Married To Darkness
Chapter 278: The Survivors from that night.

Chapter 278: The Survivors from that night.

"Yes," Alaric confirmed, his tone clipped. "He used the girls to feed his own power, summoning dark forces he couldn’t control. It looks like these beasts finished what we started."

Salviana’s face paled at his words.

She turned her head to avoid the sight of the mangled bodies on the ground. "So many lives... wasted," she murmured.

"We don’t have time to dwell on it," Lucius said sharply. He turned to Alaric. "What do we do now? If these beasts were controlled, then someone—or something—far more dangerous is behind all of this."

"We prepare," Alaric said, his voice steady despite the weight of the situation. "This isn’t over. Whoever controlled those beasts will try again."

Jaefel sheathed his sword, his jaw tight. "And when they do, we’ll be ready."

The portal, now reduced to a faint shimmer, began to close, its edges folding in on themselves until it disappeared entirely. The group let out a collective breath they hadn’t realized they were holding.

Salviana looked up at Alaric, her green eyes filled with worry. "Do you think they’ll come back?"

Alaric placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "If they do, they’ll regret it," he said firmly.

Lucius smirked faintly, his crimson eyes glinting. "Spoken like a true prince."

But as the group turned away from the ritual ground, their thoughts were heavy. The portal was gone, but the danger wasn’t.

Whatever force had controlled the beasts and orchestrated the summoning was still out there, watching, waiting.

And the kingdom of Wyfn Garde would never be the same.

A sense of unease lingered in the air.

The portal was gone, but the darkness it brought had left its mark, and the kingdom of Wyfn Garde would not escape the shadow it cast.

Or they were just overthinking it and this was all over.

Before the group could step away from the gruesome scene, Salviana’s voice cut through the uneasy silence.

"Wait," she said, her golden eyes wide with alarm. "The princesses... Where are they?"

"Mire!" Emma wailed, the maid!

The question struck everyone like a thunderclap. Jean gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. "Oh no. Are they...?"

"Dead?" Jaefel finished, his voice grim.

Alaric’s gaze swept across the clearing, his chest tightening. He cursed under his breath. "They can’t be... I left them just today I don’t think they’d have been a part of the ritual. They should be safe."

Panic spread through the group like wildfire. "We have to find them," Salviana urged, her voice trembling. "Now."

Lucius, ever calm under pressure, raised a hand. "Wait." He tilted his head slightly, his crimson eyes narrowing. "There’s something... a sound. Muffled, faint. Listen."

Everyone froze, straining to hear. At first, there was nothing but the rustling of leaves and the distant crackle of dying magical flames.

But then, faintly, like a whisper carried on the wind, they heard it—a muffled cry.

"There!" Lucius said, pointing toward a cluster of jagged rocks near the edge of the clearing.

Without hesitation, they rushed to the spot. Alaric reached it first, his heightened senses guiding him. Behind a low, craggy boulder, they found them—the two princesses,

Christina and Jolene, unconscious but alive, their dresses torn and bloodied. Beside them lay another person, barely older than Emma, her breath shallow but steady.

Salviana dropped to her knees beside them, her hands shaking as she checked for signs of life. "They’re breathing," she said, relief washing over her voice. "But they’re weak."

Alaric knelt beside her, his brow furrowed in concern. "They must have been drained, caught in whatever ritual was happening here."

Lucius scanned the area, his sharp eyes wary. "It’s a miracle they survived. Even if the ritual hadn’t killed them the whatever summoned those beasts could have easily killed them."

"Why didn’t they use them?" Jean asked, her voice trembling. "Why leave them alive?"

"Maybe they weren’t meant to die yet," Jaefel said darkly. "Maybe they were part of something unfinished."

"We can’t leave them here," Salviana said firmly, looking to Alaric. "We need to get them back to the castle."

Alaric nodded. "Lucius, can you carry one of the princesses? Jaefel, the other? I’ll take the girl."

