I revised the amount of time for their wager. Instead of 100 days it will be 365 days since 3 months and 10 days doesn't seem enough time for the Story to work and I also don't believe that love can grow that fast. Regarding Dyrroth's feelings for Ruby, I applied the same rule. He is very fond of her and he considers her as his property, his pet, that's why he pampers her and gives her a lot of things because she's something new and fascinating but as time passes by we'll... Maybe she won't be a toy anymore.

Ruby ran frantically in the dark torch-lit labyrinth of the Abyss as if her life depended on it. Her body is very athletic and she's very good at running as well as being chased like a prey by the menacing wolves of the woodlands, but this time her predator is more malevolent than the wolves of the Dark Forest. She yelped when she tripped on a random rock but picked herself up fast in fear of her pursuer finding her.

Unlike the open forest, she's being hunted down in his own territory, putting her at a grave disadvantage. She glanced up and saw Sorca perched on a cliff, gazing down at her with a hawk-like stare, making her swallow. The demoness scrutinized her while holding an hourglass in hand. Her heart almost fell when she finally heard the footsteps following her.

Run faster...

Her feet carried her to unsure destinations. She took twists and turns but he always seemed to know where she's going. She's been running so much her lungs burned due to the lack of oxygen but she kept going.

Hide...

There aren't many places to hide because every spot seemed obvious but she doesn't have much choice if she doesn't want him to catch her. She went behind a column and prayed that he doesn't find her.

Quiet...

She held her breath as she heard soft foreboding footsteps closing in on her location. His overwhelming smug presence dominated the atmosphere like a dragon. She can almost see him grinning as he enjoyed the hunt.

"Ruby, where are you? Come on out, let me see your pretty face. I just wanna give you a kiss." He called with an eerie playfulness.

Just keep calm and suppress your presence so he doesn't find you. Think about darkness and calm. Think about a void. Just blend with the shadows and he won't find you.

The footsteps disappeared leaving her alone in a tormenting silence. She sighed before taking a peek and found him gone. Just a little bit more time and this will be over wit-

"Caught you." Ruby released a yelp of surprise as the demon pinned her against the column. She held her breath due to their extreme closeness.

Dyrroth grinned at her making her blush due to how cunningly handsome he looked. His sharp and diabolic facial features highlighted by the flickering fire of the torches are somehow charming. They've been more intimate than this, but how can he still manage to make her flustered by just doing this? She shook her head due to her annoying thoughts.

'You're not supposed to admire him if you want to escape this hell of a place!' she scolded herself before taking deep breaths to calm her shocked heart due to his sudden appearance.

"Dang it, I almost won." Ruby pouted in disappointment.

"Only a few grains of sand and you could have." Sorca informed as she approached the two with the hourglass in hand.

"That's three points for team Dyrroth and two for loser human, Ruby. Now for your tribute to my victory." Dyrroth suddenly crashed his lips against hers and ravished her intensely while pressing her back against the wall. His hand went to touch her breast, a gesture that no longer makes her shocked or flustered due to how often he does it. Is it really weird that she's gotten immune to his harassments?

She felt Dyrroth grab her wrist and placed it on his chest to make her hand feel the strong muscles of his body. He moved her hand down to his stomach while he kissed her more passionately as he allowed her hand to explore the details of his God-sculpted stomach. His abs are so well-defined and beautiful she sometimes finds herself staring at them and when he saw her doing so, he'd smirk and make her touch him.

Anyways, moving on, they are currently playing a game that Dyrroth created which he called "Hide or Kiss". The rules are just like the common hide and seek with only the two of them as players. Ruby is supposed to run and hide until all the sand in the hourglass fall to the bottom. Sorca had been assigned as the timekeeper and she will announce when the time is up. If Dyrroth managed to find Ruby before the last sand falls to the bottom then he gets to kiss her but if he doesn't, she gets to slap him. Naturally, Ruby doesn't really want to play this ridiculous game but what choice does she have once Dyrroth wants something? So she just went along anyway. (Plus she also gets to slap him if she wins and have bragging rights)

Their passionate make-out session finally ended when Dyrroth pulled away with a smug smile on his pretty demonically handsome face while Ruby had a flustered expression since Sorca witnessed all of that. The Demon Prince cupped her cheek with gentleness before wiping the saliva on her lips with his thumb. His face once again inched closer to her face and Ruby prepared herself for another kiss while staring at his crimson enigmatic eyes.

