- 10 hours ago
The Dragon Slave I Whipped Is Now My King Episode ENGSUB Dragon Romance, Fantasy ADB
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Short filmTranscript
00:00:00Elena, is this how Beg?
00:00:09Two years ago, I was the arrogant saintess, and he was the dragon slave I whipped at my whim.
00:00:17Two years later, he awakens the imperial dragon blood and returns to the imperial capital.
00:00:23As the giant dragon dives to the earth, he transforms into a king of extraordinary elegance.
00:00:31His dark gold dragon pupils are locked firmly onto me, once his equal, now a disgraced slave of the clan,
00:00:39fallen into the abyss beneath the altar.
00:00:42To save my father, I was forced to kneel at his feet and let him tear away my white robes,
00:00:48the very symbol of my sanctity.
00:00:51He laughed coldly, demanding I pleasure him to repay the debts of those two years.
00:00:57He already has a perfect match by his side, yet he insists on taking me by force, trapping me in
00:01:04an eternal cage.
00:01:06Oh, you are. But I will never let your children become your prisoners.
00:01:12Watching the madness of his possessive gaze, I press my hand against my stomach, where a faint draconic sigil flickered,
00:01:20the marked pulsing of the rhythmic cadence of a heartbeat.
00:01:24It was this very secret that had driven me to almost all my own death, a scandalous escape that had
00:01:29shocked the world.
00:01:30A month ago, the Holy Kingdom fell under a sudden monster assault.
00:01:35I found myself cornered in the black forest, trapped and suffocating under the weight of a dark malevolent curse.
00:01:42As my consciousness began to fracture, he appeared.
00:01:45He rode through the chaos.
00:01:47As he charged forward on horseback, I could have sworn I saw the spectral shimmer of dragon wings unfurl behind
00:01:54him.
00:01:54A broken sword in one hand, and a spear in the other, cutting a path to my side.
00:02:00In my blurred vision, he looked breathtaking.
00:02:04That night, amidst a frantic soul resonance, I let myself cross the forbidden line with him.
00:02:10I think I might have actually fallen for him.
00:02:13I thought of him the moment I opened my eyes.
00:02:15I banished him once more to the most remote, crumbling tower of the estate.
00:02:19Before sending him to the tower was a triumph of my power.
00:02:22Now I found myself sneaking toward it just to catch a glimpse of him.
00:02:26He was right there in my temple.
00:02:28Yet I was dying of an incurable heartache.
00:02:31Today was his 22nd birthday.
00:02:33I had spent hours baking a lemon tart with my own hands, wanting to give him a surprise.
00:02:39I wanted to tell him that he was going to be a father.
00:02:43Two years ago in the arena, I bestowed upon him the name Shadow.
00:02:47He was but a flicker of darkness, easily erased.
00:02:50Now, that name has become my only longing.
00:02:54I reach the tower only to find my world collapsing.
00:02:57My shadow was gone.
00:03:00A massive dragon shadow reared its head, its wings sweeping across the ceiling.
00:03:05A blinding burst of molten gold erupted before my eyes,
00:03:08before shrinking and condensing into the form of a noble man.
00:03:12The slave had vanished, replaced by a prince radiating golden light.
00:03:17The rumors followed quickly.
00:03:19He already had a fiancé, a childhood match.
00:03:23Lady Isabella, the most brilliant woman in the empire.
00:03:27As soon as he returned to the capital, their grand wedding would begin.
00:03:33My sanctuary had been transformed into a cage, surrounded by the cold steel of the paladins.
00:03:39The moment they spotted me, skulking in the shadows like a common thief,
00:03:44a royal guard lunged forward, pressing the frigid edge of a heavy greatsword against my throat.
00:03:49Neil, daughter of a traitor, how dare you stand in the presence of Prince Arthur?
00:03:53I looked past the blade at the man in the center of the crowd.
00:03:56The ragged, homespun clothes were gone.
00:03:59In their place was a magnificent robe of blackened gold.
00:04:04Risking execution, I reached out with trembling fingers,
00:04:08desperately trying to catch his hand.
00:04:10A low, rhythmic vibration hummed in the air
00:04:13as glowing embers of dragon fire drifted from the golden embroidery of his robes.
00:04:20You... are you truly the crown prince?
00:04:22Tell me, Miss Vivian, how do you plan to torture me today?
00:04:25Will it be the jeweled whip, or shall I feel the weight of your dancing shoes again?
00:04:30Once I return to the capital, I will send the official documents to sever our contract.
00:04:34A woman from this wretched holy kingdom has no place beside my throne.
00:04:37My eyes burned with unshed tears.
00:04:40I hadn't come to hurt him.
00:04:42I had come to celebrate his birth.
00:04:44To tell him that I was carrying his children.
00:04:47But even my touch was a stain to him now.
00:04:49I finally understood the brutal reality.
00:04:53He loathed me.
00:04:54He would never want me.
00:04:55And he would certainly never want the bastards in my womb.
00:04:59Even if they carried his own dragon blood.
00:05:02I shielded the faint yet searing spark of dragon blood within me, standing amidst the hallowed
00:05:07ruins in utter despair.
00:05:09I wanted to tell him that I would give up everything.
00:05:11I would follow him to the capital as a lowly handmaid.
00:05:14Anything just to stay by his side.
00:05:16But to him, my very touch was a defilement.
00:05:20The deposition decree, sealed with the dragon crest, had severed our contract forever.
00:05:25At eighteen, I had fallen from the adored saintess to a prisoner, abandoned by the gods.
00:05:30I finally woke up from the dream.
00:05:33Arthur hated me.
00:05:34He would go on to marry the pure-blooded Lady Isabella and father noble dragon heirs.
00:05:39To him.
00:05:40Do you have any final prayers, Miss Vivian?
00:05:44He looked down at me, as if I were a speck of dust.
00:05:46I had wanted to beg him to taste the lemon tart I baked with my own hands.
00:05:51But seeing the frost in his eyes, I could only bite my lip and shake my head through
00:05:55a blur of tears.
00:05:57Golden scales erupted across his skin as the air ignited with his draconic aura.
00:06:02With a mocking smear, his body shifted and expanded in a blinding flash of light, transforming
00:06:08into a massive dragon.
00:06:10The gale from his wings slamming me violently into the snow.
00:06:13He vanished into the clouds without a single backward glance.
00:06:17I sat frozen in the ice, until a sharp searing pain tore through my abdomen, nearly causing
00:06:23me to lose the child.
00:06:25Watching the fading silhouette in the sky, I clutched my stomach where a faint dragon mark
00:06:29pulsed, beating rhythmically like a second heart.
00:06:35Disaster struck three days after Arthur's departure.
00:06:38My father, the Holy Father, was branded with the twin sins of treason and black magic, then
00:06:44cast into the darkest depths of the abyss prison.
00:06:47I rushed to the capital, desperate and breathless, only to be met with a death sentence.
00:06:52He was to face the trial of holy fire on the night of the next full moon.
00:06:57Inside the stench-ridden dungeon, my mother's withered hand gripped mine with terrifying strength.
00:07:02Elena, you must go to Prince Arthur.
00:07:06You must go to your shadow.
00:07:09You swore vows before the dragon god.
00:07:12You are high on only contract holder.
00:07:15He cannot simply watch us die.
00:07:18Her words cut through me like acerated Vlad, but he couldn't find the voice to answer.
00:07:23How could I admit that during those two years of shadow, I had forced him into the freezing
00:07:28depths of the holy lake just to retrieve a lost jewel for my amusement.
00:07:33How could I confess that?
00:07:35In fits of rage, I had left scars upon his back that would never heal.
00:07:39He likely wanted to see my family reduced to ash more than anyone else in the world.
00:07:44But looking at the last flickering spark that opened my mother's eyes, I forced myself
00:07:48to move.
00:07:49I picked up the ruby-encrusted whip, the very symbol of my former tyranny, and dragged my
00:07:54trembling body to the crown prince's palace.
00:07:57There, before the towering obsidian iron gates, I fell to my knees and waited.
00:08:06Back in the holy kingdom, a single command from my lips was enough to make shadow crawl to
00:08:11my feet.
00:08:12If I wanted him to bow, he never dared to meet my eyes.
00:08:15But now, the tables had turned with a cruel irony.
00:08:19To see him, for even a moment, I had to kneel in the teeth of a blizzard, begging a shred
00:08:24of mercy.
00:08:25I knelt until I lost all feeling in my legs, the ruby whip in my hands buried after a thick
00:08:30shroud of snow.
00:08:31Just as dawn threatened to break, a dragon's roar shattered the clouds.
00:08:35The black waves eclipsed the dawn as he dived, only to contract and transform the instant
00:08:39they struck the earth.
00:08:40From the heart of the erupting snow, Arthur emerged in human form, breaking through the
00:08:46mist.
00:08:46The crunch of his boots against the frozen ground echoed the frantic beating of my heart.
00:08:51His cold, indifferent gaze lingered for a moment on the whip I held.
00:08:54Tell me, Miss Vivian, which hand was it?
00:08:58Which hand did you use to leave those scars on my body?
00:09:02His voice held no warmth, only the crushing weight of a judge passing sentence.
00:09:06I was so frozen, I could barely breathe.
00:09:09Before I could find my voice, my strength failed me.
00:09:12My knees buckled and I collapsed forward, falling directly into his arms.
00:09:16His chest was burning hot, a searing contrast to the ice.
00:09:20The heat instantly triggered the memory of our night of soul resonance, the way he had
00:09:24pinned me against the altar with predatory hunger.
00:09:26My eyes welled with bitter tears.
00:09:30Your Highness, please, save my father.
