Chapter 3

3.

In that moment, my heart felt heavy with a million different emotions.

I felt grief, pain, and a deep sense of injustice for myself and my fallen soldiers.

The woman we spent our lives protecting had switched sides and pushed us into the abyss.

"Look at this blood-soaked land! This is your home! These are your people bleeding out!"

"You say I have no heart? What about you, Elara? Where is your heart!"

I screamed at her with all my remaining strength.

But I was nothing but a flickering spirit now. Elara couldn't feel me.

Her hatred for me was buried so deep that it would never go away.

Since then, I was forced to stay by her side, trapped in her orbit.

I had to watch her and Jaxen be all over each other every single day.

I went from burning rage to a cold, dead numbness.

Right now, Elara was curled up in Jaxen's lap, looking at him with total adoration.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a deep kiss.

They looked like they were the only two people in the world.

As their breathing got heavier, I turned my head away and closed my eyes.

The ache in my chest wouldn't go away.

I reached out to grab my chest, but my hand passed right through.

Then I remembered―the day I died, Jaxen had literally ripped my heart out.

He had been covered in my blood, his face twisted with a sick, murderous joy.

He didn't look like an innocent puppy then. He looked at me like I was a bug.

"Some hero you are. You couldn't even keep your woman's heart, and you still tried to protect her? What a loser."

"I want to see what the heart of a pathetic simp actually looks like!"

He had plunged his claws into me and tore everything out.

Sometimes I wondered when Elara would finally see the real Jaxen.

I wondered what her face would look like when she found out I was dead. Would she regret it?

But those were just fantasies.

I was a ghost. I couldn't do a damn thing.

But soon, someone else asked those questions for me.

A young warrior in blood-stained silver armor fought his way through the guards.

He stared at Elara sitting on the bed with Jaxen, looking completely shell-shocked.

"My Lady... what... why are you here?!"

He was smart. He realized what was happening in an instant.

Fury took over his face, mixed with a deep sense of betrayal.

"The Silver Pack is in ruins! Our people are being slaughtered, and you―our Priestess―are sleeping with this snake!"

"Have you thought about Alaric at all? How could you do this to him!"

The boy was still bleeding from several wounds, but he didn't seem to care.

He glared at them like he wanted to rip them apart with his eyes.

"You're a traitor! I'll kill you both right now and avenge the General!"

He drew his sword and lunged toward them.

But before he could reach Elara, she blasted him back with a burst of Lunar energy.

The boy slammed into the wall and fell to the floor, coughing up a mouthful of blood.

His sword snapped in half with a loud crack.

I panicked, trying to reach him.

That was Kaelen, my loyal lieutenant who had just finished his training. He was still weak.

Now, he was badly hurt by the very Priestess he used to protect.

He had literally saved Elara's life during her trial years ago!

Elara didn't seem to remember that at all. She stood over him like a block of ice.

"How dare you insult me and Jaxen? Did that coward Alaric teach you to talk like that?"

"He should look in a mirror. He's not even in my league."

"Go back and tell your master this: if he doesn't crawl here and beg for our forgiveness, I'm telling the High Elders."

"I'll tell them he's a disgrace to the pack, and I'll break our engagement forever!"

Kaelen looked at her with disbelief. He couldn't believe this was the woman they all loved.

He pointed at Jaxen, his voice shaking with grief.

"Alaric is already dead! This monster killed him because of you!"

Before Elara could even process the words, Jaxen moved.

He picked up a piece of the broken sword and slashed it across Kaelen's throat.

Blood sprayed across the room. Kaelen's eyes widened, and he collapsed, clutching his neck.

I froze, unable to process what I just saw.

They had just murdered him in broad daylight like it was nothing.

Kaelen didn't even get to finish his sentence.

"Like master, like dog. A liar like this deserves to have his soul wiped out," Elara spat.

She didn't even flinch. She looked at Kaelen's body like it was a piece of trash.

I was horrified. I couldn't believe the woman I loved was this cold-blooded.

"Are you insane? Kaelen saved your life!" I screamed in her ear.

I tried to hold his body, but my hands just went through the warmth of his skin.

I begged Elara to use her healing powers, but she didn't hear a word.

She had zero mercy left for her own kind.

Jaxen smirked and looked at Elara with genuine admiration.

"Elara, you really are the perfect Priestess. You see the big picture."

Elara smiled back at him, looking like a smitten teenager.

"By the way, I was at the dungeons earlier," Jaxen lied smoothly.

"I heard some of the captured soldiers talking. They said you're a traitor and that you did Alaric wrong."

Elara stood up, her face turning red with rage.

"Lies! I only told you a few small things. If they got beaten, it's because they're weak! Alaric is a failure!"

"I bet Alaric told them to say that because he's a sore loser!"

Jaxen nodded, adding fuel to the fire.

"I think your people never really respected you. Alaric probably talked trash behind your back all the time."

Elara was like a bomb that had just been lit.

"How dare they! I'm going to show those bastards and that loser Alaric what happens when you cross me!"