Witch's Daughter And The Devil's Son

Everyone arrived at the garden of the palace, where another red-eyed man and his mate were waiting for them. In a moment, Aureus landed there as well.

"I didn't expect you to personally welcome us, Draven," Evanthe commented.

"I was simply taking a stroll outside with my mate," Draven countered. "But since he is your son and family, I'll let you think I'm here to welcome them."

"I shall be grateful that the King of Agartha holds me and my family in such high regard, even if it was by coincidence," Evanthe replied with a mocking chuckle before turning to her son. "Don't mind his rudeness. With thousands of years passing by, he's forgotten the basic human courtesy. Think of this place as ours, except for that main palace building ahead—which is that rude dragon's nest."

Drayce simply hummed, obedient to his mother while gazing at Draven with wariness, feeling the same from Draven. Of course, two dragons would not be thrilled to have another dragon around with their mates by their sides, but they had to suppress their displeasure.

Meanwhile, Seren observed Draven, seemingly excited to see another dragon—the one she had read about in books. The ancient creature was now in front of her, and she could hardly believe her eyes. But then she noticed the temperature drop around the man standing next to her, and she awkwardly lowered her gaze and moved closer to him, assuring him she was with him.

"Seren, this is King Draven, the one you've read about in those ancient books," Evanthe said. "Though ancient, he's still not a fossil."

"Talk about yourself," Draven retorted. "You seem to have appeared in the human realm even before me."

"Well, my youthful beauty makes up for it all, so keep quiet," Evanthe countered playfully before continuing, "And this is Ember, Draven's mate, also a reincarnated deity of fire."

Seren bowed to the emerald green-eyed woman, who offered her a pleasant smile. "Welcome to Agartha, Queen Seren."

"Thank you, Queen Ember," Seren replied politely.

"Just call me Ember, I'm not a queen."

Seren recalled that Evanthe had told her why Ember wasn't considered the queen of this kingdom despite being the King's mate. "Thank you, Lady Ember."

Just then, someone else arrived, stirring the air heavily—a man with a pair of large gold wings folded behind him, landing next to Ember. Seren's eyes widened at the sight of another winged man, and his wings looked even more majestic than Aureus's. As his wings folded behind his back, his hair and wings shifted from gold to gray.

"So this is your son, Evanthe. I must say, handsome. Must have taken after his father since he lacks your beauty," he commented, clearly aware of who was coming.

"He's a man, so he's supposed to be regal and dignified," Evanthe countered, then introduced him to Seren and Drayce. "This is Morpheus, a divine eagle and Aureus's uncle."

Drayce and Seren had heard about him from both Yorian and Evanthe.

"Welcome to Agartha, Drayce," Morpheus spoke casually. "You're my friend's son, so you're like my nephew, not some king. Besides, I don't care much for titles in human royalty."

Drayce didn't mind either. "That's alright, Uncle Morpheus."

"Being an uncle to a dragon—that's something refreshing to hear," Morpheus remarked, glancing at Seren, who was being pulled closer by Drayce.

Morpheus chuckled. "Nephew, you don't have to be so wary. Though I am a beast, you see this beautiful woman next to me? My life is committed to her for eternity."

Drayce relaxed his tight hold around Seren's shoulder as he watched Morpheus speak to his wife. "Seren, a deity of earth."

Seren offered a polite bow. "Divine Eagle, Morpheus."

"You can call me Uncle as well."

"That makes Ember her aunt," Evanthe chuckled.

"I'm not going to be her aunt but a friend," Ember declared, glaring at Morpheus. "I'm still young."

"Alright, whatever you say," Morpheus replied, then turned to Seren. "Don't call her Aunt."

"I won't," Seren smiled. Your next journey awaits at m v|l-e'm,p| y- r

"You three must be tired," Ember spoke as the lady of the palace. "All the arrangements for you are made in the guest house. Make sure to relax and rest."

Yorian guided Drayce and Seren to the guest house while Evanthe stayed back.

Morpheus turned to Ember, and with a flick of his hand, a beautiful bunch of wildflowers appeared. "These are for you."

She accepted the flowers with a smile. "So this is where you disappeared to?"

Morpheus hummed in response, then looked at Draven. "Control yourself. Though he's another dragon, he is Evanthe's son."

"That's why he's allowed to step inside my territory," Draven countered.

"That's not enough," Morpheus replied, turning to Ember. "Maybe you should teach him to be a good host. He only listens to you."

"He'll be fine," Ember assured him.

Morpheus hummed and then informed her, "I'll be with Evanthe. You continue your stroll with that cranky dragon and try to calm him down."

Ember chuckled and nodded as she left with Draven, while Morpheus turned to Evanthe, and Aureus accompanied them as well.

"How was your time with your son?" Morpheus asked.

"Every moment was worth it," Evanthe replied with delight. "And now I have the sweetest and cutest daughter-in-law who completes my son and our family."

"You seem to be smitten by her," Morpheus remarked, glancing at Aureus. "She's quite adorable."

Aureus quickly looked away, hoping his uncle wouldn't say anything in front of Evanthe. He didn't want her to know how he felt about Seren, especially since Evanthe had been urging him to find a mate or accept a chosen one, which he had somehow managed to avoid.

"Indeed she is," Evanthe replied. "By the way, I don't see Sierra."

"She's at the witch clan with Cornelia," Morpheus informed her.

Evanthe sighed. "I just hope she tells Seren directly that she's her mother. It's time to stop this hide-and-seek and resolve both of their mysteries."

"Speaking of her, that reminds me of your child's father," Morpheus asked. "Didn't Drayce ask about his father?"

"He did, but we haven't had the chance to talk about it yet."

"What are you going to do if he wants to meet his father?"

"I don't know," Evanthe exhaled, trying to relieve some of the stress. "I'll go seek Sierra. Let's not talk about Drayce's father right now." With that, Evanthe disappeared, leaving Morpheus to turn to Aureus. "What are you going to do?"

"About what?"

"She'll be marked by Drayce soon. Do you want to get away for a few days? I can keep you company," Morpheus offered.

"No need. If I do that, Mother would become suspicious," Aureus replied. "Besides, running away isn't an option. Eventually, I'll have to return and see her as someone else's mate. All I can do is accept the reality."

"Good. So I don't have to worry about you," Morpheus said, his wings unfurling. "Let's go fly somewhere high. It'll make you feel better."

Aureus agreed, and soon they both soared into the sky, disappearing beyond the sunny clouds.