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Chapter 3: The Chosen Luna

...

"Hngh..." My head hurt so badly. I had been dreaming about things I didn't understand and in the dream, I was standing before a grand altar wearing a wedding dress, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't see the face of the man standing in front of me.

I only knew one thing. He wasn't Killian... This man was taller, his shoulders were wider, and his presence stronger.

He looked more mature, so the man waiting to marry me couldn't possibly be Killian, but... Who was he?

The harder I tried to see his face, the blurrier everything became, it makes my vision twisted and the world around me faded, then I heard it... A strange voice echoing through the darkness. "You are the chosen one."

"The Luna chosen for the great Alpha." The voice echoed over and over again, then a sharp ringing exploded inside my ears. Pain shot through my head.

"Wah!" I jolted awake, my eyes flew open and my chest heaved violently as I struggled to catch my breath. It felt as though I had just surfaced from the depths of the ocean after being trapped underwater for far too long.

My throat felt tight and my chest felt compressed, it feels ike invisible hands had been squeezing the air from my lungs.

Bzzz... Bzzz... Bzzz...

Something vibrated against my skirt, it was my phone. I quickly pulled it out and looked at the screen.

Dozens of messages and missed calls... All from Maya. "Elena, where are you?!"

"I'm already at your apartment but you're not here, Elena!"

"Elena, I swear I'm going to call the police!"

A frown immediately formed on my face, Maya sounded completely panicked but that didn't make any sense.

I had fallen asleep on the sofa.

Hadn't I?

How could Maya not find me if I was right there in the apartment?

Then suddenly, it hit me... In a few seconds my entire body froze, how could it not, the surface beneath me was unbelievably soft, far softer than the old sofa in the apartment and softer than the bed I shared with Killian.

My grip tightened around my phone and slowly... I looked around, and... "Oh my GOD!" My mouth fell open.

In my entire life, I had never seen a room this large, never seen a room this luxurious.

The room was enormous, just this single bedroom was several times larger than the entire apartment I had shared with Killian.

Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling and the furniture looked expensive enough to cost more than everything I owned combined.

The floor-to-ceiling windows stretched across one side of the room, everything about this place screamed wealth and luxury.

For several seconds, I could only stare, then reality finally caught up with me.

Wait... This wasn't the time to admire the room.

Where the hell was I?

I remembered being in the apartment.

I remembered standing near the front door, and then...

Ah!

My eyes widened, I remember the four strange men standing outside my apartment, after that... I couldn't remember anything.

Achill immediately ran down my spine.

Don't tell me... I had been kidnapped?

My breathing hitched.

Could those men be drug traffickers or human traffickers? Had they kidnapped me and brought me here to sell me?

Huh?

No way!

Right?

What kind of ridiculous thing was I even thinking?

I quickly covered my mouth.

My heart pounded so hard that it hurt, the fear crawling through my body made every joint ache. I swallowed hard, forcing myself to stay calm even though my hands had already started trembling.

Because right now... I had absolutely no idea where I was.

Then I turned my head and my entire body froze... For a moment, I genuinely thought I might die from shock. I had been so distracted by the grandeur of the room that I hadn't bothered looking to my side.

Because right there—Beside me, near the massive circular window built into the wall, I saw someone was sitting there.

He was watching me, his hands resting calmly on the armrests of his chair as his gaze remained fixed on my face, as though he were searching for something.

And although my reaction came embarrassingly late... "Ah!" I let out a startled scream and immediately tried to climb off the enormous bed. But before I could...

He stood.

My breath caught. In only a few steps, he was already standing beside me.

My eyes widened and for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to look directly at him.

There was something strange about this man, something deeply unsettling. His presence alone felt oppressive. As if invisible hands were wrapped around my throat, squeezing tighter and tighter even though he hadn't done anything at all.

Slowly, I lowered my head and clasped my trembling hands together. The courage I had gathered moments ago vanished completely.

I couldn't ask questions. I couldn't run. And I couldn't even think properly.

"Lift your head." His voice was cold and commanding. The kind of voice that expected obedience.

"No!" The answer escaped my mouth before my brain had a chance to stop it.

Oh God!

I'm dead!

What the hell am I doing?!

I screamed internally and immediately pressed my lips together. My fear was growing by the second but surprisingly, he didn't say anything. The silence that followed was somehow even more terrifying.

He looked calm. Yet that calmness felt far more frightening than anger, then suddenly, a large hand gripped my chin.

I gasped... Before I could react, he tilted my face upward. And...

THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.

My heart slammed violently against my ribs. For the first time, I could see him clearly.

His face was absurdly handsome: sharp jawline, strong features and a face that looked as though it had been carved to perfection. But there was something else... Something that made him look both terrifying and breathtaking at the same time.

His eyes, pale blue eyes looked deep and clear like the surface of an endless ocean, and the moment he looked directly at me, my breath caught.

For a split second, I saw gold flash within them. My entire body stiffened.

He's not human.

