Seren ran deeper into the forest as fast as she could despite her aching ankle. Getting freedom was more important than that momentary pain. Although it was nighttime and the forest was dark, she was not blindly going forward like that time she ran away from the capital. She couldn't see her path clearly, but the shorter trees in this forest allowed enough moonlight to keep her walking farther.

After some time, she heard the sound of someone stepping on the dried leaves and twigs. She stopped to make sure it was not her own footsteps and looked around carefully, but there was nothing to see but shadows around her. That sound was getting closer to her.

'What is it?' she thought. 'A wild animal?'

She felt her palms turn sweaty as the sound was getting closer and closer. It was not from just one side, but she could hear the same sound coming closer to her from her front and from behind too. She strained ears to catch those sounds better, at the same time, taking slow steps away as she felt her heart beating faster with each passing moment.

She wanted to run but couldn't decide which direction to take as she was scared to bump into whatever was coming closer to her. She looked around to figure it out, but what she heard next made her jump in fright—the sound of growling.

'It's a wild animal!'

The moment she looked in the direction of that growl, a pair of frightening golden brown eyes were visible against the darkness, and they were approaching her. Just as she was about to turn around, from behind, she heard the same sound, causing her to freeze in place.

'There are two wild animals!' she cried inside. 'Will they eat me like what I've read in that story, where that tiger ate the young farmer who lied to people? But I didn't lie to anyone. I just want to run away. I don't want to die before I enjoy my freedom.'

The owner of the pair of eyes in front of her now had its entire body visible to her. It was a tiger with a huge build, walking towards her with hostility in its eyes, glaring at her as if hating her presence for disturbing its territory.

"Don't eat me please," she said in a low and shaky voice, her breath growing unsteady. She felt the second tiger reach her as well. She could feel it walking behind her as its body rubbed against the skirt of her nightgown.

'Seems like I am going to die today...'

The two tigers walked around her in a circle, both growling in hostility, before suddenly whimpering as they moved back with both of them sitting in front of her. Under the faint moonlight, she could see how huge they were; she looked tiny compared to them. Although they were sitting, their heads matched her height so they could look at each other face to face.

'What are they doing?' she wondered, only to see the both of them lowering their heads...no, more like tilting their heads. 'Did another prey catch their attention? Do they want to give me time before they eat me?' She wanted to run, hoping to save herself somehow, but she was scared to her bones.

Just then, she heard another set of footsteps approaching her. She somehow managed to turn her head a little to see if there was a third tiger...

"Are you fine, my Queen?" She heard a familiar voice, and its owner came closer to her from behind.

"Stay away! Tigers are here!" she blurted out.

"Really?" he said casually. As he approached, he glared at the two tigers sitting in front of Seren as if they were her pets.

The sight shocked Drayce. Seren must have not realized but these tigers were not there to harm her. From both the look on their eyes as well as their behavior, Drayce could see they had turned into tamed pets as if something had enchanted or hypnotized them.

"You dare scare My Queen!" Drayce snapped at them, and the two fierce tigers immediately jumped on their feet to run away, but the person nearest to them, Seren, thought they were about to pounce on her to eat her... and she fainted.

Drayce caught his unconscious wife before she fell on the ground and saw those two tigers swiftly disappearing into the trees.

This was definitely not normal. First, this forest in itself was strange, and second, the way those animals acted was bizarre. Why did those two tigers act like tamed pets, as if they were asking to be petted by Seren? Why were they suddenly submissive to her? Did it have something to do with Seren's powers?

Despite having many questions in mind, Drayce returned to the inn carrying the unconscious Seren with him. It only took him a moment to appear inside their room by using his powers. No one realized something had happened to the king and queen.

Drayce would definitely not let anyone know that their queen had tried to run away. They might look down on her, and he didn't wish any kind of negativity about her to spread.

--------

Seren woke up in the morning, only to find herself lying on a bed.

'Am I still alive or am I in heaven?' was her first thought as she believed those tigers had attacked her. The early morning sunlight changed her mind. She looked around her and realized it was the same room from the inn before she ran away the previous night.

'How did I return here?' she thought, only to mumble the only explanation that came to mind. "That red-eyed man again."

Just as she was about to let out a sigh, she realized she seemed to be not alone in bed and when looked at her right side, she was given the shock of a lifetime.

'What is he doing in my bed?!'

Even after he brought her back before, he never slept in bed with her, but this time he did.

'The audacity!'

Not even Martha, the person she trusted the most and the one closest to her since young, had shared a bed with her.

She moved away immediately, not realizing she was already at the edge of the bed. The movement only led her to fall down from the bed, but even before her body could touch the floor, she was up in the air, a few inches away from the floor.

The woman who had initially closed her eyes in anticipation of a painful impact with the floor opened her eyes. It took her several seconds to understand that she was floating midair and that her body was slowly being laid down on the wooden floorboards.

'Magic…' she could not help but gasp.

Seren was sure it was his doing. He again brought her back and now even protected her from falling down. She slowly lifted her head and held the edge of the bed to peek at the person laying on her bed. She didn't dare stand up, wanting to hide herself from him.

As soon as she caught a glimpse of the intruder, she found that red-eyed man awake and staring at her while lying on his one side. She immediately moved her head back down to hide herself, only to hear him talk to her in a hoarse, somehow lazy voice.

"This red-eyed man is your husband, my Queen."

Drayce had heard her when she called him a red-eyed man when she woke up.

'He is a king. Instead of calling him 'His Majesty' or 'King of Megaris', have I offended him by calling him a red-eyed man? Will he punish me now?' she panicked inside.

"Does my Queen need help getting back to our bed?" Drayce asked after not getting any response from her.

"W-What are you doing in my bed, Your Majesty?" she asked, still keeping her awkward hiding position, and she heard him respond with, "Husband and wife are meant to sleep together."

"What?" she exclaimed and came out of hiding. She looked at Drayce in disbelief while sitting on the wooden floor.

Drayce looked at her in amusement. "Hasn't anyone told my Queen about it?"

Seren shook her head, looking all sad like a kid who was not happy with what she had heard.

"Well, now I told you so let's go back to sleep," Drayce said, staring intently at her reaction.

"I-I am not sleepy anymore. His Majesty can continue sleeping by himself."