Chapter 1 Sybil von Rosen

"Undress her, quick!"

They undressed me like I'm a relic.

Not a woman. Not a bride.

"No! Get your hands off me! I'll do it myself after you all get out of the room!" I exclaimed, trying to push away the hands that were trying to remove my ceremonial gown.

We just finished one of the three rituals that I have to go through today. My parents and I made an offering to the goddess of the moon, the last offering that I will be doing as an unmarried shewolf.

"This is our job, Princess Sybil. Please let us do it, we don't want to be beheaded by the King..."

I stared at my attendants, pleading in front of me, almost in tears. I sighed before nodding, just because I didn't want to be the cause of their deaths. I stood still while strangers removed everything I was wearing as if preparing an offering.

I am not used to this. Standing fully naked in front of other women whom I just met a week ago.

I grew up caring for myself. Fought my own battles at school, at work, and the countless werewolves that my father had sent to take me back home, to the country inhabited by creatures that only exist in the textbooks of humans as myths or in fiction books.

In the country where I grew up, I was one of the top fighting instructors for a private military contractor and also one of the best female MMA fighters in the country.

Here, I am simply the Lycan Princess, the saviour of the kingdom.

"Relax, Princess Sybil," one of the ladies-in-waiting whispered when she noticed how my whole body was rigid.

They guide me toward the luxurious modern bathroom attached to my suite, scented with lavender and rose. The ambiance was very relaxing and calming, but it's doing the opposite to me.

The ladies washed me thoroughly, washing, rinsing, drying off, not a single inch of skin ignored. It isn't lewd. It isn't gentle either. It is methodical, ceremonial, clinical.

Then my attention was caught by the table they were preparing, and the sound of the wax beads being poured into the electric wax heater.

My pulse pounds so loudly I'm sure they can all hear it, even though they are hybrids. None of the women in this kingdom is a pureblood except for my mother, my sister, and me-something that they believe, and I have no plans of correcting their belief unless it's absolutely necessary.

"No! I am not doing that," I immediately protested, knowing very well what was about to happen.

The Mistress of Robes, a tall, sharp-eyed werewolf with streaks of silver in her dark hair, turned to me. "We have to do it. The queen wanted you presentable on your mating night."

"What the heck!? So all this humiliation and pain just to make my husbands happy tonight? How about my feelings? Does it even matter?" I barked, completely annoyed.

Then the Mistress spoke again, "Princess Sybil... are you untouched?"

I blinked. "What? The heck! That's a very personal question! Why all of a sudden?

A few of the younger women exchange glances, barely suppressing smiles.

Then she asked again, "I mean... are you a virgin?"

Heat crawled up my neck. This is really embarrassing. "Y-Yes," I said stiffly. "I am."

Soft giggles ripple through the room.

I frowned. "What's so funny? So what if I'm a virgin... Is that a bad thing?"

The Mistress's lips curved. "No, Princess. Not bad. Just... uncommon. Especially for someone raised where you were. You see, even if our country tries to be separated from the rest of the world, we still know what is going on outside of our borders."

I huffed out a breath. "Believe it or not, plenty of women outside this country choose to stay a virgin and single by choice. Men nowadays aren't exactly worth the trouble."

That earned me a startled look. One of the braver girls blurted, "But... weren't men pursuing you? You are already twenty-five, right? Here, once a woman comes of age, males compete fiercely for her first night. If she conceives, marriage follows immediately. Their families even receive gifts to seal the union."

I stared at her. "So pregnancy comes first?"

She nodded enthusiastically.

"That's... very different," I muttered.

Then another attendant, older, said softly, "Here, a woman's worth is tied to the future she can carry. Because even though we already been cross-breeding ever since the curse happened. A lot of hybrid women are still born barren. Only a few were blessed."

"And what about women who can't get pregnant? What happens to them?" I asked before I could stop myself.

"They serve," the Mistress answered gently, but without hesitation. "In whatever way the kingdom requires or however their families see fit. Some become mistresses, whores, some do hard labor, while unlucky ones are sold by their own family as slaves. Because the hard truth is, unfortunately for them, for us... No one wants to marry us.

Even if a werewolf marries a barren woman because of love, sooner or later, the same man who promised to love her forever will take home a pregnant woman who will replace her as his new wife. At the end of the day, love fades, and the continuation of the bloodline is more important."

So this is why all the female servants in the castle are unmarried. They are the barren ones...

