Transmigrated Into The Body Of The Cursed Prince Wife-Chapter 307: "Pain..."

[Music Recommendation for this Chapter: Over And Over - Uncontrollably Fond Ost instrumental.]

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The next morning, Ave was the first to wake.

Instead of letting Lucian bathe her like he usually did since the day he found out about her pregnancy, she bathed him instead. He refused at first, as she expected, but the moment she kissed him—slow and deep—his argument crumbled. He forgot all about insisting that he should be the one serving her. In the end, they bathed each other.

She helped him dress as well, taking her time with every detail. Buttoning his shirt carefully, smoothing the fabric down, running a comb through his thick hair in front of the mirror. But instead of just combing, she let her fingers slip through the strands, savoring the feeling, letting them fall through her fingers like silk.

Lucian watched her in the mirror, a small frown on his face. When their eyes met, he smiled, but there was a flicker of something else in his gaze—curiosity, maybe even concern.

"I don’t know why you’re giving me this special treatment today, my wife," he murmured, his voice warm yet searching. "But I could get used to it."

Ave chuckled softly, pressing a lingering kiss to his temple. "Then let me spoil you for once."

He turned to face her fully, his hands resting gently on her waist. "I don’t need spoiling, honey. I just need you." His thumb traced slow circles against her side, his touch grounding. "Are you alright?"

She smiled, a perfect, practiced smile. "Of course I am."

Lucian studied her for a moment longer, as if trying to see past her words. Then he exhaled, pulling her into his lap and resting his chin on top of her head. "I woke up this morning with a restless feeling in my heart. I can’t quite explain it in words, but your behavior is making me restless too."

"Is it a crime to want to pamper my husband the way he had pampered me?" She said as she moved back a bit to study his handsome face. He shook his head with a smile and she cupped his face in her hands and gazed at his lovely eyes.

"Have I thanked you for everything yet, Lucian?" She muttered as she moved a few strands of hair falling over his face to the back of his ear. "You gave me things I never thought I would ever have or deserve. Thank you for never giving up on me even when I pushed you away, and thank you for..." Ave stopped talking when she noticed Lucian grimaced as he clutched his chest.

"What’s wrong?" She asked, standing up from his lap and looking down at him somewhat panicked.

He shook his head with a frown on his face as the sharp pain twisted his heart. "Nothing. I just feel a discomfort in my chest." He assured her as he began to stand, but he fell back down with a groan as he coughed. He covered his mouth with his palm, but when he brought his hand down, there was blood on his palm and his lips.

Ave’s eyes widened as her heart dropped to her stomach in panic. "Lucian. What’s wrong?" She went on her knees and held him when he grabbed his chest again and groaned.

"Pain..." He tried to speak but began to cough again.

Just as Ave was about to yell for help, the door to their chamber was banged open and Zane came running in. "Your majesty, the palace—what’s wrong?!" He stopped short when he saw Lucian on his knees with blood on his lips.

"I am fine. What is it about the palace?" Lucian asked as he tried to stand with the help of his panicked, sick wife.

"We are under attack. Black witches have laid their traps and many of the Pendragon soldiers have fallen into an eternity sleep. We are vulnerable, and Elara is leading them into the palace!"

Lucian’s eyes hardened instantly at that news and he straightened up immediately like nothing was wrong with him.

"Alden, please take my wife and the others to the safe grounds. Zane, call Talinor and his brothers." He said urgently.

Ave stood frozen in place not even realizing Alden was in the chamber until he grabbed her arm and began to pull her away. She jerked away from him and went back to Lucian.

"I can’t leave your side." She cried as she could tell he was still in pain. How could she leave her husband?

He grabbed her arms and kissed her hard on the lips. "You have to. I will be fine. I have to kill Elara myself and put an end to her madness. I will find you once everything is over, go with him." He urged her away when she began to shake her head in protest. "Take her away, Alden."

Lucian ordered as he moved away from Ave who clutched a handful of his robe, but he side-stepped her and the fabric slid out of her fist as he left the chamber in a hurry with Zane following behind him. If he stayed any moment long, he would give away the intense pain he was trying to hide.

