SERIN:
The hall grew heavier with tension as the two alphas seethed in their anger, their faces reddening further as I yawned and each time I casually shrugged off their insults. They were so predictable, it was almost boring.
"An omega pretending to be a leader" one spat. "Your pack must be as weak as you are. No wonder you need your brothers to defend yourself."
I raised an eyebrow, letting out a slow sigh. "If you're done whining, let me know. Maybe then we can have an actual conversation. But right now, all I hear is the sound of two bruised egos trying to make themselves feel important."
The second alpha slammed his fist on the table, standing abruptly. His chair toppled over, and a flash of movement caught my eye as he grabbed a heavy paperweight from the table and hurled it at me.
Before anyone else could react, I didn't even flinch. I raised my head, my eyes started glowing golden and the object froze in midair, just inches from my face.
Gasps echoed in the room, but I only smirked.
"Now you've crossed the line" I said smoothly. With a flick of my wrist, I sent the paperweight hurtling back at him, grazing his shoulder. He stumbled back, clutching his arm, his face twisting in shock and rage.
"You little__"
The room erupted into chaos as the other council members joined in as they lunged toward me. But I wasn't afraid. I never was. Their hormones couldn't affect me—not when Persephone, only responded to one.
I stepped forward with a bored expression, dodging the first attack with ease. A subtle weave of magic swirled around me as I parried their strikes, using their own momentum against them.
"Is this really all you've got?" I yawned, ducking under a punch and sending a blast of wind to knock another alpha off his feet. "I was expecting more from the so-called 'strongest council' What a disappointment."
Inseo yelled from behind me, his voice filled with anger. "Noona! Enough! They're trying to hurt you!"
But I didn't need his protection. I never did.
One council member, more desperate than the rest, pulled a gun from his coat. Inseo was ready to jump in front of me when__
A low, guttural growl froze everyone in the room.
The sound was raw, primal, and filled with so much power that even I felt the weight of it. The council members staggered, bowing their heads as if the sound alone forced them to submit.
I turned to the source, my eyes widening slightly.
Him.
The tension in the room shifted entirely. It wasn't just the council members who bowed their heads....it was everyone. My pack members, my guards, even Inseo staggered slightly, his wolf instinctively submitting. Even I felt myself go weak in the knees. If not for the wall behind me, I would have fell too.
And it wasn't just submission. It was reverence, like the very air commanded them to kneel. The weight of his presence, the dominance radiating from him, was nothing I had ever felt before.
My lips parted in shock as I looked around the room. Alphas, men who prided themselves on their strength and dominance, were bowing as if their very souls had no choice.
And then it hit me.
My eyes widened in realization as the pieces clicked into place.
Only one being in the world could command this level of submission from everyone around them, including other alphas.
An enigma.
Kairan… is an enigma.
My heart pounded as I turned my gaze back to him.I was shocked to see him inches before me. He knelt before me like I was the only thing that mattered in the world, his lips brushing against my hand with a quiet reverence that belied the raw power emanating from him.
He looked up, his blue eyes glinting with that familiar warmth and mischief. He radiated the same confidence, the same undeniable strength.
"Hello, princess" he said, his voice low and smooth, the lazy smile on his lips sending shivers down my spine. "Missed me?"
I barely registered the murmurs of the others, the shocked whispers about the fact that he, the enigma, was kneeling before me.
For a moment, the world stopped, and it was just us.
Kairan. Kai.
The boy who had been my world all those years ago. The one I thought I'd never see again.
And now, here he was, kneeling before me in a room full of alphas and betas, forcing them to submit without a single word.Persephone, stirred within me, howling mate with such force that it sent a tremor through my body.
His name escaped my lips in a whisper, almost inaudible to everyone but him. My hands trembled as they reached out on their own, brushing against his face. His skin was warm, familiar, and so achingly real. My vision blurred with tears as every memory of him came flooding back—his laughter, his strength, his promise that he'd never leave me.
And yet, he had.
"You… idiot!" I choked out, my voice breaking as the first tear slipped free. My hands balled into fists, and before I could stop myself, I hit him in the chest. "You disappeared! and you think I'd miss you?"
He didn't flinch. He didn't stop me. His blue eyes stayed locked on mine, the same warmth, the same softness I remembered from all those years ago. Heck, he was smiling and that annoyed me more.
"I thought I'd lost you" I whispered, my voice trembling as my hands curled around his shirt. "You were everything to me, Kairan. And then you were just… gone."
His expression softened further, he was towering over me as he gently caught one of my trembling hands. He held it like it was the most precious thing in the world, his thumb brushing against my knuckles.
"I never wanted to leave you, Luna" he said, his voice low and filled with something I couldn't quite place...regret, longing, maybe both. "I've spent every day since thinking about you. And now… I'm here."
But before I could say anything, an angry growl cut through the room.
"This is absurd!" one of the council alphas spat, his voice trembling as he fought against the pressure of Kairan's dominance. "We cannot bow to an omega, no matter who he is!"
Kairan's head turned sharply toward the alpha, his eyes glowing silver as his wolf, Hades, stirred. A low, dangerous chuckle escaped his lips, and the sound sent shivers through the room.
"You can't bow to an omega?" Kairan repeated, his voice cold and mocking. The sheer force of his presence made the alpha flinch. "Funny, considering you're already on your knees."
The alpha's face turned red, his lips curling into a snarl. " ENIGMA! You dare__"
"I dare" Kairan interrupted, taking a slow step toward him. His voice dropped lower, more dangerous. "And you will stay exactly where you are unless you want to test your strength against mine."
The alpha's wolf whimpered, and he fell silent, his gaze dropping to the floor.
Kairan turned to the room, his gaze sweeping over the alphas and betas who now refused to meet his eyes. "You're all so quick to mock and ridicule. Yet here you are, submitting to the very omega you claim is unfit to lead." He smirked, his voice dripping with disdain. "Pathetic."
I stared at him, my heart pounding as his words echoed in the silent room. The power, the confidence, the sheer dominance he radiated.....it was intoxicating.
And then his gaze softened as he turned back to me.
"Luna" he said, his voice a quiet contrast to the steel it held moments ago.
"You always did have a flair for the dramatic" I finally said, my voice steady despite the whirlwind of emotions inside me.
Kairan's lips tugged into that lazy smirk that made my heart skip a beat. "Only for you, Luna."
Before I could respond, because honestly, what could I say to that...Inseo's voice rang out from behind me, breaking the moment like a sledgehammer.
"Alright, alright, we get it! You're the long-lost prince charming" he said, stepping forward with his arms crossed and a fake yawn. "But do you have to do the whole kneeling thing? It's making me cringe."
Kairan didn't even look at him. "Isn't there somewhere else you should be? Like chasing your tail?"
Inseo bristled. "I'll have you know, alpha, that I'm perfectly capable of-"
"Being annoying?" Kairan cut in, towering over Inseo with a raised brow.
I couldn't help it, I burst out laughing. The sheer audacity of the two of them bickering in the middle of such a tense situation was too much.
"Boys" I said, holding up a hand to stop them. "Save your nonsense for later. Right now, we have a room full of alphas watching and plotting. Let's not give them a free show, hmm?"
Kairan turned to me, his smirk softening into something warmer. "As you wish, princess."
Inseo rolled his eyes. "Great, now he's taking orders from you. Just fantastic."
I rolled my eyes but couldn't hide the small smile tugging at my lips. Whatever storm was brewing in this room, I knew one thing: I wasn't facing it alone anymore.