Chapter 354: Dear Wife Selene - II
[Music recommendation: Secession Studios - Past in Flames]
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But before leaving, Selene laid the groundwork to ruin any chance of Evelyn and Ivan being together.
She made Evelyn forget about Ivan and filled the lovestruck Solan’s head with a lie, convincing him to never let Evelyn be with a vampire, claiming that otherwise, destruction would be imminent.
She did this because, at first glance, she had recognised Ivan as Malakai’s reincarnation from the moment he arrived with his mother, even at such a young age. Though young, he had the same features as the man she had craved to be with for years.
She even went as far as traveling to Versailles through a portal created by one of her followers. Her goal was to wipe the young prince’s memories of Evelyn, ensuring that they would never meet each other again.
But that very night, when she had gone to him, a twisted desire began to grow within her to possess him and groom him from such a young age.
But since she could not remain away from Luminear for long, she ordered her followers to infiltrate Dracoria Palace that same night and take the prince to their hideout.
But his mother, Queen Irene, discovered that they were looking for her son. She stood in their path as a shield to protect him from being taken away.
What they did not anticipate was that her death would trigger the Malakai powers hidden within Ivan.
From that moment on, they could no longer kidnap the prince. Not only had he become incredibly powerful, but he could also immediately detect their presence whenever they were near him.
Because of that, many of her followers were killed by the powerful vampire and the fearsome King Iskara, who fiercely protected the prince after that incident, making it impossible for them to covet him.
So Selene decided to wait.
She waited to strengthen her army of endless Darkrots while she watched for her daughter from the shadows to come of age so her powers could ripen.
However, Solan was the one who had sent Evelyn away, ruining Selene’s plans to keep the two reincarnations apart.
Hatred burned within her veins for the foolish man before her.
Even though he rarely used his head, Selene knew that after Evelyn, he was still the strongest Lumen alive. So she decided she must kill him quickly, before he could see through her facade.
With all the fake sweetness she could muster, she allowed false tears to roll down her cheeks and called to him again. "Come to me, my love. It is really me... your wife... Selene. I have missed you... my Solan."
And Solan forgot everything.
He forgot where he was, what he was doing, and the situation surrounding him. He even forgot how this woman, who had been his wife, had laughed so sinisterly only moments ago that it sent chills down the spines of all who heard it.
Just like a horse with blinders, he saw only his beautiful wife smiling at him lovingly and beckoning him to come to her.
He began to move.
He took one step, then a second, and then a third that would send him straight into the depths of hell and end his life right then and there.
Selene’s eyes gleamed with excitement as she noticed he was about to take the final step toward his death.
But suddenly, a thick arch of pure light magic shot toward Selene and the ghouls who were about to grab Solan’s feet to pull him in.
"Your Majesty! Get away from there right now!" a voice boomed across the battlefield. A man on a white horse raced toward him with incredible speed.
The ghouls and Selene shrieked as they were hit by the pure light magic. The blast snapped Solan out of his trance.
He turned to see none other than Septimus in his silver battle armour, glaring as if he were an angel of vengeance come to earth.
His entire being was glowing with white light, a stark contrast against the darkened battlefield filled with black blood, smoke, and wet mud from the rain.
Behind him was the entire army of Lumens. They had come to join the battle, their enchanted weapons raised and ready to strike at the enemy.
"Septimus! How can you attack your queen like that?!" Anger surged through Solan like a living thing. He began to glow with pure white light as he glared at Septimus for daring to strike Selene.
But Septimus was not affected by Solan’s outburst. "She is no queen of mine! Open your eyes and see her for who she really is!"
Solan roared, "What do you mean?!" He turned to point back at her. "She is my Sel..."
His voice caught in his throat, and his eyes widened as he looked at Selene again.
Gone was her sweet, innocent smile and her beautiful emerald eyes.
Her eyes were now pitch black, with dark, vein-like roots surrounding them. Her lips were pulled into a sneer as she clutched her shoulder. Where Septimus had hit her with pure light magic, her skin sizzled and blackened, revealing a reptile-like texture beneath the facade.
Taken aback by the glaring physical changes on Selene, Solan’s voice faltered. "S... Selene... you..." He did not know what he was looking at and could not find the right words to speak.
Selene continued her act, letting more tears run down from her blackened eyes. "Solan! Look... look at what they did to me... to your wife. I know you still love me, don’t you? Pl... please come to me, my love. I still wish to hold you."
Before Solan could respond, Septimus hurled another blast of powerful light magic from his palm straight at Selene. "Shut up, you witch!" he shouted. "Your Majesty, do not listen to her! She is the one behind all of this chaos!"
As the blast reached Selene this time, she erected a black barrier to deflect the strike.
"Do not listen to him, Solan! He is lying! It is all a plot to get me!" Selene continued to feign innocence, even as she glared venomously at Septimus.
"Do not believe her, Your Majesty! The Goddess spoke to me! This woman killed your daughter! I saw it clearly in my visions! She killed Princess Evelyn!" Septimus spoke with such fury that his powers pulsed around him as he continued to advance.
Selene gritted her teeth and screamed, "Stop lying!!"
With that, she raised both hands and hurled powerful black magic directly toward Septimus. But before the magic could reach him, a massive barrier of pure white light erupted, preventing her attack from penetrating or even touching him.
Septimus pulled the reins of his horse. His glowing silver eyes moved to look at Solan, and he realised it was the King who had formed the powerful shield.
Selene was taken aback by the sudden turn of events. She saw the man she had been manipulating now standing tall, radiating pure white magic from his entire being. His gaze turned cold as he stared at the woman in front of him.
"S... Solan... do you truly belie..."
"Silence!" Solan roared, cutting her off completely. He stepped forward, his voice low and menacing. "Where is my daughter?"
Selene went silent for a moment, looking at Solan with a heartbroken expression. But the grief lasted only a second before it abruptly transformed into something absolutely vicious.
A chuckle escaped her. She pressed her hand to her lips before breaking out into full-blown, maddening laughter. Her cackling was so unhinged and corrupt that it grated on the ears of all who heard it.
Edward, Cece, Damien, Regulus, and Victor, who were fighting nearby on the front line, felt their blood boil at the sound.
Regulus and Victor were particularly shocked by Septimus’s claim that Evelyn had been killed by this woman. They continued fighting to protect their children, but Victor, being a Lumen who had known Selene since they were children, could hardly believe his eyes. He had been stunned from the moment he first heard King Solan call her name.
Though he had heard their exchange, he could not fully concentrate on it with the overwhelming number of enemies looming around them.
The same was true for Iskara, who was standing some distance away from Solan. Though he appeared stunned, his eyes and attention remained firmly fixed on Solan and Selene’s form. It was he who had discreetly ordered Solan’s guards and the nearby soldiers to snap out of their shock and protect their king while Solan moved closer to Selene.
Back where Selene stood, she continued laughing before finally heaving as she forced herself to calm down. A vicious grin spread across her lips as she looked directly at Solan.
"What? Now she is your daughter? Hmm... what about all those times when you turned a blind eye while she lived under your roof and was viciously beaten by that new wife of yours... or wait, tortured by that little devil you call your son?"
