Queen Of Adis

The citizens parted and made way upon seeing the approaching steel carriage drawn by two enormous and intimidating black dragon-horses. They immediately kowtowed on the ground to give their respect as everyone knew who was the owner of those fearsome beasts.

The dragon horses had a body of a horse and face of a dragon. Some parts of their bodies were adorned by silver dragon scales and their hooves were surrounded by black flames, leaving burnt marks on its trail. The majestic familiars were famous throughout the land due to their endless stamina, strong build, and incredible speed, but they were also notorious for their horrible temper. Many nobles paid a fortune just to capture at least one but none was able to keep it successfully, except the Demon King.

As one of his countless betrothal gifts to his beloved, he gave two of his personally bred dragon-horses which made the greedy nobles flipped in envy.

Haru poked her head out of the window and enjoyed the calming breeze on her face. She inhaled the fresh scent of raindrops and wilderness, smiling in happiness seeing that spring had already reached this far away land.

Once they entered a small town, Drako enthusiastically fed her with information as though he was a professional tour guide. "Your Majesty, welcome to Black Rose. Although this town is small and quiet, it is one of the wealthiest towns in Umbra. Most of the residents here belong to the upper class and several mines can be found right before the foothills. His Majesty's three major businesses are located here."

'Oh, so that explains the posh architecture of the land,' she thought to herself while listening attentively to Drako.

Her grin grew wide when her eyes were greeted with pathways made of cobblestones and the intricate designs of vintage lamppost stood quietly on each side of the street. The buildings and houses made of bricks and stones and the winding ancient boulevards evoked memories of historical streets of Europe.

"But, what makes this town famous to the tourist is the black roses that only bloom here," Drako continued in a voice full of pride and joy. "Lady Haru, thanks to your blessing, the black roses had started to blossom again. Every petal of the rose emits dark miasma that blends in the air. Although it is poison to humans like you, it nourishes the life force of all the citizens in Umbra."

"That's fine, my body is being protected by the King's eros anyway." She tilted her head and creased her brows when she realized something. "If this town is vital to the royal family, why am I not seeing soldiers stationed here? Those who seek great power can just monopolize the roses and use it against the King."

The gentle Ignis smiled mysteriously. "My Lady, it is because this town is very important that His Majesty's most trusted and best soldiers are here, the Grim Reapers. They are personally trained by the King and each one is comparable to the might of a hundred skilled assassins. They lurk in the shadows and blends with the citizens."

Haru nodded in understanding, "Oh, I see."

"Once you marry His Majesty, the Grim Reapers, Demon army, and the King's familiars will all kneel and swore their loyalty to you as their Queen. When it happens, you'll be able to command them and even see the ghosts throughout the realms."

"Eehh?" Her complexion suddenly paled as she nervously gulped. Then she let out an awkward laugh, "Haha. I-I don't think that's a good idea, though."

Just as soon as they reached the northern part of the town, their vision was cheered by a sea of black roses that covered a vast land. Haru slowly stood up inside the moving vehicle and looked through the window in a daze. Petals flew up and danced with the wind like black snowflakes. Dark speckles with golden glow drifted everywhere her eyes could see and the verdant hills on the backdrop completed the sensational display of its bold yet elegant color.

"Oh, my! How breathtaking! Look at those thorns, it's so big and deadly. This land was so much like its King, so sinfully tempting yet dangerous." She breathed out shamelessly, which made her maids giggled and Drako's face reddened.

After a brief moment, their transportation stopped a short distance away from the mountain foothills. Drako offered his sturdy arms as his lady's support when she went down from the carriage.

Then she fell silent as she became busy surveying the hills with her eyes.

"So this is where you got the bags of soil you gave me for my greenhouse experiments, huh?" Haru asked as she started to scribble something on the paper using her golden feather pen.

Drako bowed slightly as he answered the future queen's question. "Yes, my Lady. As you may already know, aside from the poor condition of the soils in Umbra, the realm is also full of sloping terrain, hills, and mountains; hence, farming is really hard for our citizens."

He stood straight and inched closer to her and with eager eyes he added, "My Lady, this humble servant is very grateful to you for solving our problem with the soil. Because of your teachings, many poor families started to cultivate their small and just last week, all of them had their first-ever harvest.

"I am sure that your genius mind also has a way to improve our kingdom's agriculture. If this happens, our citizens will no longer have to beg for food or slave themselves for a measly amount of grains. Please relieve His Majesty from this burden, our future queen."

The three servants suddenly knelt on the ground and kowtowed in front of her.

She heaved a heavy sigh and shook her head at their exaggeration. "Stop, you don't have to do that. Please raise your heads and stand up. Besides, even if you don't ask me, I will definitely do something about it. As his future wife, Adis' problem is my problem, and his fame and failures are also my fame and failures. I already promised him that we will develop this realm into something that none of this world has witnessed before. And everyone won't have a choice but to fear my King and give him his well-deserved respect."

"Ah, thank you, Lady Haru! You are indeed our blessing." The three servants paid her their appreciation simultaneously.

"Nah! No need to thank me. After all, the Demon King is serving me well every night to my satisfaction. If you know what I mean," she playfully raised her eyebrows and wink at them.

"Waah! Please, stop, my lady. My innocent heart can't take it." Drako cried out and covered his eyes with his hands while his face and neck were crimson red.

The three women laughed out loud and continued teasing the young Ignis.

However, their merriment was cut short when a golden carriage was moving towards them at full speed. Millie instantly embraced her while Hannah shielded them with her body, in her hands were tiny potion bottles and knives ready to be deployed.

When he noticed that the carriage didn't have plans to slow down, Drako's roar thundered throughout the vast terrain. "In the name of the formidable King of Umbra, King Adis Delacroix, I command you to stop your carriage at once!"

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