The Demon Lord's Bride (BL)
Chapter 70: If the stars can give me courage

Chapter 70: If the stars can give me courage

I jokingly said that I might not mind just living in the greenhouse, and the next thing I knew, Natha had arranged for our whole day to be spent there.

He ordered the servants to bring our meals there, even the afternoon tea. I spent some time listening to short lectures from the gardeners about all of the plants there, and for all I knew, Natha made a plan with the castle staff to put something more comfortable to lie down in the greenhouse.

We opened the glass door that led to the lake. Beneath a small flight of steps was a tiny dock, enough for a small boat. We had a picnic there, eating our meals while dangling our feet above the water.

A date in our small little corner.

Here, it didn’t feel like I was inside the Lord Castle, at the heart of the demon realm. Even while Natha was still the blue-skinned black-horned Nightmare, it just felt like we were in a different world of our own. A secluded little dimension belonged only to us.

And it turned even more beautiful at night.

As the glowing water lilies bloomed, the small artificial island was surrounded by lights. Small lights that glittered like the stars upon the water’s surface. Up above, as if refusing to lose, the sky was littered with countless drops of light, accompanying the moon that showered the castle with its soft light.

I could only stare there breathlessly, at the edge of the small dock, as the water and the sky felt like they were fused together, littered with stars.

I could only stare, but not Natha. He took my hand, put his arm around my waist, and we were floating. Black wings fluttered behind his back, and my heart almost stopped as my feet glided above the water’s surface.

"Na—" I couldn’t even finish calling his name when we lurched upward. I gasped, holding into his hand and shoulder, pressing my face on his chest.

"It’s alright, open your eyes," he whispered in a gentle voice, but it took me a while to brave myself and lifted my face. The first thing I saw was his smiling face, and beautiful silver gleam.

My heart was fighting to beat steadily when I realized I was floating—flying. The only thing supporting me was Natha’s hold and the soft wind swirling beneath my feet. I took a deep breath and looked down and...

Oh—whatever fear I had suddenly evaporated, scattered by the night autumn wind.

Looking at the view from the dock was one thing, but looking at everything from above...it was wonderful. So wonderful that I couldn’t find any words to properly describe it.

I felt like floating in space, with stars surrounding us. From above, from below. With the sound of the breeze and our beating hearts.

"Natha..." I finished the word finally, but no more. And wordlessly, he started to pull me, moving our body in the air, gliding and swaying softly with hands on my waist and grasping my palm.

It was as if we were dancing.

My fingers twitched in his hold, and as I grabbed his shoulder tightly, I realized it then. We really were dancing.

Or at least, he made me dance in the air, within the sea of stars.

There were a lot of things flooding my mind at that time, but all I could do was let him sway our bodies rhythmically in a soundless dance, as we gazed wordlessly into each other’s eyes.

"Natha..." I stared at the silver eyes. They felt different, not as sharp as before. Felt a bit blurry, even, as if he wasn’t really focused. "Can you read my thought?"

He chuckled, grasping my waist a little bit tighter as he turned our bodies around, making our coats flutter in the wind. Softly, he pulled my body closer, leaning our forehead against each other.

"No," he answered with a smile, eyes closed and lips stretched wide. "I had ceased to read you for a while now."

"Why?" my voice almost sounded like a whisper.

Gliding soundlessly in the air, the silver eyes that opened to look at me were even more beautiful than the moon hanging above us. "Because it makes me happier to hear them from your own lips."

My lips parted without any words coming out. He gripped my hand steadily and swayed our feet again, laughing softly at my silence.

"I don’t want to peer into your mind, and make you feel like you can’t even be honest with yourself," there was nothing but softness radiating from those silver eyes, my own pair of moons. "So you don’t have to worry. I won’t peek into your thought without your permission."

He smiled calmly, rubbing my waist and hand as if assuring me of his words. Without me being able to make a proper sound, I pressed my lips, and just stared at his face while he swayed us within the musicless dance.

The wind blew colorful leaves in the air, and swayed the glowing water lilies like dozens of floating lanterns beneath us, rippling the surface of the small lake that reflected the countless stars in the sky.