00:09:34I'm begging you.
00:09:36His pupils narrowed into golden vertical slits, and a faint rhythmic glow of molten fire pulsed
00:09:41beneath the skin of his throat.
00:09:44So, you strip your defenses bare before me just to save that old man?
00:09:49Very well.
00:09:50I have been dying to see just how much the High and Holy Princess has learned about the
00:09:54art of submission.
00:09:55Before I could gasp, he hoisted me over his shoulder.
00:09:59Ignoring my cry of protest, he strode ruthlessly through the gallery and hurled me onto the
00:10:04strong bed draped in black fox fur.
00:10:06The air ignited with the violent scent of the dragon kin.
00:10:10As my ornate cloak slid away, my skin shivered against the biting chill.
00:10:15Arthur descended like a predator, his massive frame pinning me down, swallowing me whole within
00:10:20his territory.
00:10:21One hand, cold as iron, clamped my wrists above my head.
00:10:25Elena, every agony you put me through over these last two years, I am going to repay it,
00:10:31inch by inch, upon this bed.
00:10:34Phantasmus' wings spread wide, bathing within a suffocating golden gloom.
00:10:39The air crackled in the womb of ancient dragon fire, as the crushing weight of his aura sealed
00:10:44the room.
00:10:54Shadow.
00:10:56He threw me onto the black fox furs with such violence that a sharp pain flared through my
00:11:00lower back.
00:11:00Under the weight of his suffocating draconic aura, a flash off my old, haughty temper flared.
00:11:07My hand instinctively reached it for me, ruby-encrusted disciplinary whip.
00:11:12In the next heartbeat, Arthur ruthlessly shredded my inner robes, he curled his lips into a mocking
00:11:18sneer.
00:11:19His eyes filled with the cold, unreachable detachment.
00:11:22Is this your idea of what was leaving this week?
00:11:24The whip slipped from my numb fingers, clattering, uselessly, to the floor.
00:11:28His gaze was licking up, frozen and well, threatening to turn me very soltois.
00:11:33For the thousandth time, virality crashed down upon me.
00:11:36He was no longer the slave I could trample at will.
00:11:39He was a dragon king who crushed my entire bloodline with the flick of his fingers.
00:11:42Pleasing me is your only task.
00:11:45If you can satisfy me, perhaps I will show mercy and grant that old man Bernard a chance.
00:11:52To live.
00:11:53Pleasing him, a wave of bitterness washed over me.
00:11:56I looked down at Miss Dill, flat abdomen, my heart clenching in fear.
00:12:01Ever since, a day here claimed his throne, I had been spotting blood.
00:12:05The physician had warned that the dragon bloodline was too powerful.
00:12:09My pregnancy was fragile.
00:12:11I was terrified of the bleeding.
00:12:13I was even more terrified of losing the tiny life already.
00:12:16Flickering with a dragon's breathing side met.
00:12:21Are you truly that unwilling?
00:12:24He let out a derisive snort, his eyes flickering with pure disdain.
00:12:29I have no interest in forcing anyone.
00:12:32Since the great saint despises her purity so highly,
00:12:37you can simply wait until the next full moon.
00:12:42Then you can collect Bernard's charred remains from the altar of holy fire.
00:12:48He tossed the shredded remnants of my sacred robes onto the floor like trash and turned to leave.
00:12:54Throwing my pride to the wind, I lunged forward and threw my arms around him from behind.
00:12:59I had been spoiled my entire life.
00:13:02I had never bowed to anyone.
00:13:04I was terrified of losing the babies, but I was more terrified of my father's execution.
00:13:10I forced back my tears, my voice trembling.
00:13:15I...
00:13:16I will do it.
00:13:18I will please you.
00:13:20Arthur stood with his back to me, letting out a laugh that was bone chillingly cold.
00:13:25I couldn't see his face, but the frost radiating from him was suffocating.
00:13:30To save a life, I had to mimic the clumsy movements of a dancing girl.
00:13:35I reached out with shaking hands to touch him,
00:13:39eventually forcing myself onto my tiptoes to press a desperate humiliating kiss against his lips.
00:13:44Hmph.
00:13:46Is this all the Sanctus is capable of?
00:13:50I wanted the floor to swallow me whole.
00:13:53My mind flashed back to that night of chaotic soul resonance.
00:13:57Back then, though he was wild, he had kissed away my tears and whispered gentle comforts into my ear.
00:14:04The Arthur standing here now didn't want to comfort me.
00:14:07He wanted to watch me break.
00:14:12Get away from me!
00:14:13He growled the command.
00:14:16The volatile temper and searing heat unique to the dragon race exploded in an instant,
00:14:22shattering his fragile self-control.
00:14:24I tried to recoil in fear, but instead of pushing me away,
00:14:28his arm clamped around my waist like an iron vice,
00:14:32pinning me ruthlessly against the edge of the bed.
00:14:35He seized control, his kiss so violent I thought he would crush my lips.
00:14:40I struggled for air as the kiss grew more feral,
00:14:44a desperate clash of hatred and hunger.
00:14:46My clothes were reduced to threads.
00:14:49I felt like a fallen leaf adrift on a violent sea,
00:14:53swaying and drowning in the tidal wave of his draconic lust.
00:14:57When the first light of dawn filtered through the windows,
00:14:59I drifted back to consciousness.
00:15:01Arthur was already fully dressed in his black and gold princely regalia,
00:15:05looking cold and peerless once more.
00:15:06Your Highness.
00:15:10Last night I did what you asked.
00:15:13You'll save my father now, won't you?
00:15:16Arthur adjusted the dragon scale cufflinks at his wrists,
00:15:19offering a chilling laugh without even bothering to look back.
00:15:23When exactly did I say that sleeping with me once would guarantee a pardon for a traitor?
00:15:30My eyes snapped open.
00:15:32Every bone in my body felt as though it had been ground to dust,
00:15:35but the pain in my heart was far worse.
00:15:39You...
00:15:46Besides, do you really think a body as broken as yours is enough to satisfy me?
00:15:53I felt as though I had been plunged into an abyss of ice.
00:15:57He never intended to save anyone.
00:15:59This was nothing but cold-blooded retaliation,
00:16:02the cruelest way possible to humiliate me for the two years I spent trampling on his dignity.
00:16:07The air felt thin.
00:16:09The weight of his betrayal suffocating me.
00:16:12Arthur, I'm begging you!
00:16:13Please, save my father!
00:16:16He didn't spare me even a fleeting glance.
00:16:19Shrouded in a frost that cut like a blade,
00:16:21he strode away without looking back.
00:16:23Like a hollow shell of a human being,
00:16:25I numbly gathered the shredded remnants of my clothes
00:16:28and draped them over my battered body.
00:16:30I began the long, agonizing trek out of the palace.
00:16:33But as I reached the end of the corridor,
00:16:35I collided with a radiant procession.
00:16:38At the head of the group stood a woman in a vibrant imperial gown trimmed with gold,
00:16:43her elegance as sharp as her status.
00:16:45It was Isabella, the Duke's most beloved daughter.
00:16:49She was the woman Arthur had personally chosen as his crown princess upon his return to the throne.
00:16:54The Saintress?
00:16:57I must say, I never expected to find you in the Prince's private chambers in such a state.
00:17:06It seems his highness's mercy hasn't taught you anything about dignity.
00:17:14I gripped my collar so hard my nails bit into my palms.
00:17:18I wanted to scream, to fight back.
00:17:21But a sudden wave of weakness from my abdomen stopped me.
00:17:24If I collapsed here, my children, my only remaining secret would be lost forever.
00:17:32Isabella was breathtaking.
00:17:34She possessed an innate regal air that only comes from a lifetime spent at the pinnacle of power,
00:17:39making me feel a sudden stinging sense of inferiority.
00:17:43So you're that common girl Arthur used for diversion back in the Holy Kingdom?
00:17:49It wasn't a diversion.
00:17:51We exchanged the vows of the rose before the gods.
00:17:54He was my sworn knight.
00:18:02Vows?
00:18:03Those archaic rituals mean less than nothing to a crown prince.
00:18:08I've heard stories of how cruelly you treated him.
00:18:11Now that he's reclaimed his throne, you've come crawling back to beg for mercy.
00:18:17How could a man like Arthur ever truly want a woman with a heart as poisonous as yours?
00:18:24She stepped closer, her voice dripping with the arrogance of a benefactor.
00:18:29If you're truly that desperate to stay in the capital,
00:18:33I might allow him to keep you.
00:18:36After our wedding, as an unmarked mistress.
00:18:40A private pet with no name.
00:18:43The insult burned through my veins.
00:18:45I didn't want to be anyone's secret pet.
00:18:48Even if my heart had begun to waver, I knew one thing for certain.
00:18:51If he chose to marry another, I would never linger for a single second.
00:18:58As I stepped out of the crown prince's estate, the scorching sun felt like a physical assault,
00:19:04making my eyes sting.
00:19:05The truth was a cold, hard weight in my chest.
00:19:09Arthur hated me.
00:19:10He had no intention of saving my father.
00:19:13He only wanted to watch me spiral into the abyss until there was nothing left of me.
00:19:20Miss Elena.
00:19:21I hurriedly wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes, looking up to see Christopher.
00:19:26He had once been a common scholar sponsored by my father.
00:19:30Two years ago, during that fateful ceremony, he had been my first choice for a knight.
00:19:35But through a cruel twist of fate, I had chosen Arthur instead.
00:19:38Now, Christopher had climbed the ranks to become the chief executive of the Imperial Tribunal.
00:19:44Lord Christopher.
00:19:46Lord Christopher, my father was framed.
00:19:50Please, I'm begging you.
