Dark clouds rolled across the sky as Queen Veliean stood in the sacred chamber, her hands glowing with celestial power. Shadows flickered across the walls as the energy swirled between her fingers, raw and untamed.
Kneeling before her, Ambrose clenched his fists, bracing himself. He had waited for this moment—to reclaim what was stolen from him.
Veliean hesitated for the briefest moment. Would this be a blessing or a curse?
Then she whispered the incantation.
A surge of power lashed through the air like a whip. The moment it struck him, Ambrose arched backward, a sharp gasp escaping his lips. His veins ignited with dark energy, pulsing, burning, consuming. It rushed through him, a force both intoxicating and agonizing.
Then—silence.
Ambrose exhaled, his shoulders heaving. The chaos inside him—the imbalance that had plagued him for so long—was gone.
For the first time in years, he felt stable. Whole.
And yet… something inside him whispered a warning.
But he ignored it.
There was only one thing on his mind now.
Pearl.
A Confession Bound by Fate
The air in Pearl's chamber was thick with quiet tension.
She stood by the fireplace, the glow casting soft golden hues over her face. She had been feeling strange lately—weaker, slower, as if something inside her was slipping away. But the moment Ambrose entered, all of that faded into the background.
He looked different. Stronger. Grounded.
And yet, his eyes held something unreadable.
Pearl turned to face him fully, her heart suddenly unsteady.
He took slow, deliberate steps toward her, stopping just close enough that she could feel the energy humming beneath his skin.
"You are the only thing in this world that feels real to me," he murmured, his voice impossibly soft, like the whisper of a storm before it breaks.
Pearl swallowed.
Ambrose lifted a hand, fingers brushing against her cheek. The touch sent a shiver down her spine.
"I was meant to break. But you..." His thumb traced her jawline. "You are the only thing that has ever held me together."
Pearl's lips parted, but no words came.
She had spent her whole life being unwanted, discarded, cursed. And now, here he was—this storm of a man, this being of chaos and darkness—telling her that she was his anchor.
A tremor passed through her as he leaned in, his lips barely brushing hers.
Then, he kissed her.
And everything changed.
At first, it was like every other time. A warmth spread through her chest. A spark of energy surged between them.
His eyes fluttered shut.
And then they snapped open.
Blue. Not just any blue—searing, electric, alive.
Pearl gasped. The power between them, the force that had always been a quiet hum, exploded.
The air around them cracked.
Ambrose's grip on her tightened—not in passion, but in something uncontrollable. His body jerked violently as the veins along his arms darkened, pulsing with untamed power. His breath hitched, his entire form trembling.
Pearl tried to pull back—she couldn't.
A sharp pain shot through her chest, stealing her breath.
Something was being pulled from her.
The walls trembled as a violent force rippled through the room, throwing furniture against the stone. The flames in the fireplace twisted, turning from gold to blue to black. The very fabric of the air seemed to distort.
Pearl's body convulsed. Her vision blurred.
Ambrose's hands shot to his head as a guttural sound tore from his throat.
"No—" he rasped, trying to fight it, but the force was stronger than him.
The demonic energy within him surged.
His hand lifted before he even realized it.
A clawed hand.
And then—he struck.
The force sent Pearl flying across the room, her body hitting the cold stone floor.
Everything blurred.
The last thing she saw was Ambrose standing there, trembling, his eyes still burning that unnatural blue—and the look of sheer horror on his face.
Then—darkness.
Far beyond the castle walls, Miraculas watched.
The celestial being stood at the edge of time itself, his expression unreadable.
He had warned the realms. He had whispered fate's warnings into the ears of those willing to listen.
And yet—they had brought ruin upon themselves.
His fingers curled into a fist.
Ambrose and Pearl together were more than a forbidden bond. They were destruction.
Damsel would not survive them.
And Miraculas was not prepared to let the realm fall
In another corner of the world, beneath the golden banners of his kingdom, King Blaze stood still, his fingers pressed against the hilt of his sword.
His son was suffering.
And he knew exactly who to blame.
Pearl.
She had already weakened Ambrose once. She had been draining him, poisoning him.
And now—she carried something even more dangerous.
His jaw clenched as he stared at the glowing map before him. The one life Pearl carried within her was Ambrose's only salvation.
He would not lose his son.
Even if it meant taking Pearl's life to save him.
"By dawn," he murmured to his men, "she will no longer be a threat."
Back in the castle, Queen Veliean stood beside Pearl's unconscious form, her heart heavy.
But something glimmered beneath the rubble, barely catching her eye.
A chain.
A pendant.
Not fully revealed—just a glimpse.
Her breath stilled.
She had seen that before.
And if it was what she thought it was…
Then Pearl was not just some girl from the human world.
She was something far, far more dangerous.
The world was shifting.
Pearl lay still, trapped in an unbreakable sleep.
Ambrose stood over her, his hands shaking, the blue fire in his eyes dimming into something unreadable.
Far away, Miraculas watched with silent disapproval and King Blaze prepared for war.
Pearl would either live... or die.