The Devil's Temptation!

“Beneficial?” Adryan’s brows furrowed slightly, “no no, I didn’t mean it like that,” he shook his head, seeing as she’s misinterpreted his intention, “what I meant to say was your presence in the land of Demons had come as a shock to me.” He quickly explained before she got the wrong idea.

Last time he heard of Anna, she ran into the dark woods, and almost everyone thought she had died after crossing the boundary and going in, but to his biggest surprise, he saw her in the land of Demons, and she bravely took a hit for the frightening red-eyed demon that tried to end him at the spot.

When did she become close to Demons despite knowing their history? Did going into the dark woods made her encounter them? Was that why the guards Arlow’s sent to fetch her didn’t return?

“I could tell you,” the corner of Anna’s mouth quirked up as she finally said something, “but I’m not sure how capable you are to handle it.”

She turned her head to Adryan who’s face went blank. There was something dark about her tone, and it made Adryan shudder impulsively like he truly wasn’t prepared to hear it. He’s aware of the Demon that was sealed, and he’s also aware that it escaped, but if the Demon isn’t there anymore, why is the dark woods still dark???

It is said that the sealed Demon was the reason why the woods appeared dark, a sign that led to many avoiding what lies in the dark woods, so if the sealed Demon isn’t there anymore, how can the lingering darkness be explained??

“Are you.....one of them?” He asked, and she tilted her head at him.

“Do I look like one?”

.....

His mouth snapped shut before the words he planned on saying could slip out. If Anna was a demon or not, he couldn’t tell and he didn’t want to know. Practically, Anna had been a mystery right from childhood, and that was why he took interest in her, because he wanted to unwrap the mystery that covered her true nature.

But when people started to frighten him with those strange mysteries surrounding her, that she wasn’t human, that she was a cursed girl who only knew how to cause havoc, it got to him. Some even made mention of her mother not being a complete human like her daughter, so those things got to his head and he chose to get rid of her before time ran out.

Noticing how mute he was, Anna suddenly got to her feet, and her movement snapped Adryan back to reality, and to his surprise, she was heading for the door.

“Wait- you’re leaving already?” The questions slipped before he could bite his tongue, and based on how he sounded, it was clear he didn’t want her to leave just yet.

Anna halted in her steps, without turning around to look at him, she said, “I’m done with you, I need to see his majesty since he’s unwell. You should focus more on getting better and making sure you walk again, nobody wants a leader who’s bound to his bed.” With that being said, she walked out his room, shutting the door with a bang sound and Adryan blinked, obviously taken aback by Anna’s sudden personality.

She was the weak type, always tolerant with every behavior used on her, and she was the girl who hid herself inside a shell. Her change of personality although shocked him to the core, he was actually impressed with it, and he’ll see to it that he earns her forgiveness.

Stepping out of Adryan’s chamber, Anna was on her way to see his Majesty next when she ran into Lady Yulia who was about to step into Adryan’s chamber, and the two lady’s unintentionally bumped into one another.

Yulia was holding a bowl of soup on a tray, but some of it had poured out and stained the tray, leaving her to raise her glaring eyes on the person who dared to run into her.

“Do you have eyes at the back of your head?” Anger overtook her face, and Anna, who didn’t mean for any of this to happen, was about to apologize when Lady Yulia suddenly raised a hand, rudely silencing her.

“Save your apologies, I’ve ran into enough miscreants for a day, nobody seems to know how to do things right in this palace.” She vexed, eyeing Anna from head to toe with a strange look, and it finally dawned on her that she hadn’t seen a face like this in the palace before.

“Who are you?” Her suspicious gaze shifted to the door where Anna had recently stepped out from, and it made Yulia grow even more suspicious, seeing the unfamiliar lady had stepped out of her husband’s bedchamber.

“Don’t fret, for I’m not a threat.” Anna assured her, and judging from the looks the unknown lady kept casting her way, Anna didn’t need anymore hints to know she was Adryan’s wife, and they had just met, but the lady already placed a bad image of herself in front of her.

“I was about leaving, you may carry on with whatever it is you plan on doing.” To put it simply, she was in no mood to deal with a jealous woman and there were a lot of things going through her head at the moment to start an argument.

“Hold on.” Yulia grabbed Anna by the arm, wanting to stop her from leaving but what she didn’t expect was to feel a current run through her own arm, like that of strong electricity branching through her system, and she quickly let go of Anna’s arm like someone who just got electrified, a small yelp escaping her lips as she took a quick step back away from Annalise.

What was that??

With round eyes, her gaze quickly studied Anna who stared back at her, and although she appeared really pretty, there was something strange about her that Yulia couldn’t put together, and most of all, the unfamiliar lady wasn’t even smiling when she called her back, making her annoyance known to Yulia.

“You...you still haven’t answered me.” Yulia asked again, and this time around, Anna was forced to put up a smile, unaware of what had really happened to Yulia.

“I’m just an old friend” with that, Anna turned around to leave, no longer listening to the words of Yulia, and as she made her way down the stairs, Yulia watched her go with an inquisitive gaze till she was out of sight, still pondering on what she meant by an ‘old friend.’, but how was it possible she got electrocuted after touching her??

That part had definitely frightened her.

Meanwhile Adryan has not been in the mood to see anyone for the past few weeks, he wouldn’t even let her see him, but shockingly, this lady entered without Adryan screaming at her face.

“Something’s definitely fishy.”

At the thought of that, Yulia instantly went into Adryan’s chamber, hoping the strange lady hasn’t done something to her husband.