00:19:53Save him.
00:19:57It's been two years.
00:19:59You've grown even more.
00:20:02Breathstaking than I remembered.
00:20:06I have always admired you.
00:20:11Elena.
00:20:13I've always wanted you by my side.
00:20:16He stared at me with a fixed intensity that made my skin crawl.
00:20:20The naked greed in his eyes was nauseating.
00:20:23He had already secured his future by marrying the High Justice's daughter,
00:20:27carving a path to the heights of power.
00:20:30Now, he was looking at me as if I were a prize to be collected.
00:20:34A secret lover to be kept in the shadows of his perfect life.
00:20:42I will purchase a secluded manor for you.
00:20:45You will live there.
00:20:46And when the timing is right, I'll arrange for you to be appointed as a chamber attendant.
00:20:51It's the perfect way to keep you under my protection.
00:20:55Without raising eyeballs.
00:20:57My father gave you everything.
00:20:59He funded your education and your rise to power.
00:21:02Is your sense of honor so easily swallowed by greed?
00:21:06I struggled to keep the fury from my voice.
00:21:09My body trembling with a mixture of rage and exhaustion.
00:21:13Christopher let out a sharp, derisive laugh.
00:21:16His eyes scanning me with a terrifying lack of shame.
00:21:19I have plenty of gold now.
00:21:21What I lack is a plaything like you, so holy, yet so utterly ruined.
00:21:25I know you spent two years with the crown prince, but his wedding is imminent.
00:21:29He's done with you.
00:21:30If you won't look Bernard to stay alive, you have no other choice.
00:21:33You belong to me now.
00:21:34I didn't even have the chance to retort.
00:21:36A sudden, violent wave of nausea surged from my stomach.
00:21:40And I doubled over, dry heaving right in front of him.
00:21:43Christopher's face instantly twisted into a blue shade of purple.
00:21:48He had expected tears.
00:21:50Or, perhaps, a desperate surrender.
00:21:52He hadn't expected me to be so physically repulsed by his touch, that I would be sick on the spot.
00:22:01Christopher was clearly stunned by my physical repulsion.
00:22:04The mask of a refined gentleman shattered, leaving behind a gaze so dark and venomous, it chilled my blood.
00:22:12The fake warmth in his voice died instantly, replaced by a low, predatory snarl.
00:22:18Do not test my patience, Elena.
00:22:21I control the Imperial Tribunal now.
00:22:23If I want that old man dead, he won't even survive long enough to see the Holy Fire next month.
00:22:31I'll give you two days.
00:22:32If I don't see you at my manor on the south side of the city by then, you might as
00:22:36well start picking out a burial plot for your father.
00:22:39He turned on his heel and stormed away in a fit of humiliated rage, leaving me to tremble alone in
00:22:46the biting wind.
00:22:48My heart felt like a lead weight sinking into an abyss.
00:22:51People always whispered that scholars were the most virtuous among us.
00:22:56But in reality, the most wretched souls are often those hidden behind tailored suits and polite smiles.
00:23:03My family was still wealthy.
00:23:05Even after spending a fortune to save my father, what remained could sustain us for generations.
00:23:11My mother had already secured a secluded safe house on the outskirts of the capital.
00:23:15I dragged my battered body, feeling as though it had been trampled by a carriage, and began the long, numb
00:23:23walk back to that hollow substitute for a home.
00:23:28I had a younger brother, Julian, who was two years my junior.
00:23:33Unlike me, who grew dizzy at the mere sight of ancient texts, he was a natural-born arcanist.
00:23:40By the age of five, he could already decipher forbidden runes.
00:23:44Upon hearing of our family's downfall, he had rushed from the Arcane Academy to the capital, his face pale with
00:23:52worry.
00:23:54Crushed and defeated, I dragged my feet down the endless corridor, and with a trembling, uncertain hand, pushed open the
00:24:02massive door.
00:24:12I looked at the flickering sparks of hope in their eyes, and my throat burned as if I had swallowed
00:24:17hot coals.
00:24:19Worse, I couldn't bring myself to describe the previous night.
00:24:22How Arthur had pinned me to those luxurious black fox furs, claiming my body with a brutal hunger.
00:24:30He wasn't our savior.
00:24:31He was a man who took pleasure in my ruin.
00:24:34A man who wanted to watch me drown in this hopeless mire, until the last breath left my lungs.
00:24:44I couldn't bear to shatter the fragile hope in my mother's and Julian's eyes.
00:24:48But with my father's life on the line, I didn't dare weave a lie.
00:24:54My voice cracked as the cold reality spilled out.
00:25:00He refused.
00:25:02Arthur hates me, more than you can imagine.
00:25:05Those two years of torment turned his heart into a block of ice.
00:25:10I've brought this upon our family.
00:25:12It's my fault that father is in that cage.
00:25:15My mother pulled me into a fierce, trembling embrace.
00:25:19Her scent of lavender and old books a brief comfort against the storm.
00:25:24You are the most precious jewel of the Vivian family.
00:25:26If this is truly Bernard's trial, then it is a judgment of fate itself.
00:25:30You will not chain yourself to a guilt that isn't yours to bear.
00:25:33She's right.
00:25:35You've done nothing wrong, Elena.
00:25:37It's that cold-blooded prince who is blind.
00:25:40You deserve the purest devotion this world has to offer.
00:25:45Not his cruelty.
00:25:48Listening to them, a wave of bitter sorrow washed over me.
00:25:52The House of Vivian had once been the glorious pillar of the Holy Kingdom.
00:25:56A name spoken with reverence and awe.
00:26:00Now the proud saintess had finally learned how to bow her head.
00:26:04I no longer prayed for glory or power.
00:26:07I only prayed that those I loved might survive the winter.
00:26:13Elena, mother told me you're pregnant.
00:26:16Go back to your room and rest.
00:26:18I'm 16 now.
00:26:19I can carry this family's weight.
00:26:21Trust me.
00:26:22I will bring father home.
00:26:23I looked at the young man standing before me.
00:26:26His shoulders broad and his gaze steady.
00:26:30The little boy who used to trail behind me, crying over scraped knees, had truly grown up.
00:26:36I offered a few soft words of caution before retreating to my room.
00:26:41But the dull, persistent ache in my womb kept me tossing and turning in a feverish unrest.
00:26:48Hours later, I stepped out into the hallway and froze.
00:26:52There stood Julian.
00:26:54But he was unrecognizable.
00:26:56He had changed into a garish flamboyant suit of shimmering silks with an oversized ruby pendant dangling against his chest.
00:27:05Julian, what are you dressed like?
00:27:10I heard Duchess Audley has a weakness for collecting exquisite young men.
00:27:13I'm going to her estate to offer myself.
00:27:15If she takes me as her pet, even the crown prince will have to show her some respect.
00:27:20That's how I'll save father.
00:27:22My heart stopped.
00:27:24Julian was a once in a century genius at the Arcane Academy.
00:27:28I couldn't let him sell his soul.
00:27:31Panic surged through me as I tricked him into the wine cellar and slammed the heavy iron door, locking it
00:27:37tight.
00:27:40Let me out! I was born for this!
00:27:43If it saves father, what does it matter if I'm just a plaything?
00:27:48I couldn't let my brother destroy his future and his dignity.
00:27:52The thought of Julian, a brilliant prodigy, rotting away as a noblewoman's plaything was a nightmare I wouldn't allow to
00:27:59come true.
00:28:00Begging Arthur again was a dead end.
00:28:02It would only invite more humiliation and perhaps even ignite his lethal temper.
00:28:06That left Christopher, the hypocritical viper, as much as I loathed the idea of becoming his caged bird.
00:28:13It seemed the path had narrowed until there was nowhere left to run.
00:28:17As night fell, I carried a single flickering magic lamp and crept toward Christopher's secret villa on the south side
00:28:23of the city.
00:28:23I spent the entire journey numbing my mind, whispering to myself that this was merely a sacrifice.
00:28:29I told myself.
00:28:31It would be like being bitten by a wild beast.
00:28:33Painful, yes.
00:28:34But something I could endure if I just closed my eyes.
00:28:37The moment I stepped into that dim, oppressive bedroom and saw Christopher unfastening his outer robe,
00:28:42my stomach churned with violent revulsion.
00:28:45Miss Vivian, I have waited two long years for this day.
00:28:50He undid the silver clasps at his collar, his smile thick with a sticky predatory mallet.
00:28:55From this moment on, you are my private property.
00:28:57Now come here, help me undress.
00:29:00My body is rigid as stone.
00:29:03Not used to this yet?
00:29:04Don't worry, I'll spend the rest of the night teaching you exactly how to serve me.
00:29:10Christopher shed his hypocritical priestly robes, his eyes gleaming with a feverish light.
00:29:15Tonight, we finally celebrate our sacred union, two years late.
00:29:19He advanced toward me, one predatory step at a time.
00:29:22Despite the biting cold of the room, my palms were slit with a cold sweat.
00:29:25I realized in that moment that I couldn't endure his proximity.
00:29:28The sensation was visceral, like a slimy serpent slithering up my ankle.
00:29:32Cold and suffocating.
00:29:33A sickly, distorted desire burned in his gaze.
00:29:36He lunged forward, his hands clamping around my waist like iron shackles.
00:29:39As he tried to bury his face in the look of my neck.
00:29:41The scent of yours.
00:29:42It's enough to drive a man mad.
00:29:44Stop!
00:29:45Christopher, listen to me.
00:29:46I will give you every coin in the Vivian family bolts.
00:29:49Just save my father and let me go!
00:29:52I don't want your filthy gold, Elena.
00:29:54I want you!
00:29:55His face twisted into a mask of pure malice.