"Your majesty, Queen Alice summons you to talk about the war plans and the new prisoner's fate." Moskov announced as he suddenly appeared out of thin air. A sudden look of shock crossed the marksman's features when he saw Ruby. So she wasn't supposed to hear that. Great, now she's curious.

Dyrroth pulled away from her and glared at the spearman, who gulped in fear, before turning to address her. Ruby is very much sure that his annoyance was more than just for being interrupted in the middle of his flirtation with her, which made her curious as to who their new prisoner is.

"Looks like our game is going to be cut short here." he whispered huskily as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"You are free to do whatever you want but always be on your best behavior, okay?" Ruby only nodded in reply and Dyrroth seems to be satisfied with this so he kissed her forehead before turning to the marksman with a cruel glare and walking away towards the throne room.

"Sorca who is the new prisoner?" she questioned the demoness after she felt that Dyrroth had walked quite a distance from them. Sorca sighed before answering her.

"I knew you would ask that. That idiotic purple turd is really stupid. But like the usual important matters in the Abyss, you are not allowed to learn that as the prince wanted. Now, where do you want to go?"

"Can't you tell me what hair color they have or clothes? Just a little clue please."

"The answer starts with 'N' and ends with 'O'." The demoness replied passively as she started walking towards the exit.

"Aww, come on. Please, even the first letter."

"Come on, princess. Let's just visit your wyvern or go straight to your room so you can take a bath." smirked her guardian teasingly.

"Do I smell? It must be from all that running and kissing. I hope Dyrroth didn't smell me or else it will be too embarrassing."

"So you are being more conscious about what he thinks of you. Prince Dyrroth will surely be pleased."

"That's not it! I--I just don't like smelling bad around people. This totally got nothing to do with how I want him to see me. I don't even want to please that turd eggplant." Ruby pouted as the two of them walked side by side. However, she couldn't really take away the unknown prisoner from her mind. She would really like to find some answers even if it kills her. Besides, she can handle herself and no matter what happens she's sure that Dyrroth will always find a way to save her.

🌹

For the whole week, Ruby's time had been spent on planning how to discover who the new prisoner is. She was very much sure that that person won't be shown with the same kindness as they had with her and it had crossed her mind that it might be one of her friends but she greatly prayed that it wasn't. Nevertheless, she spared no effort in finding out who it is without the help of anyone else especially Dyrroth since he'll only tiptoe around the subject.

There are only a few prisons in the Abyss because all of them are basically troublemakers so why bother putting people in prison when you can just whip them to submission or kill them if they get out of line. Knowing that they don't want her to discover who it was, then the jail holding the human prisoner must be the farthest one from their room. With the location narrowed down her only problem is how she's going to get there. To accomplish that, she needs to escape Sorca's watch first which will be very difficult but she's up for the challenge.

Her thoughts were interrupted when Dyrroth entered the room with a large excited smile on lips while holding a large wooden chest. He placed the box beside the bed near Ruby and the girl closed her book to sit up straight in curiosity of the object he brought. He suddenly knelt before her and clasped her hands between his larger ones astonishing the huntress.

"What is this all about?" she asked raising her brow with interest.

"I know we've only known each other for three months and two weeks but that short amount of time is enough for me to know that I like you. A lot. Because I don't just save anyone from my mother's wrath and give them a wyvern. I don't know if this is what they call love but I've given this a lot of thought."

Okay, this is new and he is scaring her. Thousands of different emotions started to rise from her stomach but the most prominent ones are fear and excitement that clash inside her heart. His words are making her head spin, almost nauseous, while her heart beat more rapidly in her chest making her cheeks flush pink.

"This is a question I've been wanting to ask you for a long time now, I'm just not sure if you will like it or not so I was quite conflicted whether or not I should ask you this but the only way to find out, is to do it." She held her breath with great anticipation as she patiently waited for his next words.

"Ruby Huntress of the Dark Forest," Dyrroth enunciated slowly making her body freeze as he looked affectionately in her eyes.

Okay, fuck. She's so not ready for this.

"Dyrroth maybe we should take things slower. I mean-"

"Will you be the mother of my dragons?"

