Chapter 35: The Game Begins

𖤐••{AZERIA’S POV}••⛧

"Harder, Luke," I moan. "Fuck me harder."

The sound of his deep grunts and our skin smacking together fills my ears. My fingers clutch desperately at the sheets, my head thrashing against the pillows as Lucærys pounds my cunt ruthlessly.

Every time I feel the tip of his cock hit that sweet spot deep inside me, my eyes roll to the back of my head and breathless whimpers escape my lips. Sometimes I even find myself murmuring nonsense, my thoughts too scattered to form anything coherent.

"Shh, my love," Lucærys whispers, covering my mouth. "Keep your voice down unless you want the entire castle to hear exactly what I’m doing to you."

I nod frantically, but the second he continues ravaging my cunt, the moans start pouring out of me, muffled by his hand this time.

As he fucks me hard and fast, my walls begin clenching around his cock, my thighs trembling, and then my release starts gushing out of me.

Lucærys doesn’t stop. If anything, his pace quickens even more.

He wraps his free hand around my throat as he begins ruining my cunt, pounding me so hard the entire bed shakes beneath the force of his thrusts.

"I’m going to come," he growls. "I’m going to fucking come inside you!"

A loud groan echoes throughout the room as he slams his length deep inside me one final time. Then he leans down and sinks his fangs into the curve of my neck. His hips jerk, and his cock twitches as he fills me with his warm seed.

Lucærys slowly pulls away from my neck, then he gently runs his tongue over the wound, cleaning away every last trace of blood. He presses a kiss against the mark, and for a few heartbeats, his lips remain there until the bite begins to heal.

When he finally pulls back and his sapphire-blue eyes meet mine, there’s something so possessive in the way he looks at me.

"If not for this damn curse on our race," he growls under his breath, "who knows how many babies you’d have had by now."

Only heavy pants leave my lips in response as I try to catch my breath.

Lucærys pulls his cock out of me and falls onto the bed, leaving my cunt clenching around the sudden emptiness. He snakes an arm around my waist and pulls me close, resting my head on his chest.

After some time, our breathing gradually falls into the same rhythm, and even our hearts beat in perfect harmony. For a long while, I listen to nothing but the steady rise and fall of his chest and the quiet thud of his heart beneath my ear.

Eventually, I break the silence.

"I have to admit, I never expected you to do what you did back there."

"What?"

I turn to face him.

"Standing up to my mother like that," I answer softly.

"Oh..." he says, sitting up slightly. "That."

I let out a small laugh. "She’s never going to forgive you for that, you know."

His lips curve into a small grin. "I don’t care."

I arch an eyebrow. "You don’t care?"

A slight crease forms between his brows.

"No," he replies. "I couldn’t just stand there and do nothing after what she did. I can’t remember the last time someone made me angry. But watching your mother treat you like that..." He shakes his head. "It infuriated me. She might be Mother Empress, but the moment she raised her hand against you, that title meant absolutely nothing to me."

My heart flutters wildly as heat rushes into my cheeks.

"Thank you," I murmur, a small smile curving my lips.

"Don’t thank me," he smirks. "For you, I’d do it again and worse if I had to."

As comforting as his words are, it doesn’t stop dark thoughts from creeping into my mind.

It’s the same one I haven’t been able to shake since the fight in Azræl’s chambers.

I sit up immediately, bringing my knees to my chest and wrapping my arms around myself.

I feel Luke quickly sit up too.

He rests his hand on my back, and there’s a slight frown on his face when he meets my gaze.

"Azeria, what’s wrong?"

I do nothing but bite my bottom lip for several heartbeats before I finally answer him.

"It’s this voice in the back of my mind," I say quietly. "I can’t make it stop."

Luke’s frown deepens. "What does it say?"

Before I realize what I’m doing, my nails are already digging into the skin of my fingertips.

I quickly catch myself, relieved that Lucærys didn’t notice.

"It’s screaming that something terrible is going to happen," I answer.

"Why do you think that?" he asks.

I look away, gazing out at the night sky through the tall windows.

"I didn’t agree with what my mother said earlier," I mutter. "But when it comes to court politics, she’s almost never wrong."

As I turn slowly to face Luke, goosebumps prickle along my arms.

"She warned us that we’d look back at that moment in Azræl’s chambers and we’d regret not listening to her," I whisper. "And I fear she’s right."

The dread in Luke’s eyes mirrors the one I feel, sending shivers through my body.

"There’s going to be a rebellion," I continue slowly. "Someone is going to come for Rhiannon... and her presence in the empire will trigger a war, bloodier than anything we’ve ever seen."

꧁ ✧༺ ❦ ༻✧ ꧂

⟐﴾CRIMSONHOLDE, NINTH KINGDOM OF THE EMPIRE OF NIGHT﴿⟐

𖤐••{LILITH’S POV}••⛧

As I watch the flames dance in the hearth while tracing my fingers along the hard planes of his chest, I find myself reminiscing about that night, even though it’s been over a month.

"I’ve run out of words to describe how I felt that night," I murmur. "My love... if you had been there, you’d understand exactly what I’m trying to say."

My eyes nearly roll to the back of my head as I recall it.

"The scent of her blood..." I whisper. "It was beyond sweet... immaculate... divine. You could get drunk just off of it."

The corner of his mouth curves as he chuckles softly.

"It all makes perfect sense now," he says. "When you first told me that Azræl had kidnapped a human princess and married her, I couldn’t believe it. But who could have guessed," he chuckles again, "the last descendant of Nytheriel bearing celestial blood."

I sit up slightly so I can look into his eyes.

"This is the opportunity you’ve been looking for, my love," I say, my tone urgent. "Your chance to finally reclaim your birthright. To ascend the throne and become the Emperor you were always meant to be."

"Calm down, Lilith," he says smoothly. "When an opportunity like this presents itself, every single move must be calculated. Strategic."

My eyes narrow as I tilt my head. "What do you suggest we do?"

Samæl finally shifts his attention from the fire, his wine-red eyes locking with mine.

"Write me a letter to Delilah," he says. "It’s about time we put our servants in that castle to good use."