"RELEASE"

BANG!

"Another perfect hit for the Prince." The caller announces and the crowd applauded as I lower my weapon and wink to my opponent who has a scowl on his face, not paying attention to the crowds of ladies giving me lustful looks of seduction, I turn to Lord Brion.

"Maybe next time." I say with a smile as I walk past him, my gun over my shoulder as I hear Lord Brion grunt out annoyed.

I see guards waiting by the edge of the field with my father the King as I make my way towards them, each step making me more annoyed from his presence.

What does he want of me now?

"Father, to what do I owe the pleasure?" I say as I stare at the guards beside him, fully geared in armor.

I see him move his hand towards my face but I don't move as he smacks me against my cheek. "Stupid ungrateful swine! Did you think I would not find out?" He yells at me, causing me to smirk.

"Why would you turn down Lady Damascus? And to make her cry! I should throw you in the dungeon with those mutts!" He threatens and I sigh out, pissed off by how he is speaking to me.

Clicking my jaw I stare down at my father as he squints his eyes at me for a challenge. "The Lady was loose, surely you don't expect me to bed a scarlet and taint the Black name?" I challenge him and he takes a step back, fury on his face as he turns slightly crimson in the cheeks.

The air tenses as his hand twitches, I let him as my father get the first strike but a second? Just fucking try, he knows I will not allow it, as the next King, he would not dare of striking me again, afraid of his fate once I'm King.

He doesn't and relaxes his breathing as he stares at me annoyed. "We ride for The Vale in an hour, no more games Demonia, we need this treaty to go well for the sake of our Realm." He says stiffly as I raise a brow.

Ah yes, the treaty.

The wolves are finally ready for a talk, only when they're not chasing their own tails around in circles.

I begin to walk back to the castle grounds leaving my father with his guards behind me, uninterested in hearing any more about this as I've had to listen to this topic for a few god awful painful months and it's putting a damper on my mood.

Up ahead is Castle Black.

The castle was first built when my family named claim to this realm, thousands of years ago. It has stood through wars and raids and it is still standing, the walls are mountains high and the stone is impregnatable.

No one can say once glancing upon the Castle that it is no wonder why my family is feared and adored, we have protected this realm for centuries against all odds. Famous for our large armies and practice of dark magic, Shadow Lands is home to one of the greatest weapons, Lycans.

Slaves, under the right spell they are quite magnificent as Lycans can heal at an alarming rate, we have used this to our advantage, constant assault on their memory wiping has made them submit, a once-powerful legion of wild beasts, submitting to no one now submit to the Royal Family house Black.

The practice of dark magic is forbidden in all Realms but this, the magic corrupts your mind as payment, twisting it into something unrecognizable, unforgivable, and insane until you do not even know your own name anymore, if handled by a mere amateur, you can only wish this doesn't happen to you and you die quickly rather then slowly, losing your mind to the darkness.

The Vale for the past hundreds of years have tried and failed to stop the usage of magic in this realm, but now my father has seen something I have not and has decided to have a change of heart with the use of magic to control the Lycans.

Which will result in war with the Lycans, again.

Lord Du Mont of The Vale and my father the King are old stubborn fools if they think they can control the Lycans out of hypnosis, even the council who see this as an opportunity to free them, in hope we could join alliances, after hundreds of years been kept in captivity and had their free will abused.

War will surely come, not today nor tomorrow, but soon.

"You cheated!" Khal huffs out frustrated as I chuckle.

I take a sip of my mint tea. "You're easy to read, I simply used it to my advantage and captured your queen." I say with a smile as he frowns.

Chess, a wonderful game I grew to love from my dear departed mother Bialanda Du Mont, I loved my mother dearly, chess is the only thing I was allowed to hang onto, my father refuses to have anything other than this game in my possession.

Khal grimaces when Lady Catherine enters the room, in her large flower hat and her overpowering scent of lavender. "Oh Khal, there you are, oh.. hello Lady Lilian, my you look beautiful as always." She says sidely as she checks me up and down with a look of displacement.

I bite my tongue and smile politely. "Hello Catherine, as do you." I say and she just huffs out.

Khal gives me a look of apology as he stands up. "Apologies Cath, I had promised Lady Lilian a game." He says to his sister who just frowns.

Poor Khal, now the man of the house since his parents passing, his sister Catherine has been quite bothersome, always wanting something, coin, or his attendance. Which I know he is not missing much out on, since she is a rude awful self-absorbed socialite.

"Oh, that reminds me." She claps her hands together making me wince. "I hear the Royal Prince and the King are visiting today, I heard he has the body of sin to turn any creature flushed, be careful Lilian." She says with a snicker and she links her arm with Khals.

