Witch's Daughter And The Devil's Son

The plain-looking carriages drove towards the central district of Karlin, where most of the shops and boutiques inside the city could be found. Inside one of the carriages, Seren and Rayjin sat side by side while Drayce sat opposite to them. 

Since it was only an ordinary carriage and there were three passengers this time, the space inside was smaller than what Seren was used to. Not to mention, the handsome man in front of her was making her feel more uncomfortable than usual for some odd reason. Although she should have gotten used to those red eyes following her every move, today, they made her somehow flustered. Seren tried her best to not look at their owner. She pushed the window curtain to one side and looked outside through the glass window. 

Drayce did not strike a conversation with her. He didn't disturb his queen as he knew she was curious about each new place they visit. He could only wonder how special this trip was for a lady like her who had never stepped out of the capital of Abetha. Being able to travel here and there was nothing special for him, but there was a time in his life when he too was desperate to go out and see the entire world. 

Rayjin, who saw Seren looking out of the window, asked in a curious voice, "Seren, is it your first time coming to the market?"

Seren looked back at her and nodded, not clarifying that not only was it her first time visiting the marketplace, but it was also her first time coming to the capital city of Griven. 

"I have been here so many times with Uncle Arlan and Dray," she informed and accompanied Seren to look out of the window. 

Seren observed her surroundings. Karlin, the capital of Griven, was blessed with more greenery than any of the cities they had visited, and it had pleasant weather conditions, although it did seem colder than what she was used to, perhaps due to the capital being surrounded by mountains. If she were to compare Karlin to the capital of Abetha, the roads here were wider, and the buildings and residences more spacious than in her hometown.

She observed the people walking along the streets. It appeared that there was a little difference in the style of clothes they wore compared to what people in Abetha wore, just that the common people dress warmly, with additional coats and gloves. It was to be expected since Abetha and Griven were neighboring kingdoms.

Soon, their group reached the central district, closer to the marketplace frequented by the common people, and the carriages stopped in a secluded place. Drayce stepped out first, carrying the little girl Rayjin in his arms to help her climb down the carriage. 

"Thank you, Dray!" Rayjin smiled before rushing to accompany her two uncles who also climbed down from their carriages.

Drayce offered his hand to Seren, which she readily accepted, and he helped her climb down the carriage. Due to her long and fluffy skirt, she couldn't see the small rock on the ground just beside the footstool, and she ended up tripping on it. 

Drayce easily caught her. 

The young queen ended up in her husband's arms, leaving no distance between their bodies as his strong arms enveloped her with warmth. Seren gulped as she felt her make a wild jump. Her face was buried against his strong muscular chest, making her inevitably recall a beautiful image she had seen before. 

'What do I do?' Though she did not understand why she was becoming flustered once again. 'Do I push him away? Should I wait for him to push me away?' 

Tactfully, Arlan signaled Lenard to walk away and they stepped away to go inside the market with Rayjin. 

The confused Seren stood unmoving like a statue while taking her husband's support until she heard him ask, "Are you all right, my Queen?". 

Hearing such a polite and soft tone coming from him—though it didn't lose that signature coldness in it—Seren finally made herself move to look up at his face. Their faces were so close, her purple eyes could be reflected on his red eyes. 

The way he looked at her made her flustered heart skip a beat. Red eyes that reminded her of living flames…

Her mind was at such a loss, she did not even realize how long she'd been staring at his cold handsome face. She simply couldn't move her gaze away from this man. 

"Are you all right, my Queen?" he asked again. 

His low voice pulled her back to the present, and she hurried to step aside to get away from him. 

"I-I am fine, Your Majesty," she replied. She could still feel her heart beating faster than normal, but she managed to school her expression and pretend to be composed and ladylike. 

"Shall we?" he asked and she nodded. 

"This way," he instructed towards the direction where Arlan had left—a crowded street with many shops similar to what she had seen in the border city under the Loyset Family. 

As they walked side by side, Drayce tried to start a conversation. "It's similar to the capital of Abetha, isn't it?"

Seren nodded. "Just a little more crowded."

