CHAPTER 503: SHE WAS THE OTHER WOMAN

"Mother!!!" Lyra’s sharp cry tore through the room.

Aurelius’s jaw clenched, his eyes were on Seraphina’s corpse which was still spilling out blood. She would rather die than reveal the truth.

Lyra could not stay put; Seraphina was still her mother regardless of what she did. The one who carried her for 9 months. She ran to her mother’s side to hold her numb body. Seraphina was still warm, but her eyes were dead.

Aurelius hissed. They were so damn close to the truth. Seraphina just had to....

A sharp groan left his lips. His frustration was ticking him.

Abrielle held his hand drawing his attention. Her words were simple. "That’s enough." She said, silencing his impending storm.

Lyra’s cries continued to fill the room, and her brothers slowly approached and stood by the side. Their gaze was complex, Seraphina was dead but her death was disgraceful, unbefitting for her status.

The guest started to clear the room and everyone held different opinions of today’s events.

Everything faded around the emperor, the hush remarks, the footsteps. Silvanius was too stunned to process what just happened.

He wasn’t shaken by her death, but by what she revealed. The emperor turned around without a word and left the room, and every step felt heavier than the former.

Maybe he was getting too old. Silvanius thought.

******

A soft touch on his cheeks stirred Cedric awake from his rest. The touch was gentle and warm. It reminded him of Abrielle’s touch

With a sad smile, his eyes popped open. It could never be his gingered haired wife.

Sitting next to him on his bed was Elysia. Her dark eyes were tender with a smile across her lips.

"Good morning." She chimed once he was up. Cedric’s brows furrowed, but he didn’t complain; he managed to sit up.

"Good morning," he muttered. He was surprised to see Elysia.

After their conversation, he heard she had disappeared without a word from the maids’ whisper.

She smiled, "How was your sleep? Hunan tends to relax more after a nap." She chimed. Cedric’s brows furrowed at her.

"You speak as if you don’t sleep." He chuckled lightly. His laugh was warm and her smile widen, glad he was feeling better now.

"My body doesn’t need sleep, I can go months without a wink of sleep and won’t feel a thing." She answered then her gaze went distant.

" I only sleep when I feel like it, although during the time I lost my memories, I slept a lot because I thought I needed it. " Elysia added. It seemed it was morning, and soft sunlight filtered through the curtains.

Cedric closed his eyes to rest his mind for a while. "I never imagined there would be sunlight here." He mentioned. Elysia’s eyes followed his gaze to the curtain which was flapping silently.

"Not every part of Netheralis has this privilege, some parts are in forever darkness.. Raziel built the palace here so that it will feel like Elaris." Elysia mentioned. Her heart squeezed as she remembered their past.

Cedric sensed her emotional dilemma. He reached out for her hand. Her head bobbed at him, surprised at the kindness he was showing her. He didn’t say a word and just held her hand.

"Can I ask a question although it might feel a bit personal?" He muttered. Elysia hesitantly nodded at him. Cedric sighed, he didn’t know why he was asking this question. Maybe it was just his curiosity

"Did you love them both? I mean Kaiden and Raziel because I don’t know if it’s possible to love two people equally. I can’t imagine myself loving another woman like Abrielle." Cedric asked.

Elysia clasped his hand with hers. "My kind believes in soul mates, we might fall in love several times but there is one person who is our better half and nothing can replace them." She explained.

Then glanced away from him. "To me, Raziel is my soul mate, that’s why the past hurts at times. He gave up a lot for us, and so did I, and now he is forced to be here." She answered remembering their sacrifices.

"When it comes to Kaiden, it is complicated. It isn’t that I never felt anything for him, he did make my heart skip and gave me this feeling of warmth and protection." She paused. Her thumb rubbed his callous palm in circles.

A soft smile lingered on her lips. She could sense them outside the door. They probably had the same question but all these years they were scared to find out the answers

" He made me feel desired but it wasn’t the same as how I feel with Raziel. While I was with him I always felt like something was missing, something was wrong. Like I didn’t belong and it was true. My mind was telling me what I had forgotten. Kaiden did make me feel loved, but I never felt at home in his arms. Raziel is my only home."

Elysia felt breathless after she finished speaking. A heavy weight remained on her heart..

Cedric laughed, a smirk lingered on his lips."These are your genuine feelings." he scoffed.

"Kaiden would lose his mind if he found out the woman he ruined lives for never felt at home in his arms." He almost felt sorry for his father.. almost; he repeats.

Elysia chuckled, "Life is unfair. I am not saying this because it seemed like I betrayed Raziel but the truth. The day Kaiden married Eleanor, my heart ached not because I wished to be the one beside him but because of how right it looked. I was the other woman."

" It felt like I was ruining something beautiful, but at the same time, I had a hint of jealousy. That’s why I did my best to repair their relationship, but you cannot force love."

She swallowed back a lump in her throat and then stood up from the bed. Her eyes darted to the door. "I know you are there, just come in." She chuckled. His voice was light like a song.

Cedric was surprised because he didn’t feel a thing. The door was pushed open and Azrael awkwardly stepped in. "Good morning mother and little Cedric," he chimed with a smile.

He felt weird being caught eavesdropping. He has made sure to hide his presence but then again. She was the queen of Netheralis.

Elysia’s eyes narrowed, "Thamiel I know you are there." She chimed. She was certain she felt the presence of the two youngest among the 7 princes.

Thamiel then stepped in, "Good morning." He awkwardly said. Elysia smiled, they were centuries old but still behaved like children at times..

Thamiel the 6th prince of Netheralis. His features were closer to Raziel’s but softer. He had sharp violet eyes with pitch black hair.

Thamiel seemed like the very quiet type, Cedric could barely feel his presence