Chapter 38 MANIFESTION

Chapter 38 MANIFESTION
CHAPTER 38. MANIFESTION

IRIS'S POV 

Consciousness slowly, reluctantly creeps back in. The first thing I realize is the sensation of a mattress beneath me. I am lying down on a bed, the fabric beneath my fingertips smooth and foreign. The moment I try to push myself up, a sharp, white-hot stabbing pain ignites at the back of my head, radiating down the base of my skull. I wince, letting out a soft groan as I press my palm against the back of my head.

"Easy, dear," a voice says.

The deep, velvety baritone instantly grabs my attention, slicing through the fog in my brain. I turn my head toward the sound, my eyes straining in the dim light, and see Kaelen sitting a short distance away from me. He is relaxed in a heavy wooden chair, watching me with a quiet intensity.

I tear my gaze away from him to look around, trying to ground myself in my surroundings. I am in what looks like a beautifully designed, sprawling ritual room. It is a standard bedroom but built with an undeniably rich, aristocratic taste. It reminds me of the ultra-luxurious bedrooms of the wealthy kids back in the human world, except this one is infused with a distinct style—weird, fantasy-like country designs that hold a rare, strange beauty. Intricate carvings run along the crown molding, and the walls are draped in heavy, dark tapestries that seem to absorb the warm glow of the lanterns.

I swallow hard, my throat dry as bone, and blink rapidly to clear my blurred vision before turning back to look at him. Kaelen is smiling softly at me. He shifts in his chair, his golden eyes scanning my face, scrutinizing my expression for any sign of distress.

"Ah, haven't been in a domitory before?" he asks, his tone joking but laced with a very real undercurrent of concern.

I shake my head, a lock of red hair falling across my eyes as I look down at the sheets. "No... um, sorry. I’m just... it’s just very beautiful," I mutter, my voice barely a whisper. I’m not sure if I’m talking about the room or the terrifying magic I just unleashed, but the words feel clumsy on my tongue.

Kaelen’s smile grows wider, a warm expression that reaches his eyes. "You’ve been completely unconscious for a while. After you collapsed, the Council was in chaos, so I took the initiative and brought you over to my private quarters. The witch—Ciara—created a magical concoction to help you recover from the shock."

My brows furrow slightly, the word concoction lingering uncomfortably in the air.

He nods, anticipating my worry. "Yeah, she examined your aura before you completely blacked out. She said something about your latent powers being entirely too massive for your current state—for a human body to carry, you know? Your physical form hasn't been trained or conditioned to accommodate that kind of raw pressure, so your system just short-circuited. It’s going to take a while before the sedative properties of the blend wear off completely. Once it does, that headache is going to resume with a vengeance. We’ll have to begin training you to contain and discipline your power as soon as possible."

I blink rapidly, swallowing the lump in my throat as the sheer weight of his words settles over me. My mind is having a hard time trying to keep track of reality. My life is moving too fast, changing fundamentally within the blink of an eye, and I am struggling just to keep my head above water. I stare at him in a silent daze, the room suddenly feeling too small.

Kaelen pushes himself up from the chair. His massive frame rises with an effortless grace, and he slowly walks over to the edge of the bed.

"Look at me, Iris," he says softly, standing close enough that I can feel the heat radiating from his skin. "I know everything is a lot to take in right now. It’s terrifying, and it defies everything you’ve ever known. But don't worry. You will get through this. You will survive the transition, I promise you. And I am right here for you. I’m not going anywhere."

I look up into his face, searching his features. I see the genuine, absolute seriousness in his molten gold eyes, and that dangerous, volatile flutter in my chest returns with a vengeance. My heart flinches, a sudden heat blooming beneath my skin that makes me blink rapidly as my cheeks swell with a heavy blush. I quickly snap my head away, staring at the dark drapes to hide my face.

