The Devil's Cursed Witch

‘Gift for me? To think of it, though it belongs to me, I had already lost it. But he brought it back to me. Nothing could make me happier than this jade pendant. If not for him, maybe I would have never gotten it back.’

“Miss, I am sure His Majesty will take you out as well for the festival.”

Her servant’s statement pulled back her attention to them.

“His Majesty is preparing for both of your first night of the full moon.”

“We are so happy for you, Miss.”

Seeing the two elves excitedly cheering as if it was about them, Ember kept quiet and didn’t deny their claim though she had doubts that Draven even had such intentions.

‘Is he really preparing for it? I am yet to give my answer to him.’

Ember felt her heart beating faster at the thought of it. She shook her head. ‘I don’t think so. He simply returned to me what originally belonged to me. There is no use for him to keep it with him.’ But then another thought came to her mind. ‘He could have given it to me anytime. So why now? If the timing was deliberate then…’

Ember felt a shiver run through her spine and goosebumps covered her skin.

“I am feeling cold. I want to go back to my chamber.”

“Let us head back then, Miss.”

Her servants immediately followed her back to her chamber. Ember knew it was going to be a sleepless night for her, given the countless thoughts in her mind. She did not even get the chance to taste her food since time seemingly flew by with her in a daze. Before she knew it, her servants were bidding her goodnight.

As she lay in bed, sleep could not come to her even a bit.

Along with her own thoughts, she could not help but imagine him laying in bed like her.

‘I wonder what he thinks about all this. If it is His Majesty, he will probably be sitting somewhere or standing by the window while deep in thought.’ She could not help but sigh. ‘He always asks me what I expect but I don’t know what he wants. Should I ask him tomorrow before deciding my answer? Maybe that is the right thing to do.’

Making a decision, she closed her eyes, waiting for morning to arrive so she could ask Draven about what he wanted.

—-

The next day, Ember had been informed during her morning meal that her magic lesson with Helia had been put off until after the full moon elapsed. As the next couple of days were of great importance for those with mates, the Fire Fae thoughtfully considered giving her student some time to relax. After all, their last lesson didn’t end well, and it was not good to stress Ember if something again went wrong.

Since her morning schedule had been freed, Ember went out to the garden with her servants. Now she was feeling fine, so she wondered if she could go out of the palace and visit the nearby cities.

“Miss, what are you thinking?” Clio asked as they walked towards the part of the garden with a small stream. The three females idled over the log bridge across it, leaning over the vine-filled railings to enjoy the sight of the clear water partially covered with beautiful water lilies.

For a while, Ember wondered what she should say, but decided to be honest. “Hmm, I think the palace is lovely and all, but… I am wondering what the other cities of Agartha look like. Ever since I became His Majesty’s mate, I have always been staying inside the palace. Do you think it is all right for me to go out? Even the nearest one, Ronan, is fine but I’d love to see the other cities too.”

“Umm, Miss, for that you have to get His Majesty’s permission,” Clio replied with a small frown. “As your bond is not completed, it’s not good to go out. It can be dangerous for you.”

“Dangerous?” Ember was curious. “Is it because I am human?”

“Well, that is another factor to consider, Miss, but what I meant to say is that I advise you to never leave His Majesty’s side if ever you go out. You are marked but your bond is not completed yet so it’s not good for you to go out without your mate. Especially these days when the peak of the full moon is a mere day away. There are beastmen without mates and they can harm you.” Clio explained.

“I see,” Ember replied as she contemplated.

Now that she thought of it, aside from Erlos, all of the male servants would leave whenever she was in the vicinity, to the point she would have thought all the palace servants were females. Was that also the King’s arrangement to protect her?

Just then Erlos appeared in the garden and informed her, “Miss, there is a guest in the palace. Sire had asked you to come to his study.”

Ember wondered what it was for as it was the first time she had been called to meet a guest but then smiled. ‘Seems like Leeora is here.’

Just as they were about to leave the garden premises, Ember caught sight of Draven walking along the open corridor with an unfamiliar person and they were coming towards the garden. He was listening intently to what the person next to him was talking about, and the serious countenance had some sort of special appeal.

‘Is it the angle of the sunlight? His Majesty looks especially good even though he’s just walking…’

The heart of the young lady could not help but beat at the sight of her mate. The more she looked at him, the more she could not help but feel attracted towards him. His expression was cold and aloof yet she found it extremely attractive as it is, giving her a small satisfaction in the knowledge that she had the ability to break that solemn mask.

His existence was intimidating and made it hard to approach him, and this was a fact the entire kingdom would agree upon. But to her surprise, rather than fear, what she felt for him was curiosity. Along the way, Ember found herself no longer fearing him.

‘Since when…?’ she could not help but wonder. ‘I remember I used to be so scared of him.’

Now, all she could see was his dignified appearance. Clad in his ornate attire that favoured the colour black, coupled with his tall masculine stature, everything about him looked noble.

The moment Draven turned his head, his eyes found his mate standing at the edge of the garden, openly staring at him. It was not the first time he caught her looking at him that way, and now he had already gotten used to it.

The servants stepped away while Ember walked towards Draven.

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