Luna was glad that his husband was happy, too, but not at the cost of her stockings floating in the air for all the villagers to see as they passed by, gawking at it and then turning their scandalized gaze on her.

Her eyes had widened in horror as she stared back at them but Apollyon didn't care.

Her husband was too focused scrutinizing its kinky accessory before her comfort.

Sometimes, Luna can't help but question her husband's mental stability.

Did his beautiful wide blue eyes glow because he had killed a living creature with his bare hands, or was he ecstatic about her stockings tied to his sword?

Both of the options indicate her husband's lunacy.

Luna scowled at her stockings again, her face flaming, as she attempted to snatch it from the sword so that she could hack it to pieces.

Of course, her husband didn't allow it as he swung his blade quickly out of her reach.

Luna had overstretched her arm and leaned sideways that she almost fell off Nimbus.

It would have been funny if the cause of her death was that she was run over by horses' hooves if she had been human.

Fortunately, Luna's husband had fast reflexes and caught her before her face fell flat on the ground.

"You should be careful, wife," Apollyon muttered with immense concern as he tugged her elbow and pulled her back up. "You are clumsy but I don't want you to be hurt."

Did her husband had no idea why she almost fell?

'Yes.' Luna thought. 'It was because of that damned stocking.'

+++

It wasn't supposed to be like this in the first place.

Apollyon and Panterra was just an honorary sword duel compared to the heroes who represented their respective realms.

It wasn't Luna's intention to steal the show from them, either.

It was unfortunate that Catriona's death and King Panterra's loss highlighted the sword duel.

Luna winced in her saddle when she remembered how Cederic had carried Catriona's body like it was a mutilated animal carcass instead of a former concubine.

She couldn't control the shivers down her spine as he imagined what Cederic had done with Catriona's spilled intestines and the detached heart.

She wouldn't entirely dismiss the idea that the military general would eat them if he was bored.

Will, they put her cold cadaver in the arctic wild for the wolves and vultures to feed on?

Luna's nose wrinkled in disgust as she imagined Catriona's limbs stretched and pulled apart as wild animals fought for her decaying flesh while the vultures flew overhead, waiting for their turn to maraud the rotten corpse.

She convulsed as her toes curled up, her head spinning from those unwanted images.

Why was she so sensitive recently?

She was an Amazon warrior who had already seen enough carnage and bloodshed.

Hell, she even reveled in it and took part in slaying monsters, killing creatures who stumbled on their territory in the Sacred Valley, and hunting wild animals for food, and participate in gutting their insides before roasting their meat.

It didn't make sense that she was squeamish over dead bodies.

Death was a natural occurrence so she should have been used to it.

She wondered if there was anything wrong with her bodily rhythms or was it a mental thing?

After all, watching the Archdemon of Envy's witch must have fucked her mind up.

"Are you alright, wife?" The Vampire King had enquired from behind her.

She was too caught up in her head--too focused on the trauma she had witnessed--that she forgot his existence and her surroundings.

He asked, concerned. "Are you sick?"

Apollyon played with the silver strands of her hair as he rested his head on that space connecting her neck and shoulders.

"I'm alright." She replied but there was a manic edge to those simple words.

Luna retched.

She was incredibly tempted to vomit her guts out.

"Wife."

She cleared her throat before swallowing, "I told you I am alright. Do you want me to beat you up?"

She shook her head and waved a dismissive hand at Apollyon as if that would also dismiss the revolting horror of that sacrifice.

"But--"

Luna straightened her spine and tightened her hold on the horse's reins and it made her husband sit up straight in his saddle, too.

Luna stroked Nimbus' mane to distract herself from the trepidation she had felt as she recalled the dead bodies of children in her memories.

"Are you pregnant?" The Vampire King inquired all of a sudden as he rested his chin over her head.

"Apollyon!" Luna's eyes widened and her jaw clenched at Apollyon's assumption.

He shifted in his seat and there was a hesitation before he continued, "You dry-heave so I thought you are pregnant."

"You—You jest!" She had stuttered, trailing off. "I'm not pregnant."

She shook her head. "Please, no."

In her disbelief, it felt like she had almost lost the ability to speak. "I—I'm not ready to be a mother!"

"Should we go to the High Priest?" He asked as he gently caressed her stomach.

Now her blasted husband had thought that there was a baby inside her.

Was it her imagination or did she just hear her husband's commanding tone tremble a little?

"No. No need." Luna shook her head left to right harder than before as if that would convince Apollyon enough not to send her to Fei.

"I'm not pregnant." Luna had insisted before whispering, "I don't want to be pregnant."

"You don't want to have babies with me?"

Apollyon's voice was a command that awakened panic in her wide eyes.

"No." She exclaimed. "I meant that—"

"It's alright for me. I'm not keen to have babies yet." There was amusement in his tone this time, but it was still tempered with an edge that stroked like a knife across her skin.

Apollyon admitted a little later, "I don't want an heir."

Luna slowly turned her head sideways to squint at Apollyon with suspicion. "You don't want an heir?"