Chapter 280: Call Me By My Name

Chapter 280: Call Me By My Name

"Fine!" Seren heard him speak after what felt like hours to her.
Seren was about to thank him, but Drayce spoke again, "But I have one condition as this wish stops me from seeing my wife's face."
"What is it, Your Majesty?" Seren wished to hear what it was as she was ready to do anything to stop Drayce from seeing her face.
"Call me by my name," he replied.
It startled Seren so much, she blanked for a moment. "Name? Your name? H-How can I say Your Majesty's name?"
"Is that not fair as I am not allowed to see my wife's face?" Drayce replied. A light smirk was painted on his lips. "Or is my Queen fine with removing this veil?"
That threat caused Seren to step away from him, feeling scared that he might really pull the veil away from her face.
'It sounds strange to call him by name, but I think it is not a bad deal anyway.' She didn't look at him when she replied hesitantly, "I... agree with what Your Majesty asked for."
"Very well!" A satisfied smile donned his face. "Then, I would like to hear my Queen say my name."
She looked at him with her brow furrowed, feeling puzzled at the expectant look he's wearing. "Now?"
Drayce nodded. "Hmm, now!"
'It's just his name. Since he himself allowed me, then there should not be any issue,' Seren thought as she cleared her throat.?Drayce perked up as he waited to hear her call him by his name instead of his title.
"...ayce…Ivanov…" Seren said in a voice so low that without Drayce's enhanced hearing, he would not clearly catch it.
"I could not hear it," Drayce remarked with an impatient look.
Seren tried again, and this time, her voice was clear. "Drayce Ivanov."
"Why are you calling me by my full name? Dray! From now on, you will call me Dray," Drayce instructed.
Seren nodded with great reluctance.
"Yes, Your Majesty," she said, only to get a questioning look from him and she corrected herself, "I...mean…Dray!"
"It definitely sounds better." He gave an approving nod and continued with his promise, "I swear in my name as a king and your husband, I give my word that I won't attempt to see my Queen's face till the day she consents to show herself to me."
Although she followed his condition, seeing him make a sincere vow, agreeing to such an absurd wish, she could only look at him in shock. As Marie told her before, not being able to see his own wife's face was a sad thing for any husband, as one would always desire to see the face of the person they chose to spend a lifetime with.
She also remembered what Marie asked her back then????—How would she have felt if it was the other way around if she could never see His Majesty's face, the face of the man she married? Seren thought about it and felt fortunate that she could see Drayce's face, but she couldn't help but feel upset over not letting him see her true appearance.
But it was not a choice she made for herself. It was a shackle she had to live by. To hide her appearance was a must.
'I care for him. I can not let my curses harm him.'
"Anything else, my Queen?" Drayce asked, which helped her get back to her senses.
"N-No, Your Majesty, I mean, Dray," she replied and realized she was yet to thank him. "And thank you for granting my wish." She bowed her head to show her gratitude, but just then, she heard something shocking.
"Your wish is for me to not see your face," Drayce said, his tone playful, "but that doesn't mean I can't remove this veil."
Seren looked up at him with her wide-opened eyes. 'Isn't that one and the same? Is he going back on his words?!' Her eyes tried to see through that pair of red eyes, but she could not understand what he was thinking.
Before she could even say a word of protest, everything went black. The candles burning inside her bedchamber were put out all at the same time, and the long curtains drawn to one side were released from their knots and were pulled by an invisible force to completely cover the windows, effectively stopping the moonlight from entering the bedchamber.
The bedchamber was covered in darkness, except for one single candle at the farthest side of her room, thus allowing barely enough light to see only the shape of the things they looked at. Seren could not see anything in the dark other than the vague outline of the tall figure standing close to her, as well as the light reflected on that pair of red eyes that seemed to be shining in the dark. The darkness seemingly enhanced all her senses aside from her sight, and she could hear his soft breathing.
This time, Seren did not feel scared of his red eyes glittering in the dark, but she was anxious about why Drayce suddenly used his powers to turn this bedchamber into a dark place.
It did not take long for Seren's eyes to adapt to the darkness. Though Drayce's face was not clear, she could see him stepping closer to her. No, it was more appropriate to say she could feel him stepping closer, as every part of her body seemed more sensitive due to the darkness.
She could sense his hand moving to her face. As he touched her cheek, his fingertip slowly tracing down to her chin, Seren realized what he was about to do????—he was about to remove her veil.
"Your Majesty…"
"My Queen," he interrupted her, "did we not agree that you will call me by name?"
"I did agree...Dray… but you promised that my veil????—"
His voice was gentle but carried the hint of warning. "I have promised to not see your face. I said nothing about removing this veil."
Faster than she could react, the veil from Seren's face was already gone.
The shock caused Seren to freeze, her mouth agape. 'How could he take it off? Martha said no one can remove it! Then how...?'
Drayce, who could sense her emotions through her glittering purple eyes, replied to her unspoken question, "I could always remove it but I waited for this night."
Seren was speechless. 'Is it because he has powers?'
"Such a weak spell doesn't hold the power to stop me," he replied again to her unvoiced question.
'Yes, the spell is weak but my curse is not!' she panicked internally. 'What to do now?'
"My Queen, I can see in the dark????—"
"No!" Only then did Seren's body react from the shock. Her hands immediately covered her face to hide it from him. She was screaming in her head as Martha's warnings continued to repeat itself over and over again.
Drayce continued to speak as if he didn't realize she was in near tears. "—but rather than seeing using my eyes, it is more proper to say I can sense my surroundings the same way wild animals see things in the dark. I can see you standing in front of me, and I know which part is your eyes, which part is your ears, which is your nose, but I cannot see the details of your face."
Only then did Seren calm down. Drayce held her hands that were covering her face. "Worst-case scenario, I can close my eyes. You don't need to hide anymore."
Seren let him remove her hands that were covering her face, and there was silence for a moment. Seren didn't know what to do while Drayce was staring at her. He wanted to touch her face. Though he could not see her face clearly, he could at least touch it without any obstacle like a veil and feel it to imprint it in his mind.
As he snuffed out the last remaining candle, complete darkness enveloped the couple. Drayce let go of her hands and moved his hands closer to her face. Seren could sense all his movements and stood still to let him touch her. She had already taken away his right to see her face; she did not wish to stop him from other things.
His rough fingertips gently touched her cheeks and brushed against her soft skin. His touch was as light as a feather, as if he was afraid she would break if he were to add a little more force. As if he was in a trance, his fingertips traced her delicate features, from her forehead to her nose, to her cheeks, they kept tracing each line and curve before stopping at her lips.
Seren did not shy away from his touch. She could feel her heart skip a beat the moment his fingertips touched her lips, and her lips parted away little with a mild gasp. Her entire body was immediately covered with goosebumps, and a shiver passed through her spine.
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