Chapter 531 – Ravyn fainted
Voren looked completely drained, not from any physical fight but from the endless mental toll of dealing with lies, betrayal, and all the hypocrisy that had been piled on for far too long.
Every last bit of patience he had left was running on empty, and it showed in the heavy way he carried himself as he faced the room.
"Yes, we came here looking for business opportunities," he began, his voice steady even though frustration simmered just underneath the surface. "Just not in the way all of you assumed."
His sharp gaze swept across the gathering, and several Alphas instinctively dropped their eyes under the weight of it.
"I let Sera handle things her way throughout the Moon Festival because I wanted to find honest people, not a room full of sycophants who only know how to smile and nod."
Silence settled over everyone like a thick blanket. Voren took his time studying every face before he went on.
"Tonight, I gathered my team." His expression softened just a little as his eyes drifted toward the people standing right beside him. "They’re the ones who stood for the truth even when it wasn’t popular. They’re the people I consider family. Not the ones who sit on the fence waiting for somebody else to clean up the mess before they decide which side looks safer."
Disgust flashed across his face, raw and unfiltered. "And I sure as hell don’t do business with bootlickers."
The words landed hard, like a slap that left several Alphas stiffening in their seats while others looked too embarrassed to even meet his eyes.
"Alpha Voren, that’s not fair." Alpha Oren pushed up from his chair, unable to stay quiet any longer. "Corvine knew Sera was powerful, so of course he stood beside her. The princess and her brother did the same. As for Alpha Killian..." He gave a half-hearted shrug. "I honestly don’t know what motivated him."
Voren slowly shook his head. "No. You don’t understand." A faint smile stretched his lips, the kind filled with real admiration instead of politeness. "No one here understands why Corvine became my brother. It’s because I’ve never met another man like him."
He glanced over at Corvine before looking back at the rest of them.
"The night he resigned, he had no idea how skilled Seraphine really was. Everything I learned afterward proved he intended to help her simply because he believed it was the right thing to do. He even took her to his parents’ mansion without expecting a single thing in return."
Several people exchanged surprised looks at that. "To tell you the truth," Voren continued as he folded his arms, "Corvine convinced his parents to stand against me because of Sera, and I made sure they lost billions for defying me."
His tone stayed calm, but the weight behind those words was impossible to miss. "It was because of that decision that Sera stepped in to manage their stocks, giving them back everything I made them lose, and more."
Many of the Alphas turned toward Seraphine in open disbelief. She didn’t just make Corvine powerful because she wanted to. It was only after his family had suffered loss because of her.
Voren kept going before anyone could interrupt. "And as for the princess..." His eyes briefly landed on Athaliah. "She had been searching for Sera because she genuinely needed her help and vice versa. She simply couldn’t reach her."
Athaliah nodded quietly in confirmation. "Every single one of you watched her stand beside Sera from beginning to end. Even after learning what Sera was capable of, most of you still chose to stand against her. For what? Because she didn’t have a title?"
No one answered, they couldn’t. Voren let the silence hang heavy in the air before speaking again.
"And another thing, you all look down on humans as though they’re somehow beneath us." He let out a quiet scoff. "Who the hell convinced you they were weak? Most of the major projects in my pack were designed and completed by human engineers because our people simply didn’t have that level of expertise."
His voice carried unmistakable respect as he wrapped his arm around Seraphine, pulling her closer.
"They may not possess our physical strength, but they’re incredibly intelligent. Their technology surpasses ours in a lot of areas. The mindset you’ve all been carrying is exactly what brought you here today. You don’t have anyone else to blame."
The room stayed deathly quiet after that. Without another word, Voren’s arm around Seraphine’s waist tightened and he gently kissed the top of her head. The gesture was soft, full of affection, and completely natural.
"We’ll be holding several coronation ceremonies soon," he announced, immediately pulling everyone’s attention back to him. "Corvine will be crowned as my Co-Alpha."
Corvine looked over at him, clearly caught off guard. Voren had reversed their previous agreement, but this was not the right time to speak about it.
"And Damon will become a Beta serving my Luna."
Damon blinked in surprise before a proud grin spread across his face.
"As for Kael, he’ll continue serving as my General Beta, and I’ll have a gamma appointed among my strongest warriors to assist him."
Voren’s gaze moved across the gathering once more. "Anyone who wishes to attend is welcome, but no one is obligated to come."
Standing right beside him, Seraphine glanced up at Voren and immediately realized he had changed the original arrangement.
Instead of giving Corvine a title that might complicate his future with Athaliah, Voren had carefully chosen one that would make things easier for both of them. Warmth filled her chest at the thought. He really had been thinking ahead.
Unfortunately, not everyone appreciated the announcement. "Voren!" Ravyn’s voice exploded through the hall. "Damon is my Beta."
Voren slowly turned toward him, one eyebrow rising. "Is he?"
Instead of looking at Ravyn, he stared straight at Damon. A knowing smile spread across Damon’s face.
"Ravyn, it was nice working with you," Damon chuckled softly, though the sound didn’t carry any real warmth. "But I was never working for you. I was only here because of Sera. I was her eyes inside this pack. I’m the one who uncovered the truth about Bryan."
"I was also the one who exposed Raul after Daisy used him to send assassins after Sera, and I was the one who investigated the chemical explosion." He sighed, though Ravyn looked pained.
"Finally, I kept track of every single move Daisy made, and reported it all to Sera."
He folded his arms across his chest, a satisfied smile on his face. "Now that Sera’s name has finally been cleared, my job here is finished."
Daisy felt like dying. Sera had all the responsible, capable, and powerful men wrapped around her fingers, and what did Daisy have? Nothing.
In the mist of the shock, Ravyn’s was worst. For the first time in what felt like forever, he couldn’t seem to draw a full breath. The realization crushed him completely. Everyone he had trusted, everyone he believed stood beside him, had never truly been his.
Damon wasn’t finished. "Oh, there’s one more thing." His voice stayed frighteningly calm as his eyes turned ice-cold. "As penalty for ordering Sera’s pup to be killed, I demand that every business deal between us be terminated immediately. And I want every cent of my investments returned."
The hall erupted into whispers. Ravyn’s face lost every last trace of color. His lips parted, but no words came out. His vision blurred and the room spun violently around him until everything went black.
Ravyn collapsed to the floor, unconscious.