TRISTAN:
“Prince Kaist and his men are here. They are asking for you.”
I slowly turned the knob from the shower and dried my body. Despite the present situation, I didn’t have the slightest inclination to hurry…
I was more deathly afraid to face Dahlia and confirm the cold stare that accompanied the icy tone she just used to call me.
Is it really true? Did she already know the truth?
If so, then, is everything over between us?...
Suddenly, the bathroom door burst open.
“Tristan, hurry up. Let’s not make them wait.”
Dahlia held my hand and led me outside of the bathroom. He snatched the towel from my hand and dried my hair with it, tiptoeing just to reach the top of my head.
“Dry yourself well, and wear that.”
I looked at the set of clothes at the bed. It was a red and silver suit – the colors that Dahlia liked a lot…
This is the first time
DAHLIA:“Dahlly…”He called me gently by my name – the name that my father would lovingly call me… The name that my best friend called me…. The name that everyone who was dear and close enough would say to me…Once, I thought we were really close enough… He was after all, my fated mate. He was supposed to be the one who will treasure me the most.The one who will love me… The one who will never lie to me…Now, I don’t even know if his real name was even ‘Tristan.’“Stop calling me by my nickname,” I breathed towards him. “That name is only for those who are close to me… Stop calling me that when I don’t even know who you are…”Today, I watched as my so-called husband lied to the prince without even bating an eyelash.All throughout his dealings with him, he never flinched. He never hesitated to lie ab
DAHLIA:My feet had no strength in them, but I needed to get away. I forced myself to continue walking despite the torrents of tears that came rushing from my eyes.When I reached the bedroom, I slammed the door shut. I went in front of the mirror and brought down the neckline of my dress even lower.As expected, the silver wolf head that had been my mark was not there anymore…I slumped at the floor and wailed even louder.I wanted to believe his words that not everything was a lie… I wanted to believe that at least his love for me or the fact that we were fated mates was something he had not concocted. Here I was, however, confronted with the truth, and it hurts like hell!We weren’t even mates to begin with… There’s no use staying here then…I didn’t think twice. I fetched a small suitcase from the dressing room and started packing some essential items and clothes.In about
TRISTAN:Before I could say anything back to Samalah, a knock came at the door.I looked back at Samalah’s seat and almost instantly, she had gone invisible – a power she can use at a whim when she needed to conceal herself.Lina came in after the fifth knock.“Count Abell, breakfast is ready… May I know where the Countess is?”She must have been under the impression that we were still together in the study.“She’s probably in the bedroom… She was tired from last night,” I said as I took another sip from the wine.“Count Abel, I know it isn’t my place to speak, but can I say something?”I eyed the empty-looking seat where Samalah was… I’m sure she’s still there. I must be careful.“What is it about?”“The countess, since she was young, was never someone who spoke freely even when things were already hurtf
DAHLIA:“I hope this room will suit you and your attendant for the meantime, Countess Abell. We will make better arrangements as soon as we can,” the dorm supervisor said as she walked us inside an available room.I thanked her and looked around the room as Lina and our coachman proceeded to unload the luggage from our carriage.I took a closer look at the bedroom. It was as spacious as the bedroom I shared with Tristan, but it was rather empty with only a few closet spaces, two beds, a table and chairs for studying.Because my decision to come here has been hasty, I had forgotten to call and made formal arrangements that I’ll be moving in today with Lina. As such, the dorm supervisor, Madame Matell, was put in a tight spot.Although I had discussed living at the dormitory with Tristan in the past, we had conceded that I take university lessons for the first semester at home. We were still newlyweds and had been inseparable, so we
DAHLIA:“W-What are you doing here?”I spun around with a wet towel in my hand. I was about to give a sponge bath to a child when a hand suddenly landed on my left arm.Surprise of all surprises: it was none other than Lady Livia Jeteris.“Hello… I thought I might see you here,” she said. There was an air of happiness in her voice when she saw me. It was probably just me who had resented seeing her.I didn’t respond to her and went back to what I was doing. I squeezed the water out of the towel and patted it on top of the head of the little vampire girl I was tending.Vampires typically had lower bother temperatures, but she was burning up with fever from a werewolf’s bite. I didn’t know vampires could also be affected by werewolves in such a manner…“It was probably because the rogues were using blessed relics… That could be the only explanation for her fever.&rdquo
DAHLIA:It did not register to me at first, but the second time someone had shouted, panic started to rise at the pit of my stomach.“Run! The village is being attacked by rogues!”I looked back at Lady Livia. There was no trace of fear on her face. I struggled internally what to do.‘We can do this, Dahlia! Don’t be nervous. You can transform already! I’ve got you,’ Eva growled inside of me…That’s right. I could transform at will now, right? I should be able to defend myself well…Ah, but I have never really engaged in combat as a wolf before… Would I be able to survive this?As if the blasted rogues could read what was on my mind, six of them appeared right in our midst.I poised myself for an attack. I didn’t know what they wanted in the first place, but I wasn’t going to let them come near us when we were so far away from others to get help.
DAHLIA:I stared in awe at Tristan’s chest. Why was my mark still there?He was still pulling my hand against his chest. I fingered the mark and scratched it. It didn’t come off. I scratched harder.“It wouldn’t come off no matter what you do,” Tristan said, his breathing becoming heavier.I pulled my hand away from his grasp, but he resisted.“Don’t push me away, Dahlia… Just stay like this for a while. Just until you recuperate please...”I wanted to laugh. I was the injured one, but my rescuer was the one pleading for me to stay.My body wanted to succumb to him. I missed Tristan’s warmth. I miss his touches, and therefore, this closeness between us was too dangerous.I reminded myself that I was trying to stay away from him and not get pulled in by his seduction again. I spoke in a firmer manner.“No. Please let me go.”His face looked li
DAHLIA:A spirit stone – one of the most powerful and precious items in the world!Since the extinction of the Shadow Rune pack, people from every clan – Werewolves, Fairies, Vampires, Dragons, Witches and Warlocks, to name a few – had all gone crazy in search of spirit stones, the runes that contain the essence of power and existence of a Shadow Rune wolf.Spirit stones are used as core ingredients for different kinds of spells, and even the mere possession of it was said to give power beyond compare to its owner.I could just imagine how Tristan and Livia, the last remaining Shadow Rune wolves, and no doubt both possessing spirit stones inside their bodies, would be in grave danger should anyone find out about their secret in Dalrus...As magic advanced, detection devices that could give away the presence of spirit stones had also been made over the years, creating a never ending quest for the remains of Shadow wolves and the ru