The Mind-Reading Mate: Why Is the Lycan King So Obsessed With Me?!-Chapter 156: A Small Price

It took a few moments for the Marchioness to process Primrose’s words.

The name hung in the air like a ghost from the past, and for a few seconds, Raven simply froze in her place.

She hadn’t expected to hear that name again. Not after all these years.

Finally, her lips parted and she whispered, "Salem?"

"Maybe you knew him by another name," Primrose said, shrugging slightly. "He once mentioned that he used a few aliases, but—"

"I know Salem," Raven cut her off. "He goes by many names, but ... Salem is his real one."

Primrose tilted her head slightly. All this time, she thought Salem was just another alias.

He had always kept his identity hidden, even in his own thoughts, he never revealed who he really was.

"Is he with you now, Your Majesty?" Raven asked.

For the first time, Primrose saw a flicker of emotion in her eyes, a trace of sorrow.

She had looked so calm and nonchalant when her husband hurt her.

But the moment she heard her old friend’s name, the grief buried in her heart began to rise, knocking gently on the locked door of her soul.

Were they really that close?

"He’s working with me now," Primrose explained gently. "He came with me to this city ... but he didn’t want to come to your home."

"Why?"

Primrose tried to find the right words, something that wouldn’t hurt too much.

But in the end, there was no perfect way to say it.

"He doesn’t want to see you ... at least not right now," she said softly.

Raven swallowed hard and turned away, her back now facing Primrose.

But even then, Primrose could still hear her painful and sad thoughts.

[I was the one who asked him not to interfere in my marriage. He only did what I told him to do.]

[No wonder he might hate me now.]

Primrose narrowed her eyes slightly.

It seemed like there was a deep misunderstanding between them.

Raven thought Salem hated her.

But Salem had avoided her because, in his heart, a short meeting would hurt more than never seeing her at all.

He also believed Raven might be disappointed in him, because he never reached out, not even once.

Therefore, he had chosen to keep his distance for as long as he could remember.

At this moment, Primrose felt sure of one thing, Salem probably didn’t know that in another timeline, Raven would be punished for killing her husband, humiliated, and abandoned by everyone.

But maybe, just maybe, if they met again now ... things could change easier.

"He told me that a brief meeting would hurt him more than not seeing you at all," Primrose said gently, trying to ease Raven’s heart.

"But the truth is, he misses you. He wants to see you ... but he’s scared he’ll only bring you more pain."

Raven closed her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. Then she quietly wiped her eyes and turned back to Primrose.

"It’s actually my fault," she admitted. "I was the one who told him to stay away."

"He warned me not to marry my husband, but ... I didn’t listen. I was stubborn."

"So I thought ... maybe that’s one of the reasons he doesn’t want to see me anymore, because he’s disappointed with the choice I made."

Primrose looked straight into her eyes, her voice calm and sincere. "He was disappointed. He still is. But that doesn’t mean he hates you."

She slowly stepped closer to the Marchioness. "He’s angry. He’s hurt. But he still respects your decision. And no matter what your life looks like now ... to him, you’re still a precious friend."

"Our friendship ended the moment I chose to marry the Marquess." Raven lowered her head, her eyes glinting softly in the dim light. "But that was a small price to pay ... for something far more important."

Primrose didn’t respond right away. She waited, giving Raven space to explain what she meant.

"Your Majesty," Raven finally said, "now that you know I’m a dark witch, do you also know ... that I can see the future?"

Primrose hadn’t expected her to reveal something so personal, especially something as rare and powerful as that.

"I’ve heard rumors about certain witches having that gift," Primrose admitted. "But I’ve never actually met one. Lady Raven ... are you really one of them?"

Raven slowly lifted her head. Her dark-gray eyes stared directly into Primrose’s, as if she were trying to see straight through her soul.

"That is one of my greatest gifts," she said.

A shiver crept down Primrose’s spine.

She now understood that Raven wasn’t just a dark witch. She was something far more dangerous, more ancient.

If she wanted to, she could kill her right now, and no one would ever suspect a thing.

