The Shadow King's Alpha : The Cursed Bond

[Ashkarath Forest — The Next Afternoon]

The forest was silent, not the peaceful silence of ordinary woods...but the suffocating stillness of a land that belonged to a deity. No birds sang and no insects dared to chirp. Even the wind seemed to fear disturbing the ancient trees.

Grand Duke Lior Vaelric walked alone beneath the towering black pines, his armored boots crushing fallen leaves, yet even those sounds felt swallowed by the endless forest as his sharp eyes searched every direction.

"This is the place." His voice remained low. "The Ashkarath brought me here before..."

He continued deeper into the woods. "But where...does the Lord of Darkness reside?"

There was no answer, only silence. He took another step, then a chill crawled down his spine as every instinct screamed.

Danger.

Lior stopped walking, slowly... He turned around; towering behind him stood an enormous black wolf, his body seeming carved from living darkness itself. Golden eyes, ancient and merciless, stared down upon the Grand Duke without the slightest trace of emotion.

Black mist drifted endlessly around the colossal beast, swallowing the surrounding light. The pressure alone was enough to make even veteran warriors collapse.

Then the wolf spoke; its voice shook the forest itself.

"WHY... ARE YOU HERE?"

The trees trembled, and leaves rained from the branches. Lior remained where he stood; he neither stepped back...nor lowered his gaze.

"I have come...to meet you."

Those ancient golden eyes narrowed; the wolf’s voice became colder. "I ASKED...WHY."

Lior inhaled slowly; his voice grew quieter. "My son...Kael."

The Shadow King’s expression did not change. Lior continued. "For an entire year...he has endured endless nightmares. He relives the slaughter of the Ashkarath every single night; he no longer sleeps, he no longer smiles, he wakes screaming, and he is slowly dying."

Silence.

Lior met those ancient golden eyes. "I know...that this is your doing."

The black wolf remained motionless. Lior took a single step forward. "I have not come to accuse you. I have not come to challenge you. I have come...to remind you."

The enormous wolf’s ears twitched ever so slightly. "My son...is your mate, and whether you despise him...or never wished for that bond...he is still yours."

Lior slowly lowered himself onto one knee; he bowed his head. "I ask nothing as a Grand Duke. I ask nothing as the head of House Vaelric. I ask only...as Kael’s father. Please...fulfill the duty that belongs to a mate."

For several heartbeats...nothing happened. Then black mist swallowed the enormous wolf. The colossal body dissolved into darkness; standing in its place...was a man. Long black robes, flowing raven hair.

Ancient golden eyes that had witnessed the birth and death of kingdoms. Lytharion looked down at the kneeling Grand Duke with complete indifference.

"A mere wolf." His voice was quiet, yet somehow...far more terrifying than his roar. "Dares to remind a deity of his duties? It seems...Grand Duke Lior, you have forgotten your place."

The air instantly grew heavier; the forest itself seemed to kneel. Lior slowly lifted his head as his voice remained respectful.

"I have forgotten nothing. I know before whom I stand; I know you are the Lord of Darkness, and I know a single thought from you could erase me from existence."

He lowered his gaze once more.

"But...even the oldest laws of this world bind gods."

Lytharion’s golden eyes narrowed as Grand Duke Lior continued, "A deity cannot abandon the mate acknowledged beneath the Lunar Covenant."

Silence.

The pressure surrounding them intensified. Then...Lytharion laughed, one completely devoid of warmth.

"Your son...offered himself to me. He became the vessel for the sins committed by your emperor; he chose that path, and he accepted that burden."

His golden eyes slowly returned to Lior as his expression remained utterly emotionless.

"And now...he is paying its price. So return home."

His next words struck like a blade.

"And begin preparing...for your son’s funeral."

Lior’s clenched fists trembled; his breathing faltered. For a brief moment...he looked less like the mighty Grand Duke of House Vaelric...and more like nothing more than a desperate father.

"I...I beg you."

Slowly he lowered both knees to the earth. Then...he bowed completely; his forehead touched the cold ground.

"I beg the Lord of Darkness...please...do not let my son die."

Silence.

Lytharion simply watched him, the proud grand duke who had never bowed before an emperor...now prostrated himself before a deity, not for power and not for glory. Only...for his son.

Lior’s voice trembled.

"My son accepted your judgment...for crimes he never committed. He sacrificed himself to save this empire. He offered you his own life so thousands of innocent wolves could live."

His hands tightened against the earth.

"You demanded Emperor Tharzek’s head. I fulfilled that promise; the man responsible for the slaughter is dead. So now...I beg you. He is only twenty-two; he has barely begun to live. I raised him not as my son but as the future head of House Vaelric. I burdened him with responsibilities too heavy for a child. I taught him duty before happiness and honor before dreams. The empire...always came before him."

A painful smile crossed Lior’s face.