Everything...everything was beautiful.

And the most beautiful of all was the man who hold me tight with our little dance, with that same blissful smile he gave me last night on his beautiful face.

Ah...why did you have to give me that smile?

While my body swayed by his movement, my mind swirled. Perhaps because he said he wouldn’t read my thought, it dug the things I had been shoving into the dark corner of my heart.

Again, I looked at him. So beautiful, so perfect. Someone who could have anything they wanted in this world. He could even flip a kingdom upside down just by revealing a truth. He could fill his home with all the riches and beauties the world could offer.

And yet...why?

He didn’t seem to have anyone else, didn’t seem to ever bring anyone else here. Why? Why though? Even if he fell for Valmeier, it couldn’t be more than five years ago, since it was during the war. What about the rest eighty years of his life?

I remembered that I had thought about him making me a bride just because he wanted to collect partners of every race, you know, since he was supposed to be the Demon Lord of Greed. I had thought that he had a harem or something like that in his castle. Or probably in his every vacation house. While I was trapped in the Tower, he could just go around having fun with his other lovers, since it wasn’t like I had someplace else to go, or had any means to know.

And even if he did all that, I could understand. This was another world, and he was a Demon Lord. Even the King of Valmeier’s kingdom had a palace just for his harem. And it wasn’t like I had a feeling for Natha at the start.

But the more we interacted, the more he showed me affection, the more I felt it was weird. He looked at me as if I was the most precious thing among his treasure. Sometimes, it even felt as if he regarded me as his sole treasure.

How could one heart not move by that?

Even if Zia didn’t tell me that Natha never had a lover—much less a harem—I would just know from the way he treated me.

That I was the only one.

I didn’t know why. What was the reason this Demon Lord, who had everything from power, to money, to looks, to lived as an untouchable bachelor all this while. I didn’t know why he instead chose a human as his partner. A priest for that matter. And a half-druid. While there were lots of demons willing to kill to be his spouse, surely. Perhaps even to be his mistress and side piece.

I didn’t know why—and I didn’t know whether I should be glad about it, or curse myself for stealing Valmeier’s fate. This love, affection, devotion...shouldn’t it be his rather than mine?

My heart was screaming in protest, my desire fighting with my conscience. Oh, I wanted to be a wicked man that wouldn’t even think twice about this opportunity.

But I was also greedy.

My greed...of wanting his heart to be mine completely. I could just live pretending that our first encounter was on that balcony. I could pretend that Natha had never met Valmeier before.

I craved for his love, not for Valmeier, but for me, entirely. And I would never gain that if I kept on pretending to be Valmeier. If I didn’t reveal that I was someone born in another world.

And yet, I was a coward.

I opened my eyes, which I didn’t realize had been closed for a while, and stared at him. He still looked at me with that soft glow in his eyes, that genuine smile that I knew now he only used for me. I blinked slowly, and pulled myself away from him.

The moment the silver orbs rippled and the smile was gone was vivid in my eyes. A split second as my heart dropped and his face filled with fear. In a split second when my body felt weightless and my heart trembled, I let go of everything.

Just a split second before his arms were back in my body, holding me even tighter. I could hear his fast heartbeats, and his ragged breath of panic. "Val, what are—"

Before he could peer into my eyes, into my ugly soul, I grabbed his back tightly and hid my face on his shoulder. I could feel him stiffen at the first tear spilled from my eyes, at my clawing fingers on his back.

Wordlessly, he hold me, tightly, as I cried silently in his embrace. I cried my heart out, and scattered my thought to the wind.

My soundless, forbidden words of devotion.

I want to say that I loved him, but I couldn’t.

All I could do was curse my cowardly self while hanging into this limited time that fate allowed me to feel his affection.

I swore I wouldn’t cry any more after this. I swore I wouldn’t even cry when the time came, when he found out who I really was and discarded me. I swore I’d even try to find the courage to tell him myself one day.

But for now, let me just let it out, silently, within his arm, and the sea of stars.

And my broken, soundless, words of devotion.

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