Chapter 156

“How. . .,” she started to ask. This didn’t feel like using the divine objects she had touched before. Aden laughed.

“If you don’t know, let me help,” he said. He loosened the cloth and took hold of her, lifting her like a doll. She gasped in surprise.

“Shhh,” he whispered. Trust me, I would never let you be hurt, he thought. Looking in his eyes, she relaxed as he carried her to the window. Setting her down, he opened it wide.

Winter in April. His divine power kept it warmer here, but the chill still pushed its way in. The temperature in the room fell instantly. It’s cold, she thought, and the blue light instantly flashed in her hand.

The light was too bright for her, but Aden stared directly into it, curious. Even though Ilyin was using his own borrowed power, the feel of it was different from her hand. In him, the blue light was itself cold, even though it warmed his surroundings. But the light from Ilyin was warm, like the region from which she came.

Prodded by the chill from the window, she had instinctively wanted warmth. And now that warmth spread through the room, a foreign sort of warmth to Biflten, like that of an afternoon in the warm region.

“Ah,” Aden said. He slammed the window shut out of instinct, to hold in the warmth from her before it was overcome by the wind, and she was driven to work harder.

“Are you alright?” he asked. The light from her hand was pulsing brilliantly. Ilyin nodded after the briefest pause, as though surprised.

“I’m fine,” she said. “I’m not even tired.”

She waved her free hand about, feeling the air. The room hadn’t cooled at all.

“Oh,” she breathed. It felt so strange, this divine power. So, unlike the other times she’d felt it. She simply hoped for a moment that the room would be warm, that it could feel like the warm region just for a moment, and it happened. Aden carried her quickly to the bed.

“Let me know immediately if you feel weak,” he said. He well understood how much power it took to raise the temperature so much, even in just a single room. He worried what it might do to Ilyin. He set her on the bed and buried her in blankets up to her neck, until only her face, flushed red, poked out.

“It didn’t hurt much at all,” she whispered with a laugh, but the assurance did nothing for Aden’s worry.

Ilyin, on the other hand, was more worried about the cloth. It truly could transfer divine power to others. If the other families learned of it, there would be chaos in the Winter Region.

And if this was the divine object of the Mollys, what sort of divine objects might the other monsters have that they knew nothing of? And would any of them be strong enough to challenge the power of Delrose?

“What of the other monsters…,” she mumbled. She started to raise her hand to Aden’s face before she realized her hand was still tied to his.

“Ah, is it tied too strongly?” Aden asked in surprise. He fumbled to try and free her hand.

That’s not it, Aden. Her eyes smiled into his.

“I’m okay, truly,” she said. Do I look that weak to him? As though I would break if he touched me. It was both endearing and a bit embarrassing that he treated her like a glass statue. She smiled again, and Aden couldn’t resist. He leaned in and kissed her cheek.

“Rest well tomorrow,” he said. I’ll ruin whoever disturbs you, he thought darkly.

“I will,” she sighed. It seemed the only way to calm him. She lifted herself up to kiss his nose, but couldn’t quite bring herself all the way, so she simply let her breath caress him instead. The sensation pulled Aden in, his eyes closing as he kissed her so deeply, she felt she couldn’t breathe. Her hand that still had the cloth wrapped around it grabbed his.

“You must rest,” he repeated, smiling. She smiled back, but shook her head slightly.

“I just woke up not that long ago,” she laughed. “And I truly am alright.”

And she was truthful. Using the cloth felt better than using the Everlasting Fire. She kissed him again, lightly, trying to show him he could relax. But Aden kept trying to tuck her in. She laughed again.

“I’m not sleepy,” she protested. He tried to pull away, but then realized the cloth was still wrapped around both their wrists. She reached up with her other hand and wrapped her arm around his back, holding him in place.

“Oh, no,” he laughed. “Ilyin…”

His bride was never careful in these situations. He kept hoping she would see how dark-hearted he was and obey him. She never would.

“If you’re really worried, help me sleep,” she whispered sweetly. She didn’t release him but held on until he relented and climbed into her bed beside her.