I stared at the glowing words.
“What do you mean, what do I want from you?” I asked, frowning. “I don’t-“
She snatched the tablet back and began typing again, faster this time.
Then, she turned it back.
‘I need answers. Why was I brought here? Why am I in your bed? Why all this excessive care? Why do you keep wasting resources on me when you don’t even know who I am?’
I swallowed hard.
I had assumed wrongly that she’d figured it out by now. The way the palace staff treated her. The way Maravek and Lychia hovered. The way Hasmik referred to her with reverence.
Did she truly… not know?
If so, how could I explain that Aeryna had tied our fates together without her knowledge or consent? That the bond pulling at my soul every time she winced, and every time she curled into herself, was proof that she belonged to me, even if she didn’t want to?
I took a breath.
Then I met her gaze, those stormy eyes.
“That’s because…” My voice dropped to a whisper. “You’re my mate, Sireli.”
Her eyes widened, like saucers. Her fingers twitched around the tablet before it slipped from her grasp and landed on the bed with a soft thud.
NARINE’S POV
Wait…
What did he just say?
No, seriously.
Did I actually just hear what I think I heard?
Me? His mate?
Out of everything I had expected him to say, whether it be a long-winded list of excuses dripping with insincerity, or perhaps the revelation that I was being used as leverage, or even just some sense of pity that I was a broken, discarded thing he felt morally obligated to care for, this had never been in the realm of possibility.
Lycan mates weren’t unheard of. In fact, it was a well-known tragedy among our kind. The most powerful beings in existence were cursed by the great witch Aeryna herself. I remember hearing the tale. Lycans, for all their immense strength and dominion over both wolves and various other supernatural bloodlines, were bound eternally, soul-deep, heart-shattering, and irrevocably to one person even in death.
It was said to be divine justice. Aeryna’s final act of vengeance, aimed at the Lycan bloodlines for their arrogance and their past misdeeds.
I stared at him for what felt like the first time. Sargis, Supreme Alpha of Khragnir. And yet here he was, seated across from me, telling me that I was his mate?
This had to be some elaborate joke, a cruel twist of fate veiled in an unsettling veneer of kindness. Or perhaps it was a more sinister form of manipulation, disguised beneath soft gestures and reassuring words. After all, wasn’t that how it always began? A gentle façade that gradually peeled away to reveal something far more brutal lurking beneath hid the most malevolent intentions. The initial warmth often masked sharper edges, and the kindness that seemed genuine eventually morphed into something cold and unforgiving.
A mate.
No. No. No.
There had to be some mistake.
My hands shook uncontrollably as I curled my knees up to my chest, trying to create a cocoon of warmth and safety around myself. I wrapped my arms around my legs, drawing them in closer, as if that simple act could somehow piece together the fragments of my being that felt so precariously close to falling apart.
Each breath I took was shaky and uneven, punctuated by the overwhelming wave of emotions crashing over me. I could feel the sharp edges of despair cutting deeper, as memories I thought I had buried began to resurface, threatening to shatter my already fragile state once more. The weight of it all pressed down on me, and I clung to myself as though I could hold the pieces of me together because they were shattering all over again.
This couldn’t be real.
I’m not someone to be loved, cherished, or adored, let alone fated.
The thought of being fated, of someone feeling a deep connection to my existence, was almost laughable. I clenched my fists tightly, the sharp sting of my nails digging into my palms grounding me at the moment. I needed that pain, needed something tangible to anchor my spiraling thoughts. I needed something to make sense of this ridiculous turn of events.
Why would Aeryna choose to tie me to someone like him? How could she possibly believe it was just to bind a person like me to a man like that? It felt so unfair to him, as though she had condemned both of us to a fate that was nothing short of a cosmic joke. None of it made any sense, and the more I grappled with the reality, the more my frustration deepened.
I turned my face toward the tablet, forcing my eyes to focus on its smooth surface, almost as if it could offer me some escape from the chaotic thoughts swirling in my head. I knew I couldn’t bear to look at him-the weight of his gaze felt heavy. I wanted to shrink away from this moment, to evade the suffocating air that hung between us.
“Mate?” I typed.
He smiled softly. “Yes,” he replied. “I thought you knew all this while. You’re the Supreme Luna and queen of Khragnir.”
How could he possibly utter something so completely outrageous with such unwavering conviction?
Queen?
Queen of freaking Khragnir?
I felt an involuntary laugh threaten to escape from my throat, one that would surely come off as frantic and deranged. Surely, the man had lost his mind. Me, their Queen? The envisioned rightful mate of the formidable Lycan King? It seemed preposterous, a wild fantasy that couldn’t possibly hold any truth. My mind raced as I tried to comprehend the absurdity of it all.
He had literal goddesses in court robes fawning for him.
With his undeniable charm and wealth, he could easily select from a dazzling array of flawless, untouched beauties hailing from the Eastern territories all the way to the mysterious Shadow Lands. Yet, here he was, choosing to settle for me, claiming I was his mate?
What was his endgame? Was he planning to parade me as a queen only to discard me later? Or worse… keep me as a stand-in for the real mate? Questions buzzed through my thoughts like frantic fireflies in the dark.
And honestly, at this point, my brain was so tangled with thoughts and fears and things I wasn’t ready to face that I gave up trying to untangle them.
If only he knew what I was.
If only he could see the truth behind this fragile skin, he would not hesitate to turn on me the same way my pack did. The same way they looked at me like a cursed thing, like a glitch in the natural order.
A three-eyed wolf.
An abomination.
There’s no conceivable way in the seven circles of hell that a Lycan king could ever truly desire someone like me if he were to unveil the truth that lies hidden beneath my façade. His so-called kindness, that warm glimmer of affection in his eyes, and the tender care he exhibits in every casual gesture, it all feels fleeting and insubstantial, like a mirage shimmering in the distance.
I know from bitter experience that the moment he sees me clearly, when the trappings of charm and grace fall away to reveal the raw truth of my existence, everything will change. His gaze will shift to one of horror and revulsion. The warmth of his affection will turn to ice and I would be thrown into a dungeon again.
I can’t stay here. I needed to get out.
As far away from Khragnir, from all this madness, as possible.
This palace, no matter how beautiful, or soft the bed, or fragrant the bath is, it’s still a cage. And it’s only a matter of time before the walls close in, and he figures out what I am.
I exhaled slowly.
“Banana.” I typed into the tablet.
SARGIS’ POV
I stared at the word on the screen.
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