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Author's Note:

Greetings my lovely readers! I hope you all are doing good, if not, I hope you get over whatever tough times you are going through. Be as positive as you can be and believe in yourself💜

I am back once again with the longest chapter of this story till now to make it up for the long wait. Hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Happy reading!

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"Is it true??"

"Depends on what are you talking about, my lady"

"That the coronation ceremony is going to be held tomorrow because they found the queen"

"I mean the facts you are stating are a bit twisted because as far as I know, the chosen queen is yet to be discovered"

"But the servants infor-"

"The coronation ceremony is tomorrow, yes. It will be held right after the Royal ball and it is because they suspect that the queen is already here but nothing is confirmed yet"

The princess of Stozdal sighs out in relief, a little bit of tension leaving her body. She had heard the servant announce the news in the hallways and had felt herself going rigid, the possibility that the king found his chosen one and it was not her, successfully made her sick.

The next moments were a blur for her as she ordered someone to ask Yeol to come see her, waited for the demon to appear so that she gets to know what exactly happened to trigger this sudden change of events.

Now that she knows nothing is conformed yet and that the coronation ceremony is tomorrow, she feels her body starting to relax. Although she has this underlying fear that she might not get what she wants.

But Euthena has always gotten whatever she wanted and she will make sure she has what she desires this time around too.
The princess looks at Yeol with a straight face and observant eyes so as to try and judge if the demon in front of her can be trusted or not.

She stares for a good minute or two before continuing their conversation.

"Should I be worried?"

"There is nothing to worry about when I am on your side my princess"

"I am trusting you Yeol ssi. I should be the one who will be wearing the crown tomorrow and become the emperor's wife. It has to be me and only me"

"Precisely. I already assured you but I will say it again, the crown will be yours and so will be the king, doesn't matter if we have to play unfairly. As long as you follow the plan as it is, there should be no problem at all"

"Well then, I should now proceed to enjoy my last night as a princess and prepare for one of the biggest days of my life.
See you tomorrow Yeol ssi" She mutters happily, the dreamy tone of the words giving away her excitement for her future.

"Have a comfortable night, oh, soon to be queen of Hell" Yeol greets back before quickly making his way out of the room, a smirk adorning his face as he disappears into the night.

☆☆☆☆☆

Not working. Her old, tried and tested plan too, ends up betraying her. This is the sixth or seventh attempt made by the troubled princess, to make herself fall asleep only to reach the same conclusion yet again.

Viraina is well aware that it is easily past 2 in the morning, the dark sky partially lit by the moon and the eerie silence all around is a clear indication of the same. She has been trying to fall asleep for quite some time now but has failed in her mission quite evidently.

Something is wrong. She can feel it in the way she is so restless, her body just not finding the comfort it needs to fall into a deep slumber. She is reaching the point of frustration where she might just give up on sleeping altogether but she is also painfully aware that she definitely needs some rest for the historic day.

They will finally find the queen and the masses of Hell will have a valid reason to rejoice and celebrate. All of which is good, but the Royal ball before the ceremony may or may not be more interesting for the sleepless princess.

Now don't take her wrong, she would be one of the happiest demons when the queen is finally revealed but, she needs some fun and fun for her is dancing. Dancing with a particular someone where you don't even have to be worried of someone watching or judging you because everyone will be dancing themselves.

She had started daydreaming as soon as she heard that the Royal ball will be held the very next day. Her small little heart, fluttering at the thought of being close to Jungkook, which she would cherish and remember always.

But that moment will arrive when she will arrive at the Royal party which will only happen if she gets some sleep into her hopeless system. The tired girl lays in bed for a few more minutes before getting up in a flash and stepping out of her room.

She hates it. Hates having to admit that she is taking the right decision but she has no other option and at this point she is downright desperate to get some rest. She carefully makes her way through the now familiar hallways, silently praying her memory doesn't betray her until she spots the door she has been looking for.

The girl looks around to check for any guards and upon finding no one, carefully steps inside the room, shutting the door behind her. Viri lets out a small sigh of relief, silently being proud of herself for sneaking in so easily only to be left startled by a deep yet soothing voice reaching her unsuspecting ears.

"Whatever it is, it better be important enough for you to disrupt my peace so late in the night Min Viraina or I am seriously cancelling you out from my kingdom" The king of Augosuga says threateningly, clearly irritated by the sudden intrusion in his room.

Viri has a lot of responses to the threat her brother threw towards her but she is way too tired and done for to even choose a reply, let alone actually replying. She lets out a small huff before quickly sliding under the sheets to bury herself in the warmth of the bed, completely ignoring her confused brother.

