The day of the bloody festival finally arrived. Everyone across the five kingdoms had been preparing for weeks.
At the preparation field, large crowds gathered — some warriors looked excited, eager to prove their strength, while others appeared nervous and pale. The drums beat heavily in the distance, filling the air with tension.
Alex stepped out, dressed in his fearsome fighting clothes. His presence commanded attention, and the crowd erupted into wild cheers as he walked confidently toward his seat at the center of the field.
Mira had been sent to kneel beside him, holding his wine. Her hands trembled slightly, but she hid her fear well.
Alex leaned down and spoke only to her, his voice low and firm. He ordered Mira to massage him after he won his first fight, reminding her that none of his victories should go unnoticed.
Soon, the first fight began.
Alex faced his opponent calmly. The two circled each other briefly before Alex moved in with a deadly strike, slicing the man's throat. Blood spilled onto the ground, and the crowd cheered even louder, thrilled by their alpha's strength.
After the victory, Alex signaled to Mira. She quickly handed him his wine, and he drank it slowly.
Following his command, Mira began to massage his shoulders gently, careful not to anger him.
The next fight started almost immediately.
Alex faced his second opponent and defeated him just as quickly, leaving no doubt about his dominance.
The third opponent came forward, but he too was no match for Alex.
The cheers of the crowd grew louder, chanting Alex's name proudly.
When only two warriors remained, Alex sat back in his seat.
He ordered them to fight each other, and they obeyed without question.
The battle between them was fierce and brutal. Alex watched, sipping his wine, showing no emotion.
At last, one of the fighters won, collapsing to his knees, bloodied but alive.
Alex called the man forward and asked him what reward he wanted.
The man, bold and without hesitation, requested that Alex marry his sister.
The entire field fell silent.
No one had ever dared to make such a bold demand.
Alex smirked.
He told the man that he would give him a chance — he would ask him a difficult question. If the man answered correctly, Alex would accept the sister, but not as a wife.
If he failed, he would receive a small bag of gold.
The man agreed eagerly.
Alex asked the question. It was a hard one, and after struggling for a while, the man gave the wrong answer.
The crowd chuckled and whispered amongst themselves.
Alex ordered his guard to hand over the bag of gold as a consolation prize.
However, the man refused the gold angrily.
Instead, he shouted a new challenge — he wanted to fight Alex, and if he won, he would claim Alex's entire kingdom.
The crowd gasped in shock.
Some spectators called out, urging the man to withdraw before it was too late.
But the man refused to back down.
Amused, Alex agreed to the challenge.
The fight began.
At first, Alex appeared to have the upper hand. He was stronger, faster, and more skilled.
But the fight dragged on longer than anyone expected. The man was desperate and fought wildly.
Then, to everyone's horror, the man managed to cut Alex's arm.
Blood trickled down Alex's sleeve. He frowned, feeling a strange weakness spreading through his body. His vision blurred slightly, and his limbs felt heavier.
Something was wrong.
The man charged at Alex again, aiming to strike him down.
Alex stumbled back, confused by the sudden dizziness. It felt unnatural, almost as if he had been poisoned.
The man raised his weapon, ready to finish Alex off.
At the very last second, Alex gathered the little strength he had left and delivered a final, brutal blow.
The man fell dead instantly.
The crowd roared with relief and triumph.
But before anyone could celebrate properly, Alex's sword slipped from his hand, and he collapsed onto the ground.
The mighty Alpha lay unconscious, bleeding heavily in front of the stunned crowd.
---Chaos broke out the moment Alex collapsed.
His guards immediately rushed to his side. Blood soaked through his fighting clothes, and his face had gone pale.
The head healer was already running toward him, shouting orders for everyone to clear the field.
"Get him inside! Now!" one of the commanders barked.
Several strong warriors carefully lifted Alex and carried him toward the royal chambers, their faces tense with fear.
The crowd watched in stunned silence as their undefeated alpha — the most powerful man they knew — was hurried away like a broken soldier.
