The Devil's Cursed Witch

The next day, Ember started her day with great expectations. She had been informed that her magic teacher, a fairy who belonged to the Fire Fae, would be coming in and she looked forward to meeting her teacher after she had her morning meal.

Yula escorted her to the open area at the rear of the palace where a vast meadow was allocated to be her training grounds. Her lessons would be conducted in this place from this day onwards.

Just as they reached the training grounds, she saw the King talking to a red-haired woman, together with what seemed like an entourage of servants from both sides.

Yet Ember didn’t notice the woman, and neither did she see the others with them. The moment she stepped foot on that open area, all she could see was the King, her mate.

She only had him in her gaze and she found it difficult to move her attention away from him.

It was as if the world faded into a blur, and everything turned quiet to her. The other people disappeared from her sight and what remained in front of her was only that handsome man—her mate, who had a cold stern expression on his face as he talked to the person in front of him.

‘I want him to look at me…’

It was such a strong urge seemingly out of nowhere. She didn’t know what they were talking about— no, she didn’t even wish to know what, but she wanted him to turn around and pay attention to her and her alone._.

As her mind focused on him, her loud heartbeats drowned the sounds around her, making her entirely deaf to be able to hear anything. She continued to look at him without even blinking once, having some unknown feelings appearing inside her heart.

Draven’s senses picked up the unique scent of his mate before she even arrived in the training grounds, that was why he was aware of the exact moment of her arrival even without looking at her. That was also the reason why he noticed her unwavering gaze on him that seemed to prick on his skin, causing him to turn tense despite having control over his urges.

When she stopped walking midway, he pivoted his body towards his little mate and stared her down, only to be surprised that she didn’t avert her gaze as she usually did; rather, her eyes boldly rested on his tall form.

“Miss Ember?” Yula called out when she also stopped moving together with her, but the human girl gave no response. She was lost in her thoughts upon seeing her mate face her.

Yula finally noticed how Ember and the King were transfixed at the sight of each other, and with a slight smile, the elf walked ahead towards the fairy in human form that was talking with the King.

Draven sauntered over to Ember, and the sound of her heartbeat drowned out all the little sounds around her. She could not help but try to gulp as her throat felt parched with each of his steps, her body coming under a spell of his making.

Unknown to her, she also began walking toward him and they met halfway, their eyes still not leaving each other’s gazes.

​ Yula greeted the red-haired Fire Fae and the two women smiled at what was going on around them. They tactfully left the mated couple alone and went off to the side, talking to each other.

“I believe that pretty young lady is my student, His Majesty’s mate?” the red-haired woman asked, and Yula nodded as they talked a few feet away from the couple. “The Fairy Queen had already told me she’s human, but it was so hard to believe without seeing her in person…”

Draven and  Ember formed a world of their own, though he chose to stand from her with a certain distance in mind for his little mate to be not affected by his scent.

“How are you?” he inquired as he hadn’t talked to her since he bit her.

“Huh?” she said while blinking, and it was clear she could neither hear nor understand him.

“How are you?” he asked once again. “Are you alright?”

His firm and dignified manly voice became audible to her this time, and she snapped back into consciousness, becoming aware of her surroundings again.

Flustered, Ember lowered her head immediately, before awkwardly bowing to the King. “Y-Your Majesty, good morning,” she stuttered.

“Morning,” he responded after a brief surprise and he heard her mutter a reply to his previous question, even though her head was lowered.

“I am fine, Your Majesty…”

With her head still lowered, the man in front of her was unable to see her expression. Ember was wearing a chagrined face, busy cursing herself about what she was doing and then wondered if she should tell the King that she was ready to consummate the bond so he wouldn’t suffer anymore but…

“Starting from today, you will have your lessons in these training grounds. I have appointed a teacher for you. She will teach you how to control and effectively use your powers,” he informed her with a dry, emotionless voice, as if he were talking about work with one of his aides. Nobody realized this was him trying his best to keep a level head despite the strong, seductive scent emanating from his mate’s body.

As she heard the formal tone of the King, Ember swallowed the words she was about to say.

“Thank you, Your—”

She started, raising her head to meet his gaze, only to stop. She saw something flicker in his red eyes. That pair of eyes changed their appearance for a second.

“Your eyes…?” she said, looking at them.

Draven immediately averted his gaze, as what she was referring to finally dawned on him making him panic inside.

‘I need to leave.’

Draven looked at Yula and the red-haired woman off to the side, who abandoned their discussion upon realizing the meaning of his action, and quickly walked towards them. They understood it was time to introduce Ember to her new teacher.

“Miss Ember, this is Lady Helia from the Fire Fae clan,” Yula said.

“Greetings, Miss Ember,” the red-haired woman said with an energetic smile. “It is an honour to be chosen to educate such a unique individual like you.”

“Nice to meet you, Lady Helia.”

Ember politely responded, feeling unexpectedly shy upon receiving such praise, as she studied the woman.

Fire Fae Helia was extremely beautiful in a way she couldn’t describe, especially how the rays of the sun caught the tips of her wild mane of red hair in the most eye-catching way. She stood at almost the same height as Yula, who was shorter than the other female elves in the palace, and Ember smiled as she didn’t have to raise her head to look at her new instructor.

Her fair, porcelain skin looked almost flawless, and her long, red hair highlighted the shining copper-gold of her eyes. She wore a brown, ankle-length dress, and Ember gazed in appreciation at how her small figure filled out the gown. The dress was clinched at the waist with a brown garter belt, and her posture spoke of someone with experience. Despite her rather lively mien, she had this feeling that gave off a rich experienced vibe, and Ember knew that they would get along well.

“From today onwards, I will be your teacher regarding the basics of magic control,” the woman’s voice breached Ember’s thoughts. “Rest assured, though you are a unique human, I will do my best to teach you how to use your elemental powers,” the woman assured her.

“Thank you so much. I will do my best to learn from you,” Ember replied.

Draven looked at the Fire Fae. “I will leave her in your care.”

“I will not disappoint your expectations, Your Majesty,” the fairy replied, and Draven turned to leave. His gaze rested on Ember briefly, as if he was telling her he was leaving.

Ember stared longingly at his retreating back until he disappeared from her sight, and his sudden haste confirmed her suspicion that the change in his eyes meant something.