Free Web NovelChapter 25: Episode 025: I would like to see you try.
"You are my Queen here, whatever name you choose for him, I will accept it," Caius murmured gently, pressing a soft kiss to her silver-white hair.
Rue’s chest tightened with overwhelming warmth. She looked up into his golden eyes. "It was you who gave me a reason to live again," she told him honestly.
She leaned up, and they kissed. It was slow, soft, and incredibly grounding.
When he finally withdrew, Caius looked back down at the tiny bundle resting safely in his hands. "His name will be Theron."
Rue tilted her head and almost laughed. "Why would you choose such a name?"
Caius chuckled, the deep sound rumbling in his chest. "Because he is going to be a strong warrior."
Rue looked at the sleeping infant. She chuckled too. "A warrior with a very cute face."
"Whose fault is that?" Caius laughed, tracing the baby’s soft cheek.
Right on cue, little Theron smiled in his sleep. The small family moment was perfectly peaceful.
Then the door was kicked down, startling Theron awake. Rue and Caius looked over at the door with a frown. They already knew who it was.
Knox stormed into the bedroom, and he was glaring daggers directly at Caius.
"Why the hell did you hit me?" Knox demanded, his voice echoing loudly in the enclosed space.
Caius didn’t even flinch. He rolled his eyes, looking entirely unbothered. "Because you were about to eat my mate."
Knox was completely tongue-tied. His jaw opened, but no words came out.
"Humph," Rue crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at the giant cat.
Knox quickly stepped toward the bed, looking directly at her. "You shouldn’t have cut yourself in the first place! You are a rabbit. The scent of your blood is pure prey. Of course I would need to eat you."
That only made Rue significantly more angry.
How would you want to eat a female you literally just said you wished to breed? Rue thought furiously. How does that even work logically?!
Caius heard her internal rant perfectly through their mate bond. A thick vein twitched visibly on his forehead. His blood instantly boiled with violent anger. This dirty, overgrown jungle cat actually wanted to mate with his rabbit?
Before Caius could snap the panther’s neck, a blue screen flared brightly in Rue’s vision.
[Choice Game Initiated.]
[Warning: Choosing the wrong answer will alter your future path.]
[Will you forgive the panther? Yes / No]
Rue scoffed internally at the system. At this point she totally understand no matter what, if the system chose a potential mate for her, she couldn’t reject him and have no choice on disliking him.
FORGIVE? Rue shouted in her mind. WHY WOULD I FORGIVE HIM!!!!
She threw her face away, refusing to look at Knox. If he had eaten me on those steps, Theron and Caius would have been left without a mother and a wife.
[Caius wouldn’t let any harm come to you,]
Well...true...
But...
Rue was still incredibly reluctant. She glared at the floating blue box and mentally selected "No" without even thinking twice.
Knox stood awkwardly by the bed. He looked like a massive predator entirely out of his element. As if he was desperately trying to think of the right thing to say, he rubbed the back of his neck.
"Are you... okay?" Knox asked gruffly.
Caius completely lost his patience. He stepped forward and shoved Knox hard in the chest, pushing the heavy panther backward. He was already doing a lot trying to hold in his anger, if he stayed here a little too long, he might destroy this place if it meant sustaining a few injuries or dying.
Caius turned to Rue. "Let’s get you home."
Rue nodded. She was about to take Caius’s outstretched hand when Knox lunged forward and slapped Caius’s hand entirely away. ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
"She is not leaving," Knox growled, his golden eyes flashing dangerously. "From today onward, she is my mate. She will stay here, and she will breed my children."
Rue narrowed her pink eyes dangerously.
"Listen to me very carefully," Rue stated coldly, her voice flat. "You are loud. You are incredibly rude. You called my newborn child a ’thing’. You literally tried to eat me five minutes ago. I will never have you as my mate, and I will never have your child."
Knox was left speechless. He stared at her in shock. He genuinely didn’t know he was behaving that badly. In the Panther clan, aggression was completely normal. But Rue wasn’t joking at all. Her face was set in stone.
"Either you eat me," Rue continued bluntly, "or you let me go with my mate right now."
Knox let out a dark, rough laugh. The shock faded, replaced by pure arrogance. "You think I won’t do it?"
Rue bared her pale neck to him, lifting her chin defiantly. "I dare you."
Internally, she was absolutely terrified.
What are you saying, Rue? she screamed at herself in her mind.
Shut up! This is not Caius. He is not gentle. What if he actually bites you? What if he harms your baby? What if he harms Caius too?
As if little Theron could hear his mother’s racing panic, the baby started crying loudly in Caius’s arms. Caius handed the baby to Rue and stepped forward, ready to tear the panther’s throat out.
Before the first punch could be thrown, Minx rushed into the bedroom.
The brown-skinned female immediately started scolding her brother. "Knox! How do you ever expect to find a mate when you keep making them hate you every single time?!?"
Knox opened his mouth to defend himself, but Minx cut him off with an incredibly cold, hard look.
"Don’t be like father," Minx warned quietly.
Rue frowned. She didn’t know the family history, but those words carried weight.
Knox stopped. He clenched his fists at his sides. He closed his eyes tightly, taking a very deep, shaky breath. When he opened them again, the anger was pushed down.
"I won’t let you leave," Knox said.
That was the only thing he said. He turned around and quickly left the bedroom, his footsteps echoing down the stone hallway. Caius was so intensely angry that he stepped toward the door, fully intending to follow Knox out and finish the fight.
Rue quickly grabbed Caius’s hand with her uninjured palm.
"Stay with me, please?" Rue pleaded softly.
She looked down at little Theron, who was still crying from the loud noises. Caius looked at the baby, took a deep breath, and finally calmed his raging anger. He stepped back from the door and stood protectively by the bed.
Minx walked closer, her black eyes filled with genuine regret. She quickly apologized to Rue for the entire situation.
"My brother is always like that," Minx explained with a heavy sigh. "He does not know how to handle delicate things. But you cannot leave yet. Your body hasn’t fully healed from the birth."
"I feel perfectly fine," Rue stated flatly.
"You are not," Minx countered gently, insisting that she stay a little while longer to regain her strength. "The jungle is not safe for a bleeding female right now."
I am not even bleeding.
Rue pressed her lips into a thin line. "Then keep that panther away from me."
Minx offered a sad, completely hopeless smile. "That would be very hard. He has a very strong interest in you."
Caius stepped forward, his golden eyes flashing with a deadly, cold light. "She already has a mate. I will not let another male lay a single hand on her. If he does, I will destroy your whole Panther clan."
Minx completely dropped her friendly demeanor. Her black beaded eyes turned cold and hard. She glared directly at the snake.
"I would like to see you try, snake!" Minx hissed.
They locked into an incredibly intense stare-down. The air in the stone room grew instantly heavy and dangerous. Two different apex predators were seconds away from tearing the room apart.
Rue reached out and gently tugged on Caius’s dark shirt, instantly breaking the terrifying tension. Caius looked down at her, his expression softening just a fraction.
Minx took a step back toward the open doorway. Before she left the room, she looked back at Rue.
"At least give my brother a chance to make it up to you," Minx said quietly.
