LOGINAnara’s POV“Wow!” I breathed out, staring at my reflection in the mirror. “You made me look beautiful, Liora,” I said, my voice thick with emotion as tears threatened to spill over.“Miss Anara, you are stunning… just ” Liora paused and lowered her gaze.“Please say it, Liora. I’m just too skinny, with barely any flesh on my bones. I look weird,” I replied sadly.Liora’s hand gently rested on my shoulders, stopping me from continuing. “Miss, you’re just very lonely. I can see the loneliness in your eyes, but your beauty runs much deeper than that. Believe me, Miss Anara.”For the rest of the day, I stayed around the other participants. I tried my best not to interact with them, especially after the humiliation at the presentation. I wanted to keep as much distance as possible from Selene. Instead, I wandered through the allowed rooms, my eyes constantly scanning the corridors for the guards, my heart racing every time I thought I might catch a glimpse of the one who had given me the
Anara’s POVThe dress was absolutely breathtaking. Just stunning.“I wish you were here, Seraphis, to see this,” I whispered, my eyes fixed on the beautiful gown.I lifted it off the hanger and held it against my body, turning to look at myself in the mirror. It was a rich emerald green, with diamonds sewn into the fabric so intricately that I couldn’t even figure out how they’d been attached. The stitching was flawless. The dress featured a delicate lace fabric that felt incredibly soft against my skin, paired with a gorgeous corset-style bodice tied with ribbons.Seeing myself with the dress in front of me made my reflection look so much more presentable. The guard’s suggestion that I eat more hadn’t just been polite — I really did need to put on some weight. My hair looked messy, dull, and dry, and even its color seemed faded. It could have been such a lovely golden blonde if I’d been able to take proper care of it.But that was something I could finally do now that I was here, bei
Alpha Kaelen’s povI sat in my study, trying to attend to the affairs of the state, signing a lot of documents the worst part about being an Alpha. On the other hand, Nyx was being a nuisance and making a lot of fuss in my mind.“Nyx, I am trying to work here,” I begged.“I haven’t seen my mate in days, Kaelen. I thought you were eager to find her and happy when you finally did, so why did you miss the Luna selection ceremony and your chance to reveal yourself to her?” he whined.I couldn’t see why he didn’t understand that I wasn’t interested in him, nor did I believe in fated mates or even in love generally.My main aspiration and the only thing I wanted was to get rid of my curse, but first I needed to understand how to go about it.Aside from that, I had other things to take care of, like resolving the hostile relationship we had with the Duskbane Pack, a pack we shared our northern borders with, and our soldiers have been fighting tirelessly to prevent them from invading our prem
Selene’s povThere I was, the daughter of a high-ranking minister from Nightveil Pack, wearing my most expensive dress, now soiled with wine. I angrily stared at the low life that caused this with bloodshot eyes.I was furious; I wanted to be chosen as the Luna, so I wore the most expensive thing I owned, only for it to get ruined by something so insignificant. I couldn’t even request her own dress in return because it was a mere rag to me; there was absolutely nothing she could do to please me.“What have you done? Who are you?” I asked, resisting the urge to slap her in the face, which I would have done if I wasn’t trying to impress the elders of the Virelith Pack. I still had to make them believe I was capable of being a good Luna.“I am deeply sorry. Please accept my apologies,” she cried, and my face instantly puckered.“Well, your apology doesn’t magically fix my dress, does it?” I asked.She went mute, and I rolled my eyes, feeling nothing but disgust and rage.“I ask again, wh
Kaelen’s POVAs much as I hated leaving her alone in the room, the fear that someone might try to take my mate the one I’d spent five whole years searching for kept nagging at me. Still, I eventually convinced myself it was impossible for anyone to get into my quarters, let alone steal anything from there. With that thought, I headed down the hallway.“My Alpha,” the head guard bowed as I passed. I stopped and waited for him to continue.“My Alpha, word just came from the Alpha of the Nightveil Pack. A fugitive escaped from their territory and crossed into ours. They’re requesting permission to come here themselves and arrest her.”I narrowed my eyes, my mind immediately drifting to the rescued girl waiting in my room my soon-to-be Luna.“Are you certain the message came directly from their Alpha?” I asked.“Yes, my Alpha.”“We have the Luna selection ceremony to handle right now. We’ll deal with this matter afterward,” I said firmly.“But my Alpha, a fugitive… this could be dangerous
Lyra’s povI failed to catch up to her and began returning in anger. She was supposed to stay hidden forever, but I let her escape. I blamed myself for it.“I should have killed her when I had the chance to” I fumed.I wondered why my parents didn’t just kill her the moment we were born; it would have made things way easier for me and everyone else, but no, they chose to keep her and the evil she possesses, which eventually claimed our mother’s life.Over the years, I have made her life miserable. I made sure she lived in agony, barely having anything to eat, clothes to wear, or even clean water to drink and bathe with, while I lived in affluence, hoping that one day when she couldn’t take it anymore she would take her own life.I got back to the pack completely sad and weary. I kept asking myself how and why I let her escape, but then again, she would probably get herself killed by venturing into another territory, so that consoled me a little.The pack was in a state of chaos, and a