The Lycan King's Second Chance Mate: Rise of the Traitor's Daughter-Chapter 109: The Royal Scepter

Zane~

The room still crackled with the energy of Jacob’s plans when he turned to me, his smirk stretching like a cat that had just trapped an especially intriguing mouse.

"Before we can move forward with our infiltration," he said smoothly, "you, dear brother in-law, have something to take care of first."

I didn’t flinch. Instead, I raised an eyebrow, already guessing where this was going.

"And that would be?"

Jacob crossed his arms, his dark brown eyes practically glittering with mischief. "You have to go back home. To the palace"

That, I had no issue with.

Returning to the palace wasn’t a problem—I had expected it would come to this eventually. I had to protect my father at all cost.

I gave him a small nod. "Alright."

Jacob blinked, clearly expecting more resistance. "Wow. No argument? No dramatic monologue about how much you hate the place?"

I smirked slightly. "It’s still my home, Jacob."

He studied me for a moment before grinning. "Good. Then that makes things easier."

I should’ve known he wouldn’t stop there.

"You need to return to the palace and convince the King to tighten his security," Jacob continued, his voice light, as if he were asking me to fetch a loaf of bread. "Make him paranoid about the possibility of a coup."

That part made sense. If we wanted to control the chaos, we had to be the ones to set it in motion. I nodded again.

"And," Jacob added with a smirk, "you need to convince dear old Dad to hand over the Royal Scepter to you."

I stilled.

Slowly, I turned to face him fully. "What?"

Jacob’s smirk deepened. "You heard me."

I let out a breath, leveling him with a look. "Jacob, you do realize what you’re asking me to do, right?"

Jacob tilted his head mockingly. "Of course. I’m asking you to charm your dear father into giving you the most important artifact in the kingdom. Should be simple, right?"

I scoffed. "You think he’ll just hand it over?"

Jacob shrugged. "Why wouldn’t he? You’re his only son. His heir. The future King." He flashed me a knowing smile. "Or don’t you have your dear Daddy’s trust?"

I didn’t take the bait.

Instead, I ran a hand through my hair, already feeling the seriousness of what he was asking. "The Scepter isn’t just a symbol of authority. It’s a source of power—his power. He won’t part with it unless he has no other choice."

Jacob snapped his fingers. "Exactly. That’s where you come in."

I gave him a flat look. "Explain."

Jacob lounged against the sofa arm, arms crossed, his expression effortlessly smug. "If we want this infiltration to work, we need the Scepter. Normally, I’d whip up a fake one in a heartbeat, but with Dexter in the mix, I’d rather not roll the dice. We need the real deal. Stealing it? Too messy—sets the palace and later on the kingdom into panic before we’re ready to use it. So, the only play is getting the King to hand it over willingly." His smirk deepened, eyes flickering with amusement. "Once you have it, you give it to me. I’ll present it to Darius, Nathan, and Dexter as proof that I’ve turned on the King and earned his trust. If they buy it—if they believe I’m the King’s secret royal adviser who’s flipped to their side—they’ll drop their guard. And once that happens... we’ll have everything we need to shut this coup down from the inside."

I exhaled sharply. "You’re trying to make them believe that you are important to the king and that you want the him dead?"

Jacob snapped his fingers. "Bingo."

I narrowed my eyes. "And if they don’t believe you?"

Jacob smirked. "Then I’ll improvise."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "That is not a plan, Jacob."

"Sure it is," he said cheerfully. "A loose plan."

Eagle snorted. "Loose? More like suicidal. What if this Dexter guy is as powerful as you? Have you thought about that?"

Jacob smirked, his confidence unwavering. "No one is as powerful as me, Eagle," he said, his tone dripping with certainty. "But let’s say, for argument’s sake, that Dexter does turn out to be a problem." He leaned back casually, stretching his arms as if the thought barely concerned him. "Then I’ll handle it. Simple as that."

His eyes gleamed with amusement as he glanced between us. "So don’t waste your energy worrying. That’s my job—and trust me, I’m very good at it."

I sighed before I locking my eyes with Jacob. "Even as the king’s son and heir, it’s not that simple, Jacob," I said. "The scepter isn’t just sitting in my father’s study waiting for me to come ask for it and take it. It’s locked in a vault, surrounded by an entire legion of guards trained to kill first and ask questions later. Even the king himself has to have a genuine reason to want to take the scepter out."

Jacob, ever the picture of reckless confidence, merely grinned. "Then make your father believe you deserve it," he said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

I exhaled sharply, dragging a hand down my face. "And how do you propose I do that?"

Jacob’s grin widened. "By proving to your father that you’re the only one capable of leading this kingdom."

I let out a dry laugh, shaking my head. "Right. Because it’s that simple."

"Fine. You’re utterly hopeless," Jacob sighed, shaking his head with a smirk. His eyes gleamed with mischief as he crossed his arms. "Looks like I have no choice but to tag along. You need an ally—one stronger than anyone he’s got on his side."

I stilled. My heart thumped hard against my ribs. "You don’t mean—"

Jacob smirked.

A cold wave of realization crashed over me. "You’re going to reveal yourself to him?" I asked, my voice laced with disbelief.

Jacob shrugged, his smirk deepening. "Something like that."

I stared at him, searching his face for any trace of hesitation. There was none. This was Jacob we were talking about—an ancient being, a living legend, the Wolf Spirit himself. Revealing his true identity to my father would shake the entire foundation of the kingdom. My father would milk that situation to the fullest.

Before I could press further, Jacob turned away from me and extended a hand toward the woman who had been standing silently beside him. The one Natalie called Easter.

She looked up at him, her wide green eyes filled with a mix of fear and quiet trust. Jacob gently took her hand and guided it toward Natalie.

"Natalie," he said, his voice calm but firm. "Teleport her to Zane’s house. She’ll be safest there."

Natalie’s eyes flickered with understanding before she reached out, clasping Easter’s delicate hand in hers. "And you?" she asked Jacob, tilting her head.

Jacob smirked. "I’ll be taking Zane somewhere much more fun."

I scowled. "Define fun."

Jacob ignored me. Instead, he turned to Easter, who was staring up at him, her expression torn. It was subtle, but I saw it—the slight tremble of her fingers, the way her lips parted like she wanted to say something but didn’t.

Jacob reached up and gently tucked a stray curl behind her ear. "Don’t worry," he murmured. "Natalie will protect you."

Easter hesitated before nodding. "Be careful," she whispered.

Jacob flashed her a wink. "Always."

Then, with a wave of his hand, he gestured for everyone to move.

Natalie gave me a quick kiss on the lips, "See you soon my love." I smiled at her, "Be careful." she nodded, then she turned to Easter.

"Hold on," she said, a wicked grin tugging at her lips.

Before Easter could respond, a soft golden light enveloped them both, and in the blink of an eye, they were gone.

Bubble and Eagle smirked.

The two of them turned to Jacob. "Try not to get yourself killed," Eagle said, clapping Jacob on the shoulder.

Jacob smirked. "No promises."

Bubble gave me a quick nod before stepping back. "Well, have fun storming the palace."

And then, just like that, they vanished as well.

I barely had time to prepare myself before I felt Jacob’s hand land on my shoulder.

"Ready, Prince Charming?" he asked, amusement thick in his voice.

I shot him a glare. "Not in the slightest."

Jacob just grinned.

Then, in a blur of light and shadows, the world around me disappeared.