, and Roshan¡¯s hold against the hilt of his daggers tightened.


    ¡°Say that again?!¡± He threatened in a low dark tone, meanwhile, ke¡¯s was enjoying the fight to pay attention to Roshan and Luderick.


    ¡°I took her blood,¡± he emphasized proudly, ¡°I mean, you can¡¯t be the only one who gets to taste something so refreshing, and may I say, it¡¯s delicious!¡± He licked his lips in a lustful manner, and that¡¯s when Roshan decided he¡¯s had enough.


    The Demon in him that Roshan has been trying hard to contain for a very long time, let loose as his hazel-green eyes turned into a molten dark red.


    ¡°Run.¡±


    Luderick jumped out through the window, and Roshan went after him, jumping out as well.


    ¡°Hey!¡± ke tried to stop him with the sound of his voice, but Roshan was already enraged to listen as the only thing in his mind was having Luderick¡¯s head in his grasp.


    ¡°He forgot about the coffin.¡± ke sighed at Roshan¡¯sck of control. Knowing he shouldn¡¯t leave Roshan¡¯s side when he¡¯s daring to awaken his demon, he had no choice but to go after him, hoping to snap the Demon back to his senses.


    Therefore, leaving the coffin without any protection.


    ~


    Ludericknded on his feet, but didn¡¯t hesitate to wait another minute as he bolted through the frontage of ke¡¯s home. He didn¡¯t need to look back to know Roshan was right behind him, he just hoped he had given Aveline enough time that she needed to do what she needed to do.


    He continued to run, but didn¡¯t expect Roshan to appear right in front of him, it was something he never sawing.


    His eyes widened in trepidation but it was toote to turn back or even slow down, he ran straight into Roshan, only to have his neck wed against Roshan¡¯s tight grip.


    ¡°You messed with the wrong Demon!¡± His molten red eyes glinted with bloodlust and the next thing, he mmed Luderick¡¯s body to the ground, creating a dust that epassed them both.


    His sudden magnified power wasn¡¯t something Luderick had seening. Despite devouring many human souls, his powers weren¡¯t up to that of Roshan. The Demon literally lifted him into the air like he weighed nothing, only to be mmed mercilessly on the ground.


    Roshan¡¯s hand still wed his neck, it was so tight that Luderick was sure his hand would leave an imprint on him. He coughed out ck blood while struggling to free Roshan¡¯s grip from his neck.


    ¡°I will end you!¡± The rage in his eyes was nothingpared to what Luderick had witnessed before. He¡¯s seen Roshan angry before, but was it to this extent??


    ¡°You call me weak, and you¡¯re not ashamed that a weak demon has you trapped against the ground like this, and to say you conjure ck magic would be a disgrace to anyone who hears it.¡±


    His other free hand instantly aimed for Luderick¡¯s throat, his nails elongated instantly as he was ready to slit Luderick¡¯s throat at the minute.


    For the first time, Luderick witnessed his own life sh right before his eyes.


    ¡°Goodbye.¡±


    ¡°Roshan stop!¡± ke¡¯s voice interrupted him before he could make his strike, and his hand stopped mid-way.


    ¡°You can deal with Luderick another day, snap out of it before you turn full demon!¡± ke rmingly noticed it, Roshan¡¯s eyes were a molten dark red, and he could see the dark horns already protruding from both sides of his head.


    ¡°Roshan!¡±


    ¡°Shut up!!¡± His voice was like a p of thunder that threw kes off his feet, like a wave that sent him falling to the ground and losing his stamina. The clouds above had abnormally darkened, indicating his rage.


    Roshan¡¯s cheekbones were starting to burn, revealing tiny streaks that looked no different from whiskers, except they were streaks of fire burning his face.


    His undenying power.


    ¡°Roshan!¡± kes considered trying again, even if it meant risking his life to stop Roshan, ¡°the coffin, can¡¯t you see he¡¯s trying to distract you?? Roshan, the coffin is no longer protected, we have to keep it away for Anna¡¯s sake, remember!¡±


    At the mention of Anna and the coffin, Roshan whipped his head at ke¡¯s direction.


    ¡°You left the coffin alone??¡±


    As though he just came back to his senses, he released Luderick from his grip, and the Demon wasted no time vanishing from sight before Roshan could react.


    ¡°I had to stop you, you bastard! You nearly turned full Demon just now!¡± ke said to him when Roshan¡¯s face no longer showed those tiny streaks of fire, and the horns growing on his head earlier were gone.


