Stolen by the Beastly Lycan King-Chapter 187: Blessed By Fate

Althea’s confident facade faltered for a fleeting moment as her dark eyes flicked toward Lorelai and Kai. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

She was accustomed to seeing their lifeless stares and hollow expressions, but now, standing before her like this, they exuded something she had never anticipated—defiance. The sight filled her with a simmering rage.

Lorelai had somehow shattered all of Althea’s spells at once, tearing apart the last threads of control she had over her.

And even though Kai remained under the influence of her blood magic, the sheer force of his mind fighting against her grip was nothing short of remarkable.

Clutching a small dagger in her right hand, Lorelai began to move forward. Her piercing green eyes remained fixed on Althea’s vile, decayed form. Surprised by Lorelai’s quiet bravery, the ghoul queen instinctively took a step back.

"I wondered why you didn’t start casting spells the moment I entered the palace," Lorelai said, her voice calm but resolute, each word laced with quiet power that no longer felt foreign.

"As a child, I might not have been sharp enough to understand everything, but there was no real reason for you not to erase my memories right after my mother’s death."

"What...?" Althea’s brows knitted together, her confusion evident as she stared back at Lorelai.

"I forgot everything that happened before the accident ten years ago that left me crippled. The doctors all said it was because of the shock," Lorelai continued, her tone still unwavering. "But now that I’m free of you, I remember everything."

She paused, her grip tightening on the dagger’s hilt, the knuckles of her fingers turning white. Her heartbeat quickened at the thought of revealing the memories that now seemed so fresh and new.

"The night I went out to see what was happening near the pit, I had something important I needed to deliver to Frederick. It was a diary––my late mother’s diary which I accidentally found buried underneath an oak tree in my garden. My mother knew everything and she tried to warn me... about you."

Althea frowned, her long nails digging even deeper into the skin of her clenched fists. "You... you have no idea what you are talking about."

Lorelai smirked. "But I do. The day you entered the royal palace, my mother found you suspicious right away. One night, she followed you out all the way to the slums and saw you kill a young Gypsy boy who was out searching for coins that people accidentally dropped on the streets. She saw you eat the boy’s body like you were a blood-thirsty beast and despite being shaken to her core, she managed to collect herself and flee."

"But she did not return to the palace right away. She knew that no one would believe her––with my father’s strange and sudden devotion to you, she would only appear like a jealous, discarded consort. Thus, my mother did something else, something far smarter than that. She went to see a gypsy shaman who told her the truth about you."

Lorelai paused, savoring the woman’s flustered expression. Then, she took another careful step toward her and continued,

"My mother went to see that shaman every night, collecting as much information on vampires and ghouls as she could. She was lucky––that woman had been traveling around the continent for many years and knew all there was to know about creatures that were not human.

"Eventually, she discovered one crucial detail about you—something that led you to kill her and erase my memories when I learned it too," Lorelai continued, her voice growing colder. "Three types of blood must be mixed to destroy you and your magic: the blood of another witch’s descendant, the blood of a beast, and the blood of one blessed by fate."

Althea’s breath hitched ever so slightly, her dark, piercing eyes shifting cautiously toward Rhaegar.

Lorelai was right—Rhaegar was both a beast and the descendant of a powerful witch. But that alone wouldn’t be enough to kill her, and it certainly wasn’t sufficient to unravel the intricate blood spells that had seeped into every corner of this cursed palace.

The one blessed by fate? Althea sneered internally. A ridiculous myth spun by vampires and beasts to convince themselves of some divine protection. She’s bluffing... she knows nothing.

Despite her certainty, the queen couldn’t ignore the unwavering confidence radiating from Lorelai. Something in her tone, in the way she spoke, stirred an unease Althea wasn’t accustomed to.

Forcing a wicked laugh, Althea closed the distance between them in one fluid motion, her cold, claw-like fingers gripping Lorelai’s chin.

Rhaegar instinctively lunged forward, his protective instincts surging, but Alim stepped in his path. Pressing a firm hand to the king’s chest, he whispered urgently, "Don’t interfere. She knows what she’s doing. She’s safe."

Somehow, Rhaegar believed her. The Lorelai standing before the queen now was the same Lorelai who had helped him escape ten years ago: brave, confident, and unyielding.

Still, every muscle in his body remained taut, ready to strike if things went awry.

Althea’s lips curled into a cruel grin.

"You stupid girl. The only reason I erased your memories was to make it easier to turn you into my puppet. All that nonsense the gypsy woman told your mother? Useless. Stop trying to find meaning in death. I kill because I find it thrilling. It’s as simple as that."

The corners of Lorelai’s mouth twitched in revulsion. "You’re right. For us humans, death isn’t so simple. We cling to reasons, we search for justifications, because we don’t believe life should be taken so easily, so heartlessly. But..."

She paused, moving her right hand behind her back, loosening her grip on the gilded blade. "If dying is such a trivial matter to you, then surely you won’t mind letting go of your own life too."

What followed was a blur of motion.

At Lorelai’s subtle signal, Kai stepped forward, snatching the blade from her weakened grasp. Without hesitation, he drove the dagger into Lorelai’s stomach, soaking it deep in her blood.

Then, in a swift, decisive movement, he plunged it into Althea’s chest, piercing her monstrous heart.