Chapter 172
428
Nyssa pov
The same dagger. He was holding it.
My eyes widened, a shaky breath escaping me as my gaze flickered to the tattoo on my wrist. Instantly, my body tensed.
It was truly the silver dagger my father had given me, the one the goddess had said tied me to the reason for my rebirth. But now, with my eyes fixed on the blood dripping from its blade, realization struck me. I had seen this very dagger before, in Darius’s hands during the earlier visions…
A gasp slipped from me as everything began to fall into place.
The dagger belonged to Darius!
The reason I was reborn, it was because of him. He was the owner of the dagger, the one bestowed upon him by the goddess.
My lips parted, but no sound came. I could only stare in stunned disbelief at the truth I had uncovered. But I had no time to dwell on it, because in the next instant, a guttural scream tore through the air as Darius rushed into the scene, cradling Liana in his arms.
He held her so close, crying out desperately, pleading with her not to leave him, that she would be fine, that she would be okay. But Liana only smiled faintly, locking eyes with the man she loved before whispering that she was sorry… sorry for leaving him. Then, her eyes closed, and no matter how many times he called her name, she didn’t answer. She couldn’t.
Liana was gone.
A tear slid down my cheek as I watched everything spiral out of control.
Darius killed Dalton, who had tried to strike him. He slaughtered the elders who conspired against his mate, then turned his wrath on their sons and relatives, murdering them in cold blood, just as they had conspired to murder Liana.
I shook my head, wanting to stop him. To beg him not to kill the innocent. Not to lose himself. Not to go rogue.
Because–because once he did, the goddess would curse him. He would be forced to live for eternity. But no matter how I struggled against the invisible force restraining me, no matter how much I tried to reach him, I couldn’t.
And then, when the bloodshed ended and the screams finally faded, I heard it, the voice that made my breath hitch and my vision blur:
“You have crossed the line this time, Darius. There is too much blood on your hands. You’ve taken too many lives, and now you must be punished. You will live forever, watching those around you die one by one. You shall know the pain of loss, crave the salvation of death, but never receive it. The only thing that can break this curse is a purebred white wolf… but that is only if you can find one.”
I closed my eyes, unable to watch any longer, my breaths coming out thick and uneven as more tears spilled down my cheeks.
“P–please… forgive him,” I whispered, voice trembling. “H–he didn’t mean to do it. He was just hurt… he was just-”
But my words faltered when I felt a sudden presence before me. My eyes snapped open, and the world seemed to still. She was standing there, smiling, a smile that sent shivers racing down my spine.
“L–Liana…” I breathed, my voice breaking, barely a whisper.
She stepped closer, her smile widening as her hand rose to cup my cheek. I stared at her in a daze. She was familiar. So achingly familiar. Like I had always known her.
“Who are you?” I wanted to ask, but the words barely formed before her sad smile deepened. She didn’t answer, at least, not with words. Instead, she leaned in, closing the space between us until our faces were just inches apart. And then, in a breath that brushed against my lips, she whispered:
“Remember, Nyssa. Let’s remember who he is to us.”
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And with that, she closed the distance entirely. My eyes widened in utter disbelief as her form melted into mine, Liana entered me.
The moment she did, the force restraining me vanished, and my body jerked backward, a scream ripping from my throat. Suddenly, all the scenes from earlier replayed in my mind, only this time, they were clearer, sharper, as though I were reliving them myself… through Liana’s eyes.
I screamed again, clutching my head as hot, heavy tears streamed down my face, my body trembling uncontrollably.
What was this? These memories… why did they feel like they were mine?
I collapsed to the ground, writhing as the pain in my skull intensified, each passing second forcing more of her memories into me until I had taken them
all.
No… not her memories. Mine.
Because as the final flashes burned through me and then faded, everything fell into place. Everything clicked.
I was Liana.
“… Tam Liana,” I whispered in disbelief, this time my voice audible as I stared into the endless white.
“I am Liana. I am really Liana. I remember now–I remember who I am.” My breathing grew heavier with every word. “I remember who Darius is to me. He is my mate… the man I love. The one I longed to be with. He is my king.”
Tears streamed harder down my face. How could I have forgotten him?
After yearning to reunite with him so desperately, I had been with him all along in this lifetime, yet I hadn’t remembered.
Oh, Darius…
I’m sorry. Sorry for not remembering you.
In that moment, nothing else mattered. I didn’t care about anything anymore, I could only cry.
Cry for leaving him.
Cry for losing our unborn child.
“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry, Darius-”
“She isn’t waking up, my king!” a panicked voice suddenly rang through the white void. “Her breathing is slowing. Her pulse is faint–I fear she might die.”
That voice. I recognized it instantly.
Zayn.
“Do whatever it takes to save her.”
My breath caught the second I heard him, my mate, my Darius.
“If she dies, then prepare to follow after her. I want her alive.”
I froze, my tears halting as my heart lurched. I blinked through the haze of grief, desperately searching the space around me for him, but he was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the void glowed brighter, trembling violently around me.
“B–but, my king…” Zayn stammered.
“You heard me. Do everything you must to keep her alive”
And in that instant, the entire space erupted with such blinding light that I had to squeeze my eyes shut, a whimper escaping me as the brilliance
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Chapter 172
swallowed everything.
The next moment, when I opened them again, everything had changed. The white void was gone.
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Instead, I found myself lying on a bed, and beside me sat Zayn, his fingers pressed against my wrist, checking my pulse. The second my eyes fluttered open, his widened in shock before a breath of pure relief escaped him.
“Oh, goddess—the miss is awake!”
I heard another voice, Cassian’s, and my gaze drifted toward him. But then, almost instinctively, my eyes shifted past him, landing on the tall, imposing man standing at his side.
Darius.
My Dariùs.
田