    ¡°What??¡±


    ¡°Nevermind! The coffin!¡±


    Without waiting another minute, both demons raced into the house. ke¡¯s had gotten rid of all the soulless earlier, and there was no sign of anyone¡¯s presence as they headed up the stairs.


    Entering the room, the coffin was still right there, where they had left it. Roshan was the first to release a sigh while ke wiped off the sweat from his forehead.


    ¡°Phew! It¡¯s still here.¡±


    Roshan leaned against the wall, closing his eyes to recover from everything that happened within seconds.


    His chest was practically on fire.

 Chapter 244 - 244 Get Rid Of It

    244 Get Rid Of It


    ¡°What happened to you out there?¡± ke¡¯s looked at the cier who was still recovering from the earlier transformation.


    It was obvious his sudden transformation had shocked them both.


    This was the same prophecy that made Roshan¡¯s father even think about having a child with a human, and after seeing half of the transformation himself, ke¡¯s would be dumb not to believe the prophecy was real.


    ¡°If you killed Luderick in that state, you would have been gone, you¡¯d turn full Demon overnight and¨C¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± Roshan cut in sharply, looking away from ke¡¯s. He doesn¡¯t want to be reminded of the monster he was out there tonight, and he was stupid enough to fall right into Luderick¡¯s silly trap.


    ¡°Listen, I appreciate your help in stopping me, but it wasn¡¯t entirely my fault out there. You saw what he did, he provoked my Demons on purpose by threatening to hurt Anna.¡± He let out a harsh breath when he recalled Luderick¡¯s offensive words.


    He was still in the middle of regting his breathing and getting angry wasn¡¯t going to help him.


    But he wouldn¡¯t stand and watch Luderick speak about a woman he loved in that manner.


    He hasn¡¯t told Anna about why he never uses his powers, and he was grateful she never questioned him on why he used daggers every time he had to fight, unlike Azazel or Levi who were free when it came to using their powers.


    .....


    ¡°How long do you intend on hiding it from her? She¡¯s going to figure it out sooner orter.¡± ke pointed out, already aware Roshan hasn¡¯t said anything about the prophecy being true to his future wife.


    ¡°And I don¡¯t n on keeping it from her forever,¡± he moved away from the wall, ¡°nothing will happen as long as I¡¯m not triggered, so far I¡¯ve been doing a good job keeping my angers in check, but¨C¡±


    ¡°But not when ites to Anna?¡± ke snorted, ¡°it¡¯s obvious she loves you a lot, yet you¡¯re afraid of telling her the truth about your prophecy.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not afraid!¡± He denied.


    ¡°Then tell her,¡± ke challenged. ¡°Tell her the prophecy of you being a Devil is true, tell her you¡¯re the world¡¯s biggest destruction, and that the first time you let your Demons loose, you destroyed a whole vige, including parts of Euphrasia. Tell her about the people you identally killed that day, tell her¨C¡±


    ¡°Stop.¡± Roshan¡¯s authoritative tone silenced ke, and the Demon¡¯s lips curved into a taunting sneer.


    ¡°So you¡¯re afraid she¡¯ll hate you after knowing the truth.¡± He said Roshan¡¯s thoughts out loud, ¡°you¡¯re afraid her love for you will vanish when she knows how big of a threat you are.¡±


    ¡°I really hate being underestimated,¡± Roshan scowled, ¡°I was triggered that day ke, and yes I hate myself for doing those things, I killed people but it was out of my own control, I begged them for just the sword, just the sword but what did I get in return? They triggered me and unleashed the monster within me, it couldn¡¯t be helped.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not ming you for it,¡± ke shook his head, wanting Roshan to know his words were misinterpreted, ¡°Infact, I¡¯d kill all of them if I were in the same position as you, but Luderick is a threat. Just think, what if Anna gets to hear it from someone else, and not you, the situation will be even more critical by then.¡±


    ¡°I understand what you¡¯re trying to say to me,¡± Roshan said indifferently, ¡°I¡¯ll tell her when the time is right, for now don¡¯t say a word to anyone about what you just witnessed.¡±


    ¡°No one would believe me to begin with,¡± he shrugged, ¡°but you¡¯ll be Viscarrian¡¯s new leader soon, I don¡¯t know how you n on making it possible, but you need to gain control of your Demons, one way or the other you need to let it know who the master is, like me.¡±


    He spread out his arms, feeling himself at the thought of being able to do something Roshan couldn¡¯t. Roshan being half human and a devil is a dangerousbination. The more he grows, the stronger his Demons be.


    His energy is on a really slow process to recovery, and his human body can¡¯t control the powers of the monster in him. Roshan¡¯s Demon was said to be ten times stronger during his adolescent age, which made it possible for him to kill his father without batting an eye.


    And now, he¡¯s a grown man, and the powers he contained was something that should never be spoken of.


    ¡°I will control it,¡± he sounded determined as he picked his daggers from the ground, sheathing it in ce, ¡°I just need time.¡±


    ¡°How can you control it when you¡¯re having a hard time epting it?¡± ke tried not tough, but he didn¡¯t want to crush Roshan¡¯s hope so easily.


    ¡°Fine fine, do as you must, and I must admit that I had a good time working with you. If it¡¯s not a problem, I can help you watch this baby till you¡¯re ready to keep it somewhere even safer.¡±


    ¡°Safer?¡± Roshan¡¯s gaze darkened when he looked at the coffin, ¡°the best option will be to get rid of it.¡± He said conclusively. ¡°I don¡¯t want this coffin to be of any trouble to anyone, so get rid of it.¡±


    ke nodded to the idea, ¡°will do, but not today, I¡¯ll still keep it under security watch for a few more days, then burn it.¡±


    ¡°Fine by me.¡± Roshan agreed.


    The pleasing scent of floralvender suddenly invaded his nostril, lightening his mood. It reminded him of Anna, including the promise he made to her that he¡¯ll return back to her in the morning.


    ¡°I have to take my leave now.¡±


    ¡°Sure, but you owe me a new house.¡± He expressed, ¡°and on your way, think about what I told you, don¡¯t wait too long to tell her.¡±


    Roshan said nothing in return, he just turned away and jumped out through the window.

 Chapter 245 - 245 Suddenly Bold

    245 Suddenly Bold


    ~


    Calista sat beside her brother on the bed, listening to what he had to say regarding the dark forest, and his wife was dutifully serving Archer some tea.


    ¡°My guess would be, what if the Demon wasn¡¯t the only thing trapped in the forbidden temple?¡± Adrien questioned, shifting gazes from Calista to Archer who had their thoughts on the same thing.


    ¡°My first option was to ask your father some questions concerning the forbidden temple,¡± Archer said, sipping the warm tea and dropping it lightly on the table beside him.


    ¡°Father is not in a good condition to be questioned as of now Archer, you know this already,¡± Calista disagreed with that idea of his, and he nodded his head in understanding.


    ¡°Trust me princess, I know, and that is why the option got canceled, now my second option is to find someone brave enough to visit the forbidden temple.¡±


    ¡°But no one has survived visiting the temple except Anna.¡± Adrien said in reminder, already refusing the idea of sending someone into the forbidden temple when they could volunteer to go themselves.


    ¡°So what do we do then?¡± He folded his arms, rxing back against his seat, ¡°how do we know what¡¯s going on if we can¡¯t get proper insight of what¡¯s in that temple?¡±


    Calista remained quiet while the rest of them continuously cracked their brains. If there was a way to get Azazel to join the conversation, it would be very beneficial to the both of them.


    .....


    There are things he¡¯s capable of knowing and they might not, if they joined heads together, they might be able to figure things out. But then again, she wasn¡¯t ready to face the thousand questions thrown at her because of him.


    Yulia sat at the edge of the bed with Calista, interrupting her thoughts and offering a smile that only made Calista grow suspicious of her. She wasn¡¯tfortable when Yulia smiled her way every time.


    ¡°Sister_inw, it must have been pretty chilly on the balcony, would you like some hot tea as well?¡± She kindly offered to serve Calista some tea, but the princess refused her act of kindness.


    ¡°Save them for tomorrow, I¡¯ll be paying a visit to Archer¡¯s family so ask me this when I¡¯m prepared to leave, but that is if you don¡¯t mind taking the ce of my maid.¡± She returned Yulia¡¯s smile, but the one¡¯s on Yulia¡¯s lips were slowly starting to fade after registering Calista¡¯s sly words.


    Did she just refer to her as a maid???


    ¡°You¡¯re quite funny there sister_inw.¡± Even herughter was fake, and it was obvious she was forcing herself not to disy her annoyance, especially in front of her husband.


    ¡°I am not a joker but I appreciate that you find suchments about yourself appealing.¡± She sincerely uttered, and Yulia felt a part of her pride slip away.


    Calista can be pretty good when ites to having a silver tongue on her issue. She knew the princess wasn¡¯t fond of her presence, and the feeling was actually mutual. Unfortunately, she¡¯s stuck trying to win the trust of the princess. She wanted to earn Calista¡¯s trust the same way that strangedy who visited the pce the other day did.


