Chapter 151 Chapter 150
It was late at night when the women who had gone to see the king returned to the palace, their expressions filled with disappointment. The king had been dissatisfied with all of them, and eventually, nobody was picked to spend the night with him. Soraya, who was part of the crowd, left to go and see Rayena, who had come out of her room to watch the returning crowd.
"What happened?" she asked when Soraya was close enough to hear her.
"Oh, nothing. The king wasn't pleased with any of us, so we were dismissed."
Rayena grew troubled. "It was that serious?"
"Yes. That doesn't matter to me, though. I didn't apply for that reason."
"I thought you said you wanted to see your crush. Was that not the king you were talking about?"
Soraya immediately shook her head. "Oh no, it's not. I was talking about his second commander, General Morvan—or what do they call him again? The one who carried you in the night you were attacked by the wolf? That one."
Rayena's eyes widened as she remembered, her lips parting in shock. Soraya misread her reaction and beamed. "He's a rather dashing young man, don't you think? He's so dreamy... I could spend hours just looking at him."
"That one?" Rayena squeaked. "He's terrifying. He was too mean to me when he came to take me from my parents. Even after I was saved from that beast, you should have seen the way he yelled at me!"
Soraya dismissed her with a wave of her hands. "He just acts that way in the beginning. He's really sweet. Our meet-cutes were always so endearing." Soraya's eyes turned glossy as she remembered their private accidental moments in the past. Rayena looked at her in shock. They couldn't possibly be talking about the same person.
"Anyway, enough about me. How have you been? Did you enjoy the silence?"
"Oh, I grew bored of it quickly, so I went out on a walk," Rayena said as they started their way to Soraya's room.
"Really? I thought you said you weren't stepping out of the harem anymore?"
"Well, I couldn't stand the silence. And I've been cramped in that room for days now. It was needed. Unlike everyone else, I've not gotten used to this lifestyle yet," she complained, and Soraya clicked her tongue, giggling afterward.
"Also, I met someone too," Rayena muttered quietly, but Soraya heard and froze, looking back at her.
"Um, who did you meet?"
"A male. His name was Lylall. He helped me back to the harem when I got lost," Rayena explained. Soraya mulled it over. The name sounded strangely familiar, yet she didn't know anyone by it.
"Well, I'm happy you had someone to help you return to the harem. If a guard had caught you wandering that far, there would have been consequences."
"I was glad too." With a wistful sigh, she added, "I hope to see him again sometime soon."
It was Soraya's turn to grow shocked, seeing the expression on Rayena's face. She chuckled afterward, shaking her head.
Well, she was happy for her friend.
.
.
.
Days passed, but no matter how many times Rayena tried, she didn't see Lylall again. She even tried asking around for him, but strangely, nobody knew anyone with that name. Even the guards. That had her baffled.
Sometimes, she tried sneaking back to the place where she first met him but didn't have the bravery to go that far, not wanting to be caught by soldiers who were on patrol. What was even stranger was how he consumed her thoughts. They only met once—why was she so affected by it? Giving up on the urge, she tried to lead her mundane life when Soraya came with news.
They were in her room, having dinner together when she spoke up. "Rayena?" Soraya called out, popping a plum into her mouth.
"Hmm?" the latter answered, food in her mouth.
"I won't be around tomorrow."
Rayena stiffened, swallowing the food in her mouth. "Why?"
"Well, the full moon is tomorrow night, and being a female werewolf, the night will trigger my heat. I and other female werewolves need to be out and with a male to scale through the night and take my heat."
Rayena seemed confused. "Heat? What's that?"
At her question, Soraya began to explain the mechanics of heat sex to her. "On the day of the full moon, our wolf side becomes stronger, its instincts overpowering us. It's usually when I crave sex the most and go into heat, so it helps if I have a male by my side to help me through it."
"Oh..." Rayena muttered in understanding. "But how do you get the male? I'm guessing it's not just anyone, right?"
"Well," Soraya clasped her hands in front of her, clearing her throat. "I already have one who helps me in moments like this, but it would require me to leave the harem as well as other female werewolves."
At her explanation, Rayena felt sorry for her while also simultaneously being glad she didn't have to deal with that. She couldn't imagine how troubling it would be. The life of shifters seemed more arduous than she originally thought. "Aren't there any other alternatives?" she blurted out.
"The best one would be me finding my destined mate, but those are incredibly rare. Others include placing myself on suppressants or getting bonded with a male that is compatible with me. Unfortunately, the other options are impossible because, like you, I'm promised to the king, and we're not allowed to be on suppressants. So this is the provision the king has given us to take care of ourselves."
"If... you weren't promised, who would you like to be bonded with?"
"General Morvan, my crush!" Soraya said without missing a beat. "I've liked him for the longest time, but even that is impossible too."
"Again, why?!" Rayena had grown exasperated. Soraya gave a sad smile.
"Unions between werewolves and weretigers are forbidden. General Morvan is a—"
"Weretiger," Rayena finished for her. Soraya nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat.