Seeing Xavier transform before her eyes, Isabel's body froze. Her knees gave way, and she sank to the flowery ground, unable to breathe. Her wide eyes traced the figure standing under the moonlight.
His dark hair framed a face too perfect to belong to a mortal. Those piercing crimson eyes glowed faintly, pulling her in — dangerous, endless, and cold. Her gaze wandered down his sharp nose, his perfectly carved lips curved in a faint smirk, and the strong line of his jaw. Even the way his Adam's apple moved when he breathed seemed otherworldly.
She swallowed hard, her mind spiraling into chaos.
So he really is a demon... Then why did he save me?
No — I saved him first... maybe he was just returning the favor…
Her thoughts clashed in panic.
Lucifer took a step toward her. The sound of his boot shoveling softly on the flowery ground. She instinctively moved back, trembling with each step he took closer — until fear broke through her paralysis.
She turned to run.
In a blink, he was already there — standing before her, blocking her path.
She gasped and stumbled backward, landing hard on the floor. Her breath caught when he crouched before her, his hand gently lifting her chin. His touch was warm — too warm.
"Who said," his voice came low, deep, and almost tender, "you could run?"
For a heartbeat, she forgot to breathe. Then her body reacted — she shoved him away and ran.
She didn't stop until she reached her chambers. Slamming the door behind her, she pressed her back against it, panting. Her heart pounded so hard she thought it might burst.
Everything suddenly made sense — the nights she fell asleep on the floor but woke on her bed… the duvet that covered her when no one else was there… that quiet warmth beside her in the dark.
Maya.
Her chest tightened. Tears threatened, but she swallowed them back. Regret burned deep inside her.
Then — the air in her room shifted. The candlelight flickered.
He was there again.
Xavier — no, Lucifer — stood before her, tall and calm, his presence filling the room.
She stood slowly. Her small frame seemed fragile compared to his towering form, yet there was something regal — defiant — in her gaze.
Anger simmered beneath her sorrow, but betrayal was nothing new to her. She was a princess long forgotten by her father, a daughter meant to be traded for peace. Her fate was already written — a marriage to the enemy kingdom, a life sacrificed for a throne that no longer wanted her.
So instead of shouting, instead of crying… she thought of survival.
She stepped closer, her aura shifting — the quiet fire of royalty burning in her eyes. Anyone else would have bowed before that presence. But Lucifer only watched, unreadable. Waiting.
Then she spoke — her voice steady, but her heart breaking beneath the surface.
"Marry me."
The words fell like a spell between them.
Lucifer's smirk faded. For the first time, even he was speechless.