Ch. 131..150

Chapter 131 - Message

Once Caius finally left the father and daughter pair, Evie could barely compose herself. Only god knows how hard she tried to stay passive from all the things she had heard. She was surprised at herself on her own persistence and will. She never thought she could actually act this well. From the outcome of things so far, her acting must have been quite convincing. Perhaps it was true that people could really do the impossible when pushed into a desperate state.

However, she could no longer stop the surge of anxiety inside her. For some reason, this news made her feel so worried to the point that she was feeling sick. She did not know why but she had a premonition that something bad was going to happen.

After glancing at the closed door, she grabbed onto her father's clothes.

"Father… I'm really scared. What if something bad happens to you? What if…"

"Hush, Evie dear. Didn't I told you that everything will be fine?"

"But father… I'm…"

Sighing, Lucius could only hug his daughter patiently. "Trust your father, Evie… alright, you must be very tired now. Go to sleep, my darling. Come, I worried you are too anxious. You need to calm down and rest, Evie."

He led her to her bed and when Evie protested, Lucius patiently coaxed her until Evie was finally lying on the bed. Despite everything that was happening, Evie was so glad that her father was here at least. He was being so gentle and patient with her. Evie could not help but reminisce on the times when she was younger. Due to the frequent wars in the previous years, her father was rarely home but when he was home, her father was still treating her the same. As though she had not grown up at all. Her mother even scolded him as he was spoiling her too much.

It somehow soothed her heart, but her fears were growing. And she knew that this is the last chance she would have to come clean with him. So, she must tell him everything now!

"Father," Evie tugged on Lucius sleeve as she looked up at him, "I don't think I can sleep. Would you sing me that lullaby you always sang for me when I was young?"

Lucius looked surprised at her request and Evie understood why. A grown woman like her still asking something like tthis from her father must have sounded weird. But her father only smiled and eventually Evie knew why. Her father was thinking she was still traumatized and that was why he was being so considerate and patient of her.

"Of course, darling." He sat at the edge of Evie's bed as he started to sing. Evie loved the low baritone vibration of her father's singing voice and it brought her back to those times when things were simpler, and her life was still sheltered.

The song was soothing and sounded so mystical because of the unknown language of the song's lyrics. Her father had mentioned that this song was passed down from generation to generation of the Ylvia family. And for some reason, only they, the Ylvia family could understand it. They did not even speak this unknown language but for some reason they just understood it even without learning it. This song actually became the test that their family used since long ago to prove that one was a part of the Ylvia bloodline. Anyone who could not understand this song only meant that they were not related to the Ylvia family. As to the reason why only they could understand the song, remained a mystery until today.

Midway through the song, Evie began to join her father in singing and they both sang the song together until Lucius stopped and he let his daughter continue on the song. It was because this was how Evie was when she was young. She would continue singing the song until she fell asleep.

Lucius patiently patted his daughter's hand as he listened to Evie's melodious and beautiful voice. He was smiling, utterly pleased and glad that his beloved daughter was with him again. Only he knew how much he was missing her after they sent her off once her wedding with the vampire prince had concluded.

However, his smile slowly began to fade when Evie began to modify the song's lyric. The tune of the song did not change but the lyrics was now completely different. Evie was thankful that this Ylvian song was so long that there are many words she could use to send her message. The word 'husband' wasn't in the song but there was the word 'love', so she inserted that instead.

'I lie… My love is not evil… everything is a lie… my love loves me… and I love him.' Evie sang and Lucius's eyes widened as Evie continued with her eyes pleading him for help. He could clearly see she was begging him to understand her through her eyes and her song.

'We are happy… I love him…' Evie repeated those lyrics and her eyes looked even more desperate.

The lines on Lucius' forehead deepened as he gazed down at his daughter with severe eyes. He was not a fool not to understand what message his own daughter was trying to get across to him. Those words and the look in his daughter's eyes – he knew that those eyes were desperately asking for help. Lucius was always aware and even awed by his daughter's intelligence since she was young. He had seen so much potential in her because of her intelligence that could surpass many great minds. He had always thought that if only his daughter was not a woman.

So, these cryptic lyrics she had created was not even a surprise to him how she manage to come up with it. However, he was shocked by the meaning he was deciphering from her cryptic message and the reason why she had to go through all this hassle when the two of them were already alone inside her bedchamber. The only reason he could think about why his daughter was going through such great lengths was because she was afraid someone will hear her even in her bedchamber. This only went to prove that she knew there was someone who was eavesdropping and perhaps, watching too, since his daughter could have just written him a letter. But she did not.

Chapter 132 - Next Plan

Realizing that someone must be watching them from somewhere hidden at that moment, Lucius held himself back from asking Evie any questions until the song ended.

Though he wanted to know more about this, Lucius was not certain on what he should do next. He understood the hidden message his daughter was trying to tell him, but he needed more explanation. With this message, things just got even more confusing and messed up. She was trying to tell him that all this while, the things that she had said and done was all a lie and that she loves her husband? It was hard for him to accept this so suddenly. It does not make any sense to him and though he loves his daughter dearly and would literally do anything and everything for her sake, Lucius could not take that fact and had the notion that Gavriel must have manipulated her into saying all these things.

He had heard from Lorcan that this prince was a vicious and manipulative person. What if he had also manipulated Evie? What if he had seduced Evie and now, she was actually madly in love with him to the point of doing everything for him?

Seeing the calculative look in her father's eyes and the obvious signs of doubt in them, Evie clenched her fists tight into her blanket. She recognised and knew her father's every expression. She knows when he is having a dilemma and now it was obvious to Evie that her message was not enough to make him understand the entire story. Or perhaps he just does not quite believe her fully as of yet. She was sure he needed to hear more explanations for him to understand what was going on. However, she was glad to know this was coming as all she needed to do now was to move on to her next plan.

"Father," Evie started in a weak sleepy mumble, "will you still be here when I wake up?"

"I may not be here anymore my darling."

"I see… what if I tell you that, I want to come along with you, father?" she tested out the waters and Lucius was quick in shaking his head. Even though Evie had thought of begging her father to go along with him when she heard that they were going to pursue Gavriel, Evie chose not to do so. That was because she trusted fully in Gavriel's promise that he would come and take her back with him. She did consider the fact that, what if Gavriel appear here in Dacria and ended up with her not being here just because she wanted to follow along?

Thus, Evie ended up deciding that she would wait here patiently. She cannot risk any chances now.

"No Evie. You can't. It's too dangerous for you." Lucius told her. "You are going to stay here and wait for me to come back and get you, understand?"

Evie pouted and acted like she was about to cry. But eventually, she nodded. "I feel like I'm going to have a fever." She muttered pitifully and Lucius eyes widened in worry.

He immediately put his hand on her forehead to feel it. However, Evie's temperature seemed to be normal.

"Maybe my discomfort is caused by the rain. I think I really need to sleep and rest or else I might really get sick." Evie spoke before Lucius could even say a thing. "Could you bring me a towel before you go, father? I'm sorry, I don't like to have a vampire maid so I - "

"Its alright my darling, I'll go get it for you."

"It's in my dressing room, father." She said and Lucius blinked again. But he eventually stood up and headed to the bathroom. Almost hesitantly. Was Evie trying to send her in her dressing room?

Lucius wasn't certain. However, he felt that there was something else behind this action as well. Because he felt she was not feverish at all.

When Lucius entered the dressing room and saw a fluffy folded towel, he slowly searched it and he paused for a moment at the sight of a small paper that was folded and hidden under it.

…

All the humans were already asleep when Caius entered emperor Lorcan's chambers.

"Did those humans finally settled down for the night?" asked Lorcan while he sat leisurely on a chair and was enjoying a glass of blood.

"Yes, father."

"And?" he lifted his brow. "Did you manage to find out anything else?"

"I have assigned someone to follow and watch Lucius and his daughter secretly. However, there had been nothing suspicious so far."

"Are you certain?" Lorcan arched a brow sceptically.

Caius blinked, seemingly not expecting his father's strong doubt.

"I made sure to even get someone to spy over them even inside her chambers. Lady Evielyn never spouted anything suspicious. Their conversations were all normal and as expected between father and daughter."

"Are you saying that the princess' claim is indeed the truth?"

"I could not find any signs of her claim being false, father. If she were lying, she would've been begging her father right now to help Gavriel. But she didn't and still seemed to be traumatized at the moment."

Lorcan narrowed his eyes. His fingers lightly tapping on his glass as if he were contemplating something else.

"Don't you think that something is strange here, Caius?" Lorcan asked and before stroking his chin lightly with his thumb. "I feel as if a brazen little someone is trying to play mind games with me."

Caius creased his brows in confusion.

"Whatever do you mean, father?"

Lorcan stood and walked towards Caius. "Oh well, it doesn't matter whether my suspicions are true or not at the moment," he said as he halted before Caius. "Because no matter what happens, we are going to end this nonsense very soon, you hear me Caius?" his voice suddenly became serious and deadly sharp.

"Yes, father." Caius was at attention as he knew his father was deadly serious.

"Once Lucius kills that damned prince, make sure you execute our plan flawlessly. I won't forgive any mistakes at this point. Do you understand?"

"Yes, father."

"Good," Lorcan patted his son's shoulder, "do not worry, I will watch over that human. If you come back victorious, she will be yours. But if you make any mistakes, you know what will happen." The threat in his voice was heavy with unconcealed danger.

"Rest assured, father. I will not make any mistakes and fail your expectations of me."

"Good spirit, son. Now go and prepare for our next plan."

"Yes, father."

Chapter 133 - Summon

Back in Evie's chambers.

Lucius was shocked at everything that Evie had written to him in her letter. And now that he was reading the last remaining part, his expression became darker and darker.

'Father, I suspect that this must be a trap for Lorcan to get rid of you! They only want to use you to kill my husband and once they get what they want, they would definitely do something to you! Believe me father, they had tried to kill me because they planned for a war to spark between you and my husband. However, my husband saw through their plans and that's why Gavriel and I escaped from the capital. He was the one to decide to bring me to a safe place. He was labelled a traitor because he saved me! He is not the enemy. If he is a monster, would I still look this fine by now? You won't be able to find a single scratch on me, father. He never treated me badly because he loves me dearly. You can tell, right father?'

Clenching his fists, Lucius crumpled the letter. Of course, he could tell. If it were true that his daughter was a prisoner of that man and was tortured by him as how it was made up to be, his daughter would not have been looking this fine. In fact, Evie looked better now compared to the last time he saw her when he was sending her away to Rennox castle. She definitely does not look to be maltreated at all. If she were not crying and trembling, Lucius would have doubted that she was kidnapped and imprisoned in Dacria for nearly a month based on her appearance.

However, if his daughter was right about everything, what was he going to do now? What about all the elaborate plans and discussions that had been carried out and decisions that were made? If this was all an elaborate trap orchestrated by emperor Lorcan, what was the best step for him to take now? How should he proceed with caution but also with tact? He was sure that any wrong moves would just cause more problems to be visited onto their heads – both on him and on Evie.

…

The next morning, Caius and her father led their armies out of Dacria. Evie felt a little calmer upon finding and reading the note her father left in her dressing room. He had told her he would first go and meet Gavriel and that he would be extra careful with Caius and his men.

Evie was confident that her father would believe her. Even when Evie was young, her father would always be on her side even during those times when she had done something naughty and bad. He would always choose to believe her. Evie somehow had seen this decision of his coming. As for Lucien, he believed his daughter, but he was still unsure about Gavriel. Evie could already tell what her father was hoping for to happen. When he meets up with Gavriel, he would definitely confront him. However, Evie was not so worried on this matter because she knew that when her father finally meets Gavriel, he would know that her husband was not a monster. All she needed was to have her father talk to Gavriel. Once her father has a chance to have a straightforward and truthful discussion with Gavriel and see for himself what kind of a person was he, things would be able to proceed as they have planned. Evie was that confident in Gavriel and his ability to convince her father into turning his views around.

