The Dark Fairy King
Chapter 35: Truth and Fear

Chapter 35: Truth and Fear

Once we left the market, we returned to the canopy of the Fairy Woods. Scarlette exhaled sharply—like a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. The forest air was thick with the scent of damp moss, wild honey, and the faintest trace of cinnamon. Sweet—but cloying. Like a lullaby sung too late.

"This is lovely.." She said, admiring the tranquility. "Glad we didn’t just walk into the shadows or faded into the red mists every time we need to move from place to place."

"Well, there is a practical aspect too," I grinned. "To conserve our powers for when we need it. Besides, this is what regular Fairies need to do to commute, we are just following suit."

"I guess we are really committed to this Ravos and Charlotte persona, huh?" She chuckled.

Scarlette instinctively reached to remove her purple hair extensions, but I caught her wrist.

"Not now," I said firmly. "Too soon."

Scarlette frowned but didn’t argue. We moved on.

We passed familiar homes—Light Fairies, Love Fairies, Dark Fairies. The same ones from earlier. Yet everything felt different now. Watched. Weighted. As if the old world had quietly slipped away, replaced by something colder.

"I still have questions from before," Scarlette whispered, eyes scanning the trees.

"I know," I said. "I’ll explain everything—the red flower, the prophecy. Things I didn’t expect this world to still carry."

She nodded and fell into step beside me.

"Stay close," I added. "And stay far from that flower."

We needed to move as one. After the glares, the whispers, the hints of fate—we were on far too many radars.

Especially the wrong ones.

"Devran was right," Scarlette muttered. "Extremists are still out here."

"Stay alert," I said. "Be ready."

We slipped past clusters of fairy homes, their windows glowing with warm, deceptive light. It looked peaceful. But I listened for footsteps that didn’t belong.

Then—movement.

A whisper in the trees. The faint whistle of something slicing through air.

I turned—just in time.

I shoved Scarlette aside and caught the arrow inches from her chest.

She stared. "A Love arrow?"

"Not just any," she said, studying the glittering tip. "This one’s for heartbreaks."

Before we could react, the attacker vanished—then reappeared behind us, hurling red glitter in a wide arc.

Scarlette flicked her wrist. The glitter froze midair—a net of ruby light suspended between us. With a twist of her fingers, she reversed it, sending the dust surging back into his face.

He screamed.

"What—what are you doing to me?!"

"Just using your own Love magic against you," Scarlette said coolly. "Red Glitter Enchantment Spell? Really? So amateur."

Of course typical Love Magic spells were no match for Scarlette. Why would some silly enchantment work on her?

She was practically the first Love Fairy. Not some novice.

The figure collapsed, scrambling for escape.

I grabbed his hood and yanked it back—another Love Fairy. Porcelain skin. Chocolate-brown hair. Hazel eyes.

"What you two are doing is not natural," he coughed.

Scarlette stepped forward, eyes flashing. "And the King and Queen? Are they unnatural too?"

"Destined for destruction," he spat. "Just like the two of you."

Wrong answer.

His words lit a fire beneath my skin. It’s one thing to glare at a mixed couple. Another to attack them. But to curse the King and Queen?

That’s treason.

Then I saw it—a black tattoo on his wrist.

I seized his arm and twisted. He cried out.

Scarlette leaned in, narrowing her eyes at the mark. A broken wand.

"This could be part of something bigger," she said. "Fairies don’t get tattoos without reason. We need to know more—for our people."

"Our people?" he repeated, staring at Scarlette. "What do you mean by that?"

She froze.

He took a second look, eyes widening with slow recognition.

"No.. You can’t be." He shook his head with disbelief.

Game over.

Yes, she’d slipped. So what?

There’s a time for charm, for illusion, for hiding.

That time was over. My turn.

The shadows curled at my feet, drawn to the rage simmering in my chest.

"Ravos," she whispered, reminding me of my false identity.

But I wasn’t listening.

With a snap, black winds spiraled around us. The ground trembled. Trees didn’t sway—they bowed. Not from wind. From fear.

The Love Fairy trembled, realization crashing over him like a falling tree.

"You’re not just some random Love Fairy paired with a Dark Fairy... are you?" he stammered. "K-King Veravos...? Queen Scarlette...?"

I smirked. Scarlette sighed.

He knew now.

The guessing games were over.

"You had some pretty words," I said.

The shadows stretched like claws, coiling around us in a spiraling cocoon. The wind howled—

Then stopped.

The shadows obeyed me, bending space to our will as we stepped across the world—returning home in a heartbeat.

We were gone. All three of us.

The forest returned to stillness.

Homes stood untouched—quiet witnesses to the storm.

