The Devil's Cursed Witch

Draven returned to his chamber, but even after going back to his bed, sleeping was out of the question-- his mate had thoroughly stirred up his mind and his body, giving him a hard time trying to suppress his urges to do things with her.

He pushed aside the blacket and got out of the bed barefoot. The restless king started to pace back and forth inside his chamber while frowning and sighing in frustration.

'I need to stay away from her. I need to shift her somewhere else,' was his main line of thought, but it continued to move on to an unexpected worry. 'But if she continues to behave carelessly like today, how will I learn her situation in time if she is not nearby? The worry will probably drive me crazy.'

Draven lightly massaged his temples.

'Fine, I will let her continue staying in the palace, but I must avoid meeting her. I can't afford to be affected by her like this, or I don't know what I will do. I might end up hurting her.'

He stopped pacing as he mused. 'Need to find a way so she won't ever come across me, as if she doesn't exist here. Thankfully, her scent can't reach here or I would have left my own palace.'

Draven felt relieved, but the next moment, his mind had contradictory thoughts.

'Why would I leave? Instead, I will throw her out to some other place. If the tree spirits of Ronan can't coexist with her, then how about I put her with the witches? Cornelia will treat her well.'

Just as he felt satisfied with his thought, once again it changed. 'But I can't throw her out. Damn it, she is my mate and if I throw her out, the other males...'

He clenched his fists at the thought of them and remembered how angry he was when she smelled Morpheus' scent on her. With his jaw tightening, he decided, 'I cannot throw her out. I can't keep her in places where a male can approach her. Even if it's coincidental she became close or friendly with a male, the moment I smell any male scent on her, I might end up killing someone after so long.'

'No one is allowed to touch my mate.' His eyes turned the deepest shade of red, the kind that showed the darkness inside him, and his breaths became heavy with anger. 'She is mine.'

The hellishly cold king who hardly said a few lines in a day--and that too hardly included more than a few words--was now  muttering to himself nonstop. Yet he didn't even realize it.

While talking to himself, he had already spoken at least a month's worth of words.

-----

The next morning Ember woke up with a refreshed feeling from a good night's sleep, unaware that because of her a certain someone could not sleep the entire night.

"Oh, the Miss is awake!"

"Is she already awake?"

"Good morning, Miss Ember!"

"Did you sleep well, Miss Ember?"

"Hey, it's my and Clio's turn to serve the Miss today. Don't overwhelm the Miss. Shoo, shoo, get out."

Because they heard from Yula and the other servants that Ember is a shy yet nice human girl, Ember became popular among the female servants of the palace, especially the younger ones. Several servants had been checking Ember a few times since early in the morning to see if she was awake, but when they discovered she was still in deep sleep, no one disturbed her.

However, now that Ember was awake, the two servants assigned to her that day immediately bowed to her.

Ember, who was sitting in her bed, looked at them. Yula had introduced them to her yesterday. "Good morning, uhm, Reya and Clio?"

The first elf grinned. "Miss remembered our names!"

"I'm honored that you remember us, Miss," the second one politely bowed.

Reya and Clio were both Moon Elves with silvery blue hair, similar to Yula, though they both wear them in a high bun. According to them, they were cousins, with Reya being the older but spirited one, and Clio the more mature despite being the younger cousin.

Just then, Yula entered the chamber. "Good morning, Miss Ember. How are you feeling this morning?"

"Good morning, Yula." Ember stretched her body. "I am not feeling tired anymore. I think my injuries are not hurting that much as well."

"That's good to know. It must be the effect of the potion you got from the witches. In no time, you will be completely fine and healthy, Miss Ember," Yula said with much happiness. "Would you like to freshen up first? I am sure you must be hungry."

Ember nodded immediately. She had stopped thinking why she was eating this much and just enjoyed eating when she was being fed nicely. Moreover, she was feeling truly hungry.

She quickly washed her face and changed into a simple dress, excited to start her day where she had a plan to explore every single part of the palace.

Ember had a nice morning meal inside the dining hall, and she was satisfied with everything she ate. Though she loved the bread that Leeora personally baked for her, the Wood Elves do not eat meat, and so for the past weeks, Ember only fed on bread, fruits and vegetables. Ember personally preferred the variety of food offered in the palace, which was more suitable to her palate.

Just as she was thinking of going out to start exploring this palace, she heard Yula talking to the two elf servants.

"Have you prepared everything?"

The two servants nodded. "The pool has been prepared the way you have asked,  Dame Yula."

Yula offered them a satisfied smile and then looked at Ember. The human girl had stood up from her seat and the rectangle dining table in front of her all had empty dishes left on it.

"Miss Ember, please follow me," Yula instructed.

"Where are we going?" Ember asked as she was not one to blindly follow anyone.

Yula maintained that pleasant smile on her lips. "Miss Ember, I have prepared a grooming session for you."

It puzzled Ember. "Grooming? What is it?"