Devouring Monarch: Rebirth of the Profane Phoenix

"Will you give me this dance, Verana?" His voice was nothing like the day she visited him in Wolfsheim, a warm and comforting tone.

The duchess took Asura's hand as they seemed to enter their world step by step. "Gladly, Asura."

Their movements started slowly, like a clock winding together, before their bodies, in perfect sync, danced to the mysterious music, seeming to draw everyone who heard it.

An empty ballroom filled with a beautiful aura of magic, each step, each touch, the ripples of magic forming beautiful colours as they danced together. The ring on his finger radiated light as he lifted Verana, causing her dress to rise and reveal her ruby-red high heels.

The men and women of nobility watched in awe as the pair danced and danced, eventually becoming a single figure as the song ended.

"Asura..."

"Verana..." His lips closed, both breathing faster from their dance, before another tune played, different from before. It was a nostalgic waltz. The song played often in Asura's workshop, the days he would meet her in the library. "Shall we?"

"You're asking now?"

"I wouldn't dare..."

A couple of youths resumed their dance as if in a dream. In the past, Verana wished to enjoy this moment together. However, she needed to teach Asura to dance because he never learned... After years of studying and practise and the night they would finally announce their engagement to the world, she...

"So we can finally dance this dance?" Asura asked, his mind lost in nostalgia and the shallow hope he prayed was true.

"Finally..." She felt his hand tremble and his hand tense for a moment, unsure as she rested her head on his shoulder. Then, with a whisper that shocked his entire body, causing his mind to race. Their second dance started, even more magical and wondrous than the last."Do you still need me to guide you, Prince Charming?"

"Verana... Is it you?" Asura asked in an even deeper voice. His heart, filled with emotions he believed buried and cast aside long ago, threatened to erupt and destroy his reasoning. NovelFire-unofficial-chapter

She knew the reason for his determination, the revenge against his suffering and his ending cry of pain. The cry that set her free from Verena's grasp, only to find it was too late, and her mother and beloved were already gone.

The only way to survive, the only thing she could cling to in her despair, offering her soul as a sacrifice to be reborn once again. "I waited for you, Asura. My heart has always been yours. I will not make the same mistake... twice."

His lips closed tightly, trembling in his struggle as she could feel tears dropping on her face and neck. He pressed his forehead to hers, gazing deeply into her eyes as he fought the last of his pain and doubt.

"Let us not think of these things tonight, but enjoy our reunion after so long," Verana added, as the music became lively, young nobles spurred on by their display, rushing to the dancefloor as the banquet became lively.

"Very well, my beautiful lady."

****

⁜ Valerie POV

Many people watched this scene, including Valerie, who felt a sense of defeat, frustration and anger as she gazed upon them. 'Why? Why does it feel like they have such a history together, and what is this display of magic? Their compatibility is this great they can synchronise with just a touch of their hands?'

Valerie couldn't know that while Asura devoured the magic inside Verana, her ability, the opposite of devouring, created more magic to fill the gaps, creating the resonation between the pair.

Her crimson eyes darkened with frustration as she watched their passionate dance. However, the duchess was not the only one filled with a horrible feeling of jealousy and loss.

From a distance, the princess watched with eyes of amber red, a look of despair a young girl her age should not have. Her grip tightened on her glass, causing it to shatter as she turned away from the dancing pair.

"Why, do they look like lovers reunited after a lifetime apart!?" Vela muttered, unable to calm the stirring emotions in her chest before she left the banquet and headed to her room.

The duchess couldn't do this. However, her gaze focused on her daughter, watching their dancing until finally, after the third salsa. The piece ended the pair. Breathless, with beads of sweat dripping down their cheeks, returned to her side with smiles.

Verana laughed when she saw her mother's slightly grim expression. "Mother, are you alright?"

Valerie's ruby eyes met Asura's crimson orbs, now glowing vibrant red, as they stared at each other momentarily before smiling. "I... I am fine, Verana; you looked beautiful while dancing."

"Thank you, Mother."

"But before it gets too late, maybe you can retire for the evening." Valerie declared, feeling this was enough for tonight. She had to escape or break them apart before her heart broke.

"May I take leave?" Asura asked before Verana could speak, giving her a path of escape.

"Of course," Valerie replied. "You may return to your room, Lord Asura."

Asura smiled before taking his leave, leaving the duchess and Verana alone as she wiped away her sweat and regained her composure.

***

⁜ Asura POV

"..."

His eyes narrowed, a feeling of disturbance inside his chest growing with each step towards the castle bed chambers. A familiar smell drew him to his door as a woman stood outside.

