The Devil's Son and His Fated Bride
Chapter 91: Taking her soul to the Underworld.

Chapter 91: Taking her soul to the Underworld.

"Move aside!" Kai barked at Healer Rigo as he stormed to the bedside. After hearing what had happened to his wife, madness tore through the last threads of his sanity and took the better of him.

"Chain the beast at his post, Siamon!" he ordered, his glare dangerously sharp, brimming with restrained fury. His butler darted out quickly to chain the griffin.

Arkilla flinched but kept her head low. His Highness was cracking with wrath, inadvertently, not knowing what he was doing. The poor baby griffin had only tried to protect Luna.

"Your Grace, Ogain didn’t act out of turn. Punish me instead," she pleaded. "We were training, and he was provoked."

Kai’s eyes snapped to her, blazing. "Did you hurt her?"

She shook her head quickly. "No! Her Highness adapts faster than anyone I’ve ever seen. She matched every one of my strikes and learned to dodge all my moves. I’ve never seen a human like her. She was entirely fine. It can’t be for taming the baby griffin."

"Then why the hell is she burning?" Kai turned to Rigo, his voice cracking at the edge. Panic pulsed beneath his rage. His chest felt like it would shatter from the force of his heartbeat.

"I don’t know," the healer admitted helplessly. "There’s no internal damage. No sign of harm."

Frustration and confusion clawed at the room until Agara’s voice sliced through the tension. It was calm and unwavering as though he knew the reason. "Everyone out."

The command left no room for debate. As the others filed out, Agara walked to the opposite side of the bed, facing Kai.

Once the door closed, Kai sank to his knees, brushing a lock of hair from Ren’s damp face. "Can you find the source of the fever? She is gasping."

Agara nodded slowly, "She is facing a deliberate nightmare." The fear in Kai’s eyes was real, so raw and unguarded.

"This is your father’s doing," he continued. "I should’ve seen it coming. I knew he would be drawn to her, but not this quickly."

Kai shot to his feet, panic seizing control. He yanked off Ren’s nightgown with shaking hands, baring her burning skin to the air. "Bring that cold water, now. I have to cool her down before it’s too late."

Agara didn’t question him. He moved fast, helping Kai sponge her body with the cold water, trying to bring the fever under control.

"This is my fault," Kai muttered, his voice tight with self-loathing. "I should’ve protected her."

"Don’t do that," Agara snapped. "You can’t shoulder this alone. We always knew he would reach for her soul. Your deal, remember?" He paused, voice dropping as if the weight of truth demanded reverence.

"Your father holds all seven shades of the world’s essence. He’s the first, the strongest force in the underworld. And now a human, your wife, was born with three of those shades. Of course, the black one would catch his eye. She can tame dragons and griffins. Shadow himself is a Hell Dracon, she could tame you without knowing it; have you forgotten that?" Agara leaned closer, eyes burning with conviction.

"She’s not just your wife. She’s your match. Your mate. And I believe your father never expected the gods to move against him when it came to his son. But they have. And now..." He exhaled. "Now imagine the child she’ll bear, one carrying your father’s blood through your veins and hers through a heart that can master beasts and bend fate. That child could destroy him."

Kai had never cared about his father’s ambitions. All his life, he only wanted to avoid disappointing him, thus, he agreed to the game. Find his mate, bring her as an offering to the underworld, and prove that he was above love. Detached. Unshackled to this emotion. If he succeeded, he could live as a mortal, free from the underworld’s grip, free of Shadow.

But it wasn’t his father who was disappointed now. It was Ren. His father made sure of that.

He had made a deal with the demon god. If he found his fated mate and didn’t fall in love, Kai was to deliver her to his father as an offering, proof that he remained loyal, heartless, and unbound. And he had believed he could do it. He had been so certain.

Until Ren’s emergence.

Now, he would give his life for her. Without hesitation.

The cruel twist of it was that if he fell in love, the other side of the deal would be triggered. His father would take him instead if he refused to give his lover— he would claim him—turn him once more into the deadly, obedient pet he had once been.

"Agara," he said tightly, eyes never leaving Ren’s flushed face. "I have to go. Stay here. Keep her body cool. I must see my father."

Agara spun toward him, fury igniting in his eyes as he clarified, "You stupid brute! If you go there and he chains you, then you’ve already let Lutherieth win her!"

The truth charred Kai’s stomach and gnawed at his nerves. But leaving Ren like this, burning, fading, was the same as surrendering her. He had to go after her spirit. Physically, she wouldn’t suffer much... but it would be easy for his father to dull her soul, to twist her into a pet, just as he had once twisted Kai.

This marriage was no longer a transaction between King Benkin and him. This woman was his. Not as a prize, not as a bargain, but as something holy and alive.

"She’s mine," he growled under his breath. "I have to go."

"No!" Agara snapped. "Lie beside her. Send Shadow after her instead. He’ll protect her. For once in your damn life, trust him. Accept that fucking demon of yours, embrace him, so you can stand against your father. Do it for her, Kai. You’ve never had a mate before, nor had Shadow. A dragon is a dragon, he dies to save his mate."

Kai faltered. He wanted to believe Agara, but only one fear clung to his heart, what if Shadow came back... wrong? What if he became a monster again?

Still, he closed his eyes and summoned him.

’Father’s taken her soul to the Dreamland of the Underworld,’ he whispered into the void. ’Can you bring her back to us?’

’You bastard... I warned you. I told you he’d come for her if she used her magic shades.’

Kai clenched his jaw. Shadow had warned him the moment he brought Agara into this mess. But back then, he hadn’t cared. That was before loving Ren. Before he knew what it meant to feel. Before he knew someone could exist who made him want to be better. Someone worth dying for, just to see her smile.

’You’re right,’ he murmured. ’I’m an idiot. Go after her. Bring her back. Then curse me all you want.’

’I’ll go. But not for us, for her. You’ll be unconscious until I return. Lutherieth will sense I’m gone. She’ll be vulnerable. You need guards.’

Kai’s eyes snapped open, locking on Agara. "Guard this room with your life. If Luther feels Shadow leave Thegara, he’ll come for her."

Agara nodded, his expression hard. "Then I’ll kill that snake if he dares show his face and lay a finger on my precious niece."

Kai lay beside Ren, pulling her into his arms, and holding her tight against his chest. "My body will grow cold," he murmured. "Take care of her."

With those final words, he closed his eyes and surrendered to his demon. Shadow surged forward, taking full control of his consciousness, a portal formed and Shadow flashed into it in a blink.

At that exact moment, the door burst open. Siamon staggered into the room, eyes wide with dread. He knew Shadow was gone.

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