5

So.”

Alexander already knew where this was going.

“You found your mate.”

“Yes.”

The king’s expression remained cold.

“A human.”

Alexander stiffened.

“Yes.”

Disapproval flashed across the king’s face.

“No.”

Alexander frowned.

“No?”

“No.”

The king stood.

“You will reject her.”

The room instantly grew colder.

Alexander’s crimson eyes narrowed.

“You’re serious.”

“Entirely.”

A bitter laugh escaped him.

“You’re the one who spent decades telling me to find my mate.”

“I expected a worthy mate.”

Alexander’s jaw tightened.

“Melody is worthy.”

“She is human.”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“It matters greatly.”

King Viktor descended the steps.

“She is weak.”

Alexander’s hands clenched.

“Enough.”

⸻

A long silence settled between them.

Alexander exhaled slowly, forcing his hands to unclench.

“I’m not asking you to approve of her,” he said, voice steadier now. “I’m telling you what’s already happened.”

King Viktor studied him carefully, as if searching for hesitation, doubt—anything he could use.

“A human mate,” he repeated, quieter this time. Not disapproval now, but something more controlled. Calculating.

Alexander nodded once. “Her name is Melody.”

The way he said it softened something in the air, just slightly.

Viktor turned away, walking a few slow steps toward the tall window. The kingdom spread beneath them—dark, endless, alive.

“You know what this means for you,” the king said at last.

“I do.”

“And you still choose her.”

It wasn’t a question.

Alexander didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”

A pause.

Then Viktor sighed—barely noticeable, but real enough.

“This will not be simple,” he said. “The court will talk. There will be resistance.”

“I expected that.”

Another silence followed, less sharp now. More like weight settling into place.

Finally, Viktor spoke again.

“Bring her to the palace.”

Alexander looked up sharply.

Viktor didn’t turn around.

“If she is to stand beside you,” he said calmly, “then I will see what kind of woman she truly is.”

A beat.

“And Alexander,” he added, voice quieter, “if she survives court life… then we will talk again.”

⸻

Alexander barely had time to process the king’s words before the palace doors opened again.

And then—

Melody stepped in.

She took one look at the grand hall, the towering guards, the cold marble, and immediately froze.

“…Okay,” she whispered. “This is where I die.”

Alexander turned sharply. “Melody—”

But she wasn’t listening.

Her eyes locked onto the guards.

Then the shadows.

Then the long hallway that looked like it led directly into “eternal doom.”

Her voice cracked instantly.

“So this is it,” she said, clutching her chest. “The vampire king is going to suck my blood and turn me into royal soup.”

“Melody—” Alexander tried again, but she had already backed up a step.

“I just want to say,” she continued dramatically, tears already forming, “I’ve lived a good life. I mean… not long, but good. My father is going to miss me. I am his only daughter.”

She sniffed loudly.

“And please tell him I tried my best not to get kidnapped by a tall red-eyed man with questionable decision-making skills.”

Alexander blinked. “…Questionable?”

She ignored him.

Then suddenly she turned back to him with full intensity.

“And you!” she pointed at Alexander like a final accusation. “If you even THINK of marrying someone else after I die, I will come back as a ghost and haunt your shampoo. Every. Single. Night.”

A guard coughed to hide a laugh.

Alexander just stood there, completely frozen.

Melody nodded solemnly, like she had accepted her fate.

She folded her hands.

“Dear Lord,” she began dramatically, “if I am about to be sacrificed, please accept my spirit. And if possible, let me haunt selectively.”

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Even the king, who had been watching from the balcony above, paused.

Alexander finally found his voice.

“…Are you done?”

Melody nodded once. “Yes. I’m ready to be fed to the wolves now.”

Alexander stared at her for a long moment.

Then, very slowly—

He pressed a hand over his face.

“…This is my mate,” he muttered under his breath.

And somehow, for the first time that night—

The tension in the room cracked.

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