- 7 minutes ago
The Serpent Lord's Substitute Bride Billionaire Romance
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Short filmTranscript
00:05my adopted sister dahlia steals my elixir and wins the alchemy trials with it never guessing
00:10the prize is marriage to the heir of house by theorists a man rumored to be barren brutal and
00:15monstrous that same night house by theorists delivers a bonding contract sealed with a serpent
00:19wax crest they want the shifter woman who crafted the elixir as their heir's bride my betrothed
00:24edmund panics he rushes through a bonding ritual with dahlia overnight by morning it is done
00:29dahlia sways toward me and flashes the silver wolf shaped mating mark glowing on the small of her
00:34back your betrothed belongs to me now his mark is on my skin whatever will you do sister she tilts
00:41her head that syrup sweet voice your 25th name day is three days away the crown council will assign
00:47you to one of those brutes from the borderlands you know what those men are like she is wrong i
00:52have
00:52another option i find father and mother in the great hall scrambling to clean up dahlia's mess
00:57if dahlia won't marry the heir of house vithus i will father's hand freezes midair the bonding
01:03contract trembling between his fingers mother's eyes blow wide elevin have you lost your mind lord
01:08severin is rumored to be barren bloodthirsty savage they say he nearly tore out a servant's throat when
01:15he went feral marrying him is walking into a death trap before i can answer father clears his throat if
01:21she doesn't go what about dahlia she's already bonded to the gray hollow boy something shifts behind
01:26mother's eyes a flicker of conflict and her hand slowly releases mine my heart goes cold i am their
01:32true-born daughter and still always they choose the girl who plays helpless a bitter laugh scrapes out
01:36of me but i have one condition on the day i leave this house dahlia will confess before all the
01:44houses
01:44that she stole my elixir father slams his palm on the table how can you be so cruel you would
01:50destroy
01:50your own sister's reputation mother stares at me with the same disappointment as if i am the problem
01:55the serpent lord wants the alchemist who made that era your precious dahlia can keep the credit
02:01or keep her comfortable life she can't have both they cave for dahlia of course they do i turn and
02:08walk out without hesitation and nearly collide with edmund stepping out of dahlia's chambers red marks trail
02:13down his neck and chest the cloying scent of dahlia's rose oil clings to him so thick it burns my
02:18nostrils i cover my nose and move to pass him he scrambles to block my path oh i know you're
02:23angry
02:24but i had no choice the serpent court is possessive beyond reason only a completed bond could make him
02:29abandon his claim on her there was no other way a bitter smile cuts across my lips and what about
02:35me
02:35we were supposed to complete our bonding ritual when i turned 20 but every time the ceremony drew near
02:40dahlia found a reason to cry and edmund found a reason to postpone again and again i am nearly 25
02:45now
02:46and he chose this moment to bond with her two paths stretch before me the conscripted match or
02:50the serpent lord nothing else guilt flashes across edmund's face he seizes my hand i won't let the
02:56conscripted match take you listen i can have a throst band put on you you'd live in gray hollow under
03:02my
03:02protection you wouldn't have to marry anyone he sees my expression change and rushes to add
03:07it would only be in name once you're at gray hollow i treat you the same as dahlia
03:12you want for nothing i almost laugh the audacity only shifters convicted of serious crimes those with
03:18nowhere left to turn except the thrall brand a branded person can be sold by their house at will
03:23they live beneath everyone and their children inherit that status forever i rip my hand free i would
03:29sooner walk into a serpent's jaws than wear your brand at least the serpent doesn't pretend to love me
03:34while he devours me edmund's face darkens wounded pride twisting into something ugly elowen don't
03:39you love me is your pride really worth more than being with me i fire back without missing a beat
03:44oh then why don't you make dahlia the thrall that would save her just as well dahlia a thrall she
03:51couldn't survive it she's too delicate too gentle she deserves to be cherished not branded years of
03:57swallowed grief surge upward my vision blurs because dahlia is hairkin soft fragile born looking like
04:03something that needs protection and i am the last nine-tailed fox shifter in all of eldrath strong