Yoongi quitely stares at the lump formed on the sheets due to the body buried under it before he places his hand on what he figures out to be the head, patting it as softly as he can.

"What happened Viri ah?" He asks in a hushed tone so as to not startle the girl in any way.

"Nothing, just can't sleep. Feeling way too restless" Viri replies in a sleepy tone, already getting comfortable in the warmth.

"Restless? Okay, but it's alright hm? Want hyung to put you to sleep bun?" He offers, carefully pulling the girl partially out of the warm sheets so she doesn't end up suffocating herself accidentally.

The response he gets is positive but wordless as the girl choses to wiggle herself closer to the warmth of her hyung and hurriedly tries to find a comfortable position to fall asleep in.
Yoongi chuckles softly at the rare and cute moment he is witnessing out of the blue but decides to help his whiny little one by pulling her close and placing her head on his chest just the way she likes from her very childhood.

The girl relaxes in his hold almost instantly, reaches out to hold onto his shirt and lets out a sigh of satisfaction. Yoongi pats her back softly, knowing it would work just like it did when she was a child.

He remembers the night clearly, when a very young Viri had made her way to his room crying hysterically and itching to be in his arms. The king had wasted no time to comfort his little bun, showering her with pecks and later tucking her in his own bed.

From then on it had been a usual thing for the both of them, a sad or troubled Viri would come to his room, sometimes she would talk, sometimes she would prefer getting under the sheets to doze off and sometimes cuddles were all she needed.
But one thing which was common throughout was leaving a heart eyed Yoongi to watch over her until she entered her dreamland as comfortably as possible.

The older smiles at the treasured memory being refreshed when he least expected the same to happen after which he leans down to peck the sleeping girl's forehead, silently hoping that whatever is troubling her disappears by the time she wakes up.

Later, he slowly falls asleep again, this time with a new found comfort he definitely didn't have earlier.

☆☆☆☆☆

The slow beats in the spacious hall almost matches with those of the king's heart as he stands in the middle, his eyes closed, hand placed on his heart letting his mind take in the moment of truth.

After practically dragging himself throughout the day it's finally beginning. The most awaited night is here and everything looks perfect. Just a few moments earlier he had let out a pretty much audible gasp as the utter beauty of the hall struck him out of nowhere.

In that moment, the king had failed to remember the last time he saw any part of the palace being this beautiful which is why he let himself stay freezed as he took it all in.

Now he just stands there, in the middle of the mesmerizing venue of the royal ball, observing every single detail that has been added by the dedicated helpers under the guidance of his own soulmate.

Taehyung snorts as he slowly realizes the lightings reflecting the energy of his own aura, the red, effortlessly signifying his passion. His passion to find the queen, to finally find some peace in his life and to feel happy for once.
This match was definitely done on purpose by Park Jimin himself and Taehyung definitely doesn't mind. He wholeheartedly receives the energy his soulmate tried to direct towards him and takes a deep breath, readying himself for the evening as the guests slowly start filling into the big hall.

The king welcomes a couple of royals before making his way towards the elevated stage which is soon going to hold the precious crown. As he makes his way towards his destination, he spots his support systems standing near the stage, all of them glowing with pure happiness, clearly excited to see how the evening will unfold.

He wonders what does he look like to others right in this moment. Does he seem like the calm unnerved demon he has always shown himself to be or are the guests able to see his nervousness which he is so desperately trying to keep to himself.

"You almost blinded me with your radiance, your majesty" Comes a honey sweet voice from somewhere beside him, successfully interrupting his steps as well his train of thoughts.

Taehyung turns around as he comes face to face with a female who is undoubtedly a princess. Her entire appearance screamed royalty, hair tied neatly into a braid, adorned with beautiful jewels, dress a bright red which, ironically, is enough to actually blind someone. But his attention is caught by the unusually large jewel on her finger which is there for a purpose.

It is the rare stone of Stozdal, which used to be one of the main incomes for its kingdom until the stones started getting scarce and the king decided to stop the sales. No one can buy the stone ever since and seeing it on the female's finger, the king of Hell recognizes her almost immediately.

"Princess Euthena, it's so nice to have you with us in this prestigious gathering and ah, thank you for the sweet compliment. You look beautiful as well and I hope you are enjoying yourself" He replies with a humble bow.

Euthena flushes a deep red as she tries to process the compliment she just received as she shamelessly eyes the handsome king almost missing his words in the process.

