I reached for his hand.
“No.”
Something in his expression softened after that.
Then the ceremonial doors opened.The sound that erupted from the kingdom below nearly shook the palace itself.Silver fire exploded across the terraces while ancient bells echoed through Hell beneath the night sky. And together, we walked forward.
The ceremony moved quickly after that. Ancient vows echoed through the palace halls while glowing silver markings spread beneath our feet with every step closer toward the center platform.
The atmosphere shifted afterward. Heavier. Sacred. Because now came the true bond. The moment royal demons feared most. Vulnerability.
The entire kingdom fell silent.Even the fire stopped moving.Then slowly,my demon stepped toward me. And to the visible shock of half the council, he lowered himself onto one knee before me willingly.
The palace gasped collectively. Because the princes of Hell did not kneel.
Ever.
But he was completely unconcerned about the thousands of witnesses watching him surrender the one thing demons protected most carefully.
Himself.
His hands wrapped gently around mine while silver shadows curled softly around us both. The world disappeared around us. No palace. No kingdom. No audience. Just him. His forehead rested lightly against mine before he whispered softly enough that nobody else in existence heard it:
“Your husband's name, remember in your soul my love , ‘Kaelith Vaerion’.”
The bond surged through me instantly, but it wasn’t the pain or the power that hit hardest. It was him. Every guarded part of him opened against my soul all at once until I could feel everything he’d kept buried for so long. Emotion. Memory. Love strong enough to steal the breath straight from my lungs.
God, tears burned behind my eyes instantly because I finally understood what this really was. It wasn’t surrender born from weakness. It was trust so complete it felt terrifying, and he had placed it in my hands willingly.
Silver markings ignited across my skin beneath the ceremonial fabric while warmth spread through my chest like living fire. The entire kingdom erupted afterward. Silver flames spiraled violently through the night sky while demons below screamed celebrating beneath the palace balconies.
But I barely heard any of it. Because my demon was still looking at me like he’d finally stopped surviving love and started accepting it instead. Then softly, through the completed bondnow connecting us completely, his voice moved directly through my soul.
“Now there is nowhere in existence you could go where I would not find you.”
Nina POV
The second Eva’s ceremony ended, the entire kingdom completely lost its stability.
Silver fire exploded across the palace terraces while demons below screamed celebrating loud enough to shake the towers themselves. Honestly? Good for them. Meanwhile I had a significantly more immediate problem.My ceremony was next. And I was terribly sweating.
Beside me, my demon seemed entirely too entertained by this realization while the council desperately tried reorganizing themselves into ceremonial professionalism again. Unsuccessful effort to be fair.
Mostly because several rulers were still quite recovering from watching the future king of Hell kneel publicly for love.
One elder looked ready to resign permanently.
Meanwhile my demon stepped closer toward me beneath the silver firelight. Which was a very dangerous mistake. Because every time he looked directly at me lately, my brain started malfunctioning aggressively.
“You’re staring again,” I informed him.
“You’re beautiful.”
“That sounded rehearsed.”
“It sounded true.”
Rude. But, it worked on me anyway.