    ¡°Callie, stop pestering my wife.¡± Adrien intervened, but his tone wasn¡¯t scolding or reprimanding like Calista expected, it felt like he took their bantering for a joke, even if it did sound like one.


    ¡°I was thinking_¡± Archer changed the subject, ¡°the physician has lived longer in the castle hasn¡¯t he? Shouldn¡¯t he be able to give us the answers we seek if we ask him?¡±


    ¡°The physician is observing a prayer,¡± Calista said to him, ¡°and that is not a bad idea as well, but I think I should be the one who gets to speak with him on the matter. He might open up more information if I showed up alone.¡±


    Archer was already against the idea, but Adrien nodded his head in agreement, ¡°you¡¯re not wrong,¡± he saw the point she was trying to make, ¡°he knows you better, so he might give in_depths on the matter.¡±


    ¡°See.¡± Calista returned her attention to Archer, ¡°I have an even better idea, what if Anna and I speak with the physician? The physician was the closest to Anna, so she might know of a few ways to make him talk.¡±


    ¡°Who is Anna?¡± Yulia raised a question, feeling left out in the conversation they were having, and Adrien was the one to respond.


    ¡°She¡¯s a friend.¡±


    ¡°A friend??¡± At the mention of ¡®a friend¡¯, Yulia¡¯s memory ran back to thedy she crossed paths with at Adrien¡¯s doorstep, and thedy made mention of being a friend.


    Was her husband cheating on her with that weirddy???


    ¡°Yulia!¡±


    ¡°Hmm?¡± Her name being called so abruptly startled her very soul. She looked at Adrien who¡¯s brows were knitted in silent inquiries.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡±


    ¡°Yes! Yes!¡± She quickly responded, smiling, ¡°I just cked out for a few seconds, but I am alright.¡±


    She turned her attention to something else while the three people present found her reaction to be a bit strange, but since they had important things to deal with, they chose to leave her matter for another day.


    ~


    The morning sun finally rose at Viscarrian, Roshan already made it back to his pce. He took a long time to get back home due to how the snows had blocked some of the road paths, so he had to change routes three times.


    He was hoping for Anna to be in the training ground, and not in his room once he walked into his chamber, but to his surprise, thedy herself was sitting at her dressing table, giving him a bewitching smile like she knew he was going to step in any minute now.


    ¡°Anna, you¡¯re awake?¡± He sounded surprised, ¡°shouldn¡¯t you be in practice with¨C¡±


    ¡°I was waiting for you.¡± She suddenly hugged him out of the blue, wrapping her slender hands around him while resting her head on his chest.


    ¡°I¡¯ve missed you, you made me stay up all night waiting for you.¡± She mumbled childishly, to his surprise.


    ¡°But I told you I¡¯d return this morning,¡± he reminded her, but she hugged him even tighter, ¡°I know, but I just got scared and missed you beside me, that¡¯s all.¡±


    She looked into his hazel-green eyes, feeling bright as ever. Roshan was a bit taken aback. The only time Anna would take the initiative to get close to him was when he forced it on her, but right now, she appeared bold.


    ¡°Anna_¡± he had barelypleted his words when he was pushed onto the bed. Anna crawled up to meet his dumbfounded stare.


    ¡°You¡¯re cold, let me warm you up.¡±

 Chapter 246 - 246 Wedding In Two Days (1)

    246 Wedding In Two Days (1)


    Seeing his lovely Anna acting so bold without a hint, got him interested in what she wanted from him. He usually heard Women take the opportunity to seduce the men they love when they really want something from them.


    Was that the case?


    Knowing Anna wasn¡¯t always the one to initiate the first step, it could be possible she wanted something from him. But of course, Anna didn¡¯t need to result in this in order to ask him for anything. She knew fully well he¡¯d provide as long as it was within his capabilities.


    ¡°What is it?¡± Gently pulling Anna away from him so he could sit up, he stared into her brown eyes that expressed her hurt as he tried to push her away.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± She asked instead with a pouty lip, ¡°am I not allowed to get romantic with you?¡±


    ¡°That isn¡¯t what I meant.¡± He lovingly pulled at her nose, ¡°you¡¯re not at practice, which is very surprising cause you seemed dedicated to master the arts of sword. Levi must be waiting for you in the training ground, and also, It¡¯s not very much like you to seduce me when you¡¯ve made it my job to seduce you first, or is that you need something from me?¡±


    One of his brows rose in inquiry. Anna remained mute at his question, his eyes were searching deep into hers as though he wanted to get the answers himself, but what he saw instead was a different kind of light in her eyes, one he hadn¡¯t seen in her gorgeous chocte-brown eyes before, but he couldn¡¯t process it since the light vanished.