And she also knew that Gavriel would definitely be able to convince her father in no time at all. She just knew it. One reason was because of the fact that her husband was the most charming creature she knew. And she was quite sure it not only applies to the female population, but also to the males. Just that he would need to put in the conscious effort of doing it in the first place. So far, she has yet to see her husband fail whenever he was being his suave self and had set his mind to convincing someone or a group of people on something that he wanted to get across. Thus, in this case, she was sure he would be putting more than a hundred precent to succeed as this not only as it concerns both their future and happiness but also the lives of the many Dacrians.

As Evie watched the exiting army from her chamber's window, she prayed for both of her husband's and father's safety. And for the plans that they have made to turn out well.

...

Nothing unusual happened in Dacria since the day her father left. It was quiet in the last two days that passed since her father had left.

However, for a reason she did not know about, Evie was suddenly summoned by emperor Lorcan. And the thing that gave her pause was she did not get called to the throne hall but suspiciously into his chambers. Why would he suddenly summon her? And why to his personal chambers? Evie shivered as she did not even dare think of what might come her way. However, she could not avoid this summon.

Evie kept glancing at Leon as they walked along the corridors in silence. She had not spoken to Leon since he was assigned to be her personal guard. Because she was aware that they were still being monitored secretly. Thankfully, it seemed as though she was not the one being watched this time but Leon. The presence that she felt lurking in her bedchamber when her father was still in the castle had also disappeared the moment her father left.

By the time they finally reached the huge door of the emperor's bedchamber, Evie swallowed hard. She glanced at Leon again and when Evie saw a hint of worry in his eyes, her heart began to thump wildly. She thought it was only her who was having bad feelings about this. She thought she was just being too nervous or even overly paranoid. But seeing Leon's expression now made her realize that her intuition might not be all that wrong.

"Come in Lady Evielyn, the door is opened." A voice echoed from the inside of the room and Evie felt goosebumps crawl all over her skin.

Chapter 134 - Appetizer

Evie's initial jerk reaction was to turn around and run back to her room without looking back. But she knew she could not escape this as it was a royal summon. Thus, taking a deep breath, Evie steeled herself. Though she knew something was definitely off with this summon, she did not have a choice. She could not turn around and leave or disobey this summon. Because if she did, who knows what this emperor would do? She could not afford to anger him when her father and Gavriel were not here to defend or save her if and when this emperor decides to do something funny. Though Leon was here, she knew his power would not be enough to deal with royalty, and this being the emperor himself.

When Evie nodded at Leon, the half-blood clearly struggled to make himself move. But when Evie flashed him a forced smile, Leon clenched his jaws and moved to push the huge door open.

She squared herself as she entered and clenched down hard on her jaws. She would not give the emperor the satisfaction of seeing or hearing how nervous she was. However, the moment she stepped inside the door, the heartbeat she tried so hard to keep normal began to drum loudly in her ears when she saw the emperor lounging on the chair. He was wearing only a bath robe and his hairy chest was on full display. Evie's heart shook and her legs almost gave way as she took in the sight. But his clothes were not the even the issue right now because his blue eyes now looked incredibly dimmer, as though dark blood had just been mixed into them.

The emperor chuckled. "Sigh… don't be so frightened, Lady Evielyn. I had wondered if you also reacted the same way in front of Gavriel." He asked as he rose languidly from his chair. He then glared hard at Leon who had followed Evie in. "And you, who permitted you to enter?"

"I… I asked him to come along, Y-your Majesty. As you can see, I am still quite scared around vampires." Evie threw out the only excuse she could come up with for now.

The dangerous glare in his eyes somehow subsided. "Like I said, you have nothing to fear. I am not a monster like Gavriel." His gaze on Evie gentled, like the way it was when Evie had first seen him at the ballroom in his imperial castle.

"However, I will be needing this man to step out." He waved a hand, dismissing Leon. "You can wait for her outside the door." His tone became frosty when her gave the order to Leon.

When Leon did not immediately obey his command, his face darkened, and Evie saw a serious threat in them. "J-just go, Leon." Evie pushed Leon. "I'll be fine. His Majesty only wants to talk with me. Wait for me by the door."

Leon stared hard into Evie's eyes but Evie was certain that this emperor would not hesitate to end whoever that opposes him. She could see it in his eyes. The threat looming in there was alarming and he did not bother to veil it at all.

Evie forced herself to nod at Leon and thankfully, Leon did not continue being stubborn and finally moved. Though it was obvious he was extremely unwilling.

Once the door closed behind Leon, Lorcan sighed before mildly slumping back into his comfortable looking chair. "What a stubborn half-blood." He hissed.

"May I know the reason in you summoning me here, Your Majesty?" Evie asked. She was curious but yet, at the same time nervous on wanting to know the reason behind this summoning.

Lorcan began to pace slowly and elegantly before her. Evie who was closely observing every move of the emperor thought that no matter how he tried, he was never going to be as elegant and regal as her beloved husband.

After pacing about for a while, he halted, and his gaze moved over to Evie before travelling from her head right down to her toes. What he just did gave Evie the creeps. She somehow managed to maintain her poker face and showed no outward reaction whatsoever. Inside her mind however, Evie was screaming bloody murder and wanted to slap that rude emperor.

"I need something from you, Lady Evielyn." He drawled out and Evie could not help but stiffen up in fear.

He laughed again at her slight reaction, but this time it was stomach-churning laugh.

"Do not worry, Lady Evielyn. Though I admit your beauty is incomparable, I am not interested in your body. It's my son who is the one that wants you badly… so you do not need to show that wary look on your face in front of me." He informed her and Evie would have sighed in relief if not for the way his gaze was continually fixed on her neck.

He began to take a step closer towards her. "Your body will soon belong to my son. But your blood… it will belong to me." He whispered before smiling widely, showing his fangs. Warning bells then began to toll in Evie's mind.

The horror that filled Evie's eyes made him smile again. As though her fear was a kind of appetizer to the main course – which was her of course. And now the hungry look in his eyes turned into something that was beyond starvation.

"Don't be scared, dear girl. I only want to taste the blood of the infamous Ylvia family. I told you, my son wanted you as his reward. So, I will naturally not harm you." he added as he took a few more steps closer to Evie, like a ferocious hyena drooling at a piece of juicy meat. "I initially had planned to wait until my son's return. But since this damned place has no available human to serve me, I don't think anyone else would be able to quench my thirst now but you. I will only take a little sip as an appetizer. This good emperor promises you that." He swore and then launched himself at her.

Chapter 135 - Chase

On the other side of the door.

Leon already had his eyes turned red the moment the door closed behind him. He knew the emperor was planning on doing something unforgivable. Though a half-blood, he was still a vampire and a strong one at that. Thus, his hearing was not impaired at all and was every bit as good if not better than the average vampire. And now that he had heard all the things emperor Lorcan had said through the doors, he could no longer stop himself from taking action.

He knew what was at stake and he understood why the princess was trying her very best not to make the emperor doubt them. However, Leon could never let this happen. Prince Gavriel had entrusted Her Ladyship's safety and well-being into his hands. Thus, allowing her blood to be drawn and taken as food for another vampire – and the emperor, no less – was definitely going against that order. Even though the emperor did swear to have just take only a sip of her blood, Leon knew that once he tasted the princess' blood, he would never be able to stop drinking until he drew every single drop from her body and will eventually end up killing her.

Prince Gavriel had told Leon before he left to never let her get wounded – not even a single scratch. And Leon very well knew the reason where that order stemmed from. Because the princess getting wounded would be the same as game over for the both of them. Just a small scratch and the emperor and every vampire here would all go crazy over the princess' scent!

Gritting his teeth, he saw the huge and powerful vampires who were guarding the emperor's door notice the change of color in his eyes and they walked over to him, prepared to drag him down or even to kill him if he does anything suspicious like barging inside the emperor's chambers.

Leon noticed the vampires' approach, but he calmly turned and knocked on the door when he suspected that the emperor was about to launch himself on the princess. He was hoping that the knock could at least do something, anything. But as expected, the emperor ignored his knock and Leon did not receive any response. However, Leon blatantly continued rapping on the heavy wooden door without care still hoping that it would serve as a distraction to deter the emperor from continuing on his deed.

"If you knock one more time, you're dead." The vampire behind him threatened. "A mere half-blood like you does not have any rights to disturb his majesty's –"

The vampire could not even finish his sentence because Leon had already sent both the big men flying. He had delivered a surprise punch to the face for each of them and he did not bother to reign in his strength. And in the blink of an eye, Leon pulled the door instead of pushing it and broke it completely as he was afraid that the princess might be right behind the door. 'I'm sorry Princess, but this is the only thing I could think of doing right now.' He uttered within himself as he flung the broken door carelessly behind him, not caring if it hit anyone. As he knew anyone who was there would be people who are on the emperor's side. Thus, it was only deserving if they did get knocked down.

As he moved, he was already planning to snatch the princess away and escape the castle immediately before Lorcan could sink his dirty fangs into her neck and bite her. But when he finally stepped into the emperor's chambers, his eyes were greeted with a surprising sight. To his utmost surprise, there was a long and ugly slash running across the emperor's face – from his temple to his chin – with the princess on the opposite side, slightly crouched. In her hand, a beautiful but wicked looking dagger was tightly clutched in her hand.

"You little conniving bitch!!!" the emperor roared. "How dare a mere human like you do this to me!!! I'm going to kill you!!!"

Leon jumped forward and swiftly grabbed Evie and the next thing Evie knew, they were being pursued as though they were wanted criminals. The imperial army came after them and Leon slashed wildly and mercilessly at the unfortunate vampires who tried to block their path.

Evie only knew that they were being chased but she could not see anything clearly. She was being hauled around like a sack of potatoes over Leon's shoulder as he leapt, ran, and fought against their pursuers. The sudden turn of events was so abrupt that Evie could hardly process everything that was going on. Oh God. What was going to happen now? Would everything she worked so hard and planned for going to crumble to pieces now? More importantly, how are they going to survive this?

Evie lifted her head and looked back to where they had been fleeing from. What she saw made her heart nearly stop. There were too many soldiers who are now chasing after them. She could not even estimate the numbers that were coming at them – it was that many. How could they escape this predicament that they have landed themselves in?

Her thoughts were disrupted at the sound of something falling and crushing. When she turned to look at the source of the loud noise, she saw the great chandelier that was hanging from the ceiling of the grand hall they were running across come crashing down on many pursuing vampires and blocked up the grand staircase. It appeared that Leon had found the opportunity to slash at all the chandeliers they passed by. This had caused the vampires who were chasing them to fall a little farther back from where they are.

In no time, they both arrived inside Evie's chambers and Leon was already hurriedly wrapping her up in her thick travelling cloak.

"I'm sorry princess, but we don't have any other choice but to escape this city." Leon said before he pulled her hood down. However, this time he did not throw her over his shoulder as he did before. Evie did not know this, but Leon was told that the princess could be pregnant with the precious heir. So, he was trying his very best to be gentle in his handling of her person. He was so conscientious of this matter even though they were in this situation where they could hardly afford to breathe. Evie spied her bow and arrows lying on the chair nearby and ran over quickly to grab them before Leon made her sit on his strong arm and hold onto his neck when the door was smashed open. There also already vampires swarming outside the windows.

Evie heard Leon curse quite colourfully and she could not help but flash a wry smile quickly. She did not expect the proper and usually silent Leon to be such a sailor in this aspect.

"Get ready, Princess. And please don't get wounded or else..

." Leon whispered as he pulled down Evie's hood even further.

In the next instant, Evie heard another crushing noise and the sounds of sword slashing against flesh. Then there was that feeling of them being suspended in air as Leon jumped from the castle's window.

Chapter 136 - Happiness

Leon landed lightly on the courtyard with Evie carefully held in his arms. A group of the imperial army who were already stationed and ready on the ground came at them at the instant they landed, and Leon was forced to fight their way out. He had to exert more care and caution so as to ensure that while fighting, he was also protecting Evie from getting injured.

