Back to Vasilos (2)
“We will hold a military meeting. Gather all the generals and military leaders, and make sure the Minister of Defense and Military Affairs, as well as the Minister of Internal Affairs, meet with me before the meeting begins.”
“I understand.”
“One more thing.”
“What is it, Your Majesty?”
“Tell my chief aide to prepare the ceremony.” Commander Abony nodded and turned to leave, leaving Alkrevas alone with Luna.
He bent down and embraced Luna before saying, “Now, you can do nothing but stand by my side.” Luna closed her eyes and raised her hands, noticing that they were covered in blood, before lifting her head and looking intently at Alkrevas. “We need to do something about our mate bond, don’t we?”
Luna swallowed hard and whispered, “Your Majesty, give me a chance to explain.” Then she carefully wrapped her arms around Alkrevas’s neck, returning his embrace and remaining silent momentarily, waiting to see if Alkrevas would reject her. She sighed in relief when she realized that Alkrevas had accepted her. “I will explain…”
Alkrevas tightened his arms around Luna and slowly stood up, lifting her as he stepped outside. He paused momentarily and glanced back, specifically at the temple building. One of his hands stretched out and destroyed the temple with a single strike, burying Ghea’s body in the ruins.
“No,” he whispered sorrowfully. Luna’s heart raced, and tears streamed down her cheeks as she realized her way home was gone. The portal that would take her back to her world had been shattered into thousands of pieces. Luna took a deep breath and shed more tears.
I can’t go home, and no one is happier about that than Alkrevas, Luna thought in sadness. She felt a hand gently stroking her back, and Alkrevas coldly whispered, “It was just a mirror, Luna. A mirror that is no longer useful. Now, what should fill your mind is me.” Alkrevas kissed Luna’s exposed shoulder and added, “So don’t cry over that mirror, because you should be thinking about the consequences of your actions.”
“Your Majesty…” Commander Abony returned to their side and reported that the teleportation magic was ready. Alkrevas walked while carrying Luna and finally arrived at the large-scale teleportation circle. “What about the knights and mages who were hit by the paralyzing magic?”
“Send healers and take them to Selene’s temple. After they recover, they will be sanctioned.”
“I will carry it out.” Commander Abony nodded and breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that Alkrevas had decided to impose punishment according to military regulations and not kill them on the spot. Commander Abony was also relieved that she had anticipated the Emperor’s wrath. Still, the man seemed so calm from beginning to end.
“Beta Savon is already waiting for you on the other side of the portal,” she said formally. Alkrevas nodded in acknowledgment and pressed Luna’s head to keep it down against his neck. He inhaled Luna’s scent for a moment and looked back at the collapsed temple. At the same time, Commander Abony observed Alkrevas’s possessive behavior toward Luna before turning and stepping away.
Alkrevas muttered a few words, and shortly after, the teleportation activated. In seconds, Luna was back in the imperial palace. They had returned to Mylonas, the capital of Vasilos. “Welcome back home, little mate.”
Luna remained silent and said nothing.
A soft chuckle escaped Alkrevas’s lips as he walked into the palace. All the palace staff, including Savon, were already waiting for him at the front door of the main palace, but Alkrevas ignored them. He chose to walk into the palace, heading toward the Emperor’s residence. Upon reaching the Emperor’s quarters, he asked Zyne, who had followed faithfully behind him. Norris had calmed down because Luna was now in their arms, and Alkrevas could fully control the body. “Have you prepared the room?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Alkrevas nodded in satisfaction and walked to the innermost area of the palace, stopping at a wooden door. Zyne opened the door, and Alkrevas stepped inside. A long staircase immediately greeted them. Alkrevas ascended the stairs, and five minutes later, he reached the top, where a door was located. Alkrevas opened the door, stepped inside, and placed Luna on the bed in the center of the room.
Luna looked around, her vision blurred by tears and her eyes swollen from crying. In a hoarse voice, she asked Alkrevas, “Where is this?”
“My private tower, in the east of the inner palace.”
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Alkrevas knelt by the side of the bed. They watched Luna before grabbing her ankle, which no longer had a tracking bracelet. “I need to give you a new bracelet, and it seems I need to add another accessory to you.”
“Your Majesty, give me a chance to explain.”
Alkrevas ignored Luna and muttered, “For now, this is what I’ll do to ensure you can be tracked and can’t escape.” Alkrevas extended his claw and, without any remorse, slashed several wounds into both of Luna’s feet, causing her to scream in pain. When he was done, Luna’s blood dripped onto the floor, staining the velvet carpet that covered it. Luna sobbed loudly and glared at Alkrevas angrily, but the man ignored her gaze and stood up.
“Now, I will give you time to explain.” Alkrevas glanced at the window, which was protected by magic. “I have twenty minutes before the ceremony preparations.”
“Ceremony preparations?”
“Yes, your punishment. I have decided on your punishment.” Alkrevas leaned down and caressed Luna’s neck where his claim mark was visible.
“I will hold a public mating ritual.” Luna’s face turned pale. She wasn’t foolish; hearing those two words was enough for her to understand what Alkrevas meant. “To ensure your loyalty to me in front of everyone and to restore our mate bond.”
