meanwhile. back at Cassian's safe house the tension was reaching a breaking point. Arion spent the next three days in a state of hyper-vigilance. He produced flawless dossiers for Cassian, detailing Kyon's supply lines, the rotation of his personal guards, and the key betrayals Kyon had orchestrated against the aging King's loyalists. He was the perfect informant, his knowledge proving invaluable to Cassian's war effort.
During this time, Arion maintained his fierce boundaries. He continued to refuse meals with Cassian unless his mother, Duchess Maeva, was present. He allowed Cassian only professional contact, quickly drawing back from any lingering touch or possessive glance. His focus remained ruthlessly fixed on Aiden, who was now fully recovered and growing restless in the nursery.
The arrival of Maeva and Torvin had, ironically, stabilized Arion's position. They provided the political heft and moral support Arion needed to keep Cassian in check. Cassian understood that forcing Arion to break completely would risk losing the East's crucial, silent support.
The peaceful plan was soon broken by a choking new . The plan shattered on the fourth morning. A Royal Decree, delivered with shocking speed directly from the Palace, was plastered on every public board and disseminated through every diplomatic channel.
Prince Kyon had issued a public address concerning the disappearance of Prince Lorcan of the Southern Isles. The decree was not one of alarm, but one of calculated political accusation. Kyon formally accused Prince Cassian of the abduction of the neutral Southern Prince, stating that Cassian's desperate tactics were destabilizing the kingdom and proving his unsuitability for the throne.
The decree continued with a stunning, unexpected counter-move: Kyon announced {that to ensure the safety of the kingdom's children and to honor the black tiger of the north service, he was personally assuming guardianship over Lord Arion's son—the boy Aiden.}
The decree claimed: "Due to the unfortunate circumstances surrounding the political downfall and subsequent disappearance of Lord Arion, the Crown Prince has taken steps to secure the well-being of the noble child, who is currently being sheltered under the protection of the crown. We honor the Dragon-Slayer's memory and ensure his son's future stability."
Kyon didn't claim paternity. He claimed legal guardianship, wrapping the action in a mantle of public virtue and effectively making Aiden a ward of the state—and a hostage in the Royal Palace.
****
Cassian, reading the decree in his war room, roared with frustrated rage. "He knows! He knows the boy is here, and he's daring me to hand him over!" Cassian slammed his fist onto the map table. "He claims him as a ward! He's trying to make me look like the kidnapper!"
Arion, standing stiffly behind Cassian, felt a knot of dread tighten in his stomach. Kyon was faster, smarter, and had just neutralized Cassian's leverage.
"This confirms he knows about Aiden," Arion stated coldly. "But he does not acknowledge paternity. He is still playing the alpha. This is his final challenge, Cassian."
Cassian spun around, his eyes blazing. "We move now! Arion, you said the Jade Heart is his weakness! If we can draw him into the open, remove that amulet, and expose him as an omega, the war is over!"
"No," Arion corrected, his voice dangerously low. "there's something wrong about everything,he is too careful. And The timing is way too perfect."
Arion looked down at the dossier he had prepared, the information on the chemical suppressor mingling with the devastating knowledge of Kyon's unstable childhood. The truth, pieced together from Kyon's own careless confessions and the political necessity of his facade, slammed into Arion.
"Cassian, I'm sure we have get it wrong,"Arion said, his voice flat with sudden, terrible clarity. "Kyon.is an alpha—an unstable, chemically manipulated alpha. His mother, Queen Celine, feared the King would destroy him because of his unpredictable power. The suppressant agent and the Jade Heart are not hiding his omega nature; they are stabilizing his dominant alpha genetics. He is using the fear of instability to enforce his dominance."
Arion slammed his hand onto the table. "He has already stabilized himself with a permanent compound! The maid saw Aiden seven days ago; Kyon has had time to finalize the process. The Jade Heart is a distraction. He wants you to attack the one thing he has already neutralized!"
Cassian recoiled, his face slack with shock. "A lie? He built his entire reign on a calculated vulnerability?"
"Yes,"Arion affirmed, the bitter realization settling heavily in his heart. "He knew I would eventually tell you. He allowed us to think we had the perfect Achilles' heel. He isn't vulnerable; he is fortified. He has drawn us out, and now he is holding Aiden as the prize."
The room fell silent, the weight of Kyon's strategic brilliance crushing their hopes. Cassian's face contorted in frustrated fury. "Then what is his real weakness, Arion? How do we strike?"
Arion stared at the map, his gaze landing on the Palace's main plaza. "His weakness is his obsession with legitimacy. He took Aiden into state care to legitimize the child's presence. We won't attack the Jade Heart. We attack the the alpha ."
"We go to the palace," Arion declared, his warrior's resolve returning, cold and sharp. "We hand over Prince Lorcan to his delegation, publicly expose his abduction by Cassian's faction, and use the chaos to force Kyon's hand. I will publicly present myself as his former soldier, the mother of his son, and demand the child back. We force him to acknowledge the true nature of the heir and shatter his image of controlled perfection."
"And if he doesn't break?" Cassian challenged.
Arion met his eyes, his gaze steady. "Then we fight him."
The plan was insane, risky, and exactly the kind of move Kyon would never anticipate. They had to use Kyon's own move—the public claim over Aiden—against him.
A soft knock then the door swung open and one of Cassian maid come in the war room with a letter. " sir Arion the prince kyon sent this."
They all froze , a marriage license was sent out to them. { Arion & kyon}