Chapter 69: The Blurred Six Days
Seraphel
I woke up feeling completely sore. Even after Azriel had knotted me twice, he hadn’t stopped.
After a few brief minutes of rest, he had been right back at it. At some point during the night, I had actually worried about the baby, only to remember that Azriel had placed a protective ward around it specifically to keep it safe from his sexual intensity.
But to put it simply, Azriel had absolutely ruined me. Especially my hole.
I fluttered my eyes open, letting the memory of last night settle for a few seconds. Then, I gasped and nearly jumped right off the mattress when I saw Analisse staring down at me with a wide, eerie grin.
"Oh, you are awake, Your Grace," she said sweetly.
I ignored her greeting, my eyes darting frantically around the room instead. The entire space looked completely different. Every corner was heavily decorated in deep crimson.
Red silk bows hung from the pillars, elaborate scarlet banners draped over the obsidian walls, and long red ribbons were tied meticulously around the furniture.
"What the hell is happening?" I asked, pushing myself up from the mattress.
I let out another gasp when I noticed the crowd standing right behind her.
A line of at least ten servants stood there with their heads lowered in submission.
It was bizarre, considering the only servants I ever interact with besides Analisse are Durin and Rami.
Who even were these people? I couldn’t help but wonder where this sudden army of staff had come from.
"What is going on?" I pressed, locking eyes with Analisse again. "Why are they all here?"
Analisse gave me a questioning look, her brows furrowing in genuine confusion before she flashed that sweet smile again. "Your Grace, did you forget? Your wedding is today."
Today? That was impossible. The wedding was supposed to happen in seven days, and the countdown had only started yesterday. What the hell was she talking about? Had Azriel suddenly changed the date without telling me?
"I..." I scanned the room again, trying to see if I had been moved, but the familiar obsidian walls and the heavy silk sheets were definitely mine. How could a wedding scheduled a week out be happening this morning?
I heaved a deep sigh, trying to catch my breath as I faced her. "I think you are making a terrible mistake. I am not supposed to get married today. It’s supposed to be in seven days. Or did Azri..." I bit my tongue before I could casually finish calling him by his name. "Did the Prince change the date?"
"No, Your Grace. It is today."
"But I was literally summoned by the Prince last night!" I argued, my voice rising. "You dressed me up, applied so much makeup to my face that I looked like a drag queen—so what the hell is going on?"
Analisse blinked, looking completely lost. "Drag queen? What is that?"
I rubbed a hand over my forehead, realizing I had used a term from my world that absolutely did not exist here. I let out a frustrated sigh. "Focus on the question. I met the Prince last night. He came to my room, and he..."
Analisse cut me off, clapping her hands together as she shook her head. "That was seven days ago, Your Grace. The Prince visited you a week ago. Today is the day you will finally be crowned as the Princess of Katula."
"You aren’t joking?" I stared at her, but she simply shook her head in response. "What... there is no way!"
I screamed, throwing the covers off and climbing down from the bed. "I know for a fact that I was with the Prince last night! How could I have missed six entire days of my life? How is that even possible? I am still literally sore!"
I cried out, struggling to take a single step forward. My legs were trembling; Azriel had completely ruined my ability to walk straight.
Analisse chuckled softly, her cheeks suddenly flushing a deep shade of red. "Permit me to remind you, but you have been visiting the Prince’s private chambers very frequently this past week. That is probably why you are still so sore, Your Grace."
What the hell? I frowned, staring at her blushing face. Why did she look exactly like one of those obsessive online shippers from my old world who would swoon over every little detail?
But now wasn’t the time to address her weird reactions. I had a much bigger problem. I had absolutely no memory of the last six days, and now I was suddenly supposed to walk down an aisle.
"Your Grace, there is no time to waste," Analisse urged, stepping forward. "You have to begin preparing for the ceremony immediately."
"I..." I tried to argue, but the words died in my throat.
A sharp, violent ringing echoed in my head, making my vision instantly blur. For a few terrifying seconds, I couldn’t see a thing. I could hear Analisse frantically screaming my name and feel her waving her hands wildly in front of my face, but everything was a wash of distorted light.
As my vision finally began to clear, I gasped.
Standing right in the center of my room was a figure dressed entirely in black silk garments, their hands wrapped in thick gloves and their face concealed behind an ornate porcelain mask. But in the blink of an eye, the figure dissolved into thin air, as if they had never been there at all.
"What..." I groaned, pointing a trembling finger toward the empty space.
Analisse looked back at the corner, then turned to me with wide eyes. "Your grace, is everything alright?"
I groaned again, sinking back onto the edge of the mattress and burying my face in my hands.
Six days. Six entire days completely wiped from my mind. How could this be happening?
"Analisse," I said, looking up at her through my fingers. "What exactly did I do during those six days?"
"Oh, you did so much, Your Grace!" she began excitedly, counting the events on her fingers. "You and the high concubines actually got along wonderfully while planning the wedding decorations together. And the Prince’s brothers, the other Seven Deadly Sins, all arrived at the palace! Prince Azriel threw a massive, lavish banquet in your honor to welcome them. Everyone had so much fun. His Highness didn’t leave your side the entire time, constantly holding you and showing everyone how deeply he dotes on you."
"Enough!" I barked, my stomach churning. I couldn’t listen to another word. "That is enough."
I stood back up from the bed, my mind racing. Since I had absolutely no recollection of any of those events, listening to her talk about it was only making me feel more unhinged.
"Since I don’t remember any of it, we’ll leave it at that. What is the next thing I need to do?"
Analisse lowered her head respectfully. "Your Highness, Durin and Rami have already prepared a hot bath for you to soak your body."
I let out a long sigh and nodded.
Maybe once I got into the water, the fog in my head would clear.
I desperately needed to regain my memories and figure out how the hell I had ended up in this situation, because losing a whole week of my life was starting to feel incredibly dangerous.