"What?" she said, almost gasping.

"Do you want to take care of these baby dragons? You were quite fond of Skywynne so I thought maybe you would want to raise one. Or three." Dyrroth opened the chest and inside are three beautiful dragon eggs which greatly fascinated the maiden as her heart stabilized.

Ruby heaved a sigh of relief before picking one up which is color blue. She inspected the egg with great wonder and smiled because of how marvelous it looked. The eggs are large and shiny with a dragon scale-like shells. It felt nice to her hold while it emits a dull comforting warmth almost as if it likes her.

"By the way, what were you expecting? You were quite shaken up but your expression was very cute."

"Oh, it was nothing. Where did you get these little ones?" Dyrroth sat beside her and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer.

"I might have single-handedly killed their mother while trying to invade the Dragon Realm to add those phantasmals to my forces but a bunch of Dragon Tamers postponed my plans but I'll get back to it. For now, what do you say about being the 'Mother of Dragons'? Sounds cool, right?"

"You're really giving these to me? Won't you need them for your invasion?"

"According to the information Helcurt gave me, it takes at least 10 years to get them to adulthood and ready for war. I couldn't wait that long because my attack needs to happen soon while the empire shits are still licking their wounds so you can have them." The information about his war plans made her blood frigid and her mind anxious but she mustered a neutral facade and inquired instead about the dragons.

"How big do they grow? Do we have enough space for them?"

"There's no definite size they grow to. They grow bigger as long as they are fed but they are said to adjust to the place where they are kept so if we keep them in small cages they'll probably only grow as large as cats."

"I don't think I want that. I mean, I want them to reach their full potential, so perhaps to a size that's manageable but still dignified."

"Very well, I'll have my artisans build a suitable arena for them to freely grow and fly." Dyrroth stated before nuzzling his head on her neck.

"I would love that. You know, most suitors from where I came from give their special someone cats, puppies, or birds not dragons but I guess these guys are better because they can incinerate my enemies. However, won't they burn me as well or something when they get wild?"

"Well, it is said that dragons are very intelligent creatures. They love their friends and burn their enemies. If you raise them and nurture them yourself then they will consider you as their mother and fight for you till they die. What do you say?"

"Of course I want them. So how do we hatch these babies?" Ruby asked excitedly hugging all three eggs to her bosom. Dyrroth smiled due to her adorableness and started stroking her hair affectionately.

"Dragons hatch their eggs by putting them on extremely hot places so I guess we put them in the lava but we should do that after the arena is built. For now, I'm so tired. Come sleep with me."

"Okay, but let me just say good night to my babies."

"OUR babies. Fine, but do it fast."

"Hey, there little ones. I'm going to be your mommy and I just want to tell you all that I love you. Once we bring you three to the world, I'm going to take very good care of you and I'll show you how marvelous it is to play under the sun and enjoy the blessings of life." she gently whispered to the eggs which felt warmer in her hold before placing a kiss on their shells and returning them to their box. Dyrroth accepted her in his arms as she laid beside him and kissed her forehead affectionately as he fell asleep.

🌹

After a week or so of careful planning, Ruby began to initiate her espionage regarding the new prisoner's identity. She asked Sorca to bring her to the bath springs and lied about wanting to have a spa day. She made her escape when Sorca turned to give her privacy and expertly made her way around the pools. She passed by some extremely sexy and pretty demon ladies with the healthiest breasts and well-toned bodies making her a bit insecure with her rather simple childish body. She wonders how Dyrroth can like her when he can have all these beauties all for himself and they will surely love him and give him all that he wants unlike her stubborn self. Maybe he's just a pedophile.

"Oh lookie! There's a cute tiny girl."

"Her hair looks like gold and her skin looks so smooth I just want to touch her!"

"Who knew humans can be this adorable?"

Fuck. She forgot that Sorca told her that a lot of female demons tend to be lesbian because handsome demons like Dyrroth are rear so they go for pretty demonesses instead of the ugly, fat, deformed males. Sorca herself has a female mate whom she fondly talked about.

While she was busy looking at hot demonesses and feeling like a lost baby, she didn't notice the person standing in front of her. She fell when she suddenly collided against a soft pair of breasts.

"Ah, how annoying. Here I was wanting to relax and have a bit of relaxation only to be vexed by my son's fuck toy." Alice muttered, looking down at her.