04:08resilient supernaturally fast to heal carrying nine lives so father and mother favor her and my own
04:13betrothed pities her every hurt every sacrifice it all falls on me because i look like i can take it
04:18edmund flinches at the scorn in my eyes shame curdles into anger and he throws one last line over his
04:23shoulder as he leaves think it over l you know as well as i do you have no other options
04:29after he is gone
04:30i drift downstairs in a daze and find a delivery from house by theorists waiting for me i open the
04:35box my breath catches a moonstone pendant the exact one i lost at auction during the last merchant's
04:40gala warmth spreads through my chest unbidden maybe marrying lord severin isn't a death sentence
04:45after all the next day i go to a goldsmith's workshop in crown city to choose a return gift
04:49for severin his beast form is a green-eyed black serpent i pick a cloak pin shaped like a coiled
04:54snake
04:54black silver base two emerald eyes i allow myself a grim bit of humor at least house by theorists commands
05:00more wealth and power than nearly anyone in eldrath what exactly do i have to complain about
05:04oh my how duplecialists of you sister you claim you'd never be edmund's thralth yet here you are
05:12spending a fortune on his name day gift such devotion i could never be so clever dahlia stands there with
05:19edmund's arm linked through hers wearing a victor's smile that is when i remember today is edmund's name day
05:24they think i bought this for him so much for your pride you're bending the knee to avoid the
05:29conscripted match after all that one is hideous get me a wolf silver with gray eyes something worthy
05:35of my house this is for my betrothed it has nothing to do with you still putting on a brave
05:41face you're
05:42nearly 25 the decree takes effect in three days stop pretending you have choices push me further
05:51and i won't even offer you the brand edmund darling the thralls hall is right there
05:58i can't bear seeing my poor sister living in such dread why don't we take care of it today
06:03you really are too kind dahlia well go on
06:13inside the thrall hall the central branding forge burns with an eternal flame rows of branding irons
06:18hang on the walls each etched with a different rank symbol a glowing red iron presses into a
06:23shifter's flesh even the strongest male shifter in the room screams raw animal broken edmund flinches at
06:28the sound but he still lets dahlia direct the house guards to drag me deeper inside in that moment
06:33the edmund who shielded me as a child the boy who never let anyone lay a finger on me feels
06:37like
06:37something i imagined he is 13 standing between me and danger eyes bright and fierce touch her again
06:47again and i'll shift right here that boy doesn't exist anymore dahlia's grip locks around my arm like
06:53iron nothing soft about her now let me pick out a nice brand for you sister her gaze sweeps the
06:57wall
06:58it lands on one iron etched with a broken chain the lowest rank it means never free
07:02this one suits you best don't you think sister i wrench free from the guards i haven't even
07:08touched dahlia but she throws herself backward acting as though i shoved her the branding iron
07:12clatters to the floor a single spark raises the back of her hand not even a mark i only wanted
07:18to
07:18help you avoid the conscripted match and you tried to burn me
07:24before i can react edmund charges in he slams into me my body hits the edge of the branding forge
07:29my palm presses flat against scorching metal pain crashes through me like a wave i can't breathe
07:34i tear my hand free from the burning surface and a new pain explodes across my face edmund's open palm
07:40full force the crack echoes through the entire thrall hall how could you do this to her she begged
07:45me to help you and this is how you repay her apologize to dalany now edmund my hand it hurts
07:54so much
07:59the moment i see that cloak my heart seizes a foxtail cloak made from my eight severed tails
08:06before all this dahlia engineered crisis after crisis slashing her own skin faking collapse
08:11performing death's door so convincingly that everyone believed only my life force could save her
08:16and i am a nine-tailed fox each tail holds one life under edmund's pressure i severed eight tails
08:22transferred my life force to dahlia eight times eight lives it still wasn't enough i did nothing wrong
08:29and i will not apologize edmund's pupils contract something in my defiance cuts in where he doesn't
08:35expect how dare you stop who dare touch her
08:55my eyes open through the narrow slits of the mask a pair of deep emerald eyes vertical pupils
09:00unmistakably serpent a faint otherworldly gleam i think of the emeralds on that cloak pin he sets
