[ IN WHICH SHE LIES ] Sin got back that same night. They all arrived safely that same night — no scratches, no cuts, no injuries. They had arrived all in one piece, chanting a victory song. The warriors who had accompanied Sin to the battleground were full of light despite being surrounded by the darkness. Anyone could tell that they had conquered effortlessly and accomplished their goal of saving a fellow member of the Grand Alkhemi. They had Jacqueline with them. She had a blanket around her. She was the only one with bruises and cuts on her face. Her white hair had been stained with blood. By the way she gripped the blanket around her shoulders, I knew she had been desperately trying to cover up her other bruises. When I laid eyes on her, I was filled with so much anger that I wanted to teleport to the Land of Avsky myself, find Luca and beat the crap out of him. But who was I to talk? I was just as evil as Luca. I had done something so despicable that I deserved to be punishe
[ IN WHICH SHE LEARNS ABOUT JACQUELINE ]I place a gentle knock on the door. Seconds later, it opens. It reveals the battered face of the female warrior. She has cuts and bruises decorating her pale, white skin. From her appearance, I can tell that she wears her bruises both physically and emotionally. She has purple blotches on her cheekbones, and dark circles have covered her once-beautiful under eyes. When I saw her last night, I tried approaching her, but she quickly ran upstairs to her room before I could get close. Even then, her bruises did not look as bad as they do now. It seems that while cleaning the wounds, she had accidentally injured herself for the second time. Or maybe it wasn’t an accident. And she deliberately hurt herself? “Oh, poor you. What did Luca do to you?” I reach my hands to touch her swollen cheek, but she quickly takes a step back. In a harsh tone, she says. “My apologies, your majesty. But I would like to be alone at the moment.” “Oh.” I mouth, retr
[ IN WHICH SHE IS FOOLISH OR MIGHT HAVE COMPLETELY LOST HER MIND ] NOVEMBER'S P.O.V —If my hours spent with Jacqueline has taught me one thing, it is that — 'do not live your life with regrets'.Regrets eat you up, slowly. They devour you. They diminish you and shatter your whole being. So, I promise to live without regrets. Honestly, Jacqueline's situation isn't so different from mine. With each decision I make, I feel like I am self-destructing, leading myself closer and closer to my death. Because why the hell did I give into Rome? Why did I let my emotions control me? Why did I give into lust? Why did I let him touch me? And why did I like it so much? Why do I crave his touch every second of the day? And why do I crave him more than I crave Sin?This secret will be the death of me.But I am glad that I have come to this realization. So, now, I will stay away from Rome — the secret and the mistake. He might as well be a temptation.If I make a mistake that I come to regret in the
[ IN WHICH SHE LIVES WITH NO REGRETS ] NOVEMBER'S P.O.V —The following four minutes are characterized by awkward silence. “Sorry to ask, but are you good, November?” I quickly wave it off with a nervous smile. “I am fine.” He gives me an uncertain look. “Because I was walking by the throne room when I noticed the doors were left open.” Shit, I should have locked the door. He continues to narrate the event that I am fully aware of — an event I am embarrassed about. “And when I peered inside, I saw you. About to say hello, I see that you are speaking to someone. So, I assume it is the King, but then, I step in, and there is no one else in the room.” He points to the furniture that have occupied space in the throne room.The urge to dig a hole and bury myself in it becomes overwhelming. But sadly, I don't have a shovel to dig a hole up. I try to hide my look of detest as I glare up at Atlas. Out of everyone that could have caught me in this moment, it had to be Atlas? The boy whose
[ IN WHICH SHE WILL LIVE WITH REGRETS ] NOVEMBER’S P.O.V — Maybe I should not have left the Grand Alkhemi. Maybe I should have just stayed home.Maybe I should have listened to the voice in my head. Maybe then, I would not be in this situation. The minute I arrive at Vrys — the vampire kingdom — I am hit with rotten air. The air surrounding the Kingdom has something in it that makes my skin crawl. It makes me feel sick to the core. And no, there isn’t a foul smell in the Kingdom of Vrys; the air smells fine, purified even. That is not what has gotten me sick. It is the general vibe and aura of the Kingdom that makes me feel repulsed. It seems there is something dirty, bloody and sinful hidden in the grounds. I feel this way, because each time I take a step forward, my bones chill instantly and I shiver intensely.It feels like they have people buried beneath the Kingdom. I know this because I am the gate-way to the afterlife. I can feel the dead souls tugging at the sleeves of my
[ IN WHICH SHE WILL LIVE WITH SO MANY REGRETS ]“Start speaking.” My skin easily gets irritated by the feel of his breath on my neck. It is warm and I can feel trickles of his spit falling onto the back of my neck. I shiver intensely in disgust as he continues to hold me down against his front, securing me a little tighter than necessary. “I said, start speaking.” He gives me a little jostle. “I am certain you can understand me, kotik. Staying quiet will not make things easier for you. It will only rile me up. I demand an answer.” Kotik. I know that nickname anywhere. I have mingled with a lot of people as I travelled to different countries. One of the many times I visited Russia, I learned a few words and their meanings, and one of the few words I picked up was Kotik. It means ‘kitten’. Котик (Kotik) So, from this, I can tell that the vampire king had been a Russian in his past life, before joining Alkhemi. And this also means that his formation is similar to Atlas. He was once a
[ IN WHICH SHE HAS REGRETS ]My head buzzes in shock. Blood continuously pours out from the hole in Darius’ chest. My hands grow cold. The temperature in the throne room had dropped the second the King dropped to the ground. It was like he had been the one keeping the Castle alive. The fire torches also died the minute Rome's claws ripped the King's heart out. Now, a scary cloud of darkness has come to surround and taunt us. The only source of light is the familiar soft glow from the evening sky. I hadn’t even realized that night had fallen over the land. Traveling down to Vrys took almost four hours. I wonder how I do not feel drained from riding on a horse for that long. But how could I worry about that now? That is the last thing I care about. The Vampire King and the possible implications that his death could cause are the two things on my mind. My eyes stay glued on the lifeless King at my feet.My jaw starts to ache from hanging them wide open in shock. The muscles in my legs
[ IN WHICH SHE LEARNS REGRET ]NOVEMBER'S P.O.V — I am hurt. But Rome doesn't appear hurt. Rather, he appears angry. “You didn't think that I had been waiting months for you, did you?” I glare back at him. “And I didn't think you were a scum.”“Oh.” He almost laughs. “Now, I am a scum?”“Yes, Rome. You have always been a scum. If you had other sexual relationships, I sure as hell did not need to know about them.” “I thought you knew.” “No, I did not!” I fire right back.He almost laughs. He fails to analyze the dark shadow that falls across my face. “So, what? You thought I had been sitting patiently in a chair, waiting for you?”“Just be quiet, Rome.” I struggle to refocus my attention on the lifeless King. “We need to find a way to sort this out.” “No.” Rome yanks my body towards him. I push him off of me. “This conversation is ended. Now, we talk about how we make sure Darius' death does not cause problems for us.”He pulls me towards him again. “I could care less about the