Chapter 4: The Beast Within

Chapter 4: The Beast Within

It was a bright morning.

I woke up to the harsh rays of the sun piercing through the window. I squinted, rubbed my eyes, still half-asleep.

I looked around, confused for a second this wasn’t my home.

Then it hit me.

I didn’t have a home anymore.

I didn’t have a family.

They were all gone.

The events of last night played through my mind like a broken reel. Everything I loved had vanished in just one night.

As I sat there, lost in thought, I heard a soft knock on the door.

“Good morning, dear. Hope you slept well? Mind if I come in?”

“Of course, you can,” I replied quickly, sitting upright and straightening my bed in a hurry.

She opened the door, and the first thing that hit me was the delicious aroma of rice porridge.

Oh, this woman really knew how to get me with food.

“Morning, dear. I brought you some rice porridge. I hope you slept well,” she said with that same warm smile, carefully balancing the tray in her hands.

“Oh, ma’am, I’m really grateful for all this… you really didn’t have to,” I said honestly, though a little awkwardly.

I always got uncomfortable when people were extra kind to me, especially when I felt like I couldn’t give anything back in return.

She gently placed the tray on the bed and sat down beside me.

“Oh, dear, am I complaining?” she chuckled softly. “Like I said, you remind me so much of my granddaughter. So just let me act like a happy grandmother, okay?”

She patted my shoulder gently.

But I saw it.

The sadness in her eyes, every time she mentioned her granddaughter.

“Okay, ma’am,” I nodded, giving her a small smile back.

“Oh, honey,” she said, laughing a little, “enough with the ‘ma’am’. Call me Serah, okay?”

I nodded again. “Okay… Serah.”

She began to dish the porridge into a plate.

And just for a moment… the sadness and heaviness in my chest disappeared.

I noticed she had already packed some bags beside her, like she was heading out.

“Are you going somewhere?” I asked, pointing toward the bags.

“Oh yes, dear. I’m heading to the market square to sell my herbs. Do you want to come along?”

I wanted to go out, clear my head a little but I was still scared someone might recognize me.

“Uhmm... okay.”

I couldn’t stay locked up forever. I figured I’d wrap a shawl around my face, at least. That should help.

After breakfast, I helped Serah with the bags of herbs, and we began the walk to the market square. It was a bright, sunny morning. I wrapped a shawl tightly around my head, partly to shield myself from the sun, but mostly so no one would recognize me.

When we got to the market, I saw Serah’s stand. It wasn’t big, but it was clean and neatly arranged, just like everything she did. She struck me as someone who liked things in order.

We settled in and displayed the herbs carefully on trays.

“So dear,” she said, “do you have any knowledge about herbs?”

“Not really.”

I didn’t. My mum and aunt used to work with herbs all the time, but I never paid attention. I just wasn’t interested back then.

“That’s no problem, dear. I’ll teach you all you need to know about herbs,” she said with a smile.

“Okay, Serah,” I smiled back.

She brought out some dried leaves and held one up.

“This is rosemary. It’s used in cooking and is also known for its potential cognitive and memory-enhancing effects.”

I nodded, trying to take everything in.

She picked up another one.

“This is marjoram. It’s also used in cooking, and is known for its digestive and antiseptic properties.”

I nodded again. The smell of the herbs made me a little dizzy, but I stayed focused.

She kept showing me different types, some for cooking, some for soap-making, and others for healing. I kept nodding, trying to memorize everything.

Soon, people started coming to buy herbs. I quickly adjusted my shawl, covering my face properly. I couldn’t afford to take any chances.

After the crowd thinned out, Serah brought out a small bottle filled with a brownish liquid.

“This is myrrh water,” she said, holding it up for me to see clearly. “It’s used to strengthen someone who’s sick. Very powerful stuff.”

I took the bottle from her and inhaled its scent.

Then...

A sharp pain split through my head. My body suddenly felt like it was on fire, heat surged through me like I was about to burst into flames. My face flushed red, and I could barely breathe.

“What’s wrong, dear? Are you okay?” Serah asked, her voice laced with concern as she noticed the change.

“I’m fine,” I managed to mutter, barely able to speak.

“But your face looks pale—”

She reached out to touch me, but I instinctively turned my face away.

My hands were burning. I felt the magic rising again, hot and uncontrollable, right beneath my skin.

“Uhmm… Serah, I need to go home. I-I’m not feeling well,” I said, standing up quickly.

“Okay, dear. Are you sure you can go alone? Should I help you?”

“No! I need to go.”

I didn’t wait for a reply, I ran as fast as I could. I didn’t know what was happening, but I had to get out of that market. Fast.

BACK AT KYRATTH

It was a full moon that night.

Prince Lucian ran as fast as his legs could carry him, his fists clenched, his jaw locked tight. In his hands were thick, iron chains, the kind used to restrain wild and dangerous beasts.

“Ahhh!” he groaned in agony.

Lucian was cursed. A werewolf.

No one in the royal family knew, not even his father. It was a secret he had carried alone since he was a teenager, hiding the truth with careful precision.

On nights like this, when the moon reached its fullest, the curse took over. Werewolves shifted into their monstrous forms, a transformation marked by unbearable pain and a complete loss of control. Human thought vanished, replaced by primal, predatory instincts. The full moon was the trigger—and there was no stopping it.

The only known cure was witch’s blood.

Before King Zarreth commanded the massacre of all witches, Lucian had a hidden arrangement. There was a place he went, far from the eyes of the court. Witches, those desperate enough to protect their families, willingly offered themselves to him. A tragic exchange of life for security.

But now… there were no witches left.

And Lucian had no choice but to endure the torment until sunrise.

He dragged himself to a secluded cave deep within the forest. There, he wrapped the heavy chains around his body, locking them tightly. He dropped to his knees, biting down hard as the transformation began.

His bones cracked. His fingers and toes twisted, reshaping into claws. His fangs pierced through his gums. His skin burned like fire as thick fur pushed through.

Then came the howl.

Raw. Broken. Animal.

He was no longer Prince Lucian.

He was the beast.

And only the moon bore witness to his suffering.