09:06me down on a stone bench in a nearby courtyard before i can speak he vanishes around the corner
09:10i look down a small jar of healing salve sits in my palm i don't know when he placed it
09:15there
09:15across the street edmund tenderly smooths dahlia's windswept hair murmuring comfort a cold smile tugs at
09:20my lips i reach for the bonding ring i've carried at my waist the one i'd planned to return to
09:24him
09:24i walk to the edge of the city wall without a moment's hesitation i hurl it into the churning river
09:29below two days later i put on the bonding gown sent by house by theorists i stand in my room
09:34surrounded by a dowry so extravagant it doesn't feel real father and mother shuffle in they ask
09:38voices halting eyes averted if maybe dahlia doesn't have to confess publicly maybe they could call it a
09:43misunderstanding save her some face for the honor of our house elinden the last illusion i held about
09:50them shatters my dowry i prepared it myself for years i made excuses for them they forgot they were
09:55busy they'd remember eventually they didn't remember a dowry for their own daughter
09:59but they remembered to come beg on behalf of their favorite no and if you push me further
10:03i won't go through with it at all let's see how house virion responds to that you wouldn't dare
10:09a commotion erupts from the great hall below i descend the stairs to find edmund sprawled in the
10:14great hall's main chair like it is a throne a glowing red branding iron rests in his hand
10:18elevin the conscripted match takes effect in 30 minutes but since you're here perfect you know
10:24the rules for a thrust before the brand comes the right kneel kiss dahlia's hand and renounce your
10:29freedom before everyone in this hall do that and i'll take you into gray holland edmund's gaze drops
10:35to my bonding gown he freezes for half a second then his brow furrows why are you dressed like that
10:40you think putting on a gown makes you a bride take it off you're embarrassing yourself i hold his
10:44stare i steady i'm completing my bonding today edmund to someone who actually wants me you're not invited
10:49his expression shifts then snaps back into that benefactor's mask every second you waste i add
10:55another hour on your knees time is running out l i don't mind having someone help you down
11:01and if you won't kneel on your own gray hollow retainers step out from every corner in full view
11:06of the hall they reach for my bonding gown hands closing around my arms to force me to my knees
11:11no edmund i told you today is my bonding
11:16i'd like to see anyone in this room try to make my wife kneel
11:22edmund's eyes go wide the serpent-shaped cloak pin glints at severin's collar
11:26bold unmistakable edmund's gaze climbs to the serpent patterned mask then to the man behind it
11:31the branding iron slips from his hand and rings against the stone floor you you're the heir of
11:36house vitherus what do you mean the contract was for dahlia she's already bonded to me what are you
11:41doing here severin reaches up peels the mask away the face beneath has never been shown in public
11:46sharp striking nothing close to the monster from the rumors he extends his hand toward me gently
11:51dread pools in edmund's gut i place my hand in severin's palm our fingers laced together tight
11:56the corner of severin's mouth lifts his voice measured unhurried i never said i wanted dahlia it
12:02was always elewan elixir was always hers as for dahlia only fools like you would fall for someone
12:08that pathetic the color drains from edmund's face he doesn't understand whispers ripple through the
12:13great hall people are already questioning whether the trial elixir was really dahlia's at all dahlia
12:19goes white her hand drifts toward her eyes on instinct but i speak first turning to father and
12:24mother at the foot of the stairs father mother don't forget what you promised me mother leans close and
12:30murmurs something in dahlia's ear dahlia shrieks like a stepped-on cat no the elixir is mine if the
12:36serpent court wants to cause trouble that's your problem i'm bonded now i what happens to house
12:40thornwood is no longer my concern father and mother stare at her as if they're seeing her for the first
12:44time a cold laugh escapes me dahlia has always been this person they were just too blinded by their
12:49own favoritism to notice severin clicks his tongue lifts one hand ancient runes blaze to life across
12:55the stone floor light pours from the cracks tracing a perfect circle at dahlia's feet a truth circle
13:00severin speaks with the full authority of the vithyrus heir since this lady insists the elixir is hers
