All Chapters of Marked by the Lycan Prince: Chapter 161 - Chapter 163

IRISThe room smells faintly of lavender and polished wood, mixed with the subtle metallic tang of my jewelry. My fingers graze the smooth fabric of my gown, heavy and rich with golden embroidery, the silk brushing softly against my skin. Servants bustle quietly around me, adjusting folds of fabric, sliding delicate bracelets up my wrists, fastening the clasp of my necklace with careful precision. The jewels glint faintly in the morning sunlight, scattered across the polished marble floor and catching in my eyes as I shift.I sink into the chair near the vanity, letting them work. My hair is swept back into a simple, elegant braid, twisted with silver ribbons that gleam faintly like threads of moonlight. The makeup is minimal—just enough to highlight the warmth in my cheeks and the green in my eyes—but I watch every stroke, every brush, with a quiet fascination. This is the life I never imagined for myself, and yet, sitting here, feeling the weight of silk, the pull of jewels, the

DARIANFive months later The scream shatters me.It rips through the birthing chamber like the sound of something breaking—something living, something I can’t survive without. Iris’s fingers claw at the sheets, her knuckles white, her face twisted in agony as another contraction seizes her.“Iris,” I choke out, trying to touch her, to ground her, to do something, anything“DON’T—” she gasps, eyes squeezed shut, voice cracking under the weight of the pain, “don’t talk…I…can’t…Darian…”Her breath cuts off. She arches off the bed.The healer at her bedside looks up, face pale. “The contraction is too strong, hold her steady, Your Majesty!”I’m already there. My hands cradle her shoulders, trying to support her without restraining her, but she’s shaking so hard I can feel the tremors in my bones.“Breathe, Iris,” I whisper, even though she told me not to talk. “Just breathe.”She screams again, raw, primal.My wolf claws at my insides, howling, desperate, ready to tear apart the world to