00:29:57As he shoved me backward onto the black velvet shade.
00:29:59He began to tear at my sacred robes with a frantic, desperate violence.
00:30:03Go ahead, keep fighting me.
00:30:04If you do, I'll make sure Bernard is dead.
00:30:07Before the sun rises tomorrow!
00:30:08Arthur was a man of violence.
00:30:10But when he touched me, there was a part of my soul that didn't recoil.
00:30:14Here, pinned under Christopher, I felt only a bone deep revulsion.
00:30:18Ever since I saw you standing so high above everyone two years ago, I've dreamt of dragging you into the
00:30:24mud.
00:30:24Tonight, I finally get what I've always deserved.
00:30:31I first met Christopher when I was still young.
00:30:34No one could have ever guessed that behind his gentle, refined demeanor hit a dark and twisted heart.
00:30:41He leaned close to my neck, his every word laced with chilling, hidden malice
00:30:47that sent shivers down my spine.
00:30:50To tell you the truth, Elena, I orchestrated everything.
00:30:56Bernard's downfall, the treason, the trial.
00:31:00It was all my design.
00:31:02My eyes snapped wide as the horror of his confession sank in.
00:31:06He funded your education.
00:31:08He gave you a future.
00:31:11How could you betray the man who saved you?
00:31:14If he hadn't gone to prison, would you be here now, kneeling and begging for my favor?
00:31:20No.
00:31:20So be a good girl and please me.
00:31:23I have the power to make your father's life a living hell,
00:31:26and I can just as easily destroy your mother and Julian.
00:31:29The sheer cruelty of it left me gasping.
00:31:31I wanted nothing more than to kill him and myself in a single stroke of vengeance.
00:31:36He held my every weakness in his hands.
00:31:39No matter how much my soul screamed in protest, I was trapped, forced to shiver and endure beneath him.
00:31:45Now, kiss me.
00:31:47He ruthlessly tore open my inner robes.
00:31:49The sudden bite of the cold air stung my exposed skin.
00:31:52I couldn't stop shaking.
00:31:53And as his face descended toward mine, a wave of visceral, physical revulsion took hold.
00:31:58With every ounce of strength I had left, I shoved him away.
00:32:04Christopher's mask of civility shattered into a hundred jagged pieces.
00:32:08His patience had run dry, and he pinned me against the edge of the chaise with a terrifying heavy weight.
00:32:15Get off me! Don't touch me!
00:32:20Keep shouting, Elena, but for every word you scream, I'll have a piece of Bernard's flesh carved away.
00:32:26I went silent instantly, the sound of my own teeth grinding together echoing in my skull.
00:32:30To save my father from the torture rack, I could only close my eyes in absolute despair,
00:32:33just as I prepared to bite my own tongue and end it all.
00:32:36The heavy oak doors of the bedchamber were obliterated,
00:32:39kicked inward with a force that shook the foundations of the villa.
00:32:44It was Arthur.
00:32:48Christopher stood paralyzed, his eyes wide with disbelief.
00:32:53He never imagined the crown prince would descend upon this secret sanctuary.
00:32:58Panicked, he scrambled to clutch his discarded robes, his face draining of color.
00:33:03As the temperature in the room plummeted, Arthur approached with a terrifying, predatory calm.
00:33:13Your highness, I do not understand why you would strike me.
00:33:17Since when is it a crime to enjoy a midnight thrisk with one's own lover?
00:33:22Lover.
00:33:25Since when is it a crime to enjoy a midnight thrisk with one's own...
00:33:30Arthur rained down low after brutal low, until Christopher lay unconscious in an ever-widening pool of blood.
00:33:38I have not yet signed the decree of abdulation.
00:33:41Until I do, she belongs to me.
00:33:44You dare to touch what is mine, and for that, you will die!
00:33:51Between the sheer terror of the night, and the gnawing dread for my father's life, the fragile dam of my
00:33:58emotions finally broke.
00:34:00My pregnancy had made me volatile, and now, the tears fell in a relentless, silent torrent that I couldn't stop.
00:34:08Arthur reached out, his arms snaking around me like an iron band to haul me into his chest.
00:34:15Seeing my face streaked with tears, the darkness in his eyes didn't soften.
00:34:21Instead, his fury seemed to congeal into something even more lethal.
00:34:25Do you love him that much?
00:34:27Do you love him that much?!
00:34:32Does it break your heart that I interrupted your little trisk?
00:34:37You actually degraded yourself to this point for a piece of filth like him!
00:34:43When had I ever shown an ounce of affection for Christopher?
00:34:46The man was a monster, yet here was Arthur, twisting my desperation into a betrayal.
00:34:52But I didn't dare fight back.
00:34:54I couldn't risk my father bearing the brunt of a crown prince's lightning strike rage.
00:34:59I could only bury my face against his chest, my body shaking with muffled, agonizing sobs.
00:35:07Is being with me such a miserable fate, Elena?
00:35:09Well, weep all you want, it doesn't change a thing.
00:35:12You're coming back to the palace with me, where you belong.
00:35:17Arthur tossed me into his massive war chariot, pulled by snarling drakes, as if I were nothing more than a
00:35:24conquest claimed on a battlefield.
00:35:26I had no hope of escape.
00:35:28Within the hour, I was back in the palace, thrown once again onto the suffocating black fox furs of his
00:35:35bed.
00:35:35I curled into a ball, my eyes red and swollen, rubbing the small of my back where the impact had
00:35:42left a dull, throbbing ache.
00:35:46His voice was a low, terrifying rumble, cold as a mountain grave.
00:35:51He pressed his callous thumb against my lips, rubbing them with a punishing force that threatened to draw blood.
00:35:59Did he kiss you here?
00:36:03I won't stay.
00:36:07I won't be your secret pet.
00:36:11You think you're worthy of being my mistress?
00:36:15Don't flatter yourself.
00:36:17Let me make this clear, Elena.
00:36:20Until the day I choose to discard you, if you ever dare to shame me with another man again, I
00:36:25will personally ensure you never draw another breath.
00:36:37I stared at Arthur, my heart hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird.
00:36:43His heterochromatic eyes were threaded with dark red veins.
00:36:46And the draconic aura swirling around him was so suffocating, it felt as though he had just clawed his way
00:36:52out of the deepest pits of hell.
00:36:54Looking at the sheer madness in his expression, I knew, with terrifying certainty, if I admitted that Christopher's lips even
00:37:01brushed mine, he would cut my lips away without a second thought.
00:37:06In truth, Christopher hadn't touched me.
00:37:09I should have been paralyzed by fear, but every nerve in my body was screaming in pain and exhaustion.
00:37:14I couldn't help but lash out.
00:37:18It's none of your business!
00:37:21You're that desperate to escape me, Vivian.
00:37:25You torture me.
00:37:27You humiliate me.
00:37:30Isn't this exactly what you wanted?
00:37:33Take it!
00:37:34Whip me to death if that's what it takes!
00:37:36I stepped on your shoulders.
00:37:38I crushed your pride.
00:37:40So take my hands!
00:37:41Take my feet!
00:37:42Do whatever you want!
00:37:44Just save my father, if you promise to save him.
00:37:48I'll let you sacrifice me on the altar right now!
00:37:55Arthur remained silent as he reached down to retrieve the heavy jewel-encrusted whip.
00:37:59I couldn't help the violent flinch that wracked my body.
00:38:02I had wielded this very weapon countless times, but I was naturally frail.
00:38:07My strikes had barely left a red mark on his skin.
00:38:10Arthur was different.
00:38:11He possessed the terrifying, raw strength of the dragon race.
00:38:15If he struck me once with that whip, I would shatter.
00:38:17I forced my spine to straighten and close my eyes, waiting for the end.
00:38:23After I'm gone, would you place a bouquet of fresh roses on my grave?
00:38:32I'm afraid of the cold on the other side.
00:38:41A woman from this wretched holy kingdom has no place beside my throne.
00:38:49He didn't swing the whip.
00:38:51Instead, he lunged forward, his searing fingers clamping around my slender waist like iron bands.
00:38:57Is my touch really that repulsing to you?
00:39:01Well, too bad.
00:39:03Tonight, I'm taking exactly what I want.
00:39:08His lips crashed against mine, fueled by a scorching, desperate rage.
00:39:13In the chaos of the kiss, a memory of my birthday last year surfaced.
00:39:16He was still my shadow then.
00:39:17He had spent weeks carving a wooden statuette of me, a perfect miniature saintess.
00:39:23When I saw the gift, my heart had hammered so wildly, I had accused him of placing a curse on
00:39:29me.
00:39:29I punished him, forcing him to kneel shirtless on the cold temple floor,
00:39:34while I used gold ink to paint a massive, ridiculous creature across his broad back.
00:39:39His ears had turned a deep, burning crimson.
00:39:42I thought it was humiliation, so I insolently grabbed his ear to make him turn around.
00:39:46But as he moved, I lost my balance and tumbled into his arms.
00:39:51Our lips met.
00:39:52That kiss had been clumsy, yet so tender.
00:39:55He had whispered broken pleas, begging me to let him kiss me just once more.
00:40:00My shadow had been so kind then.
00:40:02No matter how I shamed him, he would have handed me the entire world on a silver platter just to
00:40:06see me smile.
00:40:10But the Arthur of today only knew how to bully me, how to make me hurt.
00:40:14As he ruthlessly tore away my silk inner robes, the tears I had fought so hard to suppress finally broke
00:40:21through the dam once again.
00:40:23They cascaded down my cheeks, hot and bitter, splashing against the side of his face.
00:40:29Arthur's movements froze instantly.
00:40:31He remained motionless, his hand still white-knuckled around a shred of the ruined silk.
