[Ethan's POV]
Malachi? A flicker of surprise crossed Elara's face.
I was already by her side. "Sis, Liana told me you were here, so I came to get you. Did you return the book?"
"Yes… I did," she murmured, the realization dawning that Liana had set this up.
"Then let's go." I reached out, gently but firmly prying her hand from Malachi's collar. I turned to face the Lycan King, my gaze level. "King Malachi," I said, my voice low and hard, "if you think you can make me your prey, then by all means, try."
A subtle furrow appeared between Malachi's brows. His gaze fixed on my hand holding Elara's, and the same sharp, possessive glint I'd seen outside the Temple flashed in his eyes.
"In this world, nothing is absolute," I said, my voice deliberate. "You may think yourself the hunter, but you could just as easily become the prey."
With that, I turned, leading Elara away without a backward glance.
On this continent, few dared to speak to the Lycan King with such open defiance.
"Alfred," Malachi's cool voice drifted after us, "do you think I could become the prey?"
I heard the butler's faint, astonished reply. "Impossible, Your Majesty."
Who on this continent would dare to hunt the Lycan King? I was the "Little Tyrant of the North," but even I knew I was a step below a being of his power.
"But there is always a first time for everything," Malachi mused, his voice too low for me to catch. His gaze fell on the longbow Elara had just used. "And if, one day, I do become the prey… who do you think the hunter will be?"
Alfred's breath hitched. Who could, or would even dare, to hunt his king?
Elara followed me out of the shooting range.
"You shouldn't have provoked him like that," she said, her voice tight with worry. "Aren't you afraid he'll come after you?"
I gave her a confident smirk. "If I dared to say it, I'm not afraid to back it up."
"Malachi isn't like the others. No matter how powerful you are, he…"
"Sis, do you really think I'm that weak?" I cut her off. "I'm not that same reckless boy from the training grounds anymore. If Malachi wants a war with me, he'd better be prepared for mutual destruction."
The conviction in my voice seemed to settle her, and she said no more. What was done, was done. We would face what came.
"Besides," I added, a small smile touching my lips, "weren't you the one who just threatened him for my sake? Weren't you afraid?"
"Me?" A wry, sad smile touched her lips. "This all started because of me. And besides… Ethan, it's different for me. You have parents, a clan, a family that loves you. If something were to happen to you, so many people would grieve. But me… I'm alone. If something happened to me, it…"
She trailed off, but I cut her off, my voice sharp.
"You think no one would grieve for you, Sis?" I stopped, my grip tightening on her hand. "If something ever happened to you, I don't know about anyone else, but I would burn this world to the ground. I would trade my own life to avenge you."
She stared at me, her expression stunned. The boy who had once been like a little brother, always in need of her protection, was gone. In his place stood a man, his face set with a fierce, absolute conviction. She could see he meant every word.
"I… I'm not that easy to kill," she finally said, her voice a little rough. "Have you forgotten my skills?"
A grin broke across my face. "True. Besides, I'll never let anything happen to you, Sis."
We got into my Magi-tech vehicle. The silence was thick for a moment before I broke it.
"Can we… can we go pay our respects to your parents?" I asked.
Elara froze.
"If I had known you were going to receive their Spirit Stones alone," I continued, my voice thick with regret, "I would have been there with you."
Her eyes glistened. "Just the thought is enough. They haven't been laid to rest yet. Their Spirit Stones are at the Elder Council's Sanctum."
I started the engine and drove toward the Sanctum.
We stood in the Hall of Heroes, before the obsidian box draped with the Moon Goddess's Banner. The silver-threaded sigil was as bright as ever, a symbol of the honor her parents had died to protect. She clasped her hands and bowed her head in a silent prayer. In a few more days, she would take them home, to the clan's ancestral grounds in the west.
Father, Mother, just a little longer, she prayed silently.
When she opened her eyes, she saw me bowing deeply before the Spirit Stones, my voice low and solemn. "Uncle, Aunt, rest easy. I will take care of Elara. I will never let her be harmed again."
I realized I had called her "Elara," not "Sis."
A small smile touched her lips. "I don't need you to take care of me. I can take care of myself."
"Even if you are strong, I still want to," I said, my gaze locking with hers. "If I had known what that bastard Kaelen was doing to you, three years ago I would have…"
Just then, her communication crystal chimed. The caller ID was Kaelen.
Her brow furrowed. The moment she answered, his voice snarled from the crystal. "Why have you cleared out all your things from the Alpha's House?"
"I've moved out," Elara's voice was flat. "If you find anything of mine left, you can throw it away. You don't need to contact me."
"Moved out? What is this? Another one of your games? Are you trying to make a point?"
"It's not a game. I simply no longer wish to live there," she said calmly. "And about dissolving our bond, I don't want to drag this out. You can keep the thousand Moon-crystals from the agreement. I just want you to finalize the paperwork as soon as possible."
In three more days, the Full Moon Cooling-Off period would be over. If Kaelen agreed, their bond could finally be severed. She just wanted this mistake over with.
"Fine. You want to talk about dissolving the bond? Get back to the Pack right now. We'll talk face to face," Kaelen snapped, and ended the connection.
Elara put away her crystal and turned to me. "I need to go to the Blackwood territory."
"To discuss the rejection with Kaelen? I'm coming with you," I said immediately. I'd overheard enough of the call.
"No. This is between him and me. I need to do this alone," she refused.
"Will you really go through with it?" I asked, my gaze burning into hers.
Her eyes flickered to her parents' Spirit Stones resting nearby. She knew. If they could see her now, they would never want her to remain trapped in this suffocating bond.
"Yes," she said, her voice clear and absolute.