Sorca instantly came to her side and pulled her away before she can even say anything.

Escape Attempt No. 1: FAILED

Okay, that was a bust, pun unintended. So let's think more carefully this time. Since the only time she's not with Sorca is when she's with Dyrroth then she'll just have to make her escape when he's not on his guard and harassing her. The most perfect timing will be when he's asleep, so she slept early knowing that he'll lay with her once it's very late after all his princely duties, that way she'll wake up earlier than him.

Ruby woke up at 4 a.m. and tried moving up however she found herself tightly bound in the prince's embrace. Her back is pressed against his chest as he had one arm under her neck and another around her stomach while his face is buried in her hair snoring softly. To make it worse, he even had his leg on top of her thighs making her frown.

It took a solid 30 minutes before she was able to untangle herself from him. Who knew he can be so clingy even in his sleep? He even groped her breast and kissed her neck multiple times making her cringe at the possibility that he's harassing her even in his dreams. Ruby left the bed and tiptoed towards the door however when she's about to turn the handle, drowsy arms suddenly snaked around her waist before bringing her back to bed.

"Hey, I need to pee!" she lied.

"Then you can use my mouth as your own toilet and I also won't mind if you piss the bed like a little girl but let's just cuddle some more since my duties are increasing and I can barely spend time with you." Dyrroth mumbled as he once again hugged her but tighter this time.

"Dyrroth can I just-" she tried saying but the demon only sniffed her hair before cutting her off.

"I've been missing you so much I was beginning to consider taking you with me all the time but Alice won't like that so I might put you in more danger. Let's just stay together a little while longer." Ruby couldn't do anything more after this so she sighed and cuddled closer to his warm body due to the chilling coldness. She placed her palm over his hand and continued with her sleep while a small smile stretched across Dyrroth's lips before kissing her hair.

Escape Attempt 2: FAILED

She actually tried this plan a few more times but Dyrroth would always wake up and bring her back to bed to cuddle and kiss. Clearly, the demon has a more iron grip than Sorca so she'll just go with the demoness again but this time with someone else's help. Selena happily agreed without even asking what she wanted to do, purely because she wanted to play a prank with the demoness.

As usual, Sorca followed Ruby on her daily walks when a shadow arrow flew behind her back. Ruby prepared herself for her panic acting and then bolting away once Sorca has been stunned however the demoness suddenly ducked down to tie the strings of Ruby's shoes making the arrow miss.

"Human girl, you should always be careful. You might trip and fall off the edge and by then I won't be able to save you."

"Oh, thanks. You're such a lifesaver." Ruby shared a look with Selena who only nodded indicating that they'll try it one more time.

They continued their walk and the elf did the necessary steps to prepare her next attack. She planted the shadow before launching the arrow.

"Ruby move aside." Sorca instructed as a large orc passed by them. The orc caught the arrow before putting it closer to his face to inspect it. The dumb thing suddenly ate the shadow snake as if it was nothing before burping rudely.

Selena gritted her teeth starting to get pissed. She prepared another shadow breathing in and out to calm herself and regain her focus. This one will surely hit its mark. She launched another arrow with more precision and dedication this time and it flew straight to its target without anyone nearby or any other distraction on their way.

Unexpectedly, an orb flew by and Alice suddenly appeared.

"Human pest you need to die! Dyrroth has been so distracted he cannot do his job--!!" And the arrow hit the queen and missed its target. On the bright side, Sorca was given enough time to pull Ruby away from the scene and escape the hag's wrath. Selena also made her escape not wanting to be the one to receive Alice's anger.

Escape Attempt 23: FAILED

Why is the universe so against Ruby to get the answers? For once she wanted to know something for herself and all the world does is intercept her moves. She had tried almost every trick in the book this whole week but none of them worked. The possibility of the person being one of her friends kept bugging her mind making her more determined to find the answers. If it really turns out to be her friend then it would be her fault for their misfortune and she doubts that they will live longer in this blasted place without their own demon royalty lover, therefore, she's got to step up her game if she wanted to save the person friend or not.

She might not be able to get her own happily ever after but she can still help others get theirs that's why she's willing to do anything just to help. Besides, whoever it is might have a better shot in life than a weakling like her. She just prays that they live long enough for her to rescue them.

