<i>Zephyrine </i>


    After riding a straight night and day, I finally arrived at the fortress called ckwater.


    林23%日


    Finished


    Merely standing before the massive gate, the stench hit me so hard I sighed shakily. A heavy stench of… agony, rot, and teeth gnashing.


    I had never been here before. No one in their right mind dared to venture to this ce. But now that I had… maybe I too was losing my sanity.


    I had seen the Lycan Kingdom walls and believed them the strongest, until I stood before these. ckwater. Tuffle? You mean. Ynown followef. led by one man whose name was Stone. Tonight, I demanded his audience.


    I kicked my horse forward, and she obeyed, carrying me toward the gate.


    “A rider is spotted!” a night guard shouted from the watch post. The gate groaned open just enough for a


    man to step out.


    He stood silently while I sat astride my horse and looked down at him.


    He was filthy. His grin revealed yellowed teeth that made me want to retch. No wonder they called them barbarians.


    “Beauty on the white horse,” he sneered. “Whye to this cursed fortress?”


    “I demand an audience with your leader,” I answered loud enough for all to hear. His grin widened as though amused.


    “Open the gate!” he barked, and the massive doors screeched apart for me to ride in.


    The moment I entered, I stiffened. The ce was sprawling, and yet crawling with people.


    Men, women, children. Aimless, malnourished, and working like ves. They paused to look at me, but their hesitation earned themshes across their backs.


    “Let’s go, beautiful,” the guard who received me said. I dismounted and took my horse’s reins, but he blocked me. “The horse stays.”


    I turned to my white horse. She blinked at me as I stroked her mane.


    “I’ll be back soon,” I whispered, slipping the mirror from the saddlebag. She followed after me a step, unwilling to part, and my chest tightened at her loyalty. She reminded me of only one man. Lycannar. I sighed and turned away, following the guard into a dark hall.


    I forced myself steady, my eyes alert, until we emerged into a hall where unholiness reigned.


    A sex den. No, debauchery. Men and women writhed everywhere. Two, three men upon one woman. I turned my eyes aside, silent.


    “Follow me. Stone isn’t here,” the man said. We climbed stone steps and entered a chamber dimly lit.


    13:02 Sat, Sep 6 GO<b>. </b>


    23%


    Finished


    On a wide chair, a hulking man sat with women draped across him, pouring wine into his mouth. He wasrge, nearly Lycannar’s size, but not as great as my love. Without introduction, I knew who he was. Stone. The barbarian leader. His trousers were torn, his leather shoes caked with filth. His bloodshot eyes, cracked nails, and reeking scent spoke of years without cleansing.


    Standing in the bedchamber before Stone, I suddenly went still.


    It drifted in, faint but undeniable. An ancient, familiar scent. Ashmere.


    My breath caught. My heart lurched.


    I couldn’t pinpoint from which corner it came, but the air itself carried it.


    My gods… Varyn is here.


    The guard whispered in his ear. Stone’s gaze roved over me, and I caught that look. Lust. I had to suppress my disgust.


    “My right hand says you came to see me,” he said, his voice thick with arrogance.


    “Yes.”


    “Why?” His eyes dragged over my body, stopping at my chest. “To trade? Your body, perhaps?”


    “I came for this man,” I said firmly, holding out the mirror. He snatched it, peered inside, and smirked knowingly. He saw what I saw. He set the mirror down, waved the women away, and leaned forward.


    “You’re bold, woman. To walk alone into ckwater, demanding a ve.” His words clenched my heart.


    “He was born with the purest golden spoon. Raised as an Alpha. Commanded thousands. He is no ve.”


    Stone studied me in silence, then rose to his feet. His stench rolled across me, but I held my ground despite the weakness in my limbs.


    “Any ve here is bought. And none are freed. Ever. Many tried to take my ves away but they paid with their lives. You want this one? Then you will have only one option.”


    He stepped closer, lifting his hand toward my hair but I pped it away. His grin darkened.


    “Join my harem. Be my whore. Then I’ll grant you the honor of sharing the same fortress as this ve.”


    Whore? Harem?


    My blood boiled. I red.


    “I have a man. And even if I didn’t, I would never debase myself with the likes of you…”


    Before I finished, his hand shot to my throat. I batted it aside. He swung a fist, but I countered with a swift kick that staggered him. His teeth clenched in fury.


    His right hand rushed to ring a bell, and the pounding of footsteps echoed. Reinforcements.


    “You’ll regret this trespass!” Stone roared, rising to full height. “This is ckwater and I rule here. I’ll make you my whore, and your man will do nothing to stop me!”


    GD


    23%


    Finished


    Men poured in, outnumbering me. Stone lunged, mming me against the wall, trying to rip my dress. I kicked him down, seized the mirror, and sprinted for the window. My chest heaved, my strength fading fast.


    Stone and his men blocked the chamber. He grinned viciously.


    “You’re outnumbered. You won’t jump to your death, will you?”


    Jaw tight, I looked down. My white horse stood below, waiting. My teeth clenched.<fnc1bd> Th? link to the orig?n of this information r?sts ?n Find★Novel</fnc1bd>


    “I vow to return, Stone. And when I do I wil make you regret tonight.”


    I leapt from the window,nding in a practiced roll. My horse surged forward, and I clung on as she carried me at full speed toward the wall.


    “Close the gate!” themand rang out.


    The massive doors creaked shut, but my mare flew like lightning. Just as the gate mmed closed, she burst through the gap, and we escaped.


    We galloped into the night. Relief swelled until an arrow whistled through the air. Pain exploded in my side as it buried into my stomach.


    I turned, breathless, to see Stone, bow in hand, fire in his eyes.


    I wheezed, doubled over, staining my horse’s white coat with blood as she thundered into the darkness.


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