Chapter 18: The Consummation Lie

DISCLAIMER: I tried to remove the bit of Rosie saying she not her information from the elders, but couldn’t because my Chapter letter counts was lesser than 1000. But keep in mind I’ve changed that, so now it’s just Silas she got the information please.

Thank you.

Conan wasn’t usually one to soften so easily.

He was a Scorpio Alpha, trained from birth to display nothing but cruelty to the people around him. However, the cruelty had frayed at the edges over time, meticulously loosened by his cousin, and his Beta, Xavier.

And now, it was extending to his new.... wife.

Something he didn’t necessarily like.

Kill her.

The thought arrived first, coming immediately the moment Rosie’s words landed and the whispers started.

How did she even find out? Did one of the elders tell her? How did—

Never mind that. Just kill her. She has disrespected you, and you don’t tolerate disrespect.

His mind split into two, both arguing from different places. Logic, and primal instincts.

It would be so easy. One motion. He had done worse for less.

But he couldn’t.

The decision was dragged out of him by years of learning the hard way that a king who killed every mouth that embarrassed him ended he up with no mouths willing to tell him the truth.

Also from Xavier’s words to him yesterday.

Perhaps you should learn to ignore disrespect.

So he sat still, trying very hard to restrain his Lycan from roaring out.

"Your Majesties?"

Hazel, who had somehow spaced out, was jolted back to her present reality, the whispers of the numerous attendants slipping into her ears.

"They did not consummate the marriage?!"

"Then this is a sham!"

"To think our King would break centuries old tradition for a mere markless!"

"Scandalous!"

How did she find out? How? How?

That syllable echoed in Hazel’s head on a loop as she tried to steady her trembling fingers. The eyes of the attendants were mostly peeled on her, waiting to see whether she would dispute Rosie’s claim or not.

Servants scrambled to clean up the glass Becky had broken, and she was about rushing to where Rosie stood, when Xavier materialised and blocked her path.

Do something, Hazel! Say something! Now is not the time to think about what Becky did and didn’t do.

Your new life is at stake.

Hazel straightened up immediately, summoning the courage and defiance that had helped her survive for over two decades at Tideclaw. "Oh yes," she started, lying through her teeth, "the—"

"We consummated the marriage, thank you for your concern, Rosie."

Hazel snapped her head to the figure next to her.

Conan’s head was rested on a palm, and he had a slightly amused expression on his face.

Eh?

Hazel could have sworn he would have rushed to Rosie, and potentially strangled her to death. He had killed her father, he had threatened Alpha Rowan.

Conan was a violent man by nature, so his decision to remain on his seat was terrifying.

Rosie blinked, clearly not expecting this response. The confidence radiating off him was so jarring that for a moment, she seemed to lose her footing entirely.

"Oh, really?" she managed, recovering just enough to arch a brow.

Conan raised his chin, completely unbothered. "Your King and Queen laid together. I assure you of this, since you seem so very worried about it." His gaze slid toward Hazel, lingering. "She may be markless, but she is certainly...." he paused, "entertaining in the bedroom."

A beat of silence swallowed the ballroom whole.

Then the reactions came, one after another, like dominoes falling. Several guests visibly cringed, their faces twisting in secondhand embarrassment. Somewhere to the side, the MC, mid-sip of his champagne, choked violently, sputtering as he thumped his own chest, his face turning an alarming shade of red.

A woman near the back fanned herself with her hand, whispering something to her companion behind a palm.

Hazel felt her whole body freeze.

Eh?

Entertaining???

He really said that. In front of everyone.

She resisted the very strong urge to bury her face in her hands.

No, focus. This is the perfect opening, no matter how.... unconventional it may be.

"Yes," she managed instead, forcing the word past her teeth. "We consummated the marriage. But I believe the more important question is, who dares spread such blatant lies that even you heard of?"

Rosie stuttered, her composure cracking. It wasn’t supposed to go this way! "I—you..." she stammered, trying to think of an appropriate response without basically outing that Silas had snuck in with the help of an elder to sniff out their marriage bed. "Your scent. The mark of mating. It’s absent."

That should do it.

To her shock however, Conan let out a loud and booming laugh, one hand slapping his own knee.

"My wife is markless, Rosie." He said it plainly. "Whatever scent mating leaves behind is drowned out by her own. We consummated." He tilted his head. "Now that I have answered your question, is that all?"

Rosie’s mouth opened, then closed. Confusion warred with fury on her face.

Then, all at once, her shoulders sagged.

"Yes," she said, quieter now. "That is a relief, Your Majesty. Forgive my forwardness." She dipped into a hasty bow, before walking back to her seat.

The MC let out an awkward laugh, clapping his hands together. "Well! Wonderful, wonderful. A joyous occasion resolved! Let us—"

"That was tense," someone murmured from the crowd.

"I... yes," another voice agreed.

Conan suddenly rose from his seat, startling Hazel.

"We are finished here." His voice silenced the murmurs. "Since you all seem so desperate for proof of our union, my wife and I will retire early. To resume the act." His eyes flashed. "And try, properly this time, for heirs."

Someone spat out their drink.

A voice rang out.

And it came from none other than the dowager queen.

"And the matter of wedding a markless?" Aurora leaned on her chair, her voice loud enough despite the murmurs. "Has that been forgotten so quickly?"

Hazel’s eyes followed the voice, landing on the terrifying and rude mother of Conan.

"It has never been done before," Aurora continued, her eyes narrowed. "Not once, in all our history. It might be an omen."

Conan’s jaw tightened, his teeth grinding.

"Markless or not," he said, each word clipped, "I have fulfilled my duty. I brought back a bride from Tideclaw, from the Gemini Celestial Line, and I have kept to the Moon’s Revolution." His eyes swept the room, daring anyone else to speak. "My wife and I are finished here."

He extended a hand toward Hazel.

"Come."

Hazel stared at it. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t have taken it, especially after his behaviour. But she was not in a position to be picky. Not now. Not with the entire ballroom watching.

"Yes," she said, placing her hand in his. She turned to the room, offering the guests a small smile. "Thank you all for coming. It was truly lovely having you."

Together, they made their way out of the ballroom, Conan’s hand firm around hers.

From where he sat, near the edge of the room, Alpha Derek Stone watched them leave, his eyes lingering on Hazel long after the doors had shut behind her.

Hmm.