But it didn’t last. The King looked about ready to order both of us skewered to death on the knights’ spears. His face was red with absolute fury.
“Surround them,” he ordered.
The knights obeyed, circling the four of us, the tips of their spears pointed inwards. I stood in front of Sebastian, but he wouldn’t let me protect him. He scoffed and pushed me aside, walking so close to a spear I was genuinely afraid he might hurt himself.
“Put your weapons down,” Sebastian commanded. The knight closest to him shakily obeyed. “I am the eldest omega prince, next in line for the throne. To raise your spear to me is an insult and a crime. But unlike my father, I am quicker to forgive.”
“Don’t listen to him,” the King hissed. “He’s no son of mine. Not anymore. I disowned you, Sebastian, and now I’ll do it again in front of the entire upper quarter!”
“Keep telling yourself that,” Sebastian mumbled.
I didn’t know what was going on, but Sebastian didn’t seem particularly bothered by the threat, for whatever reason. I stood close to him, more worried about the immediate danger of being stabbed to death by spears.
Sebastian shot me a slight smile from the corner of his mouth. “Any moment now.”
What the hell is he talking about?I thought.
Sebastian raised his voice to address the crowd. “I regret to inform you the King has lied to you all. The so-called taboo on mating down only exists to prevent people from finding their fated mates. Becausethisis what happens when fated mates find each other. We gain the ability to shift. Isn’t that right, Father?”
The King trembled, grinding his teeth.
“And I have proof that you know this,” Sebastian went on, his voice calm yet vicious, “because you were so keen on hiding it that you tore pages out of Cecil’s book.”
My eyes widened. I was right all along. Itwasthe King that did it.
“You knew what would happen if you unleashed Rourke and Bjorn and forced them to fight to the death. You knew it would reveal them as Therianthropes,” Sebastian said. “But you tried to twist the narrative to fit your own needs. You wanted to paint them as the beasts you think they are.”
“Theyarebeasts,” the King ground out, spitting with anger. “Low-ranking alphas are nothing but animals! And now everybody knows it!”
“Then you’re saying only lowly alphas are capable of debasing themselves by shifting,” Sebastian remarked.
What is he doing?I thought wildly.Is he killing time? But for what?
“Yes, that’s right,” the King stated. He nodded and breathed in deeply, apparently trying to calm himself. Was he backpedalling now since he realized the crowd wasn’t entirely on his side? “Finally, we appear to be on the same page.”
Sebastian smirked. “Not quite.”
And then, right before my eyes, Sebastian changed.
The slight-figured man disappeared, his body fluidly morphing, and a beautiful grey-blue wolf stood in his place.
25
Sebastian
The shift felt strange, but not painful or unpleasant. I had no previous confirmation it would even work, but seeing Rourke transform in front of my eyes made the possibility very real. After all, it was not just the alpha of the Godly pair who could change his shape—the omega could, too.
So right there in front of everybody, and most importantly, in front of Father, I shifted to become a wolf. The color red dulled slightly, and my eyesight was a bit worse off, but my sense of smell was overwhelming. It was so keen that I smelled the musky sweat coming from Rourke as if it were right under my nose.
I glanced up at him. There was no fear in his eyes, only awe and relief. In fact, I saw that expression mirrored across many of the gathered citizens. After all, it wasn’t every day that their prince transformed into a wolf right in front of their eyes. This was history in the making—a moment they would never forget.
The only person who looked truly afraid was my father.
“You’re not my son,” Father spat. His shoulders trembled, though from rage or fear I didn’t know.
I knew he expected a response. Perhaps a conversation would aid him in digging himself a deeper hole. I shed the wolf’s form to assume my previous one. When I was a man again, I noticed something odd. Unlike Rourke, who had returned to his form naked, I shifted back fully clothed without a lace hem out of place.
Interesting,I thought.
