Chapter 2

Caius was certain I would cave.

For an entire month, he froze all the Vance family accounts in the Daylight Zone. Then he turned right around and used his private assets to bail out Elara's bankrupt family.

He flew that woman to Europe, plastering their romance across the tabloids every single day.

He didn't summon me until tonight, the very moment they returned.

"Take it."

A cheap gray stone hit the desk with a dull thud.

Caius spoke as if dismissing a beggar. "Your portion for this year. Keep it."

I stared at that crude stone, briefly lost in a trance.

The Vance clan and his family had been allied for generations; Caius and I had been betrothed since childhood.

But unlike the cold, transactional marriages typical of the Pureblood class, we once had real feelings.

A century ago, just so I could travel freely under the sun, he drained his magic, staying awake for three straight nights to forge a protective gem with his hands.

The scorch marks it left on his skin still haven't faded.

Since then, he had spent a massive amount of energy every year to prepare a top-tier sunward gem for me.

"Not going to say thank you?" He tapped his knuckles against the wood.

Before I could open my mouth, Elara strolled forward and seamlessly draped herself over Caius's lap.

"Caius, my ankle hurts so much," she pouted.

"Who told you to wear stilettos shopping?" Caius scolded, though his gaze instantly softened.

He lifted her leg, wrapping his large hand around her fragile human ankle, massaging it rhythmically.

Elara tugged at her neckline, flashing the high-grade Sunstone shimmering brightly against her collarbone. It was a holy relic that required a high-ranking Pureblood to sacrifice an immense amount of magical blood to enchant.

"Caius made this protection stone for me himself. Even under the harshest midday sun, I'll be perfectly safe." She giggled, her provocative gaze sliding to the desk. "You should keep that one, Seraphina. After all, it was a 'premium gift' Caius got for free at the boutique when he bought my bags."

Caius's brow twitched imperceptibly.

I reached out and pushed the gray stone away.

"I'll pass."

Elara shrank back, her eyes brimming with instant tears. "Did I say something wrong to upset you...? Caius, maybe I should just go."

"Stay put." Caius clamped a hand around her waist.

His face turned ice-cold. A flicker of blue pureblood wildfire shot from his fingertips.

The flames licked across the desk, reducing the stone to ash.

"If you won't take it, it burns." He dusted the ash from his fingers, his voice dripping with condescending authority. "I was actually considering letting your father out to see you, provided you behaved today. Now? He can rot in there a little longer."

My heart violently convulsed.

I gritted my teeth so hard the metallic tang of blood flooded my mouth.

See him? He's already dead!

I shot up from my chair. But before the words could leave my throat, a violent wave of dizziness hit me.

I reached blindly for the edge of the desk, but my knees buckled completely. I crashed heavily against the hard floor.

……

When I opened my eyes again, the estate's family doctor was standing at the foot of the bed.

Seeing me awake, he spoke, his voice trembling slightly. "You are with child... exactly three months along."

"A Pureblood fetus is exceptionally aggressive. It's frantically draining your magic, which caused you to collapse. Your body is extremely fragile right now. You absolutely cannot come into contact with any Holy attributes. If it triggers rejection and bleeding, it will be fatal."

After the doctor left, my hand drifted down to rest over my flat stomach.

Logic blared alarm bells in my head.

This was it—the ultimate shackle Caius would use to swallow me whole and control my every move. Yet, as my palm felt that incredibly faint, pulsing warmth, my fingers trembled and curled inward against my will.

Just then, the door clicked open.

Elara strolled in. Her gaze snapped straight to my stomach, sheer jealousy twisting her face into something grotesque.

"I heard you were feeling unwell," she mocked, stepping closer.

"Get out," I glared at her, my voice ice.

"Don't be so hostile." She leaned over me, opening her arms under the guise of helping me up.

In the fraction of a second our bodies crossed, she twisted the ring on her left hand. The serrated metal edge sliced brutally across the skin of my lower abdomen.

It felt like a boiling, rusted iron spike being driven straight into my flesh!

I sucked in a sharp, violent breath, cold sweat instantly drenching my back.

High-concentration Holy Mercury coated on that ring surged through my broken blood vessels, igniting my nerves as it rushed straight toward my womb.

Elara leaned in close to my ear, whispering:

"I thought having your father killed would finally give you the hint to crawl away. Who knew you'd try to use some mutt to tie Caius down? In your dreams."

Those words swung like a heavy axe, shattering all my remaining doubts.

She was the one who murdered my father!

"It was you!"

The violent, dormant crimson of a Pureblood flared in my eyes. With every ounce of strength I had left, I shoved her backward.

Elara let out an ear-piercing shriek. Riding the momentum of my push, she threw herself onto the floor, curling into a ball and sobbing hysterically.

The heavy doors burst open. Guards and maids stormed into the room.

Seeing Elara bleeding on the floor, the color drained from their faces.

Caius's absolute favoritism had long emboldened these servants to cross the line. Inside this estate, harming this human woman was a far greater crime than insulting me.

"Detain her! Await the Lord's orders!"

Two guards disregarded my status. They lunged at me, violently wrenching my arms behind my back, one on each side.

The brutal pulling ripped right through the Holy Mercury wound. The poison flared outward, and the excruciating cramps in my abdomen made my vision blur into static.

But in the next second, a large hand clamped down over the head guard's wrist like an iron vise.

An imposing figure stepped forward, shielding me behind his broad back. A voice—ice-cold and pitch-black, ringing with the absolute authority of the Grim Reaper himself—echoed through the room.

"Touch her again, and I'll tear you apart."