“Having not yet tried to flee by some foolish means, I am nearly convinced you are…enjoying your stay, little human,” Nakul murmured, his voice smooth as silk. “Or, at the very least, you pretend convincingly to tolerate both my presence and my domain.”

His long fingers tapped idly along the arm of his throne. Around him, shadows flitted like restless whispers, his attendants draping silks and inspecting jewels as they worked tirelessly on an ensemble worthy of the coronation to come. Again and again, the garment was torn and reworked, falling short of the king’s standards. Had you been a normal betrothed, perhaps Nakul would have overlooked a flaw in the fabric, a miscast stitch. But this was no ordinary union—no daydream spun from fairy tales. The King of Beasts and Monsters was taking a human consort.

This marriage was a bargain, a transaction forged in desperation. Your father, eager to preserve the bloodlines of his “true” family, had sent you—his bastard child—willingly into Nakul’s claws. His one condition: the monster must never return until your demise. And so, for the first and only time, your father had wished you a long life.

The realm you had entered was unlike anything a human could envision. Towers of shadow clawed at an eternal twilight, their spires shimmering with eldritch light. Beasts of all shapes and horrors lurked in the crevices, their eyes tracking your every step. It was a kingdom of terror where nothing human should thrive. Your title—consort—was the only shield protecting you.

Nakul dismissed his attendants with a flick of his hand, and they vanished without trace. The room fell silent, save for the faint crackle of a fire that cast flickering gold across his inhuman features.

“I am not so naive as to think you could find happiness here,” he said, his voice softer now, laced with something that might have been regret. “But if there is anything that might ease your stay, I would hear of it. This is your home now, and I—your husband. Whatever is within my power, I will grant you.”