13:07she has nothing to fear step into the circle and prove it every drop of blood leaves dahlia's face
13:12she stumbles back half a step she can refuse but in eldrath refusing a truth trial is the same as
13:18a
13:18guilty plea every eye in the hall is on her dahlia's scream dissolves into sobs tears pour down the picture
13:24of helplessness edmund help me she's going to kill me edmund charges forward face ashen but the
13:31vithyrus guards form a wall between them severin's gaze lands on him cold as winter stone if she's
13:36innocent the circle will prove it unless you already know she isn't edmund's feet root to the floor
13:42a terrible certainty begins to take shape the kind he has spent years refusing to look at dahlia is
13:48pushed into the truth circle at first she clamps her jaw shut fights it with everything she has
13:53but the runes glow brighter her body begins to shake words rip out of her throat like they're
13:58being dragged by hooks yes yes yes i stole her elixir i stole it and i stood on that stage
14:04and i
14:05smiled while everyone applauded her voice splinters the circle's power drives her on she turns to edmund
14:10her lips twist into something between a sneer and a snarl did you true believe i loved you you were
14:15the
14:15most obedient dog on my leash i said jump you asked how high i pointed at her tails and you
14:21you cut off
14:22yourself edmund's temple pulses his whole body trembles but all he does is step back like someone
14:27pulled the bones out of him everything all of it was he can't finish dahlia's venom swings toward father
14:34and mother and you two pathetic old fools did you really think the carriage accident was just bad luck
14:39i cut the reins i watched the carriage go off the road then i ran down the hill screaming for
14:44help and you you thanked me you took me in the carriage accident years ago the very reason father
14:49and mother adopted the homeless grateful little girl named dahlia all of it staged from the start
14:54father's face turns the color of ash he sways a servant catches him mother's eyes were tenderness
14:59lived moments ago flood with raw consuming hatred she lunges forward and strikes dahlia across the face
15:04twice you treacherous ungrateful wretch the hall erupts into chaos i watch it all the truth laid bare at
15:12last and feel nothing the satisfaction i expected doesn't come severin senses the shift in me his hand
15:17tightens around mine come home with me elohim i'll be your family now okay i step toward the carriage
15:27edmund crashes through the crowd behind me don't go with him please eyes wild and red rimmed pathetic
15:34i love you i see it now it was always you she deceived me his regret isn't worth the dirt
15:39on my
15:39shoes my gaze drifts to the white rabbit mating mark visible on his throat the mark that surfaced when
15:44his bond with dahlia sealed my voice is perfectly flat i think you two deserve each other may your
15:50bond hold forever his face crumbles i don't linger on it i step into the carriage and pull the door
15:55shut
15:56edmund lunges after me by theorist guards close rank around him with a steel curtain he claws at the
16:00mating mark on his neck scratching tearing and screams after the departing carriage
16:05el i won't give up i'll do the severing i'll break the bond i'll come back to you
16:13severin holds the bonding ceremony at the serpent's reach castle grand lavish every detail curated i am
16:20allergic to pollen but i love flowers the entire hall blooms with crystal flowers crafted by alchemists
16:26every petal every stamen impossibly lifelike not a grain of pollen in the air i am still wondering
16:31how severin knows my preferences when a wolf howl pierces through the walls a servant reports a massive
16:37wolf in feral shift is clawing at the castle's iron gate i pause shifters only trigger a full shift under
16:43extreme duress edmund didn't shift when he learned the truth about dahlia he shifted when he saw my bonding
16:48ceremony once i might have read that as proof he cared more about me now i just find it absurd
16:54you
16:54don't get to go mad over something you threw away severin and i exchange bonding vows before the
16:59gathered witnesses the moment his hand takes mine the serpent shaped mating mark on my palm and the
17:04nine-tailed fox mark on his shoulder ignite simultaneously light floods the entire hall
17:09every person in the room holds their breath a faded bond the destined contract unseen in eldrath for a
17:15hundred years after the ceremony or carriage rolls toward the main castle of serpents reach as we
17:21pass through the outer gate i glance through the carriage window a massive silver wolf crouches