🌹

Sorca, as usual, accompanied Ruby to her Abyss exploration. While they are walking over the mines where the prison is the closest, Ruby suddenly jumped off the cliff completely taking the demoness off guard.

Sorca tried to grab her cloak but missed making her eyes widen as heart sank to the bottom. She screamed the girl's name in frustration before crumbling the dirt below her fingers.

Ruby maneuvered her body before summoning her scythe and stabbing it on the cliff to break the momentum of her fall. She carefully inspected her landing spot and saw a steady ground down below and no one to hit when she touched down. She let go of her scythe making it vanish and jumped the rest of the five-meter drop because of a tunnel. Unexpectedly, instead of her feet hitting the ground, she fell in the arms of Dyrroth who was inspecting the mines at that time.

"Ruby," Dyrroth started with a tone used to a child who did something wrong.

"Why did you suddenly jump off a 20-meter cliff?" he asked with a terrifyingly calm tone, making the girl gulp in fear while a huge blush of shame covered her cheeks.

"I was taking a leap of faith to see if you will always be there to save me and turns out that I'm right, hehe." she lied with an awkward smile. There was a momentary silence before his voice boomed, capturing the attention of the diligently working demons.

"YOU IDIOTIC LITTLE HUMAN! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING DOING SOMETHING AS STUPID AS THAT?! YOU COULD HAVE GOTTEN HURT OR WORSE, SNATCHED BY A VAMPIRIC GARGOYLE!!! WHAT WILL I DO THEN!!!?" Dyrroth scolded after letting her down. Ruby didn't reply and only stared at her feet with a guilty frown.

"Did you fucking inherit all of your kind's stupidity to do something as dumb as that? Has the heat melted every brain cell you have or are you just born stupid? I swear I'll fucking cut off your legs so you won't do something like that again. Maybe I'll even kill all of your friends one by one and make you watch just to teach you a lesson!" Dyrroth yelled, too consumed by his anger to filter his speech.

His words made her eyes widen and she gritted her teeth in anger of his threat. Rage and fury started to rise in her whole being due to the incredibly painful words he uttered. She can endure it if he's just berating her but to threaten her friends is out of line. She won't just stand for it.

Dyrroth harshly grabbed her face and made her look him in the eyes. "Swear to me that you will no longer do that ever again." he ordered but Ruby only kept quite before averting her gaze from him.

"Have you gone deaf puny human?! Answer me!!" Ruby only replied with a bunch of incomprehensible murmurs while making the demon scowl.

"What are you saying? Tell me, what were you fucking doing?! Are you trying to fucking kill yourself?! Because I'll kill you if you do!!" Dyrroth was clearly beyond furious at this point but Ruby no longer cared about that.

"You don't care." Ruby whispered in a barely audible sound.

"What was that?" Dyrroth asked with a seething edge.

"YOU DON'T FUCKING CARE!! I GET TO MAKE MY OWN DECISIONS BECAUSE I HAVE A FUCKING WILL OF MY OWN!! I'M SO FUCKING TIRED OF YOU ALWAYS BOSSING ME AROUND LIKE I'M SOME BITCH AND DON'T YOU DARE THREATEN TO KILL MY FRIENDS BECAUSE I WILL MAKE SURE I KILL YOU FIRST BEFORE YOU DO. I FUCKING HATE YOU AND THIS HIDEOUS PLACE!!" she yelled back as tears built up in her eyes.

"I wish I died when I fell here in the first place so I don't have to meet you."

Regret instantly swallowed her being after realizing the gravity of her words and how Dyrroth took it. Her heart sank to the bottom when she saw the look of absolute pain and betrayal cross his face. Her words had clearly hit deeper than she had intended making his heart break right before her eyes however it faded as quickly as it came and his expression turned neutral and business-like as is she was a pest not worthy of his time.

"Dyrroth, I'm so--" Ruby tried apologizing but Sorca suddenly appeared, cutting her off.

"My prince, I'm so sorry I let her do that. It won't happen again."

"Sorca bring this human girl back to the room and never let her leave until I say so. Lock her in and don't let anyone enter or talk to her. Yourself included. That will be all, now remove her presence from here as I still have a lot of more important things to do." Ruby's heart fell due to how cold his tone is. She couldn't say anything further because he turned his back on her as Sorca led her away.

