That Prince Is A Girl: The Vicious King’s Slave Mate Novel

Chapter 201: Silence descended, only Vladya's ragged breathing echoed across the room.

"You brat," Daemonikai's features softened. "You are still the same insolent, selfish, mouthy little bastard I met nearly four thousand years ago."

"Not a brat," Vladya protested weakly. The familiar insult warmed him more than he cared to admit. It had been ages since Daemonikai had used that term for him, and hearing it now sent a fresh wave of emotion surging through him. Daemonikai is back. Emotion clogged his throat, and he swallowed tightly.

"The people need me," his best friend said softly. "But what about what I need?" GRAND KING DAEMONIKAI

"If what you need is to die, then what you need does not matter." Vladya crossed his arms stubbornly, his gaze returning to the fields below, awash with moonlight.

Daemonikai took a deep breath. "I don't know what to do with you."

"Don't worry. There's plenty of time to figure that out."

"What about Tiara?" Daemonikai's voice was barely a whisper, tinged with dread.

Stillness greeted his question. Vladya remained silent so long that Daemonikai began to doubt if he would respond.

"Zaiper lost his brother. Ottai lost his son. I lost my bondmate." Vladya shrugged, his tone neutral, his eyes fixed on the horizon. "We all lost someone."

Daemonikai's heart plummeted further into the abyss of despair, growing heavier. Uriel was dead? Ottai would be shattered. That adorable boy was his only offspring in a union that had lasted over two thousand years. And Tiara…

It was simply unfair to Vladya. Cruel. Twisted. She meant the world to him.

Vladya held the record for the highest number of failed bondings in Urai. Each failed bonding ritual had been agonizing, and Vladya had experienced it so many times that Daemonikai had lost count. Watching him lose himself with every failed bonding had been utterly heartbreaking.

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To finally find his compatible mate, only to lose her days after a successful bonding… it was a wound that cut deeper than any blade.

"Come here," Daemonikai's voice was a soft command, his arms outstretched in a silent invitation.

Vladya did not budge. "I am not a child. I do not need hugs."

"Well, I do, V.D.," Daemonikai countered, closing the distance between them. He pulled his friend into a tight embrace. "I do. Indulge me."

Vladya stiffened in his arms, his body resisting the contact. But only for a moment. Then, the tension drained from him, and his arms tentatively returned the hug.

"If I stay, if I do not give up, then the same rules apply to you. You do not get to die, V.D. I won't let you." Daemonikai whispered, his voice thick with emotion.

GRAND LORD VLADYA

Vladya remained silent, a lump forming in his throat. He could not mention the loss of his soul. Nor could he bring up the creeping feral madness, or the shadows that had begun to dance at the edges of his mind. What his friend did not know would not hurt him.

And it was so good to have him back. Relief, joy, and a fierce possessiveness surged through Vladya. He tightened his arms around Daemonikai, pulling him impossibly closer.

"I thought I'd lost you forever," Vladya confessed in a whisper. "You have no idea what it was like. I…" He swallowed, unable to finish the sentence. "I am deeply sorry, V.D."

Vladya sniffed, a wry grin tugging at his lips. "Only you would call me that ridiculous nickname. Stop it, you sound like a lovesick fool."

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