    ¡°Yes, I do need something.¡± Anna responded with a lopsided grin.


    ¡°And may I ask what thedy wants?¡±


    .....


    She suddenly straddled herself against him, her hands hooking around his neck as she looked right into his hypnotizing eyes.


    ¡°I want you.¡± There was a look of lust that glinted in those eyes of hers. ¡°I want you to mark me. It¡¯s not necessary to wait until after our wedding, I want to be fully owned by you Roshan, so let¡¯s¨C¡±


    ¡°I never knew you could be more impatient than me.¡± Roshan teased, hearing how desperate she sounded as she spoke to him.


    He finally understood what had got her in the mood all of a sudden. Before he left to go see ke, she was also thinking about the mark, but he never thought she¡¯d be ready to do this.


    ¡°You¡¯re mine, Anna.¡± His hands snaked around her waist, pulling her close to him with a quick movement. It sent a surprising gasp escaping her lips.


    ¡°And I will mark you,¡± he sounded serious about it, ¡°but not today, we¡¯ll have to get married first, and we¡¯ll have to consummate our marriage before I can mark you. Remember what happened thest time I marked you, it faded.¡±


    He exined it to her, ¡°in order to avoid the mark fading, I have to mark you when we consummate our marriage, okay?¡±


    He tapped her cheeks lightly, ¡°I need to freshen up now. I have royal meetingsing up in a few hours. So be a good girl and get up so I can quickly get ready.¡±


    ¡°Fine, but you¡¯ll let me help you get ready.¡± She pushed her own demands forward, and he obviously didn¡¯t have a problem with it since he chuckled at her bossy expression.


    ¡°You can start by picking out an outfit for me.¡± He gestured towards the wardrobe, indicating she should get up and go fetch him a suitable dress.


    ¡°Alright then.¡± She stood up from his legs, turning away and heading to the wardrobe like he said. She still had something important to request from him, but she¡¯ll have to be a bit patient on the second one.


    Roshan let out a soft breath, looking relieved she epted and was nowhere near him. Thest thing he wanted right now was to get distracted by Anna. He had a lot to think about. Not only that, ke¡¯s has filled his head with ideas that didn¡¯t ease his heart at all.


    He became unsettled whenever he reminded himself of ke¡¯s words.


    Giving himself a mental shake, he got to his feet and headed for the bathroom to quickly take a bath. When he stepped out, Anna had picked a royal outfit for him,ying it impressively on the bed so he could see, and Roshan was shocked, but at the same time impressed.


    ¡°How did you differentiate between the royal and the event dress?¡± He didn¡¯t hide the surprise in his tone.


    The royal and the event dress had the same colors and design, it was difficult to see which was which, but in order to fully differentiate them, one must have lived in a pce, serving someone of royalty to get the right ones.


    His Anna doesn¡¯t know about things like this since he hasn¡¯t told her yet. Plus she was a maid to Calista, which doesn¡¯t give him an idea since she didn¡¯t work for a prince.


    So how did she know?


    ¡°It is?¡± Anna exchanged nces from the one in the wardrobe, and to the one on the bed. ¡°I know of nothing,¡± she truthfully said, ¡°you had the same royal outfits in your wardrobe, I just randomly picked from the two since you¡¯ll be attending an important meeting today.¡±


    She suddenly frowned with worriedness seeping into her eyes, ¡°do you not like it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± Roshan quickly stopped her from thinking otherwise, ¡°I actually like it, very much.¡±


    The relieved smile returned to Anna¡¯s lips, ¡°then I have nothing to worry about, get dressed or you¡¯ll bete.¡±


    Roshan nodded, and watched as Anna went into the bathroom herself. He has no idea why he¡¯s currently thinking otherwise, but he felt rather silly assuming such thoughts in his head.


    His bond with Anna had grown so strong, that he could feel it even when he¡¯s miles away from her. She was close, but he could feel their bond breaking into a distance, and it was strangely upsetting.


    ¡°One more thing.¡± Anna popped her head out of the bathroom door, gaining Roshan¡¯s attention.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I want our wedding to be held in two days.¡±

 Chapter 247 - 247 Wedding In Two Days (2)

    247 Wedding In Two Days (2)


    After the meeting had finally ended for the time being, Roshan made his way down the stairs with a disturbed expression. Azazel and Levi apanied him down the long stairs and they all looked engrossed in their discussion.