Their situation was getting more and more impossible since Leon could not even fight to his best capabilities not only because he had her in his arms, but he was also safeguarding her. He had to honour the order given by his prince to protect her from all harm.

"Damn!" Leon cursed as he paused, pointing his sword towards the vampires who were surrounding them. They need to escape, or it was truly over for them. They must leave the walls before the soldiers blocked all possible escape routes. That was right, they still have a chance. They must reach the walls before the emperor's words reach the soldier's ears.

Suddenly, an incredibly strong aura seeped out of Leon's skin and the vampires immediately felt that the half-blood was about to become the deadly weapon that he was famed to be. Everyone started to be more wary and focused as their instincts sensed an immense danger.

Evie on the other hand, felt that a ferocious clash was about to commence so she tightened her hold on Leon. She had not seen Leon in a real fight before. But she had a feeling that he was far stronger and way more skilful than any of Gavriel's men.

When the first vampire launched themselves at them, Evie could only gasp at Leon's sudden and fast-as-lightning movement. She felt them spin around in the air and the next thing she knew, there were large patches of blood splattered all over her snow-white cloak. What did he just do?

The sight of the dismembered bodies on the ground made Evie's eyes widen. That did not take any time at all. All it took was just a few seconds. It seemed that her intuition was on the dot. This man was strong. And he was stronger than Samuel!

The other group of vampires who had leapt down from her chambers, attacked them and somehow, Leon still managed to break free from their confinement. However, she did not have the luxury to be amazed or praise Leon's skill as he started to move at an incredibly fast pace again. No, this time, it was much faster. This was the first time Evie travelled at such a rapid pace since Gavriel always made sure to slow down whenever he was carrying her. However, Evie understood that time was of the essence at the moment.

Evie could only hold on to him tighter as she hid her face against the wind that was hitting her and peeked through to look behind them. She could see black figures jumping and following after them. But they were still quite far behind to be able to catch up to them anytime soon. However, that was provided that Leon maintained his current pace. At this rate, there was a very high possibility that they could manage to escape!

Silently, Evie prayed annd hoped for a miracle to happen. She somehow knew that if the army ever caught them, the emperor would most probably execute them both. She had seen the murderous rage in his eyes right before she slashed at his face with her dagger. Lorcan was truly a real cold-blooded monster, and she knew he would not hesitate to punish her and Leon in the most inhumane way if he catches them!

And she was certain Leon was aware of this as well, and that was why he was doing everything he could right now for them to be able to escape.

As they passed through the town, Evie saw the streets where she annd Gavriel roamed around just recently. Dacria was so lively in her mind and the face of Gavriel appeared so vividly in her eyes as she looked down. It was hard to believe that it was only a few days ago.

Now here she was, escaping for her life. It was hard to believe that she just experienced the happiest days of her life not long ago when everything was so peaceful, dreamy, and magical. Why was it that happiness seemed to always end so fast? As if it were just a fleeting dream? Somehow, she had that niggling thought that whenever she experienced a little bit of happiness, there will be the negative side to it. The payment that she needed to compensate for that happiness she had acquired.

As Evie continued staring absentmindedly at the town that was now as quiet as a ghost town, a flash of light caught her attention and her eyes widened.

"Arrows!" she immediately yelled, and Leon cursed again.

He immediately secured Evie and shielded her with his body as it was too late for them to change course.

Evie felt something hit Leon's shoulder. Was he hit by an arrow?

Her heart jumped when she peeked over his shoulder and saw a couple of arrows planted into his broad back.

"Leon… !!!" Evie cried out but Leon continued running as if he was not being targeted to play the hedgehog. Those arrows sticking out of his back did not even seem to slow him down.

"Stop peeking, Princess. I can't afford to let you get hit!" he told her but when Evie saw more and more flares that she knew were arrows being reflected by the sun, Evie swallowed in dread. If Leon were to get hit again…

What should she do?! Do something Evie!!

All of a sudden, Leon halted.

When Evie looked back to the front, she realized they had finally reached the wall. However, to her surprise, the soldiers were already waiting for them at the top of the walls and arrows were pointed menacingly at them. And these arrows were not meant for vampires or humans. One look and Evie knew the purpose of those arrows. These were the kind that were used to shoot down a dragon – not a human or a vampire. Though at that moment, those arrows were being used to aim directly at them.

Chapter 137 - Order

Those massive arrows levelled at them just confirmed the fact that orders had already gone out demanding for their lives. It was a take-no-hostage situation at this point, and Evie realised how dismal their prospects for escape were. At that moment, Evie's already pale complexion became even paler, as if all the blood from her was drained all at once.

Was this the end for the both of them? She felt as though her heart was now in her throat as dread gripped her entire being. The sight of the top walls now swarming with enemy vampires all at attention and more than ready to finish them off at the mere shout of an order from their commanders just made Evie subconsciously tighten her grip on Leon. It seemed there was no way they would be able to escape out of this alive now!

She heard another harsh curse coming from Leon, and she swallowed hard as she nervously glanced around them, surreptitiously checking if there could still be a small opening for escape that they might have missed out earlier due to their panic.

"Damn it all to hell! Are these soldiers so terrified of me or something, that they even end up deciding to use an arrow intended to take down a dragon instead of fighting me straight up?" Leon grumbled as he gritted his teeth.

Somehow, having him not cowering despite their obviously hopeless situation made Evie cheer up somewhat and she managed to squeeze out a little smile. There was no doubt that she was terrified to death, but she was also aware that there was nothing her could fear do to help them out at this moment. Thus, she kept taking in deep steadying breaths to keep the gripping terror at bay and stay as focussed and composed as she could. This she could do as the least of her efforts as she already knew there was nothing else that she could contribute to help Leon in fighting the armies.

"I'm so sorry, Princess," Leon said after a long sigh as he slowly put her down on her feet. As he faced her, Evie knew he purposely did that as he was using his body literally as a shield for her just in the event that the enemy archers decided to fire at them out of the blue.

Evie bit down on her lips so hard it nearly broke her skin and bled at the sound of his apology. "No. Don't you apologize to me, Leon." She said now feeling utterly anxious again. She knew that Gavriel had given him orders to keep her safe in his absence. However, she did not think it was necessary to the extent of giving up his own life. Though he was in service to his lord and master, Evie did not feel comfortable with the concept of having them guard and protect without care for their own well-being. They were individuals with feelings and fears too!

The half-blood smiled at her and for a moment, his blood red eyes that were burning intensely, quietened down, and reverted to their original calm purple. But all too soon, they returned to being flaming red again, as though a pair of purple diamonds were being swallowed by thick dark blood.

"They'll definitely shoot at us immediately the moment I make a single move," he stated before he lowered his head, looking ashamed and defeated. Evie was confused at his defeated look as Leon was definitely one of the strongest vampires she knew if only for the fact that Gavriel had assigned him to guard her. So, what was with the defeated look? After a few moments, Leon explained. "I don't know how to get you out of here anymore, Princess. Please forgive me."

Evie then realised that defeated look on Leon was not for himself, but for her sake! But before Evie could even respond to that, Leon turned around and faced the wall again all the while making sure that Evie was well shielded right behind him.

Seeing the couple of large arrows planted in his broad back, Evie's eyes could only glimmer with unshed tears as she choked back the sobs that were threatening to break free from her throat. But she clamped back hard on it and swallowed it as to not bring more distractions to Leon whose senses were already strained to the maximum in trying to protect the both of them. The least she could do was not break down and cause a disruption in his focus and allow the enemy to make use of it to take the advantage of sneaking in an attack on them. And judging from his stance, it was obvious that he was now prepared to just stand there and use his body to shield her. Because that was the only choice they have right now. They could no longer flee. They could not even run back to the castle to seek refuge.

The sudden sound of a sword falling on the ground echoed loudly in Evie's ears. Leon had dropped his sword and spread out his arms wide in surrender. Evie's eyes widened as her heartbeat sped up, afraid of what that action meant. She had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach and sensed that things are really spiralling out of control real quick.

"You can shoot at me but spare the Princess. I had kidnapped her against her will." Leon shouted out when a bulky man jumped from the wall and landed before him.

He had a wicked smirk on his face as he stared at Leon's sword on the ground. "And why the hell are you trying to kidnap the princess?" the man asked with a raised brow. "Oh wait. It seems that the answer is already obvious. You have already sworn loyalty to that traitor of a prince, have you not?"

The man shook his head when Leon just stared back at him and did not bother to respond. "It seems it was true that half-bloods are helluva strong, but they are also glorified idiots at best. How could you swear loyalty to a prince who don't even have any allies?" The man guffawed as he continued on rambling. "Oh well, it doesn't matter anymore because you're going to die now. And sorry to let you down, but we didn't receive any orders to spare the princess' life. She had done something unforgivable to His Majesty, the emperor, after all."

Leon's eyes widened. It was already a surprise that these soldiers were already perfectly prepared like this as if they had anticipated that they were coming. They even already knew about what the Princess had done to the emperor? But just how did they receive the news? Their pursuers had just caught up to them. So how was it that they seem to already know everything that had occurred?

In his long days of service to the emperor, he knew that there was no other special way for the vampires to send information other than sending the fastest messenger. He was quite certain no one was able to outrun him during the chase a while ago. So why? How come they already knew of the details and how come these soldiers were already on alert like this?

Gritting his teeth, Leon decided that the only explanation was because there was something shady going on behind the scenes.

When Leon saw that the man had stepped back as if to get away from where they were, he narrowed his eyes in suspicion and wondered what was behind that move. After scanning the surroundings quickly, he realised that the man backed away so that the army could finally shoot. He then clenched his fists tight. "Wait! You can't possibly shoot at the princess along with me like this. Have you forgotten that she is the daughter of the dragon guardian?" Leon was grasping at anything and everything that he could think of right now to just stall for whatever little time he could buy. Every extra one second would be a second extra for the princess to live.

"We don't have to care about that. The emperor already sent an order to kill her along with you."

Anger immediately burst forth from Leon's body at what he had heard. "You think that the dragon guardian will forgive any of you when he finds out that you lot harmed her?" Leon threatened and snarled.

"Of course, we will make it look like you were the one who killed her." the man said as he laughed and then he lifted his hand to signal the vampires to get ready to shoot.

Leon immediately turned around to grab Evie and pulled her down to the ground. "Crouch down!" he yelled out as he picked his sword again and towered above her. "I'll protect you until the end." He smiled at her before he pulled her hood to cover her eyes. No! This cannot be happening!

As Evie scrambled in utter fear as she pulled her hood back to look at him, a familiar voice suddenly echoed forcefully, breaking the tension at the battlefield.

"STOP!" the voice roared powerfully, "Or else… this damned emperor of yours is dead!"

Chapter 138 - How?

Suddenly, the world seemed to become eerily silent as everyone looked around to seek for the source of that ominous voice that reeked of nothing but danger and authority. Even more than that, they were curious at who was it that could so easily shout out and threaten them with the life of their emperor itself.

Everyone froze in shock except for Evie who had felt the hideous tension in her body immediately disappear. How? How could it be that he was already back? And the more curious thing was that he did not appear from the walls or the gates… but from the castle?

Evie felt her heartbeat hastened but it was not due to fear and dread this time. She could not believe that she would be hearing his voice again anytime soon even though it did sound quite like death warmed over at that moment. She could not help but release a small chuckle then, owing it to both the strain and stress of the chase as well as the sudden relief that came at the right time.

Slowly, Evie turned around and the moment her eyes fell on Gavriel, she felt as though she had finally seen the saving light after being confined in the deepest of darkness for days. He looked dishevelled and his dark wavy hair was a tussled mess. However, even that could not hide the murderous fury that was coming off him in waves nor the burning intensity in his eyes, as he was more than prepared and happily ready to behead the stinky emperor that he currently held captive in his hands.

