Bride To His Darkness
Chapter 218: A New Mufasa

Chapter 218: A New Mufasa

Agathe’s trembling fingers clutched tightly to her dress as she took a step back. With Ivan aware of all her plottings, it was like digging her own grave with her two bare hands, only to lay on it so someone would cover her up with the earth. The only people who she could run to for help now were now sons, as it has been obvious from the beginning that Ivan favored them like his true brothers.

"Alistair! Tobias!" Leaving Ivan’s side, she went to stand in front of Alistair, and her trembling hands cupped his cheeks as she took her time to scrutinize him, confirming that he was alright and well. Her son did not shy away from her touch in disgust, rather he let her touch him, and that brought immense tears to Agathe’s eyes again.

For once, she was ready to accept that she made a big mistake here.

"My son..." she began, her voice a melancholy of regrets. "Forgive your Mother’s for what she tried to do to you, for she was foolishly blinded by her will to exact revenge, she went through the lengths of offering her own son. I admit that my actions... I took them too far but even if you have the Chevalier blood running through your veins, you’re still my son, my little boy. Alistair, Tobias, I’m so sorry."

She lowered her head in shame. The hatred that had been brewing deep inside in her heart due to her treatment in the past, made her realize it wasn’t worth giving up her sons for. Back in Vesunard, she could still remember the man who ruled the Chevalier legacy, how he made her parents kneel in front of him all in the excuse that they owed him a little debt, he could have given her family more time, he had the power to do that, he had the power to be merciful on her struggling parents, but what did he do? He took her away from her family without pity, but not after rendering them homeless.

She was the only child.

He made it clear that her family should remember that they never had a daughter. It was the most tragic experience for her, and it wasn’t long after they were preparing to leave Vesunard for GreenHollow that the death of her parents reached her ears. She was too struck by grief, she hardly knew what to do, and that’s when she received the crystal.

She hardly knew where it came from, but it was right in front of her doorstep when she opened the door to join the royal family on their journey. She wanted to throw it away, gone were the times when glowing crystals excited her, but before she got a chance to do it, that’s when she heard the Crystal’s voice, and the owner of that voice had introduced himself as Marius. He had been her comforter when she lost all hopes to live, her dreams were effortlessly shattered, but as the days went by, the little time she had to indulge in a conversation with Marius made her feel better. He even promised to help her get revenge on the family who brought her this much aches, and that was how it all came to this.

"Mother." The clear voice of Alistair shook her to reality, and when she looked at the crimson eyes of her son, they did not look like eyes that bore hatred for her, and that, she felt thankful for. She knew Tobias was the unexpressive one amongst her two son, but when she looked into his eyes as well, there was no hate, but surely, they were disappointed... highly disappointed, yet, it felt like they understood.

"Father has told us about Grandfather’s maltreatment." Tobias began, surprising Agathe who was not expecting to hear this. She glanced at her husband as if to confirm if what they said was true, but not surprisingly, he averted his gaze from her own, his anger still evident, and that she understood. Who wouldn’t be angry after she had put their son’s life at a life-threatening stake. If Ivan hadn’t switched the swords, the story would have been different from what it is now.

"We forgive you," Alistair said, sounding honest, "but you will have to pay for what you have done, Mother. You were unforgiving of Grandfather’s treatment, you should have let it go, but you implicated Mr Dufort and made everyone believe he killed uncle, you poisoned Grandmother and staged her death as suicide. They are too severe to be overlooked, innocent lives were destroyed because of this. Samantha had to live without her Father, you played with Ivan’s mind and made him believe what was not. As much as it hurts me to say this, you will have to be punished, and you can’t escape it."

At some point, Samantha could hear Alistair’s voice crack. She held onto Ivan’s hand and squeezed it for some comfort, and Ivan held her close while trying to avoid letting his bloodied hand come in contact with her dress. In the past, Samantha viewed all vampires as cruel beings, she hated them, but today, she felt glad to know that even vampires had more sincerity than humans.