The thought exploded inside my head, and judging by what happened next... I wasn't wrong.

His expression remained calm as he spoke. "You are the Luna chosen for me by the Moon Goddess." His grip on my chin loosened slightly. "And whether you like it or not, you cannot escape the destiny written in your blood." His voice wasn't loud, it wasn't threatening, yet every word landed heavily, as though he were simply stating a fact that could never be changed.

I frowned, my brows knitted together and even the corner of my mouth twitched.

Huh?

"Am I still dreaming?" I stared at him. "Again with the Luna and Moon Goddess thing." A nervous laugh escaped me. "Don't tell me you're a werewolf or something?"

Honestly, I still felt like I was trapped inside some ridiculous dream. There was no way that was actually true.

Right?

But then, a faint smile appeared on his lips. The first smile I had seen from him and somehow that tiny smile made him look even more dangerous. "You could say that." His deep voice remained calm. "But more accurately..." His pale blue eyes locked onto mine.

"I'm an Alpha." For several seconds, the room fell completely silent and so did my brain.

...

Wh-What?

BOOM!

I had officially lost my mind... That had to be it... There was simply no other explanation. How could I be standing here in broad daylight, listening to something so completely ridiculous?

Werewolves?

Alphas?

Moon Goddesses?

This was the modern world, and werewolves didn't exist, I had finally gone insane.

Yes!

That had to be the answer.

Panic surged through me. Refusing to process another word he said, I scrambled across the bed and climbed down from the opposite side then I ran.

I didn't wait for him to stop me. I didn't wait for him to explain.I just ran with all the strength I had. But strangely enough, even as I hurried away, I could still hear his voice clearly behind me.

"I won't force you." My footsteps faltered for a moment. "So I'll approach you slowly." My heart skipped a beat. "My men Will come pick you up after your classes are over." I nearly stumbled.

What was wrong with this man?

What the hell was he talking about?

I kept walking faster. As if putting distance between us would somehow make everything that had happened disappear.

When I stepped outside, I immediately noticed dozens of servants and formally dressed men standing throughout the mansion.

Several of them looked exactly like the men who had appeared outside my apartment.

The sight made my scalp tingle.

One of them stepped forward and bowed respectfully. "Mr. Kingston has instructed us to take you to your university, Miss." His tone was polite. "Please follow us."

I froze and for a few seconds, my brain refused to function but I still silently followed him.

What else was I supposed to do?

A few minutes later, I found myself sitting inside an incredibly luxurious black car, even the license plate looked expensive and unique. The kind of plate that immediately told everyone its owner wasn't an ordinary person.

Wait...

My brows furrowed.

Kingston?

My eyes widened. There was only one Kingston famous enough to command this level of wealth and influence.

Kingston... The surname belonging to the richest man in the country. A mysterious young businessman whose face was rarely seen by the public.

The man people called the Duke. A billionaire with noble blood and an untouchable reputation.

Ah... I shook my head repeatedly and trying to force myself back to reality.

None of this felt real, it still felt like a dream. So when the car finally arrived at my university, I decided to forget everything.

The mansion, the Moon Goddess and the Alpha nonsense, especially the ridiculously handsome man with pale blue eyes.

"Elena!" The moment I stepped onto campus, Maya's voice reached me. I barely had time to react before she came running toward me.

"Come with me!" She grabbed my wrist. "Why are you even here?" Her words confused me at first, then I followed her gaze and immediately understood.

Because Killian and Hera were there, the two of them were walking across campus together. Hera's arm was wrapped tightly around his.

Around us, whispers immediately started spreading. "Look, Killian's crazy fan is still showing up even though he's dating Hera now."

"When is she finally going to realize she'll never have him?"

"That stupid blonde is seriously delusional."

"When is she going to understand her place?"

I clenched my fists.

At university, everyone knew me as Killian's obsessive fan, not his girlfriend, because he had never allowed anyone to know the truth.

Then I noticed Killian looking at me, his expression tightened slightly, he looked concerned? Maybe he was surprised to see me on campus. Maybe he had expected me to submit my leave-of-absence papers and disappear. And Maybe he thought I'd still be crying inside the apartment.

He walked past me and Hera still clinging tightly to his arm, then her voice drifted into my ears. "You were amazing last night, babe." She giggled. "We should do it again tonight."

My body went rigid.

I watched as Killian gently brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. The familiar gesture hit me harder than I expected.

For a second, it felt as though my heart had dropped into my stomach, my knees almost gave out beneath me.

Last night, I had been drowning in pain, I had cried until I couldn't breathe and while I was falling apart... Killian had been spending the night with Hera, doing something I had always considered precious. Something I had always believed should belong only to people who truly loved each other.

Pain stabbed through my chest, but this time... I didn't cry.

Instead, I bit down hard on my lower lip, because I wasn't going to wait for him anymore. I wasn't going to sit alone in that apartment and believe his lies, and I definitely wasn't going to become the pathetic girl he thought I was.

Because I was going to cancel our stupid wedding for good.