Thank You #6
At this point the entire kingdom treated us like a recurring natural disaster. The council had actually created emergency procedures specifically for: magical explosions ,accidental creature summoning and very dangerous “situations involving Lady Nina”
Which felt targeted personally.
A second explosion sounded deeper inside the palace.
I closed my eyes briefly. “…Please tell me that it wasn't another wall.”
Lucien seemed thoughtful for one long second.
Then: “That depends how attached you were to the library.”
“Oh my God.”
I started walking toward the palace doors before I murdered my husband publicly. Behind me, Lucien followed at the exact same pace I did because apparently after mating bonds, personal space became illegal.
“You’re walking aggressively.”
“I’m considering violence.”
“That feels romantic.”
I kept repeating that murdering my lovely husband wasn't allowed.
The palace corridors were already full of panicked servants chasing shadow creatures across expensive carpets while several council members yelled in the distance.
One older ruler pointed at me the second I entered the hall.
“This is YOUR fault.”
“Wow,” I uttered. “You sound just like my aunt.”
“That is not comforting.”
Lucien leaned casually against the wall beside me looking deeply entertained while absolute chaos unfolded around us. The worst part was that I knew exactly why I married him. Because underneath all the flirting and magical property damage, Lucien made every room brighter the second he entered it.
Even ruined ones.
Then one of the tiny shadow creatures sprinted directly between my feet carrying a gold crown.
I stared.
“…Is that ceremonial royal property?”
Lucien glanced down calmly. “Technically yes.”
“You summoned criminal raccoons.”
“They have ambition.”
A council member nearly fainted. Meanwhile the shadow creature climbed directly up Lucien’s leg before settling proudly onto his shoulder holding the stolen crown in its tiny claws.
Traitor.
“You like him,” I exclaimed.
“He has leadership qualities.”
“He committed theft in front of us.”
“He committed theft successfully.”
The shadow creature hissed proudly to side with him.
I hated this family. A servant approached us nervously afterward carrying several burned documents.
“Your Highness,” he said carefully to Lucien, “the treasury office requests that you stop experimenting with unsupervised summoning magic.”
Lucien sounded offended. “I was supervised.”
The servant blinked once. “…By Lady Nina?”
“Yes.”
“That feels worse.”
Ouch.
Eventually the palace chaos settled enough that we escaped back toward our chambers while servants continued hunting shadow creatures through the western halls.
The second the chamber doors closed behind us, silence settled over the room instantly. No council members yelling, no explosions shaking the walls, just silver city lights glowing through the enormous palace windows while shadows drifted lazily across the dark stone around us.
I kicked off my boots dramatically before collapsing backward across the bed.
“My marriage is exhausting.”
Lucien loosened the collar of his black royal coat while watching me with that same look that still made my stomach flip annoyingly after all this time.
“You started half the explosions.”
“You encouraged the other half.”
“That sounds like teamwork.”
I hid my smile.
Then he walked closer to me while a silver firelight moved across his face. And there it was again. That stupid heartbeat moment. Like my entire body still recognized him before my brain caught up. It was absolutely humiliating at this point.
“You’re staring,” I informed him.
“You’re beautiful.”
“That line should stop working eventually.”
“It won’t.”
God. I blushed harder. I grabbed the front of his shirt the second he reached the bed and pulled him down hard enough to steal the next sentence directly from his mouth.
Much better. Lucien kissed like he did everything else completely, confidently, like he already knew I’d meet him halfway. Which I did. Immediately.
His hands slid around my waist pulling me straight into his lap while the bond between us warmed soft and familiar now instead of overwhelming.
Home. Somehow, despite everything, that was what he had become to me. Not Hell and not the palace. Just him.
The realization still caught me off guard sometimes. Lucien brushed his nose lightly against mine before murmuring softly:
“You’re thinking again.”
“That accusation feels aggressive.”
“You get angry when you think too hard.”
“I have literally never been furious once in my life.”
The bond instantly betrayed me. Warmth slammed straight through him hard enough that he started laughing against my neck.
Traitorous magic.
I buried my face dramatically against his shoulder. “I hate this bond.”
“No you don’t.”
Honestly? No. I really didn’t.
Then violent pounding erupted against the chamber doors again. Both of us groaned. A terrified servant burst inside two seconds later.
“Your Highnesses, the shadow creatures reached the council chambers.”
Silence settled over the room for exactly one second before another explosion echoed from somewhere deep inside the palace.
I looked toward my husband.
“…What exactly did you summon?”
Lucien considered this seriously.
Then: “They may have learned teamwork.”
Thank You
If someone had told Eva that buying candles would end with her becoming the future queen of Hell, she probably would’ve demanded a refund.
Instead, she found: love, chaos, another world, and one terrifying demon who started out silently making coffee in her kitchen and becoming her home.
This story was never really about Hell.
It was about finding people who see every strange, messy, difficult part of you and still keep choosing each other anyway.
To everyone who followed Eva, Nina, Kaelith, and Lucien through portals, arguments, explosions, mating bonds, emotional disasters, and very questionable decisions:
Thank you for staying.
And remember:
If an occult shop offers you a suspicious candle… Buy it. You might just find your own demon.