The Dragon King's Hated Bride
Chapter 50: Change

Chapter 50: Change

>>Aelin

Over the past few days, things have changed.

I honestly wasn’t expecting things to happen so fast but it happened fast enough that I noticed the change. At first, I thought I was imagining it—the way the servants would pause as I passed by, their gazes fixed on the floor.

I had developed that habit to not notice them but now that I noticed once, I began to notice again. After a few instances, it was undeniable. The demons who once acted as if I didn’t exist—or worse, sneered at me openly—were suddenly... different.

I walked through the halls, my footsteps echoing against the polished floor. A servant approached from the opposite direction, carrying a stack of folded linens. As soon as he noticed me, he stopped abruptly, bowing so low I thought he might drop the bundle.

!?!?!

"Have a nice day, Princess." He murmured a greeting, but his voice was so faint it was barely audible.

I wasn’t sure what to say back to him. And then I didn’t even get a chance to think about what to say as the servant then immediately ran in the other direction, leaving me flabbergasted as I stood in my place with a confused expression.

It was odd. I’d grown used to the cold indifference, the side-eyed glares, and the occasional snide remarks.

But now, they bowed. They greeted me. And they did everything in their power to avoid looking me in the eyes.

It was almost like they were scared of me too. Which was very odd, why would they be scared of me? I didn’t do anything.

I couldn’t help but notice something else: the demons who used to whisper and laugh as I passed—where were they? The ones who never hid their disdain, who snickered just loud enough for me to hear, who made it clear I didn’t belong and passed me rude remarks.

I didn’t see them anymore. Had they been dismissed? Or were they relocated to some place else? I didn’t have the answer but the environment lightened a lot.

I was seeing new servants in the palace who were quite respectful towards me. They didn’t pay me much attention and kept in their lane which was nice. They greeted me and went on about their work which made it seem like I wasn’t some foreign object that had to be sneered at every time.

I didn’t have to guess who was behind this.

Draegon.

It has to be him. After all, who else could it be? All of the change began once he regained his senses.

Whatever he had done, it had worked. The servants, the guards, even the higher-ranking demons... they all seemed to be walking on eggshells around me now. I wasn’t sure how to feel about it or why most of them were scared but it was so much better than before.

I continued down the hallway, my steps slowing as I approached one of the large arched windows. The sunlight spilled through the glass, illuminating the floor in golden streaks. It was warm.

Very warm.

I stopped in front of the window and reached out, letting the sunlight fall across my hand as I smiled subtly.

It was strange—this feeling, this moment. It felt like the first time in years that I could remember the sun streaming in like this. Or maybe it wasn’t the sun. Maybe it was me.

I closed my eyes, letting the warmth settle into my skin. For the first time in a long while, I smiled. A genuine smile, small and fleeting, but real.

I’m glad I chose to take the risk and see what was wrong with Draegon. As a human and demon, we probably will never be a proper couple but I’m glad that Draegon was true to his words.

I do feel safer now, like someone is there to protect me.

I stood there for a moment longer, savoring the quiet and the light. For once, I didn’t feel so fragile. I didn’t feel like the human outsider in a world that wanted nothing to do with me.

Gentle breeze blew in, fluttering my golden hair along with the curtains on either side of the windows.

It felt very pleasant

>>Draegon

The metallic tang of blood clung to the air. My clothes were stained crimson as splatters of blood ran across them, the evidence of my actions pooling at my feet.

I had waited, I had given her time so of course I had to wait.

But the Queen had done nothing, just as I’d suspected. So I did what I had to—what I promised I would do. Maybe she didn’t take me seriously because I tried my best not to go against her before I went to war, letting her take away anything she wanted from me, even my mother.

But things are different now.

Every demon who had dared to hurt my wife, who had insulted or abused her, was dead.

I retracted my claws, letting the black scales disappear into my skin, "Throw them in the incinerator." I told the servants who stood in the dungeon while I did my job, "And have them replaced as well."

"Yes..." The head butler’s voice shook as he replied to me, his white hair had gotten a splatter of blood on the side, his goat eyes stuck on the three bodies on the floor, bleeding out. Their eyes open wide from the shock and pain, bodies heaped on top of each other. A fly came buzzing and went straight to sit on the black fox demon’s pupil.

I turned around to leave, "I better not see even a finger of theirs." The other servant held out a hand-towel for me with trembling hands that I grabbed as I kept walking. Roughly I wiped the blood splatters on my hands and my face but it felt like the blood only smeared on my face further.

I threw the towel away before I started ascending the stairs. It fell on the stone floor but I didn’t bother to look back at it, or anything else.

I walked through the corridors, letting the demons see me with blood on me.

But I stopped before I took a sharp turn in the hallway as a certain someone crossed my vision.

I lingered in the shadows, watching her from a distance. Aelin stood by the window, the sunlight casting a golden glow around her, and for a moment, she looked... ethereal.

Free.

At peace

I couldn’t bring myself to step into the light. I didn’t want her to see me like this. Covered in blood. I was afraid if she saw me like this, she might get scared of me.

I know that she already is, I do not want to further her fears.

I watched as her lips curved into a smile as she touched the sunlight, and something in my chest tightened. My ears grew warm, the unfamiliar blush creeping up despite myself. My lips parting slightly in awe

She smiled.

I had never seen her smile like that.

Memories of her surfaced, unbidden. How fragile she’d felt under my touch that first night, her warmth seeping into me in a way no one else ever had. I could still remember the softness of her skin, the way her breath hitched when I held her.

The way she was so perfect in my arms. Immediately, she was someone I wanted to keep safe.

But I ended up hurting her.

Demons didn’t bleed like that. I hadn’t understood at the time. I had hurt her. I didn’t realize how different humans are from us demons.

My hands curled into fists. She had suffered so much because of me—my ignorance, my coldness, my failures. And yet, I didn’t want to stay away from her.

While at the same time, I couldn’t bring myself to hold her again.

I watched as she moved away from the window, my gaze following her every step. That fragile human who had somehow become my life. The person I wanted to protect more than anything. But how? How could I approach her after all I’d done?

There is no excuse for what I did. I should never have been weak enough to let that monster- Ruoxy put me in a spell.

My attention shifted as I noticed something odd.

She had no attendant with her. That wasn’t uncommon among demons—attendants were seen as frivolous—but for humans, it was a different matter. I’d heard that humans of her status always had attendants to assist them.

The thought gnawed at me. Was it another failure on my part? I should have known. Should have ensured she had someone to care for her needs when I wasn’t there.

I lingered in the shadows a little longer, watching her retreat down the hallway. The ache in my chest grew stronger, but so did my resolve.

If no one else would protect her, care for her, or respect her as my wife, I would.

Even if I had to tear down every last demon in this cursed palace.

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