At that moment, a soft breeze blew, and with it came the gentle shimmer of frost. “I can try erasing the mark.” The Ice Fairy Queen said as she walked towards them. “Is that even possible?” Alaric asked, unsure. He had never heard of a curse mark being erased. Especially one of this magnitude. She shrugged. “We won't know until we try.”“No.” Zedekiel immediately declined. It was too dangerous and he felt that the Ice Fairy Queen had helped them enough. He did not want her to hurt herself. Especially for someone like Rose. “I believe we should take a more permanent route.” He suggested. “Which is?” King Cain asked.Zedekiel violet eyes flashed dangerously. “We kill the Shadow Master. Once and for all.” Besides, it had always been their plan. There was silence for a brief moment before Ludiciel stepped forward with Elliot by his side. “I was thinking that too.” He said. “I believe it is the best solution to this problem. Not that I like Rose or anything. To be honest, as harsh as
“Wait,” King Cain said, gazing at Alaric. “Who are you? How do you know all this?”“I am Alaric, leader of the Nightshade coven.” Alaric replied.King Cain and Queen Lillian paled for that was enough for them to understand. Alaric was a witch!They had once read from the ancient history books, the tales of Witches, Elves, The Shadows and many more. And among the tales of the Witches, there was one coven which stood out the most and was mentioned maybe a hundred times. The coven was so powerful, so feared, that it was spoken of with both awe and dread.The Nightshade Coven. The strongest coven in existence before it was supposedly destroyed in a catastrophic war that turned the skies red and the rivers black.But now, seeing Alaric, they knew. The Nightshades had not perished. They had merely hidden.King Cain exhaled deeply. First it was Elves and The Shadows, then the fact that his son was pregnant. Now, there are Nightshade Witches. What next? Fairies? Dragons? Perhaps even the devi
Her breathing turned erratic. Her body trembling not from despair now, but from the white-hot rage that began to coil and slither through her chest. Her face turned a sickly green with envy, the edges of her vision reddening with fury.She was Queen, yes. She had achieved the dream she’d carved out for herself with her own blood, her own hands, her own sacrifices.And yet—her brother, the ungrateful brat! The one she had tried to protect with comfort, with luxury, by sheltering him from the burdens of the crown… was happy without her. He was in love. He was about to start a family.With her man.Her nails dug into her palms until blood began to bead, her fists clenched so tightly her bones ached. Her emerald eyes gleamed with hatred as they locked onto Ron and Zedekiel.This wasn’t how things were meant to go.After everything she had done, after all the love she had showered on him, the way she carefully painted herself as the more reliable heir. The way she suffered, hiding her ambi
Rose staggered a step back. Her breath was coming faster now. She shook her head. No. No. Women were not allowed to rule. No woman had ever ruled. That was what the books said. She then gasped as she realised that they said ‘No woman had ever ruled Ashenmore,’ not ‘No woman can ever rule Ashenmore.’ She had misunderstood all along.“Do you remember your thirteenth, fifteenth, and eighteenth birthdays?” King Cain asked, stepping beside his wife.Rose gazed at him, going deathly pale. How could she forget? She nodded slowly, tears brimming.“Each time, I asked you what your dream was, remember?” King Cain continued. “You said you wanted to find a kind man, marry him, and live happily ever after. You never mentioned the throne. That’s why I arranged suitors for you and focused on training Ron instead. Despite being a strong, highly skilled young woman, we thought you just wanted to live a peaceful life. If you had simply told us you wanted the crown, we would have prepared you for it. I
Queen Lillian chuckled. “You weren’t exactly discreet, darling. I can still remember how you went on and on for months about Legolas, an Elf you read about in one of your novels.”“Oh yes,” King Cain said, shaking his head. “Not just him. Can you remember Haiden and Noah?”“How could I forget?” Queen Lillian chuckled. “He locked himself in his room and cried for days when he read that Noah died.”‘Oh, Is that so?’ Prince Ron heard Zedekiel ask through the mind link.Prince Ron chuckled nervously. Ah, this was bad. His parents were going to get him in trouble. ‘T-Those were just book characters.’ He explained. ‘And I was really young back then.’Zedekiel's smile deepened. ‘We'll discuss this when we get back.’“You also never liked to dance with girls at banquets.” King Cain added. “Your mother and I introduced you to many princesses but you rejected them all and kept staring at the princes instead. There was this particular Prince you always looked forward to seeing. I think his name
At that point, Zedekiel stepped forward, placing a steady hand on Ron’s lower back and gently nudging him closer to his father. “Your Majesty,” he said respectfully. “I assure you. None of this is an illusion or a game. It’s real.”“Yes, Father!” Prince Ron piped up. Being beside his beloved, he wondered why he was even nervous in the first place. His beloved was here. There was nothing his father could do. No one would dare take him away. He even stepped forward himself. “Come, Father, touch it! See for yourself that it’s not fake.” With that, he boldly grabbed his father’s hand and guided it to rest against his rounded belly.King Cain froze.He directly felt the warmth of the swell. It felt just like the time his wife was pregnant! And then, he felt a tiny movement beneath his palm and his eyes widened.“That’s… that’s real,” he whispered, panicking internally. As a man, he couldn't wven imagine carrying a baby. His eyes rolled back, vision swimming and just when he was about to c