No one dared to move a muscle nor make an unnecessary sound right then. Perhaps, the vampires were still stunned to their cores and unable to believe what they were seeing. Or perhaps, it was because Gavriel looked like a beast with eyes screaming bloody murder and look that was ready to slaughter anyone who dared to make one wrong move. However, the clear and undisputed fact was that their emperor was now hanging off his hands like an unfortunate rat hanging off the mouth of the cat. So much for showing off the power and might of the great emperor Lorcan. Leon had a wicked smirk as his body finally relaxed a little.

All creatures at the scene including Evie and Leon had the same question. What had just happened? How did it be that the emperor was already held captive all of a sudden? And where did that Prince Gavriel appear from, seemingly out of nowhere.

"All soldiers drop to your knees and throw down your weapons!" Gavriel roared once again, he had never glanced at Evie, "Make sure they are far enough away from you… Or else I'll behead your beloved emperor right now!"

Most of the imperial army had already left with the crown prince and the human army led by the dragon guardian. However, there were still enough numbers in their ranks to guard the entire city. There were still too many of them to go against just Gavriel and his five men. This could be one of the major reasons why he chose to keep the emperor alive even though it was taking all he had to control himself from slaughtering him now that he was finally at his mercy like this.

When the soldiers remained frozen at their spots, Gavriel pressed his sword against Lorcan's throat until a line of blood appeared on his neck and began to trickle down. "You wouldn't want me to repeat myself another time!" Gavriel snarled threateningly, his dark aura that was screaming of bloodlust spread out so strongly that even the soldiers on the walls felt a violent shiver ran down their spine.

Gavriel felt the emperor's body shivered a little and when Gavriel's sword pressed down even harder, Lorcan burst out like a desperate man, shouting at his soldiers.

"Drop to your knees now!!!" he screamed in fear and as though they were jolted awake, they all fell on their knees. Gavriel's men immediately appeared and began to collect all their weapons.

In no time at all, the unarmed soldiers were gathered on the ground and rounded up into a circle. There were a few Dacrians who appeared as well and though they were not soldiers, they were more than capable to maneuver the arrows. With Zolan's signal, they went to the walls, replacing the imperial army who were once stationed there.

When everything was finally under control, Zolan forced the emperor to drink something from a small bottle and in a matter of seconds, the emperor went limp and fell over. The huge wound on his face did not heal, but instead, it became bluish black, making him look even more awful.

The soldiers on the ground had their eyes bulging out when Lorcan seemed to end up losing consciousness.

"Don't worry, he's not going to die. We still needed him alive." Zolan said upon seeing the soldier's reaction. "Samuel! Put him in the cell." He told Samuel and the huge man unceremoniously haul off the unconscious emperor right away and took him to be thrown into the cell.

"Now what should we do these soldiers?" Zolan then faced Gavriel who was still unable to erase the extremely deadly look on his face.

"Chain them all up. I don't think these men would easily turn their backs on Lorcan." Gavriel ordered grimly.

"Right. We will give them enough time to calm down and think for themselves before you talk some sense to them. Perhaps, we could make them serve you too, like Leon."

As his men and a group of Dacrians who came to their aid began to chain the imperial soldiers up, Gavriel moved from his spot and finally looked over at Evie.

When Evie saw him finally walking towards her, her feet subconsciously moved with the intention of meeting him halfway. However, before she could even take one step, Gavriel appeared right before her. His heavy sword was released from his hand and clattered to the ground with a loud clunk before he seized her in a bear hug. She was whirled around before being crushed against Gavriel's chest.

Chapter 139 - Perfectly Fine

All the stress and tension that Gavriel had been keeping so tightly constrained inside him was released through a violent shudder as he crushed her hard against him with that one hug. Deep groans and curses escaped from his lips as his shaking fingers slid from her back into her glorious silvery locks. His large palm curved over her skull and then dragged her head back before his mouth moved feverishly over her face, planting hot little kisses wherever it landed.

"Damn it all to hell, Evie. Gods," he whispered as he drew in a shaky breath. She could no longer see any sign of that incredible calmness he was exuding just a while ago. He sounded like a total mess right now, before her as he kept her caged tightly in his arms, as though he had just gone through the scariest moment in his life.

"Holy hell." He muttered again and Evie lifted her head to look up at him. Seeing his face still frowning with concern, she then lifted her hands and caressed his face.

"Gavriel." She finally managed to speak. Gavriel froze for a moment as they stared at each other before he closed his eyes and bent his head to rest his forehead on hers while letting out a deep sigh. Evie felt as though he had just deflated like a punctured balloon with the release of that long breath that Gavriel let out. His palm moved to cover the back of her hands that were on his face before he lifted his head and gently bumped his forehead against hers, causing Evie to wince with a start. Evie blinked as she tilted her head up to look into Gavriel's eyes.

"I was so scared. I thought I was… too late…" he whispered in a hoarse voice.

Seeing the dread in his eyes, Evie pulled him to her and hugged him. "You were never late, Gavriel. Remember when you suddenly arrived at the very last second that time in the little forest?" she whispered while caressing his hair gently. Even though Evie had also just gone through such a mind-numbing fear, she could just feel that the fear Gavriel just experienced far surpassed hers by a whole damned lot. "Whenever those times I thought that it was over for me, you always appeared out of nowhere and manage to save me... and always just in the nick of time." She smiled and then planted a kiss on his lips. "I am alright now that you're here."

The tremors in Gavriel's hands slowly calmed down and the couple hugged each other again. Not minding that there were so many curious eyes who were watching their public displays of affection.

When Evie felt Gavriel's body loosened up a little, she pulled away from his embrace and looked into his eyes again. "What happened?" she asked but just as Gavriel opened his mouth to answer her, Evie suddenly took her gaze off him and started looking around. "Wait, where is Leon? Gavriel, Leon is –"

"Don't worry. Zolan is already in the midst of treating his wounds." Gavriel said and Evie's shoulders dropped in relief as she heaved out a big sigh.

"He is going to be okay, right?" she asked him anxiously. Her grip on Gavriel's cloak was tight as her large eyes looked at him with so much worry. "He was hit twice while protecting me. And those arrows… they were so large…"

All of a sudden, Gavriel lifted her into his arms and rested her head on his shoulder. "Don't worry. Leon isn't someone that mere arrows such as those could take down."

Gavriel brought Evie to where Leon was and when she saw that the man indeed was looking quite fine, Evie sighed in relief. In fact, Leon was even quite cheerful in the company of his fellow men.

"I told you, I wouldn't have chosen this man to guard you if he could be so easily taken down by mere arrows." Gavriel said as he looked at Leon. He had put Evie down, but still kept his arm wrapped around her waist protectively, never letting her go.

"Is he alright?" Evie walked forward and asked Zolan, "the arrows don't have any poison on them, right?"

"Actually, they were tipped with poison but there is no need to worry, Princess. Because I have the antidote for it." Zolan smiled and Evie's eyes widened. She was shocked that the arrows indeed had poison coated on it. "As long as it is not a poison as strong as nightmist, then there is nothing for us to worry about. Now all he need is to sleep it off as the side effect of the antidote I gave him will make him dizzy."

Just as Zolan said those words, Leon who was already drowsy, fell asleep.

Zolan then rose and faced the couple. "How about you, princess? You are unharmed, right?" he asked. Evie nodded positively at him.

"I am perfectly fine. All thanks to Leon's protection."

"I see. That's a relief then." Zolan sighed. Relieved that the princess was indeed unharmed since there was no hint of her blood's scent leaking out, it only meant that she was not wounded at all. "Alright, I'll get everyone to gather around now, including the duke and duchess. Also, I'll send someone to fetch you both once everything is ready." He informed Gavriel and the prince nodded.

"Find me in my quarters."

"Yes, Your Highness."

When Zolan was gone, Gavriel did not waste another moment and he gathered Evie into his arms again. He brought her into his quarters inside the wall and as soon the door closed behind them, Gavriel pinned her against the door and kissed her.

Evie gasped in surprise, but she quickly opened up to him and the two of them found themselves tangled in each other's embrace and were kissing hard like it had been years since they had last tasted each other's flavour.

"Gods, I've missed you so much, Evie." He murmured as he dragged his mouth over her face.

"I've missed you too, Gav." Evie replied breathlessly. "What happened?"

Gavriel pulled away a little before fondly caressing her cheek. "I'll explain to you later. For now, I'd like to know if you're truly fine as you have claimed."

"I really am fine!" Evie insisted as Gavriel pushed her forward.

"I'll be the one to decide that." He said, his silver eyes gleaming in the dim room as his fingers moved and swiftly removed her cloak. "After I finish checking every part of your body."

Chapter 140 - So Close

Evie's eyes widened as her face immediately flushed a deep red. The intense glimmer in his bright eyes made her feel that familiar feeling Gavriel always evoke inside of her. It was as though her body was melting like butter on a hot pan before his scorching gaze and she was rendered utterly helpless.

Blushing hard, Evie swallowed and forced herself to look away from his hypnotizing eyes. "I really am fine, Gavriel. If… if I am hurt, you'd immediately know right? I mean, you'd be able to smell my blood immediately if I even have a single scratch on me." Evie realised that she was blabbering due to being slightly embarrassed at the intensity of his seductive gaze on her. When that registered in her mind, she bit down on her lip and blushed even harder. She could even feel the heat radiating from her cheeks.

Even though she wanted them to be with each other like this, Evie just felt like it would not be good for the both of them if this continues. She wanted to hold him and kiss him more and never let go but they have more important things to deal with at the moment. If she allowed him go further and do what she suspects he was planning to do now, she was almost certain there would be no way on earth that she would be able to stop him anymore. Of course, that is provided if things escalated towards something that was more than just checking. However, knowing this god of seduction husband of hers, there was a very high chance that he would do more than just merely checking. More than likely was that checking he mentioned was just a pretext for him to initiate something more once the clothes came off.

"I know," he whispered as he jailed her between his strong arms. His eyes smouldered through the strands of his dark hair, like a pair of moonbeams peeking through the veil of the night. "But wounds aren't the only indication of you getting hurt. I need to be more than a hundred percent sure, my love. Or else, there would be no way I will be able to calm down."

"B-but…" Evie tried to protest weakly before getting cut off.

"Damn Evie…" his expression changed suddenly. His calm and collected facade disappeared in an instant. And then the next second he was resting his head on her shoulder and his voice came out in a harsh agonizing rasp. "I can't believe I came so close to losing you. Had I arrived just a little later… if I was even a second late… you don't know how scared I was… I still am just by thinking about what might have happened if… if…"

"Gavriel." Evie had swiftly caught his face with her hands and looked at him intently before planting soft and gentle kisses all over his face, hoping that by doing this it would calm and sooth him down a little. "I am so sorry I scared you," she whispered, coaxing him with all the love she could muster.

"What if the third time something like this happen to you and I can no longer make it in…" he trailed of snarling. "Heavens… I can't bear it, Evie. I can't…"

Seeing the fear in his bright eyes and feeling the tenseness in his muscles, Evie could not help but to just hug him tight and providing support. She had never seen him this emotionally vulnerable before. And she could not believe that just the very thought of losing her seemed to be his greatest fear. She could not imagine if something bad really end up happening to her… how would he react at that time? Her heart swelled to the point that she felt like it would burst from all the love he was showering her with, yet at the same time it her heart ached for him because she was causing him all this fear so intense that it could even make a man like him tremble.

"I know you would never let anything happen to me." She whispered as she caressed his back with all the gentleness in the world. "Even if something like this would happen again, I know you would definitely arrive in time to save me." She smiled. "You would do everything and anything… even to the extent of giving me the whole world, but nothing can stop you from saving me, right? I will always trust in you, Gavriel. You are my hero after all."

With those words, Gavriel's body finally uncoiled and relaxed as his arms gripped Evie even tighter against him as if he wanted to have her permanently stuck to him so as to be closer than what was physically possible.

He did not bother to speak anymore but just quietly embrace her, fully enjoying the way she felt being cuddled in his arms. But for Evie, it felt as though he was finally coming to terms with his inner demons and his fear was now slowly being thrown away. She smiled again at the feel of his taut muscles slowly relaxing as she continued caressing him. She felt so pleased that she could cause this powerful man to tremble and then calm him down.

