Chapter 237: The real monster

Rhydor’s POV

The boy, standing pinned beneath my blades, looked up through tear-filled eyes, his voice trembling as he spoke.

"Whenever I used to see you leave the house..." he continued, his tone cracking with raw, unhealed pain, "...or watch you avoid me, or see you get so annoyed whenever I walked into the room... it broke my heart."

"I had no friends growing up. Every child in the village stayed away from me because you constantly made fun of me, calling me a useless girl. Nobody wanted to play with me because of the harsh names you used."

"You were literally all I had. Our mother and father were always busy running the pack, but you were right there. Yet you still walked away. You kept abandoning me in the dark, even though you knew how terrified I was of being left alone."

Hot tears welled in my eyes, spilling down my cheeks before I could stop them.

The heavy memories came crashing back into my mind like a violent wave. That was exactly how I had treated him when we were children.

I didn’t actually hate my little brother back then, but I hated how soft and timid he was. I foolishly believed that being harsh, distant, and cruel would force him to toughen up and grow strong.

I was too young and foolish to realize the serious, permanent damage I was inflicting on his soul.

"I was useless in your eyes," he continued, searching my face with wide, glassy eyes.

"And at the same time... I felt entirely helpless."

He went quiet for a moment, his tear-filled eyes scanning my expression. Then, in the blink of an eye, his entire aura shifted.

The vulnerable sadness melted away, replaced by a dark, sinister smirk that curled the corners of his lips.

"And that was the exact moment I saw my opportunity," he purred, his voice dropping into that chilling, double-layered register.

"Knowing this boy had incredible raw magic inside him, but was far too terrified to ever use it... I decided to step in and offer my assistance. I decided to take your broken little brother under my wing and transform him into something truly magnificent."

He gestured lazily to his own chest, his brown eyes gleaming with evil pride.

"Now look at what he has become," he smirked.

My hands began to tremble violently. The cool metal handles of my axes rested against his neck, but my arms felt heavy, frozen in place.

I couldn’t bring myself to push the blades forward.

"The two of you could have ruled this entire realm together," he said softly, stepping his face a fraction closer.

"Two brothers carrying the rare blood of both an Alpha and a sorcerer. Together, you would have been an unstoppable force. But no. You chose to crush your own brother’s spirit when he was just an innocent child."

He leaned in until his breath fanned across my ear, his voice cold.

"And after all of that, you dare to call me a monster. You are no different than I am."

I stared at him, my throat completely dry as I struggled to draw air into my lungs.

"We both inflict pain on others," he sneered.

"We both crush the weak under our boots. That is what you have done your entire life, Rhydor. You always believed that anyone who wasn’t strong enough didn’t deserve the right to stand beside you."

"You carried that same cruelty all the way into adulthood, going so far as to torture and destroy your own precious mate."

He reached out his right hand, placing a palm lightly on my shoulder.

"And yet you stand there judging me, calling me evil," he whispered.

He locked his gaze onto mine, his brown eyes cold and calculating.

"I might be a dark creature..." he said quietly, "...but I would never degrade myself to the point of hurting my own soulmate. I suppose that is the main reason the Moon Goddess never granted me a mate of my own."

"Perhaps she knew that I would tear the world apart to keep her safe. I would burn every breathing soul to ashes if a single hair on her head was harmed."

He paused, letting his harsh words sink deep into my chest.

"Yet here you stand," he hissed out, his eyes narrowing into sharp slits.

"You were blessed with the one miracle I desired most in this life... and you drove her straight to her early grave. Every single drop of blood being spilled on your pack grounds today is happening because of you. It is all the direct result of your own arrogant mistakes."

The iron grip in my fingers slipped entirely. My heavy battle axes tumbled from my hands, crashing onto the dirt with a loud metallic thud.

I lowered my head, staring blankly at the ground between us.

He was entirely right. Every cruel word leaving his mouth was a sharp truth I could no longer deny.

"So tell me now, little Alpha..." he leaned closer, his voice dark and amused.

"...which one of us is the true monster?"

I kept my mouth shut, unable to utter a single word of defense.

"This is how the story always unfolds," he said calmly, taking a slow step back from my kneeling form.

"By the time foolish men finally realize the weight of their sins... it is always the exact moment they draw their final breath."

He folded his arms behind his back, looking down at me with cold pity.

"I am going to grant you two generous favors today, boy," he said softly.

"The first favor is the knowledge that your long-lost brother is still alive inside this shell. The second favor... I am going to send your soul straight to the underworld so you can rejoin your mate."

"At the very least, you can try your luck at begging for her forgiveness down there."

An impossible, crushing weight suddenly slammed down on my entire body. Pure magical paralysis locked my muscles, completely taking away my ability to move.

I slowly lifted my head to look up at him through my blurred vision. Those familiar brown eyes were no longer the soft, tearful eyes I remembered from our childhood, the same innocent eyes that used to cry when I pushed him into the dirt, the same eyes that begged me to stay home and play, the same eyes I turned my back on every single day.

More hot tears streamed down my face, dripping off my chin onto the grass.

The heavy, dark pressure forced my upper body down, pinning my chest to the dirt as I fought against the invisible lock to speak.

"If dying by your hands... is the only way you will ever find it in your heart to forgive me..." I choked out through my gritted teeth, struggling against the magic, "...then I do not mind giving you my life, Nick."

The dark entity’s arrogant expression flickered for a brief second. A look of genuine shock crossed his features.

He had not heard that childhood nickname in over a decade. I had never once called him by that sweet name to his face when we were growing up.

"Nicholas," I whispered, offering him a soft, heartbroken smile through my tears.

He stared at me in total silence, his jaw clenching as his brown eyes darkened once again.

"So be it," he said coldly.

He opened his mouth wide, and a harsh, black vacuum of energy erupted from his throat.

I closed my eyes tightly, accepting my fate as I felt my internal power beginning to detach from my soul.

It has been a true honor serving by your side, Rhydor. Logan’s deep, steady voice echoed through the fading mind space inside my head.

I am so deeply sorry for keeping you away from your mate, I replied internally, my spirit weeping as the bond began to tear.

I failed you both.

Do not weep, my Alpha, Logan said softly.

Perhaps in our next life... the Moon Goddess will look down on us with mercy.

And if I am granted a next life... I promised him...I will still choose you to be my wolf every single time.

I could feel Logan’s spirit being pulled forcefully out of my chest, ripping away from my soul bit by bit as the dark magic drained us completely.

Then, without any warning, a sudden, blinding snap echoed through the air.

The crushing, dark pressure holding me down vanished in an instant. The invisible suction stopped dead, and Logan’s spirit slammed back into my chest with the force of a battering ram.

The shockwave knocked the air right out of my lungs, and I collapsed flat onto the cool dirt, gasping greedily for breath as my body shuddered.

I pushed my hands against the grass, slowly opening my heavy eyes to look up.

A lone figure was walking steadily down the dirt path toward the center of the smoky clearing.

The air around the figure moved in violent, glowing ripples of raw, ancient power, driving the lingering dark smoke completely away.

I forced my eyes wide, my mind refusing to process the impossible sight unfolding right in front of me.

What I was staring at was something that was never meant to exist in this world, a presence so legendary, so overwhelming, that my blood sang in quiet reverence.