Azriel
I stood silently, lost in thought for a few agonizing minutes while Sariel remained at my side, both of us staring into the vast Katula sky.
Suddenly, a strange, overwhelming sensation tore through my chest.
A violent chill raced down my spine, and my pulse spiked so rapidly that I slammed my hand over my heart, trying to soothe the fierce, frantic pounding beneath my ribs.
Sariel’s eyes snapped to me, his sharp gaze locking onto my hand pressed flat against my chest. His brow furrowed in genuine intrigue as he raised a finger, pointing straight at me.
"You truly care about the human, don’t you?"
I gave a firm, unhesitating nod.
"And this isn’t merely because of the child, or the instinctual draw of your mark?"
I shook my head. "No. I tried to convince myself that was all it was, but it isn’t. After sitting with it, I’ve come to a conclusion. I like the human."
"What?"
Sariel’s amber-gold eyes ignited into a brilliant, blinding glow—a telltale sign that his Celestial Sight had flared to life in sheer excitement.
It was the only time his eyes ever shone with such intensity.
"The light, Sariel," I groaned, throwing a hand over my eyes to block the radiance.
A quiet chuckle escaped him, the light dimming back down to a subtle sheen before he leaned in even closer. "I can scarcely believe those words just crossed your lips, Azriel. You are Lust incarnate—a creature who scoffs at the very concept of love."
"I never claimed I loved him," I countered, adjusting my hold on the pipe. "I said I like him."
"My dear brother... what separation do you possibly think exists between liking someone to this degree and loving them?" he asked, rolling his eyes in exasperation.
I shrugged, offering no counter-argument. I was absolute in my fondness for Seraphel—but love?
Could a Sin like me truly be capable of such an emotion?
Sariel reached out, his heavy hand coming down onto my shoulder with a firm, surprisingly gentle press. "Azriel, what you are experiencing is undeniably love. Why else would you stand out here in the dark, consumed by worry over a single mortal? You may have never fallen in love before, but as someone who perceives the truth of all things, I am telling you—it is love."
I scoffed, a dark frown tugging at my lips as I swatted his hand away. "You are the absolute last soul in the Seven Realms entitled to lecture me on love, Sariel!" I threw him a mocking glare, shaking my head as I exhaled a slow plume of smoke.
"You cast your bedmates out the very next morning without a second thought. You have never cared for a single one of them, so do not dare preach to me about an emotion you’ve never had the courage to feel."
Sariel’s hand dropped back to his side, his eyes rolling dramatically. "Do not get ahead of yourself, brother. If I truly desired to fall in love, I could easily do so—and far better than you," he grumbled, his voice dripping with a bitter, green edge of envy.
Silence fell over the balcony once more.
My mind drifted from his teasing back to the reality of my changing heart—and the undeniable decision I had reached regarding my court.
"I am disbanding the harem," I announced smoothly. "Every last concubine will be dismissed. I shall make the formal proclamation on the day of Seraphel’s coronation."
Sariel snapped toward me, grabbing my shoulders and forcing me around to face him directly. "You are doing what?"
His reaction caught me off guard. Usually, he would have brushed off such news with a careless shrug or a sarcastic smirk, but he seemed unnaturally wired tonight.
It was easily the longest conversation we had shared in decades.
"You’re dissolving your concubine hall, Azriel?"
"Are you deaf, brother?" I muttered, casting him a skeptical glance as he reached up and pressed his palm against my forehead as if checking for a fever.
"I am finding this utterly impossible to digest," Sariel breathed, his expression a mix of disbelief and fascination. "This is you, Azriel. Your harem has stood for centuries. How in the hell has a single human omega completely upended your entire existence overnight? What spell has he cast over you?"
I furrowed my brows in annoyance, bewildered by his grand reaction over a simple court decision.
To me, it was straightforward: I had no use for a harem anymore. Ever since Seraphel had entered my life, the thought of touch from anyone else repulsed me.
It was only him.
"Incredible," Sariel murmured, his eyes widening as his Celestial Sight flared back up, piercing straight through me. "You are deeply in love, my brother."
"Hell no," I growled, shoving his hands off my shoulders. "There is no chance—"
Sariel grabbed my arm, spinning me back to face him with an uncharacteristic grin. "I can see it! Whenever I looked at your heart in the past, it was always smothered in a thick, suffocating black smoke. But now? It is entirely clear. The dark shroud is gone, and your heart is beating with a warmth I haven’t seen in millennia. You are in love!"
"I am not in—" I cut myself off, letting out an exhausted sigh as I leaned closer to him.
A strange, unfamiliar fragrance caught my nose. I narrowed my eyes, taking a deep whiff of his breath. "Have you been drinking?"
Sariel merely offered a sloppy, careless shrug.
I rolled my eyes. It suddenly made total sense—the potent liquor was finally hitting his system. Only Taizel—or perhaps Raziel, through one of his black-market merchants—possessed spirits strong enough to affect a Sin.
"You are an absolute disaster when you’re drunk," I muttered.
Sariel burst into a sudden, loud laugh.
He laughed.
In his sober state, he would have sooner sliced his own tongue than laugh so freely; he would have mocked my softness with his usual condescending sneer.
"I suppose I owe Taizel or Raziel my thanks for getting you thoroughly wasted," I drawled, taking another pull from my pipe. "I far prefer this idiot version of you over your usual obnoxious self."
"So you are truly disbanding your entire harem solely for the human?" Sariel asked again, leaning his weight heavily against the stone railing.
"Yes."
"You are the Sin of Lust," Sariel reminded me, his voice softening slightly as he looked at me. "Will one mortal truly be enough to satisfy you for eternity?"
I gazed out into the dark horizon, letting the smoke drift from my lips. I had weighed that exact question before making my choice, and my soul was entirely settled on the answer.
"Yes. I want only Seraphel."
"Magnificent!" Sariel cheered loudly, throwing his hands into the air dramatically. "My brother has fallen in love!"
I rolled my eyes, relinquishing any attempt to correct him. At least this drunken version of Sariel was expressing joy for me rather than harboring his usual toxic bitterness.
"Ah, how I envy you..." Sariel slurred suddenly.
He stumbled forward, dramatically thumping a fist against his own chest as a heavy, sorrowful sigh escaped him. "I wish I could experience a love like that... a devotion that actually lasts. But look at me! I am Envy itself! I am cursed to forever covet what others possess, knowing I am entirely incapable of keeping it for myself. I will never have it... never..."
Before I could offer a response to his drunken pity party, the sharp rustle of footsteps echoed from the darkened corridor leading onto the balcony.
"Who goes there?" I demanded, my voice instantly dropping into a dangerous tone.
Silence answered me.
I made a move to step toward the shadowy archway, but before I could advance, Sariel mumbled a string of incoherent nonsense, his legs giving out completely as he collapsed sideways directly into my arms.
"You are utterly pathetic when intoxicated!" I snapped, catching his dead weight and forcing his head back up before it snapped off his shoulders.
Holding my slumping brother with one arm, I narrowed my eyes at the dark corner of the hallway. I expanded my senses, straining to catch a scent or a pulse, but whoever had been lurking in the shadows had concealed their presence flawlessly.
It wasn’t Seraphel—I would recognize his scent anywhere in these Seven Realms.
Someone was spying on us.
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