The Devil's Cursed Witch

"Master crying...Master sad..." Ray started to chirp and make a fuss, causing one of her servants to enter her room to check on her.

It was Clio. "Miss, are you not feeling well? Are you feeling pain somewhere?"

Ember wiped her tears. "I am fine."

Clio didn't know what to say and simply decided to cheer her up. "Should I get a couple of books from your study to help you pass the time?"

Just then, Reya entered the chamber. "Miss, His Majesty is here to see you."

Ember did not respond. Though she didn't want to see her mate, he was the King. As the owner of the place where she's staying, who could stop him?

The things Isa said to her were still in her mind.

'...living off His Majesty's grace like a leech...'

'...whoever raised you taught a good-for-nothing like you to leech off someone in power in order to survive...'

'...you truly embrace all the ugly things about humankind from your nanny...'

Ember let out a shaky breath.

'Insulting me, I can bear it. But how can you insult Gaia? I can't forgive you!'

As soon as Draven entered the chamber, her two servants left them alone.

Ember didn't look at him and simply stared at her pet. She didn't even bother to greet him. She could not stop him from entering the chamber and nothing could stop her from showing her anger.

"How are you now?" he asked in his usual no-nonsense tone.

She faced him, not bothering to answer his question.

"I won't apologize to her."

Her voice was firm, her gaze unyielding,showing how angry she was and that she feared nothing.

Draven was taken aback as he was not here for that. Moreover, in his opinion, there was no need for Ember to apologize for her actions, but it seemed like his mate had misunderstood his arrival.

"I am not--"

"I will apologize to you for the damage on the trees but not her. If Your Majesty insists, then rather than having a rude guest like me stay, I won't bother you with further conflict. I will leave this palace this very instant. If that is not enough, then I don't mind if I leave this kingdom. But an apology? I won't."

Her green eyes which were shedding tears a while ago held no  sadness in them; they were now filled with rage and hatred.

She didn't look like a timid girl but someone with a strong will who would not bend her pride in front of anyone. Maybe because her powers were showing up, they were making her reveal her true nature, or because she was too much hurt by Isa which changed her like this, or even that she carries royal blood and was a royal by birth so her commanding nature was showing up. It was possible it was a mix of all of those.

'She is a princess, after all.'

Draven could not deny he liked this change in her as he wanted her to be strong. One who had her own mind, who would not cower easily before others. That kind of Ember deserved to be the Queen of this kingdom.

He kept his distance from her and spoke from his spot without pulling his gaze away.

"You don't need to apologize to anyone. I am here to check on your state."

Even though he told her of his concern, she remained the same, her face cold and indifferent.

Draven continued, "You had a nightmare earlier. I want to know if you saw the same things as last time."

"It was nothing," she replied.

Drayce could clearly see she was still upset because of Isa, but this wasn't a time for her to act petty. It was for her own good for them to find more about her powers as soon as possible.

"Be honest with me. Each clue to your seal bears great significance  to your safety. If can weaken what causes you pain--"

"I can bear with it," she replied stubbornly as if didn't want to give in to him. "Instead of wasting your time here with me, Your Majesty, you should take care of the person who I almost killed. I believe I must have scared His Majesty by making him lose his most cherished woman."

Draven opened his mouth, but he was too stunned to speak that not a single sound came out. He thought she was only upset with Isa, unaware that she was upset with him as well.

He recovered his composure.

"Did I do anything to upset you?" he asked.

If others had heard him asking this question, they would have been shocked to their bones. Draven never cared about upsetting anyone--his mate was an exception.

Ember didn't want to talk about it and said, "If I tell Your Majesty about the dream, will you leave?"

Draven didn't say 'yes' or 'no' and asked, "What was the dream about?"

Ember sighed and turned to face him, though she still sat at the window sill.

"I dreamed of fire...like a forest fire," she paused. "No, rather than saying it's a burning forest, it would be more proper to say it's a sea of fire. Only flames could be seen no matter where I looked. I was scared, trying to call out for help, but then  a woman showed up in the middle of the fire as if that fire belonged to her."

"Was it the same purple-eyed woman you saw last time?"

Ember shook her head. "She was someone else. I could not see her face as she had her back facing me but I know she was not the same woman. This woman wore different clothes and even her hair was different. Her clothes seemed like it was white fabric one moment, but then clothes made of flames the next. You know how in dreams, some things just made sense? It was like that. My self inside the dream knew that woman was not simple at all. She felt...abnormally large, like when you are meeting something grand, like she's...a higher existence. I could only see her fluttering long hair and...she had the same colour as mine."

A woman bathing in a sea of flames--it reminded him of the same woman he had seen in his own dreams.

"Did she turn around? Did you not see her eyes?" Draven asked as he wanted to make sure."Was there any mark at the back of her neck?"

"Her neck?" Ember thought for a bit. "Her long hair covered her neck but something was glowing at the back of her neck. I don't know what it was as it was covered by hair."

Though she neither confirmed nor denied anything, Draven's intuition was telling him that it was the same woman. Now, he wondered who exactly she was.