Chapter 365: Meet her!
Aidan.
"How can she be Maria?" Adrein asked immediately.
His voice cut through the stunned silence of the room, pulling me out of my shock almost instantly.
I blinked and looked up.
Honestly, his question echoed exactly what was running through my own mind.
How could the Lycan Princess possibly be Maria?
None of it made sense, not even a single part of it.
Noah visibly grimaced. "Can you lower your voice?" he said, disgust dripping from his tone as though Adrein’s question had personally offended him.
Adrein’s eyes narrowed immediately. "Leave my tone aside and answer my question!" he shot back, irritation evident in every word.
The tension between them thickened instantly.
For a moment, it looked as though neither of them intended to back down.
Noah released an impatient sigh, as he rubbed his temple briefly before fixing Adrein with an annoyed stare.
"Look here, I have no explanation whatsoever," he said bluntly. "I have said what you need to know."
His voice carried an air of finality, as though he considered the discussion already over.
"Now, I would urge you all to refrain from discussing this matter. We have other things to put our thoughts on."
The room fell silent immediately afterward, and an heavy silence.
It seemed everyone was trying to process what Noah had just revealed.
Including me.
The more I thought about it, the less sense it made, yet Noah didn’t look uncertain. If anything, he looked completely convinced.
That was the disturbing part.
"What made you so sure, Noah?" Davain said, as he finally broke the silence, his entire expression was fixed on Noah, studying him carefully.
Unlike the rest of us, Davain seemed less interested in arguing and more interested in understanding.
Noah met his gaze.
"Well, I spoke to her."
The answer came so casually that it took a second for it to sink in.
My eyes widened slightly.
He spoke to her?
When and how?
Noah leaned back slightly before continuing.
"Now enough questions. I need you all to think of a way we can secretly meet up with her."
The moment those words left his mouth, my entire body stiffened.
Meet up with her?
Was Noah out of his mind?
That was an incredibly dangerous suggestion.
The Lycan Prince wasn’t someone to be taken lightly, as everything about that man screamed danger, possessive and unpredictable.
And if Noah was right—if the Lycan Princess truly was Maria—then secretly meeting her could place her in serious trouble.
The very thought made my stomach twist.
I was certain of one thing.
The Lycan Prince was a psychopath.
A dangerous one.
The last thing Maria needed was for him to discover a group of men sneaking around to meet her behind his back.
I took a slow breath, trying to steady my thoughts.
The room remained quiet as everyone considered Noah’s proposal.
Finally, I cleared my throat, and the sound immediately drew their attention.
"If we want to meet up with Maria," I said firmly, choosing my words carefully, "it has to be just one person."
Several pairs of eyes shifted toward me.
"With all of us going to see her, it could attract attention," I continued. "And attention is the last thing we need right now."
As the words left my mouth, I found myself hoping they would understand exactly how dangerous this situation truly was.
"Then I should be the one!" Adrein spoke so quickly that it was obvious he had been waiting for an opportunity to volunteer himself.
His eyes lit up immediately, and a grin spread across his face as though he had just won some grand prize.
The sudden excitement in his voice made me narrow my eyes at him.
"And why would it be you?" Davain asked, as he raised a brow and folded his arms across his chest. "I am far more cautious than you are," he continued confidently. "So I should be the one."
Adrein immediately opened his mouth to argue but before he could get a single word out, Damien let out an exaggerated scoff.
The sound echoed through the room.
"Can both of you listen to yourselves?" he asked, as his gaze shifted between them, looking thoroughly unimpressed. "Neither of you is fit to go. You would just give yourselves away."
The confidence in his tone instantly irritated both Davain and Adrein.
"Then who do you suggest should go?"
The two of them spoke at the exact same time and their synchronized response almost made me laugh.
Damien looked completely unfazed.
"Myself, of course."
The answer came without hesitation.
As if there had never been any other reasonable option.
I rolled my eyes immediately.
Across the room, Davain and Adrein both hissed loudly. The look on their faces suggested they were only seconds away from launching into another argument.
Honestly, I was already getting tired.
We were supposed to be discussing an important matter. Instead, these grown men were behaving like children fighting over a toy.
"Can you all stop being childish?" I finally snapped.
The room fell quiet, and all eyes turned toward me.
"We need to agree on one person," I continued firmly. "Not nominate ourselves."
The excitement faded from their faces slightly.
Even Damien looked somewhat reluctant to continue arguing.
A brief silence followed.
"Who are we going to choose then?" Adrein asked.
His previously enthusiastic expression had completely soured. The disappointment on his face was almost amusing.
I rubbed my chin thoughtfully.
"To be fair," I said, "we can simply write our names on pieces of paper, fold them, and have one person randomly pick a name."
For a second, nobody spoke.
Then their expressions gradually relaxed.
"Alright."
"That sounds better."
"Fair enough."
The agreement came almost immediately.
For the first time since this discussion started, everyone seemed to be on the same page.
Without wasting any more time, we each grabbed a small piece of paper and wrote down our names.
The room remained unusually quiet as everyone finished.
Once the papers were folded, they were handed to me.
I collected them all into my palm.
For dramatic effect, I shook them around several times.
The folded papers rustled noisily against one another.
Then I tossed them onto the floor.
"Why are you doing it like you’re performing some ancient ritual?" Davain muttered.
I ignored him completely.
After mixing them thoroughly, I looked up.
"Adrein."
He straightened immediately.
"Pick one."
The excitement returned to his face as he stepped forward. Without hesitation, he bent down and selected a folded piece of paper.
The room became silen, as everyone watched while Adrein unfolded it. The moment his eyes landed on the name written inside, his expression instantly soured.
His shoulders slumped.
And that alone told the rest of us everything we needed to know.
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