His mother, Lady Rahila, moved quickly through the field, her face hard with fury.
She climbed onto the royal stage and raised her hand, silencing what little noise remained.
"Everyone except the family of the man who fought the Alpha — stay behind," she commanded, her voice sharp and unforgiving.
"Everyone else, leave the field at once."
The people obeyed without hesitation, scrambling away from the area. No one dared to anger Lady Rahila when she wore that expression.
The guards surrounded the remaining group — the fallen man's family and a few of his closest friends — preventing them from slipping away.
Lady Rahila turned her sharp gaze on them.
"You will explain what happened," she said coldly. "Or you will not leave this place alive."
Meanwhile, Mira stood frozen near the edge of the field, her hands tightly gripping the hem of her dress.
Her heart pounded against her chest, and she could hardly breathe.
Though she had no right to care so deeply, she whispered a silent prayer inside her heart.
Please, please let him survive.
She did not understand the strange connection she felt to Alex — he was harsh, cold, and cruel most times — but seeing him fall like that, helpless and bleeding, filled her with an overwhelming fear she could not explain.
Two guards barked at the servants to move quickly, preparing the healing room for Alex's treatment.
The royal healers worked fast. They cut away his bloodied clothes, cleaned the wound on his arm, and searched his body for other injuries.
One of the healers frowned deeply.
"This is no normal wound," he muttered under his breath. "It looks poisoned."
Lady Rahila's jaw tightened when she heard it.
She turned her full attention back to the dead warrior's family, her voice colder than ice.
"What did you do to him?" she demanded.
The man's father stepped forward, trembling slightly.
"We... we don't know, My Lady," he stammered. "We swear it! He trained alone. We had no part in this."
Lady Rahila studied their faces carefully. She was a mother first, but she was also a ruler who would show no mercy to traitors.
"Search their homes. Search everything. If you find any trace of foul play, burn their lands and exile their names from our history," she ordered sharply.
The guards moved immediately, dragging the terrified family away for questioning.
Inside the healing room, Mira watched from a distance as the healers worked desperately to stabilize Alex.
He lay still on the grand bed, his chest rising and falling weakly.
The head healer mixed several herbs into a thick paste and pressed it against the wound, whispering ancient chants to draw out any poison.
A few moments later, Alex's body gave a small jerk, and a low, pained sound escaped his throat.
Mira's hands flew to her mouth.
He was alive. Barely — but he was alive.
Lady Rahila entered the room, her long dress sweeping across the floor. She stood by her son's side, gently brushing a strand of hair from his forehead.
For a brief moment, the cold, powerful woman showed a glimpse of the love she had for her only son.
"Stay strong, my boy," she murmured.
Mira watched quietly, feeling like she was intruding on something private.
She lowered her eyes and stepped back into the shadows of the room, blending in with the other servants.
Hours passed slowly.
Mira stayed nearby, helping to bring fresh cloth, clean water, and herbs whenever the healers needed them.
She refused to leave, even though no one asked her to stay.
Late into the evening, the head healer approached Lady Rahila.
"He will live," he said at last. "The poison was weak — it only made him dizzy. A stronger poison would have killed him, but he is young and strong."
Lady Rahila gave a heavy sigh of relief, though her face remained stern.
"When he wakes," she said, "I want to be the first person he sees. No one else is to approach him without my permission."
The healer bowed deeply. "As you wish, My Lady."
Lady Rahila turned and fixed Mira with a sudden, sharp look.
"You," she said. "Stay and watch over him. If he stirs, fetch me immediately."
Mira bowed low, her heart pounding.
"Yes, My Lady," she whispered.
As Lady Rahila swept from the room, Mira moved quietly to Alex's side. She knelt beside the bed, watching his pale face.
He looked so different now — not fierce and intimidating like usual, but almost... human.
She sat silently, her hands folded in her lap, and whispered another prayer into the quiet night.
Please, wake up soon.