Garden Of Poison-Chapter 256: Unknown Mishaps

Emily currently sat in the expansive bathtub, one she had never previously stepped into and one that belonged to Raylen. Warm water surrounded her as her eyes leisurely wandered to take a good look around the Storm King’s room.

"We are all very glad to know that you are doing well now, Princess. We have been worried since last night; even Master was worried." Lauren’s voice broke through the silence. She had just finished adding logs to the fireplace to ensure that the room’s temperature didn’t drop. "He refused to leave your side."

Emily’s hazel brown eyes shifted away from the objects of the room and settled on Lauren, who had approached one side of the bathtub. She apologised, saying, "Forgive me for worrying you all. I hadn’t realised my soul had corrupted my body."

"You have nothing to apologise for, Princess. I should have paid more attention." Lauren blamed herself last night when she found out what had occurred. However, it was strange that the Princess had shown no signs of corruption. "But whatever happened, it happened for good. Right?" she inquired, seeking confirmation with a hint of doubt in her voice.

The Princess nodded. "I guess it did," she murmured.

When it was time for Emily to dress herself, she noticed the marks on her chest had disappeared, and the only one left was the one Raylen had created on her neck. She asked, "Lauren, could you bring me the ingredients so that I can speak to my family in Versailles?"

"The ingredients must still be in the room, milady. Would you like me to set it up on the table for you?" Lauren inquired, and upon Emily’s nod, she efficiently prepared the table with the necessary markings. "I will be outside if you need me."

"Thank you, Lauren," Emily said as she watched the head servant exit the room with the door softly clicking shut behind her. Once she was out of sight, the Princess tapped on the wide vessel before the liquid surface wavered, and soon her mother’s face appeared.

"Emily! I told you she was going to communicate!" Lady Sophia exclaimed before leaning closer to the vessel she had been waiting by. "How are you doing? Do you feel sick? Are you still bonded to Raylen?"

It looked like her mother was as enthusiastic as ever, and Emily smiled in response. She replied, "Yes, Mother. I am feeling much better than I have in the last few days, all thanks to Raylen."

Lady Sophia sighed. She couldn’t believe that out of all the good men in the world, her daughter had ended up with the Devil’s son. She began, "I am trying to find a way—"

"Have you already started worrying my granddaughter so early in the day, Sophia?"

Emily heard her grandmother’s voice, and two seconds later, her grandmother leaned her head in such that Lady Sophia was pushed to the side.

"My loveliest granddaughter. You had us all terribly worried yesterday," the Mother Queen said before continuing, "Now, where is that beautiful soul bond mark?"

Emily leaned in, tilting her head to display her neck. "Can you see it? It is supposed to resemble the skeletal structure of Raylen’s wings."

"Bones?" Lady Sophia frowned, perplexed by why Raylen couldn’t have chosen something more delicate for her daughter.

"I think Anna wasn’t feeling well earlier after she drank something I gave her," the Mother Queen remarked with a thoughtful expression.

"What did you give her this time?!" Lady Sophia asked, growing concerned, and she added, "I will be back soon, Emily," before hurrying out of the room.

"Grandmother." Emily pursed her lips.

"What? Your mother had all the time in the world with you, and I am allowed to be a bit selfish in wanting a little time with you too. And also hear every little tidbit of gossip," the Mother Queen said, giving her granddaughter a knowing look. "So, did you two share a kiss?"

Not used to discussing such matters with anyone, Emily cleared her throat as blood began to rush up her neck. She admitted, "Yes." She couldn’t help but notice how her grandmother looked like a Cheshire Cat as the woman grinned widely in response. "On the cheek," she quickly added, and the smile fell from the older woman’s lips.

"What? Don’t tell me that the rascal didn’t find you charming until last night? This won’t do, Emily. You are ruining your grandmother’s name!" The Mother Queen clicked her teeth in disappointment. "Well, at least you and Raylen are bonded now. I had hoped your mother’s presence would spark some sort of fantasy tale, but it seems like she wasn’t much help."

"Interesting. Because I said the same thing."