"Ruby, what have you done?"

"I--I hurt him..." was all she managed to say as sobs erupted from her lips.

🌹

Ruby lay on their bed with a gaping hole in her heart filled with guilt and regret. It was past midnight and she's been crying and torturing herself for her stupidity. She's been waiting for Dyrroth to arrive and apologized to him but he's taking longer than usual to come back. Sorca as well won't even talk to her making her feel completely alone.

She wished she never said those things to him. She wished she just kept quiet. She wished that she could turn back time and take all those horrible things she said to him. But most of all she wished that he can forgive her.

Why did she even say those things in the first place? It was all her fault for jumping off that cliff and he was just worried about her but then she yelled at him, told him that she hates him, and even insulted his home. What was she thinking doing all those bullshits on the only person that truly loves her in this whole miserable world? Dyrroth is the only person keeping her alive. Who knows what sort of horrible things that are going to happen to her once he lifts his protection from her?

Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted when the door swung open capturing her attention. She stood up from the bed with an awkward apologetic smile before approaching the demon.

"Dyrroth, I know what I said was awful and I just want to take all those back. I'm not thinking clearly when I said those things. I was very stressed out and then you yelled at me and then I yelled back I just--" she stopped herself when the demon only walked passed her as if she wasn't even there which broke her heart due to his uncharacteristic coldness. She followed him and suddenly hugged him from behind to stop him from walking which successfully made him pause. Dyrroth didn't say anything and only stood there coldly.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything that I said. I don't hate you... because you're the only person in the world who made me feel like I was everything. And I loved it. I loved how you made me feel like a queen instead of a little girl like all the other men that I liked." she whispered sincerely as she tightened her embrace around him.

"Then perhaps that's my greatest mistake. I was wrong to make you feel more than what you really are. You're an outsider in this 'hideous place' and you're just a prisoner." Dyrroth grabbed her arms and harshly pushed her away nearly making her stagger but she luckily caught herself.

"I'm tired of playing with a useless toy like you. You're just a novelty at best, something new and different to play with but you've pissed me off for the last time. For now on, I've decided that you will no longer stay in my room. You can go wherever you want and Sorca won't be following you anymore. You said you can do things on your own, then you can fend for yourself here without my help. Starting now." Dyrroth declared with apathy making Ruby's heartbreak due to how cruel and painful his words are and its implications.

"Dyrroth let's just talk about this." Ruby begged but the demon remained nonchalant.

"What else do you have to say? You've made your point clear and if you really feel that way then there's no point in keeping your ungrateful sorry ass so leave from my sight." Dyrroth said firmly.

"But Dyrroth-!"

"I said LEAVE!" He yelled shutting her up.

Ruby was left speechless and she closed her eyes in despondency bemoaning her fate. She nodded not wanting to lower herself further before turning her back to him and leaving him alone like he wanted.

After the maiden left, Dyrroth took all her clothes, all her books, and every other present he gave to her and threw it one by one in the fireplace. He poured himself a full goblet of wine and drank it straight before starring at the fire. His face remained emotionless as he watched the precious things he carefully collected for her burn to ashes.

Their memories began to flashback in his head as he burns all of her belongings.

"I'm Ruby Huntress of the Dark Forest." she introduced with a confident grin during their first meeting.

"It's awful. I just got here and now I'm already in prison. Well, that's probably self-explanatory since I'm basically your enemy. But what are my grandparents going to say? Their only daughter in prison at age eighteen." She complained light-heartedly when he asked her how her stay had been during his first time visiting her in prison.

"I can tell you with certainty that there are things in this planet worth protecting!"

"I assure you that even if it kills me, I will do everything in my power to make you fail. I will protect them and even if I fall, another will replace me. So watch your back." Ruby snarled engaging him in a heated staring contest while the fires of determination dance in her eyes when he insulted her whole species.

"Don't kid yourself. You may ravish me but I will never take pleasure from your molestations. I will never love a demon like you."

"Poetic babbles won't sway my heart. I've had numerous men say far more moving words than the ones you've just uttered. You have to do better than that to win me over." she replied when he first confessed to her his feelings.

"You're giving me a dragon?!" she exclaimed excitedly after he presented her with a wyvern.