"-min and check the preparations myself. I shall see you later, princess" He says and walks away as the said princess stands still eyeing the retreating figure of the king.

At that moment, after observing the king up close, hearing his voice and feeling his strong aura, Euthena was sure of one thing.

She is going to make the demon king hers anyhow.

☆☆☆☆☆

So she is the only one in a white gown. The realization hits hard as she squints her eyes to scan the large crowd in the huge hall, her gaze trying to find atleast a single soul who must have decided to wear white, only to find none.

Every single princess has decided to go overboard with their appearance, or atleast that's what she concludes. Each of them has dressed to impress the king even though all of them know that the queen will not be chosen by the king, she will be chosen by the crown.
In fact the queen has already been chosen, the king just has to find her. The princess of Augosuga rolls her eyes as she sees almost all of the females fluttering around the king who is mostly invisible to anyone watching from afar due to the unwanted demon body covers he has all around himself.

Viri almost feels bad for the man, not just because he is practically being devoured by the hungry stares of the princesses but also due to the fact that by the end of this night he will be placed face to face with another soul destined to be his partner. He will have to marry someone whom he most likely wouldn't know and will have to spend the rest of his life with more or less a stranger.

She pities him, but she pities herself a tiny bit more in this moment. It's a royal ball and no one is dancing. It's an important gathering for the king and she still can't find the soul who unknowingly motivated her to even attend the occasion.

She has one single question, which was unexpectedly answered almost immediately as Jeon Jungkook emerges from the crowd like the bright star he is. She keeps her eyes on him as he walks towards the centre and announces the Royal ball to officially begin, following which soft music fills the area as everyone starts dispersing to find a partner to dance with.

Of course the princesses rush to the king and of course Viri rushes towards her targeted prince.

"May I have a dance with you my prince?" Viri asks as softly as she can, as if revealing a secret meant to be heard by only the two of them.
She waits as Jungkook turns around and freezes for a small moment before offering his hand to her, accompanied by an adorable smile decorating his face. Viri takes his hand almost immediately as they move to take their positions somewhere amidst the annoyingly vast crowd.

The music starts yet again and Viri lets herself get lost in the moment she would cherish for a long time. She zones out everything else but the man in front of her, watches him with whipped eyes as he says something looking behind her, his soft expression turning into an excited one before returning to normal as his eyes fix back at her.

Viri feels too much all of a sudden. The heavy weight of pure happiness and excitement emerge in her stomach, her surroundings get blurry, her mind getting lost in the doe eyes of the prince, heart rate increasing along with the beats to the point that it starts getting overwhelming but she can't stop. She won't stop. She won't let the moment end just like that.

They continue the dance for quite some time, until Jungkook turns them around to fall into the following step and Viri's eyes land on the glowing object cautiously placed at a distance. It is the crown and Viri is mesmerized yet again. Her body keeps following the music but her soul and mind float over to the magnificent thing of destiny.

The princess observes the crown, feels her fluttering, gets aware of the sudden urge to run towards the stage, to touch, to feel, to have the crown in her hands as she unknowingly squeezes Jungkook's shoulder hard enough to make the prince flinch, making him halt as she snaps back to reality.

"Are you alright princess?" He asks, eyeing her worriedly.

"Y-Yes I am good. I apologize for umm squeezing your shoulder like that"

"It's alright but what happened suddenly? Did I do someth-"

"No! I mean you didn't do anything Jungkook ssi, it's just I saw it and started feeling overwhel-"

"You saw what and your eyes? They are turning blue! What's happening Viri?"

"I don't know, I am as clueless as I can be bu-"
The princess stops talking altogether as her eyes desperately try to locate the crown which was right there on the stage just a moment ago and now it wasn't.
Her horrified face worries a confused Jungkook enough to follow the line of her gaze only to freeze on the spot himself.

The pair stands there, too horrified, both of them too stunned to break the silence, until someone else does it for them.

"Where is the crown?!"

☆☆☆☆☆

//Sometime ago... //

Euthena scoffs as she watches the princesses flutter around the emperor to ask him for a dance. She glares at every single one of them for even daring to breathe the same air as her future husband.

She can feel the desire to burn everyone in her jealous rage beginning to emerge. Taehyung is hers and she is not going to let anyone change the fact. She could have easily ran to the king first and asked him for a dance but right now her priority was the crown.

She needs to be the first female near it, needs to know if she is the chosen one, not that it matters but at least she will have a clear picture to plan further and so keeps eyeing the stage time to time to make sure she doesn't miss the moment the crown is brought in.