Startled, Emily lost her balance and shifted to the side to prevent herself from placing her hand in the vessel. When she turned, she noticed the Devil had entered the room and her body turned frigid.

"I thought you died. Good to know that you are still alive," the Mother Queen said after recognising whom the voice belonged to.

Emily cautiously watched Viktor make his way towards her, and her eyes drifted behind him as she wondered what had happened to Lauren.

"She’s taking a short nap," Viktor responded to Emily’s look of concern. "I thought I would have a little chat with my son’s soulmate before heading back to Hell, as there seems to be some chaos unfolding in the last few minutes."

The Devil didn’t position himself in front of the vessel, but he did reply to the Mother Queen’s words. "One cannot kill someone who is already dead, foolish earthling."

"Then perhaps you are just shy when it comes to answering my calls," the Mother Queen softly harrumphed. Emily observed how, even though the Devil kept a blank expression, her grandmother seemed to have stepped on the man’s nerves. "Or is it that you are mortified about being caught stealing? Bold of you to steal from us and then get mad when someone steals from y—"

Viktor turned his attention to the vessel, and with a single nudge, he disconnected the connection between Emily and her grandmother. He turned back to look at her and said, "Finally, there’s some peace."

"Was there something you needed from me?" Emily asked the Devil while wondering where Raylen was at this moment.

Viktor’s eyes fell on the mark around the earthling’s neck, and when he was about to touch it, the skeletal design lit up like a bolt of lightning striking from the sky. "Interesting indeed. Do you know why many soulmates cannot live without each other once they bond?"

"Because the one who forms the bond imparts a fragment of their soul into the other," Emily replied, and Viktor stared at her inquisitively.

"Correct. Looks like you know a lot about it. You must have been eagerly awaiting your own soulmate," Viktor murmured as he continued to gauge her. "The bond is still fresh and breakable. If you want, you can still return to Nathaniel. You only need to say the word."

Emily knew that Viktor wasn’t excited about her bonding with his precious son, but it was already done, and there was no turning back.

"No," came the clear response from Emily, and Viktor offered her a slight smile. "You should release the innocent people of the palace and return my grandmother’s cat."

"I am not in the mood to release them. She’s going to come to Hell soon enough, and she will get to see them then. I would have asked for you, but your soul is nonexistent," Viktor remarked, clicking his tongue in disappointment.

"Is there a way to cease being a Barter Soul?" Emily inquired of the ancient soul, who possibly had more answers than anyone else here.

"Once a Barter Soul, always a Barter Soul. There’s no way to change it unless you want to sacrifice yourself and bring something back, something that could be dear to Raylen?" Viktor’s voice drawled before he said, "Joking," with a deadpan expression.

"I don’t believe I can bring back what Raylen desires," Emily replied softly, catching the Devil’s attention. "Not even with my soul."

"And what is that? His dear mother, who abandoned him? She’s safe in Hell." Viktor humoured Emily’s response with a hint of sarcasm.

"To have a childhood free from pain. Why didn’t you visit him then? Why now?" Emily questioned Viktor.

"Who said I didn’t?" Viktor asked, a slight smile appearing on his lips. "Have you exchanged the memories yet?"

He was talking about the act of peering into each other’s memories after the formation of the soulmate bond. She shook her head. "Not yet."

"How strange. It should have happened by now, yet there’s a delay. No memory read, no abilities manifested... as if something isn’t right," Viktor remarked, causing doubt to form in Emily’s mind.

"It is probably because it has only been a few hours since I woke up, and I am still healing from the corruption." Emily denied the possibility of it being anything else.

"Could be," Viktor answered in a dismissive tone. "Bring your hand forward," he instructed, and when Emily did so, she was slightly apprehensive about it, not wanting the Devil to whisk her off to Hell so that Raylen would follow. He pulled something with his hands, which felt like black strands emerging from within her hand, appearing translucent like smoke but forming into strands as he extracted them all out. "There was a little bit of residue left."

Emily pulled her hand back to her side, staring at the palm of her hand, and at the same time, the Devil snapped his fingers and vanished into thin air, leaving no trace behind.