17:25inside an iron cage for a split second i think i see a tear slide from one lupine eye but
17:30the wolf can
17:31only watch trapped as our carriage disappears down the road bonding night the master chamber just the
17:37two of us i study his face without the mask my cheeks flush before i can stop it every rumor
17:43about
17:43you is wrong severin removes the silver pins and gemstones from my hair one by one his fingers move so
17:49gently they don't belong to a man called savage what rumors that you're savage hideous and a soft laugh
17:59barren heat rises to my ears i open my mouth to reassure him and he pulls me into his arms
18:05those
18:06emerald eyes fix on me the vertical pupils dilate slightly but he holds himself in check elevin look
18:12at me his voice drops low we stop whenever you say i have waited seven years i can wait seven
18:19more
18:19something in those eyes undoes me i nod shy and breathless you don't have to hold back it is not
18:26until the bonding ritual begins that my eyes fly open you have two severin's voice comes out rough
18:33serpent bloodline we have two if you don't want i kiss him to shut him up by the second half
18:39of the
18:39night he proves thoroughly and personally that the barren rumor is also a lie at the most intimate
18:44moment our mating marks blaze to life in unison a massive wave of emotion crashes into me not mine
18:50his pure feeling seven years of solitude seven years of longing and one moment lying half dead in
18:55the mud barely breathing when a pair of warm hands lifted him up and his whole world shifted on its
19:00axis
19:01i cry severin stops immediately alarm all over his face he thinks he hurt me i shake my head
19:07i felt you all of it all those years it takes five full days for the bond to stabilize i
19:15nearly trigger
19:15a full shift my ears and tail popping out uncontrollably again and again i peel myself off the bed
19:21legs shaking lower back aching and hear a commotion outside i push open the window and look down edmund
19:27kneels at the castle gate a massive bouquet of roses clutched to his chest a maid sweeping the
19:31corridor tells me he has been there for five days two rainstorms hit during that time he knelt through
19:36both the only thing he asked for was someone to swap out the wilted roses for fresh ones all i
19:41feel
19:41is irritation who is this performance for i have a new life edmund's self-righteous penance is nothing
19:47but noise i reach for the curtain and a body with cooler than normal temperature presses against my back
19:52what are you looking at severin peers over my shoulder sees the scene below his brow creases
19:57he just won't go away will he at that exact moment edmund looks up as if he senses me the
20:03instant he
20:03sees my face something reignites behind his dull eyes and dies the next second when severin tilts my
20:09chin up and gives me a long slow kiss i don't resist i wrap my arms around him the tenderness
20:14of it
20:14sears into edmund's vision roses scatter from his hands he staggers to his feet mouth opening to shout
20:20to stop it but five days without water have stolen his voice nothing comes out i expect edmund to give
20:26up instead he is at the gate again the next day and the next i can't take it anymore i
20:31go down to face
20:32him edmund has lost significant weight pale dark hollows under his eyes his robes hang loose on a
20:37frame that used to fill them the moment he sees me he fumbles at his collar yanking it aside to
20:41bear
20:42the back of his neck where dahlia's white rabbit mating mark used to sit now only a jagged wound raw
20:47half healed a slab of flesh carved away he forces a desperate eager smile el i did the severing ritual
20:54the mark is gone i'm clean now we can start over the severing ritual is one of eldrath's most
21:01dangerous rites it tears the bond from the soul itself the pain is said to rival being flayed alive
21:06three out of ten who attempt it die on the ritual table and the mark goes deep down to muscle
21:11and
21:11bone removing it completely means cutting away an entire section of flesh i look at the mangled mess of
21:16his neck surprised he went this far but only surprised nothing more my silence gives him
21:21hope he pulls out two severed pieces i look closer a silver gray wolf tail a white rabbit tail anguish
21:29contorts his face i'm sorry l i was a monster i understand now i understand what you went through
21:36i severed my own tail and hers to atone forgive me i'll spend the rest of my life making it
21:44up to you
21:44nothing stirs inside me not a ripple their tails are gone do mine grow back a nine tailed foxes tails
21:50once severed never regenerate ever eight lives gone forever edmund if you truly want to make amends
