Weakness

Once again, the dagger sank into his flesh, drawing blood. It was a sharp blade, and as soon as it touched his chest, it bore right through. This time, she drove it deeper than before, and the dagger was buried in him such that only the hilt remained visible. If the blade had been a tad longer, it would have entirely pierced him and emerged from the other side.

It made no difference.

Once more, Daphne watched in awe as his body quickly regenerated, filling the wound in with more flesh.

"You're not smiling anymore." He shook his head in mock disappointment. "The first time you had done this, your smile was so bright."

He was surely mocking her at this point.

"Here, if you think my heart is merely grown in the wrong place or something, you can try a few other spots as well. Maybe it'll be like a treasure hunt until you can find where you can find your mark."

She knew it was pointless to stab him anywhere else. After all, how could it do anything when he didn't even feel pain?

Gripping the dagger tightly, she instead brought it up to her own neck.

But before the blade could cleanly slice through her flesh, he stopped her. Holding her by the wrist, he forced her to drop the dagger.

"If you die, you'll never get to see the end of me."

Her eyes were still, lifeless. Although she was still alive, she felt as if a walking corpse that was weighed down by all of the unmet expectations and unfulfilled promises from what seemed like a past life.

"I would rather die than live as your caged songbird."

He didn't immediately answer. "The songbird will be allowed to die only when its owner is tired of its sweet songs. And until then, it has no right to do so." He stroked her hair. "Plus, if you die, the entire Kingdom of Eversun will die alongside you."

"If I die or attempt to die, the kingdom will suffer. But if you die, or I try to kill you, there is no punishment?"

He nodded, leaving Daphne to even more confusion.

"But why?"

"Don't you think I'm curious to see how you will try to kill me? Plus, if I can't die anymore to begin with, why would I care if you try to kill me?"

She couldn't even argue against his twisted logic.

"Plus, it's more fun for me to watch your people think you have betrayed them. If you all die, who can I even watch?"

He was truly a demon.

"But in the meantime, my princess, you still owe me something I believe."

He gestured to his lips.

Daphne took a deep breath, leaning forward as her mouth met his. Parting her own rosy lips such that they sandwiched his upper lips, she opened her mouth and bit down as hard as she could. Only until she tasted the metallic taste of blood did she let go, leaving behind a bite mark.

He wiped away the blood.

"I must admit, for a person who likes calling the entirety of my people 'barbarians,' you are truly more savage than any other woman I have encountered."

"Does this violate the terms?"

"No." He pulled her closer, forcing her to his side. "If this is my pay for every time you try to kill me, then you can do this more often."

Her fingernails dug into her own skin, but he immediately pried apart her balled fists.

"But I can't kill you anyway."

"Have you ever heard the story of Iacuc?"

She had. Virtually every child in the Kingdom of Eversun had heard this tale.

The warrior had been nearly invincible, and metal bounced off his skin without making as much of a scratch as if it was made of diamonds. Poison would turn into water by the time it reached his throat, and fires could even do as much as scathe his flesh. Only, there was a catch. The center of his forehead had been kissed by a fair maiden, and that spot became his weakness, the only place where weapons could penetrate. So one day, when a poisoned arrow struck him straight at the center of his head, he collapsed onto the ground, never to rise again. And for the many lives he had taken as a warrior, he was banished to the depths of hell to serve an endless sentence.

"What's your weakness?"

"That's much too boring." He planted a soft kiss on her forehead. "That's for Your Highness to find out, isn't it? And if you never do, I suppose you will be bound with me until the very end then."

That thought was much too terrifying for Daphne.

"Did you really sign a deal with the devil?"

"That, my fair princess, is also for you to find out."

He smiled, a mocking twinkle flickering in his eyes that flared with the pinpricks of candlelight.

"When I do, that'll be the end of your life." She raised a finger to his forehead, lightly tapping it. "And you know that I will not ever rest until I find it?"

"Then we can just see which is longer, your life or mine."

She smiled coldly in response. If he really liked to see her smile that much, then she would make sure that the last thing he saw before taking his last breath was her smile of triumph.

"But in the meantime, Your Highness, should we make use of the rest of our beautiful wedding night? It's a pity to waste it otherwise, right?"

His hand slid against the hem of her gown, traveling upward and lingering for a moment too long at her breasts before reaching the nape of her neck.