As the kingdom in the centermost region of the continent, Abetha was renowned for its wealth due to commerce and trade, and it was in fact the kingdom with the biggest and busiest marketplaces and merchant cities. All goods to be exchanged between the eastern and western kingdoms had to pass through Abetha. That was one of the reasons why Thevailes and the other kingdoms were eyeing its strategic position with envy, to the point they were willing to stage war. However, Seren was ignorant of that. She could only say that the marketplace of the capital of Abetha was less crowded since Martha and Cian only brought her to the areas meant for the middle class and the nobility. Of course, this would give Seren a wrong impression. 

Drayce did not bother to correct her, but knowing how she did not like crowds, he comforted her. "Rest assured, my Queen. I am here to take care of it for you." 

There was no need for him to say it aloud as Seren was already under his protection the moment they stepped on the crowded street. He guided her way and took great care that she wouldn't bump into anyone. 

If someone approached her even by a mistake, Drayce would put his hand around her shoulder and pull her closer to him. Seren could not even say anything since he was so quick, he moved before she could react. Those people she was yet to see, he would protect her from bumping into them without even looking at them. Even more amazing, his swift moves didn't disturb their original walking pace. 

Soon, they found Arlan, Lenard, and Rayjin in front of one sweet candy shop. The Cromwell princes were tall men, making them easy to spot despite the crowd. When Seren and Drayce reached the three, it was obvious that Rayjin wanted to buy local sweets as she was jumping up and down on her place. The stall owner was preparing the candy for her on one thin wooden stick. 

Rayjin saw Seren arriving and remembered that this was her first time in the market. "Seren! Let's make one for you too. It's so tasty. You will definitely love it!"

"N-No, I don't…."

"Try it please," Rayjin insisted, holding Seren's hand and looking up at her with pleading in her eyes. 

"Fine," Seren agreed. 

Drayce noticed how easily Seren and Rayjin talked; both were comfortable with each other upon their first meeting. He was happy that Seren was opening up and deciding for herself without asking anyone. 

Arlan and Lenard passed him a teasing smile. They knew a certain king couldn't stop worrying and thinking about his young wife.

Drayce ignored those two as if he didn't see them. 

Soon, candies of two different shapes were ready, one in the shape of a flower and another one in the shape of a butterfly. 

"Seren, which one do you want?" Rayjin asked. 

"Whichever you want to give me," Seren replied. 

"You have pretty purple eyes so this pretty purple butterfly candy is for you." Rayjin offered her the candy stick which had a small butterfly. 

Seren accepted it but didn't eat it. 

"Why are you not tasting it?" Rayjin asked after she had a tiny bite of that soft candy. "Don't you like candies?"

Drayce knew what was the reason. He lowered his head to whisper in his wife's ear. "Feel free to do what you like. Eat if you want to eat. No need to be bothered by others." 

With great reluctance, Seren moved her veil a little and had a bite under the veil. Only when Rayjin was satisfied did their group continue to walk. Arlan and Lenard already walked ahead while the three followed behind with Drayce holding Rayjin's free hand. 

Rayjin looked at Drayce while eating the candy. "Dray, what will you gift me this time?"

Drayce looked at her and asked, "What do you want, little lady?"

"Umm..." Rayjin thought as she looked around the street. Her sight caught a glimpse of the closest jewelry shop and she pointed there. "I want to go to that shop."

Only the three of them entered the jewelry shop, as Arlan and Lenard loitered in nearby shops. Seren only stood inside to accompany the little girl as she enjoyed watching Rayjin's reactions but had no plan of buying anything. 

"I want that." Rayjin pointed out one tiny baby hairpin which had ordinary gems embedded in it. 

The shop owner handed it to Rayjin, and she looked at Drayce. "This one!"

Drayce nodded. "That's it?"

"Hmm, I will keep the rest for the next time," Rayjin said as she turned to pass it to Drayce. "Dray, put it in my hair."

Dumbfounded, Drayce looked at the delicate item in her hand without moving an inch. His gaze flitted between the hairpin on her palm and the little girl who was wearing a brilliant smile on her face. He eyed her tiny head that had a rich crown of brown hair braided nicely up till her elbows. 

"Hurry up," Rayjin said.