    ¡°She wants the wedding in two days.¡± He told them, but unlike him who looked bothered about it, they saw no problem with that.


    ¡°So? Shouldn¡¯t you be happy she wants it in two days?¡± Azazel questioned, taking a bite out the red apple in his grasp.


    ¡°That is the problem,¡± he admitted, ¡°I should be happy, but I¡¯m not.¡± He ran his finger through his hair, ¡°I feel something¡¯s off, I can¡¯t exin it but I don¡¯t have a good feeling about this.¡±


    Roshan couldn¡¯t guess why he¡¯s so ufortable with the feeling. His bond with Anna felt so distant, like she was Far Away from him, but he was with her this morning, and still the biting feeling didn¡¯t dissipate.


    ¡°Does that exin why she didn¡¯te for practice?¡± When Anna didn¡¯t show up, Levi was worried he might have upset her when he told her to stay away from something that wasn¡¯t her concern.


    He felt really guilty after that, and was hoping to apologize when she shows up for practice. Unfortunately, she didn¡¯t, and he got really nervous that she might have taken it seriously.


    ¡°Is she upset about something, perhaps?¡± Levi pushed on a question, wanting to get an answer in case Anna had said something to him, but Roshan shook his head in response.


    ¡°Why would she? Anna rarely gets upset.¡± He remarked, and Levi¡¯s heart eased. So it¡¯s possible she wasn¡¯t upset with him then, but why didn¡¯t shee for practice.


    .....


    ¡°Azazel¡­.¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t help you today, I¡¯m busy.¡± He cut Roshan off before taking another bite of his apple. It was obvious his mind was barely in their conversation, and he equally looked disturbed about something, which was unusual for someone like him.


    ¡°Any problem?¡± Roshan folded his arms, ¡°you seem lost in your own cloud, exin.¡±


    Azazel shrugged, ¡°it¡¯s nothing.¡±


    ¡°Spill it out.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m going to see Calista today.¡± He admitted, turning his attention to the two Demons who blinked in surprise. From their looks, they surely didn¡¯t expect he¡¯d utter something like that.


    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s not what you think.¡± He eyed them with disgust, feeling ashamed of where their minds had drifted to, ¡°she¡¯s helping me get the sword and I need little information from her regarding the dark forest.¡± He exined.


    Levi¡¯s eyes brightened at the news, ¡°she agreed?!¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡± He looked away, ¡°there¡¯s a poem she said that was written about the dark forest. I¡¯m curious to hear what the poem says about the dark forest before knowing what step I should take next.¡±


    ¡°Wow,¡± Roshan, who was clueless about everything, couldn¡¯t help but be surprised.


    ¡°Princess Calista is so nice, she¡¯s helping you despite the fact you rejected her so coldly,¡± he gave Azazel a re before looking away, ¡°hmph! If I were her, I wouldn¡¯t help you out, instead, I¡¯ll happily get married to the fiancee she has, I heard he¡¯s a really nice man.¡±


    Roshan¡¯s brow rose in exmation, and he turned to look at Azazel, wondering when all this happened and he was unaware of it.


    ¡°Shut up, what do you know?¡± He shoved the apple he was eating into Levi¡¯s mouth to silence him, and the young Demon coughed it out.


    ¡°Hey! You just ate from that, I don¡¯t want to have your germs.¡±


    ¡°Saying it like you haven¡¯t already started developing one yourself!¡±


    ¡°You.!!.¡±


    Roshan rolled his eyes as he was stuck in the middle of two bantering siblings. Putting Azazel and Levi together was always a problem, because as long as they¡¯re together, an argument was bound to ur.


    ¡°You won¡¯t win an argument against Azazel,¡± Roshan patted Levi¡¯s shoulder, ¡°let it slide, you have no germs.¡±


    Azazel scoffed and removed Roshan¡¯s hand from thed¡¯s shoulder, ¡°touch him and you¡¯ll be contacted, it¡¯s called spreading viruses and I care for you to let you get infected.¡±


    ¡°Arrgh!! I¡¯ve had it with you!¡± Levi angrily dashed towards Azazel who moved out of the way, ¡°don¡¯t touch me you psychopath.¡±


    ¡°I swear I¡¯m going to_¡± he threatened as he chased Azazel down the stairs.


    ¡°Those two never learn.¡± Roshan shook his head, feeling helpless about their situation. It suddenly felt like the old times when they usually went out together. He was the focused one while Azazel can never be focused as long as Levi was around.


