Prologue

The night reeked of blood.

High above the burning forest, the Vampire King stood motionless, his crimson eyes reflecting the flames. His kingdom had seen countless wars, rebellions, and betrayals, but none of it touched him—not truly. He was untouchable. Cold. Unfeeling. A monster wrapped in shadows.

That was his curse.

Centuries ago, a witch had stolen the one thing that made him more than a beast—his heart. Not his life, not his strength, but the very pulse of emotion that made him capable of love. For a thousand years, his chest had been silent, his veins filled only with hunger and rage.

The curse was sealed with a prophecy:

“When the King’s heart beats again, his reign will end. His mate will either save him… or destroy him.”

He had mocked those words, laughing as he tore through armies, slaughtered witches, and burned kingdoms to ash. He had made his throne from the bones of those foolish enough to remind him of the prophecy. And still, the silence remained within him. No heartbeat. No weakness.

Until tonight.

The air quivered with screams as rogue vampires burned around him, their bodies reduced to ash. He had come to crush a rebellion, nothing more. Another pointless war. Another display of his dominance. But as the smoke curled into the night sky, something unexpected flickered in the corner of his vision.

A girl.

She stumbled out from the wreckage, her arm torn and bleeding, her breaths sharp and uneven. Too fragile. Too human. She didn’t belong here—among the shadows and death. Yet her eyes met his through the chaos, wide and terrified, but bright with defiance.

And then it happened.

A thud.

He froze, clutching his chest. His heart—silent for a thousand years—beat once. Then again. A painful, searing pulse that shook him more than any blade ever had.

The Vampire King staggered back, his breath ragged, his crimson gaze locked on her trembling form. His soldiers noticed nothing, too busy tearing through the rebels, but he knew. He felt it.

“She’s the one,” he whispered, his voice raw, cracked, as if unused for centuries.

The prophecy. The curse. The very words he had spent lifetimes denying—alive before him.

The girl’s blood dripped into the soil, mingling with the ash. The sight ignited something inside him, something he didn’t recognize. A need to claim her. Protect her. Destroy her. He didn’t know which was stronger.

The forest roared with fire, but all he could hear was the hammering in his chest. All he could see was her.

The witch’s words whispered like venom in his ears.

“His mate will either save him… or destroy him.”

For the first time in a thousand years, the King felt fear.

Not of death. Not of war.

But of the fragile girl whose very existence could bring his kingdom to its knees.

And as her gaze locked with his once more, he knew one truth.

His downfall had just begun.

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