Bound to the Cursed Dragon King

*Many years later*

Aurora POV

Today is my marriage day. Am I happy? The answer is no... I'm not. Instead, I feel terrified because today might become the last day of my life. As a girl who was given away by her own father to the cursed Dragon King as a bride, death already feels unavoidable. A king who had killed twenty of his brides on the very night of their marriage...  and that same man is now the husband my father chose for me, all just to stop the war between the Human Kingdom and the Dragons, a war that had lasted for more than one hundred years.

Just last week, my father, King Thorne, announced before the entire royal court that he wished to end the endless bloodshed between humans and dragons. Everyone in the kingdom celebrated his decision, believing peace had finally come upon Thornveil after centuries of fear and destruction. But peace always comes with a price. The only way to stop the war was to offer the Dragon King a bride. I still remember the moment my father pointed toward me while standing upon his throne, his face cold and emotionless as he declared that I would be sent to the Dragon Kingdom. At first, I truly believed he was joking. What kind of father willingly sends his own daughter to her death? I kept hoping he would change his mind, hoping he would realize how cruel his decision was. But this morning, when he ordered the servants to prepare me for my journey to the Dragon Kingdom, I finally understood the truth. He truly meant it.

Well... perhaps I should not be surprised that he chose me. My father never loved me. No one ever truly did. As the sixth daughter of the Nightbane family, I was the only child born without powers. Unlike every other human within Thornveil Kingdom, I possessed no magical ability. While others. Because of that, my father despised me, and my older sisters treated me like a stain upon the royal bloodline. Even the people within the kingdom looked at me with disgust and disappointment. They whispered that I was weak... useless... cursed by the gods themselves.

Even as a princess, I was never treated like one. I never sat beside my family during meals. I was always forced to eat separately. I was not allowed to speak during royal gatherings, nor was I permitted to share opinions on important matters. Whenever I opened my mouth, someone always silenced me immediately. Even the palace servants spoke to me without respect because they knew no punishment would ever come for mistreating the powerless princess. I lived like a ghost within my own home. An outcast within the very kingdom where I was born.

And now... I was being sent away to marry a cursed Dragon King.

A man I had never met before.

Yet I had heard enough terrifying stories about him to fill my heart with endless fear. People say his power is terrifying enough to destroy thousands with nothing but the snap of his fingers. They say his dragon form is massive enough to darken the skies and freeze entire kingdoms beneath his wrath. His mother was said to be a vampire queen, making him neither fully dragon nor fully vampire. I also heard he was over two hundred years old, though that was not surprising since dragons possess far longer lifespans than humans.

But none of those stories frightened me the most.

What terrified me most was the curse surrounding him.

No one truly knows the reason behind it because speaking about the curse is forbidden within both kingdoms. But one thing everyone knows is this, every woman who married the Dragon King died on the night of their wedding. Twenty brides. Twenty innocent women sent to the Dragon Kingdom, were killed before the next morning.

Just thinking about it made my stomach twist painfully. A heavy knot sat deep within my chest, no matter how hard I tried to calm myself. My hands trembled slightly upon my lap while fear slowly consumed every thought within my mind.

"My lady... do you like your dress?" Lydia asked.

I slowly lifted my eyes toward her reflection in the mirror.

Lydia and Ivy were my personal maids, but more than that, they were my only true friends within this palace. The only people who had ever shown me kindness without mocking my weakness. They stayed beside me even when others treated me like I was worthless. And now, as I looked at them standing behind me with tears hidden within their eyes, I realized how much I would miss them.

"Yes..." I whispered, forcing a weak smile onto my lips. "I love it. It's beautiful."

Ivy noticed the fear on my face immediately.

"You will be fine," she said quickly, trying to comfort me. "Don't believe all the rumors about the Dragon King. They could be lies... right?"

She turned toward Lydia, who nodded nervously in agreement.

But I could see the fear hidden within both of their eyes.

They were trying to comfort me... yet even they did not believe their own words.

I badly wished my father would suddenly change his mind. I did not care if he married me to a poor nobleman, a cruel prince, or even a stranger from another kingdom. Anyone would be better than marrying a man cursed to kill his wives. I wanted to run away so badly, but where would I go? I had nowhere.  Even if I escaped, my father's soldiers would hunt me down immediately.

So in the end... all I could do was obey.

And perhaps die.

A sudden knock upon the door interrupted my thoughts, causing my body to flinch slightly.

Shortly after, one of the palace maids stepped quietly into the room.

"It is time, Princess Aurora," she informed me.

My heart tightened painfully at her words.

I slowly nodded my head before standing to my feet. Ivy gently held my trembling hand while Lydia adjusted my veil carefully. Together, they walked me out of the room and through the long palace hallways.

The moment we stepped outside, I saw that everyone was already waiting.

A large royal carriage stood near the palace entrance, prepared to take me away to the Dragon Kingdom.

Ivy slowly released my hand as I nervously walked forward and stopped before my father and mother. My legs trembled slightly beneath my gown as I lowered my head respectfully before them.

My mother smiled weakly at me, though sadness filled her eyes. I knew she never wanted this marriage to happen. But she feared my father far too much to ever challenge his decisions.

Meanwhile, my father simply stared at me coldly, completely unbothered by the fact that he was sending his daughter away to marry a cursed king who had murdered twenty brides before her.

I slowly turned my gaze toward my five older sisters standing nearby. Though we were never close and they often mocked me for my weakness, I could still see pity within their expressions. Perhaps even they believed I was walking toward my death.

"Aurora, you may enter the carriage now," my father finally said coldly.

I turned slowly toward him, trying desperately not to cry.

For heavens' sake... was this man truly my father?

I wanted to ask him why he was doing this to me.

I wanted to ask him if he ever loved me at all.

But the words never left my mouth.

Instead, I swallowed the pain and released a quiet breath before turning toward the carriage.

Then I slowly began walking toward it.

I had barely taken a few steps when suddenly someone grabbed my hand tightly.

I turned quickly.

It was my mother.

The moment she pulled me into her arms, tears instantly burned my eyes. She held me tightly for several moments before finally pulling away and gently placing her hands upon my face.

"Be a good girl," she whispered shakily. "And remember what I told you."

Yes... I remembered clearly. To be a good wife. To obey my husband. And never make him angry. But did any of those things truly matter when I would most likely die tonight?

I slowly nodded my head at her before stepping away.

Then I turned one final time toward my father, whose expression remained as cold as stone. 

After that, I looked around the palace, the only home I had ever known. And deep within my heart, I knew this would probably be the last time I ever saw it.

Because even if I somehow survived, tradition forbids a woman married into another kingdom from ever returning home again.

Slowly, I turned toward the carriage and continued walking. Normally, the groom is meant to personally come and take his bride back to his kingdom. But in my case, things were different. I was the one being sent away alone to meet my husband.

A palace guard opened the carriage door for me quietly.

I turned one final time toward Ivy and Lydia and saw tears rolling down their cheeks. I gave them a weak little wave before stepping inside the carriage. The door closed behind me. And only a few moments later... the carriage slowly began moving forward.