Help! Five Beast Alphas Want To Breed Me!!(BL)-Chapter 249: Unlike My Brothers

Lioran;

Balina’s breath hitches as he stares at me.

The hitch is faint... barely audible.

Like the kind of sound someone would make if they swallowed saliva wrong. But despite how low it was, I heard it. The same way I’ve heard every lie he’s hidden under his words since he got here.

His pupils sharpen, the way preys do when they sense a predator has finally found their hiding spot.

I let the silence stretch. Deliberately. Cruelly.

Wondering how long it will take him to break.

I lean back in my seat and flip another page of the "proposal," before letting out a soft, amused sigh.

"So," I begin boredly,

"This is the great plea for peace you’ve been building for... let me guess... months?" I demand, and he blinks quickly.

Knowing that something is wrong, but still deciding to play along.

"Yes...Yes, Prince Lioran. My people are..." He begins again, but I cut him off.

"Starving."

He blinks at me, and I blink back.

"Dying. Begging for mercy. A true tragedy..." I add, and his shoulders relax slightly, mistaking my tone for softness.

What a joke.

I was told Balinar was a smart, calculating rival worthy of fear.

But if this is the move he pulled!? This pathetic, haphazard attempt at manipulation, then wow!!

I’m disappointed... almost even embarrassed for him.

How desperate must he have been to whip up and settle for this nonsense??

I close the document again and fold my fingers neatly on top of it.

"Unfortunately," I speak with my voice, holding warmth I have decided to hold on to.

Because it is either warmth or wrath, and for his sake, I am deciding to hold on to warmth.

"Unfortunately, Balinar, you seem to think I’m stupid," I add, and his mouth, which was about to form a smile, freezes.

I open the documents and turn them to face him as I lean forward and tap on the first page.

"This clause here... paragraph six," I speak, and I tilt my head as his eyes follow my hand.

"You tagged it as ’emergency influx of resources.’ How poetic." I speak, and he swallows as he slowly looks back up at me.

"W-well, yes. That would allow..."

"...your men to enter BeastHeaven territory disguised as transporters." I cut him off, and his eyes widen.

Causing my smile to grow.

"Nice trick. Old. A little dusty, but a trick nonetheless." I commend, and I hear him hold his breath.

Is he already panicking? I haven’t even started.

I flip to the next page and point at one of the many paragraphs that caught my eye.

"And this one... paragraph nine. ’Temporary military collaboration.’ Very bold of you. Most enemies at least try to hide the word ’military’ in subtler ways." I tease as I run my finger over the words, and he looks at me in silence.

"This pretty coated phrase here would allow your soldiers to station themselves inside our borders. Rotations, you called it. Hmmm." I continue, and he tries to speak, but I raise a hand to stop him.

"You wrote an entire invasion, King Balina. The least you could have done was dress it better." I mock, and his face goes red.

" Lioran, you misunderstand..." he begins, and I raise a brow and scoff.

"No more ’Alpha Lioran’?" I mock, and he swallows in silence.

My smile drops.

"I understand perfectly, Balinar," I state, and he draws a deep breath.

I shift forward, resting my elbows now, on the polished conference table, and I lower my voice as though sharing a sweet secret.

"You thought I’d be an easy target," I speak matter-of-flatly, and he flinches.

"You assumed," I continue,

"That because I’m the youngest, because I bow and sit quietly, because I don’t bark orders or stomp around the palace shouting like some of my brothers... that I must be foolish," I add, and Balinar stiffens.

"But let me educate you," I add, smiling this time as I lean back again, eyes half-lidded as I’m too relaxed to be bothered by the presence of this nonentity.

"My father raised each of us separately. Personally. Intensively. He built us to rule entire kingdoms without crumbling." I inform before tapping the documents again.

"You thinking this would slide past me?" I continue as I tilt my head.

"Make you the fool." I spit, and anger flashes across his stupid, pride-coated face.

"You dare...?" He begins, but I raise a hand as my face scrunches in irritation. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Oh, don’t start posturing. It doesn’t suit you." I say unimpressed, and his nostrils flare.

His pheromones spike. A crack in his mask, and I smirk.

Then... he stands to his feet, slamming his hands so hard on the table as he stands.

His pheromones burst across the room like a whip, and staring at his eyes, I can see he’s about to shift.

An Elk against a fox??

Well, this man is full of surprises. A deep growl erupts from his throat, and I just watch him.

"You arrogant child," he spits.

"Do you think your kingdom is untouchable? Do you think..." He begins as a cloud of soil brown smoke begins to cover him, and I stand.

Slowly. Unhurried. Unbothered.

My chair slides back with a soft scrape as I reach for the katana, which has been sitting at my waist. The weapon which has always been at my side for as long as I can remember.

The moment my fingers curl around the hilt, I feel the room go stiff.

A quiet warning. Like the room itself was warning the fool in front of me.

I tilt my chin just enough for him to see my eyes clearly...glowing, sharpening, dangerous.

"You know my brothers," I say gently as I admire the weapon in my hand.

"Everyone does. Rhydian’s rage, Koda’s power, Zephan’s spirit... Zethar’s madness... They are very memorable men." I continue as I look back up at Balinar.

"But you know nothing about me," I add, and his breath stutters.

"I don’t roar," I continue with a smile as I tighten my grip on my hilt.

"I don’t brag. I don’t make scenes." I add as I unsheat my Katana.

I lift it, letting the blade catch the sunlight.

"I kill quietly. You’ve witnessed it before." I conclude, and I watch fear slowly consume his eyes.

"You should not test me, Balinar." I push, with my voice barely above a whisper.

"But since you have..." I continue, moving my katana swiftly this time, and pointing it at his throat.

"...let me give you one chance. One." I speak, and I see him tremble... anger or fear, I can’t tell. But both taste the same in the air.

I lower my blade only a bit.

"Don’t complete that shift," I warn, as I stare at the fur starting to coat his arms,

"Stop it, or bleed here," I add, and for a long, quiet moment, neither of us moves.

Then Balina sighs. I watch his beast form slowly recede. His bones snap back into place, his fur vanishes, and the cloud of smoke vanishes.

He stands there, panting, glaring at me with poison in his eyes.

"Good boy..." I say with a smile as I sheath my katana with a soft click.

"You made the wise choice," I add, and his fists clench at his sides.

"This isn’t over," he hisses, and I shrug casually.

"It is for today," I reply, and he glares at me.

I gather his proposal documents and place them neatly back in front of him.

"Take them," I say. Still wearing my smile.

"When you have something that doesn’t insult my intelligence, perhaps we can talk," I add, and Balinar snatches the papers, with veins popping up on his neck and forehead in anger.

I walk over to him and lean by his ear, until my lips nearly brush his ear, and I whisper.

"And Balina? If you ever attempt to infiltrate BeastHeaven again..." I begin with my voice soft like honey.

"I will make sure I’m the one they send to end you," I add, and he freezes completely.

He gets up in annoyance, holds the paper to his side and marches out.

The doors close behind him, and only then do I allow my soft smile to fade.

Because, unlike my brothers...

I never threaten unless I mean every word.

Mercy and I don’t have a healthy relationship, and I don’t plan to fix that. Balinar has long been playing with fire.

If he flies too close to me... I’ll burn him to a crisp.