CLAIMED

29

"I thought you were dead." Leah was overjoyed seeing this old bastard alive and well, but she was also greatly surprised. After all, she heard that Nathaniel died in the purge war two thousand years ago. The same as everyone she was close to back then.

At first she was in denial about his death, but since she hadn't run into him not even once over the centuries, eventually she believed that he was gone forever.

"Me? Dead?" Nathaniel scoffed before showing off a cheeky smile. "You know it's not so easy to get rid of me, princess."

"Yeah." Leah laughed as she recalled memories of the past. Dang, she misses those days. It was a much simpler time.

It also came to mind to ask him where he had been for these past centuries and why he didn't come find her, but she decided not to after all. He's alive, and that's all that matters. Beside, if he stayed away, it has to be for a good reason.

"Anyway, princess, we'll talk some more after I undo the magical effects of the unknown elixir on the sovereign of the Azure pack." Nathaniel made his way over to Kazan's bed. "I presume this kid is the sovereign."

It's obvious that this brat was plagued with some curse; Nathaniel could tell from the dark magic emitting from his body. What puzzled him, though, was: How is this young pup still alive? He should be dead from the second that Elixir entered his body.

"Yes, he is." Dorian answered. "Is there anyway for you to help him?"

"There is only one way to find out." Nathaniel examined the sovereign kid with magic to be able to identify exactly what type of curse was used. However, what he saw and sensed next surprised him.

The azure heptagon dots, enveloped with a white clover, shone brightly through Kazan's garment.

"You claimed someone?" He looked at the princess, surprised. Back then, when the princess had just entered womanhood, he had spent a whole year and a half trying his best to get her to be his woman, but she rejected him every time. She even dared to say he was like her stupid father. The insult.

Anyway, how did this brat, who looks as if he's still getting breastfed, get so lucky? How did this happen? This is not fair.

Nathaniel also now understands why the pup is still alive. The kid is linked to the princess due to her claim on him. And the mark, though in a dormant state, managed to somehow force itself to activate to draw on her strength. That's what kept the kid alive up until now. But it won't be able to keep him alive for long. The potion that he drank is known as the shadow invisible poison, and it is very potent and deadly. Nathaniel predicts that the kid has at least a day before he dies painfully and horribly.

"It wasn't intentional, OK." Leah seemed embarrassed.

"I see, so you were trying to break your claim on him." Nathaniel read up the situation based on the evidence before coming to a conclusion. "But the dark caster duped you. You poor kids. Whoever plotted this, though, must truly hate this sovereign brat, and you princess was just collateral damage."

"Can you fix the pup or not?" Leah asked, desperately hoping his answer would be yes.

"I will try my best, princess." Nathaniel replied. "But before I do so, I thought you should know that it's futile to try and remove your claim on the kid. Once you claim someone, they can never be unclaimed. Only death can bring them freedom."

"What?" Ezekiel and Leah uttered at the same time. Dorian, on the other hand, had suspected that was the case. And now it's clear.

"I guess your mother has failed to educate you about stuff like this. And it is also safe to assume that she never got the chance to tell you the truth about her true lineage either."

"What truth?" Leah was confused. "What linage? What are you talking about?"

"Now then." Nathaniel clapped with a board smile on his face. "If you guys don't mind, I'd like to be alone with the kid sovereign."

"We're not going anywhere." Ezekiel declined that proposal.

"It's not like you have a choice in the matter." Nathaniel snapped his fingers, forcing Dorian and Ezekiel out of the room. They tried to enter, but there was this energy that was keeping them out.

"What's the meaning of this, Nate?" Leah is suspicious of Nathaniel's action.

"Oh shoots." Nathaniel bumped his own head. "I forget that I need to use even stronger magic when it comes to you, princess."

"Why are you doing this?"

"The truth is, princess. I was hired by some guy to deceive that Ezekiel kid into thinking I was here to help the young sovereign. But I'm really here to kill him," Nathaniel said. "And I want to do so more now that I know he's claimed by you."

"You know I won't allow that to happen, right?" Leah was gearing up to take him out with one blow before he could use any magic to harm the pup.

"Hold up, princess." Nathaniel held his hands up as a gesture of surrender while laughing. "I'm not crazy enough to pick a fight with a beast."

"Who are you calling a beast, old fart?" Leah complained. Though Nathaniel looks to be in his early twenties, he's actually older than she is. He's an ancient beast.

"I was just messing with you, kiddo." Nathaniel laughed heartily. "But honestly, I'm jealous of your bond with the kid. But like your mom, I'm over it."

"That's not funny." Leah still had her guard up.

"You are strong, kiddo. But you couldn't stop me from killing him if I was serious about it," Nathaniel said. And Leah knows he was right. "Well, the sovereign kid is also lucky. If I hadn't met you here today, then I might have killed the kid and those two too."

"Just fix him, please," Leah requested. "Then later, we need to talk about what you said earlier."

"Ugh! OK."

"And also, stop fooling around and let them in." Leah pointed in Dorian's and Ezekiel's directions. The two look like they are about to catch a stroke, trying to break Nathaniel's spell, which she knows is impossible to break. Nathaniel is, after all, a freak of nature, part caster, part lycan. He's what's known as an elemental beast.

"I was serious earlier when I said that you all need to leave the room."

"Why?" Leah asked. "You're just removing a spell, right?"

"It's not that simple, princess. We are dealing with powerful, old, dark magic here. And the only way to break such a curse is by overpowering it with stronger magic."

"And the danger of doing this?" She deduced that there was some downside to implementing this method, judging from his tone.

"Please note that this method might not even be successful. If I do this, it may cause the kid to explode. And whoever gets hit by that magical blast will die for sure."