But the Demon God didn’t respond. He turned to Ren, offering his arm like a gentleman. "Coming?"
Ren looked up at Kai. His expression was rigid, his grip reluctant. He didn’t like this, didn’t trust it. But he had to rely on her decision.
"I’ll be fine," she murmured.
Damn, he cursed himself. She slipped her hand from his and stepped forward, walking beside the demon god into the waiting shadows.
With a graceful sweep of his hand, the Demon God sliced the air, and in a single step, the dark hall lted into a sun-drenched garden. Birdsong filtered through the leaves and felt delicate and bright. A soft breeze carried the scent of earth and blossoms, brushing coolly against her skin. Ren inhaled, then sneezed, startled. Oh, that was embarrassing.
"Apologies," she murmured.
He smiled faintly. "Did you think the Demon God of the Underworld lived in fire and tornt, surrounded by beasts feasting on blood?"
Actually... yes, that was exactly what she’d imagined.
"To be honest... I did," she admitted.
He chuckled, a sound so calm, so oddly human, it drifted around her like a gentle breeze. Strangely, Ren didn’t feel uncomfortable in his presence. Not exactly. But sothing in her kept her guarded. A whisper beneath her thoughts warned her not to trust him. Not entirely. Indeed, he was deceitful.
"The majority of this realm is a prison," he said, his tone light as he strolled between flowering trees. "A cage for sinners. I doubt you’d want to see it. This... is the Dreamland. The one part of my realm shaped for gentler things."
A chill brushed her spine. She eagerly didn’t want to see hell! Why would she want that at all? And gentler things? Giving people deceitful nightmares wasn’t gentle, it was evil. Showed them a door to the green garden, and as they entered, it would be just nullity.
The Dreamland! Tsk!
This was the place where he invaded people’s dreams, where he planted riddles and nightmares, pitting his twisted visions against the sweet dreams endowed by the gods of the heavens. Those black mirrors she’d seen earlier? Portals. Good gods! It gave her goosebumps after rembering what he was doing to her. But she was also mad at Kai. His deal with his father had two sides, and he just told her about half of it. Reasonably, he was so determined not to disappoint his father, but he did. She could forgive him for saving her.
Alas, this stunning garden was only the surface of sothing far more dangerous.
"So... you placed a cursed crest on Shadow," Ren said quietly.
The Demon God studied her, impressed. This fragile-looking woman had accomplished what even he could not. She hadn’t just tad Shadow. She had rged him with Kaisun, forging them into one. His brothers in the heavens had mocked him for centuries, and now they would surely claim victory. But strangely, he didn’t feel defeated. This girl was married to his son. And soday, their child would carry his blood, and this cycle would continue.
"So," he mused, "you want to break it?"
Every part of Ren bristled in warning. Was he offering... a deal?
"Should I be asking for that?" she countered, her voice cautious.
He stopped walking, tilting his head in amusent. One hand gripped the sleek black cane he carried—its crown-shaped head crowned by a glimring ruby, pulsing like a slow heartbeat.
"You may ask anything," he said. "Anything you desire. Since you are an exception, I’ll grant you whatever you want."
Ren’s lips curled into a sweet, calculated smile. "As a father-in-law... would you grant a wish? Or would it be as the God of the dark realm?"
This girl... She left a mark wherever she walked. The Demon God studied her with growing fascination. "What if I ask you to leave Kaisun, and marry my other son, Lutherieth? In exchange, I’ll lift the curse."
Ren tilted her head just like how he did, unfazed. "Then I suppose we’ll keep the curse. I’ll free myself when I choose."
He let out a burst of laughter, rich and unrestrained. Then, more softly, he asked, "Do you truly love Kaisun?"
Ren hesitated, lips tightening. "He confuses . And I don’t know what’s coming. I’ve just learned that the man I trusted as my king, my dearest uncle, is my real father. And my mother... was a High Fae."
He nodded, expression unreadable. "Does it trouble you, having Fae blood?"
Her gaze lifted to et his. Sothing in her was splintered, beyond nding and the demon god could see and just pity. Her soul felt like a sculpture shattered mid-design. She didn’t know what she was anymore.
"Three shades of magic in a frail hybrid," she whispered. "What even am I? Can soone tell !?"
The Demon God held her gaze for a long, contemplative mont. "What do you want to be?"
The light in her eyes dimd, hardening into resolve.
"I’ll defeat your son, Lutherieth," she declared, her voice like steel wrapped in velvet. "And I’ll bring back the book he stole from you. Please hide it or burn it so no one can use it again."
The Demon God’s expression darkened, so mischievous and unreadable, tinged with sothing almost human, that could be frustration mixed with unease.
It gnawed at him that he couldn’t read her mind. He, the god who saw through masks and illusions, who could peer into the darkest corners of desire, even the sinful ones. Yet her thoughts remained veiled. Why? He couldn’t understand it. And that only intrigued him more.
"In exchange?" he asked, his voice was calm and purposeful.
"I don’t want to be your son’s mate," Ren replied, her tone was unwavering. "Break the curse binding him to , so I can be free afterward. You all owe that, after the lies you’ve spun and the truth you buried."
The Demon God sneered. "You are indeed bold. So you’ll reject my son as your mate?"
"I will, if that’s the only way to break the curse." Her voice was calm and resolute. "Binding him to his mate will weaken Shadow. I’m sure you don’t want that. As for , I need to find who I am, and binding us as mates only chains tighter. He’d follow wherever I go."
He studied her for a long beat, then gave a slow nod. "Your wish shall be granted. And in return, you’ll bring my book, and Lutherieth, bound in chains."
She t his gaze without flinching. "This is our secret. And I know gods never speak of their secrets. Demon or not."
Ren had to do this. For him. To free Kai from the curse that shackled him to his father’s will. Shadow was tad now, her power had done that. And though their mating bond might be broken, what bound them ran deeper. The heavens had tied their fates together. Not being mates wouldn’t tear them apart. He would just stop being clingy. If he truly loved her, he would tolerate the mating bond being screwed.
She had to use this mont and twist it into sothing sharp. She would act as though she didn’t love him. Pretend indifference. She would fool them all, at least until the war ended, if she survived it at all.
She owed these demons nothing. But they? They owed her everything. And she would use that debt. No, she would abuse it.
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