The midnight hour arrived with a crushing, suffocating weight, the thick air pressing down upon the Moonlight Palace like an physical force. Out on the stone corridor of the royal bedchamber, Odesse and Valex stood side by side, their gazes locked on the endless expanse of the dark sky. Valex kept his arm tightly secured around her shoulder, offering his warmth against the unnatural chill that had settled over the estate.

Breaking the heavy silence, Valex spoke in a low, gravelly voice. "My love... what if we simply kill Azure?"

Odesse shook her head instantly, her eyes never leaving the stars. "No, my king. That will not be a good idea."

Valex looked down at her, his brow furrowed with frustration. "Why not, my love?"

"Azure said it herself—she is the only one who can break this spell, and she is not wrong," Odesse explained, her voice steady despite the grim reality. "If we kill her now, the curse will never be lifted. It means that every single night at midnight, an innocent life will be taken until there is no one left to take."

Valex turned his gaze back to the sky, his jaw clenching tightly as a deep sense of helplessness washed over him. "I truly apologize that I am so useless in this situation."

Odesse shifted to look at him, her expression softening before she turned back to the dim glow of the moon. "No, it is not your fault at all, my king, and you are not useless." Her face suddenly went somber, a shadow of regret crossing her features. "If I had only ended her the very day I returned, none of this would have happened. But tonight... a life will be taken. The first life."

"This isn’t right," Valex muttered, his voice strained with a deep, visceral ache. "It hurts my insides."

Odesse let out a soft, humorless chuckle. "Of course it isn’t right, my king." She turned her entire body to face him, meeting his eyes with a faint, tight smile that didn’t quite reach her gaze. Her voice dropped to a quiet, chilling whisper. "But some lives have to be taken. Or rather... someone has to get hurt."

She stepped closer, her blank expression masking a dark resolve as she tightened her fists. "I cannot lose you, my king. I cannot let Azure gloat over everything. I will have to find a way to make her reverse the spell myself. But in the meantime..." She tilted her head, her eyes reflecting the void above. "...a life will be hurt."

Before Valex could speak or shake his head in disagreement, a sharp, brilliant red star suddenly ignited in the dark canopy above.

Odesse snapped her head toward it instantly. "The first star," she whispered.

Valex looked up, his amber eyes widening in absolute horror as the crimson light bathed the balcony. The countdown had officially begun.

Without another word, Odesse turned abruptly and walked back into the safety of the bedchamber. Valex watched her retreat, panic rising in his chest. "My love—"

Odesse paused near the threshold, keeping her back turned to him. "I am going to bed, my king. I have a headache."

Deeply saddened by the heavy burden weighing on his wife, Valex walked slowly into the room behind her. He came to a halt a short distance from her back, his voice thick with concern. "Are you okay, my love?"

Odesse’s hands twitched slightly at her sides, her fingers clenching the fabric of her gown. "Yes, I am, my king. I just have a body ache, that is all."

She took two slow, faltering steps toward the mattress, but suddenly, her posture fractured. The ground beneath her feet seemed to vanish, and an absolute, paralyzing numbness tore through her limbs. Her strength completely failed, and her body began to fall backward toward the floorboards.

Fast enough to defy the dark, Valex lunged forward. He caught her securely in his arms before she could strike the hard ground, pulling her tightly against his chest. He looked down at her face in absolute terror. Her eyes were only slightly open, glassy and unseeing, and her skin felt freezing cold to the touch—as if life itself was draining from her veins.

Touching her pale cheek with a trembling hand, Valex fell into a complete panic. "My love! My love, wake up! What has happened to you, my love?"

Odesse’s eyes began rolling inward, the white showing beneath her lids. Valex’s heart shattered as he saw hot, thick black blood suddenly spilling from her eyes, tracking down her pale cheeks. He sat frozen on the edge of the mattress, desperately cradling her limp form in his arms. Then, her mouth parted slowly, and red blood began to trickle past her lips, spilling uncontrollably down her chin.

