<i>Zephyrine </i>
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I made my way toward him, but he didn’t react, didn’t even give the slightest sign that he could feel my presence. He just stood there, unmoving, and I walked carefully until I was right before him, silent and cautious.
I never knew in the past, but now I am fully aware of how much he scares me. How terrified I am of his wrath. Of his silence. Of the thought that he might never forgive me.
“It’s a beautiful night, isn’t it?” I said softly, and to my surprise, he lifted his gaze to the sky.
That simple movement made my heart clench. How perfect can a man be?
I watched him stare at the sky briefly before lowering his gaze again. Then silence. Heavy, suffocating silence. My panic rose instantly. He must be mad.
“You don’t drink? There’s plenty of wine in the hall.”<fna7bc> Follow current nov?ls on find{n}ovel</fna7bc>
“I am dangerous when I’m drunk,” he replied, his voice low, calm. Again, my heart clenched. He wasn’t scolding me. Somehow that felt even worse.
“Lycan…” I began, but before the words could form, he looked up at me, and everything I wanted to say died on my lips.
Gently, he reached for the saddlebag, pulled out an elegant white fur cloak, and carefully draped it over my shoulders. Then he stepped aside to study it.
“Looks perfect. Just your size,” he muttered, then lowered his gaze with that familiar frown. “I was… afraid it wouldn’t fit. It was a guess. I’m happy it fit. A present to your ascension. White looks good on you.”
A lump rose in my throat. For a moment I felt like weeping. He was truly mad this time. In the past, he would have turned away in silence, not even bothered with words. But now? Now he wasn’t asking questions, wasn’t saying anything about my trip. Just… cold.
The fur cloak weighed heavily on me, and I stepped closer to him.
“Lycan…” I whispered. “Lycan, I’m sorry.”
He didn’t speak. His eyes stayed fixed on the ground, and it tore me apart. How do you appease a cursed king?
“Lycannar?”
He looked into my eyes then, expressionless, unreadable.
“Lycan, I am truly sorry. I swear it.”
No words came. He held my gaze for a while, then nodded once, lowering his eyes again.
Silence. My chest heaved. Panic churned inside me. I reached for him, but the one nce he gave me froze my hand in midair. I went cold instantly.
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“Don’t you dare,” he murmured, voice calm, so calm it was deadly. I knew, without doubt, he’d snap touched him now.
if I
Frustration and fear collided with the ache of my brother’s fate, and my eyes burned with tears. His re pressed on me like a crushing weight, and I couldn’t breathe.
“Lycan…” I called shakily, but he only looked away, jaw tight. “Lycan?”
“What am I to you?” he asked suddenly, looking back at me. My breath caught. “Did I ever mean anything? What’s between us… is it anything to you?”
I searched his eyes desperately, sniffled.
“You know how much you mean to me, Lycan?”
“I don’t,” he said tly. The words shattered me. “I don’t know, Zephyrine. By the gods, I don’t know anything.”
“Lycan.” My voice cracked as I tried again, reaching for his forearm, only to pull back in fear he’d snap. “I can exin. Everything. I’m ready to open up if you’ll just listen. Please.”
He didn’t respond. Instead, his gaze dropped to my bare neck. A flicker passed through his eyes, and he swallowed hard.
The amulet.
“I didn’t wear it because I didn’t want you to worry,” I whispered. “I didn’t want to burden you, knowing how much you already carry.”
His stare silenced me. Then he turned away, sighing, stepping back to take his horse’s reins. My chest squeezed in shock.
“What are you doing?” I asked, confused.
“What else? Going home.”
“But… your sisters are here.”
“Baron will apany them back.” He moved to mount, but I stepped into his way, breathless. He couldn’t leave.
“Lycan…”
“How would you feel,” he cut in, voice sharp, “if I disappeared from this empire and never returned? How would you feel, Zephyrine, if I left without a word?”
“Lycan…”
“I can do both, you know,” he said, almost like a confession. “I could vanish from your life, never speak to you again, and still, still, be this obsessed with you.”
Goosebumps swept across my skin. My knees weakened.
“If that’s what you want,” he pressed, pinning me with his gaze, “then go. Run on another suicide trip. Lie
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again about where you’re headed. Do as you please. I give you my word, Zephyrine I will disappear from your life.”
I could barely breathe. Already I felt like I was walking on eggshells.
“I’m… sorry,” I stammered. “I won’t go… without telling you. Ever again.”
And I meant it. He hadpelled the truth from me with nothing but his presence. I looked up into his eyes, my hand trembling as I brought out the amulet.
“Put it on me,” I whispered.
His eyes fell to my palm, then he picked it up, his hand circling my neck as he fastened the chain. I rested my head on his chest, and the moment it clicked into ce, a jolt ran through me. My senses sharpened. The void around me vanished. My strength rose like a tide.
I gasped softly, pulling back. He was right. The amulet made me feel tied to him, bound, my perception heightened in every way.
“I’ll wear it always,” I promised quietly. “Now you’ll always know where I am.”
Before he could respond, I rose on tiptoe and kissed him, right there under the open sky. In public, for all the world to see.
Because he is mine. Only mine. And I don’t care what anyone says.
Lycannar Blood, the Lycan King, belongs to me.
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