CHAPTER 45>>>>

Akira stood there; she wasn't breathing anymore. This was the first time she was seeing the beast. She had no idea that the Grand King had gone feral. The only time she had heard tales of the Grand Alpha King was back when she was in school, during lessons about the Four Axes and the current rulers of the werewolf kingdom. Apparently, no one could boldly tell the students about the rumors of the Northern Kingdom going feral. That was punishable by death if it reached the walls of the North.

The whole place was silent,only the sounds of the beast's footsteps could be heard.

Footsteps…….or something close to footstep—dragging claws gouged deep into the stone floor.

Lord Ragnar let out a sharp breath. He's here.

The shadow covered both Lord Ragnar and Akira. The beast was enormous, taller than any man—eight feet, more or less. Broad shoulders, his chest a wall of muscle and veins.

His body was half-shifted, grotesquely caught between wolf and man.

Tufts of coarse gray fur bristled across his arms and spine.

His torso had a sheen of flesh stretched too tightly over the bone.

His legs bowed forward, ending in claws that scraped and sparked against the stone with every step he took.

At first, Ragnar couldn't bring himself to look him in the face. It might have been five years, but he hadn't moved on from what had happened.

Seeing his one and only brother in beast form had always broken his heart into pieces.

Each time, he promised himself that he would act right and pretend to be okay for once, but he just couldn't.

He raised his gaze to the beast's face, and his eyes glistened with hot tears.

The beast's face was terrifying,something about it made hot liquid trickle down Akira's thighs the moment the beast turned his gaze towards her. If she had ever dreamed of scary nightmares, this was what awaited her in them.

The beast's muzzle was long—longer than normal. His jaws were splitting wide enough to reveal a mouth lined with jagged fangs, not neatly arranged like any wolf's.

His teeth were uneven, viciously curved like knives.

Whenever he grinned, thick, ropey saliva dripped to the floor.

Initially, his eyes were dark gray, but now, in his feral state, they were a little golden in color.

They were always alive with a hunger no man could satisfy. And worse, they seemed to smile even when his lips didn't.

Akira's stomach turned cold immediately. Her dress on the floor was now wet with her unexpected urine. Every breath she drew was shaky.

She tried to reconnect with Aya and ask her what this was, but Aya shut her out. She was left alone with something she couldn't quite explain. Despite Aya's refusal to speak, she kept stirring violently in Akira's mind.

For once, she questioned the moon goddess for giving her a stubborn and monotonous wolf like Aya.

The beast stopped walking, tilting his head to the side, his ears twitching. Then he leaned a little forward, sniffing the air.

He had caught a scent that dragged him out.

Lord Ragnar's heart raced as he stood where he was, watching the beast to see what move he was about to make.

Apparently, sometimes the beast didn't see clearly.

The way he was sniffing the air made Lord Ragnar's brows shoot up in confusion.

He only came out for blood. Only blood could pull him out quickly, and right now, there was no blood……..so why was he coming out?

Next, a growl rumbled from deep within his chest—so deep that the ground beneath Akira's feet vibrated, dust trembling.

Lord Ragnar stood still, planning not to make any noise. He just watched the beast as it continued to drag itself forward.

Unfortunately, he was coming too near, and his blood-stained fangs would hit Lord Ragnar, so he took a step back at once.

Just one step, but that was enough for the beast to stop. However, he didn’t turn to Lord Ragnar's side; he was approaching poor Akira.

Akira shuddered, watching the monster come closer and closer to her.

Then the beast growled. Lord Ragnar felt it in his ribs and wondered why the beast was approaching Akira. Did he smell blood from her?

For a split second, he shifted his gaze to Akira, sizing her up to see if she had any bruises from their scuffle. But he saw nothing.

Next, the beast turned to Lord Ragnar, locking eyes briefly before flicking them to Akira with a hunger that was not just lust, but something far more dangerous.

Akira gasped, her legs still shaking as the beast continued to approach her. She wanted to run, to scream, to escape, but she was just too weak for that right now.

Lord Ragnar tried to hide his fear, even though the tremor in his hand betrayed him. Akira was here; he needed to exert control. His brother was gone, and he had to act like the next Alpha, keeping the feral beast chained and not the cowering little brother staring at a monster in chains.

As if an invisible whistle had been blown, the beast hastened his steps toward Akira.

But Lord Ragnar quickly rushed forward, standing in front of him and obstructing his way to Akira.

“Not her, dear brother,” he announced in a shaky voice. “She's mine.”

The beast paused, his eyes shifted, and he stared down at Ragnar. His lips dripped thick saliva that casually dropped onto Lord Ragnar's face, feeling like mucus.

“Easy now,” Ragnar muttered. “You wouldn’t lunge at me. Not your own blood. Not after all these years I've kept you fed. You won't, right?”

The beast stepped forward, the sound of his claws dragging against the stone. The silver cuffs at his wrists clinked, stretched taut by his size, but didn’t break— not yet.

The beast let out a cold growl…..it was a warning.

Akira stood there watching in awe. She was still scared, but now grateful that Lord Ragnar was about to stop the monster from attacking her.

“You think you scare me?” Ragnar barked. “I am not some trembling slave for you to rip apart. I am the Alpha Regent, and I am your brother.”

Akira blinked rapidly, her eyes darting between the two of them. The news that they were brothers surprised her.

Now her wolf wasn't silent anymore—Aya was pacing inside her, not really in fear, but in a restless and primal rebellious manner.

“Why him?” Aya finally spoke, and Akira asked, “What, Aya? Who? What happened?”

Aya didn't say another word to Akira,she just continued pacing, leaving Akira to wonder why she stirred like that after seeing a monster. Was she scared?

However, the beast ignored Ragnar and moved again, closer. He took one step with a deep growl, and Lord Ragnar stepped back.

The beast wasn't looking at him anymore, he swore under his breath that he was looking towards Akira.

The beast took another step forward, this time very close. His blood-stained fur brushed against Ragnar, who swallowed hard, trying to control himself.

His lips twitched, and his jaw tightened. He didn’t know how to speak, but he forced his throat to work.

“B-brother,” Ragnar murmured in a shaky voice, hating himself for it.

The beast tilted its head, slow and very intentional. Saliva dripped again. And then without words, without language…..he let out a low growl, then gently raised his arm and pushed Ragnar aside, clearing his path toward Akira.

“What is it, Aya? Why are you angry?” Akira asked her wolf again, concerned.

“Talk to me, bitch. Just say whatever it is…” she urged Aya in a frustrated tone.

“No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no,” Aya continued to stir. “I refuse to accept it.”