The Lost Heiress of the bleeding throne のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 21 - チャプター 30

CIARANI woke up with a jolt.Not from a nightmare of mine, but from the voice of hers. Eleanor.Her breathing was short, uncertain.I got up from my cot to see her hunched at the small desk, hair cascading down her back like a curtain, the tip of a pen moving spasmodically over paper.Sheets littered the floor—crumpled, ripped, abandoned. Her hand was shaking as she wrote, jaw tight, as if struggling with the ink itself.The string yanked hard, hauling me up before I'd even thought about it."What are you doing?" My voice was low, rasping with sleep.She jumped, nearly snapping the pen in two. When she turned to look at me, her eyes were wide and haunted.For a moment, I thought she might actually speak—her lips parted, trembling—but she thrust the paper at me instead.Three words. Jagged. Barely legible.Red veil. Choose.A chill crept down my back."This was your dream?" I asked, but she wouldn't glance up. She only nodded once, shoulders squirming, blushing at the askew letters.I

CIARANI knew that she was listening last night.It wasn’t because of the light shuffling of her feet or the slight hitch of her breath behind the council chamber door which others might not have paid attention to.No, it was her scent. Thick, sweet, and sharp on my tongue.My wolf had carved it to memory from the very first time I saw her and held her in my arms, and now I could pick it out even in a storm, even through thick stone walls.She thought she could hide herself from me, but her own scent gave her away.And now, as I stood there watching her fiddle with the strap of her satchel, her hands trembling like she couldn’t control herself, I couldn't help but wonder how much of what I said she'd heard.I know that I'd said enough to stir the waves within her, enough to damn myself if she decided to ask me questions."Ready?" My voice was low and stern. For her and the entire pack, it had to be so.She froze, then nodded. But her gaze, those haunting grays, darted away too fast. S

ELEANORWe stumbled towards the bank, collapsing into the mud as the rest of the pack came out of the river.My chest still heaved with hitched breaths, but I couldn’t focus on anything but him.His warmth, his strength, the hard thud of his heart pounding against mine.I didn’t want to let go of him, but I had to. Reluctantly, I slipped out of his hold as he went to check on his pack.I caught Alluvia looking at me and turned my face away.That night, the storm raged on, but we were somewhat safe as, luckily, we found a cave near the river.The fire crackled weakly in the wetness, and the others wrapped cloaks around themselves, obviously worn out, as they fell into restless sleep.I couldn’t sleep though. Not after what just happened.Throughout this messed-up journey, I’ve faced more shit than I ever bargained for.But the thing was, none of it could compare to what I suffered at the hands of Baron and his whores.Ciaran sat across me, sharpening his blade with smooth, deliberate m

ELEANORThe fog closed in on me before I could even realize what was happening.One moment, I was keeping pace with Ciaran, holding onto the helm of his jacket just to reassure myself he was there with me, and then—nothing.His warmth vanished, and his hand wasn’t close to mine anymore.The voice of Dylan cut off mid-sentence as if something had pulled him away or shut his mouth to prevent him from speaking.I turned around in the gray mist, choking on fear.I couldn’t make a sound, and obviously, there was no answer.The silence wasn't like a normal quiet. Instead, it was heavy and stifled, like the mist consumed everything whole including sound.My heartbeat was so loud, I felt the vibrations in my head.I strained to listen for anything, but the more I moved, the more futile it felt. And then, I felt something change in the air.It was so subtle at first. The damp rot was replaced with warmth, with something cozy.I blinked against the fog, and slowly, shapes bled through it.They

CIARANThe fire had burned me hollow.At least, that was how I felt when I came through. Every part of my body ached as if molten steel had been poured on me, solidified, and then cracked open again. My chest rose and fell rapidly, and I felt out of breath. At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if I’d crawled out of a ditch, though that wasn’t likely. For a moment, I was unsure if I was alive or still trapped within that godforsaken blaze.Then I felt my wolf move.It wasn’t a stir or a fucking slight move, but more like a damn surge.He tore through my veins, restless and hungry, pacing inside me like he'd been caged for centuries, and I'd just let him out of whatever cage he was stuck in. He was different now—louder, sharper, and more insistent in my mind. Our wolves are normally part of our subconscious, but I could feel mine prowling the corners of my mind.That scream did something to me. It’d split us open and let something darker slither through. His claws grated agains