Chapter 160: Depressed Regents

Reign:

I wanted to be anywhere but inside that suffocating council room. The exams had barely ended, and somehow my father had already decided that the most urgent matter requiring the attention of the five Regents and the Regent heirs was our social calendar, or the lack of one to be more precise.

For nearly an hour, we had been subjected to lectures about how we had neglected too many noble gatherings, dinners, charity events, balls, and other meaningless occasions over the past few months and how the upcoming three-week holiday was the perfect opportunity to "make up for lost time."

Everyone kept using the phrase social responsibility, but we all knew what they actually meant. They wanted us to attend enough gatherings to meet suitable young women from influential families.

I was sitting beside Esme while Kairo and Alaric were across from us, and all four of us had mastered the art of looking mildly interested while mentally planning our escape. The only person who seemed remotely entertained was Lorien, who sat several seats away in complete silence with the faintest hint of amusement on his face. I caught him looking far too pleased with himself and immediately knew he was enjoying every second of our misery.

Unfortunately for him, Regent Greymark noticed it too. "Lorien, stop smiling," he said suddenly, causing my attention to shift toward him. "You are no better than these four."

Lorien’s expression immediately became blank, but Regent Greymark wasn’t finished. "In fact, the five of you have been giving us headaches for years. Reign avoids half the social events he’s invited to, Esmeray disappears into his greenhouse, Kairo somehow turns every gathering into an excuse to flirt with someone, Alaric picks fights with people he shouldn’t, and you..." He pointed toward Lorien. "You have perfected the art of making perfectly respectable women reject you before the evening is over."

Kairo immediately lowered his head to hide his grin while Alaric coughed suspiciously into his fist. I didn’t bother hiding mine. Seeing Lorien finally become the target of everyone’s frustration was far too satisfying. The situation was especially amusing because he had apparently managed to set a record just last month by attending ten blind dates and somehow getting rejected in every single one. The fact that the other four Regents had eventually lectured him for two hours straight about it was still one of our favorite stories.

My amusement lasted until my father sighed deeply and turned his entire attention toward Lorien. "You know what?" he said, sounding exhausted. "At this point, I don’t care anymore."

Lorien raised an eyebrow. "About what?"

"About where she comes from," Father replied. "Noble family, commoner, a warrior, a businesswoman, I don’t care. Find someone you actually like and marry her."

The room went completely silent. Esme and I exchanged startled looks while Kairo and Alaric stared at each other as if we had collectively entered an alternate universe. My father, Darren Valemont, had just told Lorien that he was willing to let him marry a commoner. The same man who had spent years drilling into me that family name, bloodline, reputation, and political standing mattered in every alliance had apparently reached the point where he no longer cared about any of it. What was even more surprising was that none of the other Regents objected. Lorien himself looked genuinely caught off guard for half a second before his expression returned to its usual calm composure.

Then Mrs. Greymark spoke, and the room nearly exploded. "Wait," she said, looking at Lorien with genuine concern. "Is there perhaps something else we should know? Are you... interested in men?"

Esme nearly choked on his tea. Kairo’s shoulders began shaking violently, and Alaric turned his face away, clearly fighting for his life not to laugh. Even I couldn’t stop the corners of my lips curving as every elder in the room suddenly stared at Lorien as though he had become the most suspicious person in the room.

Lorien closed his eyes and slowly pinched the bridge of his nose. "No," he answered with painful patience. "I am not."

"Then why," Mrs. Greymark pressed, "have dozens of women rejected you over the years?"

Kairo finally made a strangled sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a cough. Alaric wasn’t doing much better. I had to look down at the table because my amusement was becoming impossible to conceal. Lorien opened his eyes and gave all of us a look that promised revenge later, but for once, I didn’t care. Watching my friend suffer through this was far too entertaining.

"She’s right." Mrs. Ashbourne spoke, fixing her gaze on Lorien. "Rejecting some of the dates make sense. But how come you never found a single one of those 32 women interesting that we tried to set you up with?"

Lorien seemed like he wanted to be anywhere but here, but he had to keep up the appearance to not offend the women in the room. So he just apologized for making them worry.

"If you are really that sorry, then hurry up and find a wife for yourself." Kairo finally spoke up only to get a warning glare from Lorien.

Right that very moment, something inside me changed.

The smile died on my lips so abruptly that I almost forgot to breathe. An unfamiliar uneasiness curled through my chest, sharp and sudden enough to make me straighten in my chair. My wolf stirred at the same moment, and the shift in his presence was so violent that every trace of amusement vanished from my mind.

Something’s wrong.

His voice wasn’t teasing or lazy like usual. It was tense. Agitated. Almost frightened. I immediately scanned the council room, searching for anything unusual. Nothing. The other four Regents were still gathered around the table. Lorien was still suffering under the women’s questions. Esme looked confused by my sudden silence, while Kairo and Alaric were still barely containing their laughter. Nothing had changed. And yet the feeling inside me kept growing.

My heart suddenly clenched so hard that pain shot through my chest. I grabbed the edge of the table, sucking in a sharp breath as my wolf let out a howl inside my mind. It wasn’t a warning this time. It was recognition. I froze as the sensation spread through every part of me, overwhelming everything else.

Mate.

The single word echoed inside my head, and for the first time in my life, my wolf’s voice sounded terrified.

I went completely still.

This feeling was because of my mate. And somewhere out there, something had just happened to her.