Her impatient wait does pay off as the crown is carefully brought in by Jimin and placed on it's alloted place with utmost care. A few guards immediately take their position around the crown as Jimin instructs them to be alert before getting of the stage and disappearing into the crowd.

Euthena witnesses as the crown remains dull for a few minutes before it starts changing colour, a strangely calming glow emerging from it but even before she has the chance to step forward and check if it's because of her, a sudden spark of sapphire tint halts her in her tracks.

It's not what she wants to see. It's not the colour of her own aura and that alone causes the initially alluring site to turn displeasing within fractions of seconds.
The princess of Stozdal feels her veins contracting as she begins to summon the hag in her. But even before she can stabilize herself to complete the summon, a hand is wrapped around her elbow, dragging her behind the pillar beside her.

"It's not the time to openly show your rage my princess" Yeol reprimands in a firm voice as he keeps a strong hold on the fuming princess.

"I didn't even get to go closer. Is that so called chosen one's aura that intense? Is the energy so sharp that the crown has already began to show a faint blue tinge? Why can't I see any green sparks, am I not the chosen one??
This can't be happening, Taehyung is mine, I am not letting anyone steal him away from me. I am the queen of Hell this is not happen-"

"You don't want random demons to hear you princess. I suggest you lower your voice before someone hears you. I understand your agony but reacting like this will get us nowhere. Why act like this is the end? We have a plan for this situation as well did you forget?"

"I did not. I remember the plan and I am very much ready to execute it. The crown, the throne, the king, all of it is mine. Now should we start the execution part?"

"Yes my princess. But I would like to repeat the entire plan once again for you to remember correctly.
The crown can show the aura of the chosen one up until the mid night only, during this time it will try to be close to the chosen one through a variety of hints and by the time we dive deeper into the night, it will grow more and more restless with it's increasing energy.
The chosen one will also feel a pull towards the crown too but they will obviously need the crown itself to verify for the future queen, since many of them can fake their restlessness because all of them want the same thing you wish for.

Our aim is to hide the crown so that no one is able to reach it before midnight. If we are able to do that, once we are past midnight, the crown will once again become dull and loose it's powers. That is when we shall strike and propose to accept the crown. You are anyways a very powerful enchantress so no princess will be able to defeat you on her own and ultimately you will be crowned as the queen of Hell.
Remember, your aim is to hide with the crown and wait till midnight. We can't just hide it somewhere without us looking over it, as it may use it's own overflowing energy to connect with the chosen one. So you need to hide with it and no matter what, do not come out of your hiding place.
Are we clear on the plan princess?"

"Yes. But first we need to take care of those guards as discreetly as possible"

"Those are my guards, do not worry about them, I will divert their attention for you to take the crown away"

"Alright. Let's do this Yeol ssi. I can't wait to get what I want"

The duo disperses to carry out their plan before Taehyung or Jimin reach the stage.
Yeol executes his part of the plan quite easily while Euthena uses her vicious spells to sneak the crown away without attracting unwanted attention as Yeol watches her exit the hall from a distance, smirking proudly upon the completion of the first stage of their plan.

He then turns around, choosing to silently watch Taehyung dance with a princess, his body showing a calm demeanor which the elderly demon decides, doesn't suit him at all and thus should be snatched away from him.

He walks towards the stage and puts on his best horrified expression before shouting loud enough for the entire hall to listen,

"Where is the crown?!"

//The Present.. //

The entire hall goes deadly silent in a matter of seconds. No one dares to speak up, the demons gradually stepping away from the king who stands eerily still, eyes fixated only on the empty cushion which was carrying the crown just moments ago.

The emperor is silent but his aura is roaring out loud. The crowd witnesses in sheer terror as his clenched fists start burning in the pure fire of his agony, body shaking with the immense effort he is putting just to keep his disturbed aura in control.

The infuriated demon walks towards the stage with slow calculated steps, his hand extending to touch the empty cushion, feeling the terrible loss of his dream. He feels his heartbreak at the thought of loosing even before trying, feels betrayed and lost.
But he doesn't dwell on his troubled feelings for any longer before as he pulls his hand back abruptly and turns around, his red eyes landing on the terrified crowd.

"I want everyone in this hall to stay put. Anyone who steps out, faces my wrath. No one is leaving this hall until we find the crown and if anyone here is actually involved in this outrageous crime, listen up. I am going to find you and make you beg for your life while you burn in the unforgivable fire of the ruler of Hell.
Guards! Bring me the crown before I burn you all down to ashes for your carelessness!"