00:40:35Is my touch so unbearable?
00:40:38He let out a sharp, guttural sound of disgust, and shoved me aside like a discarded rag.
00:40:43Before I could even shiver, he grabbed a heavy black fox fur blanket and wrapped it around me.
00:40:48That piece of filth, Christopher, already has a wife, the High Justice's own daughter.
00:40:55And yet here you are, playing the martyr, preserving your purity.
00:41:00To Venus's york controls no purity for him.
00:41:04You really are a devoted fool, Miss Vivian.
00:41:08He stood up, his eyes flashing with a final, cutting spark of disdain.
00:41:12Don't flatter yourself.
00:41:14You aren't the only woman in the world.
00:41:17I don't need you.
00:41:19He turned and strode out of the chamber, the massive oak door slamming shut with a thunderous crash that echoed
00:41:24through the hollow silence of my heart.
00:41:27I wept until my throat was raw, and only then did the dull, throbbing ache in my womb begin to
00:41:33subside.
00:41:34I was desperate to go home, to save my father, to stop Julian from selling his soul for a scrap
00:41:40of influence.
00:41:40But the world outside had vanished.
00:41:43Arthur had placed me under house arrest.
00:41:45I knew his game.
00:41:46He wanted to break me slowly.
00:41:48He wanted to watch the once haughty saintess rot in a gilded cage, until there was nothing left of my
00:41:54pride.
00:41:54For seven days, Arthur never showed his face.
00:41:58Instead he sent a flock of handmaids to tend to me.
00:42:00They were meticulously attentive, yet their voices were venomous.
00:42:04So, so, so, so, so.
00:42:08Did you really think he'd keep a broken doll?
00:42:12His Highness gifted Lady Isabella the legendary Starry Night Necklace.
00:42:16The prince and the duke's daughter are inseparable at the royal hunting grounds.
00:42:22They look so perfect together.
00:42:25Every day they made sure I heard the rumors of Arthur's devotion to Isabella.
00:42:28Each word cut deeper than any whip.
00:42:31I loathed being a caged bird.
00:42:33But my true terror was the fear that the next time I saw my father, he would be a corpse.
00:42:38On the eighth day of my imprisonment, the heavy doors finally groaned open.
00:42:42A silhouette draped in black and gold stepped through the threshold, bringing with him a rush of winter air.
00:42:48Arthur had returned.
00:42:51Arthur, you bastard!
00:42:53The days of isolation had driven me to the brink of madness.
00:42:57Let me out! I have to see my mother! I have to save my father!
00:43:03Shadow, you are nothing but a cold-blooded beast!
00:43:06If you let my father die without me saying goodbye, I swore make you regret it for the rest of
00:43:12your life!
00:43:13I snatched out the ruby-encrusted whip trying to shield my vulnerability behind a pathetic, empty threat.
00:43:19Bernard is still alive.
00:43:22The air rushed back into my lungs.
00:43:25My father was safe, at least for now.
00:43:28But as the panic receded, a different kind of poison took its place.
00:43:32I remembered the maid's whispers.
00:43:35Stories of how he had spent the last few nights locked away with Isabella.
00:43:40Lost in a passion that lasted until dawn.
00:43:43The jealousy was a sudden, searing heat.
00:43:46When he had taken me, he hadn't shown half that much endurance.
00:43:51He was spending so much time entangled with that Duke's daughter.
00:43:54I wondered if he was trying to drain every drop of his royal blood dry.
00:44:00Are you so desperate to run back to Christopher?
00:44:02To wallow in the dirt as his caged bird keep dreaming?
00:44:05I just refused to stay near a man who belongs to Isabella.
00:44:09In a fit of blind rage, I lunged at him and sank my teeth into his shoulder.
00:44:14Vivian, stop!
00:44:17Are you truly in such a hurry to bury your father?
00:44:19I stopped struggling, but the air between us was thick with loathing.
00:44:25I backed away, slammed the door shut, and turned the lock with a definitive click.
00:44:30Then, staring him straight in the eyes, I began to uncast my sacred robes.
00:44:37Elena, stop.
00:44:38Put your clothes back on!
00:44:39His breath hitched, but I wouldn't be swayed by his feigned restraint.
00:44:44You want your revenge?
00:44:46Then take it!
00:44:47Do to me exactly what I did to you two years ago.
00:44:51Press your boot into my shoulder.
00:44:54Draw those ridiculous, mocking creatures on my skin.
00:44:58Burn me with your humiliation!
00:44:59My voice broke into a pathetic, desperate sob as I looked at him through a blur of tears.
00:45:06I'm begging you, just finish your revenge and save my father.
00:45:11You swore an oath of loyalty to him before the altar.
00:45:14For the sake of that one vow, please help him.
00:45:19Arthur stood like a statue, his expression unreadable and frozen.
00:45:24The silence was deafening.
00:45:27I realized then that my words weren't enough, my tears weren't enough.
00:45:32I know what you want.
00:45:34You're still angry about that winter.
00:45:37About how I forced you into the frozen lake.
00:45:40Well, it's winter again.
00:45:42I'll go.
00:45:43I'll jump into the ice in the back garden.
00:45:46And catch every single one of those damn fish for you.
00:45:49I remembered that day vividly.
00:45:51The snow had been blinding.
00:45:53And he had been practicing his swordplay in the courtyard.
00:45:57I had been in a foul mood.
00:45:59Agitated by the sight of his bare, powerful torso.
00:46:03I had mocked him, my voice dripping with disdain.
00:46:07If you're really as strong as you look, why don't you dive into the lake and bring me a snack?
00:46:14I hadn't expected him to do it.
00:46:17But without a word, he had plunged into the bone-chilling waters of the sacred lake.
00:46:24I spun around and bolted toward the door.
00:46:27Vivian!
00:46:27Have you lost your mind?
00:46:29Where do you think you're going dressed like that?
00:46:31Whether a filthy woman like me lives or dies...
00:46:36What is it to you?
00:46:40None of my business?
00:46:43Elena, I'm going to make sure you never forget exactly who I am!
00:46:49The predatory glint in his eyes was enough to devour me.
00:46:53I am Arthur.
00:46:56I am your sworn knight.
00:46:58He descended upon me like a wolf.
00:47:00And I am your lawful husband.
00:47:02His teeth grazing my lips with a kiss that felt more like a claim of territory.
00:47:07You bastard!
00:47:08You aren't human!
00:47:10But the more I struggled, the more his possessiveness spiraled into a feverish madness.
00:47:15I hurled every curse I knew at him.
00:47:18Even as the world began to blur into a dizzying, unwanted pleasure,
00:47:23I wanted him to feel my hatred even if my body was betraying me in his arms.
00:47:29I felt my life force draining away like sand through an hourglass
00:47:34as he pinned me to the bed once more, claiming me with a desperate crushing intensity.
00:47:39A sharp, tearing agony exploded deep within my abdomen.
00:47:43It was as if a blade had been twisted inside me.
00:47:46I collapsed into the black fox furs.
00:47:49A rose severed from its stem.
00:47:51And the world dissolved into a hollow, silent void.
00:47:55Elena.
00:47:57Elena.
00:47:58Was that panic in his voice?
00:48:00It felt almost comedic.
00:48:01Didn't he want to cast this beautiful witch into the fires of purgatory?
00:48:05In the final second before the darkness swallowed me whole,
00:48:08I felt a pair of searing, calloused hands trembling as they pulled me tight against a racing heart.
00:48:14When I finally drifted back to consciousness,
00:48:17the heavy velvet curtains had been drawn, sealing out the daylight.
00:48:21The chamber was thick with the bitter, cloying scent of medicinal herbs and the metallic tang of holy water.
00:48:28From beyond the veil of the bed curtains, I heard Arthur's voice.
00:48:33A low, dangerous growl vibrating with suppressed fury.
00:48:38Why isn't she awake yet?
00:48:45Your Highness, Miss Vivian's spirit was already fragile.
00:48:54After the physical trauma, she is showing signs of a miscarriage.
00:49:04If it weren't for the powerful dragon bloodline within the fetus,
00:49:10fighting to survive,
00:49:13the hatchling would have already been lost.
00:49:18A hatchling, signs of a miscarriage.
00:49:21A bitter, self-deprecating smile touched my lips.
00:49:24My little dragon was still there.
00:49:26It was far more resilient than I had imagined, but within seconds.
00:49:30A bone-chilling dread washed over me.
00:49:33Arthur knew.
00:49:34He knew that within me, a secret was growing.
00:49:38A secret the temple would never allow to exist.
00:49:41In an empire where blood purity was everything,
00:49:44the bastard of a fallen saintess would likely never be given the chance to draw his first breath.
00:49:52In a surge of sheer panic,
00:49:54my hand struck the wooden bed frame with a sharp crack at the sound.
00:49:58Arthur pulled back the heavy velvet curtains.
00:49:59He sat beside me, his face a mask of cold stone.
00:50:02I instinctively recoiled into the corner of the bed, desperate for a shred of safety.
00:50:06I knew the protocol of the empire.
00:50:08If I hadn't woken up,
00:50:09I might have already ordered the priest to prepare a purification draft,
00:50:12to erase the evidence of my shame.
00:50:14Arthur gripped my hand with bruising force,
00:50:16his voice devoid of warmth.
00:50:18Are you still in pain?
00:50:19Mind raced.
00:50:20Should I tell the truth?
00:50:21Physical ache had mostly subsided.
00:50:22I knew he lived for my suffering.
00:50:24If I told him I was in agony,
00:50:25perhaps his thirst for vengeance would be satisfied.
00:50:28Yes.
00:50:29It hurts.
