“You’ve got no proof,” he replies coldly. “All you have are your fantasies. But if you’re so sure you’re the King’s daughter, then wear the ne yourself. Let the people decide.”

    Lady Celestia ps her hands, desperation twisting into manic delight. “Yes! Let her wear it. Let the people seeb. /bLet the bne /bdecide!”

    “She’s right,” a voice murmurs from the crowd. “Let her wear it.”

    One by one, more voices rise, soft whispers swelling into a storm.

    Celestia yanks the ne from her neck and stretches it toward he like she’s handing Her grin is smug, her eyes gleaming with wicked anticipation.

    “Go on,” she taunts. “If you’re really the King’s daughter, you’ve got nothing to fear.”

    My fingers twitch at my sides, but I don’t move. I won’t fall for her games.

    “Kali…”

    The voice slices through the noise–deep, trembling, and full of emotion.

    me a

    de, eager to watch me fall on it.

    I lift my gaze toward the Alpha King, still standing halfway up the marble stairs that lead to his throne.

    “You don’t have to wear it,” he says gently. “I know you’re mine. I can feel it. That sword–my de–should’ve killed you. But

    it didn’t. Because you’re my blood. That’s all the proof I need. Don’t listen to her lies.”

    A lump forms in my throat.Of course he can feel it–the bond between us. The same pull that’s calling me to run into his arms and never let go but I never expected him to say it out loud.

    His words are soft. Sincere.

    They warm something inside me.

    And slowly, the pain and anger I’ve carried for so long begin to melt away.

    I find myself… forgiving him.

    But Celestia isn’t finished.

    “No!” she screams, nearly foaming at the mouth. “The only reason she’s still alive is because you probably gave her your blood

    within twenty–four hours. That’s the only exnation! It’s not because she daughter–you’re just a fool! So desperate to

    rece me, you’ll believe anything!”

    “Celestia, stop this madness,b” /bthe King says, his voice strained.

    “No, Father!” she shrieks, her face twisted in agony. “You are! You’re so desperate to rece me that you’ve blinded yourself. How dare you throw me away so easily!”

    I raise a hand, silencing the room.

    “Enough.” My voice rings through the hall. Celestia and the King freeze mid–argument. Every eye turns to me.

    “Fine,” I say. “I’ll wear it.”

    I take a deep breath, trying bto /bcalm the storm raging inside me. The weight of a hundred eyes feels like a suffocating cloak draped over my shoulders. My fingers tremble slightly as I reach for the ne. I pause, staring at it. It glints under the chandelier’s light–elegant, timeless… and ominous.

    “Yes, take it,” Lady Celestia sneers.

    A ripple of murmurs bspreads /bthrough the crowd–some in agreementb, /bothers filled with doubt or curiosity.

    13

    I bsteel /bmyself and reach for it. The moment my fingers brush the chain, pain explodes across my palm.

    Aviolent, searing sting shoots through my hand, as if I’ve grabbed inolten iron. skin sizzles. The burn is immediate angry, red, and raw, like fire self kissed struggles to heal… and fails.

    The wound isn’t healing.

    A collective gasp spreads through the hall.

    sin agony, yanking my hand back as my

    flesh. I stare at it, stunned, as my body

    “What—why did it-” I whisper, more to myself than anyone else. My heart races, confusion mixing with fear. Why did it burn me?