Married To The Dragon Prince Against My Will-Chapter 264: THE SHADOW

Lumina stood before the tall mirror, fingers lightly brushing the silk at her waist.

The fabric caught the morning light, pale and soft, clinging to her shape as though it had been woven only for her.

A slow smile curved her lips. Even without sight, she knew herself well. The mirror was no longer an enemy. It had become a companion she trusted.

She couldn’t help but be so excited that finally after years she could see again, something she wished for all her life.

Her head tilted slightly, listening to the quiet of the chambers. Beyond the curtains, the palace breathed in its usual rhythm.

She felt distant footsteps and the faint echo of servants moving through corridors. Somewhere far away, steel rang against steel as guards trained.

Her fingers rose to her hair, smoothing it back, arranging each strand with carefulness.

Ashen would be waiting. The thought warmed her chest. Today was meant to be simple, she wanted her husband to take her out like he had done before

Of course there is no way she wants to give him the time he is spending on Briella. Yeah she is selfish about it and yes and she accepts whatever insult would follow.

She leaned closer to the mirror, lips parting in a soft exhale, admiring the calm on her face. The scar near her temple barely showed beneath the glow of the room. For once, she felt whole.

Just then a sharp whistle tore through the silence. Before her body could react, something burst through the open window.

The sound of shattering glass exploded around her, violent and sudden. The mirror cracked in a spiderweb of fractures before breaking apart entirely.

She gasped in shock that a single sound could hardly come out from her mouth.

An arrow embedded itself where her face had been a breath earlier.

The force sent shards raining down. Lumina stumbled back, heart slamming against her ribs.

Her hand flew to her cheek as a sting burned across her skin. Warmth slid between her fingers and when she checked what it was only to see its blood.

Her breath caught as she stared ahead, frozen, staring through fractured reflections scattered across the floor.

In every broken piece of glass, a different image stared back at her.

Her gaze sharpened, locking onto one fragment near her feet. Within it stood a shape that did not belong to her chambers. Wrapped in darkness that bent the light around it.

Her head snapped toward the window but there was nothing.

A few seconds later her pulse thundered in her ears. Slowly, she turned back toward the mirror shards.

Then the figure had moved.

Her chest tightened. Air refused to fill her lungs. Her hand pressed over her heart as pain seized her from within, sharp and crushing. Then her knees weakened, and she barely caught herself on the edge of the vanity.

"What is happening to me?" She managed to force out, even though she so badly wanted to call for her husband she couldn’t.

Having no choice she forced her hands to move toward her wrist but then a presence settled behind her.

Cold brushed the back of her neck, even though she couldn’t move she knew someone was behind her. A chill that whispered danger and warning in the same breath.

A low sound curled near her ear, that made her tremble.

"You can now see.." the voice let out and she shut her eyes, she wanted on her blindfold so she couldn’t lie.

She knows every well this person had known, but why does this person want from her?

Her breath suddenly went freely but she still couldn’t move, "You can speak now." He let out and then Lumina let out all at once.

"Who are you? And why are you after me?" The voice smirked and the move so close to her, as she went stiff she felt the power emanating from this presence but she just can’t tell who or what he wanted.

"Just a yes or a no... you can see?" lumina’s lip went tight and she smirked in return.

"Never try to hurt her again." He finally said and Lumina paused at once if there was one thing she had always expected was getting punished for hurting someone. She never does it vividly but the only time she has done it again she is being punished for it.

"So you are from the shadowver realm? Did the king know this was happening?" The cold steel was pressed to her neck reminding her not to cross limits.

Lumina’s fingers trembled against her chest. Her throat locked, sound trapped inside her. The presence leaned closer. She could feel it now, the weight of it pressing into the room, bending space itself.

"Or you will regret it." He ended his word and thesamewords did not strike her with fear.

They wrapped around her like a blade wrapped in silk.

"You!" Her heart beat suddenly seized and the presence smirked as he watched her struggle to breath.

"Careful... your position has not been fully washed off..." Lumina turned toward the shadow ready to attack but it was quick to catch her reflex. He pushed her back with his force as she hit the bed and her head hit the bed. She tried to stand up and her eyes turned blurry.

"That is a last warning:" the figure appeared behind her again and with an amused smirk he threw the spare against the broken windows

Then footsteps thundered outside and then door burst open.

Light rushed in as Ashen crossed the threshold, armor half-fastened, hair loose from haste. His eyes swept the room, instantly locking onto the shattered mirror, the arrow, the glass scattered across the floor.

Lumina spun toward him, terror finally breaking free. Her hands flew out, fingers shaking as they pointed toward the mirror.

"Ashen! There was something here. A shadow. Right there."

Her voice cracked, breath uneven, eyes wide and glassy. Tears welled before she could stop them. Her body trembled as though the cold had finally reached her bones.

Ashen moved fast. He crossed the room in three strides, placing himself between her and the window. His gaze followed her gesture, scanning every corner, every shadow. The air pulsed once, sharply.

Nothing answered.

His jaw tightened. His eyes returned to her face. Her blood stained his fingers as he reached up, thumb brushing her cheek.

Her breath hitched.

There is nothing here.

Her head shook fiercely. She stepped closer, clutching his arm.

I swear I saw it. I am not imagining this. It was right behind me.

Her voice wavered, desperation lacing every word. She turned again toward the mirror.

The mirror stood whole.

Not a single crack marred its surface. The arrow was gone. The glass pristine, untouched, reflecting the room exactly as it had moments before.

Lumina froze.

Her hand lifted slowly to her cheek. Her fingers brushed smooth skin.

No blood.

Her breath came in shallow pulls. She stared at her fingertips, then up at Ashen.

I am not playing with you. I am not lying.

His expression softened, though something dark simmered beneath it. His hands framed her face, grounding, warm, steady.

You are not mad.

The words were firm, reassuring, edged with restrained fury. His thumbs brushed beneath her eyes, wiping away the tears she had not realized had fallen.

Your heart is racing. You are shaking.

He drew her into his chest, one arm wrapping around her shoulders, the other cradling the back of her head. His scent filled her senses, smoke and steel and something unmistakably him.

Slow breaths. Follow mine.

His chest rose and fell beneath her cheek. Gradually, her body obeyed, breath syncing with his. Her grip tightened in his clothes as the panic eased, though the unease remained.

I saw blood. I felt it.

Her voice came muffled against him.

I believe you.

Those words anchored her more than anything else could have.

Ashen pulled back slightly, his hands still firm on her arms. His eyes searched her face, not doubting, not dismissing. Assessing. Calculating.

Someone crossed the outer wards.

His voice dropped, dangerous and controlled.

They wanted to frighten you.

Her fingers curled into his sleeves.

It warned me.

His brows drew together.

Warned you?

Lumina nodded.

Not me. Someone else.

Silence thickened between them. His jaw clenched. The room felt smaller, as though the walls leaned in to listen.

He brushed a kiss to her forehead, lingering longer than necessary.

I will double the guards. No one enters this wing without my knowledge.

She nodded, though her gaze drifted past his shoulder.

There.

Her breath stopped.

At the edge of the room, near the curtain, the shadow lingered. Fainter now. Receding. Watching one last time.

Her heart pounded, but she did not scream. Did not move.

Ashen did not see it.

The shadow melted into the wall, slipping away like smoke carried by an unseen wind.

Lumina swallowed.

Her voice emerged soft, steady, final.

They can now tell that I can see.