"And yet he never once complained. "If there is anyone who should bear this punishment...it should be me. So I beg you...let my son live."

The forest became deathly still; even time itself seemed unwilling to move. Lytharion quietly stared at the kneeling father. Then...he sighed as he lazily ran a hand through his black hair.

"How troublesome. So much...needless attachment."

He turned away; his robes swayed with the wind. "The lunar moon approaches; return before the night arrives. There is nothing you can ask of me, and there is nothing I intend to give."

Without another glance...black mist engulfed his body. In an instant the man disappeared. An enormous black wolf stood where he had been; golden eyes looked back only once.

Then—

FOOOOSSHHHH!!

The Shadow King leaped into the depths of the forest; dark mist swallowed him whole. Within seconds...he was gone.

"Shadow King!"

Grand Duke Lior hurried to his feet; his voice echoed desperately through the endless woods.

"Please! You cannot abandon him; he is your mate! You may hate him! You may despise the empire, but you cannot abandon the one the Lunar Covenant has chosen!"

His voice broke.

"If bonded mates do not stand together beneath the coming lunar moon...Kael will die! Please, bear the responsibility of your mate! I beg you!"

Only silence answered him; no black mist returned and no golden eyes appeared between the trees, only the endless forest...and a father standing alone beneath its ancient shadows.

Grand Duke Lior slowly lowered his head; his hands trembled helplessly as he whispered into the empty woods.

"What am I supposed to do now?"

His eyes lifted toward the pale afternoon sky, the lunar moon; it was almost here, and with every passing hour...his son moved one step closer to death.

***

[The Lunar Moon—The Night]

The night had finally arrived; the heavens blessed the world with the lunar moon,a moon larger than any other, brighter than any ordinary full moon. It hung above the Empire of Qashmar like an ancient eye, its silver radiance washing over mountains, forests, rivers, and kingdoms alike.

It was the night when spirits descended. The night when ancient vows were acknowledged, the night when the first lunar spirits would choose the next emperor.

Across the empire...wolves emerged from every direction.

The Seven Great Houses, the noble families, the priests, and the knights. Thousands upon thousands walked toward the Great Temple of the Lunar Spirits, built high upon the sacred cliffs overlooking the empire.

This night would decide the fate of the empire. Far below the sacred mountain...a Kael slowly ascended the winding stone road; his black horse moved steadily through the silver mist.

Each hoofbeat echoed against the cliffs.

Clack...

Clack...

Clack...

The cold moonlight fell upon him. For a brief moment...it looked beautiful. Then Kael suddenly stiffened.

"...Hng..."

As his fingers tightened around the reins, a sharp pain exploded across his chest. It felt as though invisible claws had sunk deep into his heart; his breathing caught.

"...Ah..."

He lowered his head, gritting his teeth; the pain did not come from a wound. It came from the black mark hidden beneath his robes.

The mark of the Lunar Covenant.

The mark that bound him forever to the Lord of Darkness, the silver moon continued to shine, and with every ray that touched his body...the mark burned hotter.

As though reminding him...that somewhere beneath the very same moon...his mate stood elsewhere and was absent.

The bond reached for the one who should have been beside him...and found only emptiness. Kael’s breathing became uneven.

"Not now...Please...not tonight."

Another wave of agony surged through him, his vision blurred and his heart pounded painfully against his ribs. Each beat felt incomplete, as though something vital had been torn away.

He instinctively pressed a trembling hand against his chest; the burning refused to stop. It only grew worse.

His horse slowed beneath him, sensing its master’s distress. Kael closed his eyes; his voice was barely audible. "Agh..."

For an entire year...he had endured nightmares. For an entire year...he had wondered why the mark sometimes burned without reason. But tonight...beneath the lunar moon...he finally understood.

The pain...wasn’t merely the curse. It was absence.

The Lunar Covenant was calling for its other half, calling for the deity who had claimed him. Calling...for Lytharion.

Yet...there was no answer. No comforting presence, no hand reaching for his, and no mate standing beside him beneath the sacred moon.

Only silence.

The bond stretched across impossible distances...searching, waiting, and yearning. Until it had nowhere else to pour its grief...except into Kael’s own heart.

"...Haa..."

A pained breath escaped his lips; he leaned forward slightly over the horse’s neck, his entire body trembling. His vision darkened around the edges for one terrifying heartbeat...he thought he would fall, but he didn’t.

Slowly...he straightened himself; his breathing remained ragged and his face had turned frighteningly pale. Cold sweat traced down his temples despite the freezing night air; he wiped the blood from the corner of his lips before anyone could see it.

"Just...a little longer." His fingers tightened once more around the reins. "I only have to endure...a little longer."

The horse continued climbing the sacred road. Above him...the magnificent silver moon watched in complete silence. As though even the heavens pitied...the abandoned mate riding alone toward his fate.

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