Chapter 7: The Awakening

The moon hung high in the sky, its silver light bathing the hidden valley in a soft, ethereal glow. The air was still, the kind of silence that whispered of secrets untold and magic long forgotten.

Selene sat cross-legged by the fire, sweat glistening on her brow. Her breath came in deep, steadying inhales as she focused on the ancient exercises Elder Liora had taught her. With every movement, she felt the growing strength within her, the power that had been hidden for so long. The training was brutal, pushing her to the brink of exhaustion, but with every ounce of effort, she grew stronger.

Her healing abilities had become sharper, her combat skills more precise. She was beginning to see herself differently—no longer just the Omega who had been cast aside, but a force to be reckoned with.

But there was something else happening—something she hadn’t expected.

As she trained, as she pushed her limits and unlocked new abilities, Selene’s scent, the one that had been stolen from her by Lilith’s potion, began to return. It was faint at first, a whisper of her true essence, but it was there. The familiar fragrance of wild jasmine and moonlit roses, the scent that had once been so uniquely hers, was growing stronger with each passing day.

It wasn’t just her scent. It was the bond she had shared with Darius. The connection that had once seemed so broken, so irreparably severed, was slowly beginning to stir, like the first rays of dawn creeping over the horizon.

Selene had been so consumed by the pain of her rejection, the heartache of Darius’s betrayal, that she had never allowed herself to consider that the bond had never truly disappeared. But now, as the scent of her true self began to return, she could feel it—deep within her soul. The bond between her and the Alpha King had always been there, buried beneath the lies, the pain, and the magic that Lilith had woven.

And as the days went by, she could feel it pulling at her, calling to her in ways she didn’t fully understand.

The evening air was crisp as Selene stood, her body aching from the day’s training. She took a deep breath, feeling the pulse of power within her. It was different now. She could sense the world around her in ways she hadn’t before. The trees, the earth beneath her feet, the wind—all of it seemed to hum with life, as if she were more attuned to it than ever before.

"You're ready," Elder Liora said quietly, appearing from the shadows of the trees. Her voice carried the weight of years, of wisdom that transcended time itself. "The next step is upon you."

Selene turned to face her, her heart pounding in her chest. She had felt the pull of the bond, the shift in the air around her, but she didn’t fully understand it. She had only just begun to understand the true depth of the power within her.

"How do I harness this?" Selene asked, her voice steady but filled with a mixture of anticipation and fear. "How do I make sense of this connection to Darius? Why now?"

Liora studied her with piercing blue eyes, her expression both wise and sorrowful. "The bond between you and Darius was never truly severed, Selene. Even when Lilith stole your scent, the Moon Goddess ensured that the connection remained, deep in your heart. It was the Goddess’s will—your bond cannot be broken, no matter what magic Lilith used."

Selene’s heart skipped a beat. "But how can this be? Darius rejected me. He chose her."

Liora’s gaze softened. "Darius may have been deceived, but he has never truly severed the bond. He feels it even now, though he may not understand it. The Moon Goddess’s gifts are not so easily hidden, not so easily erased. The bond between a fated pair cannot be severed by magic or lies. It only slumbers, waiting to be awakened."

A chill ran down Selene’s spine, her mind whirling. The bond with Darius was still there. She could feel it in the very core of her being—fragile but unbroken. And with every passing day, as her true self was coming back to life, she could sense Darius was starting to feel it too.

Elder Liora placed a hand on her shoulder, her grip firm and reassuring. "Your scent will return fully, but it’s not just your scent, Selene. It is your essence, your strength. And as you awaken, so too will Darius. He is confused, yes, because Lilith’s magic still clouds his mind. But he will feel the truth. He will feel the pull toward you again."

"I... I don’t know if I can face him," Selene confessed, her voice breaking. "The pain of what he did to me... it feels too much. How can I trust him again?"

"You may never fully understand the reasons behind his rejection," Liora said softly. "But you must trust in the bond. Trust in the truth of the connection between you two. You are stronger now, Selene. And so is Darius, even if he does not yet know it."

Selene’s gaze drifted to the moon above, the pale light casting long shadows over the forest floor. The weight of the truth pressed heavily on her chest. She had spent so much time trying to push the bond aside, trying to ignore the pain of his rejection. But now, she understood that the bond could not be ignored—it was a part of her, a part of him, a part of their destiny.

And though the pain was still there, lingering like a shadow, something within her began to shift. She wasn’t the broken Omega anymore. She was something more—something stronger. The Goddess had chosen her, had blessed her, and that power was hers to reclaim.

"I will face him," Selene said quietly, her voice filled with a newfound determination. "I will make him see the truth."

---

Back at the palace, the Alpha King was tormented by strange dreams. He had been restless for days, plagued by images of a woman—her scent, so familiar, yet foreign. It was a fragrance he had once known so well, one that had been stolen from him, but now it seemed to haunt him from the edges of his consciousness.

He tossed and turned in his bed, the dreams more vivid than ever. He saw Selene—her face, her eyes, the way she had looked at him before everything had shattered. And in the dreams, she was surrounded by light, her power radiating from her like a force of nature.

In his waking moments, he could still feel it—the pull, the connection that had never truly faded. He tried to ignore it, tried to focus on Lilith, but the more he thought about her, the more distant she seemed. Something was wrong, he could feel it deep in his bones.

He sat up in bed, his heart pounding in his chest. The scent of Lilith beside him seemed almost suffocating now, but the pull of the woman from his dreams—the woman who had once been his fated mate—was too strong to ignore.

"Damn it," Darius muttered under his breath, running a hand through his disheveled hair. "What is happening to me?"

As the days passed, Darius found himself growing more distant from Lilith, his attention drawn inexplicably to the woman from his dreams. He began to question everything—the bond he had shared with Lilith, the choice he had made, and the truth about Selene.

The scent that had once been so clearly erased by magic was starting to come back, and with it, a painful clarity that Darius had spent so long trying to avoid. The bond with Selene was not gone—it was never gone.

And now, as the pull grew stronger, Darius had no choice but to confront the truth. Something inside him was awakening, and he couldn’t ignore it any longer.

The Moon Goddess had set things into motion, and he could feel it. He could feel her. He had made a mistake, and now, he would have to face the consequences.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***