The Veil of Darkness
Chapter 275: Teasing Valerius

Chapter 275: Teasing Valerius

A groan immediately escaped Valerius’ mouth before he hurriedly bit down on his bottom lip to hold himself back. His closed eyelashes fluttered a couple of times before he lightly squeezed his eyes while trying to calm himself.

His hold on Annalise’s hand tightened, and the latter sensed the wave of pleasure that rocked throughout his entire body through their mate bond, causing a small smile of satisfaction to bloom on her lips.

So when Valerius finally opened his eyes a couple of seconds later, he also saw the smile on her lips and gave her a questioning look with his beautiful ocean-blue eyes that were shimmering brightly at the moment.

Annalise inched her face closer to his, her gaze shifting between his captivating eyes and his luscious lips that were tempting her in so many ways, and whispered, "That was... beautiful..."

Things happened way too quickly for her mind to process anything, and before she knew it, Valerius had wrapped his hand over her nape as he pulled her face closer to his, making the previous little space between them disappear. His lips were almost touching hers, and his cold breath was fanning her face, making her entire being aware of his closeness.

This time, it was her heart that was going crazy inside her chest, almost to the point that she heard it would jump out of her chest if it continued to beat this rapidly. She was almost amazed to see how, even after spending so many months together, her men still could make her go insane just by coming closer to her or touching her slightly.

She was about to ask what he was doing, but before she could open her mouth to speak, he was already speaking - "Don’t go around teasing us if you can’t handle the consequences, wife. There’s a limit to how much I can hold myself back."

Annalise couldn’t stop the smile that made its way to her lips as she whispered in response, "Then who’s making you hold yourself back?"

Valerius didn’t appear surprised by her response, but he took his time to react, and when he finally did react - it was in the form of a soft kiss against her temple that ended way too quickly.

When he pulled away a couple of seconds later, his shimmering eyes had calmed down to their usual appearance, and Annalise understood that she wouldn’t be getting any more reactions out of her husband for the time being.

"You should get ready; it’s almost time for dinner." He said while brushing a loose curl of hair from her temple and tucking it behind her ear.

Letting out a small sigh, Annalise rested her head against Valerius’ shoulder and closed her eyes, allowing herself and her soul to bask in the affection of her mate, who immediately wrapped his arms around her small frame and pulled her closer.

"I just want to go home." She whispered while nuzzling her nose into the crook of his neck and inhaling his familiar scent.

Valerius brushed his long slender fingers through her hair as he replied, "Just a little while more... I promise we will wrap up things quickly and return... home."

Right! The infamous Cursed Castle was now their home - a place that had changed drastically over the past couple of months and held numerous memories of their time together. That previously dark, gloomy, cold, and barren place was now their home, filled with light, memories, warmth, and life.

* * * *

The wind was so strong that it would have almost swept Annalise off her feet and taken her away with it if not for the strong hold that Damien’s shadow magic had over her.

She, along with her husbands, the Witch Leader, and a couple of other witches - was heading toward the portal hall of the Witch City that would lead them to the Portal Hall in the Mortal Realm.

"You said that you have already freed one of the Guardian Divine Beasts of the Portal Hall in Millerville City, right? Where is it now?" The Witch Leader questioned as he led the way toward her secret and mysterious portal hall.

The portal of the Witch City was not a natural one but was created only a couple of centuries ago by one of the most powerful dark witches that had ever existed, making it the only one of its kind. Not only that, but the portal could only be accessed by the dark witches from both inside and outside of the city, which made it one of the most protected and safe portals in the four realms.

"It’s the Divine Snow Lion, and now it’s my wife’s familiar," Kenric told the witch while he kept his sharp eyes focused on their surroundings. Though he looked super calm, it was easy for Annalise to tell that he was more than ready to kill anything or anyone if such a situation occurred all of a sudden.

The witch leader spared a quick look in Annalise’s direction before she spoke with a little nod of approval - "Having one of the Divine Beasts with us will prove really helpful to get the others out."

Annalise wondered if the Little Lion would even appear to help. Though it had become quite closer to her in the past month or so, compared to before, there was still a long way for them to go in their master-familiar relationship. She just hoped that it would agree to help, if not for her, then for its fellow divine beasts.

"What’s with the weather today?" She couldn’t help asking as she tried to brush away the loose strands of her hair that were a mess because of the strong wind.

"The weather changed suddenly this evening, and it’s unknown to us for what reason. Unfortunately, dark witches are not great at divination or star reading, so I can’t tell if this change in weather symbolizes something." The witch leader responded to Annalise’s question as she walked beside Valerius, who was holding a moonstone in his hand to provide light in the dark path they were walking on.

Annalise wondered if the witch was trying to hint at something through her words - did she mean that something wrong was about to happen?