Terrified by the unknown ailment, Valex laid her down gently on the pillows. "I need to summon the physician," he gasped, his voice shaking. "I shall be back, my love."

He spun around and rushed toward the heavy wooden doors. But just as his fingers wrapped around the golden handle, a sudden memory struck his mind like lightning, freezing him in his tracks. He recalled the exact words Odesse had spoken just moments ago out on the corridor: "Or rather... someone has to get hurt... a life will be hurt."

His eyes widened in realization as a wave of cold horror washed over him. His legs felt suddenly paralyzed, turning completely numb beneath him. Slowly, blankly, he turned around to look at the bed.

He walked back toward her, his footsteps heavy and hollow. Standing right beside the mattress, he watched in agony as Odesse’s skin turned an incredible, ghostly pale. The red blood still trickled from her mouth, and her unexplained black blood completely stained the silk sheets beneath her head.

Valex pressed his palm against his forehead, his breath hitching. "My love... what... what did you do?"

The sheer weight of the realization crushed him. His legs gave out entirely, and he collapsed heavily onto the floorboards beside the bed. In a voice completely broken by raw emotion, he wept. "This is all my fault. This is happening because of me."

Tears ran freely down his face as he stared at his trembling hands. "What sort of husband am I? What sort of alpha am I, if my wife has to protect me all the time?"

In a fit of anguish, his claws erupted from his fingers, and he dug them into his arm, letting blood spill. He touched his face, allowing his claws to dig into his forehead, and as he brought his fingers down, he accidentally clawed his right eye.

He remained stranded on the floor for hours, the dark night passing in agonizing silence as he kept his head lowered like a defeated knight, endlessly mumbling his guilt into the shadows.

...

The dark hours slowly bled away until the first light of dawn began to creep through the windows. Suddenly, a weak, raspy voice broke the silence from the pillows above.

"My king... where are you?"

Valex raised his head instantly, his face smeared with dried blood from his self-inflicted injuries. His eyes snapping to the bed. He scrambled to his feet, rushing to her side. "My love! My love!"

Odesse opened her eyes weakly, her gaze soft and unfocused as she tried to speak through her parched lips. As she took in the sight of his face, she raised a trembling, frail hand toward him. "My king... what happened to your face?"

Valex looked down at her, fresh tears welling in his eyes at the sound of her voice. "My love, you’re awake." Unable to contain his relief, he fell down gently over her, wrapping his powerful arms around her fragile frame, embracing her as if she might vanish if he let go. "My love..."

Odesse rested against him, her voice barely a whisper. "What happened?"

He raised his head slightly, gazing deeply into her tired eyes. "My love, you fainted. black blood came out from your eyes, and red blood came out from your mouth. Your body was freezing." Valex looked at her, his expression deeply concerned, his voice dropping into a desperate demand. "What did you do, my love?"

Odesse looked back at him blankly, letting out a soft, pained groan. Her face remained profoundly exhausted, but beneath the fatigue, a distinct flash of fear and nervousness danced in her eyes.

Valex stared at Odesse, the heavy silence of the chamber pressing down on them.

"I did something, my king," Odesse whispered, her voice trembling as she broke the quiet.

Valex stepped closer, his expression softening with concern. "What is it, my love?"

"I asked for help from the moon spirit," she confessed, looking down.

An immediate shadow of worry crossed Valex’s face. He caught her hands in his, his grip tightening slightly. "What kind of help, Odesse?"

"I reversed the spell," she said, finally meeting his gaze. "I transferred it to myself."

Valex’s eyes widened in sheer horror, the color draining from his face. "What? You did what?"

Tears began to spill over Odesse’s eyelashes, tracking hot down her cheeks. She looked back at him, terrified by the sheer panic in his eyes and the weight of what she had just done.

and she fell. Fortunately