IF NOT FOR the loud clearing of the throat from Alpha Frank, Diana would have already k*lled the Lycan king with her glaring eyes. Although she really wanted to dig holes in his body using her own eyes, Diana couldn't just become more willful herself in front of everyone.
She may not be a primitive person. Or a conservative type, but maybe because of the stories she had heard from her friends who loved giving meaning to everything, Diana was also kind of influenced to believe that an indirect kiss is still a kiss.
But Diana can't be that stingy and unreasonable to this 'p*rvert' since she usually drinks water or any drink in the same glass or bottle as her friends. She even used the same spoon with her male friends as they ate the same food, and everything was treated with no malice.
However, Diana wanted to treat this whole thing the same way. But her mind couldn't just accept them. Because her mind keeps talking about how those things were different with this one, as if they were her friends. They're almost brothers and sisters. But this man isn't even treated as someone Diana would acknowledge.
So what's there to consider when the person itself isn't considerable?
"Your highness," Alpha Frank called out, making everyone look at the man in the middle.
Of course, everyone also consists of Diana. But that's only because she's curious as to why Alpha Frank would call "him" out like he was signaling something to the man. As curious as she may sound, Diana really wanted to know the reason for all of this. She has this feeling that it is related to the reason for this midnight meeting.
The person who was called looked at everyone, from his people to the Dawson family. Gener looked at them one by one, but when his eyes were supposed to look at Diana, he aimlessly moved his eyes back to his front and acted like the air in that area was more interesting than meeting eye-to-eye with Diana.
And that action really irks Diana to the core. The frown, which wasn't that visible before, became more discernible. Diana felt like the man was toying with her, but because she had no proof against it, she could only grumble indignantly inside.
This does not mean she wanted the man's p*rverted eyes to glance at her, but the way he indifferently overlooked and ignored me really makes me feel dissatisfied. Unfortunately, she could only choose to close one eye on that and remain silent while looking and waiting for whatever he would say.
"We are not here to disrupt your supposed sleep just for some nonsense," Gener started, and Diana could feel that he was aiming those words at her.
Diana wasn't sure, but his words contained taunting meanings pointing at her. He's in no way innocent, but he deliberately did that, which was annoying Diana in its own way. And since Gener continued, Diana couldn't do anything but curse the man inside her head like she always does.
"We came this time for the purpose of getting my mate with me back to the kingdom."
Silence engulfed the room as everyone did not react as quickly as possible to Gener's words. But unlike Nero and Luna Michelle, who had an obviously shocked expression flashed on their faces, Alpha Frank, including the people under Gener, had a calm face.
Diana was also shocked, but she soon calmed her expression. Her eyebrows shot up as she silently sneered. 'The perv actually found his mate?' She taunted Gener in her head.
Moreover, the mate was actually from their pack. Diana tried to remember who among the she-wolves in their pack had met the man on their last visit. She couldn't remember anyone, but Diana had already prayed for the pitiful wolf, who was really unfortunate to be mated with Gener.
Diana couldn't imagine how miserable Gener's mate would be, especially if the mate was an omega. Since the king was known for being a s*xist who looked down on omegas, female or not. The Lycan king was also known for being a classist since he was famous for being a superior who did not care about gender or class.
Once the person is not on par with his strength and power, the Lycan king will never give that person an eye. In everyone's eyes, Gener is a type of narcissistic king. So, whoever the mate will be, Diana can only wish that person some luck.
If she were given time, Diana wished that she could at least give the person some advice, like rejecting the king so that she wouldn't suffer under the king's care.
Diana was having fun imagining and cursing the Lycan king's future rejection of his mate in her head when she noticed his impassive gaze on her. And to hide her thoughts, Diana looked back and straight away gave Gener a scowl with her what-are-you-looking-at look.
She waited for Gener to say something, but he only stared at Diana for a few minutes in a staring contest before withdrawing his eyes. And like a winner, Diana scoffed before looking away.
"Please forgive me for asking, Your Highness, but may I ask for the reason why you're here instead of talking to the family of your mate?" Nero suddenly asked, breaking the silence. "I don't think the alpha's family needs to meddle in this personal situation at all."
And Diana could only agree with Nero. If she could, she might have already nodded her head in genuine accord. Alas, all she could do was do it mentally.
She just couldn't get the reason why the Lycan king needed to relate to their family in his personal business. So what if he finds his mate? Do they need to prepare the said mate to present it to his highness? Note the sarcasm.
Diana couldn't fathom what and how the mind of His Highness, Gener, works. Aside from his unique characteristics of disturbing people at midnight, Diana could also not understand why Gener associated the family of Dawson in this private matter.
If Diana did not want to think too much and read between the lines to the point of overthinking it, she would really believe that the king hates her to the core, to the point of using his so-called newly found mate to annoy her.
"I don't think this matter is unrelated to your family, as Alpha Frank already associated the Dawson family with this matter," Gener said in his gruff voice.