I force back my eyes from rolling and Khal coughs out, clearing the tension that is building between us. "Let's go, shall we? Thank you for the game Lilian, same again next week?" He says with a boyish smile and I nod.

"Of course, take care." I say sweetly as Catherine turns her head and Khal gives me a look of apology.

Once the siblings are gone I stand up and begin to pack the game away, I need to get dressed for the arrival of our distinguished guests. Father would be displeased with me again if he were to find out I had spent time playing games.

My father has been insufferable since I turned 20, not yet found my mate he makes it almost impossible to live under the same roof as him. Ever since my mother's death, it had turned him cold and distant, surviving the 7 due to a potion, it took every shred of kindness he had left, just to live and torment me and others for a little longer.

I love my father, but I pray to the moon goddess every day for my mate to come and sweep me off my feet and take me away from this place.

Upon entering my room I notice that the door to the bathroom is wide open and the water is running, no one should be in my room without my permission, not even my father steps foot in here without my consent.

"Hello?" I call out wearily as I take a step closer.

I sniff the air and my wolf Mira moans out at the scent, meaning one thing.

My prayers have been answered and whoever is in the bathroom is my mate.

I swallow hard, my chest beats widely against my ribs, my palms sweat and I freeze in the middle of my bedroom when the water stops, meaning someone had stopped the water from flowing.

The first thing I notice is black sharp horns, then his eyes.

Beautiful and grey, like a stormy night on a cold day, the next thing is his jet black hair, dangling on his forehead, wet and in curls.

Then I look down and see that he is indeed, naked as the day he was born.

My face gets hot as I quickly turn, my wolf and I turn around but liking what we saw, but embarrassed by the suddenness of his confidence to not hide his nudeness.

"W-Who are you to enter my personal bathroom? S-Speak!" I stutter out, my heart still beating wildly at how handsome he is, and naked in my room.

Whoever he is, he chuckles huskily, causing my insides to flutter. "Apologies, this was the only bathroom I found to be acceptable." He says deeply and me and my wolf melt over the sound of his voice, manly, deep, and sensual.

He is a beautiful man, the most handsome man I have ever laid eyes upon, my senses are addicted to his scent and his voice, soothing my insides as butterflies begin to form in my stomach, causing my skin to heat up and make me nervous.

I clear my throat. "Please, put some c-clothes on!" I rush out embarrassed as I refuse to turn around and embarrass myself more.

I hear him move around inside the bathroom then he clears his throat. "You can turn, I'm decent." He says and I peek over wearily as I see him now dressed in a pair of trousers, but no top, showing off his impressive built.

He's tall, the same height as my doorway, more so than any man I have come into contact with, which begs the question, who is he?

I look at him and he wears a handsome smile as he studies me. "Who are you?" I ask him, my voice wavering.

He raises a brow and steps forward, his muscles flexing with each step as he stands in front of me, he's so close, it sets me and my wolf into heat as his eyes lock us in a trance. "You don't know already?" He asks with a slight smirk and I shake my head.

He puts a strand of loose hair of mine behind my ears, as his fingers touch my skin, the mate bond causes a string of tingles throughout my body and his by the look on his face, one that terrifies yet excites me that he feels it too.

He moves his hand away like he was burned then glares at me."What are you?" He asks deeply as his eyes focus on me whilst he rubs his arm.

My heart is beating wildly and my cheeks feel warm. "Lillian Du Mont, I'm y-your...mate." I say quietly as I watch his facial expressions.

He laughs out loud and rakes his fingers through his hair as his white teeth and fangs shine brightly at me, causing my heart to throb.

Does he not believe me? When he notices I am not laughing he stills and turns serious as his eyes grow wide, he reaches his hand out to touch me and when he does, the sparks happen again and I close my eyes in shock at how strong they are from just a simple touch from him.

"Impossible." He mutters out quietly and I fidget with my fingers as he keeps staring at me, making my skin heat up from him bluntly staring at me.

But I agree, this mating is unheard of, no wolf had been mated to a Renoan Demon, it is not only rare but it has never happened, this would be the first of my knowledge, and to my knowledge, he is my mate, there is no denying that our bond is true.

"Until today, anything is possible," I say softly as he sits down on a nearby chair and leans back, and stares at me in shock.

Is he going to reject me? NO! I can't have that, I refuse.

Swallowing hard I approach him. "Your name, please." I ask, close to begging.

"Demonia." He breathes out, still in shock.

"I am Prince Demonia Black."