เข้าสู่ระบบ[Elian’s POV]I lay perfectly still on the massive feather mattress.I took a slow, deep breath. I let the cool Northern air fill my lungs completely. The agonizing, crushing weight on my chest was gone. The fatal magic that had kept me suffocating for days had finally lifted, leaving me exhausted but breathing normally. The deep, dull ache remained buried in my ribs, but the immediate threat of death had passed.For the first time in weeks, I felt a moment of true peace."You are staring a hole right through that wooden ceiling, child," a warm, familiar voice said.I turned my head against the soft pillows. Martha sat in a wooden chair pulled directly up to the edge of my bed. The old kitchen cook held a steaming clay mug of chicken broth in her wrinkled hands. She looked completely exhausted. Deep, dark circles hung under her eyes, and her gray hair was messy, but a gentle, relieved smile touched her lips.I tried to return the smile. The muscles in my face felt incredibly weak."I
[Kaelen’s POV]My broadsword hovered exactly two inches from Garrick’s chest.I kept my grip tight around the heavy iron pommel. I watched the Eastern monarch completely unravel in front of me. The polished, arrogant ruler who commanded legions had completely vanished. A sweating, terrified coward stood in his place. Garrick’s chest heaved with frantic, shallow breaths. His eyes darted wildly around the sweltering stone walls of the hidden bedchamber, desperately searching for a hole to crawl into.Garrick looked back at me. Confusion and panic completely warped his face."What are you doing?" Garrick choked out. His voice cracked, spiking into a pathetic, high-pitched whine. "I gave you a direct order. I stationed you in that exact corner. I kept you down here for one reason—to guard her! Why are you disobeying me? Get back to your post immediately and kill anyone who comes through that door!"I stared down at him. A deep, sickening wave of absolute disgust rolled through my stomach.
[King Garrick’s POV]My lungs completely stopped working.The Warlord towered over me. He stood as a wall of blood-soaked iron and feral rage. I stared at the heavy iron pommel of his broadsword. My hands shook violently. I pressed my palms flat against the mahogany map table to hide the tremor. I ruled the East. I commanded legions. I lived my entire life believing I was untouchable, sitting safely behind thick white walls. Standing in the shadow of this monster, I felt like absolute prey.I swallowed hard, forcing moisture down my dry throat."Make your choice, King Garrick," Cillian repeated. His voice vibrated through the floorboards directly into my boots. "Right now."I needed a shield. My mind raced frantically, clawing blindly through my panic for a way to survive. I lifted my chin. I forced my spine straight, wrapping myself in a desperate layer of royal indignation. I looked directly into the Warlord's glowing golden eyes and lied through my teeth."You are acting on false i
[King Cillian’s POV]I sat on my warhorse, staring at the towering white-stone walls of the Eastern Capital.The mate bond connecting my soul to Elian screamed. It pulled tight across my chest, burning like a hot iron pressed directly against my ribs. I felt his heartbeat slowing down miles away in the North. I felt his life slipping through my fingers. Every second we sat outside these gates was a second Elian lost. My inner beast clawed violently at the inside of my skull, demanding blood, demanding entry, demanding the absolute destruction of anything standing between the woman killing my Luna and us.I raised my scarred hand high above my head. I dropped it forward.The Northern siege engines fired instantly.Massive iron-tipped ballista bolts and jagged boulders tore through the air. They slammed into the Eastern Capital’s pristine walls with deafening, catastrophic force. The heavy stone barricades splintered. TI drew my broadsword and gave the command to charge.Tens of thousa
"I said I am not to be disturbed!" I barked, my voice echoing off the stone walls."Sire, I beg your pardon," a muffled, breathless voice called through the thick wood. It was the High Commander of the Border Guard. "But the watchtower captains insisted I bring this to you immediately."I let out a heavy, aggravated sigh. I set the decanter down with a sharp clink, walked over to the doors, and slid the iron bolt back. I pulled one door open just enough to look at the man.The Commander was standing in the corridor, looking deeply uneasy. He was fully armored, his helm tucked under his arm, and his brow was furrowed with confusion. He didn't look terrified—he looked rattled, like a man trying to solve a puzzle with missing pieces."This had better be a declaration of war or a fire in the lower city, Commander," I warned, my voice dripping with cold disdain."It's the Northern border, Your Grace," the Commander said quickly, keeping his voice low. He shifted his weight, glancing nervou
[King Garrick’s POV]"You think entirely too small, Selene."I wiped a bead of sweat from my temple, pacing a slow, deliberate line across the thick, expensive rugs. The massive fire roaring in the stone hearth was oppressive, turning the hidden bedchamber into a sweltering oven. The heat made my silk doublet cling to my skin like a wet, heavy blanket, but I didn't care. The physical discomfort meant absolutely nothing compared to the intoxicating, god-like power humming through my veins. I felt absolutely, fundamentally untouchable.Queen Selene was lounging on the red velvet settee, her dark silk robe pooling around her and she was frowning at me with sharp disapproval."I am being realistic, Garrick," she snapped, shifting her weight on the cushions. "You are letting your ambition blind you to the reality of who we are dealing with. If we demand three northern border towns and unimpeded access to the silver trade, Cillian will pay it. He will bleed his own economy dry to keep the
"Alpha."The word hung in the hot, heavy air of the room, heavy and completely damning. I couldn't believe I had said it. My brain screamed in horror, but my body didn't care. My inner Omega, starved and beaten down into the dark for nineteen years, clawed its way to the surface, demanding I give i
I didn't know if I was dying, but the world burned down around me.The castle became a dizzy, spinning blur of grey stone and flickering torchlight. I was held tight against a chest so broad and hard it felt like being pressed against a boulder. The heat coming off Cillian's body felt like pure hea
I couldn't look up, but I felt it. The whole feeling of the training yard disappeared. The air emptied out, replaced by a heavy, scary force that made every single Alpha in the yard fall to their knees without meaning to.Every Alpha except Torin. He was too busy wanting to hurt someone."Lick my b
I was not given food or water.A few hours after Cillian left me in the dark, the iron door shrieked open again. Two massive Beta guards dragged me out by the chains, my bare feet scraping against the freezing stone. The sudden influx of torchlight felt like daggers in my eyes. My head was pounding