Evie had the feeling of wanting to protect this man at all costs as well, even though he seemed to not need her protection at all.

When Gavriel finally pulled away, his expression was no longer looking like a drenched trembling wolf. He was back to his usual cool, calm and composed self. Looking at him, Evie was astonished at how fast he managed to gather himself from that emotionally messed up wreck back to a calmed and controlled. She wondered if he ever showed others the many expressions he had shown her a while ago. Was he always this good in acting all tough and unbreakable?

"But wife… I still want to check every part of your body, or else, I would keep worrying about you actually hiding injuries beneath that thick clothes of yours from me." He said as his hands were already skilfully pulling at the complicated ribbons tied behind her dress and Evie could only hang her mouth open in astonishment. Wait!

 

Chapter 141 - Unknown

The moment Evie felt her bodice loosen up, a soft knock echoed behind the door, causing them both to freeze up and suddenly become motionless.

"Your Highness, everyone's been gathered and are waiting for you now." The voice on the other side of the door called out and Gavriel groaned under his breath.

Evie on the other hand was quick to turn around and had her back facing him. She gathered her long silvery locks to her front and looked back expectantly at him, arching a perfectly formed brow. "Please tie them up again so we can finally go. And make sure they're tied properly." she said as she glanced at the ribbons he had just untied not even a couple minutes ago. Gavriel let out another groan followed by a frustrated sigh before eventually doing what his wife had ordered him to do.

Evie bit her lips in order to hold back her smile. She was glad someone interrupted them just in time because she could not rely on herself to stop him. Though embarrassing, she had to admit to herself that her self-control with him was practically nil. Heaving a sigh, Evie then faced him and grabbed his hand before dragging him out of the room. She knew he was reluctant from the way he dragged his steps – and deep down, so was she – but there were more pressing things that await his decisions. Their fun time will have to wait until important matters were settled and the problems cleared off first.

When they arrived, the discussion had already started and seemed to be going on in full swing.

"What are we going to do with the emperor?" Duke Henry asked Gavriel as soon as the prince took his seat. "I believe this is now the time to execute him. Before his son returns to retrieve him."

Gavriel observed the Duke, looking astonishingly cool and calm. "Did you forget that Caius is still alive? If we kill him, Caius will be crowned emperor immediately since he's the crown prince." Gavriel explained as a matter of fact. The rules of vampire monarchy had been unchanging ever since time immemorial. The emperor would only be replaced once he dies. Once the emperor dies, the crown prince would automatically be crowned an emperor even without conducting the official ceremonies or coronation. So, in order for Gavriel to take back his throne, Lorcan and the crown prince both needed to be killed.

"I am aware of that Your Highness. However, if we kill Lorcan now, we will have one obstacle less to deal with. That would only leave us with the crown prince to deal with next."

"We understand where you're coming from, Your Grace," Zolan was the one who responded this time. "We are certain that the crown prince and the guardian would return here in a few days after they realize that Prince Gavriel is not in the forbidden lands anymore. However, If Caius discovers that the emperor is dead, I am certain he would not return to Dacria anymore. It would be more likely that he would return to the imperial palace as the new emperor. Once that happens, it would be harder for us to end him. This is the easiest and fastest route to take down both of the fake royals. We must not let any one of them return to the capital."

"H-how about we just end him and spread the word that he's still alive?" Duke Henry insisted on his idea, looking anxious. "There is no way for Caius to find out as long as no one here betrays us!"

"Calm down, Your Grace." Zolan placated the duke.

"I cannot. I do trust your judgements and plans, especially His Highness' ability but… I cannot help but worry that something will go wrong right at the critical moment and the emperor end up escaping. We cannot give him even a small chance!"

"Duke." Gavriel's voice echoed through the crowd, firm and commanding, causing everyone to fall quiet. His calm and observant eyes gleamed as he fixed his gaze on the duke. "Tell me, could it be that there is something suspicious you noticed here in Dacria in the past two days that I am gone? And that's why you are like this?"

Duke Henry looked surprised at what the prince said but eventually, he wearily slumped back into his chair and pressed his fingers into his temples. "Yes, my wife and I noticed something strange. It was as though there is something invisible roaming around in the castle. My wife even had accidentally heard it herself that the emperor was talking to someone even he could not see. I don't know what it was, but I have the strange feeling that something unknown and invisible is helping them."

Gavriel's men looked at each other. "Actually, Leon has reported on the same issue, Your Highness." Zolan informed Gavriel. "He told me that something strange happened during their escape. He said that the soldiers were already prepared to stop them as if they already knew that they were coming before Leon and the princess could even leave the castle. Leon is confident that there was not enough time for the soldiers to prepare so far in advance. His conclusion is that it seems as though someone teleported from the castle to the walls to prompt the soldiers immediately."

"I agree with Leon's claim Your Highness. The events happened too fast." The duke added. "I was watching through the windows during the chase. The soldiers were far behind Leon."

Hearing those words, Elias who had been quite quiet all this time remembered that period before the war happened. When he had to check to the hallways outside the princess' room because he felt as though someone was there.

"Uhm… Your Highness…" the butler finally spoke. "I don't know if this is related but I have noticed something similar since before that war started. I always felt as if there were someone just outside the princess' door but whenever I check, I see no one." He reported and Gavriel's forehead creased hard into a frown.

"It seems this needs to be investigated immediately. And the one who could give us an answer would be the emperor or the soldiers who received the orders from the castle." Zolan said as he looked at Gavriel.

Chapter 142 - Presence

"So does this mean an unknown invisible creature is spying on us right now?" Samuel, who was leaning against the door asked, his brows raised.

Everyone went quiet until the duchess answered him.

"I believe whatever this invisible thing is, it isn't here right now. Based on my observations, I find that it is quite obvious whenever that presence was around. Because it's presence is quite strong." Aurora explained.

Elias nodded in agreement. "I support the duchess' claim. I think it could hide its body completely but not its presence. It has been more than three times that I have felt this strong presence. Its presence was so obvious that it was as though someone was standing just outside the princess' door. So, I often peeked out to check but only to find no one there."

"Why have you not said anything about it before?" Gavriel's voice was controlled but the look in his eyes made Elias felt goosebumps. "What if this thing has been after my wife all these times?"

"I… forgive me Your Highness. I was not certain of what I had noticed, and this was the first time I've ever experienced something this strange. I thought it was just... I always hear the humans always talk about ghosts and stuffs. And since some of them actually even believe they really exist, so I thought that maybe, there is a ghost wandering around in Dacria." The butler frantically explained. "I actually tried to observe and investigate but the presence has a tendency of suddenly disappearing when the princess steps out of her chambers. Also, I have never felt its presence inside the princess' room as well. It's like it only stays outside of her door. That was why I thought it was probably just a harmless little ghost wandering about in the hallway. There never were any other disturbances."

Zolan pinched the skin between his brows. Somehow, the talk was getting more and more weird and almost nonsensical. However, they needed to take this very seriously because even Zolan felt that whatever this thing was, smelled like big trouble. He sighed before turning to Evie. "Princess," he looked at Evie and asked. "Have you been feeling anything unusual lately? Or did you feel this presence hovering about or observing you too?"

Evie blinked and she creased her brows before she opened her mouth and spoke. "I do sometimes feel as though someone was just outside my door… especially when Gavriel is not with me. But I always thought it's a vampire that was ordered to be stationed by my door guarding me. So, I never did pay much attention to it."

"During the war with Caius, when you were alone in the castle… did you feel someone by the door all those times too?" Elias asked Evie.

Evie blinked and thought for a while. "I did feel like someone was standing guard by my door. But didn't I have someone guarding me during those times? Especially during the battle?" Evie asked, assuming that it was so.

Elias's eyes widened. "No princess. No one was guarding your door those entire time. All the soldiers were called out to join in the battle. There were still a few guards left, but they were stationed around the castle… not on the inside. I was the only one left to guard you, but I wasn't by your door!"

Evie did not know this but the vampires guarding her were stationed quite far from her door. They usually stand by the far end of the hallway where they could still see the princess' chamber's door. The reason was because of the vampire's strong hearing sense. They needed to stay away to give her privacy. However, even from that distance, the vampires could hear loud noises like screams and loud thuds very clearly.

The room fell silent. Gavriel's face was now getting darker. It was as though a storm cloud had come and decided to live over his head.

Evie tried to recall everything that had happened, and she always thought that someone was guarding by her door every time and would leave in a flash the moment she heads out. "But… if this invisible being was always there, why didn't it do anything to me? There have been many times that opportunity would have presented itself, but it never did do anything, and I don't think I felt any danger." Evie explained thoughtfully.

"Well, this is getting more intriguing and suspicious." Zolan sighed, massaging his temples. "I guess our best choice now is to get the answers from the emperor. However, I need to just confirm one last thing." The man looked at the four people who had already felt this presence before one by one. "Are you certain that right now, no one is spying on us here?"

Evie stared at the door, before she looked at Zolan. "Now that I am paying attention to it, the presence is really very different. I can tell that someone is by the door right now but it's not that presence I always felt in the castle."

Samuel opened the door and Luc craned his head sideways to show himself. The man was by the door to watch in case someone was eavesdropping on this very sensitive topic they were discussing.

Zolan heaved a deep sigh of relief. "Alright. The most important matter right now is that this thing hasn't heard anything from this discussion. We are going to take extra precautions from here on." He said before facing Gavriel. "I'll go immediately and start the interrogation now, Your Highness. We need to find out what this thing actually is as soon as possible."

Gavriel stood from his chair, but Zolan stopped him. "No, Your Highness, leave the emperor to me. I'm afraid you'll kill him accidentally if you get involved in this. Leave this to me. For now, please go and get some rest. I don't think Caius will be here any time soon anyway."

Chapter 143 - Lie Down

"I don't think Caius will be here any time soon anyway." Zolan said confidently and Gavriel, though quite unwilling, could only agree, knowing that he barely stopped himself from killing Lorcan just moments ago. And Zolan was right, Caius and his army were still in the forbidden lands right now and even if the presence of this invisible being is true and Caius had already heard about what had happened here, Caius would still take more than a day to return even if he travelled back at full speed.

The group then headed out and Gavriel immediately went to speak with the Dacrians who were now stationed by the wall. Their arrows now pointed out of the walls.

As Gavriel gave out commands on how to carry out their defense, Zolan approached Evie who was waiting in the watchtower with Elias. He leaned over to Evie and whispered into her ears with a smile. "Princess, please make sure that His Highness do take some rest. He didn't rest for a second since he left you so I'm pretty sure he's really tired out now. I mean, he should be fine despite having no rest but, he was incredibly tensed with worry the entire time. I worry it might have taken quite a toll on him since this is the first time he went through something like this. I mean he had always gone through much deadlier battles, but I think this might be the hardest journey he has gone through yet. He used to be quite reckless but always incredibly calm. However, looking at him in the past two days until just moments ago was the worse sight of him I have ever witnessed so far. He was so worried to the point that he looked as though he was almost drowning. It's like he never really took a breath until he saw you safe. So, all of us would truly appreciate it if you made sure he rests. Even if it was just for a little while, okay?"

Evie felt her heart squeezed at what Zolan reported to her, and she nodded at him. "I will make sure he gets enough rest." She said and Zolan leaned away, smiling.

"Well then, I will be leaving His Highness' care into your capable hands from now. Please don't listen to him if he says he doesn't need any rest. That's all hogwash, and you know it." Zolan winked at her.

"Yes. Thank you for telling me this." Evie flashed a gentle smile before she looked at him with concern. "H-how about you and the others? I'm sure you guys need some rest too."

"We are fine, Your Highness. Do not worry. We are used to this and unlike His Highness, we actually took some rest when we were in the dungeons. Well then, I'm going to excuse myself now to deal with the bloody emperor." He said and after bowing, he leapt away.