Concerned about Lauren, Emily quickly made her way out of the room and found her standing by the door with her eyes closed, appearing as if she had fallen into a deep sleep. She placed her hand on the demoness’ shoulder and called out,

"Lauren? Lauren?"

The head servant let out a soft gasp, and she asked, "Did I fall asleep?"

It seemed that Lauren hadn’t caught sight of the Devil, making Emily believe that Viktor was a powerful being who could have forcibly taken her to Hell if he had wanted. Was it possible that he was a good father? After all, he helped remove whatever those black strands were.

"It wasn’t your fault," Emily assured Lauren. "I think I will take a walk within the castle. You don’t have to follow me."

Lauren appeared somewhat torn because Emily was no longer just a princess. The woman was now her master’s soulmate.

"That’s alright, Lauren," Raylen stated as he entered the corridor, and the head servant bowed and departed, leaving Emily and Raylen alone.

Emily watched Raylen make his way past the servant before reaching where she stood. She informed him, "Viktor was here."

"I figured as much with Celeste wanting to inform me about what happened in Hell," Raylen replied, and this prompted Emily to give him a questioning look. He continued, "Apparently someone broke into some of the cells in Hell and took away a few souls from there."

"They can do that?" Emily asked in surprise, astonished by the idea.

"Well, in the absence of the Devil and all the archdemons, it is a possibility," Raylen replied with a slight shrug of his shoulders. "Did he say something he was not supposed to say to you?"

Emily caught Raylen’s curious gaze, eagerly waiting to hear Viktor’s words, and she shook her head, saying, "No. I don’t think he did," and she smiled at the end. "He is not all that bad, is he?"

"Depends on his moods."

Throughout the remainder of the day, Emily reclined in the drawing room until she was visited by some curious visitors who had heard about her being the King’s soulmate, as the word had spread like wildfire. However, everyone except for Janelle was sent away, with the explanation that the Princess was resting.

After dinner, Emily was the first to return to the room for the night, while Raylen had a few documents that one of the magistrates had sent him to review.

It wasn’t until she picked up one of her nightgowns that it dawned on her that she and Raylen would be sharing the bed from now on. She could feel her heart starting to pound, and her breathing became uneven as her imagination began to conjure up various scenarios. She cleared her throat when the door suddenly swung open.

When Raylen’s eyes fell on Emily, he noticed her cheeks flush with colour, and he inquired, "Why do you look like you have been up to some mischief, Princess?"

"I wasn’t," Emily quickly replied without looking at him. "I was just about to change into my nightgown."

"Change away, then," Raylen remarked. He walked towards where she stood, his footsteps softly padding on the floor.

Emily clutched her silk nightgown, her eyes not looking away from him as he finally came to a stop in front of her. Her heart skipped a beat as his hand reached out, but instead of what she expected, he simply picked up his own clothes from behind her.

"Let me know if you need any help," Raylen said softly, his blue eyes locking onto hers before he turned away.

Emily hadn’t moved from where she stood, and though Raylen had walked to the other side of the room, she couldn’t help but catch his reflection in the mirror, watching as he smoothly removed the shirt he was wearing in one fluid motion to reveal his bare shoulders and the muscles of his back that tapered down into his trousers.

"Princess," Raylen called out to her.

"Yes?" Emily breathed.

"I am worried," Raylen expressed with a furrowed brow before he turned to look at her through the mirror, briefly stealing Emily’s breath away. "For my safety, with the way you are looking at me right now," he remarked with a mischievous glint in his eyes, breaking the tension in the air.

Flustered by Raylen’s teasing, Emily swiftly spun around, her movements brisk as she sought refuge behind the wooden divider. "I never thought anything like that!" she protested.

"Thought of nothing like what?" Raylen’s voice followed her, laced with amusement, his grin evident even without sight. He had missed teasing her.

"Nothing means exactly that—nothing. You’re just trying to twist my words," Emily retorted softly, her words nearly a whisper as she slipped into her nightgown.

"Your lack of an answer only makes you appear more suspicious," Raylen muttered under his breath. He turned to look over his shoulder in her direction, wondering if his patience and self-control would break or surpass his expectations tonight.