He sighed. “I will not force you. I only wish to know your plans.”
I shook my head. “I choose the second path. I will remarry.”
A dead silence fell over the hall. Everyone stared at me in disbelief,
Damon was the first to speak. “Absurd! Phoebe, how can you marry another?”
Now, the King and my sister also sensed something was amiss.
The King, though puzzled, spoke tactfully. “Caelus, this is your sister–in–law’s private matter. The decision should be hers alone.”
Damon was silenced, able to do nothing but glower at me.
My sister was even more agitated than he was. She took a step forward, her eyes filled with condemnation.
His body isn’t even cold, and you’re not mourning him, you’re demanding to remarry? If word of this get hoebe, your husband has just died!
Phoenix Clan is as heartless and disloyal as you?”
The Queen’s glare was venomous. “If Damon hadn’t insisted on marrying you, I would never have allowed
family!”
out, do you want everyone to think the
a
venomous creature like you into this
I answered calmly, “If Damon loved me as much as you say, he wouldn’t want me to waste my life away as a widow.”
“I will remarry!” I declared again.
Damon started to speak, “You-”
The King cut him off. “Enough. Since Phoebe’s mind is made up, we will respect her wishes. However, the pact between the Dragon and Phoenix clans stands. You may remarry, Phoebe, but you must choose a suitor from the Dragon Clan.”
I turned to face the vast crowd of dragons and called out, my voice ringing through the hall, “Is there anyone here who will mar
No one stepped forward.
Some looked like they wanted to, but were pulled back by their families. Others met my gaze and shied away as if they’d
I felt a wave of despair. Heaven had only given me two paths: widowhood or remarriage. Was my fate truly unchangeable?
viper.
Chapter 1
06:16
Damon, seeing my predicament, couldn’t resist a sneer. “Phoebe, no one would dare marry a faithless woman like you. You’d better resign yourself to being a widow.” His voice was laced with smug certainty, and it made my stomach turn.
Just then, a figure descended from the sky.
“I will!”
I looked up to see a man I recognized as Xylos, the Dragon Clan’s legendary Warlord. He had a fearsome reputation as a god of slaughter, yet now he was kneeling on one knee before the King. “Your Majesty, I am willing to marry Phoebe.”
Damon’s eyes blazed with fury. “Xylos, what business is this of yours? Let me give you a friendly warning. My brother is barely dead, and Phoebe is already desperate to remarry. Are you sure you want to take a woman like that into your home? Aren’t you afraid she’ll curse you to death too?”
Xylos stepped in front of me, his brow furrowed. “Your Highness, Phoebe is your sister–by–law. Instead of protecting her, you’re slandering her.”
“I’m speaking the truth,” Damon retorted.
Xylos ignored him and turned to me, “Phoebe, will you marry me? I will be loyal to you for all eternity. I will stay by your side. Let the heavens be my witness. If break this vow, may my soul be annihilated!”
My heart trembled. I saw nothing but unwavering resolve in his eyes. I couldn’t help but nod. “Yes.”
With things settled, Damon had no more reason to object. Xylos and I performed the bonding ritual on the spot.
The King, seeing the matter concluded, waved a tired hand at me. “Go.”
He then announced to the assembly, “I am old, and I have lost a son. I no longer have the strength to be king. Three days from now, I will pass the throne to Caelus.”
Caelus was my brother–in–law’s name, the name Damon had stolen.
I pondered this. In my past life, the King never abdicated, not even up to the day I was executed by Damon. Why was it happening so much earlier this time?
Before I could think further, Damon passed by me in the departing crowd. I heard him hiss, “You bitch. You’ll regret this.”
That night, I moved from Damon’s palace to Xylos’s domain.
The servants‘ gossip followed me.
“The Warlord is perfect in every way, except for his taste in women.‘
“The second prince’s body is barely cold, and Phoebe is already remarrying. What kind of woman is she?”
“Didn’t the Queen say