21:57stop coming here stop making your guilt my burden to carry i am bonded to severin we are happy you're
22:04lying how could you bond with someone else edmund runs to his carriage and hauls out a bouquet of roses
22:14el look i brought your favorite roses before he can get within arm's reach a boot kicks the bouquet
22:20out of his hands petals explode across the cobblestones severin stands between us his emerald slit pupils
22:26have contracted to razor thin lines edmund snarls what gives you the right to kick away my flowers
22:32severin's voice cuts like a blade dipped in frost you claim to love her yet you bring her the one
22:37thing that makes her suffer how very consistent of you the blood drains from edmund's face
22:44i'm sorry l i didn't mean to i thought you like he thought i liked roses the one who likes
22:49roses has
22:50always been dahlia and dahlia doesn't even care about them that much she just enjoys watching me
22:54break out in hives every time dahlia graciously regifted edmund's roses to me i told them all of
22:59them i am allergic to pollen father mother edmund none of them believed me they decided i was making it
23:04up to spite dahlia i spent years getting dragged to the healer's ward every other week because of those
23:09flowers i look at edmund hollowed out unraveling and feel nothing warm at all you cut eight tails
23:14from my body you made a cloak of my lives and draped it over the woman who orchestrated every
23:19wound and now you stand here with flowers i'm allergic to asking me to forgive you tell me
23:25edmund in all of that did you ever actually see me edmund's knees buckle he barely stays upright i
23:30take severin's arm and turn to leave behind us a rush of footsteps severin pivots to shield me but
23:35edmund isn't charging at us he sprints straight for the serpent's reach training yard and
23:39rips the sword from the rack severin by theris i challenge me to an honor duel for elevan an
23:44honor duel in eldrath when a shifter believes another has taken his mate he has the right to
23:49demand a duel of honor dot edmund half shifts goes all out lupine fury raw power wolf blood is built
23:55for
23:56brute force and explosive speed severin barely tries to so when speed erases every advantage the wolf has
24:01each of edmund's lunges hits empty air nothing but a calm side step
24:11one strike severin pins him to the ground scales ripple across his neck those cold slit people stare down
24:21suffering for her doesn't mean you loved her it just means you only know how to think about yourself
24:28edmund collapses broken ribs a wolf-like rasp shudders through his chest he lifts his head toward me now
24:35now i know what it feels like does that does that count for anything i give him one look just
24:41one then i
24:41walk to severin and press my fingers to the scales that have surfaced along his neck raised by anger
24:46hard as armor dot under my touch they recede smooth skin returns inch by inched severin goes still then
24:53he bows his head and rests his forehead against my palm i take his hand i don't look back dot
24:58edmund
24:58watches from the ground the way she touches severin's face the way her eyes soften she has never looked at
25:04him like that not once the next i hear of edmund is three days later after the honor duel he
25:08was carried to
25:09healer's ward unconscious for a full day and night before waking this time he drops the desperate
25:14siege tactics instead he starts appearing at every place i frequent engineering coincidences the herb
25:20market in crown city the alchemy workshops even the small towns near serpents reach severin's seeds
25:25he stays glued to my side and every time he senses edmund nearby his pupils narrow to vertical slits
25:31a clear unmistakable warning until one day severin and i attend the gathering of houses the annual
25:37formal assembly of all the blood houses severin needs to discuss territory matters with allied
25:42house representatives we separate briefly i sit alone at a long table in the corner of the banquet hall
25:46picking at a slice of cake when a shadow falls over me i look up edmund stands in front of
25:51me i have no
25:52idea when he got this close i stand to leave how did i never notice how revolting he is the
25:57contempt
25:57in my eyes wounds him he calls out voice shaking i'm not here to bother you i just thought you
26:04should
26:04know severin went into the east tower with a woman just now my step falters i glance instinctively
26:11toward where severin was sitting only his allied house representative remains drinking alone edmund moves
26:16closer he does this right under your nose and you're still going to stay with him my brow furrows that's
