Chained Hearts: From Slavery to Sovereignty-Chapter 174: The Tyrant Demon Snake

Cassian blinked at the girl standing before him, pale and trembling, her long white hair spilling around her shoulders like silk. For a moment he was convinced he had imagined her—his days had been too quiet lately, maybe he’d finally gone mad in this demon realm.

"You... who are you?" he asked again, cautious.

The girl’s lips trembled. "Boo! Cassian, I am your Lyra... Did you forget me again in just two days?"

Cassian froze. His Lyra? His snake? The little white serpent that always curled up around his wrist and hissed dramatically whenever he ignored her?

"You—" His brows shot up. "You can fully turn into a human?!"

Lyra sniffled pitifully, her doe-like eyes filling with tears. "Since always! I can always turn into a human."

Her pout deepened, but before he could say more, she suddenly gasped, clutching his sleeve as though the world itself was collapsing. "Boo-hoo! Cassian, the big demon, does not want Lyra to come out. He wants Lyra to always stay in his place. He tried to lock Lyra away! He doesn’t allow Lyra to meet with Cassian!"

Her tears spilled over, hot and fast, as though the memory had finally caught up with her.

Cassian’s expression darkened. "What? He tried to lock you up? You’re not some pet to be caged. It’s your freedom to go anywhere you—"

"Ahh!" Lyra suddenly squealed, her hands flying to her mouth. "He found me—he’s coming here! Cassian, save me!"

"Wait, what—"

But before he could finish, Lyra darted past him in a blur of white, practically knocking the breath out of him as she barged straight into his room.

"Lyra!" he hissed after her, turning, but she was already scrambling beneath the blankets of his bed like a child hiding from thunder. The pile of covers trembled as her muffled voice whined, "Cassian!" Protect Lyra!"

Cassian barely had time to breathe before another person barged into his personal space without any knock.

A tall man stepped inside, dressed in dark robes that trailed like shadows, his aura heavy and suffocating. His hair was long and black as midnight, his eyes burning with a golden-red that unsettled Cassian immediately.

Cassian stiffened. He didn’t know him—not in this life, at least. But there was something achingly familiar about that face, a memory scraping at the back of his mind. Before he could gather his thoughts, the man simply inclined his head toward him in the briefest of acknowledgments, as if Cassian’s presence was little more than air.

Then he walked right past him.

Cassian’s mouth fell open. "Wait—what—excuse me?! You just barged into my room—at least introduce yourself, you arrogant..."

But the stranger didn’t even pause. His steps were unhurried and steady, as though he already knew exactly where his prey was hiding. Cassian whipped around just in time to hear Lyra’s muffled shriek.

"Boo! Cassian, save meeee!"

He bolted into the room just as the scene unfolded: Lyra, wrapped so tightly in his bedsheets she looked like a dumpling, was hoisted effortlessly over the man’s broad shoulders. She kicked and thrashed, her hair flying like white silk, her voice breaking the air with indignant wails.

"Put her down!" Cassian snapped, storming forward. "You—you can’t just treat her like that! She’s not a sack of grain to sling over your shoulder. She’s—she’s Lyra!"

The man didn’t even blink, his expression as cold and impassive as carved stone. He simply turned toward the door, as if Cassian’s words were gnats buzzing in his ear.

"Oh, no you don’t." Cassian darted in front of him, blocking the path. His eyes narrowed. "You don’t have the right to just drag her away. She’s free to go wherever she wants. You can’t just—"

For the first time, the man’s gaze cut toward him, burning like embers. His voice was low and controlled, but it carried the weight of thunder.

"The consort of the Supreme Lord should focus on his duties rather than meddling in what he cannot understand."

Cassian froze. His brain stuttered. "I—I—what—don’t just throw out titles at me to shut me up! I’m asking you for a reason! Unless you can give me one, you’re not taking her anywhere!" Cassian almost fumbled with the sudden title. When did he gain the consort title?

Cassian planted both hands on the doorframe, refusing to budge. His heart hammered, but his voice was steady.

"You’re not taking her anywhere until you explain everything properly. I don’t care what title you throw at me—I won’t just let Lyra be dragged off like this."

The man didn’t so much as twitch. His gaze locked on Cassian with the cool patience of a predator staring at prey too naïve to understand the danger it faced.

"Step aside."

"No." Cassian’s chin lifted stubbornly. "She’s my family here—the only one I have. If you want to take her, then tell me why. Give me a reason I can believe."

The air thickened, the man’s aura pressing down like storm clouds ready to split the earth. Lyra, still kicking over his shoulder, sniffled and wailed.

"Boo-hoo! Cassian, don’t let him trick you! He only wants to keep me locked up forever, never letting me see you. He’s a tyrant snake! A tyrant!"

The man’s jaw tightened, the golden-red of his eyes flaring dangerously, but his voice stayed controlled. "Her life is fragile in this state. If she leaves her quarters during her mating session, she risks her vitality being torn apart by instinct. You do not understand the risk."

Cassian faltered at that, glancing up at Lyra. "Is... is that true?"

Lyra immediately gasped in betrayal, her voice cracking. "Cassian! Don’t you believe that demon! He just says scary things to keep me trapped. Look at me—I’m perfectly healthy, perfectly fine, and perfectly ready to find a husband!"

She wailed dramatically, thumping her fists against his back. "Boo! I am already so old! Fit to be someone’s ancestor! If you hadn’t stopped me all these years, I’d have thousands of grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren by now!"

Cassian just... stared. Completely speechless. He didn’t know whether to laugh, cry, or just faint on the spot.

She lifted her chin dramatically, though upside down as she was, it only made her look like an angry dumpling dangling from a fork.

Cassian pinched the bridge of his nose. This was insanity. "Lyra, this is serious. If what he says is true, then—"

But Lyra cut him off with another shriek. "Cassian, if you don’t help me, I’ll never forgive you! This is my one chance before my beauty fades forever!"

"Your beauty is not fading, you ridiculous snake," Cassian groaned.

But the words only made the black snake’s expression harden, his teeth grinding as though her constant claims about ’husbands’ and ’beauty’ scraped directly against his nerves. He adjusted her higher on his shoulder, ignoring her pounding fists.

"Enough." His voice rumbled, final, unyielding. "She is not leaving with you. I will take her back."

Cassian moved again, blocking the door a second time, his arms spread wide. "You can’t just decide that! She’s not your prisoner. If you think you can order me around, then at least tell me who the hell you are!"

The man stopped. For the first time, a flicker of hesitation crossed his features—something unreadable, dark, and old, like a shadow of recognition. But it vanished quickly, and all he left behind was silence.

Then, with a single shift of his aura, Cassian felt his body lock as though invisible chains pressed against his chest. He gasped, fighting it, but the weight was overwhelming.

The man stepped past him without a word.

Lyra reached out with both hands toward Cassian as she was carried away, tears streaking down her face. "Cassiaaaan! Don’t let him steal your Lyra! Boo-hoo-hoo!"

Her voice echoed down the corridor, fading as the man strode away with her still wrapped like a dumpling in Cassian’s bedsheets.

Cassian stood frozen, his knuckles white against the doorframe, fury and confusion twisting inside him.

Who was that man? Why did he feel so... familiar?