"I can’t leave him!" She cried when Alden grabbed her arm and began to pull her in the opposite direction.

"You have to. If you stay around, you might be used as a weapon to get to him. If you care about him, please do as he says, Your Majesty. I don’t want to lose my brother when I’ve only just known him," Alden said urgently, yet softly. And though Ave wanted to keep insisting on going after Lucian, she knew Alden was right. She had never thought Elara would attack them like this and that too on the day of her banquet!

Ave turned back and saw Lucian’s tall figure disappear into the corner, and wordlessly she allowed Alden to lead her away.

The palace atmosphere had suddenly turned deadly in a matter of minutes and as they passed by windows, Ave caught a glimpse of how innocent guests who were just arriving for the banquet were being slain mercilessly by crazy laughing dark witches, who filled the palace grounds with flying crews coming down to angrily attack people along with the witches.

Fire, smoke was burning different buildings in the palace grounds from afar and the thick black smoke covered everywhere. Ave knew, just as she knew that the Moon Goddess had not forgiven her husband, that this battle was beyond Lucian alone.

They were still running down the halls, heading to where Alden planned to gather the rest of the royal women, when a witch on a flying stick suddenly came at them. Alden quickly pulled Ave behind him and drew his sword to strike, but the witch only laughed and blew a handful of black powder from her palm toward them. His sword was useless against whatever dark magic she had unleashed.

Before Ave could even think, she instinctively moved—pushing Alden aside and raising her hands. A burst of purple light shot from her palms, striking the witch and sending her crashing against a pillar. The witch didn’t rise again.

Relieved, Ave turned to check on Alden, only to freeze in horror. Instead of being safe, he was on the floor, choking and gasping for air. His hands clutched his throat, his eyes turning bloodshot red. It was then that she realized—the black powder had still reached him. He had been standing in front of her when the witch attacked.

"Oh, no, no! Don’t die on me!" Ave cried as she knelt before him, panic and fear crashing into her until she had no idea what to do to help him breathe. Desperately, she bit the tip of her finger to draw blood and pressed it against his lips in an attempt to save him, but it did nothing. Instead, it seemed to hasten the effects of whatever the witch had poured on him.

She could feel the life slipping away from the prince as he struggled on the floor, while screams filled the palace from all directions.

"I... I am sorry..." He managed to say before his body went slowly still on the floor. Just like that he stopped breathing, his eyes opened, tears sliding down the sides of his cheek.

Ave shook her head in denial. She searched for a beating pulse on him but there were no longer signs of life on him. He was dead. She refused to believe it, just yesterday he had mended things with Lucian and she had thought he would be there for her husband, and everyone had said he would be a great uncle to their unborn child.

Ave suddenly felt nauseous as she realized he was indeed dead, he had died trying to protect her. She got up on shaky legs and began to run down the halls without a destination in mind. She came across many dead bodies who had died in the same manner Alden had, but she couldn’t stop to check who was who as she needed to find Lucian and any of the other family members before they get attacked by the crazy dark witches.

Ave stumbled over a dead body and fell down while she ran, and when she began to push herself up, a scream left her mouth when she realized the bodies in front of her. Prince Orion and Lydia lay in the pool of their blood and on another side were the twins. Ave began to shake her head as she moved backwards on the floor. Emotions chocking her lungs.

Everything was happening quickly, she couldn’t grasp reality. This couldn’t be real, they couldn’t all die. It has to be a dream, she told herself as she began to run down the halls, but she had a feeling in her heart that it couldn’t be a dream, no dream could be this vivid. She could feel the smoke choking her, stinging her eyes as she ran, she could feel the pain in her knees when she fell.

She had seen herself in many dreams that felt real, but this one was different. She wanted to deny it but she knew she would be kidding herself. They were under attack and everyone was dying all because of her. She had refused the Moon Goddess yesterday, she had fought her powers to get back to Lucian. Was this a punishment from the Moon Goddess for denying her duty?

Was she giving Elara the powers to attack them because she had refused to stay true to her oath? Ave wanted to scream, she wanted to scream at the injustice of everything. But then she knew she had to end everything before it got completely out of hand.