Contract With The Alpha King by Brey Mitchylle

Chapter 48 Elise's father gestured toward a wooden bench nestled among the herbs in the small garden. The soft scent of lavender and sage lingered in the air as a gentle breeze made its presence known, ruffling the leaves of the carefully tended plants. Elise sat down, her eyes trained on her father as he stood before her, his expression grave.

"Sit down, Elise," he said, his tone soft but firm. "It's tyou learned the truth. I wasn't planning to tell you until you were ready to take over the clan, but circumstances have changed. You need to know everything about our family's history." Elise nodded, folding her hands in her lap. She remained silent, waiting for him to continue. Thomas sat beside her, his gaze fixed on the garden as if gathering his thoughts before diving into the painful truth.

"You've heard of the First Great War, of course," Thomas began, his voice was calm but edged with something darker. "The war that nearly destroyed our world, both the human and supernatural world." Elise nodded again. "Yes, I know about it. It started with the Lycans and Vampires. Their conflict pulled everyone else into the chaos until every supernatural being was at each other's throats." This was common knowledge. Her father looked at her, his eyes hard. "Do you know why the war began?" Elise frowned, unsure. "Our history mentions only 'unknown differences' between them. There were no specifics, nothing concrete. However, before the war began, the Vampires and Lycans already disliked each other." Thomas leaned forward, clasping his hands together. "That's because the truth is not something we speak about lightly. The war wasn't caused by politics or territory. It wasn't about resources or power. It was far more personal than that." Elise stared at him, confused. "Personal? How?" Her father exhaled slowly. "It began because of a love triangle." Elise blinked, taken aback. "A love triangle? That sounds... ridiculous." That was a large scale war. How could it start because of... love? "It may sound ridiculous to you now, but it's the truth," Thomas said. "The Vampire Prince, Thane, had fallen deeply in love with a woman. As you know, vampires love only once in their lifetimes. For Thane, this woman was everything. But there was another-an Alpha Lycan named Markus-who had also fallen for the swoman. For Lycans, the concept of a mate is sacred, and Markus believed this woman was his one true mate. He would do anything for her." Elise's brow furrowed, her skepticism clear. "And the woman? Who was she?" "No one remembers her name," Thomas admitted, his eyes darkening with the memory of the tale. "She was a supernatural, caught between two powerful beings. She refused to choose between them, perhaps out of fear, perhaps out of love for both. Whatever her reasons, her indecision becthe spark that ignited the war." Elise shook her head, struggling to grasp how such a thing could lead to the bloodshed she had studied. "How did it escalate into a war? Just because a woman couldn't choose?" Her father's jaw tightened. "It wasn't just about her decision. For Thane and Markus, it beca matter of pride, of honor. The Vampire Prince believed that his love was pure, eternal, and that it gave him the right to have her. The Lycan Alpha believed that as her true mate, their bond was destined by fate. Neither would back down. Their love turned into an obsession and obsession into rage." Thomas's voice dropped lower. "Their conflict started small-a duel, a challenge for the woman's hand. But it quickly spiraled out of control. Their followers, their packs and clans, took sides. Thane's vampires and Markus's Lycans began slaughtering each other, and soon, the violence spread beyond their territories. Other supernatural beings were dragged into the conflict, whether by alliances, forced loyalty, or the sheer chaos that followed. It was a bloodbath that lasted decades." 1/3 ||| 10.03 Sun, Chapter 48 Elise leaned back, processing the story. "All of that... because of love?" 56% "Because of love and pride," Thomas comed. "They both believed they had a right to her. The Vampires and the Lycans were already powerful forces, but their personal feud turned them into enemies that no one could control. And when supernatural beings fight, the world suffers." Elise let out a slow breath. "So, the woman never chose?" Thomas shook his head. "No. She disappeared. No one knows where she was, if she died or lived. Ssay one of the two killed her in a fit of madness." +5 For a moment, Elise was silent, her mind whirling with the weight of the story. "So, that's how it started. But what does that have to do with us?" This ther father looked at the flowers and sighed. "The woman... the woman that caused all that was a Rosenthal." "What?" Elise's face immediately turned ugly.

"Not many knew the woman's nbecause her father, the leader of the Rosenthal Clan. When the two supernatural started fighting, he immediately chose something that any father would do. He chose to protect her, chose to hide her, hide all information about her. Make it look like she had beca ghost. She was kept in a tower, away from everyone else, away from the sight of the men that sought her." Elise's face turned uglier.

"The leader of the Rosenthal family at that time," Thomas continued, his voice dropping to a lower, more serious tone, "Betrayed his closest ally-the leader of the Crimson Howlers Pack-by hiding his own daughter. He believed he was protecting her, that by keeping her locked away, out of the reach of both Thane and Markus, he could save her from the conflict." Elise's face twisted with disbelief, her anger boiling beneath the surface. "He betrayed the pack? Our family betrayed the Crimson Howlers?"

Thomas nodded gravely. "Yes. The leader of the Rosenthal clan thought he was acting in his daughter's best interest, keeping her away from the men who wanted her. But it was a mistake. His actions didn't protect her; they made things worse. His daughter-our ancestor- grew to hate him for it." Elise's expression darkened further. "She hated her own father?"

"Yes," Thomas replied. "She was kept in a tower, hidden from the world, like skind of prisoner. She resented her father for taking away her freedom, and for making decisions about her life without ever asking what she wanted. It festered inside her until, one night, she managed to escape. And she didn't do it alone."" Elise's heart pounded in her chest, already guessing the answer before her father said the words.

"The Vampire Prince, Thane, helped her escape," Thomas said, confirming Elise's suspicions. "He found her and freed her from the tower. In her desperation, she ran straight into his arms, which was Markus's final straw." His father clenched his jaw.

"So, the war began," Elise whispered, her voice filled with disbelief.

"Yes," Thomas continued. "When Markus found out that the woman he believed was his true mate had fled with his rival, it sent him into a rage stival, unlike anything the world had ever seen. He didn't care about her reasons, her fears, or her resentment toward her father. All he saw was betrayal-by her, by the Rosenthals, and by the Vampires." Elise sat frozen. "So that's when the war truly escalated?" she asked after a few seconds of silence.

Thomas nodded again. "It was pure chaos from that point forward. Markus and his Lycans becrelentless, determined to wipe out the Vampires and anyone who stood in their way. The leader of the Rosenthal clan, seeing the destruction his 2/3 111