Evie then slowly turned her gaze towards Gavriel and her eyes teared up from being overly emotional. He looked so cool as he stood there commanding his people like a king. He looked like he had no weakness at all, as if nothing could ever make him fall.

"Where are you looking at? Huh? My wife?" suddenly, the king from afar was suddenly right before her and his expression was already starting to be filled with mischief.

Evie stared at his glorious face, and she nearly tiptoed to kiss him. Instead, she quickly grabbed Gavriel's hand and dragged him towards the stairs. "Follow me." She said in a firm voice that cause Gavriel's brow to rise in surprise. His wife had such a commanding side to her, and it totally intrigued him to no end.

His lips curved up into a smirk when he realized she was dragging him back to their quarters. He did not bother to speak but he was biting his lips to hide his smirk from her.

When Evie closed the door behind him and started removing his cloak, Gavriel just froze on the spot with his eyes gleaming in excitement. He was anticipating to see what his little wife would do.

Once she helped him removed his jacket, he went on to kick off his own boots. Evie then proceeded to pull him into bed.

Gavriel almost pushed her and pinned her down as he could no longer contain his excitement. Who would have thought that this little wife of his would actually initiate their fun time like this? She was truly surprising him big time right then! Since when had she grown so bold? But whenever it happened, he was loving it!

Evie let go of his hand and faced him with serious looking eyes. "Lie down," she said and Gavriel raised a brow again. He bit down on his lower lip and released it very slowly. "Now, Gavriel." She added, this time firmer with a cute frown between her brows and Gavriel could only obey. Damn, this was getting so interesting and exciting. He thought. And she was so cute!

He laid down on the bed, looking at her in utter anticipation. His heartbeat was already racing and struggled not to pull at her so she would fall on top of him. He could barely wait!

When Evie climbed onto the bed as well, Gavriel swallowed hard. What will she do? Could it be that she is going to…

Gavriel's body started to get hot. Evie gazed down into his eyes and Gavriel nearly choked on his own breath when she slowly held his head up.

Gavriel anticipated a kiss but to his stunned surprise, that long awaited kiss did not come and the next thing he knew, his head was cradled in her lap. He blinked as though he was lost for a moment. Wait. What had just happened?

He looked up at her with a curious gaze when Evie started to run her fingers delicately through his hair and smiled down so gently at him. The feeling of her warm fingers and that breath taking look in her eyes as she gazed down at him made him forget that he needed to breathe.

"Sleep now, my love." She whispered as she planted a kiss on his forehead, causing his eyes to widen.

Chapter 144 - Quickest Way

What just happened?! Did he hear it correctly? It seemed as if his wife had just told him to sleep. Did those words actually come out of her beautiful mouth? Gavriel was a little confused in his mind and held himself quiet and still for a while before he caught Evie's hand that was caressing his hair. He tried to school the look on his face as to not look so disappointed as he stared up at her.

"Wife," he called out gently as his eyes narrowed, "could it be that a certain blabbermouth had come by, telling you that I had been worked out and am tired to death?"

His question made her beautiful eyes widened in shock before she blinked and took his hand off hers and gently placed it on top of his abdomen. "Yes, my love. But even if the blabbermouth didn't say anything, I'd still be insisting that you should take your rest." She stated firmly as she resumed her careful ministrations on his hair.

"Evie, look at me. Do I look tired to you? At all??" he raised his brow and then lifted his hand to touch her face. "I am finally here and seeing you again, but now you wanted me to sleep?" his whispered in a low voice as he continued caressing her cheek. The look in his eyes even changed and he gave her that smouldering, irresistible look. "Could you at least give me something I needed first before putting me to bed?" he then wriggled his eyebrows mischievously at her.

His words were inviting and the way he stared up at her sent an electrifying current that had zapped all around her nerves and was now tickling her inside. God help me… Evie could only mentally roll her eyes and whisper inside her mind.

She opened her mouth and nearly gave in but somehow, she managed to hold her ground. It was because she was still worried. And maybe, she was a little paranoid as well. What if something suddenly happens again? This question was stuck in her mind, and she could not help but feel scared.

Because everything still seemed too good to be true. It was only a few days ago when they got separated, and it had not been even a week yet. Yet now he was suddenly here with her. And it even looked as though he had infiltrated the castle and rescued her so easily. He had even captured emperor Lorcan and took back the city again. Everything happened so quickly and smoothly as if it was all so easy to be accomplished.

Evie grew up hearing stories about wars and strategies. She knew how hard it was to recapture a city. It would have taken so much bloodshed. Even the initial plans they had involved sacrificing some of their own people's lives to succeed to their end goal. Of course, thanks to Evie's plans they could abandon the idea of sacrificing lives and thus came up with the current plans. But Gavriel executed his own plans so quickly and flawlessly, that it was baffling to even think of how he accomplished it.

Though this was something that should be celebrated, Evie felt as though she was afraid to let down her guard or be happy with him again even in this short moment they had together. She was afraid that if she allowed herself to be happy and loosen her guard even for a moment, something bad will happen again and she dreaded that. Especially right now when they are still in a tensed situation. The least that she could do was to make sure that her husband was in his best shape before another round of trouble comes barging at their door.

"My love, are you okay?" his deep voice pulled her attention back to him and before she could form any response, Gavriel let out a deep sigh. "I'm going to kill this blabbermouth for making you worry unnecessarily like this." He hissed.

"Oh no… please don't! You needed this blabbermouth more than I –"

"What did you just say?"

"I… I meant that these are critical times. So, you can't afford to lose him –"

Suddenly, Gavriel's large hand cupped the back of her head and pulled her closer to his face. "Listen," his face became incredibly severe, "it's you I needed the most. More so during these tough times. Do you understand, Evie?"

The hardness in his voice made Evie swallow hard. But she nodded and Gavriel let go of her and slumped his head back into her lap with a soft groan. He closed his eyes and then sighed again. When he opened his eyes, he was calm again.

"I know you're worried about me, and you have no idea how happy I am that you are prioritising me this way. But my love, putting me to bed is not really the right choice right now." He said and Evie blinked. "You know why? Because I'm still full of vigour right now and I don't think I could even sleep. I would stay awake like this and just end up staring at you and feel the warmth of your fingers combing through my hair. I wouldn't want to sleep and miss out on this moment with you. This is the first time you have allowed me to rest my head on your lap and you expect me to sleep? What I am trying to tell you, my love is…" he paused, and his throat worked, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down and Evie did not even know why she swallowed hard too. "If you really want me to sleep, this is definitely not the right way. What you should do is let me use up all the vigour I have left until I end up collapsing on you in exhaustion and fall asleep in bliss."

Without averting his gaze from hers, Gavriel slowly reached out for her hand before kissed her fingers one at a time. His eyes smouldered through his dark lashes and continued in a hoarse seductive voice. "That, my love, is the best and quickest way to put me to bed. No, that's actually the only way to put me to sleep right now." Gavriel drawled out as he flashed his deadly attractive smile at Evie.

Chapter 145 - I Would Never

That smile!! Evie really felt that she had zero tolerance for it. The moment he flashed it at her, her brain just turns off and all logic and reason fly out the window. Now, looking at him smiling at her, the heat he caused was too much that Evie felt like her face was now being scorched and smoking hot. Was her husband always this shameless before? God help her… because there was just no way she could even resist him now when he was like this!

However...

"Of course, if my wife is not in the mood, and if this will put you at ease, I would rather just close my eyes and try my best." He said in mock surrender when Evie could not respond for a long while.

Evie could only face palm herself. The audacity of this man! She gazed down at him as she nibbled the inside of her lips. Seriously? He is finally going to give up now after saying all that heart moving and spine-tingling words to her? She arched an eyebrow and pursed her lips as she looked at her husband who was pretending to be all docile and meek.

The next moment, Evie moved, and she found herself straddled on top of him. Gavriel propped his upper body on his elbows, mouth slightly agape and looking at her in surprise. She then lunged at him and hugged him tight.

"I'm sorry," she muttered into the muscular chest her face was buried in, "you are right. I am just too worried. I was afraid something bad will happen if we… if we…" she struggled to continue her line, "what would I do if we… we do it... and then something happens and you're too tired out to even go and…"

To Evie's surprise, she felt Gavriel's body start to tremble. She pulled away, worried for his health… just to see that infernal man trying his very best to stop himself from bursting out in laughter. However, the next second, he exploded in loud raucous mirth.

"W-why are you laughing?" she pouted her lips and Gavriel quickly cupped her face with both his hands and gave her a couple of pecks on her pouty lips. As Evie huffed, Gavriel gently bumped his forehead against hers, still chuckling to himself.

"Because my wife is being so goddamned adorable right now." He said still smiling wide and then he let his back crash back into the mattress as he pulled her down in his embrace on top of him. "Alright my love, you have beaten me up well and good this time. I will yield to your demands and sleep now, but you will need to sleep with me… wait, I mean literally sleep with me. I know I will be able to fall asleep if we do this."

He then rolled over to the side and landed her next to him. When they were facing each other, with their arms wrapped around each other, Gavriel kissed her forehead before his gaze became serious. "I understand your fear my love. But know that I would never risk your safety over my primal desires. Even though I can't deny that I am madly…" for some reason, he did not finish his sentence and just flushed a little before he cleared his throat, "just know that I wouldn't be so stupid to be intimate with you if we were to be engaged in dangerous situations right after that. Understand?"

Evie pressed her lips tight, and she snuggled into his embrace, fully reassured. "I'm sorry." She whispered and he caressed her hair.

"It's not your fault. You are worried and scared and yet your husband is being damned…" he sighed, not finishing his line again, "Gods… I'm worried you'd get sick of me one day for constantly jumping all over you like this like a big bad wolf who is always hungry."

"I would never!" Evie exclaimed in a loud voice as she pulled away, causing Gavriel to blink. "H-how could I ever get sick of you? I am actually the who's worried about that! And I never hated it when you're all over me and wanting me. In fact, it makes me feel happy and I always love it when you…" Evie's voice tapered off when she realised what she was saying, and she flushed again. Gods! What was wrong with her brain? She then closed her eyes tightly in embarrassment.

Gavriel's lips curved up, his face beaming like the sun, looking so goddamned pleased. But then, he suddenly cursed under his breath before he was suddenly on top of her and staring down into her eyes. "I was trying so hard to listen to you and go to sleep but look what you did to me. I think that deep down, you might not truly want me to sleep. You actually want me to make love to you, right, Evie?"

The heat between them suddenly seemed to ignite. Oh no…

She averted her gaze away. "I… I…" she stammered, "I want you, too… I admit it… but…" she met his gaze and continued, "your health and wellbeing are my top priority at the moment, my primal desire is only secondary." Evie explained after letting out a gentle breath, eyes soft and tender as she looked at him.

Gavriel blinked, speechless. Did she just used his own words against him? A long sigh escaped his lips and he lazily fell back into bed again, chuckling softly. His little wife is getting better at bantering with him.

"Alright, alright… I give up. Did my seduction effectivity lessened without me realizing? I guess I really need a nap it seems," he mumbled as he shook his head. He then pulled her close to him and shut his eyes. He had positioned himself lower so he could lean his head on Evie's chest and placed her hands on his head. Gavriel nudged his head into her hands, indicating that he wanted her to continue stroking his hair the way she did earlier. Evie smiled and thought how he was behaving like a big, pampered kid.

As Evie started to caress his hair, Gavriel spoke in a low, lazy voice. "I'll sleep now… but prepare yourself once I wake up, wife. Because this big bad wolf will definitely ravage you like never be…" his voice had slowly tapered off and suddenly stopped. And just like that, the big bad wolf fell asleep.

 

Chapter 146 - Hard

It was already dark when Gavriel's eyes finally slitted open. However, he did not move a muscle and was not in a rush to get up from bed. Because after opening his eyes, his senses told him that there was a little warm and soft creature peacefully sleeping in his arms. He breathed in deeply and relished the warm weight he held.

