CHAPTER 103: PLEASE ENDURE

Lumina sat inside frustrated but wasn’t comfortable as to why Ashwn suddenly asked her to go inside.

She should also be there taking whatever punishment is set to be given to her husband but nope she couldn’t because Stella insisted.

"Please, my lady," Stella whispered again, tugging at her sleeve. "Lord Ashen said you must stay inside. If you disobey..."

"I will not," Lumina interrupted, almost in tears.

Stella’s grip trembled. "It’s dangerous out there. His command had been heard by everyone and we know he wouldn’t like it if we disobeyed it."

Before she could finish, heavy footsteps echoed in the corridor. This made Lumina freeze, "Open the door," she demanded softly.

Stella shook her head, near tears. "I cannot. If something happens..."

But Lumina moved forward, almost pulling herself free. "He will be punished because of me. I cannot stay caged while he..."

Just as she pulled the door open despite Stella’s pleas, Aria moved swiftly, toward them.

Without a word, she strode past Lumina and Stella, "Bring her inside." Stella confused managed to pull her lady inside and before they could think twice:

The thick wooden door slammed shut with a sharp thud. Locks clicked from the outside, sealing Lumina and Stella in.

Lumina’s heart skipped. "Hey! Open it!" she cried, rushing forward, but her searching hands only met the cold surface of the door.

On the other side, Aria’s voice came, calm but unyielding. "Forgive me, my lady. My loyalty is to my master. He ordered that you be kept safe from his mum."

Lumina pounded against the wood. "Safe? You are locking me away while he faces them alone!"

"Because he wants you safe," Aria replied, "Trust him."

Before Lumina could scream another protest, a voice like thunder ripped through the air, freezing every servant in place.

"WHERE IS THE LITTLE BLIND BAT?"

Lumina’s blood turned cold. She pressed her ear to the door, listening in horror.

The chamber doors to Ashen’s residence flung wide with a crash that shook the walls.

The sky itself seemed to tremble, storm clouds rolling with Queen Sephora’s fury. Lightning cracked in the distance, a reflection of Sephora’s rage.

The maids and guards dropped to their knees immediately, pressing their foreheads to the ground. None dared to breathe.

Ashen stood in the center of the chamber, his back straight, jaw tight.

He didn’t even move when Queen Sephora swept in, her robes billowing like shadows made flesh, Adam trailing close behind with a cruel smirk on his lips.

The Queen’s hand moved faster than thought.

CRACK!

The strike of her power slammed into Ashen’s chest like a hammer of light. He dropped to his knees, coughing violently as the impact burned through his veins.

"Mu... Mother," Ashen rasped, gripping his chest.

Another wave of force hit him before he could recover. He slammed against the floor, blood spraying faintly across the floor.

"HOW DARE YOU," Sephora’s voice boomed, her fury shaking the chamber. "How dare you allow my daughter to be humiliated before the king!"

Adam laughed cruelly, leaning lazily on the arm of a chair. "Punish him harder, Mother. His little wife is hiding, so let him bleed for her mistakes too."

Ashen’s hands pressed against the floor as he tried to rise, but Sephora’s third blow pinned him down like a chained beast.

"MOTHER!" Ashen shouted, his voice breaking between pain and fury.

"Why... why do you hate me so much?" The room stilled. Even Adam’s grin faltered for a moment.

Ashen’s crimson eyes gleamed through the blood on his face as he stared up at her.

His body shook, from his effort to hold back his rage. "Since the day I could speak, you have treated me like a curse. Like I am filth beneath your shoes. What did I ever do, Mother? Tell me!"

Queen Sephora’s face scrunched up in irritation, her eyes glowing with cold fire. She stepped closer, her voice lowering to a nasty whisper that every soul in the room still heard.

"You want to know why?" she hissed.

Ashen’s chest heaved as he waited, chained by her power.

"Because you should never have been born," she spat. Her words sliced deeper than any blade. "You are a blemish upon this realm. A cursed star that should have never fallen into my womb. Every day I regret the moment I gave life to you."

Ashen’s breath caught, his body rigid.

Behind the locked door, Lumina’s fingers clawed at the wood as tears streamed down her pale cheeks. "No... no..." she whispered, of course she had a sharp hearing so she could hear it.

Sephora leaned closer, her voice cold as frost. "You are nothing, Ashen. You will always be nothing. Your brother shines like the sun while you crawl like a shadow. And yet, you dare to challenge me? You dare to think you deserve love from me? You deserve none of it."

Ashen’s body trembled violently. Blood dripped from his lip, but his eyes shimmered hotter, burning through the haze of pain.

"I may be cursed," he growled, his voice raw, "but I am not broken. You can strike me, you can spit your harsh words but you will never strip from me what I now protect."

Sephora’s brow arched. "Protect? That blind little creature you call a wife?" She sneered. "She will be your ruin."

Ashen’s chest heaved, his fists clenched against the marble. His voice roared through the chamber, shaking even Adam’s smirk.

"THEN I WILL GLADLY BE RUINED WITH HER!" The silence that followed was deafening.

Sephora’s eyes widened for a brief instant, before her fury doubled. Energy crackled around her hands, a storm ready to destroy him.

The maids whimpered on the floor. One dared to look up, and Sephora’s voice bellowed.

"If one word of this reaches the king, you will all die by my hand. Do you hear me?"

"Yes, Your Highness!" the servants cried, voices trembling in unison.

Ashen’s head lifted slowly, his eyes burning despite the blood trickling down his face. He forced his voice through gritted teeth.

"Everyone. Leave Now!!."

The maids scrambled up, rushing out as if fire chased them. Only Adam lingered, grinning, while Sephora’s power hovered, eager to strike again.

Behind the sealed door, Lumina pressed her forehead to the wood, shaking, whispering brokenly. "Ashen... please... please endure..."