Without hesitation, Lucius and Jaefel moved to pick up the unconscious princesses. Lucius handled Christina with surprising gentleness, while Jaefel carefully hoisted Jolene over his shoulder.

Alaric bent down, lifting the unknown girl into his arms as if she weighed nothing.

As they prepared to leave, Salviana couldn’t help but glance back at the now-empty clearing.

The grotesque scene haunted her, the dead witches and wizards lying in twisted, unnatural positions.

The memory of the ritual, the lunatic witches and the portal lingered like a shadow in her mind.

"Let’s go," Alaric said, his voice steady but low. "This isn’t over. Not yet."

With their precious cargo in hand, the group moved swiftly through the forest, their thoughts heavy with unanswered questions.

Who had summoned the beasts? What had spared the princesses? And what darkness still loomed over the kingdom of Wyfn Garde?

As Alaric gently laid the unconscious maid into the carriage, recognition washed over Emma. "It’s Mire," she whispered, her voice tinged with shock.

"Mire?" Alaric echoed, his black eyes narrowing.

"She’s the maid Richard kidnapped from the castle," Emma explained, brushing back the girl’s disheveled hair. "She’s alive... thank the gods. This is the reason I started investigating too"

Lucius and Jaefel exchanged grim looks, but before anyone could reply, Salviana’s sharp intake of breath drew their attention.

"Serenity... Miss Margaretha..." Emma stammered, her voice cracking. She pointed to two lifeless forms lying among the others, their faces pale and still.

Alaric clenched his jaw, his expression darkening. "They didn’t make it."

"Margaretha needed it," Lucius bellowed and silence ensued.

Salviana felt her heart sink. Serenity, one of the few women she’s ever felt jealousy because of though she never met her, and Miss Margaretha, a woman who hadn’t been exactly the best but she was innocent in this, now they were among the dead.

"They’re gone," Jaefel muttered, his usual humor absent. "So many lives lost."

"We can’t stay here," Alaric said firmly, his voice cutting through the despair. "The dawn isn’t far off, and we need to get back to the castle before anyone finds this... this massacre."

With somber determination, the group loaded the unconscious princesses, Mire, and themselves into the carriage Jaefel had brought.

The wheels groaned as they rolled over the uneven forest floor, carrying them away from the grim scene.

Inside the carriage, Salviana sat close to the princesses, her thoughts conflicted. Christina and Jolene were the same women who had tried to kill her, framing her as a witch.

She glanced at Alaric, who sat opposite her, his gaze distant but sharp.

"They were used as bait," Salviana murmured, breaking the silence. "To lure Richard out."

Alaric nodded, his blue eyes meeting hers. "Yes. The king gave me permission to use them, knowing the risk."

"But now?" Jaefel asked from his seat beside Lucius, his tone skeptical. "What do we do with them? They’re still prisoners, technically."

Lucius folded his arms, his expression unreadable. "They’ve helped the kingdom, whether they meant to or not. Without them, we might never have exposed Richard or stopped the ritual."

Emma, seated beside Salviana, frowned. "So... what now? Do they go back to the dungeons?"

Salviana hesitated, her heart torn. Despite their past actions, the princesses had suffered terribly.

Their lives had been used as pawns in a dangerous game. Could they truly deserve further punishment?

Alaric’s voice was firm but measured. "They’ll return to the castle maybe, they’ve served a purpose. We’ll let the king decide their fate. But they won’t go back to the dungeons—not after this."

"And Mire?" Salviana asked, her hand brushing over the maid’s cold, clammy forehead.

"She’ll be cared for," Alaric said softly. "She’s innocent in all of this."

The group fell into a heavy silence as the carriage rumbled toward the castle.

Outside, the first light of dawn began to peek over the horizon, casting the forest in a pale glow.

When they finally reached the castle gates, the group knew that the horrors of the night weren’t over.

The kingdom of Wyfn Garde had been spared a great evil, but at a cost that none of them could ignore.

The dead needed to be mourned, the living needed answers, and the lingering darkness still cast its shadow over them all.

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