Chapter 1

My words struck like a thunderbolt. My father froze, the marriage pact trembling in his hand.

My mother shrieked. "Aria, have you lost your mind?! They say Hades has the face of a demon! He’s bloodthirsty, cruel, and barren! Marrying him is a one-way ticket to the abyss!"

Before I could speak, my father coughed awkwardly.

"But if she doesn't marry him, what happens to Esther? She's already slept with Samuel..."

The conflict in my mother's eyes vanished in a heartbeat. Slowly, she let go of my hand.

A bitter smile touched my lips. I knew it would end up like this.

I was their biological daughter. I was born with a demigod's constitution. Countless people envied my parents for having such a gifted child. Yet, they always chose Esther, the adopted daughter who did nothing but play the victim.

"I have one condition," I said coldly. "On the day I am crowned Queen of the Underworld, Esther must publicly confess she drugged me during the trials and stole the Envoy title."

"How can you be so vicious? You’ll ruin your sister's future!"

My father slammed his hand on the table. My mother glared at me in utter disappointment.

I kept my expression carefully blank.

"Hades wants the true Envoy. You can't have it all. She has to choose: her pristine reputation or a lifetime of luxury."

For Esther's sake, they eventually caved.

I spun on my heel, only to bump into Samuel in the hallway. He had just slipped out of Esther's bedroom.

He wore nothing but a loose silk robe, his chest littered with fresh hickeys. He reeked of Esther’s cloying rose perfume. It didn't take a genius to guess how wildly they'd spent the last few days.

Seeing me pinch my nose in disgust, Samuel panicked and blocked my path.

"Aria, I know you're furious, but I had to do it to save Esther. Hades is fiercely possessive. Only by claiming her first could I completely kill his interest."

I forced a hollow smile. "And what about me?"

We were supposed to marry when I was twenty. But thanks to Esther's endless tantrums, he'd ditched me right before our wedding time and time again. The marriage kept getting delayed. Now I was almost twenty-five, and he chose this exact moment to sleep with her.

Unbelievable.

And now I stared down two dead ends: banishment to a convent, or marriage to the God of the Dead.

A flash of guilt crossed Samuel’s eyes. He grabbed my hand desperately.

"Aria! I won’t let them banish you! Wait. I can use my noble privileges to take you into my estate as a maid. That way, you won't be exiled! Don't worry, it's just a formality. Once you're there, I'll treat you just as well as I treat Esther."

A laugh bubbled up from my sheer rage. How could he be so shameless?

Only destitute felons became indentured servants. It meant being bought and sold at a master’s whim, living forever beneath everyone else, and dooming your future children to the exact same fate.

I yanked my hand from his grip. "Samuel, I’d marry anyone before I become your slave!"

His face darkened instantly, humiliated by my rejection.

"Aria! I thought you loved me? Is your pride really more important than us?"

I shot back, "Is it? Then why didn't you make Esther your slave? Wouldn't that have saved her, too?"

He blurted out, "How could she be a slave?! She’s too fragile! How could she bear that kind of suffering? You’re different. You have a demigod's constitution. Besides, you have me!"

Years of suppressed grievance flooded my chest, making my eyes burn.

Just because I was a demigod with divine healing blood, resilient and tough, did that mean I deserved to be ignored? Esther hoarded my parents' affection and my fiancé’s pity, while I was expected to shoulder all the pain. All the sacrifice.

Stung by my sneer, Samuel snapped, his anger purely defensive.

"Think it over. It's the only option you have left."

After he stormed off, I wandered downstairs in a daze, only to be presented with a gift from the Underworld.

An impossibly lavish diamond necklace. Set right in the center was the "Tear of the Styx," a divine relic rumored to answer only to the Lord of the Dead himself.

The moment the diamond drew near, a soothing warmth washed over me, easing the tension in my bones. As my fingertips brushed the stone, a deep, magnetic male voice echoed in my mind.

"Wear it. In three days, I will come for my bride myself."

I gripped the necklace, my heart skipping a beat.

Maybe becoming Hades' Queen wasn't a dead end after all.