I am starting to get this overwhelming feeling that there is something undeniable between us—a strange, magnetic pull that I am completely powerless to fight. It is heavy, primal, and driving me utterly insane because I don't understand it. I still have a million questions screaming for answers in the back of my mind. But right now, an even bigger problem is staring me down. How am I supposed to handle a life in this kingdom? I still have best friends, a mother, and a father waiting for me back in the human world. Do I truly belong in this dark paradise? Or is this just some cruel, twisted nightmare born from a fever?

Kaelen lets out a soft exhale, breaking into my spiraling thoughts. "Would you like something to drink?" he asks, his hand gesturing vaguely toward a silver pitcher on a side table. "Anything to help you calm down? I don't know what humans usually prefer."

I bite down hard against my bottom lip, the sharp sting of pain grounding me. I don't even know how to reply to his offer. He notices my eyes darting toward the heavy oak door.

"Oh, the witch is going to be back shortly," Kaelen explains, his voice dropping slightly. "She went back to her chambers to brew a few other stabilization concoctions. We need to settle your mind before the Council reconvenes. And... I also have to let you know that the Elders are absolutely not going to let this slide easily. They are going to summon you back to the high chamber to examine your bloodline. That raw, destructive energy you displayed... they might be keeping silent about it now to save face, but I saw it. They all saw it. That wasn't the aura of a werewolf, Iris. Neither is that the primal power of a vampire or a shifter. That was the raw, elemental energy of a witch. And you know exactly what that means in this academy."

My eyes widen, my breath hitching in my throat as the terrifying reality of my situation slams into me. "It means they are going to look at me as more of an enemy than an ally," I say, the words tasting like ash. "They are at war with her kind."

Kaelen smiles, a flash of white fangs appearing against his lips. "Great. I’m happy to see you’re catching on real quick," he says, though his tone remains encouraging. "So, I just need you to remain completely calm when they call for you. There is still a distinct possibility that we can cover this up. Whatever happened in that hall, we can argue it wasn't actually magic. We werewolves possess these weird, ancient senses within our bloodlines, you know? It’s something we usually do when we are unleashing our internal alpha aura—a localized atmospheric pressure that erupts from our skin. It is strong and powerful enough to topple ordinary humans or any figure standing too close by. We can still chalk the bodyguard incident up to a rare, dormant wolf trait."

He takes a step closer, his shadow falling over the bed. "It’s just that, right now, Alpha Cyphros is looking for an excuse to eliminate any threat. But just breathe. We’re going to work out the necessary rituals to mask your scent, and you will survive this. I am personally going to take care of you, Iris. The pack won't push you away. I won't allow them to."

I bite my lip harder, nearly drawing blood as the anxiety threatens to pull me under. My heart is beating so fast it feels like a physical vibration in the room.

Kaelen’s brow pinches, his eyes dropping to my chest. "Jesus, Iris, you look so incredibly worked up. Are you okay?" he asks, his voice laced with sudden urgency.

I frown up at him, my tensed muscles locking.

"Your heart is beating so fast," he whispers, leaning in slightly. "It sounds like a stampede."

I stare at him, my confusion deepening into a cold spike of fear. "How... how do you know that?" I ask, my voice trembling. "How can you tell?"

"I can hear it," Kaelen replies simply, his golden eyes locking onto mine with an intensity that leaves no room for doubt. "In fact, I can physically feel it vibrating against the air."

He can feel it. The revelation that my very biology is exposed to him makes the stabbing pain return to my skull, a sharp, throbbing ache that makes me blink rapidly. But before I can push him for an explanation, a very sharp, aggressive knock rattles against the heavy wood of the door, causing the both of us to jolt on instinct.

"Kaelen! The Alpha is asking for you in the high chamber," a voice calls out from the corridor.

It isn't a wolf guard. It’s a woman's voice, dripping with a thick, heavily sarcastic tone that I recognize instantly. It is the witch, Ciara.

Kaelen lets out a low chuckle, the tension in his broad shoulders relaxing just a fraction as he shakes his head. "I don't know what the hell is wrong with her lately," he murmurs, turning his back to the bed as he walks toward the entrance. "She’s actually grown rather bold ever since you displayed that little manifestation."