Filed to story: When The Moon Hides Crown
Instead, he whispered-voice low, almost reverent, “‘m looking forward to that.”
My pulse skipped. My fingers trembled slightly against the mattress.
What…?
What the hell does he mean by that?
There it was again-that maddening, breathtaking smile. Equal parts temptation and torment. And yet it rattled me more than I wanted to admit.”You’re insane,” I growled, jerking back and standing up.
I stormed toward the door, heart thudding wildly, but froze after two steps.
Dante.
He stood by the window, half-cast in shadows, watching. Silent. Still.
Eyes fixed on me like he’d heard everything.
The last time I’d seen him was the day we escaped the cursed forest.
But the expression on his face now made my blood run cold. That calm silence was anything but peaceful.
It was dangerous.
Ronan stepped out behind me, and suddenly, I was caught between the two of them.
I didn’t say a word. Didn’t look at either of them. I just walked past Dante and exited the hallway without looking back.
Today was the trial.
That was what I needed to focus on.
Behind me, the air remained thick with unspoken tension as Ronan and Dante stood, facing one another, neither willing to back down. Their Alpha auras collided violently, like two storms on the verge of breaking.
“Don’t get in my way,” Dante growled, voice low but brimming with intent.
“Then change your target,” Ronan shot back, his tone sharp enough to cut steel.
Dante’s lips curled into a slow, cruel smile. “I might’ve considered it.But now? It’s too late.”
Ronan’s eyes narrowed. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“Because this target is not something I have decided.”
SERAPHINA
The sun hung high by the time the Academy’s training grounds were transformed into a combat arena. The trial was finally beginning.
A thick crowd of Alphas buzzing with nerves and adrenaline, formed uneven rows across the open grounds. The scent of sweat and tension clung to the air. Beyond the ring of Alphas, the hierarchy stood beneath a shaded pavilion, watching like royalty on a throne. I roamed my eyes to find Ronan standing there with Asher and in the completely opposite direction like usual was Dante.
Just standing there.
Not dressed to fight. Not even warming up.
Finn nudged my shoulder. “They’re not participating,” he told me.
“Of course, why would they? They already have those luxurious rooms,” I murmured, stretching my neck.
Finn nodded, “Yeah, they have nothing to fight for here. We are actually desperate for that room,” he chuckled.
I could not deny it and chuckled as well. But I realised there was no one more desperate than me. I was ready to do anything to get that room! Privacy!
I roamed my eyes around and found something strange, “I don’t think that all of the Alphas are here? Some of them are missing?”
Finn followed my line of sight and nodded, “I actually overheard that some of the Alphas love to live with their room mates and don’t desire to be separated from their friends. So they are not participating in this trial even if it affects their ranking on the leaderboard.”I blinked in surprise, “So we can refuse to participate in the trials?!
“No, refusing to participate in the trial means getting kicked out of the Academy. But this trial is special and its purpose is to claim that room, that’s why it is considered optional” he explained.
I nodded in understanding white my eyes subconsciously went to his swollen lips. “Are you ok?”
He knew what I was talking about and smiled awkwardly, “Yes, I am fine. It’s just my wolf is being lazy.”
He grinned. I rolled my eyes and offered him my handkerchief for his lips. “It is bleeding again. Are you biting your lips?”
“Oh, really? Where?” Finn exclaimed, trying to find where it was bleeding.
“Here,” I reached out to help him with my handkerchief by softly pressing it on the corner of his lips.
Until suddenly a growl sounded across the Academy grounds, startling everyone. I almost jumped out of my skin and turned my head back to find the source of growl. It was none other than Ronan.
He had his glaring eyes fixed in my direction but his hand was grabbing the hair of an Academy cleaner who was fearing for his life after being grabbed by Ronan, “Don’t touch that!”
Ronan growled at the wolf but never tore his gaze from me.
My eyes went to the cleaner, placing the cup of coffee back at Ronan’s side and then back to Ronan. Did he lose temper over a cup of coffee being touched by the cleaner?
A frown crossed my face. What an arrogant jerk!
I tore my eyes from him and focused ahead as the Alpha instructorstepped forward, his voice sharp and commanding as it cut through the murmurs.
“This tria! will be conducted in three stages,” he announced, pacing in front of us like a walf on patrol. “First-one-on-one combat. The opponent you face will be the one standing directly to the right of you.
No switching. No complaints.”
My stomach tightened. I glanced to my right. Thankful that it was not Finn. I did not want to find my friend. But it was a broad-shouldered Alpha with narrowed eyes that was already sizing me up, good.
“The winners will then face another one-on-one round. This continues until only twenty Alphas remain.”
The crowd shifted with renewed murmurs. Twenty out of nearly a hundred. Brutal odds.
“Those twenty,” the instructor continued, his eyes gleaming, “will enter the final stage: a last-standing match. No alliances. No rules. The Alpha who remains conscious at the end will be the victor. They will be rewarded with the highest recognition and the hierarchy room!”
My heart thudded harder. Among all of these Alphas, I had to be the last standing even if my body would be worn out. It was the cost of the freedom, the privacy that was of the utmost importance for me at this academy.
“All combatants, to your starting marks!” the instructor barked.