Chapter 338

Princess Aekeira sat by the window, stitching and humming an old lullaby. Pale sunlight filtered through the lattice, bathing her in quiet peace. Until Emeriel entered.

She moved like a sleepwalker, her eyes swollen and red, her face pale with exhaustion. Dark circles shadowed her eyes, and her lips trembled despite her efforts to compose herself.

“Em!” Aekeira dropped her sewing, rising quickly. “Are you alright? Why do you look like—?”

Her sister crossed the room, collapsed into her arms, and wept violently, her sobs wrenching from her soul.

“Speak to me, what’s going on!?” Aekeira panicked with each sob. “You’re frightening me! You know you shouldn’t be crying like this; you’re pregnant, for light’s sake!” Tears streamed down Aekeira’s own face. “Em, please!”

Emeriel continued to weep, her sorrow seemingly endless, her despair consuming.

Aekeira gave up trying to soothe her, simply holding her close. She sank onto the bed, pulling her sister down with her, rocking and crying alongside her, as if they were children again.

Time blurred. Finally, the sobbing eased, subsiding into ragged breaths and hiccups.

“I’m broken, Keira…” Emeriel whispered, defeated.

“How can you say that about yourself?”

“Because it’s true,” she said, her swollen eyes fixed on Aekeira. “I am broken… and I don’t know if I’ll ever heal.”

“You will. Tell me… please.”

And then, haltingly, Emeriel recounted the night months ago and its lingering impact on their lives.

“My mind keeps drifting back to it whenever he touches me. No matter how much I try to stay present, the moment he’s inside me, it’s like a switch flips, and I’m back in your old chamber, begging the beast for mercy.” She sobbed. “Heaven knows I’d do anything to avoid thinking of that night. I don’t even want to, yet I can’t escape it. I long to feel my male again, but I can’t because all I see are those moments—completely at his mercy, unable to escape, pleading for reprieve as I bled, yet receiving none. He hurt me so effortlessly, uncaring of his strength or my vulnerability; he just kept taking and taking.” Her eyes widened, her head shaking wildly. “That night plays in my head, driving me insane. It’s driving us apart, and it’s killing him inside. Yet, I can’t move past it, Keira. My body opened for him during heat, and it remains ready, yet my mind feels closed off. I need help, but I don’t know what kind.”

Aekeira wept after Emeriel’s anguished confession.

“Emeriel, how could you keep this from me?” She pulled her sister closer. “When I looked at you the next morning, I knew something that terrible wouldn’t pass without leaving a scar, and I hate that I was right. What are you going to do now?”

“I don’t know,” Emeriel sobbed. “But until I do, something has to be done. And that’s what’s killing me inside, Aekeira.”

She pulled back, looking her sister in the eyes. “What do you mean?”

Chapter 228

“While I take some time to figure myself out, I must make a decision to keep him sane, to protect him, myself, and our unborn child.” She began crying again. “It’s not a pleasant decision, Keira.”

Grand King Daemonikai

Grand King Daemonikai passed through the fortress gates as dusk yielded to night, Ottai following.

Training the birds of prey and messenger fliers had taken longer than expected; the young hawk refused to be contained, fighting the falconer. One newly bonded raven had vanished into the darkness. By the time they reached the Citadel, night had fully descended.

Ottai bowed at the archway before heading toward Mabblewood. Daemonikai ascended the corridors alone, entering his bedchamber, already feeling a headache forming.

Emeriel lay on his bed, her back to the door.

He moved silently, setting aside his belt and mantle, then undressed. When he climbed into bed beside her, she stirred and turned to him.

“I was waiting for you,” she said, smiling.

“How are you feeling? Did you eat better today?”

“Yes, I did. Madam Livia gave me some herbs to help.”

Something in her eyes troubled him; she looked pale. “You are troubled. What’s wrong?”

Pushing herself up, she smoothed her gown. “The head healer came today. He delivered my remaining medicines and told me some things…”

“What things?”

She hesitated. “Please, don’t punish him—it was I who asked about my condition.”

He frowned. “Of course. You needed to know.”

“He spoke of… your instincts. And we both know what happens when they’re not… sated.” She averted her gaze. “I’ve been thinking, and… the truth is, we can’t risk things spiraling out of control again.”

Daemonikai sat up, ignoring his throbbing head.

“The possibility of you having another episode terrifies me, Daemon.”

“It will never happen again, I’ll make sure of that,” he vowed, cupping her face. “Look at me, Emeriel.”

Slowly, her eyes met his.

“I would sooner hurl myself from a mountain peak than harm you that way again.”

“I don’t want you to harm yourself either,” she whispered. “So, I’ve found a solution.”

“No, we’re not trying again. I refuse to put you through that—”

“Take another female to your bed.”

Daemonikai blinked.

Chapter 338 (Continued)

The word was reprocessed, but its meaning remained unchanged.

Did she really say that?