He smiled and kissed her hair gently. The sight of her peaceful face had warmed his entire being and he could not help but feel incredibly satisfied and contented just by waking up this way with her in his arms. He could really get used to this. The thought of waking every day with her beside him warmed someplace cold and frozen, deep within him just made it all the more precious.

For a long while, he stayed there, unmoving, until Evie finally shifted and snuggled even closer towards him. And then, accidentally, her bent knee brushed against his groin. Gavriel had an immediate reaction from that sweet and innocent touch. He caught his lips between his perfect white teeth and bit back the groan that almost escaped his mouth.

Still, he did not move for another long while until he suddenly rolled away and lay on his back, panting as though he had just run a marathon. A long and deep sigh escape his mouth and he rose and leaned his back against the headboard. After glancing at Evie once again, he run his fingers through his hair and climbed off the bed.

He walked around the bed and stood on her side, staring down at her peaceful face, still happily asleep in her dreamland. Sighing again, Gavriel leaned down and tucked the blanket up to her neck, making sure she did not catch a chill. Then he kissed her cheek and whispered. "This considerate husband of yours will give you a little more time to sleep, my love."

Once he pulled away, Gavriel lit up the fire in the hearth, and the dark room lit up in a warm, reddish golden glow before heading out.

When he returned, he was wearing a robe and his hair was damp. He had gone to take a bath and he had really dawdled in the bath just so he would delay himself and tried extending the time as long as possible from returning to the room where Evie was sleeping. However …

To his disappointment, Evie was still contentedly sleeping when he returned. He sighed again as he sat on the chair by the fire, staring mutely at her sleeping form. However, the man was growing impatient as time ticked by. He began to pace up and down the room and even created some subtle sounds in the hopes of 'accidentally' waking Evie up. His brows creased in a furrow before he approached the bed and bent over her.

"Wife…" he whispered, letting his breath fan across her face, "it's late. It's time for you to wake up now. Cause this big bad wolf is now dying of hunger."

He waited for a response, but Evie remained motionless. Not giving a single sign that she was going to wake up soon.

Dropping his head, Gavriel sat at the edge of the bed. Was his wife always such a sleeping log before? He could not believe this little wife of his was torturing him like this to no end. And she was even doing this unknowingly while she was asleep! Oh, for the love of god!

When he felt her shifting in her sleep, Gavriel's face lit up. However, to his dismay, Evie did not open her eyes. God help him… because he could not take it anymore.

"Very well, my wife…" he muttered to himself as he stood decisively. He removed his robe slowly as he looked down at her and let his robe fall to the floor. "This big bad wolf shall wake you up in a way you will never forget." His gaze glimmered and he quietly climbed onto the bed with a mischievous and thrilled smile on his face.

Completely naked, Gavriel loomed over Evie as he started planting kisses all over her throat in the gentlest and softest way possible. At that moment, he was like a naked pagan god who had fallen in love with a sacrificial maiden and was now worshipping every single inch of her.

He began to whisper endearments as he continued trailing kisses further down. His fingers carefully and slowly peeled off her clothes as if he had all the time in the world. When her skin was finally bared before his hungry eyes, he swallowed. Hard.

The golden light coming from the fire in the hearth kissed her skin and she looked incredibly breath-taking. His eyes worshipped her beauty and he struggled to keep himself in check to not pounce on her and just swallow her whole. Thankfully, this time Gavriel managed to easily tame his raging desire and hunger. He would take his time and enjoy this moment. He wanted to know how long would he take to wake her up.

Gavriel's mouth returned to her throat before his tongue trailed down her collarbones to her breasts. He licked her nipples until they hardened. Still Evie had yet to wake up. But that did not discourage Gavriel, instead, he smiled even more in anticipation. This was really going to get good. He parted his lips and brushed his tongue over her buds, flicking then licking them again and again until they were wet and a moan finally escaped Evie's mouth.

"Hmm…" she moaned, and both her hands flew to his head, fingers entangled in his thick ebony locks. Without letting go of her nipple, Gavriel lifted his gaze, thinking that his wife was finally awake. To his surprise, his little mischievous wife was still asleep. However, her body was honest in its response to him, and he could only grin wider.

A wicked gleam flashed in his eyes and the big bad wolf began to stroke and suck her buds. His tongue danced in a swift yet clever rhythm. She moaned again but still did not wake up. But the moment Gavriel gently tugged her nipple, Evie gasped, and her eyes flew open.

Confusion and desire reeled her mind as she struggled to make sense of what was happening as she awoke. W-what's…

Evie took a while to register what was happening. Her eyes were wide as she looked down at the dark mop of hair hovering over her breasts and… oh my…!

He glanced up at her and his intense eyes made her catch her breath. With a cool and devious smile touching the corner of his lips, he let go of her nipple with a pop and playfully pinched her chin.

"I didn't know you were this hard to wake, my love." He said in a husky and sensuous voice.

Chapter 147 - This Way

As Evie became more alert waking up, she realised she felt the slightly cooler air waft across her bare skin refreshingly, helping her to clear the vestiges of cobwebs from her brain. Then Evie's lips suddenly parted in shocked surprise the moment she realized she was already naked. Her face became red and her first reaction was to roll away and bury her face into the pillow, and hopefully perhaps bury her body under the covers as well. However, as luck would have had it, Gavriel had too firm a hold on her. Thus, preventing her from moving much anywhere other than a couple inches to her left or right.

Gavriel stilled for a moment but when he realized that she was just embarrassed, Gavriel loomed over her and his mouth moved towards the back of her ear. "Why still so shy my love?" he whispered in a husky voice. He barely held back the chuckle that was threatening to rumble out of his chest. This lovely wife of his was surely an entertaining little thing.

Evie made an adorable whimper and she turned her head to look back at him. "Y-you surprised me…" Evie's voice died down. That was because the face she saw the moment she turned to look back was not his usual mischievous and wickedly seductive face. What she was staring at was a face that was dark and cold as ice, and it gave her the shudders.

The warm temperature suddenly seemed to became incredibly chilly. What could have caused the sudden change?

Curious and a little alarmed, Evie was about to rise when Gavriel's cold voice echoed. "Who did this?" he asked and Evie could hear the rising anger in his voice. No, his anger was already over the top. His bright eyes were already filled with rage.

Blinking, Evie slowly sat up and faced him. Her long hair had draped over to covered her breasts. "W-what are you –"

"You said you weren't hurt, Evie!" his voice became loud and there was a tone of censure in it. Evie finally realize what he had seen.

"Tell me. Who did this? Is it Lorcan?" he hissed, his jaws and muscles working because of his anger. "I'll kill him!" he declared in rage and he turned to climb off the bed when Evie quickly hugged him from behind, stopping him immediately.

"Gavriel, this is just a small bruise. It's just a very minor injury. My skin easily gets hurt and that's why I always get bruises even if the impact isn't actually that hard." Evie rushed to give her explanation, hoping to diffuse his anger.

Gavriel inhaled deeply. "Evie…" he called her name in a firm and controlled voice. If she was the old Evie, she would be flinching by now. But she was not the old Evie anymore. "I don't care if it's just a bruise I –"

"Trust me, this is only very minor. I got this by bumping against the door right before Leon and I escaped." Evie explained, persistently tightening her grip around his waist. She did not want him to run off on a crusade because for some minor reason, and might end up really killing the emperor. She would not want him to act out in anger. And besides, she was truly fine. Her bruise was nothing serious at all. "Don't worry okay? This will definitely disappear on its own in a couple of days. I promise, it's not really a big deal. I was such a clumsy idiot and -"

"You are never an idiot!" his voicr hardened and Evie nearly smiled, seeing that he hated that she had called herself an idiot.

"I always fall and got bruises for no reason at all back home too, you know? That's why this is really nothing to me." Evie tried her best to coax him and when her words did not seem to be working this time, Evie's mouth suddenly landed on his spine.

Gavriel stiffened as if a deadly electricity just ran down his spine. She continued trailing kisses upwards until she reached the back of his neck. He was so shocked at what his wife was doing that he had even forgotten to breathe.

"Are you going to leave? I thought…" she whispered in his ear, letting her warm breath touch the sensitive parts, "y-you told me to prepare myself the moment you wake up." Evie knew that if she used this method, it would be a sure fire way to distract him from whatever he was focussed on at the moment. And she was a hundred percent on the money.

A helpless groan left Gavriel's throat and then he cursed up a colourful storm.

"F*ck Evie!" he turned and the next moment Evie was on his lap and he was on her, attacking her mouth as though there were no tomorrows.

Without any hesitation, Evie kissed him back, as wild as he gave. Then she opened her mouth, welcoming his warm and slick tongue as her fingers tugged hard at his dark hair, pulling him towards her. Her intensity surprised him – but it was a happy and thrilled kind of surprise. When Gavriel tried to pull his tongue out of her mouth, Evie drew it back into her mouth with an awkward suction movement.

A low and deep sound of surprise vibrated in Gavriel's throat. And what she did was the last strike that took down all other thoughts and emotions that was holding him back. All that was left now was her, his inexplicable desire for her and his love for her. Nothing else. His world was now just concentrated on them.

After the blazing kiss, Gavriel laid on the bed again. He turned Evie so she would be facing away from him. Then he started trailing kisses down her back. His lips lightly kissing the bruise on her back, as if trying to kiss away every little pain.

Moments later, they lay spooned together with Evie's hips tucked against him. Gavriel wrapped his arms around her as if he were protecting her.

He reached down and caressed her legs in a soothing manner all the while kissing her back. When he parted her thighs, Evie's eyes widened as she felt the pressure of the head of his sex against her entrance.

"Your back is bruised, love… so let me love you this way, okay?" he whispered.

Chapter 148 - Forever

"I want to make love to you like this, Evie." He whispered as he smoothed her hair then moved them away to her side. When her ear and throat were exposed, Gavriel's mouth licked and sucked the exposed skin.

Evie moaned in pleasure, not only because of the kiss and the gentle yet skilful ministrations of his fingers that were kneading her breast but also because he was teasing her down there with the head of his hard shaft.

Her mind and body were already on fire. And despite the strange position, Evie could not even protest. She was already so wet and her desire for him had already taken over her body, mind, and heart. Fully.

"Please say 'yes' love…" he continued whispering, as he teased her, rubbing his rock hard length against her already dripping wet folds.

An adorable moan escaped her throat and she nodded. Her eyes were fluttering in pure bliss.

She felt him smile against her throat and she braced herself for the upcoming penetration. But it did not come even after waiting. Instead, Gavriel continued his teasing. After a few more moments, Evie felt as though she would explode in frustration.

"G-gav… please…" the words stuttered and came tumbling out on their own and Gavriel, ever being the big bad wolf in their relationship, finally slid his length inside her warm inviting sheath. Evie waited for the fullness and the feeling of having all of him inside her but to her dismay, Gavriel barely penetrated her before he withdrew again.

"Please Gav…" she pleaded again and with a wicked smile on his face, Gavriel gently bite her earlobe and whispered in an erotic voice.

"What do you want me to do to you, my love?" he asked as her hips began to press back against him.

Gavriel was so pleased in seeing his wife's response to him. It was as if she could not wait for him to take her. And he was so damned happy. When she began to rock against him while uttering the words 'I want you, now', the bliss and pleasure in Gavriel's heart nearly burst out in utter happiness. He had sometimes thought and worried that his sex drive and desires were just too much for his wife to handle and that he should always hold back a lot for her sake. Sometimes he finds himself feeling sorry and a little guilty towards Evie after their lovemaking sessions. He knows he gets a little wild and overly enthusiastic and Evie is only human. Thus, it always lingers at the back of his mind if she would be able to take the vigorousness. But now that he was seeing her like this, where she too, was so hungry for him as how he was for her, Gavriel was even more ecstatic than ever.

