Chapter 3 KAEL

The wind up here was different. Sharper. Colder. It bit into my skin like it didn't care who I was-Alpha heir or not.

I hated how fast my heart was beating.

Not from the climb. But from her.

Lyra.

The maid who wasn't just a maid. Who watched me too closely during training. Who spoke to me like she knew the part of me I barely understood myself.

And now here I was, standing at the edge of the southern cliff like some lost cub waiting for his shadowy guide. Stars above me. Stone beneath me. Her silhouette before me.

She was barefoot, head tilted slightly, whispering something I couldn't make out. Her lips moved in a way that felt... old. Too old for a kitchen girl.

When she turned, I swear the moon caught something in her eyes, something wild. Something broken.

"You came," she said like she already knew I would.

"You didn't seem like someone who wasted words," I replied.

That made her lips twitch, barely. Not quite a smile. More like recognition.

"I'm not a warrior," I added quickly, before she could start whatever she had planned. "I've trained, yeah. But not like the others. I wasn't raised for bloodshed."

She studied me. Not like a girl. Not like a servant. Like a blade being measured before a fight.

"Neither was I," she said. I didn't believe her, but I let it pass.

"But we adapt or die."

There was something final in the way she said that.

My jaw tightened. "Why do I feel like there's a lot you're not saying?"

She didn't answer. Instead, she stepped close-too close-and said, "You're strong, Kael. Stronger than most. But you fight like someone trying not to break."

I bristled. "And what's wrong with restraint?"

"It's noble," she said, circling me like a predator, "until it gets you killed."

That stung.

She stopped in front of me, eyes locked on mine. "You're afraid of becoming a monster."

"I've seen monsters," I muttered. "I don't want to be one."

Her voice dropped into something colder. "Then learn to control it before it controls you."

And stars help me, I believed her.

"Fine," I said. "Teach me."

She didn't wait.

Before I could blink, she struck. A jab to my ribs-sharp and fast. I staggered, pain flashing white under my breath.

"What the hell?" I snapped.

She just looked at me like I was being ridiculous. "Lesson one. Never trust your opponent-even if she brings you water."

I gritted my teeth and straightened. Okay. So this wasn't going to be a normal lesson.

"Again," she said.

I lunged. Sloppy. I knew it the moment I moved. She barely even dodged-just shifted her weight and brushed past me, tapping my shoulder hard enough to piss me off.

"You think like a human," she said sharply. "But you're not. Not entirely. Stop clinging to the rules of a world that fears what you are."

I turned on her, anger flaring. "And what are you, Lyra?"

She gave me this quiet, unreadable look. "Someone who stopped pretending."

The wind howled again. The moon rose higher. And I... didn't know what the hell I was getting into.

But something about this felt right. Dangerous. Necessary.

"Again," she whispered.

This time, I didn't hesitate.

And for the first time in my life, I stopped holding back.