At Alistair’s words, two guards showed up to take Agathe away from the court of celestial Valor. She didn’t struggle and simply allowed them take her, already aware of her fate, but deep down, she was glad that her sons still considered her Mother. When everyone cleared, Ivan said once more,

"Mr Dufort never harmed my Father on that rainy night, he was wrongly accused, and a lot of lives had to pay for that unforgivable mistake." Turning to Samantha and glancing at Maurice who sat at a lonely corner, lost in his own sea, Ivan made his way to the boy who was instantly startled by his presence.

"Stand up." He said, but not as a command. Although Maurice was reluctant to leave where he was sitting, he couldn’t ignore the words of his Highness as they were people watching. Eventually, he stood up, and Ivan led him to his sister who opened her arms so she could embrace Maurice, and she knew whenever he got like this, he was bound to cry at some point.

"Samantha Dufort, and Maurice Dufort." Ivan spoke loud and clear, "on behalf of the kingdom, I hope you can accept our deepest apologies for what you have gone through. Your Father’s name shall be restored as it should, he was a good man, a very loyal one, and the truth will no longer stay hidden. I can promise you that."

"Does this mean... my Father’s name will no longer face hostility?" Maurice asked in a whisper, it was a voice beaming with hope, and Ivan nodded as he placed a hand on Maurice’s shoulder.

"Yes, infact, his name will be honored. In Vesunard, we have a tradition that is made for honored souls whom their bodies could not be buried with the final rites. It is called the Celestial Lantern Release."

"Celestial Lantern Release?" Samantha inquired softly, and Ivan proceeded to explain.

"When someone who holds honor is no more, everyone shall gather to release lanterns into the sky, which are enchanted to grow with the essence of the missing person. Each lantern symbolizes a prayer of message for their passage beyond this world. We shall hold the Celestial Lantern Release tomorrow night, and in honor of your Father."

Samantha and Maurice exchanged looks, and the glee in their eyes didn’t go unnoticed as they lowered their heads in a bow at Ivan. The people around were already offering smiles, the emotional ones even had tears in their eyes as they could not contain how the event switched rapidly into a moment of happiness.

Alistair and Tobias stepped forward, and Samantha bowed her head at the two of them, unsure of how to display her gratitude. She already had tears in her eyes, and the profound happiness she felt were threatening to make her burst into tears and joy at the same time.

"I hope you can forgive our Mother for the dilemma she has caused you and your family." Tobias apologized on her behalf, and Alistair nodded in agreement with his brother.

"Yes, we–"

"Please, if anything the two of you have been nothing more than families." Samantha said to the two of them, and the sincerity in her voice could not be missed. "None of this would have been possible without your help, so I should be the one thanking you. I had come to this world alone, but now, being here feels like home." She grinned at Ivan’s direction, while the vampire gazed at her with nothing but love and devotion in his eyes.

"Thank you." She mouthed, and then her gaze leveled to the hand which was still stained with blood, whilst her eyebrows creased in worry as usual. "You’re still bleeding, we need to get this treated."

Ivan didn’t refute and allowed her take him away from the court. Maurice lowered his head in apology at Alistair who glanced at him.

"S...sorry about...earlier." He said, almost breathlessly, and Alistair gave his shoulder a playful pat, a way of telling him to rise.

"Did I scare you there? I told you not to do that you frightened chump!"

"But I really thought something had happened to you." Maurice couldn’t deny that he was actually freaked out by the blood and then his sudden passing out. His eyes gleamed with tears which he tried to hide, but that only made Alistair want to tease the poor kid as he stopped him from looking away and massaging his neck soothingly.

"You were worried about me? How sweet! Tobias, guess who just found a new mufasa."

"I guess I just made one too." His brother answered, sounding inquisitive as he gazed curiously at the cute little boy with big round eyes and fluffy hair. He was trying to reach for the gemstone that Tobias had kept in his pocket, and when Tobias gave it to him, the gemstone mysteriously glowed against Alain’s touch.