A few days had passed since Malvoria had first ntioned the idea of a date in Velyra's office when they had been alone.
At the ti, Elysia's mind had laughed it off—more amused than anything. Malvoria, the cold and imposing Demon Queen, planning sothing as mundane as a date? It had to be a joke.
Maybe Malvoria actually wanted to change I don't know?
But after that night, Malvoria had gone back to her usual habits—locking herself in her office, drowning in paperwork, and barely acknowledging Elysia's existence. So, naturally, Elysia had dismissed the entire idea.
Maybe Malvoria had just been teasing her, or maybe she'd co to her senses and realized how ridiculous it was for them to pretend like they could ever be a real couple.
Still, sothing about Malvoria's silence was... off.
There was an unusual tension in the air whenever they were in the sa room, as if Malvoria was thinking about sothing but refusing to say it. And that—more than anything—was bothering Elysia.
What was she hiding from ? That exaxtly what Elysia thought.
So, in an attempt to push the thoughts away, Elysia decided to do what she did best. Train.
The training grounds were as lively as ever. The demon soldiers were already engaged in drills when Elysia arrived, stretching her arms before stepping into the fray.
"Queen Elysia!" one of the demons called out, grinning. "Here to beat us up again?"
Elysia smirked. "Only if you make it easy."
The soldiers cheered, always eager for a spar with her. Since she had first arrived in the Demon Kingdom, they had co to respect her not just as Malvoria's wife but as soone who could actually hold her own.
The first match started, and Elysia found herself falling into the familiar rhythm of combat—steel clashing, feet shifting, muscles straining. She dodged a heavy blow from a massive demon warrior before twisting around and striking his ribs with the flat of her blade.
The match ended with her opponent groaning on the ground, and the others laughed as they helped him up.
"You're getting too good at this," another soldier teased.
Elysia grinned, flicking sweat from her brow. "Or maybe you're just getting slower."
Another round, another fight. The movents ca naturally, her body reacting without thought. But despite the distraction, she couldn't shake Malvoria from her mind.
The demon queen had been acting too strange, too distant, and it was annoying. What was she planning, was it bad or good?
When the training was finally over, Elysia stretched her sore limbs and decided to take a walk through the gardens to clear her head.
The gardens were always peaceful.
Vibrant flowers of deep reds, purples, and silvers blood around the stone pathways, their petals glowing faintly under the waning sunlight.
The air was rich with their scent—floral and slightly spiced, unlike the flowers from her own kingdom. They really looked beautiful and whoever was in charge of those flower needed to be aknoledge.
Elysia ran her fingers over the petals of a soft pink rose, exhaling slowly.
She didn't want to think about Malvoria. She really didn't.
But—
"We need to talk."
Elysia flinched slightly at the voice, her fingers stilling against the rose petals.
Turning, she found Malvoria standing at the garden entrance, looking directly at her.
For a mont, all she could do was blink.
Malvoria was here. Out of her office. Talking.
That was already shocking enough.
But there was sothing else—sothing almost excited in Malvoria's expression, like she had been waiting for this mont.
Elysia narrowed her eyes. "Oh. Now you want to talk?"
Malvoria ignored the jab. "Co."
She turned on her heel and began walking toward a stone bench, fully expecting Elysia to follow.
Elysia hesitated.
Sothing about this felt... weird.
And yet against her better judgnt she sighed and followed, sitting beside Malvoria with her arms crossed.
The silence stretched between them for a mont.
Then—
"We're going on a date. Tomorrow. Hiking."
Elysia stared.
Blinked. Then stared more.
She was not sure what was more shocking—the fact that Malvoria planned sothing outdoors or the fact that she sounded so determined about it.
What the heck?
"...Excuse ?" Elysia finally said.
Malvoria turned to face her, dead serious. "We're going hiking tomorrow."
Elysia blinked again. "You're serious."
"Obviously."
Elysia let out a sharp laugh, shaking her head. "Okay, wait. You, the Demon Queen—who hates anything remotely casual—want to take hiking?"
Malvoria nodded, looking completely unfazed.
Elysia could barely process this. "What happened to fancy royal events? Banquets? War?"
Malvoria sighed. "I planned sothing based on you. You seem like the type who would rather go on an adventure than sit through so useless dinner."
Elysia felt a strange warmth in her chest at that. She had not expected Malvoria to put that much thought into it. But it was true a fancy dinner would have been annoying.
"...And what? You're suddenly fine with calling this a date?" she asked, eyes narrowing slightly.
Malvoria raised a brow. "You were the one who asked if it was a date last ti. I decided it might as well be one now."
Elysia didn't even know what to say to that.
Her mind was still catching up.
Malvoria planned a date. Malvoria planned a date. Malvoria planned a—
Elysia shook her head, focusing back on Malvoria.
"And you're just expecting to agree?" she asked.
Malvoria smirked. "You're already thinking about it, aren't you?"
Damn her.
Elysia was thinking about it. And that was the most frustrating part. She didn't trust Malvoria. Not fully. Not yet.
But the idea of them alone, away from the castle, doing sothing so normal—was sothing she couldn't ignore.
She let out a long breath. "Fine. But if I die on this so-called hike, I'm haunting you."
Malvoria chuckled, standing up. "You won't die."
Elysia groaned and ran a hand through her hair. "We'll see about that."
Malvoria offered a hand. "Co on. We'll go over the details."
Elysia eyed her for a mont before sighing and taking it, letting herself be pulled to her feet.
This was either going to be a disaster....Or sothing she wouldn't forget.
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