00:50:31Terrified that he would force the draft down my throat right then,
00:50:33I scrambled to reassure him.
00:50:35You don't have to worry.
00:50:37I would never use this child to trap you or force you.
00:50:40Just let me go.
00:50:42Once I return to my family lands,
00:50:44I'll deal with it myself.
00:50:45I'll make sure it's gone.
00:50:48It was a lie that tasted like ash.
00:50:51I loved my little dragon already,
00:50:53but I needed him to believe I was no threat to his future.
00:50:57Deal with it?
00:51:00You're truly that eager to get rid of these two children?
00:51:04Two.
00:51:05I was stunned into silence.
00:51:08Dragon twins were a miracle,
00:51:09a rarity whispered of in legends.
00:51:12It meant I was carrying a double dragon pulse.
00:51:14My resolve to protect them hardened instantly,
00:51:16but I forced my voice to stay cold.
00:51:19Yes, I don't want them.
00:51:20I'd rather die than have them.
00:51:23I'll brew two bowls of the draft and wipe them from existence.
00:51:26I glanced at the priest standing in the shadows.
00:51:29They weren't moving to help.
00:51:31Instead, they were visibly trembling in terror.
00:51:34You really are heartless, Elena.
00:51:36He shoved my hand away and stormed out,
00:51:38his cloak swirling like a dark cloud.
00:51:40I shouted after him, my voice cracking with desperation.
00:51:44If two bowls aren't enough, I'll drink ten.
00:51:49Arthur vanished again for several days.
00:51:52I was forced to listen to the maids gossiping in the hallways,
00:51:55their whispers like jagged glass.
00:51:58They said he spent every waking and sleeping,
00:52:01hour in Isabella's chambers.
00:52:04Rumor had it that once the dragon bloodline awakened,
00:52:07the host possessed a terrifying near limitless stamina.
00:52:11He and the Duke's daughter were reportedly lost in each other's embrace
00:52:15until the break of every dawn.
00:52:19A bitter wave of sorrow crashed over me.
00:52:22I assumed he found the idea of having children with a twisted woman,
00:52:27like me, repulsive, leading him to seek solace in someone pure.
00:52:32I pitied his burden.
00:52:34Yet the ache in my own chest only grew more hollow.
00:52:38To my absolute shock, a summons arrived.
00:52:41The emperor and empress demanded an audience with me.
00:52:45Before Arthur reclaimed his throne,
00:52:47the highest authority I had ever encountered was a local provincial lord.
00:52:52To be called before the absolute rulers of the empire was terrifying.
00:52:57I was certain they intended to put me on trial for the crime of desecrating the crown prince.
00:53:02The imperial couple was legendary for their sole covenant.
00:53:06The emperor had married a commoner when he was nothing more than a minor noble,
00:53:11and they had remained devoted to one another ever since.
00:53:15After Arthur disappeared at age six, the empress was so devastated by grief and injury
00:53:22that she could never bear another child.
00:53:24Their love for Arthur was boundless.
00:53:27And then there was me, the witch who had tormented their precious long lost son.
00:53:33I felt certain that if I wasn't sent straight to the pyre, it would be a miracle.
00:53:42The imperial palace was a fortress of limestone and gold, looming over me with a heavy sacred weight.
00:53:48Every footstep echoed against the marble, amplifying my dread.
00:53:52I kept my head bowed, trembling, until a pair of silk slippers appeared in my vision.
00:53:59When I looked up, I saw a woman of such timeless beauty.
00:54:03She looked less like Arthur's mother, and more like an elder sister.
00:54:07She reached out and personally helped me to my feet.
00:54:10I held my breath, my heart hammering against my ribs.
00:54:14Was she inspecting my skin to decide which torture would be most effective?
00:54:19Was she looking for the mark of the witch?
00:54:22You are breathtaking.
00:54:24Even more beautiful than the way Arthur described you.
00:54:30I heard that when he was a lost nine-year-old wandering the wilderness,
00:54:34you were the one who gave him the hope to keep living.
00:54:36Is that true?
00:54:41I froze, completely blindsided.
00:54:43I had no memory of saving a prince.
00:54:48When I was nine, I had slipped away from the temple to explore.
00:54:53I found a starving, filthy beggar boy collapsed by the roadside.
00:54:57I had simply tossed him a high-grade healing pill and a heavy pouch of gold coins.
00:55:02I only gave him the gold because the coins were weighing down my dress and I wanted to be rid
00:55:08of them.
00:55:08It was a casual gesture to a stranger.
00:55:11It wasn't until two years ago, in the stench of a blood-soaked gladiator pit,
00:55:16that I recognized those striking, mismatched eyes again.
00:55:19I bought him for a single gold coin just so I wouldn't have to watch him rot in the mud.
00:55:25I don't understand why they're making such a fuss.
00:55:28I only gave him some gold I was planning to throw away.
00:55:37Such a good child.
00:55:42Without another word, she carefully removed a shimmering mithril amulet from her own neck,
00:55:47an artifact pulsing with divine light,
00:55:49and placed it gently in my open.
00:55:57The Empress spent hours speaking with me, her voice a gentle lilt,
00:56:01as she asked about my past with Arthur at the temple.
00:56:03Cold sweat trickled down my face.
00:56:05How could I possibly confess the truth?
00:56:08How could I tell her that I had once punished him,
00:56:10by making him kneel shirtless on freezing stone steps?
00:56:13Or that I had branded his chest with the word shadow,
00:56:16a tale of absolute desecration?
00:56:18I could only offer pale, hollow lies, claiming we had lived as the closest of companions.
00:56:23When I returned to the Crown Prince's estate,
00:56:25I was greeted by an overwhelming display of favor.
00:56:29Carts filled with rare medicinal tonics,
00:56:31and bolts of the finest silk were being unloaded into my side hall.
00:56:35The Empress had even promised to visit me personally in the coming days.
00:56:39My mind was a whirlwind of confusion.
00:56:41Arthur loathed me.
00:56:42Why then had he told his parents I was his savior?
00:56:45But I ran out of time to wonder.
00:56:47The doors to the chambers were thrown open by Arthur's head guard.
00:56:50In his hands, he carried a porcelain bowl filled with a black steaming liquid that smelled of death.
00:56:56It was the purification draft.
00:56:58His Highness's orders.
00:57:00Miss Vivian is to drink this immediately.
00:57:03We cannot allow anything improper to stain the purity of the royal bloodline.
00:57:08The world turned to ice.
00:57:10He was finally coming for the life inside me.
00:57:12He wanted to personally destroy these twin dragon pulses, to burn away the last lingering evidence of our humiliating past.
00:57:19I looked at the black liquid, my hand instinctively dropping to cover my stomach.
00:57:23I could feel them.
00:57:24Tiny, flickering sparks of life.
00:57:26I have to run.
00:57:27I have to escape.
00:57:28The Emperor of the Empire was indeed a just and formidable ruler.
00:57:33When I knelt before him and begged for a thorough investigation into my father's wrongful imprisonment,
00:57:37he gave me his word that the case had been transferred to the High Tribunal.
00:57:41I finally felt a weight lift from my chest.
00:57:43I clung to the belief that once the truth was laid bare,
00:57:46the honor of the Vivian family would be restored to its former glory.
00:57:50Now, my only remaining weakness was the twin dragon pulses growing within me.
00:57:54The moment I returned from the palace,
00:57:56a maid entered my chambers carrying a bowl of liquid that shimmered with an eerie violet light.
00:58:01She called it a sacred essence supplement, claiming it was meant to bolster my strength.
00:58:05I wasn't a fool.
00:58:06I knew Arthur was incapable of such sudden mercy.
00:58:08I pretended to drink it with a grateful smile.
00:58:10But the second the doors were closed and the windows latched,
00:58:13I tipped the bowl into a pot of moonlight ivy.
00:58:15The magic plant, known for its incredible resilience,
00:58:18reacted instantly.
00:58:19The moment the liquid touched the soil,
00:58:22the lush leaves shriveled, turning into brittle blackened husks,
00:58:25as if scorched by dragon fire.
00:58:27My blood ran cold.
00:58:29It wasn't a supplement at all.
00:58:30It was a blood cleansing draught.
00:58:32A lethal poison, designed to starve my hatchlings of their magic and kill them in the womb.
00:58:38Gold can buy even the most depraved of souls.
00:58:41Using a priceless mithril hairpin as a bribe,
00:58:43I managed to smuggle a desperate message to Julian through a kitchen maid.
00:58:47I begged him for a vial of draft of the living death.
00:58:51A forbidden alchemical concoction that could halt a heartbeat and mimic the cold stillness of the grave,
00:58:57all without harming the fragile dragon sprouts in my womb.
00:58:59When a person dies, their deaths are supposedly settled.
00:59:04If I were dead, Arthur would have no reason to force those cruel, poisonous draughts down my throat.
00:59:10At worst, he would have my body tossed into a mass grave in the desolate barrens.
00:59:14Once the effects wore off, I could crawl out of the dirt and vanish into the night with my children
00:59:19to find my mother.
00:59:20My only terror was Arthur's depravity.
00:59:22I feared that even in death, he might plunge a blade into my chest.
00:59:26Just to be certain, the potion took hold with terrifying speed.
00:59:30A bone-deep chill spread through my limbs, turning my blood to slush.
00:59:35My mind remained agonizingly sharp.
00:59:38Yet I was a prisoner in my own skin.
00:59:40Unable to move a muscle.
00:59:42Unable to flicker an eyelid.
00:59:43Until the heavy door's doors opened.
00:59:46Help! Someone help!
00:59:53Miss Vivian...
00:59:54She stopped breathing!