"Take me now, Gavriel. Please." Evie continued, moving even faster like she was determined and more than eager to have him inside her. And Gavriel found that he could no longer hold back for even a second longer. He had far reached his limit of holding back to make sure she really wanted him to make love to her this way. He took another second and looked at her to make the final confirmation that she truly wanted this and was not just humouring him. Seeing what he needed in her eyes, he nodded to himself.

He pulled her legs and spread it wider before he slid himself inside her in one smooth motion. The delicious intrusion earned him a gasp and then groans from her.

Gavriel also groaned low in pleasure as he immediately started up a solid rhythm as he thrusted deep inside her. Endearments came rolling out like hypnotic music from his lips as his fingers moved downwards to where they were both connected.

When he started stroking her bud, all the while keeping up his thrusting in that steady and delicious rhythm, Evie's moans grew in volume. She clenched her inner muscles down tight and it was Gavriel's turn to groan in utter pleasure.

His endearments turned into love curses as his rhythm increased its pace. Faster, deeper, harder. Until they both reached the very peak of their emotions and lust so powerful everything just disappeared into complete nothingness. And with that one last and vigorous thrust, they both shuddered as they reached and crested the peak together. Gavriel again spent himself totally inside her in a series of powerful spurts while Evie convulsed so hard the bed began to shake.

Gavriel took a long while to return back to reality. Still buried inside her, he lovingly lifted her head and kissed her long and deep on the mouth. He was never going to get over her. The way she tasted, the way her insides clamped down around him, the burning heat of her body against him, the way she made his heartbeat race into a frenzy, and the way she just made him so crazy for her in everything that she does… Gavriel knew for sure that he was already a lost cause. He would not be able to survive without her now. He just knew it. He was spellbound, completely, and he never wanted to be freed. Forever.

…

After making love with her for another round, Gavriel was finally sated. Evie fell asleep again, so the prince lovingly cleaned her up before he began dressing her. His face was contented and happy doing this simple task of caring for his wife. He loved it in fact. His face says it all.

However, when he saw the bruise again, his face darkened.

By the time Evie was all cozy and sleeping in bliss on the bed, Gavriel kissed her forehead and silently stepped out of the room.

He asked for not just one but two of his personal men, Luc and Levy, to guard Evie's door.

"Stay alert and if you notice anything suspicipus, immediately secure the princess and come to me." He ordered and the duo nodded.

The moment he left their quarters, Gavriel's eyes turned a vivid bloody red, then the bluish flame took over as he flashed over to Lorcan's cell.

Chapter 149 - Single

When Evie opened her eyes, she was hungry. She called for supper and dug into it with gusto. After polishing off all of her supper – which was surprising – she immediately looked for Gavriel. When Luc and Levy informed her that he was with Zolan and was currently dealing with the emperor's interrogation, Evie asked the men to bring her to Leon instead. She wanted to visit the man who had protected her with his own life.

To her relief, Leon was doing amazingly well. He was already fully healed and was now back to his maximum vigour. She found that though he was of a big built, tall, and definitely strong, he still gave her the feeling of being adorable and a comfortable person to be around.

"I'm so glad you're alright, Leon." Evie told him, smiling happily. "If you weren't there for me all those times when we were facing the opposition, I don't know if…" Evie trailed off and looked up to the sky.

"You did extremely well in protecting yourself too, Princess. I had never expected that you would actually work up the guts to slash at the emperor's face." Leon chuckled mirthfully and sounded as if he were proud of her, and Evie chuckled along with him as well. Recalling that moment when Lorcan had launched himself at her, Evie was already gripping her dagger tightly within her sleeves. It was only because Lorcan was too focused on nothing else but her neck that he failed to notice her obvious stance and suspicious behaviour. Perhaps, he was too hungry or perhaps, he noticed but he did not expect that this frail and little human being would be able to ever come close enough to harm him nor did he suspect her dagger was poisoned.

But what happened in that moment made Evie realized how helpless she was. If she was unlucky and Leon was not there, there would be no way on earth that she could have escaped Lorcan's grasp. The thought scared her and still brought shivers running up and down her skin. And out of the blue…

"Leon, do you know a way for a human like me to become stronger?" she asked. Leon blinked and looked at her with surprise.

"You are already strong, Princess –" Leon replied slowly, apprehensive, and not quite knowing where she was headed with this.

"I'm not." She cut him off. "I want to be strong enough to at least save myself. I hate always being the damsel in distress." Evie explained while she stared at the floor, feeling a little upset at her helplessness.

"But I don't mind you being a damsel in distress my love." Gavriel's voice suddenly echoed, and Evie's head snapped behind her. "My damsel in distress." And he playfully winked at Evie, hoping to dispel the negative emotions he spied lurking in the depths of her eyes.

Gavriel was leaning against a wall in a cool and casual manner. After she looked at him, he pushed himself from the wall and approached her.

Smiling, Gavriel bent forward and tucked her hair behind her ear. "You know why?" he continued as his gaze gleamed with so much love as he stared into her amber eyes. "Because I love being your knight in shining armour." His irresistible mouth curved up and Evie blushed hard.

How could this husband of hers be so good in every single thing? He is just too good in everything he does, even in bed and now with his words too. How could she even stand her ground before such a man? She sometimes wondered if she was worthy to stand beside such a magnificent specimen of the male species.

"I understand your wish to become stronger… but," the mischief in his eyes slowly faded and his gaze became serious yet gentle, "please know that you are already strong enough, my love. You're a strong woman, Evie… you are stronger than what you give yourself credit for."

Speechless, Evie could only stare at him. His words were like a magic spell chanted, entering into the deepest chambers of her mind, heart, and soul.

After a long silence, Gavriel smiled again and he suddenly pinched her cheek, surprising Evie. "Besides, wife," he started, now mischievously, "If you grow even stronger to the point that you don't even need any rescuing anymore, what will happen to this little poor knight in shining armour?"

Evie raised her brows this time and looked up at him confidently. "You don't need to worry about my knight in shining armour because he is destined to become king. He'll become the most powerful and absolute king."

While the words that left Evie's mouth rendered Gavriel speechless as he stood still before his wife, the men who were already gathered around them were glancing at each other for a while now.

They had followed Gavriel to discuss about something pertaining to the war, yet here they were… did the prince just called them over so he could turn them into his personal audience to watch his romantic play with his wife? Good lord… they couldnt believe he was romancing his wife and flaunting it in front of their eyes? They did not know if they should laugh or cry. My dear prince… please would you be so kind to consider us single males who are very much healthy and normal and would also long for female companionship? Was their prince trying to kill them with frustration?

"I think we should leave now," Levy said through their secret conversation, rolling his eyes at the rest.

"Agree." Reed replied dryly, "I am absolutely not going to just stand here and watch this drama. I'm already dying with envy right now. Can I go to the brothel for a while, Zolan?"

"You can't, idiot." Samuel glared at Reed. "I know for sure that your 'a while' is equivalent to half a night. We are not in the position to indulge ourselves in fleshly pleasures right now."

"Yes boss, apologies." Reed could only sigh, not wanting to anger their big and brute leader. "That was just a joke. And just for the record, this is His Highness' fault you know? Come on… aren't you guys feeling any envy at all while watching this scene? Don't you guys also wish to have someone to be intimate with so romantically like this? Look…" Reed's voice slowly died down because of the deadpan expression of his comrades.

"Bloody hell," he sighed as his shoulders drooped, "I honestly pity all of you for not appreciating romance because you guys have been single for the rest of your lives… tsk… tsk…"

Chapter 150 - Tale

Finally, after realizing that Gavriel's men were watching her and Gavriel, Evie hid her blushing face from Gavriel. She realised belatedly that their conversation could be perceived as flirting and even showing off in front of his men!

"Your men are here, Gav." She said and the statue woke up.

Gavriel looked behind him and he cleared his throat. He had totally forgotten about them or the agreement they had to meet up to discuss on certain matters. He cleared his throat again before speaking, "Alright, now that everyone is here…" Gavriel started as if nothing happened. His hand slipped casually to the small of Evie's back before curling it possessively around her dainty waist.

He then proceeded to command each one of them, giving them tasks they needed to do to fortify the city's defence. When the men bowed at him and then left, Gavriel looked down at Evie by his side. "What do you want to do tonight, love?" he asked, his voice gentle and warm which was vastly different from the firm, commanding and no-nonsense one he used with his men.

"How about you? How did it go with the emperor?" Evie asked him back and Gavriel's face became a little serious. There was a cold and hard look in his eyes for a moment before he suddenly swooped her up and took her to the top of the watchtower.

When they arrived, there was no one else. He made her sit at the edge of the parapet as he hugged her from behind, making absolutely sure she was secure in his arms and in no danger of falling. Evie's feet dangled in the air as she faced the starry night sky. The stars were shining bright, and the cool breeze was blowing gently through their hair. As Evie watched the scenery before her, she held onto Gavriel's arms around her waist and when Gavriel leaned his chin on her shoulder, she reached out for his dark hair and caressed them softly. If there were anyone else watching, they would say that the scenery of his dark hair tousled by the wind and her silvery locks flying gently and sometimes intertwining with the dark ones of her companion, was more mesmerising than the scenery around them.

At that moment, the world seemed so quiet, so beautiful, and peaceful. It was as if the world was suddenly perfect. But she knew it was not. And she feared this quiet calm that felt too good to be true. She knew the future was uncertain. She wondered what will happen tomorrow and she dreaded that what if after this calm, a devastating storm fall would upon them again.

As she continued caressing Gavriel's hair in silence, a shooting star appeared, and she closed her eyes and made a wish. She wished that whatever happens in the future, the two of them will not be forced to leave each other ever again. She wished that no matter how strong this storm would be, nothing would ever separate them again. That their bonds of love for one another would be strong enough to weather the storms that come their way.

"What are you thinking?" his soft whisper echoed beside her ear. Evie's hand on his hair paused for a moment in her stroking before she tilted her head a little and looked at him.

"I was wondering how you suddenly arrived to save me." She said, her brows creased a little with curiosity. "Could it be that you actually never left?" Evie was still thinking over this point as she remembered Gavriel appearing from behind them rather than from the front.

"I did leave, love."

"Let me guess… you actually ended up hiding in the dungeons."

Gavriel chuckled a little.

"Oh, I forgot…" Evie sighed, "Zolan did mention that you and your men really did leave and were even in the forbidden lands."

"Yes. We needed to mark out our trail so the enemy will know that we really left and also tracks that they would be able to follow." Gavriel explained. "It's a part of our plan. We need to leave our trails in the forbidden land as well to confuse them since we know that Lorcan would definitely send the dragon guardian to go after us. Our plan was to make them search for us there, hence delaying their return so we can prepare and plan properly for the war. But…" he paused for a moment, "this invisible thing ruined the plan and right now, Caius must already be on his way back here now."

"Did the emperor spilled everything out about it? Do you now know what is that invisible thing?"

"Yes." Gavriel replied and Evie was surprised. She wanted to know how he managed to make that haughty emperor talk but she held her tongue. And since Evie could not see Gavriel's face, she did not see the dark and evil look that flashed across Gavriel's eyes for a moment when Evie asked about the emperor.

"Would you tell me what it is? It's definitely not a ghost, right?" Evie shivered a little despite not quite believing in ghosts.

She felt Gavriel smile. "It's not."

"Then what is it? An invisible vampire?"

He laughed this time and Evie smiled too. Loving the sound of his chuckles. Did she ever told him that she loved it so much whenever he laughed so heart-meltingly like this?

"Keep guessing, love." He said in his mischievous tone and Evie was about to pout but she decided to continue the guessing game since he suggested it. One reason was because she wanted to keep on talking to him like this. Not wanting the night to end so soon so she could spend more time with him before trouble comes.

"Hmm… maybe, a creature who has magic?"

"Have you ever heard about them before?"

"The magical creatures?"

"Yes."

"When I was young, I had an old maid who used to tell me tales about creatures who could use magic. She said that long ago, they actually existed, and they used to live with the dragons and the other beasts in the forbidden land."

"What if I tell you that your old maid's tale is true? That it is a recounting rather than a myth?"