CHAPTER 161: A HELLISH CONFESSION

The atmosphere inside the Lykon Haven meeting hall buzzed with tension. The Voladine party, the one backing Varrel, had already taken their seats, lined up beside one of the candidates for the next King of Lykon Haven. Their faces looked restless, eyes flicking toward the judge panel seated in front of them.

Voices within the party were split in two; one side still stubbornly insisting on defending Varrel, while the other was already convinced they had to let him go.

The candidate for King rubbed at his temples. He would keep Varrel, sure, mostly because that countryside wolf had poured a hell of a lot of money into the party. And it was no secret that thanks to Varrel’s wealth, they’d risen to be one of the leading powers in Lykon Haven. But what the hell was the use of all that money if the public despised Varrel and wouldn’t cast a single vote for him later?

His team had already tried reaching out to Varrel’s camp for a statement, for any defense against Zeran’s accusations, but had received nothing. Not a single word from Varrel’s side.

"I think if you still want to keep Varrel around, sir, you can just keep him as your bank," one of the senior party members whispered to the candidate. "But don’t make him your running mate."

"We’ll see. Let’s hope he denies everything and there’s not enough proof," the candidate murmured back.

Moments later, from opposite doors, both Zeran and Varrel stepped into the hall, followed closely by their teams.

Everyone took their respective seats as the judge panel began the interrogation on Varrel.

Varrel flashed a faint smile when his gaze met Zeran’s across the room. His eyes scanned the hall, locking onto the cameras positioned throughout, ready to broadcast every damn second of what was about to unfold to the public.

The head of the judge panel promptly opened the conference and instructed everyone in the room to place their electronic devices on the square table at the center of the hall.

At first, Varrel’s team looked confused and protested the sudden rule, but since everyone else in the hall agreed, being the minority left them with no choice but to comply.

The conference officially began, starting with basic identity questions. But the air thickened fast once the core issue was brought to the table.

"Varrel Quinnel, to address the public’s unrest, is it true about what Zeran Tuffin accused you of? That you committed fraud, infidelity, and slander against Lethia Ashcroft?" the judge asked directly.

Varrel lowered his head for a moment like he was thinking, then lifted his gaze with an expression full of regret and a bitter smile.

"Yes. That’s true," he answered softly.

A ripple of murmurs spread across the hall, and even Zeran’s expression tightened in alert, clearly taken off guard. That answer was far from what he expected.

"So you admit to all those accusations?" the judge pressed.

"Yes..." Varrel repeated, still with that weak voice.

But to Zeran, it rang like cheap, rehearsed acting.

"But... I didn’t do all that of my own will. It was all under the influence of Lana Ashcroft, my fated mate," Varrel continued, his voice trembling to sound pitiful. "She couldn’t accept that her fated mate chose someone else. That’s why I joined the Voladine party here in Ashenhold. Because here, we have the freedom to choose our own mate. We’re not bound to fate."

"Lana used magic on me. Manipulated me into agreeing with her every move. It wasn’t until I joined Voladine and got help from the oracle to break the dark spell that I finally came back to myself, the self that loves and chooses Lethia Ashcroft."

Varrel spoke with a tone that danced between desperation and devotion, pouring it all out in front of the silent crowd and the rolling cameras.

A moment later, one of his team members stepped forward and handed over a stack of papers to the judge panel.

"These are proofs that the crimes I’ve been accused of were entirely the result of Lana Ashcroft’s magical influence. She’s now mentally unstable because that dark magic has been broken off from me and turned back on her."

Varrel lowered his head, his shoulders shaking as sobs slipped from him.

"Still, I understand... I’ve failed to protect the one I loved, and I’ve hurt her deeply. That was my mistake, I couldn’t keep her safe. I know now I’m not worthy to be part of any just leadership in Lykon Haven. Which is why... I’m stepping down from accompanying Mr. Solvet as a candidate for right-hand man king. I offer my deepest apologies."

With that, Varrel stood from his seat and gave a deep bow before everyone in the hall.

Zeran folded his arms tightly across his chest. He knew damn well Varrel was just putting on a show. His fists itched to swing straight into that fake-crying face. But this was the council hall, violence had no place here. Only evidence held the power.

Watching the judge panel nod slowly while reading through Varrel’s submitted files, Zeran’s gut twisted. That bastard really might’ve forged the documents. Should he rewind time and take the files before they were submitted? He had missed the chance to double-check Lana’s condition since Varrel had hidden her too well.

"Sir, this doesn’t look good. Should we strike back with that photo?" Derreck whispered beside him.

Zeran tapped his fingers rhythmically on his forearm, eyes narrowing at Varrel who had taken his seat again and was still dabbing fake tears like some main character.

"That photo is useless now... He just stepped down from the election. You know what that means?"

Derrick merely blinked, waiting for Zeran’s response.

"This election means nothing to him anymore. He already has something far bigger."

"And what is that, sir?"

"What’s the latest on Ashcroft’s stock?"

"Still crashing, sir."

Zeran leaned in and whispered something to Derreck, who nodded firmly and got up, slipping out of the hall.

While the room buzzed with hushed murmurs and the judge panel huddled in a serious private discussion, the giant LCD screens on the hall walls suddenly lit up. And a video began to play.

The entire hall fell silent, frozen in place, jaws dropping as the footage played.

Especially Varrel and his team, they looked like they were watching a horror movie. Eyes bulged on pale faces.

On the screen, Varrel was shown kissing a maroon-haired woman with full of passion.

"Turn that off!" Varrel barked, his voice cracking with fury, snapping at one of his team to shut the thing down.

The man rushed to check the video source, only to return pale and shaking.

"We can’t stop it. It’s being streamed from a foreign server, and it’s showing across all public LED screens in Ashenhold."

The video continued, Varrel’s intimate scene with the woman now blurred with mosaic, but the movement still clear enough. The footage fast-forwarded, and then Varrel’s grunting voice, moaning at climax, echoed through the speakers.

The audience exchanged shocked glances, some turning away awkwardly, others frozen in disbelief. Varrel and his team scrambled, desperate to grab their phones, trying to find any way to stop the video.

But then, the next sound made the hall drop into another eerie silence.

From the speakers, Varrel’s voice whispered, sultry and low as he caressed the woman in the video.

"I love you, Lethia. You’re the best thing that ever happened in my life. I love you... I need you... I’ll kill Lana if that’s what you want, if it will make you come back to me."

Zeran chuckled in disbelief at what he just saw and heard. It was fucking obvious the woman in the video wasn’t Lethia. But Varrel’s voice was clear as day, like he was speaking straight to Lethia.

"That damn fated mate bond... I already rejected Lana, but fuck, she got pregnant. Refused to accept my rejection. I had no choice but to hurt her."

The video showed the woman speaking back, her lips moving, but no sound came out. Only Varrel’s voice kept pouring, like a one-way confession straight from hell.

"Yeah... I fucked all kinds of sluts just to weaken her. But that stubborn bitch just got a little crazier and still refused to take the rejection."

The blurred video fast-forwarded again, showing Varrel with the woman in multiple intimate positions. The hushed voice in the hall grew heavier, and disgusted stares began to rain down on him like venom.

"But you know it, right? Even those bitches I slept with, I made them look like you. So rest assured, my love, my mind, my heart, my fucking soul will always be yours."

It became clear then that the purpose of the video was to expose his voice. An edited recording of the truth about who the real Varrel Quinnel was.

"You don’t need to worry, my love... My rebellion plan is almost perfect. We’ll destroy Ashenhold and build a new kingdom. You... and me..."