00:59:57The frantic scream echoed through the stone chamber,
01:00:00sounding more like a celebration of my freedom than a morning of my life.
01:00:04I lay there, a hollow shell, waiting to see if my gambit would lead to the wilderness or the pyre.
01:00:12Before I heard the heavy rhythmic thud of leather boots against the stone floor,
01:00:18Arthur had arrived.
01:00:19He seemed unable to fathom that the witch, who had once tormented him so ruthlessly, could fall so easily.
01:00:28Who says she is dead?
01:00:29If you are mocking me again,
01:00:34I swear I will bury the entire Vivian family,
01:00:39along with you!
01:00:42But I was merely a corpse now,
01:00:45a silent witness to his descent into hysteria.
01:00:48I stayed frozen,
01:00:50locked in the icy grip of the draft.
01:00:52His voice grew softer,
01:00:55losing its edge,
01:00:56until it was filled with a frantic, staggering sense of panic I had never heard before.
01:01:02Why was he so shaken?
01:01:04Was he afraid my vengeful spirit would haunt him for the rest of his days?
01:01:09Or was he simply realizing that his favorite toy had finally broken beyond repair?
01:01:14Either way,
01:01:15I remained still,
01:01:17praying for the darkness of the burial grounds to come quickly.
01:01:23By now,
01:01:24he must have found the letter I left behind.
01:01:27In it,
01:01:28I wrote that I had finally reached my breaking point,
01:01:32that I had swallowed a lethal poison to end the humiliation,
01:01:35and that no one else was to blame.
01:01:38My only dying wish was for him to honor our old contract,
01:01:42and return my remains to my family's ancestral lands.
01:01:46But his reaction after reading those words,
01:01:48sent a fresh wave of horror through my frozen soul.
01:01:52Do you love Christopher that much?
01:01:54Do you love him so deeply,
01:01:56that you would rather commit suicide?
01:02:00You want your bones returned home?
01:02:02Never.
01:02:04You will stay by my side.
01:02:07Even if you rot.
01:02:09You will do so in my arms!
01:02:12The living death only lasted 12 hours.
01:02:16If he didn't hurry up and bury me,
01:02:18I was going to resurrect right in front of him.
01:02:21Elena,
01:02:22please,
01:02:25open your eyes and look at me.
01:02:27Then,
01:02:28I felt it.
01:02:30A cold, trembling kiss pressed against my unresponsive lips.
01:02:37Time was running out.
01:02:40Outside, the night was dark and the wind was howling.
01:02:43The effects of the draft were finally beginning to wane.
01:02:46Arthur was on the jagged edge of a mental collapse,
01:02:49blinded by a grief I never expected.
01:02:53As the feeling returned to my limbs,
01:02:55my fingers brushed against the paralyzing silver needle Julian had hidden among my supplies.
01:03:01I waited, holding my breath,
01:03:04until Arthur slumped against my neck with a broken moan.
01:03:07With every ounce of strength I had regained,
01:03:10I lunged and drove the needle deep into the pressure point at the nape of his neck.
01:03:15Even a crown prince of the dragon line couldn't withstand a strike so precise and unexpected.
01:03:20I moved like a ghost.
01:03:22I snatched the dragon seal,
01:03:24the symbol of supreme authority,
01:03:27from his belt,
01:03:28and threw on a nondescript maid's cloak.
01:03:30Keeping my head low,
01:03:32I slipped out of the chamber.
01:03:36I abandoned the memory-haunted north,
01:03:38seeking refuge in Emerald Harbor.
01:03:41The southern air was sweet and blooming with flowers,
01:03:44a place where I could finally fade away.
01:03:48The night I fled,
01:03:50Julian met me at the city gates,
01:03:53sobbing like a child.
01:03:54He pressed a mountain of mana crystal cards into my hands,
01:03:58begging to follow.
01:04:00It took hours to convince him to stay until my father was freed.
01:04:04Julian had liquidated half of the Vivian family fortune for me.
01:04:08Even if I lived a life of absolute decadence,
01:04:11this wealth would last for lifetimes.
01:04:16I opened a boutique named Amber Eyes.
01:04:19While I loathed the dry imperial codes,
01:04:22I had a genius for alchemy,
01:04:24distilling oils and crafting the eternal youth elixirs
01:04:28that once drove the capital's elite into a frenzy.
01:04:31But in the quiet moments,
01:04:34the ghosts returned.
01:04:35I saw my father's face,
01:04:37then Arthur's.
01:04:39I remembered the whispers of his nights with Isabella,
01:04:43and the steam rising from the poison he sent for my children.
01:04:47Whenever the pain flared,
01:04:48I drowned it in work.
01:04:50My little dragons were growing,
01:04:52and for them, I had to be strong.
01:04:57I found a few displaced, starving girls wandering the streets,
01:05:00and took them in.
01:05:02Under my care,
01:05:04their hollow cheeks filled out,
01:05:06and their fearful eyes began to spark with life.
01:05:09They became my loyal apprentices,
01:05:12learning the delicate secrets of my shop.
01:05:15But I wanted more for them.
01:05:16I used my fortune to establish a women's academy at the harbor.
01:05:21This world has always been cruel to women,
01:05:24demanding they be nothing more than ornaments or property.
01:05:27I don't harbor grand illusions of saving the world.
01:05:31But I want these girls to master weaving, commerce, or even basic arcana.
01:05:35I want them to have a trade and a voice.
01:05:39My business flourished beyond my wildest dreams.
01:05:43Within six months,
01:05:44Amber Eyes became the ultimate obsession for the noble women of the South.
01:05:49People often ask me if I fear bankruptcy,
01:05:52considering the academy charges no tuition.
01:05:55I simply offer a faint smile and say nothing.
01:05:59They have no idea I am the daughter of the wealthiest man in the Holy Kingdom.
01:06:03Besides, Julian still sends crates of mana crystals via secret caravans every month.
01:06:09In his eyes, I am likely still his reckless spendthrift sister,
01:06:13who might run out of pocket money at any moment.
01:06:17Letters from the capital arrived occasionally through secret channels,
01:06:21carrying whispers of a world I had left behind.
01:06:24Five months ago, my father, Bernard,
01:06:27was finally exonerated and released.
01:06:30The High Tribunal had uncovered everything.
01:06:32It was all a web of lies spun by Christopher.
01:06:36The shadow that had loomed over my family's honor was finally dispelled.
01:06:40According to Julian, Christopher's obsession had spiraled into madness.
01:06:45Desperate to replace me,
01:06:47he had kidnapped a girl who shared a passing resemblance to me
01:06:50and kept her imprisoned in the secret villa, calling her by a pet name.
01:06:55But his high-born wife, the daughter of the Lord Chief Justice,
01:06:59discovered his sordid secret.
01:07:02In a fit of betrayed rage, she stormed the villa with her retainers.
01:07:07The innocent girl caught in the crossfire met a horrific end at the hands of a woman scorned.
01:07:13Christopher, the man who pretended to love me so deeply,
01:07:17didn't spare a single tear for his victim.
01:07:20He immediately turned on the dead girl,
01:07:23slandering her memory to save his own skin and his political career.
01:07:27He underestimated a woman's wrath.
01:07:30His wife stripped away his mask, exposing his embezzlement and treason.
01:07:35Now, he rots in a lightless dungeon, his limbs broken and his mind shattered.
01:07:42He is a pathetic creature.
01:07:44A far cry from the elegant scholar he once pretended to be.
01:07:48I felt no pity as I burned the letter.
01:07:51He earned every second of his agony.
01:07:54The Vivian family was unable to return to the Holy Kingdom.
01:07:58Julian's letters became increasingly frantic,
01:08:00claiming that Arthur had descended into a state of pure madness.
01:08:04The wedding between Arthur and Isabella never happened.
01:08:07Instead, in a shocking twist that paralyzed the capital,
01:08:10he personally escorted Isabella to the ghost tower.
01:08:14Arthur! Please! You can't do this!
01:08:17No one knew the reason, but I could guess.
01:08:20A man like Arthur would never tolerate anyone who dared to touch his secrets
01:08:24or threaten his absolute control.
01:08:27Now Arthur spends his days scouring the capital for a ghost.
01:08:30He searches for any trace of my existence.
01:08:32And at night, he stands before my empty grave,
01:08:36screaming to the heavens that I am his only true crown princess.
01:08:40I felt nothing but cold disdain when I read those words.
01:08:44He had spent his nights lost in the arms of another woman.
01:08:47And now, he wants to play the role of the grieving, devoted husband.
01:08:52It was a pathetic performance.
01:08:53My only focus now is the safety of my two little dragons.
01:08:57The most experienced midwife in the south warned me that carrying twins,
01:09:01especially those of the dragon line, is a treacherous path.
01:09:05She told me that the day of their birth would be like walking along the precipice of the underworld.
01:09:10It is a gamble with death.
01:09:12A heavy fear has settled in my bones.
01:09:15I am terrified that I will never wake to see Julian become a grand archmage.
01:09:19And even more terrified that my children will enter this world only to find themselves motherless.
01:09:26A soft touch on my shoulder pulled me from my thoughts.
01:09:29I looked up to see Perrin standing before the counter,
01:09:32his usual modest expression colored by a hint of nerves.
01:09:36Perrin was a wandering scholar I had rescued three months ago after he collapsed outside my shop.
01:09:40He was handsome in a gentle, intellectual way,
01:09:43possessing a quiet grace that persisted despite his poverty.
01:09:47The young girls who worked for me loved to whisper that he was hopelessly in love with me.
01:09:52I always dismissed it as childish gossip.
01:09:54Why would a brilliant young man with his whole life ahead of him want a woman like me?