"It's beautiful up here." Ruby softly said as she pressed her back on his chest, resting her head on his shoulder while they glide through the sunset.

"I can't really say that my time with you has been the best part of my life but... it certainly is the most memorable highlight of my mundane mortal life." Ruby said with a gentle smile.

"How so?" he had asked.

"I fell into the most dangerous place in the whole breadth of the land by riding a dead bird, battled a horde of demons, and fought their prince with a very terrible reputation. I was imprisoned in a stinky cell and fingered in the throne room." Ruby enumerated jokingly making him laugh at that time.

"A crazy Demon Prince is in love with me and he took me in a whirlwind tour of the Abyss, protected me from his murderously deranged mother, and made me experience the joy of riding a dragon. We soared into the heaven, flew over the sea meeting dolphins and mermaids, glided into the sunset, watched the aurora beyond the clouds, and then landed on a deserted island with only the two of us and nature."

"My point is, I can't erase my bad memories with you... but we can make more good memories as people or... as friends."

"I FUCKING HATE YOU AND THIS HIDEOUS PLACE!! I wish I died when I fell here in the first place so I don't have to meet you."

"I FUCKING HATE YOU AND THIS HIDEOUS PLACE!! I wish I died when I fell here in the first place so I don't have to meet you."

"I FUCKING HATE YOU AND THIS HIDEOUS PLACE!! I wish I died when I fell here in the first place so I don't have to meet you."

"I HATE YOU! HATE YOU! HATE YOU!"

He threw his goblet harshly on the ground, spilling the crimson-colored liquid as her painful words repeat themselves in his head. The glass shattered and the furniture broke as they received his anger. He released a loud scream filled with pain and sorrow knowing that he just lost his only beloved.

Meanwhile, Ruby pressed her back against the door after she left and covered her lips to stifle her cries. She sank to the floor in hopelessness and grief while her shoulders shook as she sobbed hard.

Dyrroth had every right to do what he just did and she can't really blame him for wanting her gone. She wouldn't choose herself as well if she was him. She was so stupid to believe that she really mattered to him. Of course, she's just a plaything and all his grand gestures were just elaborate play skits for his new toy. She shouldn't have assumed she was anything more than what she really is, a little girl who stupidly fell into a really deep hole.

She was startled when she heard glass breaking from the other side followed by a loud scream from Dyrroth then more breaking of the furniture and glassware making her terrified so she picked herself up and left the scene.

Ruby walked aimlessly in the huge Abyssal hallways while tears cascade from her eyes. She had nowhere else to go and no one else to go to. She had neither ally nor shelter and no plan as well for her future. She traversed the labyrinth and allowed her feet to carry her to whatever destination as long as she'll be far from Dyrroth.

After a long period of walking while crying despondently, she finally found herself in the stables and she entered without thinking. There were multiple flying beasts sleeping in their cages and she quietly made her way around them in fear of waking up even a single one. She walked to the farthest cage to meet the only being she can call her friend.

"Skywynne." she whispered and the dragon stirred from his slumber and stared at her groggily. A look of recognition crossed his eyes when he saw her and he instantly perked up.

"I wanted to take you out to escape but it seems that they took extra precautions. You're chained so heavily I wouldn't be able to remove those even with my scythe and I doubt they'll have the keys lying somewhere here."

Ruby slipped through the large gap in his cage before petting his snout while mustering a gentle smile for him. The dragon seemed to see through her facade because he rubbed his face on her side with worried eyes making Ruby smile bitterly.

"He hates me. Dyrroth hates me, Skywynne. I hurt him too much, I'm so stupid!" she cried erupting into another sob.

"I have nowhere else to go. I'll have to fend for myself from now on but I don't even know what to do from here. Please let me stay with you for a little while before I think things through tomorrow." Skywynne nodded his head before rubbing his face on her torso to comfort her and Ruby hugged his head to lift even a little bit of her sadness.

Skywynne laid on his side presenting Ruby his belly, offering her to sleep there since she has nowhere else better lie in. The maiden didn't say anything further and only rested her body against his warm belly. The wyvern curled his body protectively around her and used his wing to cover her so that no one can discover her. Even with her troubled mind, it wasn't hard for Ruby to fall asleep due to her extreme emotional and physical exhaustion so she allowed herself to fall in the arms of slumber.