    ¡°Old memories are indeed precious.¡± Came the voice of Aunt Letitia as she stood beside Roshan, equally watching as Levi chased Azazel till they were out of sight.


    ¡°Aunt.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t forget them.¡± She added, turning her attention to Roshan who sized her up with his gaze.


    ¡°When did you return?¡±


    ¡°An hour ago.¡± Sheposed herself before letting out a deep breath. ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s time you let Gretta out of there. You haven¡¯t gone to see her once, and she¡¯s been crying and pleading for your forgiveness ever since.¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯re here to speak with me about Gretta, then forget it Aunt. I won¡¯t be nice to anyone who tries to hurt Anna. If she rots in there or not, it really isn¡¯t my concern.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say things like that, she¡¯s part of the family too.¡± Aunt Letitia cooly reprimanded him, ¡°let her out this once, and I promise I¡¯ll keep her behavior in check from now on. Anna has already forgiven her, why can¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Cause I¡¯m not Anna who has a forgiven heart, if she¡¯s really feeling bad about her actions, she has to prove it to me. Until then, I am not convinced.¡±


    And he walked out. Aunt Letitia had more to say, but since Roshan had ended the conversation without giving what she said much thought, she couldn¡¯t say more to him and left the stairs as well.


    Meanwhile, Anna was hiding in a narrow space between two walls. She remained there until Letitia¡¯s figure vanished from sight, and a small smile curved her lips.


    ¡°The Valerian sword is in Euphrasia?¡±

 Chapter 248 - 248 Getting Rid Of Bigger Problems

    248 Getting Rid Of Bigger Problems


    Sittingfortably on Anna¡¯s dressing table, Aveline quickly made herself familiar with the things Anna usually did. Like reading books, going for early sword practice, knowing and trying to act out her nice personality with everyone.


    After a few demonstrations in the room, Aveline was already starting to get the hang of it, except for the nice part that didn¡¯t suit her own personality since she was more bossy.


    ¡°Why does she have to be so nice? It irritates me.¡± The demoness hissed in frustration before looking at herself properly in the mirror. She was waiting for the maid that would help her get dressed for today, but as she continued to wait, no one showed up like she expected.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me she has no maid to dress her up?¡± Aveline couldn¡¯t help but wonder how a human hasn¡¯t seized such an amazing opportunity to gain power. She might have a little bit of Anna¡¯s blood running through her veins, but it was impossible to understand how the mind of that human worked.


    She would have made her power be known by her presence. People will shiver at the mere mention of her name, but it wouldn¡¯t be right to do any of that sort since she has to marry His Highness first.


    ¡°Atst, I have gotten rid of that woman.¡± She smiled triumphantly. ¡°His highness wouldn¡¯t have been able to resist the real Anna if she pleaded the same way I did, but regardless of the fact we look alike, he didn¡¯t mark me. He can¡¯t be too smart to tell the difference right?¡± Her brows slightly grimaced.


    ¡°I need to be at my best till after our wedding. What a lucky human though, you wanted to have such a fine man all to yourself, unfortunately for you, I¡¯ve taken your ce in his life now.¡± She giggled happily at her evil ns finallying together.


    Like she remembered something, she suddenly stood up from the dressing table.


    A knife was kept inside the small basket of fruits that rested on a table in the middle of Roshan¡¯s room. A menacing smile curved her lips at the sight, and she reached to pick the knife from the basket.


    .....


    As though enthralled by it, her index finger gently ran across the sharp edge. She wanted to feel the intensity of the de against her skin, and just a gentle brush was enough to give her a cut.


    ¡°This is perfect for my next job.¡± She said with delight. ¡°Luderick, you certainly owe me much more for this.¡± With that being said, she quickly stepped out of the room.


    Making her way through the upstairs corridor, Aveline skillfully hid the knife in her ck dress, keeping it away from the eyes of suspicious people. With her chin tilted up, she elegantly made her way through the corridor and down the stairs.


    She didn¡¯t bat an eye, or even bothered to look at anyone who walked beside her, as long as it wasn¡¯t Roshan¡¯s brothers.


    How was she going to find the Dungeon in such a big pce? She would have taken her time to get familiar with the new environment, but sadly, she had to aplish her task quickly to avoid future problems.


    ¡°Hey you.¡± She called two maids who were making their way up the stairs.


    ¡°Where¡¯s the dungeon area?¡± She asked, and the maids, although confused, pointed at the direction of the dungeon.