I would get my answers.

Even if I had to pluck this fairy’s wings to get them.

Dark shadows spilled across the palace courts as guards scrambled into position.

Scarlette and I materialized on our thrones, disguises shed like old skin.

The tattooed Love Fairy knelt before us, trembling. Cloak removed, just his regular Love Fairy tunics now. His dragonfly-shaped wings bent and bruised.

Our shopping haul sat neatly to the side. The Kitsune-shaped bread peeked out of the basket—a silent, whimsical witness.

Juniper strutted into the court, as unbothered as ever, and leapt into Scarlette’s lap, startling her.

Now that everyone was in place—it was time for answers.

The Love Fairy stared, overwhelmed by the grandeur. Rows of guards. Daunting architecture. The red velvet carpet unrolling from our thrones.

"I—I’m sorry, Your Majesties," he stammered, head bowed. "I didn’t know it was you."

"What’s your name?" I asked, my voice echoing through the vaulted chamber.

"Richard, Your Majesty."

"Richard," I repeated, letting it linger like smoke. "Why attack a Love and Dark Fairy couple in the woods?"

He said nothing.

"The King asked you a question," Scarlette snapped. Her voice cracked like a whip. Richard flinched.

"Please... I’ll die if I speak further."

"Very well," I said calmly. "Understandable."

Scarlette shot me a look. She thought I was letting it go. But I had something better in mind.

"Juniper," I called.

The Kitsune perked up instantly.

"I taught you a command, remember? Ready?"

Juniper rose. Her nine tails unfurled like golden banners.

Then I said it, slow and clear:

"Chomp. Chomp."

Her amber eyes gleamed. Fire flickered along her tails.

With a howl, she transformed.

A majestic three-meter fox stood before us, jaws bared, flames licking the air.

With a single leap, she pounced, sinking her teeth into Richard’s arms and legs—not to kill, but to terrify.

Screams echoed through the court.

"Juniper," I called.

She stopped immediately and padded back, flames crackling.

"Please stop..." Richard gasped. "I’ll tell you everything."

"I’m listening," I said coldly.

He hesitated.

"It’s alright," I said smoothly. "Would you like round two? Your wings perhaps?"

"Okay, okay... The prophecy said a child with both Love and Dark Fairy blood will signal the end of peaceful times."

"So you go after Mixed Fairy Couples because it’s easier?" I asked, my voice a blade.

"Yes, but only Love Fairy and Dark Fairy couples. Just like the prophecy said," he muttered, shame flickering across his face.

"But how would you know which couples want children?" Scarlette asked. "Or which of their children is the supposed harbinger of doom?"

Silence.

"Your Queen asked you a question," I said darkly.

"We don’t know," he admitted. "So... we stop everyone. It starts with a heartbreak spell. Then a better future... for all of us."

He looked away, as if shame would vanish if he didn’t face us.

"What if it’s our future child?" Scarlette asked.

I hadn’t planned to be a parent. The idea had always felt distant, abstract. But to think they’d hunt an innocent child—my child—over a prophecy? No. They would not control our future.

"You’d kill our child too, wouldn’t you?" My voice cracked like thunder.

"Yes," he said quietly. "A small sacrifice... for your people."

Ludicrous. Brainwashed. But not alone.

He’d said "we" more than once.

"How many of you are there?" I asked.

His answer chilled me.

"We’re a collective. Believers in the prophecy. Hundreds. And we’re growing."

"I want the name of your leader," Scarlette demanded, fists clenched.

He froze. Eyes narrowed. His face hardened.

"You can unleash the Kitsune again, or kill me. I won’t tell you."

"Does it have to do with that tattoo?" I asked.

He said nothing.

"You understand this is your choice," I said coldly. "Everything that happens next? That’s on you."

"Do your worst," he spat. "I’m doing what’s best for the kingdom."

The audacity.

Anger boiled within my veins from each word he said. He was recalcitrant.

And I was unrelenting.

So I did the next logical thing.

"Scarlette, remember our gift?" I smirked, turning to her.

She blinked as I reached into the basket and picked up the crimson flower with my bare hand.

Its petals tickled my skin—harmless.

But not for him.

I pressed it to his arm.

He screamed as it burned. Scarlette watched, intrigued.

"Midnight Orchid," I said softly. "Heard of it?"

He trembled violently.

"Some things," I whispered, "are worse than death."

His face turned ashen.

"No... please... just end me."

I waved a hand. "Take him away."

The guards dragged him off, still gasping.

Scarlette stared at me.

"Ruthless," she whispered.

"That’ll make him a tad more submissive later," I said, unmoved.

I am a Dark Fairy, after all.

That’s what I call necessary evil.