26:23between me and my husband it has nothing to do with you logic tells me severin would never but the
26:28unease claws in anyway edmund fans the flames already climbing the spiral staircase of the east tower top
26:33of the east tower see for yourself i follow before i realize i'm doing it barely 15 minutes of climbing
26:40but it feels like an eternity what if severin really my thoughts tangle before i know it i'm standing
26:45in front of the tower chamber door edmund's face is a light he reaches for the handle the door opens
26:51from the inside first get out whoever sent you tell them i've waited seven years for my wife
26:55no one is taking that from me a scantily dressed shifter woman stumbles out of the room thrown not
27:00walking severin stands in the doorway his expression is dark enough to bruise his clothes are perfectly
27:06intact the moment he sees me the ice cracks gone in a blink elevin i didn't touch her someone slipped
27:12a
27:12lust dress into my mead i saw through it serpent blood is immune to poisons i played along to draw
27:18them
27:18out he tugs his collar open you don't believe me check for yourself there isn't a mark on me that
27:23isn't yours i catch his hands before he can strip any further a laugh escapes me i believe you keep
27:30your clothes on for now edmund's face goes white i turn the full weight of my contempt on him edmund
27:35was
27:36that woman you're doing you disgust me it wasn't me l how could you think that of me i don't
27:42bother
27:42responding whether it was him or not doesn't matter anymore severin notifies the gathering's organizers then
27:48takes my arm to leave edmund chases us to the door mouth open still scrambling for words the banquet
27:53doors explode inward a filthy disheveled shifter woman barrels through the crowd and hurls herself
27:58into edmund's arms i look closer she is dahlia the hall drops into dead silence then the whispers begin
28:08dahlia doesn't care about appearances she wails at full volume in front of every bloodhouse representative
28:14in eldrath spilling everything this is how i learn what happened after the truth trial edmund severed
28:19dahlia's tail threw her out of gray hollow father and mother cut her off entirely bolted the doors
28:24of thornfield manor and ignored every plea for weeks dahlia begged for scraps at the edges of market towns
28:29then her belly started to swell that is when she realized edmund tries to pry her off she locks her
28:35arms
28:35around his legs like a drowning woman gripping driftwood this child is her only leverage her only way back
28:40every house representative in the room watches the spectacle with open amusement gray hollow's
28:45disgrace served fresh lord gray hollow the elder arrives face carved from stone to salvage what
28:50little dignity remains he forces the issue for the honor of house gray holland take her home as they
28:56drag dahlia out she twists around for one last look at me the jealousy and bitterness in her eyes warp
29:01her features into something barely human back at serpent's reach severin draws a hot bath for me
29:06his fingertips trace along my neck and shoulders the serpent blood runs cool and somehow that
29:12coolness unwinds every knot in my muscles when you threw that woman out you said you'd you'd waited
29:18seven years for your wife what did you mean a long pause when he speaks his expression is more open
29:24than i've ever seen it i've been in love with you for seven years do you remember years ago in
29:29the deep
29:29forest you found a small black serpent half dead in the mud that was me my enemies had hunted me
29:34down i was
29:35wounded feral trapped in my beast form you saved me with your elixirs i was dying and then you
29:41appeared you didn't flinch you picked up a venos emza serpent with your bare hands and poured your
29:46elixirs into its mouth i think i think i fell for you before i even knew your name by the
29:50time i found
29:51you again you were already promised to someone else i stare at him duck that little black snake was you
29:56all these years i thought it was just a wild serpent i never imagined i'd accidentally saved the
30:01air of house vithyrus a thought strikes me the man in the serpent mask at the runaway carriage that
30:07was you severin nod was me i was late that day i should have been there sooner i couldn't stop
30:15them
30:16from hurting your hand his healing salve worked flawlessly not even a scar i step forward and wrap
30:21my arms around him severin he freezes color floods his face racing down his neck he presses my hand to
30:27his
30:28cheek and holds it there and the light in his eyes is so bright he can barely contain it again
30:32please
30:34after that confession severin becomes impossibly clinging he caches in every unused rest day he has
