The Alpha's Temptation

“Princess Lerna…” Meissa muttered from her place. She whipped her head towards her father immediately and said, “Father, that is Princess Lerna, sister of King Felis. You must kill her now! Else, our people will! And if they will kill her, they won’t spare Rigel too!”

Mintaka growled at her with so much ferociousness that she whimpered and became quiet. Her eyes went back to the field. She knew that Okab had stabbed Rigel with a poisoned dagger that would paralyze his arm for some time. but Rigel was strong. He had held his ground pretty strongly.

Mintaka at first bowed to King Eltanin and spoke loudly to Lerna, “Do not deceive us by your words, Princess Lerna! We know who you are!”

Lerna took a deep breath in. She was ready for this show. When Fafnir had received the information that Meissa had challenged Rigel for the throne, she was scared and feeling guilty. The only option left was to go and be with Rigel even if that meant that she would be killed. She had to be with her mate, no matter what. So, she had asked Eltanin to send her to the Orion Kingdom. However, as soon as Eltanin heard it, he ordered that she be crowned as the princess of the Draka Kingdom as his sister.

He legally adopted her and also rolled out a ceremony in which he called the Shaman who cut off her ties with the Hydra Kingdom and made her bound to Draka. When the ties were cut off, Lerna underwent tremendous pain and b***d loss, but she healed when she was bound to Eltanin.

And after that Eltanin said, “I will come with you to Orion. Tell me how you want to go about it?”

Lerna was forever indebted to Eltanin, but he refused to take it as a debt. “You are my sister, Lerna and that is a fact. So what if we were not born from the same parents?”

They had sent this message to Rigel through their spies and asked him to keep quiet about it because Eltanin didn’t want to waste the time in fighting soldiers or spies of Meissa and Okab. He was sure that she might instigate the people as well and it would be difficult to enter the stadium then.

The plan worked. They were not stopped anywhere as everyone was busy looking at the fight between Okab and Rigel. Though Rigel was angry that Meissa had called everyone to look at the fight to win, he didn’t go against it because of this very reason.

Lerna lowered her bow and arrow. She said, “It would be foolish of me to deceive you in front of this audience and in the presence of King Eltanin. My claims are true and you can verify them by asking King Eltanin!”

Okab glared at her with his chin dipped. He was breathing heavily. He had heard that she was so delicate and weak and that she didn’t have any warrior training, then how come she was able to use bow and arrow and that too so sharply. He took his hand to the arrow that was deep inside his flesh on the back and broke its shaft. Throwing it on the ground, he said, “If your claims are correct, then show us the tattoo with which every individual is born with! You can con us with your words, but you can’t mislead us with the tattoo that is present on your arm!”

Then he spun, wincing in pain. He knew that even though Eltanin was standing with her and showing his support, he was not going to let them ruin his plans. He looked at the audience and shouted, “Every werewolf born in Araniea has a tattoo of the kingdom he or she belongs to. If she is truly King Eltanin’s sister, she will have that tattoo!”

Eltanin let out a growl so dangerous that people of Orion froze in their places. There was a reason why he was known as the most powerful king of Araniea. “Okaabb!” he yelled. “You are crossing the limits!”

Okab’s confidence grew when he saw that Eltanin was defending her. This was his time to take down Eltanin too. Internally, he chuckled. He knew that this was the ultimate test and if Lerna failed, then Eltanin’s reputation would be forever ruined in the eyes of people. This news would travel faster than the wind. “If you think I am crossing the limit, then in my eyes, it is Princess Lerna who is crossing it. She better show her tattoo, else we all would know that you are biased and here to support only your friend, Rigel! You are not here for justice.”

Fury blasted in his chest and his chest rumbled with a feral growl. “Okab, do not— and I repeat, do not invite my wrath. It will be the end of you!”

Okab shook his head. He had made so many plans to rule Orion. He had been in this kingdom for a few months now. How could he let it all go? “Then bare the truth,” he challenged. “The public wants to know the reality.”

“If and when the truth is revealed, what will you do Okab?” Eltanin snickered.

He pointed at Lerna and glared at her. Confidently he said, “She will be taken to the dungeons and beheaded tomorrow and Rigel will be forever losing his kingdom!”

Eltanin looked over his shoulder. “What would you like to do, Lerna?” he asked.

Lerna returned Okab’s glare and placed her bow on the chariot’s floor. With her heart thudding inside her chest, she removed her armor and then bared her upper arm. The moment she lifted it for all to see, people gasped. There was a dragon tattoo coiled around her arm.

Okab stumbled back. “H—how is this possible?” he muttered, his eyes not leaving her arm.

“She is cheating!” Meissa shouted from her place. “Guards, arrest her! This is an illusion or good art!”

Okab agreed with her and started to walk towards Lerna to rub the tattoo art from her arm and expose her. But what happened next was unbelievable.