Nero, Luna Michelle, and Diana all had a questioning glance towards Alpha Frank, who was mentioned. But he did not speak or explain, as he knew that it was not his time to speak. So, the alpha remained silent as he looked at Gener, waiting for him to continue.
"Father?" Nero asked while still looking at his father, trying to earn an answer.
Alpha Frank ignored his idiot son. Alpha Frank might be proud of this son of his being revered as the next alpha of their pack. He also felt proud every time people praised him for having a strong and powerful son like Nero. And this son of his would sometimes show his intelligence, especially about war and scouting or fighting tactics.
But why does, in this type of situation, the mind of his son become a grade lower? The alpha could only mentally facepalm. He remained silent since he chose to stay silent. He wanted the lycan to have everything explained instead of him.
With everyone's silence, Nero became more confused. He looked at his father, then at the king, and then back at his father again. He really couldn't find the answer. Aside from confusion, there's also a hint of frustration flashing in his eyes, as he doesn't like the feeling of being left out.
On the other hand, Diana, who knew that she couldn't find an answer from Alpha Frank, turned her inquiring eyes to the Lycan king himself. And to her surprise, the man was actually looking at her.
There, they started another bout of staring contests. Diana did not plan to ask a question vocally. She wanted the man to speak about it of his own volition, so she did not falter and fought off the intense stares of Gener.
The two started their cold war in the midst of the silence. But Diana was actually having an intense debate inside her head at the moment. She was trying to figure out Gener's words. Diana could feel that the man had something more important and deeper in his spoken words. She wanted to learn it and understand it because there was that uncertain feeling inside her, telling her that this actually had a relationship with her.
If not, what reason would there really be for the king to come knock at their door this late at night? She might have had a bad impression of Gener, but Diana knew that the man wasn't that unreliable.
So Diana tried to think deeper. What might be the reason there is to relate to the situation? Since the man was talking about finding his mate, then this should be about the mate.
With that thought, everything seems so clear in Diana's mind. From the answers that Gener gave, Diana could patch everything like a piece of cloth. And before she could show her surprised reaction, Luna Michelle beat her.
The luna, who was also trying to read between the lines, finally grasped the situation. And it surprised her so much that she couldn't help but loudly gasp. But she also remained silent, as she only looked at Gener with her widened eyes and gaping mouth. The same as how Diana looks at the man.
These reactions made Nero, who was still trying hard to figure out what was going on, more frustrated, knowing that it was now only him who was clueless. In the end, he couldn't endure the feeling of being left out, so he asked.
"I'm sorry, but I don't get it. Can someone explain it?" Nero sounded so frustrated that if it were not for the seriousness of the matter, Diana would have laughed.
But before she could even laugh, Gener's serious and deep voice reverberated throughout the dining area. "It's because of Diana. Diana is my mate."
Oh, how badly Diana wanted to put something in her mouth so that she could spit it all in the face of the man as an act of surprise. Unfortunately for her, and luckily for Gener, she had already stopped putting anything in her mouth after her choke a few moments ago.
Even if she had already anticipated those words after gathering all the clues, Diana could still feel shock and surprise when she heard them on the man's lips.
The way Gener announced it sounded so overbearing that if Diana didn't know those words came from him, she would have praised the man for sounding handsome and dominant. The traits that even her single friends dreamed of finding.
And Diana wasn't sure if she could find herself lucky or not. Since the so-called "dream guy" that her friends always talked about was now her very own mate, and as she knew the man well, Diana felt more unfortunate after he remembered how pretentious and hypocritical he was.
What luck? How fortunate? Isn't she just feeling sympathetic towards the ill-fated mate of the man? Just like she had jinxed herself, she became that ill-fated mate she was trying to sympathize with. This made Diana feel torn between wanting to laugh and wanting to cry.
"What?"
After a few minutes of silence, because he was dumbfounded, Nero finally snapped from his stupor and turned into an overly shocked and frightened kitten as he repeated his question, "What?!" in a slightly higher pitch than the first one.
This time, Alpha Frank could no longer hide his embarrassment because of his son. He smacked his forehead, and the sound was loud enough to be heard by everyone.
"I think you needed time to speak with Diana, Your Highness. We will all leave you two alone to have a proper talk," Alpha Frank said, pushing his chair back using the back of his feet.
He signaled to his wife and son with his eyes, who immediately understood. Although Nero still had a look of bewilderment in his eyes, it was like his mind at that moment had finally worked, so he understood his father's signals. Together with his son and wife, Alpha Frank leaves.
"Then we will also give you two some privacy. Your Highness, please remember my words," Selene also stated, with a mysterious smile flashing towards Gener.
She held her mate's arms while she held Zamiel's collar as she pulled them together with her. Rendall silently took the plate, which consisted of his remaining desserts, with him as he followed after the three.
Diana watches everyone leave in their own, leaving her alone with the Lycan king. If she were not currently sitting, the rigidity of her body would have been evident. She was stiff. Even if everyone's already out of her sight, Diana stays still in her awkward position. Her half-body was facing the exit while her lower body was stoned in her seat.