30:40accumulated over the years and takes me across eldra the warm coastline near serpents reach the eastern
30:46mountain passes hidden valleys i've only read about in books with no sign of edmund for once we have the
30:52sweetest stretch of days i can remember one winter night i find severin curled by the fireplace serpent
30:58blood runs cold the chill hits him harder than most i walk over and wrap my single remaining tail around
31:03him he stiffens you don't have to i want to he says nothing more just buries his face in the
31:10fur and
31:10lets his breathing slow that tail keeping him warm and the eight made into a cloak they're the same thing
31:15the difference is one was taken the other is given rumors about gray hollow drift in from time to time
31:21dahlia and edmund fight constantly two people who despise each other chained together by an unborn
31:26child a kind of forever i suppose i think the worst is behind me that i can finally have peace
31:33i am wrong dahlia and edmund argue on the courtyard steps at gray
31:39shoving turns to stumbling dahlia falls the child is gone with her last scrap of value erased lord
31:46gray hollow the elder expels dahlia from the estate and edmund once again appears at my door
31:51his eyes carry something new something unhinged l the bond is severed the child is gone
32:00there's nothing standing between us now a chill crawls up my spine it's not the words it's the way he
32:06says them like the baby's death is just another obstacle cleared from his path i open my mouth to
32:10respond and dahlia explodes from the shadows beside the road the wall died a dagger clenched in her
32:15fist aimed straight at me elephant this is your fault all of it you have one life left i took
32:23eight
32:24and i'll take the last edmund's pupils shrink to pinpoints he throws himself between us a thump the
32:30dagger buries itself in his abdomen edmund clutches the wound and crumples blood spills from the corner of
32:34his mouth that blade the healer tells him later has permanently destroyed his ability to sire children
32:39royal guards arrive and seize dahlia on the spot while edmund recovers the crown council launches
32:44an investigation dahlia's testimony from the truth trial is formally prosecuted eight counts of coercing
32:50aloan into severing her tails attempted enslavement of a bonded mate as thrall and years of systematic
32:55abuse against aloan edmund is stripped of his noble title and confined to the royal dungeon
33:00three years later through relentless work i become the most respected alchemist in eldrath the crown
33:04council awards me the title of master alchemist severin and i have twins flower daughter inherits
33:09my bloodline nine fluffy little tails a true nine tailed fox flower son inherits severin's a pair of
33:14tiny emerald slit pupils the barren heir of house vitherus rumor dies on its own a new one takes its
33:19place severin vitherus does whatever his wife tells him during this time father and mother send messengers
33:23to serpents reach again and again requesting an audience they even deliver a dowry years too late i don't
33:29see them not once my life is full now i don't need their discount love anymore on the twins naming
33:33ceremony
33:34nearly every blood house sends a representative gifts arrive in an endless stream severin and i are
33:38playing with the children when a servant approaches carrying an enormous gift box from a visitor not
33:43on the guest list he delivered it and left no name we open the box inside rare gemstones enchanted
33:50artifacts and a document exclusive trade rights to the two wealthiest counties in gray hollow territory
33:54at the very bottom beneath everything sits a ring the bonding ring i hurled from the city wall into
33:59the river he found it pulled it from the riverbed dot but the ring lost its meaning a long time
34:03ago
34:04i close the box and rewrap it have a rider return this to grey hover and have him deliver a
34:10message
34:10tell him i bear him no hatred i pause but we are done we have always been done after the
34:17servant leaves
34:18severin wraps his arms around me from behind his chin rests on my shoulder are you all right
34:24i'm fine while i lean back into him i've been fine for a long time dirt that night the children
34:32are
34:32asleep i'm holding my daughter pressing a kiss to the tiny soft ears on her forehead her nine little
34:38tails twitch in her dreams a faint itch prickles at the small of my back i look down next to
34:43my
34:43single remaining tail a tuft of new fur pale as spider silk almost invisible i go still i don't tell
34:49anyone i just smile and hold my daughter a little closer
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