CHAPTER 224: _WAS ANY OF IT REAL?

Elian’s POV

*****

"What’s... What’s happening here?" He asked, stepping in slowly when he saw the whole crew gathered in Axel’s room.

Even Luna Queen Elowen.

And to top it off, they all faced Axel as if this were some intervention.

[The tension here is glaring. Also, I’m picking up traces of mana and energy from an Alpha aura.]

His brows furrowed into a deeper frown as he stood beside Lucian. He briefly glanced at the Alpha Prince and during that, their eyes locked.

Just for a moment.

But then—

"See?" The Beta pointed at Elian, forcing the latter to turn his head to him. "You’ve woken the poor champ up."

Elian arched his brow.

Champ?

It’s been a while since the Beta called him that.

"You’ve got so much bite for someone who’s cornered!" Aurora sneered, raising her hands all of a sudden.

Elian’s eyes widened when he saw the bright silver energy lighting up her fingers, swirling and pulsing like they were ready to shoot out any second.

What the heck?!

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Elian rushed to Axel, stretching out his arms to shield him.

Everyone gasped while Kyren snarled. "Elian! Step away from that bastard right now!"

Elian shook his head, ignoring the predatory light in the Rogue King’s eyes. "No. Not until you tell me what in the gods’ name is going on here."

"Trust us, Elian." Aurora stepped closer, strands of her silver hair blowing around her. "The gods will gladly thank us for ridding Solara of this... This perverted freak!"

Now he was even more confused.

[Are you sure now is the best time to make yourself the centre of attention?]

’I’m not going to let them hurt Axel when I don’t know what’s going on.’

[You could always find that out safely away from Aurora’s wrath.]

Elian’s eyes never left the princess who tilted her head, her eyes brimming with even more coldness.

All directed at Axel behind him.

"Elian..." Lucian was the one who spoke up this time, placing his right arm in front of his sister.

Hesitantly, Aurora’s hands lowered, and the energy gathering in her fingertips dulled. Just slightly.

"Axel..." Lucian pointed at the Beta who was oddly quiet throughout this ordeal. "Axel is Garrick Ironclaw, Elian. He’s the Dark Hand’s leader and is responsible for murdering my father."

Elian’s mind rang like sirens were blaring all around him. His world spun underneath his feet, his vision narrowing as he tried to process those words.

Words so unfathomable, so out of this world and unbelievable that his chest tightened at the mere thought.

Beta Axel. Garrick Ironclaw—

[Fruitcake... Run! Step away from him!]

But it was too late.

Before Elian’s senses could function enough to move a muscle, a strong arm wrapped around his neck from behind.

The same strong arm he’d admired for years within the Lunarian palace, wishing the owner would just glance his way—was now choking the life out of him, pressing him against Axel’s chest.

Elian’s limbs trembled, his breath hitching when Axel stretched out his free hand, flicking the fingers in front of his face.

"Elian!" Lucian and Kyren yelled in unison, both readying their attacks.

However, before they could make any moves, Axel’s fingers in front of Elian’s face lit up with golden light, which instantly morphed into flame-like energy.

"One wrong move and I swear on my name..." Axel’s voice was cruel, nothing like the warmth Elian was used to. "... I’ll paint this room with his brain matter."

Elian’s throat was tight, his eyes darting around the dimly lit room helplessly.

"Touch him and I’ll rip your throat out." Lucian’s eyes glowed with warning but Axel cackled mockingly.

"A throat for a head." The Beta sighed like he’d heard the biggest joke. "We all know his death will instantly bring pain to your bloodline because of the mate bond."

"And you won’t be affected?" Lucian sneered.

As his mates went ahead with the back and forth over his head, all the sounds, including their voices, died down in Elian’s mind.

All he could think of was the memories he shared with the man who held his life like it was a game now.

’Was... Was any of it real?’ he asked himself, swallowing hard trying to fight back tears. ’Did he... Did he even mean it when he told me he—when he told me he loves me?’

The sadness soon changed into grief, breaking him down from the inside out.

That grief was a painful realisation.

Beta Axel was Garrick Ironclaw. And the kind, warm, protective Beta persona—was nothing more than a mask he used to deceive them all these years.

[On the bright side, at least this means Lucian no longer holds the position of being your worst mate.]

Elian’s mind blurred, his nostrils flaring as the sadness boiled into something much darker.

Rage.

[Oh... Too soon?]

"Enough of this!" Axel barked, bringing all the attention back on him. "I’ll activate my teleportation device and leave now. And you’re going to let me—"

"The only thing you’re leaving this room in is a body bag." Aurora shook her head. "You’re not getting away with what you did to my father."

Elian could feel it burning in his veins like coal flaring in a hearth.

This was rage he felt, yes. But it wasn’t just his rage.

His eyes flicked between Lucian and Kyren, noticing how both their eyes glowed silver and crimson, respectively. They had the looks of killers ready to rip Axel to shreds if given the chance.

It was at that moment that it finally clicked in Elian’s mind.

This feeling... It wasn’t just the rage of his mates.

It was their powers thrumming through the Bond resonance!

"You still think you have control here, princess?" Axel sniggered, the Alpha energy in his fingers glowing brighter. "I suggest you do what you’ve done for years. Stay in the shadows."

Aurora’s jaw tightened, her fists curling so hard Elian heard her knuckles crack from here.

Meanwhile, Elian took in a deep breath, focusing on Kyren’s magic. The ten per cent of it he had access to.

It coursed through his blood, causing his finger tips to pulse with a tingling sensation as the magic gathered.

"Just accept it..." Garrick’s tone was mocking now. "You’ve lost. Unless you’re willing to make this Omega a casualty, there’s no way this doesn’t end with me slithering out of here."

Omega.

The way he said that made it sound like a slur. Axel has never looked down on him for his Omega status.

More proof that this really wasn’t the man he fell for.

That man never existed.

Meaning—

"I’ll enjoy what happens next..." He whispered, the fingers he had clamped around the bastard’s arm tightening.

Garrick froze, his frown almost visible. "What the—"

Elian activated a spell he had perfected all these weeks with Kyren’s guidance, allowing his body to experience temporary intangibility.

Temporary intangibility that let him slip out of Garrick’s grip and crouch, rolling away from him.

When he was at a safe distance, his lips curled slowly when he saw the stunned look on Garrick’s face.

Time seemed to freeze for merely a second.

But then—

The air hummed with pure magic energy, the ground beneath the Rogue king’s feet cracking.

Kyren sent the first blast at Garrick, followed by Lucian and Aurora. Even the Luna Queen joined in, standing close to her children as they put everything into it.

Elian closed his eyes when the mix of silver and crimson lights became blinding.

[You better keep that ghost spell active]

No sooner had the system said that than the cumulation of energies merged with catastrophic effects.

BOOM!

The explosion swallowed the room whole.

Elian barely had time to scream before the world went white.

And then—silence.