"A-Asura..." Her voice was soft as she blushed under his gaze. The woman's silver hair fluttered from the gentle breeze as she wore a light blue nightgown, her beauty illuminated by the moonlight from the double windows across the hallway.

"Princess." Asura's voice was cold, his gaze unchanging.

"Asura, you danced with her so passionately... Are you happy?" Vela asked softly. "I... I don't hate this feeling when I see you together." Her words were nothing like Asura expected. Vela's smile was not the innocence of a young girl but a mature woman's understanding.

"Happy... well, it felt nostalgic and peaceful, but that was all." His words were harsh as he said them. However, his words were true. He still didn't fully trust that woman or the Drakkur family; his stubbornness wouldn't let him forgive them so easily until he had definitive evidence.

Vela stepped forward with a strange confidence in her eyes and reached out to stroke his cheek. "Don't cry, my prince."

"Cry...?" He touched his cheek and found water droplets as if her words triggered them. "I have not cried for a long time." He gave a bitter laugh while holding the soft hand of Vela, who continued to caress his cheek, her amber eyes unyielding. "It's cold here. Shall we enter my room? I don't wish for another man to see your body... forgive my male jealousy."

'I don't know why she isn't wearing a bra; maybe she was just that worried...' Asura thought to himself, trying to avoid peeking at her erect cherries under the thin nightgown. 'This princess is problematic for appearing like this. Even though I don't plan to do anything, she makes my mind and body feel strange.'

"Ah, yes, then can we talk in your room?" Vela asked quietly, her cheeks reddening innocently.

"..." Asura didn't reply and opened his door, allowing the princess to enter, wrapping her back with his spare arm, feeling the warmth from her body and smooth back with his palm as they entered his room together.

****

The rooms provided for Asura and Vela were of the best standard, like five-star hotel suites. A massive double bed dominated one side of the room, while an expansive balcony stretched into the night sky with a two-seater couch. A king-size bathtub was hidden behind a curtain in the bathroom, complete with a shower and toilet.

Asura grasped his spare robe, before wrapping it around the shoulders of Vela as they entered, covering her soft, beautiful body from his sight.

"You... truly have become handsome and gallant," Vela noted with a slightly flushed face as she looked at his muscular chest with a hint of desire. Her small body made her seem more feminine and lovely in Asura's eyes.

"The princess also learned to joke, too, and it's quite impressive."

"Hmmm... well, seeing you with Xavida and Mu Xue is enough to teach any girl what men like," Vela responded with a cold snort. "Asura... Am I pretty? Can you imagine me being your wife?" Her question came out of the blue, but he remembered the challenge she issued him and could only answer her honestly.

"If a pretty girl like you waited for me each night in bed or at the dining table... I would probably be the happiest man alive."

"..." Her face froze as she knew his words weren't lies.

Her face turned a darker shade of red before she squeaked and rushed to the bed, trying to hide her face. 'This girl, she is a little too cute.'

Asura gave a bitter smile and lit a fire in the fireplace before pouring a glass of red wine and some light snacks. "Are you hungry?" He asked softly. "You must have had little time to eat at the banquet with all the commotion. Or rather, would you trust food in the open? Don't princesses normally have poison testers?"

Vela couldn't help but giggle. "Thank you... I am a little hungry but will only eat a little."

"Mhm... I would prefer you not to throw up in my bed."

"!!!" Her face popped out of the quilt as she wrapped herself like a cocoon, seeming to pout at his words. "I am a princess, not a pig!"

Asura held back his laugh as he couldn't help but pat her head as he walked past her. "Now eat, but remember, no vomiting." He sat at the small coffee table before the fireplace and lit a cigarette before drinking a glass of wine and watching the dancing flames.

While the princess ate the snacks, she couldn't help but peek at Asura's sad face, her chest tightening each time he looked sad. "Asura... you don't like the Drakkur family much, do you?"

"..." He glanced back at her over his shoulder, her cute amber eyes showing her honest feelings, and he couldn't help but feel guilty.

"Yet, why did it feel that woman and you were so perfectly in sync... so much it hurts?"

"Haha, what a perfect match... Silly girl." Asura chuckled bitterly as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the black hairpin from Verana's hair earlier in the evening. 'How could we ever be a perfect match when I died because of her and she died because of me?'

Although he didn't wish to admit it, the silence of Helia and the clues and things this Verana did or said, there was nothing but for him to accept this woman, at least had the memories of when they studied together and a few of when he was with the shadow doll of his wife, but that wasn't enough to break all his doubts. 'I cannot forgive or forget so easily.'

[....]

"Hmmm~ this ham is so tasty; I've never eaten such a wonderful night snack!"

The princess seemed to detect his dark mood, wanting to make him smile but lacking the finesse.