bChapter /bb170 /b

Nyssa pov

Liana…

She had called me that but why? That was the name of the king’s mate, wasn’t it?

I had heard him say it back at the Emberfang pack, the night we kissed for the very first time. He had whispered that name, and now, as the goddess spoke it again, my body jolted at the sound. It reacted instinctively, as though it remembered something I couldn’t. Before I realized it, I was leaning into her hand on my face, seekingfort from her touch.

When I did, the amusement in her eyes faded, reced by a flicker of sorrow as she gently wiped away my tears.

“My dear, Liana… you’ve suffered so much, haven’t you? You’ve been through so much.” Her voice was barely above a whisper. I looked up at her, and more tears slipped freely down my cheeks at her words.

I have suffered? Been through so much?

Yes–I had. Betrayed. Killed. Reborn.

I had endured more than I ever thought possible. And yet… something told me that wasn’t what she meant: It felt like she was speaking to someone

else, someone who wasn’t me.

“When you died back then, leaving him all alone, I pitied him. But I thought… maybe it was for the best. Maybe in your next life, you’d finally find happiness. Maybe you would be free. But…” She paused, her faint smile slipping away. “But no matter how many lives you’ve lived, you still crave him. You still want him back. You can’t forget the man you loved with your whole heart. And you long to reunite with him. I knew you’d do anything to find your way back to him.”

Her voice dropped even lower.

“And now… even after finally being with him again, you still want to remember. You still ache to know who he truly is to you… don’t you?”

She asked, and I wasn’t sure how it was possible, but I parted my lips and spoke before I could evenprehend what I had just uttered.

“Yes… yes, I want to remember him,” I shakily let out.

The next second, I stiffened. The goddess smiled with sadness, nodded her head, and let go of my face,ughing softly. As she closed her eyes, I could sense the shift in the air, sharper, thicker, heavier.

When she opened her eyes again, they glowed brighter, not with the look of a blind person, but with thepletely luminous white eyes of the Moon

Goddess.

My breath hitched as she shifted her gaze to me, eyes locked on mine, and suddenly the wind from earlier blew again.

The world seemed to slow as my hair whipped around, scattering strands across my face, and my clothes fluttered in the wind… just like the Moon Goddess’s.

My eyes widened as I stared at her, but strangely, the wind didn’t affect everything since the paintings should have blown away or been destroyed, yet they remained untouched, not moving an inch.

As I continued staring, the goddess moved her hand, and in a daze, I watched her reach for my forehead. Slowly, deliberately, she ced her finger on my head.

And the moment she did, it felt as though a force mmed into me but not the kind I was familiar with.

No, this was different. Calmer. Gentle, almost, as if it were trying to pull me under, into sleep.

10:39 Thu, 28 Aug 6 DA

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Before I realized what was happening, my entire body felt drowsy and the world around me blurred. The air grew thinner, and just as my eyes began to close, just as I was about to lose consciousness, I heard her speak, her voice soft, distant, barely audible.

“I hope this ill fate between you children ends soon.”

That was all she said before everything went dark, silence enveloping me as if my soul had finally been pulled from my body. Only this time, when I slowly opened my eyes, I found myself staring straight into a mirror. Everything was no longer blurry.

The body I was in, the face I now wore…was clear. It was the face of the woman I had seen in my dream, the one from the painting.

A shaky breath escaped me, and my eyes widened as I stared at the reflection of that beautiful face. Before I could stop myself, a single tear slid down my cheek, a long exhale escaping me. Seeing her face so clearly made everything feel even more overwhelming.

“Queen…why are you crying? Does your stomach hurt? Should I have the doctor check on the pup?”

A concerned voice pulled me from my daze, and I blinked through my tears. I realized I was holding a ss of water in one hand, and in the other, a drug.

“Queen, do you feel unwell? Please tell me so I can call for the pack doctor,” she repeated. When my gaze finally shifted to her, I saw a middle–aged woman standing before me, her expression full of worry. But her eyes were fixed on my stomach and when I followed her gaze, I gasped. The ss and drug slipped from my hands, crashing to the floor.

Crash!

My eyes widened, my breath hitching, as I stared at my protruding stomach in shock.

“Ahhh! My Queen! Are you okay??” the woman screamed, panicking as she checked on me. But I couldn’t even focus on her. I–I was pregnant.

Oh my goddess… I was pregnant.

I couldn’t believe it and pped a hand over my mouth in disbelief, staring at my stomach with wide eyes, half–convinced I was imagining it, that it would somehow shrink back to its normal size. But it didn’t.

The woman dropped to her knees and bowed, her body trembling in fear.

“I–I apologize, my Queen. This is all my fault. Please don’t tell the king. 1–if he knows, I might be punished for not looking after you properly. Please forgive me,” she pleaded, fearcing every word.

I didn’t have the time to focus on her words. I quickly grabbed her hands, my breathing harsh, and asked,

“W–who am I? Can you tell me my name? A–and most of all… this king you speak of… what is his name?”

My voice was shaky, my heart already dreading the answer I knew woulde.

She looked at me in surprise, her eyes widening slightly, perhaps sensing the seriousness in my expression. She shivered, parted her lips, and spoke the words that made my heart almost leap out of my chest.

“Answering, my Queen… you are the wife of the supreme leader of all werewolves. You are the magnificent Queen–Queen Liana, consort to King Darius.”

As soon as I heard her words, everything stopped.

Liana.

I had suspected I was inside Liana’s body–Darjus’ste mate–but hearing it confirmed still sent a shock through me.

The world blurred, my eyes wide and unblinking as I stared at the woman before me, struggling to process her words. Then, all at once, the ground seemed to tilt, dizziness crashing over me as the air grew suffocating.

Before I knew it, my eyes fluttered shut, and just as I slipped into darkness once more, a piercing scream tore through the air.

10:39 Thu, 28 Aud

“Queen!” the woman cried, her hands reaching out to catch me–before everything faded away.