Still, Primrose trusted she wouldn’t. Not after she’d mentioned Salem’s name.

If she hadn’t ... she probably wouldn’t still be breathing.

"Are you really willing to sacrifice your freedom? and your entire life, just to chase something in the future?" Primrose asked, once Raven stayed silent for a beat too long.

"I just ... I don’t understand. What could possibly be so important that you’d go through all of this?"

Without hesitation, Raven answered, "My children."

As she said it, a faint smile tugged at the corners of her lips.

For the first time, Primrose saw a real, genuine smile on her face. The kind only a mother who loves her children deeply could wear.

"After so many years of waiting ... I finally had the chance to have children of my own."

Raven placed a hand gently over her stomach, as if remembering the warmth that had once been there.

"Your Majesty, there’s always a price to pay for using magic in forbidden ways," she said softly. "And for me, that price was ... I couldn’t have children."

"No matter how many times I tried to sleep with men, I couldn’t get pregnant, and even when I did ... the baby wouldn’t survive."

There was pain in her voice now, but it wasn’t self-pity.

It was the kind of grief that had settled deep into her bones since she couldn’t escape the path she had chosen.

Long ago, when she was still young and full of pain, she bound her soul to ancient witches’ souls, and learned dark magic.

People called dark witches heartless, evil women who loved to kill.

But they always forgot one thing.

Sometimes, that "evil" was born from pain. From the scars of cruelty left behind.

Salem had once told Primrose about Raven’s past that she had two mothers, and was born from magic, so she didn’t have a father.

When the people in her village found out, they dragged both her mothers to the stake.

Not only did they kill her mother, the villagers also made Raven watch as the women who raised her were burned alive.

After their bodies turned to ash, the villagers came for her next, but she was able to escape, barely alive.

After that, she didn’t care about anything anymore.

She used forbidden spells, killed those who tried to harm her, wandered from place to place, sometimes even helping strangers who truly needed help.

Yes, she was a dark witch.

But she wasn’t a monster.

"I tried using magic to have children," Raven said, her voice shaking just slightly.

"But every child born unnaturally is seen as an insult to the universe. They’d be born under a dark star, carrying misfortune wherever they go."

That was why she didn’t want to follow the same path as her stubborn mothers.

Because she didn’t want her children’s lives to be filled with misfortune like her.

"Then ... why did you marry the Marquess?" Primrose asked gently. "What was so special about him?"

Raven said, "He has the ability to erase magic from the body of anyone he touches."

She smiled bitterly. "As long as he gives me his seed, I can finally have children of my own."

Primrose was stunned into silence.

So that was the reason she never used magic to fight back against her husband.

It wasn’t because she didn’t want to, but it was because she couldn’t.

But still ... Primrose couldn’t fully understand it.

Why would someone willingly endure so much pain and cruelty just for the chance to become a mother?

Of course, Primrose also dreamed of having children someday.

But she had never imagined walking the same painful road Raven had, just for that dream.

Was it really worth it?

Especially when, in another timeline, Raven would eventually be forced to leave her children behind.

"This is why I chose to marry him," Raven whispered. "I’m even willing to be burn, as long as I can protect my children."

But would her children ever want that?

Would they truly want to see their mother suffer just to keep them safe?

As someone whose own birth led to her mother’s death, Primrose had asked herself that same question many times.

What if she’d never been born? freewebnøvel.com

What if her mother had chosen not to have a child?

Would she still be alive, growing old peacefully beside the man she loved until their hair turned gray together?

Primrose’s heart ached as she looked at Raven.

How could a woman willing to lose everything ... for the chance to give life?

If Primrose couldn’t make the same sacrifice, would people see her as selfish?

Would they say she wasn’t loving enough ... just because she chose not to break herself to bring a life into the world?

She wanted to have a child with Edmund with all her heart.

But if it ended up hurting her more than she could bear ... would he be upset with her?

Would he be disappointed if she couldn’t handle the pain?

No, this wasn’t the time to think about her own pain.

"But Lady Raven ...," Primrose said softly, "your children might end up blaming themselves if you keep letting yourself get hurt for their sake."