    Aveline had been informed about how nosy the maids in Viscarrian were. She had her research about the pce made, and so, she came prepared for anyone who tries to get in her way


    ¡°You may leave.¡± She dismissed the two maids before continuing down the direction they pointed.


    She¡¯ll have to get rid of themter.


    To her relief, It didn¡¯t take too long before she found the dungeon. Following the stairs and going underground, the guards who were on duty made way for thedy to go in.


    They didn¡¯t need to search her for any weapons since she was his highness¡¯s future wife, and their Queen. Because of that, Aveline was able to get away without being questioned.


    Enjoying the role of being respected, she turned left, letting her senses lead her to the direction of her next victim.


    Reaching the cell where Freya was ced. The low demoness lookedfortable where she was, and a look of peace dawned on her expression as she sat at the far back of the cell, leaning against the wall.


    ¡°Rise and shine my dear.¡± Aveline sweetly said to Freya whose eyes fluttered open.


    Using her powers to secretly open the cell, she stepped in, and Freya immediately got to her feet in the presence of Anna.


    ¡°Anna?¡± She stood straight, finding it surprising that Anna visited her cell, even when His Highness told her not to.


    ¡°I came to see if you were alright.¡± She smiled, ¡°how are you feeling today?¡±


    Freya¡¯s eyes raked her from head to toe with a skeptical look, and she shook her head. ¡°You¡¯re not Anna.¡±


    ¡°Seriously, I was hoping you could y it out a little bit before speaking. Has Anna really influenced everyone with her boringness?¡± Aveline couldn¡¯t be more irritated, but her sudden change of tone made Freya step back in rm.


    ¡°Who_who are you??¡± She demanded. After teleportation, Freya had the ability to detect people through their soul. It was a rare power that wasn¡¯t used much often. She found it useless in some cases, but today, she finally understood what that power meant.


    ¡°Who are you?? You imposter!¡±


    ¡°That is not something you¡¯re worthy of knowing. I¡¯m just here to get the job done.¡± Aveline smiled maliciously, her optics turning dark red for Freya to see.


    ¡°A demon??¡± Freya took a step back in shock. ¡°What did you do to Anna?? I¡¯ll tell his Highness about this, I¡¯ll expose you to his highness! You¡¯re an imposter with the face of Anna.¡±


    She was about to run for it when Aveline grabbed her hair with a speed she never sawing.


    ¡°Ahhh!! Let go!¡± Freya¡¯s cry echoed in the empty cell, but her cry only brought happiness to Aveline¡¯s heart.


    ¡°Not so fast my dear. You really didn¡¯t think I came here to let you expose me, did I?¡±


    ¡°His Highness Azazel is the Lord of the limbo, one look at you and he¡¯ll be able to tell who you really are! You¡¯re still doomed!¡±


    ¡°I know, that¡¯s why he¡¯s next right after I¡¯m done with you.¡± And before Freya knew it, Aveline had stabbed her right at her back with the de, digging the length of the de into her back till it drew out blood.


    ¡°Ahhh!!!!¡± Freya let out a scream of agony when the piercing ache got into her skin. She tried to free herself regardless, but was mmed against the wall instead, before falling to the ground.


    ¡°Useless!!¡± Aveline cursed before moving to where Freya had sprawled on the ground.


    ¡°See, you low life demons are quite easy to kill. Roshan and the rest can¡¯t be killed with such simple weapons as this, but you poor pathetic little things are so weak, that all I need to do is stab you in the right spot and then, you be a bleeding mess.¡±


    As she exined to Freya how she would end up dying very soon, the young demoness shook her head in refusal. She tried to get up, but her energy was slowly slipping away as she remained at her spot, unmoved.


    ¡°You don¡¯t deserve to live, stabbing Luderick in the back was one of the biggest mistakes you made. I would have made you happy, you would have be my pet and I would treat you well, but unfortunately, this happened.¡±


    ¡°Where...where is Anna?¡± Freya¡¯s breath came out harsh, she couldn¡¯t breathe and only managed to force those questions out.


    ¡°Anna? Well, I hope you find your precious Anna in the afterlife. The conversation was fun while itsted, but I have to go now, okay?¡±


    Stepping out of the cell, Aveline locked the cell as it was. Luderick told her about Freya being one of her problems, but now she had bigger problems.


    Getting rid of Azazel was sounding impossible. Unlike Roshan he¡¯s a full Demon, his powers must be stronger than hers since she still needs to consume more humans before standing against someone like him.


    ¡°If I can get my hands on the Valerian sword, I can end him for good.¡±


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