“No…” Luna tried to reach for Alkrevas, but he stepped back, causing Luna to fall from the bed to the floor. She tried to stand up but couldn’t due to the wounds on her feet inflicted by Alkrevas. A cry of pain escaped her lips, followed by frustrated sobs.
“You’re lucky I didn’t break your legs.”
Luna looked up and shook her head. “Please… please… this wasn’t my choice.”
Alkrevas slowly approached and lifted Luna, placing her back on the bed. Then he covered the wounds on Luna’s feet with a cloth and checked her neck and internal organs after seeing her cough up blood at the temple. “I already told you. I will give you a chance to speak, Luna.”
“Will you believe me?” Alkrevas didn’t answer. “Can you truly believe everything I say? I beg you, Your Majesty…” Luna whispered sorrowfully.
“I don’t care,” Alkrevas replied coldly, which widened Luna’s eyes. Did he mean he wouldn’t care about her explanation? Or did he not care about the situation? Luna didn’t know which was true. “Just say what you want to say to me. Whether I believe your explanation or not isn’t your concern. So tell me, and don’t waste time because our time is very limited.”
Luna bit her lower lip. If Alkrevas had already made such a conclusion, what was the point of explaining? Even when everything was happening, she didn’t fight back and just remained silent so she could do the same now. But she thought it would be better to explain everything so Alkrevas wouldn’t see her as a traitor.
Because at that moment, Luna realized something. The pain she felt when she saw Alkrevas shatter the portal mirror didn’t compare to the pain of seeing him look at her with disappointment, coldness, betrayal, and emptiness. It was as if the warm gaze he had always given her was an illusion. She also realized that there was a sense of calm filling her heart when she learned that she wouldn’t be returning to her world. Luna took a deep breath and, with resolve, explained everything that had happened to Alkrevas.
After her explanation ended, Alkrevas just silently watched her. There was no response, not even an expression, as the man’s face remained flat and dark. Yet, for the second time, she couldn’t predict what Alkrevas was thinking. The man walked to the door, locked it, and then returned to the bed, laying Luna in the middle, removing the dirty clothes from her body, and covering her with a thick blanket.
“Your Majesty…” Alkrevas looked into Luna’s tear-filled brown eyes. They kissed her forehead gently before standing up and walking to a chair on the side of the room, facing the bed. Alkrevas sat in the chair and clasped his hands on his lap.
“Close your eyes and rest; you need to prepare yourself for the ritual.”
Luna finally gave in and pulled the blanket closer, crying silently in the stillness of the room with one conclusion in her mind: He believes me…
…
Markus stepped out of the portal mirror and was shocked to see Jaxon, with a worried expression, waiting for him. He glanced at the portal for a moment before its power dimmed again and asked Jaxon, “Why are you here waiting for me? You should be in Mylonas Capital.”
“I decided to stay here and send a magic message about our findings to the palace. I couldn’t leave this place. I was worried about you because it’s been several days, and you haven’t returned.” Jaxon appeared visibly anxious, and that successfully gave Markus a lousy feeling. There was no way Jaxon, his aide, and Beta would show such visible anxiety unless something terrible had happened.
Markus quickly set aside the memory of what happened on the other side of the portal for the time being, especially regarding the soulmate he had accidentally found. He then decided to focus on the matters at hand. He grabbed the cloak Jaxon had prepared-following his orders before crossing the portal-and hastily put it on while waiting for the man to explain the reason for his evident anxiety. “But Markus, I just received an urgent message from a messenger.”
“What is it?”
“His Majesty is going to conduct a public mating with Luna.”
“What? Why?” Markus immediately hurried off and returned to his study. He tried to contact the imperial palace through magic, but there was no response. Jaxon swallowed hard and recounted the events he had heard from the palace regarding Luna before bowing his head when he saw the anger on Markus’s face. Markus slammed the table so hard that it split in two, and the items scattered on the floor.
“If you sent the message, Alkrevas should have seen it by now! And he wouldn’t do this! Damn it! Why is this happening?” Markus angrily ran his hands through his hair and asked Jaxon, “When does the ceremony start?”
“Today. At sunset.”
Markus immediately turned to the window and saw that the sun was already beginning to set. “Prepare the teleportation! I don’t care if this violates security! I don’t care if the Magic Tower imposes sanctions on Veniam. I have to save my sister!”
“Yes, Your Grace Duke.”
Jaxon quickly ran out of the study, leaving Markus standing anxiously. No. He had to stop that ceremony. He wouldn’t allow his sister to be hurt by Alkrevas again.
Public mating would surely traumatize Luna. That punishment was too severe for Luna, who didn’t even understand this world-colluding with a black witch? Destroying the protective shield? That’s impossible! And does Luna have to prove her loyalty by undergoing public mating?
It’s outrageous! That’s why he had to act. He didn’t care if it meant clashing or going to war with his cousin. He didn’t care that the woman-his sister-was Alkrevas’s soulmate. Markus had to save Luna.
If necessary… he would take Luna away from this world with the portal mirror owned by the Veniam Duchy.
……….