She Belongs To The Devil

"Joy!" Crown Prince Vlad entered his bedchamber with a wide smile on his face. "I have some good news for you."

Joyce was sitting at her dressing table; she was busy going through an old grimoire. She was reading the spells and was trying to memorize them. And she was so immersed in the book that she didn't even notice her husband entering the room and calling her name.

Vlad sighed upon seeing his wife doing the same thing which he had asked her not to do countless times.

He went up to her and leaned down to wrap his arms around her shoulders from behind.

Joyce finally lifted her gaze from the grimoire and looked at the reflection of her husband in the mirror. She couldn't help but lovingly stare at her husband's handsome face.

His trimmed beard and mustache made him look mature. His black soft curls looked disheveled, but somehow, that made him look even more attractive. And his light brown eyes, which were reflecting the candle lights were endearing.

Vlad kissed Joyce on her cheek and then whispered in her ear, "Joy, how many times do I have to tell you not to bring your books into our bedchamber?"

Joyce gave a guilty smile and said, "I'm so sorry. I was going through this very interesting spell during the day. And I couldn't quite leave it without replicating the outcome."

She tore off her gaze from her husband's reflection and focused back on her grimoire. And she asked her husband, "Will you give me 10 more minutes? I will join you in bed after I finish this spell that I'm looking at."

However, Vlad extended his arm across Joyce's shoulder and then took the grimoire from her hand. He placed it on the table and hugged her again.

And he put forth his grievance to his wife, "We both are busy during the day with our own works. You should at least keep your work away from this chamber and dedicate your precious time to me, don't you think so?"

He kissed her again and further spoke in a rather sad voice, "I don't want to lay down on the bed alone, not even for 10 minutes."

Joyce gently held her husband's arms and giggled. "You're really demanding, aren't you?" She teasingly whispered and got up from the chair.

Vlad was beaming when his wife agreed with him without arguing further. He put his arms around her waist and pulled her close.

He looked into her dark eyes and said in his raspy voice, "I need to be demanding. Else my wife will stay up all night with her precious books rather than sleeping soundly with her husband."

Joyce grinned and put her arms around her husband's neck. She lifted herself on her toes and tried to kiss her husband. However, he pressed his lips together and looked away, just to tease Joyce.

Joyce laughed and clutched Vlad's jaw to make him look at her. She tried to kiss him again, but he dodged her kiss again while smiling playfully.

Joyce lightly punched Vlad on his chest and then rested her head on his broad shoulder. And she apologized, "I'm sorry, my dear. I won't bring my grimoire here from tomorrow, alright?"

She looked lifted her head and looked into his eyes. And she asked gleefully, "Will you forgive me now?"

Vlad lifted his hands and cupped his wife's cheeks. "You are forgiven," he smiled and leaned down to kiss Joyce.

But suddenly, the capsule that Joyce was still wearing around her neck jumped up and hit Vlad on his nose.

"Ow!" Vlad rubbed his nose and frowned at that stupid capsule that was now tugging forward. "What the hell is wrong with it? Did it just attack me?" he asked his wife, sure that that plant inside of that capsule was simply trying to mess with him.

However, Joyce's face looked serious, and she looked like she was hearing something.

Vlad suddenly became concerned as well as serious. And he asked Joyce, "What's wrong? Is something bad happening?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Joyce snapped out of her dazed state and took a deep breath in. She looked at her husband and said with a sense of urgency, "I think someone or something is in trouble."

"Where? Shall I mobilize the guards?" Vlad asked with haste.

Joyce, however, shook her head and denied the assistance. "I will take care of the problem on my own. The guards will only get agitated if I lead them to a tree with a cat stuck on it like the last time."

A burst of subtle laughter escaped from Vlad's lips because he also recalled that incident. Joyce had made everyone believe that there was a huge problem because of how she was panicking and running. But she had felt extremely embarrassed when her 'danger-finder' led them to the stuck cat.

Joyce slipped on her shoes and shouted before leaving, "I will be back soon. Alert the prison guards just in case I bring in some criminals."

"Okay, take care," Vlad shouted back.

He didn't insist on sending any guards after her because he knew how powerful and capable witch his wife was. So he went and looked out of the window of the bedchamber. He decided to wait for a while before going out to give a heads-up to the prison guards.

Joyce reached outside the castle in no time. The guards were already used to her running like that. They knew that whenever she would run like her life depended on it, there would be someone or something out there that needed her help.

"Clifford, bring me the horse," she shouted when she saw the stableman who was in charge of her horse.

The capsule kept on tugging her while she impatiently waited for Clifford to come running with her horse.

After about a minute or two, her horse arrived. And she got on the horse's back and ran out of the castle's gate.

A young lady also happened to be staring out of a window of the castle. And when she saw Joyce rushing out of the castle that late at night, she scowled and angrily walked towards her bed. Discover stories at empire

She lay flat on the bed and mumbled in jealousy, "Why is she allowed to leave the castle whenever she pleases, that also alone? And I can't even go from one wing to another without the maids and guards hovering all around me."

She punched on the soft mattress and gritted from between her teeth, "Why do they discriminate so much between me and her? Is everyone in this castle scared of that witch or something? Why won't they ever speak up and keep her in line?"

She forcefully closed her eyes so that she would fall asleep and the anger in her heart would fade away when she woke up. However, she couldn't bring herself to stay quiet about this matter anymore.

That lady angrily got up from the bed and then stormed out of her room.

When she reached a door that was rather lavish and grand than all the others in the castle, she gestured to the guards to make her presence known.

And when the guard announced her presence, she walked inside the room.

And she immediately shouted when she saw a middle-aged woman lying on the bed, "Mother! I cannot tolerate this anymore. You need to ask father to stop Joyce from running wild."