01:09:58I was a widow with a swollen belly,
01:10:01living under a story that my husband had perished on some distant battlefield.
01:10:05Is something wrong, Mr. Perrin?
01:10:07His face flushed crimson, the heat spreading all the way to his ears.
01:10:11He hesitated for what felt like an eternity,
01:10:14fidgeting with his sleeves as if trying to summon every ounce of courage in his soul.
01:10:18Miss Vivian, I have admired you for a very long time.
01:10:22I don't care about your past, and I don't care about the rumors.
01:10:25I want to take care of you.
01:10:27If you would honor me by becoming my wife,
01:10:29I promise to love your children as if they were my own blood.
01:10:32I froze, my mind racing to find a kind way to reject him.
01:10:37Before I could speak, however,
01:10:38a voice like a sudden arctic gale tore through the room,
01:10:41turning the humid southern air to ice.
01:10:45Elena, you intend to take my children and marry this pathetic, lowly commoner?
01:10:52My body turned to stone.
01:10:54I turned my head slowly toward the doorway.
01:10:57There, framed against the dying rays of the sunset,
01:11:00stood the man who should have been a thousand miles away.
01:11:03Arthur's face was a mask of sheer murderous rage.
01:11:10The moment Perrin finished his confession, the air in the room shattered.
01:11:14A suffocating pressure, the raw, primal weight of a dragon's aura,
01:11:19exploded outward, pinning everyone to the spot.
01:11:21Arthur stepped into my workshop, clad in robes of deep obsidian and gold.
01:11:26His eyes were twin glaciers,
01:11:28harboring a frost cold enough to freeze the entire southern coast.
01:11:31He moved with a heavy, deliberate stride,
01:11:34and I knew instantly that the day of reckoning for my six-month escape had finally arrived.
01:11:40My legs turned to water.
01:11:41In a frantic, useless panic,
01:11:43I grabbed a handful of monocrystals and tried to bolt for the back exit,
01:11:47but it was already too late.
01:11:48The doorway was blocked by a wall of iron,
01:11:51a phalanx of paladins,
01:11:52their armor gleaming with an oppressive holy light.
01:11:55There was no escape.
01:11:56His eyes turned a violent, bloodshot crimson,
01:11:59his voice cracking with a shock that looked far too much like genuine pain.
01:12:03Faking your own death to deceive me?
01:12:05Elena, your audacity truly knows no bounds.
01:12:08You were the one who sent that bowl of poison!
01:12:11If I hadn't fled,
01:12:13my children would be nothing but a memory by now!
01:12:17Poison!
01:12:17I never gave such an order!
01:12:23Perrin stood paralyzed,
01:12:25the sheer weight of the crown prince's presence crushing the air from his lungs.
01:12:29He looked at me.
01:12:30You told me your husband had...
01:12:32that he had been marted on the northern front.
01:12:35Marted?
01:12:36Elena, are you so desperate for my death that you've already buried me in your stories?
01:12:40I couldn't look him in the eye.
01:12:42I hadn't wished for his death.
01:12:43It was quite the opposite.
01:12:44I had missed him so much that the only way to survive the silence was to bury his memory under
01:12:49a lie.
01:12:50Your highness, please, do not distress her.
01:12:55She is heavily pregnant. She cannot handle such a shock.
01:12:57Despite the visible trembling of his hands, Perrin stepped forward, shielding me with his own body.
01:13:02Get out of my way!
01:13:04He lunged forward, reaching to seize me.
01:13:06But before his fingers could brush my skin, a cataclysmic pain tore through my lower body.
01:13:11It felt as if my buried soul was being ripped in two.
01:13:14It hurts.
01:13:16Arthur, something is wrong.
01:13:18The hatchlings, they're coming now!
01:13:20I doubled over, my breath itching and strangled screams as the world began to tilt into darkness.
01:13:28The crown prince, who only moments ago had looked ready to tear the world apart, instantly lost his composure.
01:13:34Arthur gathered me into his arms.
01:13:36Those hands, usually so steady when gripping a sword or signing a death warrant, were now shaking uncontrollably.
01:13:44Don't be afraid, Elena.
01:13:47I've got you.
01:13:49I'm taking you home.
01:13:51He stayed right there, pacing the halls of the manor I had bought six months ago.
01:13:55The healers and midwives begged him to leave, citing ancient superstitions that a crown prince's presence in a birthing chamber
01:14:02would bring ruin to his divine love.
01:14:04Arthur didn't argue.
01:14:05He simply drew his sword and stood guard at the door as the hours bled into one another and the
01:14:10labor became unbearable.
01:14:12I began to sob, the tears flowing freely.
01:14:15Every time I cried out, the cold, ruthless leader of the dragon line, the man who made the empire tremble,
01:14:21found his own eyes welling with moisture.
01:14:23Finally, two sharp piercing cries rang out.
01:14:26A boy and a girl had safely entered the world.
01:14:29The midwives whispered among themselves as they cleaned the infants.
01:14:32In all their years of delivering children, they had never seen a mother endure labor, while the father stood by
01:14:37and cried his eyes out.
01:14:39When I finally opened my eyes, the room was bathed in the golden dying light of the next day's twilight.
01:14:46Arthur was right there, sitting by the bed.
01:14:48But as soon as my mind cleared, the old bitterness blared up.
01:14:51Stop pretending to care!
01:14:52You never wanted us!
01:14:53The day you returned to the capital, you were so eager to have me disposed.
01:14:57You stayed in your chambers with Isabella for three days and three nights.
01:15:01They said you were lost in each other until dawn.
01:15:04That the priests had to change the holy water twenty times because of your pravity!
01:15:08I never touched Isabella.
01:15:10And I never, not for a single second, intended to depose you.
01:15:12When I returned, my father did push for an alliance.
01:15:16But I stood before the entire court and declared that I already had a wife by sacred contract.
01:15:20He urged me to bring you to the palace immediately.
01:15:23I thought your heart was still full of Christopher.
01:15:25I was so mad with pain that I delayed the official proclamation of your title.
01:15:31I was a fool, Elena, but I was never unfaithful.
01:15:36A deep flush crept up my neck.
01:15:39All those stories, the whispered nights of passion,
01:15:42were nothing more than illusions and rumors engineered by Isabella
01:15:45to drive me to the edge of insanity.
01:15:47I've uncovered the truth.
01:15:53It was Isabella.
01:15:56She bribed the priests in the side hall.
01:15:59To lace your medicine with a cursed powder.
01:16:03Designed to wither the dragon line.
01:16:05His voice turned cold and predatory.
01:16:08A low vibration of pure hatred.
01:16:12I've stripped her of her noble name.
01:16:14And condemned her the tower to eternal waiths.
01:16:18For the rest of her life.
01:16:21Elena, thank God you were alert enough to refuse that drast.
01:16:28If you hadn't.
01:16:29His arms began to shake violently.
01:16:31This powerful, terrifying crown prince looked suddenly, heartbreakingly fragile.
01:16:35The walls I had built around my heart crumbled in an instant.
01:16:37For the first time in two years, I reached out and wound my arms around his neck.
01:16:41Leaning into him with a surge of pure, unadulterated longing.
01:16:45Since you never chose her, you aren't allowed to look at anyone else ever again.
01:16:50Arthur, if you ever dare to betray our contract, I will take our children and vanish into the mistwood.
01:16:55I will hide so well that you could spend the rest of your life searching and never see my face
01:17:00again.
01:17:00What did you just say?
01:17:04You're willing to stay for me?
01:17:06He pulled back, his eyes searching mine with a look of frantic, overwhelming joy.
01:17:11As if he were a drowning man who had finally found the shore.
01:17:15I looked at his face.
01:17:17The face of a man so devastatingly handsome.
01:17:20Yet currently twisted into an expression of clumsy, desperate anxiety.
01:17:26And I couldn't help but let out a soft laugh.
01:17:29I've always had a fondness for beasts.
01:17:32Especially a dragon like you.
01:17:35Greedy, humble, and so utterly obsessed.
01:17:39That once you've chosen a master, you can never be shaken off.
01:17:44Arthur's gaze darkened instantly.
01:17:47That predatory glint returned to his mismatched eyes, dancing with a renewed fire.
01:17:53He crushed his lips against mine, kissing me with a ferocity that suggested he wanted to grind my very soul
01:18:00into his own.
01:18:03I am your shadow.
01:18:06I am your guardian dragon.
01:18:10You will never push me away again as long as you live.
01:18:13His kiss was beginning to wander, growing more fervent and hungry, until it was abruptly shattered by two loud synchronized
01:18:21wails.
01:18:24The babies! Arthur, stop! I haven't even seen our children yet!
01:18:28The dignified crown prince lowered his lashes in a fit of silent, brooding resentment.
01:18:34He looked exactly like a great dragon, who had just seen his most precious treasure stolen, yet lacked the heart
01:18:41to retaliate.
01:18:42With a resigned sigh, he reached into the bassinets and scooped up the two velvet-wrapped bundles.
01:18:52Elena, even with these two little things stealing your attention, you are not allowed to reduce the love you give
01:18:58me by a single inch.
01:19:02I gave a helpless, quiet laugh.
01:19:05My fingertips brushed against the faint, shimmering gold scales on the hatchling's foreheads, the most sacred mark of the imperial
01:19:12line.
01:19:13Then, to be fair, I leaned up and pressed a lingering, reassuring kiss to the lips of their jealous father.
01:19:20The evening breeze of Emerald Harbor drifted through the window, carrying the scent of salt and blooming flowers.
01:19:27On this ancient continent of miracles and strong wine, we finally had our future.
01:19:34And for the first time, it was enough.
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