RIGHTFUL VENGEANCE

TROUBLE BREATHING?

Prince Kang Dae cleared his throat, the sound sliced through the thick suffocating silence of the Selene's chamber. Shadows from the flickering candlelight stretched and occasionally shifted across the white marbled floors. It casted long restless shapes on the white stone walls as well.

The air truly was heavy with the weight of their unspoken words and their seemingly unresolved conflict. "Why?" he demanded with his voice low yet it was laced with a sense of urgency.

Selene remained motionless with her stance rigid as she faced him and stared at him squarely in the eyes. The room felt as if it were closing in on her even though on the outside she appeared to be grounded. Due to her silence his earlier irritation flared back to life, his voice simmered with annoyance just beneath the surface. "Selene—"

"Oh, so we're on a first-name basis now, Dae?"Her response was cold, her voice was sharp and it cut through the stillness.

The icy disdain in her tone was sharp like a blade and it struck deep into his sense of respect. And with that his anger surged. His reaction was as intense as the revulsion one felt when they stepped on dog shit.

His eyes narrowed and their dark intensity reflected the candlelights in a way that made them seem almost molten like volcanic larva. With a boiling body he rose from his seat with deliberately measured grace. His form was instantly amplified as he stood and casted a shadow that undeniably enveloped her.

Even from his seated position earlier his height had been imposing but now, now as he stood it was overwhelming. It reminded her of the aura she sensed from him as he addressed the nobles just after they were formally introduced the other night.

The stark difference in their heights was noticed by Selene. Though she was tall, tall for a woman most would say, Prince Kang Dae loomed above her like a giant whose stature made her feel like a cat stalking its mouse. She soon realized with a sinking feeling that she would need to stand on tiptoes just to rest her chin on his shoulder and even then, it might just not be enough.

"I am no 잔소리꾼 (jansorikkun), regardless I will ask you again Selene, why did you make such a request of me?" His voice rumbled deeply as it resonated with an unyielding edge that sent a shiver down her spine.

It was then Selene noticed just how commanding and smooth his voice truly was. It was like each word carried a weight that demanded attention, her attention.
The candlelight illuminated the sharp angles of his face which casted a soft glow that only intensified the darkness of his chocolate eyes.

As Selene stared into them, she noticed his thick straight lashes, it was a subtle reminder of their different ethnicities. Yet it wasn't just his foreign lashes that made her breath catch; it was the sheer force of his presence and his commanding aura. It did things to her, things she wasn't even sure of herself.

As she became ensnared in his gaze, she hadn't realized just how close he had come to her. His long strides had covered the space between them with unsettling ease. Legs that moved with a purposeful grace that emphasized his dominance all the more.

"Selene?" His voice was still solid and unrelenting.

All the while, her mind raced with a flurry of thoughts and strategies. Physical confrontation was out of the question and certainly not an option. "Brute force is unladylike, a lady must use her head to get what she wants." Her mother's voice sang from her childhood memory.

Desperation suddenly gave way to clarity as a sharp and decisive plan began to form quickly.

In Prince Kang Dae's frustration he reached out to touch her shoulder. He hoped the gesture would break through her defenses. But Selene with an elegance that both surprised and entranced him, suddenly sidestepped him.