Another girl tried to lighten the mood. "What is truly unusual, Your Highness, is not that you are untouched... but that you have more than one mate."

Another one beamed. "You are very fortunate. You have four Alphas to love and protect you. You don't have to share him with another woman. Such a blessing is only given to a pureblood Lycan. Just like what the ancient texts said."

"Men here are the ones who take multiple wives," someone adds. "Never the other way around. More wives means more children."

The Mistress nodded. "Tradition bends for power. And Lycan blood is power."

Then one of the ladies suddenly placed a stool in front of me. "Your Highness, please place hold on to the stool and bend over."

I hesitated. "For what?"

The Mistress answered gently, like she was explaining something obvious to a child. "For the final preparation."

"Of what?" I asked again, confused. Something in her tone makes my chest tighten. It made me more nervous; she's not telling me everything.

The Mistress stepped closer. "Tonight, your mating bond with your four husbands must be completed. Your Highness, please. Put your hands here. We just need to clean you. This and the waxing are the last ones that we need to do before we dress you up. The Queen and the elders were very clear."

"I'm already clean," I said. "You just scrubbed me for an hour. Touched parts of my body, only I should touch. What else do you need to clean?"

She shook her head and looked frustrated at my defiance. "This is different. You... You have to bend over, so we can reach it and make sure you are prepared for your mating night!"

"Reach what? Why should I do that? You're not making any sense!" I protested in disbelief.

She studied me for a moment. "Your mother, the Queen, did not speak to you of Lycan mating preparation if the shewolf has two or more mates?"

"No," I snapped. "She didn't, I would remember a conversation like that for sure."

"We assumed you knew," the Mistress said. "Among Lycans, these teachings are passed down from mother to daughter."

"Well, mine didn't," I barked. "So maybe someone should start explaining."

The Mistress of the Robe continued, "There is little time left, Your Highness. The moon is already rising."

My hands curled into fists at my sides. "I want to speak to my mother."

"I'm afraid that is not possible. The ceremony has already begun in the Great Hall. The four Alphas are waiting. The elders are assembled. The whole kingdom awaits," her voice remained calm, but unyielding. "If we delay, it will be seen as a rejection of the bond."

"I don't want to do this!" My voice cracked from both anger and frustration. I was on the verge of tears.

"You have to consummate your marriage and let them all mark you tonight to complete the mating bond. How can it happen if you're not fully prepared to serve and satisfy each one of them tonight? It's the full moon, so expect them to be impatient, wild, and aggressive. There are four of them and one of you. Expect the unexpected, Princess," the Mistress warns softly. "Please do not make this harder than it must be."

Her words rang in my ears over and over. Serve? Satisfy them?

What the fuck! Why should I!?

"I said stop!" I yelled, and for a moment, the room froze.

Then she spoke again, quieter, but with steel beneath the words. "If we cannot complete the preparations because you are resisting, I'm sorry, but I will summon the royal guards. They will hold you down until we finish our job. That would be... far less comfortable for you. Unless you want them to see you naked, too."

The threat isn't shouted. Because just imagining those thug looking werewolves pinning me down like a spoiled toddler throwing a tantrum just for her attendants to finish cleaning her up was already terrifying.

My chest rose and fell in sharp breaths, and my eyes welled up. I could fight them; I am definitely way stronger than all of them combined.

But not without turning this entire night into violence. Not without proving to every watching elder that the Lycan princess whom they searched for years and tried so hard to convince to go back home is feral, unstable, and unfit to rule.

Trapped. That's what I am.

I bite down hard on the inside of my cheek, tasting iron, forcing the tears back.

I will not cry in front of them.

Slowly, I placed my hands on the wooden stool. I bent over stiffly, and I let them do what they needed to do.

I need to survive this night long enough to figure out what kind of cage they've locked me in... if that's what they believe they are doing.

The women move with solemn focus now, no more giggling, no more chatter. Only ritual. Only duty. Cleaning my behind. Preparing to wax my legs and what's between them.

The moment the cold fingers of one of the ladies touched my ass, I screamed, "Damnit! Nooo!!!"

"Hold her!" The Mistress of the Robes ordered, "Before she changes her mind again!"

For the first time since I returned to this kingdom...

I feel truly afraid, humiliated, and powerless. I am just a tool here that would ensure the continuation of their sacred bloodline that will eventually end the curse of this entire kingdom.

Do I regret coming here?

Absolutely not!

Because tonight, I will let them use me...

But tomorrow, every one of them will do what I command as I watch them bow before me as I reign this land.