The Veil of Darkness
Chapter 260: The Second Ceremony (Part Two)

Chapter 260: The Second Ceremony (Part Two)

Valerius opened his mouth to speak, to say something to make Annalise understand that he never meant anything bad when he kept his identity a secret from her.

At first, he and his brothers weren’t sure if she was indeed the one for them or not, that was why they never thought about telling her about their true identities. When they latter knew for sure that she was the one for them, they still didn’t explain to her anything about their identities because they thought she was not prepared for such a revealation. After that, all of them got too involved in solving the Portal Hall incidents and mysteries related to it that discussing their true identities was the last thing on their mind.

Still, they never planned to keep their identities a secret from her, they just made the mistake of waiting for the right timing that never arrived and now, here they were, the truth coming to light at such an unexpected moment.

The silence, the lack of emotions on her face, and his inability to say anything in his and his brothers’ defense was driving him insane but he could do nothing but stand there with nothing but hope that she would give them a chance to explain everything to her.

He noticed her releasing a small breath before her expression finally shifted and to his utter surprise, a beautiful and assuring smile bloomed on her lips as she parted her rosy lips and started speaking.

"I, Annalise, accept the power that binds me to Valerius, the heir of the ice and also to the throne of the Midnight Realm, for eternity. I accept him at the rising of the moon and the setting of the stars. To love and to honor, to cherish and respect, through all of the eras and times that may fall before us, until our souls do us part. I give unto him my trust, my grace, my purity and accept his in return. My power belongs to him now just as his is now mine. And I shall never forsake him for another, my soul forever belonging to him. To the stars may we never part."

It took every effort from Valerius to not break down right there and then as his heart and soul, both took a breathe of relief. The thought of her rejecting him as her mate was so scaring to him that he finally understood for the hundredth time just how important she was to him. He had fallen too deeply for her and there was no turning back for him.

"It’s your turn now." She reminded him as she probably noticed his lack of focus on the High Priestess’ words who was asking him to repeat the vows.

Taking in a deep breath, he nodded his head before starting, "I, Valerius, the heir of the ice, first born and heir to the throne of the Midnight Realm, accept the power that binds me to Annalise, my wife and my future queen who will rule this realm alongside me. I accept her at the rising of the moon and the setting of the stars. To love and to honor, to cherish and respect, through all of the eras and times that may fall before us, until our souls do us part. I give unto her my trust, my love, my ice and air, and accept hers in return. My power belongs to her now just as hers is now mine. And I shall never forsake her for another, my soul forever belonging to her. To the stars may we never part."

He finished the vows all the while looking straight into his wife’s beautiful ocean blue eyes. They both felt the magic of their vows taking place almost immediately as their moon threads glowed bright silver with a light blue hollow around it as a golden thread connected both of them before it entered their hands and spread across their bodies and headed straight to their hearts, creating the purest form of soulmate bond.

He cupped her warm face between his palms as he spoke from the deepest part of his heart, "Thank you so much, love, thank you so much for accepting me despite what I have done. I promise to accept whatever punishment you will bestow upon me for keeping such a great matter a secret from you."

And he meany it, he would do anything she would ask him to do if that meant he could receive her forgiveness.

"I love you too much to destroy our wedding and mate ceremony over such a trivial matter. Besides, I always knew that you three are no normal men. I just never expected for you to be... you know... the Crown Prince... of Midnight Realm..."

The smile on Annalise’s lips made it pretty clear that she was not angry at him at all which only made Valerius feel more guilty.

He wasted no time to pull the woman into his arms as he sealed her lips in a deep and passionate kiss. His hands went around her small body to pull her closer to him if that was even possible considering their bodies were almost pressed together.

He allowed his ice and air powers seeping deep inside her and this time, her body accepted him and his powers without any resistance. Their powers mingling together to make their bond even stronger.

Back in the Ceremony Hall, the High Priestess ended the ceremony as she chanted the last sacred spell before the crystal, that had been hanging over their heads, burst open and a small stone dropped from it that Valerius immediately caught.

"The ceremony is over. Crown Prince Va and Princess Annalise are now husband and wife, their hearts bound together by the sacred golden thread and their souls by the sacred vows to the Stars." The High Priestess announced as she officially ended the ceremony by making declaration.

"Let’s leave the newly wed alone." The queen ordered before she left the hall with the High Priestess, Damien, and Kenric. The doors of the hall closed behind them as Valerius and Annalise were the only ones left behind.

He ended the kiss as he pulled away to look at his wife who finally opened her eyes as she returned to consciousness. Her gaze met with his and a huge smile bloomed on her lips. She opened her mouth to say something but seemed like no words came out of her mouth. She just stared at him while her mind seemed to be contemplating what was going to happen next.

Valerius helped her to sit up before he moved to finish the last ritual of their wedding. He let one of his hands rest against her nape while the other one moved to wrap around her waist. He tilted her head to the side, allowing himself full access to the left side of her pale neck. He moved his face closer and placed a kiss against her pulsing vein and immediately felt her shudder in his arms.

He plastered a few more kisses on the side of her neck, easing her into the moment, and heard a sigh leaving her lips as she relaxed against him. He nibbled lightly on her sensitive skin in the crook of her neck before he finally allowed his fangs to come out and immediately pierced the beautiful pale skin as his canines sank deep into her flesh.

A sigh escaped Annalise’s mouth as she turned her head to the side to give him more access to her neck, showing her trust and acceptance toward the mark he was about to place on her.

He took the first taste of her blood for the second time that day and immediately felt his entire body shivering as the intoxicating blood took over his senses. His soul responded as the last thread of the soulmate bond came into place and their souls finally joined, the bond coming to completion as the marking sealed the fourth stage of the soulmate bond, joining the two of them in a beautiful soulmate bond for eternity.

Their powers combined and he experienced the true essence of her powers for the very first time, the purity of it shaking him to the very core, making him once again realize just how important and powerful she was.

As their powers and souls combined, it left no space for anything else. It was only the two of them there and only the two of them mattered.

He pulled his fangs back and sealed the punctured marks before helping her to stand up. He crouched down to help her wear her shoes before he stood up and took hold of her hand.

"Let’s go and rest for a while, then we will have a chat. I think it’s time for you to meet the queen and the royal council. I will also show you around the Realm before we will return home."

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