Witch's Daughter And The Devil's Son

While Seren and the Great Lady were busy outside, the pair of father and son left behind in the drawing-room had no will to talk with each other. The tense atmosphere remained for about five minutes before someone broke the silence.

"Just to make it clear, my Obsidian Palace is not receiving guests," King Theron spoke in the same apathetic tone he used earlier.

"Neither am I that bored of life to come visiting here willingly," Drayce replied blandly. 

The old king continued to look at the garden view outside of his windows, while Drayce was the same. None of them wished to look at each other. 

"I thought the next chosen queen of this kingdom will be someone of worth, but just like me, it appears you have failed too," the old king spoke in a voice laced with regret. 

His words were clear that the previous Queen of Megaris was not a woman of worth, and neither was Seren. He sure had heard about what kind of life Seren had lived in Abetha.

"The man who could sacrifice his wife so easily has no right to determine who has worth and look down on others. There is no other woman as dignified and as admirable as my mother who paid a large price for her kingdom. I will have you know that the wife I chose is as pure as fresh snow, many times better than the scheming court ladies and ambitious noble daughters you so favored."

The old king scoffed. "Person with such a judgment is the King of Megaris? Pure as fresh snow? Can purity feed the hungry during winter? Can it end the war? Delusional and idealistic fool! "

"Then why did you make such a person the king of this kingdom?" Drayce countered. 

King Theron glared at Drayce. "That you need to ask your father. If not for him, why would I hand the throne to someone without the Ivanov bloodline, a bastard whose veins carry the Devil's blood?"

"That Devil is the one you asked for help when everything was about to be destroyed." Drayce glared back at him as his red eyes looked furious. "I never asked to be the king of this kingdom! If it was not for Grandmother—"

"Hah! You dare call her grandmother when you're not even related by blood. How shameless!" The old king sneered. "If you don't like being a king that much, then go to your father and ask him to dissolve that agreement. I will make my son Keiren, the legitimate heir of the Ivanovs, the King of Megaris and give him back what originally belongs to him."

"Your son?" Drayce scoffed. He tried to be calm but there was a storm inside him and stood up. "My father was the one who saved this kingdom that once belonged to you Ivanovs. It is now mine, and what is mine will remain mine. Mark my words, your son will never sit on my throne."

King Theron looked at the young king standing in front of him. "And you say you don't want that throne."

"I did not care for it in the past, but now I want it. I have someone to protect and I will show you no one else but my wife deserves to be the Queen of this kingdom."

The old king let out a humorless laugh. "A devil favors a witch. Nothing surprising."

"Better than a human who tortures the innocent," Drayce countered. 

"Innocent? Are you referring to yourself? You speak as if your hands are not coated with blood. Why is a devil like you preaching about fairness and morality? There are times when one must harm even the innocent for the greater good of the people."

"Humans move for benefits and interests. Even a man like you had given up his wife once the proper price was paid, but you're trying to justify it by pretending to be a victim. I prefer to be a devil than a human with a fickle heart."

"Devil? Are you so proud of your bastardly background? I am glad someone like you is not my real son."

"And I am fortunate that I am not your real son, that your cowardly blood doesn't run through my veins—"

"What's going on here?!"

The two heard the sharp voice of an old lady and immediately kept their mouths shut. Great Lady Theodora could hear their angry yells even though she was a certain distance from the drawing-room. At least on this merry day when they just had a new daughter-in-law in the family, she expected these two to at least act cordial and behave in front of her, to not openly show the conflicts within the family, but they just disappointed her. 

The old woman looked at Seren who had clearly heard the end of their conversation when they entered the drawing-room. She was silent but the Great Lady was sure she had some questions in her mind. 

Drayce looked at Seren to tell her, "My Queen, it's time for us to leave," and then looked at his grandmother. "Grandmother, if you wish to talk to her, you are always welcome in the Queen's Palace." He looked like he had lost his patience and didn't wish to stay there even for a moment.

Great Lady Theodora could only nod and briefly hugged Seren. "I will visit you in your residence soon, my dear."

Seren nodded and left with Drayce.

After they saw the couple's carriage leave outside the glass windows, the Great Lady looked at her son. "You are still the same."

"Mother, he is not my son and I request you not to try to make him a part of my family," Theron said coldly. 

"Between adults, kids are the ones to always suffer," the Great Lady commented. "You should reflect on what you have done. If you feel guilty, even a little, then stop acting like this."

"As King, what I did was to save this kingdom and the numerous lives of my subjects."

"And as Queen, Esther did what she could," Great Lady Theodora countered, to which Theron had nothing to say. 

He stood up. "Mother, you should rest." He then turned to leave. 

"My son," the Great Lady called out, and despite not wanting to, Theron stopped. 

The Great Lady continued, "You say you no longer think about her, but I know since she left that you are trying to grow the flowers she liked but could never do it."

Theron froze in his place and heard his mother continue, "I have planted her seeds again in those pots. This time, I am sure you will get to see them bloom."

Theron didn't say anything and left, leaving the Great Lady inside the now empty drawing-room. 

Her once dignified voice now trembled with sadness. "I hope before I die, I get to see my family together."

"All will be fine, my lady," her lady-in-waiting consoled the older woman. "Just give them time."

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Dear readers, the last date to get a comic version of the important novel scenes is 31st December.. On 1st-2nd Jan I will declare the list of the readers who got it. [Criteria- 40k fan value points]