The deadly silence continues as the guards hurriedly disperse to find the criminal who dared to play with the ruler of death himself. Whoever it is, one thing was for sure, they are going to get killed tonight.

☆☆☆☆☆

The Royal advisor makes his way through the crowd straight towards the stage where Taehyung is standing all alone, looking like he will burn anyone who approaches him without a positive news related to the crown. He sighs as he rushes to the ruler and pulls him down from the stage away from the several eyes of the guests, as Yoongi, Jungkook and Hoseok join them as well.

"Tae. Tae listen to me hmm? Focus your attention on me. We will find it Taehyung, we will find the culprit as well as the crown alright? Don't worry, you don't need to worry at al-"

"Midnight. We need to find it before midnight, Jimin ah. This was clearly planned and you know it. They are going to keep the crown away from the chosen one and take advantage of it as soon as it looses powers, this- this can't be happening, no-"

"Taehyung ah, we need you to calm down please. If you fall weak right now then there is not even a little chance of us finding the crown. You need to stay strong not only for us but for the chosen one as well. The distance from the crown will start affecting the queen too. We have to find it" Hoseok advices, as he pulls Taehyung in for a hug while Yoongi rubs a hand on his back soothingly.

"Let's go and try to find it ourselves, we can go in pairs of two each and check wherever the guards aren't at the moment. Jungkook will go to the guards and make them check every single area thoroughly" Jimin suggests as Taehyung starts calming down.

"Jiminie is right hyung. Please calm down and save your anger for the culprit. For now we must focus on finding our precious crown" Jungkook adds, keeping his own anger in check to maintain the group's sanity.

"Yeah, let's do that. I am not letting anyone ruin this night for me just like that. We will find the chosen queen before midnight, it's my promise to myself and the entire realm of Hell" The king declares with a lunatic smirk appearing on his face as he instructs Hoseok and Yoongi to go together towards the east wings of the palace, while him and Jimin cover the west wings.

While the five of them were making a plan, there was someone else who was as pissed on the whole situation as the king.

After Taehyung's order, Jungkook had rushed towards the direction of the stage in a hurry to be near his hyung while Viri had stayed back and contemplated on whether to join him in searching for the crown or not.

But before she could actually go after the prince or think about anything a sudden emotion of pure restlessness took over her entire being. The princess starts feeling an immense amount of rush, a need to do something, anything as it gets overwhelming to the point that she has to shut her eyes close to try and regain control of her own body.

Upon shutting her eyes close, the only thing she sees is the crown. Why is it happening and why is she so irked that it has gone missing, such questions didn't even cross her mind as she opens her eyes with a newfound determination.

She eyes the nearest exit and walks out of the grand hall without a second thought. The looks she gets while coming out are enough to tell her that her aura has taken over her body which definitely shouldn't be happening.

Viri knows for one thing that when she summons her powers it's a different and a controlled scenario, but when her powers show up on their own and that too with such intensity then that means she is under some serious threat. But what was the threat on her when nothing is related to her in the present case is something she would have dwelled upon had it not been for the shortage of time.
Afterall it was only a matter of two hours until midnight.

The princess hurries out and decides to go towards the North wings of the palace, the area where the Royal family lives. She is well aware that the area is secluded due to security reasons and might just be the first choice for the culprit to hide, since they can't leave the palace due to Hoseok's locking spell, which is binding the crown to the palace.

Though the spell in itself has an expiry which is just after two hours, that is, until midnight. They are running out of time and just as the princess starts for the North wings, her steps automatically come to a halt to take in the drastically dissimilar site in front of her.

From the majestic lights which were earlier resonating the king's calming aura, the hallway has now drowned in a sinful black darkness. A darkness so strong, even the moonlight fails to pierce through it. It is spread throughout the area pretty much proudly as if mocking her for her inability to cut through.

The annoyed princess acts quick, takes a few steps back and channels her energized aura into her hands to create strong cerulean blue streams of light, easily illuminating the path in front of her. She smirks to herself as she moves forward, the time sword hanging over her head as she dashes towards the North wings, ready to bring back what's lost.

☆☆☆☆☆

What was going to unfold in the last hours of the crazy night was conveniently unknown. Will the emperor succeed in finding the real queen or will he loose the chance forever were a few doubts among many more similar ones, placed everything on a shaky stake.

But one thing was for sure, despite the shortage of time, the demons of Hell were in for a long ride as they were going to witness the rise of an august being born for a sole motive and that was to rule over the unfathomable realm of Hell.