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THE EMPRESS LUNA

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"I can barely know them by faces and that was the only thing that mattered in the past."

What did his statement tell her?

If it wasn't for their blood bond then Apollyon would have continued acting like a misogynistic bastard.

Well, Luna forgot the fact that he was possessed by the Archdemon of Gluttony for a long time prior to his freedom so she thought it made sense. Plus, his father, the past Vampire King, must be a buffoon to raise someone as archaic as her husband.

He had changed for her and that was the best part of their marriage.

Luna watched the many young women as the rest of the guests who belonged to Vampire Royalty—not just the Kings—guided them across the dance floors with huge smiles on their faces.

Now that the Vampire King hadn't cared about the ladies in the Consortium any longer, they felt immensely flattered by the special attention from the opposite sex where they weren't forced to serve and entertain the male guests just because it was what expected of them.

Can she say that the women from the Consortium were a few steps away from experiencing true freedom?

"I am the Vampire King who can get any woman he wanted so there was no use to make someone feel special. That's the number one rule in owning a Consortium." He explained further as he tugged at her hand and messed around with her fingers. "The past Vampire King, my father, had taught me to treat all the women in my Harem fairly to avoid conspiracies, envy, and intrigue amongst the women and especially, assassinations among the Consortium."

This was the first time Apollyon had talked about his father and she immediately thought that his father was a misogynistic asshole.

He was teaching his son who would be the future King, Apollyon, to treat women as an object and he had called this obvious inequality between genders, fair?

No wonder, her husband was a piece of work—a puzzle so difficult to solve.

Luna had realized that Apollyon inherited his twisted mind from his father.

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Vampire King Apollyon

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Ears ringing, Apollyon shook his head repeatedly to get himself together when he noticed he had adapted a glazed look as he stared into space every time his brain took a trip down to memory lane.

As much as possible, Apollyon had avoided talking about his messed-up family—especially his childhood—at all costs.

He was an ancient vampire who didn't want to feel nostalgia for something that was already lost—something that didn't exist anymore.

He stared down at his empty palms and muttered, "You haven't even danced with me yet."

"Maybe you can teach me right now." Luna moved closer as she beamed at him, clasping both of his palms, caressing the back of his hands with her thumbs. "I am a fast learner. Teach me so that I can dance with your guests."

As his Empress had noted his strange mood, she just went along when he redirected the topic to the Masquerade Ball.

Apollyon had never been grateful for his wife's sensitivity.

Luna had given him space to process his nostalgia before it could push him to the edge, driving him to spiral in mental numbness.

"I am fine with meeting them face-to-face now." Luna continued with her reassurance and he found her pale cheeks glowing red, which was adorable.

His wife's excitement was contagious, making him smile over nothing.

"I am not embarrassed anymore." The Empress had said determinedly.

If Apollyon had fetched a glass of blood from the dinner table before they had gone to the balcony, it would probably clog up his windpipe instead of going down to his throat properly based on how strong he had snorted from Luna's declaration.

He nodded vigorously as if he had understood where his wife had come from but then Apollyon couldn't help but argue.

"Your bonnet had said otherwise, my love." He gave her a knowing grin as he asked politely, touching the brim of her bonnet, "Why don't you just let me remove it from the top of your head?

Straightening her shoulders, Luna lifted her chin as she curtsied, "Thank you for the offer, your Highness, but no thank you." Her lips quirking in amusement, she chimed in, "I would rather keep the bonnet."

Apollyon shook his head in frustration and sighed. "How can we practice dancing if I couldn't properly see your face?"

You don't need to see my face to teach me so we might as well get on with it." Luna forced a bright smile, squeezing Apollyon's hands hard in annoyance.

Apollyon stared at her, bewildered but then he smirked at his wife's gesture.

It had an opposite effect on him which felt like an adorable threat from his vixen wife.

"Those black feathers will make the Kings sneeze to their heart's content if it's on the level of their noses." He noted as he crossed his arms over his muscular chest.

Apollyon had gladly pointed out the obvious and he prayed the Empress would acquiesce to his suggestion but he didn't expect her next response--never in a million years.

"It's their fault for being tall, husband."

"You really crack me up, wife." Apollyon tried really hard not to laugh this time so as not to offend his Empress further.

He settled for a smile that had hurt for his prominent cheekbones had been raised for a longer period of time. "I had never known you were this funny before."

He wasn't used to smiling and laughing so much around anyone else except Luna.

His Empress had made him laugh and that wasn't a small victory.

As the Vampire King, he had prided himself on being cold, detached, and serious.

He meant business all the time and there was no time to joke around when he had a huge responsibility at such a young age—this royal burden as the King of the Vampire Realm.

This was the first time he had ever felt so light-hearted.