Drayce accepted the hairpin from her, and Rayjin turned around to make it easier for him. 

Unfortunately, Drayce didn't know where to put the hairpin on that little head. He tried to remember how women did it, but to his surprise, he found that he could not recall anything of the sort. He wasn't one to pay attention to fashionable female wear, much fewer accessories. He knew how to stab a person, but not how to put a hairpin.

An accomplished king like him, who had solved lots of difficulties on his path and who had planned countless difficult missions, was bothered by something so trivial. The ignorant onlookers around them found the handsome man's confused expression secretly funny. Sadly, Arlan was not with them, or else Drayce would have been teased to no end. 

Seren understood his dilemma. She pointed at the back of Rayjin's hair where the braid started. "Here."

Drayce looked at her and then looked at where she pointed. He just nodded and observed the hairpin in his hand to see how to attach it to the hair. A ribbon could be tied, a clip could be fastened, but a hairpin...

"Dray, are you still not done?" Rayjin called out. 

Seeing the impatient little girl and the red-eyed man who was slow to react, Seren did something her husband had never seen her do before—initiate to help people. She wordlessly put forward her hand palm up, and he gave the hairpin to her. With a nimble flip of a hand, she then proceeded to pull out a tiny pointed metal rod from the pin before putting the top part of the hairpin at the start of the hair braid. She fixed the tiny metal rod under the hairpin in a way it managed to grab enough part of the hair, fixing the pin in place. 

Drayce observed the entire thing in stunned silence. 'She makes it look so easy, but why did it seem so difficult to me?'

"It's done," Seren informed Rayjin. 

Rayjin touched the back of her head and gave them the sweetest smile. "Thank you! Hee hee, I look like my mother. She wears it the same."

Seren smiled back at the adorable girl, only to hear one more demand from her. "Seren, you too buy one for yourself too! It will look good on you."

"No need. I already have enough of them," Seren countered. 

Just the wedding gifts from the groom before her wedding gave her dozens of hair ornaments of the most luxurious kind. As a princess, she also never lacked jewelry and accessories even though she was isolated in her residence. It wasn't that she had no assets of her own; it was merely her personal preference to choose simplicity and comfort over extravagance and fashion. In fact, she preferred not to be burdened by heavy jeweled hair ornaments, opting for the simplest ones that commoners use. 

However, none of her companions listened to her.

"Which one do you like for her?" Drayce asked Rayjin, ignoring what Seren had just said.

Rayjin put on an adorably serious face as she let her eyes roam the display. She pointed towards one pin. . "That one. The purple stone that looks like her pretty eyes."

The shop owner picked it up and handed it to Drayce and he looked at Rayjin. "This one?"

"Hmm." Rayjin nodded and looked at Seren. "Wear this."

Seren couldn't help but feel moved at the girl's thoughtful gesture. Everyone in Abetha thought of her eyes as ominous things, but Rayjin sincerely praised them again and again. She had no heart to deny her little request.

Seren merely nodded to show she'd be accepting this sign of goodwill. "I am already wearing one so I will wear your gift once we return to the palace."

Before Rayjin could say anything, Drayce said, "Let me help you."

Seren did not even have a chance to react as Drayce was already standing behind her. After seeing Seren putting the hairpin on Rayjin's hair, he could easily figure out how to remove the hairpin on her reddish-brown hair without messing up a single strand of hair. Drayce skillfully repeated what Seren did when she put that tiny hairpin in Rayjin's hair. 

"It's done," he said as he admired his queen. 

"I want to see!" Rayjin said as she couldn't see it due to her small height. 

Drayce picked her up in his arms and she finally saw it. "It's so pretty. I knew it would look good on Seren." 

Drayce smiled and looked at the little girl in his arms. "You have good taste." 

Seren turned to look at them, not knowing what to say when she saw Drayce smiling at Rayjin. At this moment, clad in simple clothes, with a gentle expression on his face, the red-eyed man she used to fear so much looked like a beautiful piece of art. She couldn't deny that he didn't look scary at this moment, as if he was an entirely new person. 

She could not take her gaze away from him despite knowing he was scary...or was he not?