Chapter 1: The Monster's Wedding
"Let her rot in the dungeon! She's cursed!"
The noblewoman's voice cut through the hall like a whip, echoed by gasps and stifled laughter.
I stood there in chains—barefoot, hooded, and filthy—dragged into the grand hall like a diseased animal. Sunlight slammed against my face for the first time in years, and still, I didn't blink.
I wasn't scared.
They could call me monster, bastard, or death-bringer all they wanted.
But today, I was getting married.
To a man who didn't believe in love. Or mercy.
Duke Bryant Kings.
The name alone made wolves shiver. Wealthier than the Alpha King. Sharper than a blade. And twice as heartless.
He was seated at the far end of the hall, legs crossed, wine in hand, watching the spectacle with all the boredom of a man waiting for his prey to entertain him.
"She's been locked up since she was a child," one noble sneered. "Some say she murdered her own mother with just a look."
Not true.
I didn't murder her.
But I did watch her bleed to death while they called for the healer—to save him instead.
"Remove the hood," Bryant said coolly.
"No!" my father snapped. "The seal—"
"Now."
The guards hesitated, then yanked the hood off my head.
Gasps. Audible disgust. One woman stumbled back.
I stared straight ahead.
The scar carved across my face was still there—twisted, angry, a red mark of shame they had all forgotten. Or pretended to.
Bryant didn't move. Didn't blink. His cold gray eyes met mine—and held.
"She's the monster?" he murmured.
My throat burned. My wrists bled. But my voice, when I used it, was clear.
"Better a monster than a coward, my Lord."
The room froze.
Even the guards stiffened.
Bryant's lip twitched—almost a smile. Or a snarl.
He stood.
The tension cracked like lightning.
"Deliver her to my estate by sunset," he said, turning toward the door. "I'll decide later whether to leash her or cage her."
"Y-Your Grace, surely—"
"She's mine now. Let that be clear."
And with that, the cruelest Duke in the North walked out.
Leaving me standing, bruised and barefoot, in front of the people who sold me like livestock.
But they didn't realize something had changed.
The dungeon didn't break me.
It built me.
And if Duke Bryant Kings thought I'd kneel quietly like his other whores—
He was about to make the worst mistake of his life.
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[End of Chapter One]