Alpha Damien's Trouble Maker (by Ruby Anne) novel Chapter 164

Chapter 164

Selene

My eyes were closed as I leaned back against the wooden chair, ting my head rest lightly against the wall behind me. The room was not silent, but I treated it as if it were. I could sense the presence of several people stationed around the space, their attention subtly fixed on me as though I were some unpredictable beast that might lunge at any second. I ignored them all.

My breathing remained slow and steady, my posture loose and unguarded. To anyone watching, I probably looked like I had fallen asleep. In truth, my mind was far away from that room.

“Yara,” a voice muttered somewhere to my right. “Is he really sleeping? Should he be sleeping? Shouldn’t he be more concerned that he was disqualified?”

There was a brief pause before Yara responded. I could feel her gaze on me.

“I have no idea,” she finally said. “Sometimes, I don’t know what goes on inside her head.”

Kauis snorted quietly. “Her? He is obviously a boy.”

Yara let out a slow sigh. “Never mind. If I explained it to you, it would only overload your already limited brain.”

I almost smiled at that.

A moment later, I felt her step closer. “Should you really be this relaxed?” she asked me directly. “Shouldn’t you be think of a way to reenter the Rite instead of sleeping like this?”

I opened my eyes.

They were both standing in front of me, watching as if Lwere some rare species that had wandered into the wrong habitat. I studied them without expression.

After being disqualified, the organizers had placed me under quarantine, convinced that I would lose control and lash out in anger. They were afraid that I would attack someone out of wounded pride.

How amusing.

I did not even have the energy to waste on such pointless displays. Anger-driven rampages were for those who lacked discipline. Besides, I was far too lazy to attack anyone without a reason.

Still, I understood their caution. They had seen enough to realize I was not ordinary. People always feared what they could not measure, and what they could not neatly categorize. Strength that appeared out of nowhere, power that did not fit within their understanding of rules, that kind of thing unsettled hem.

What I did not understand was why these two were still here.

They had followed me to this room after the disqualification and had not left since. There were plenty of guards who could have monitored me. Yara and Kauis had no need to remain. Shouldn’t they be back in the arena, fulfilling their actual duties?

Why waste their time watching me?

I exhaled softly and shifted my gaze to Yara. I had known from the beginning that she had figured me out. She was sharp, and far sharper than she let on. She had likely pieced everything together and was now quietly enjoying the chaos unfolding around me. For someone like her, I was probably the most entertaining development this Rite had seen in years.

“Since I broke the rules,” I said calmly, “it is only natural that the removed me from the Rite.”

Yara raised one brow. “So you are just going to leave it at that? You are giving up? Don’t you want the weapon anymore?”

Our eyes met.

“Leave?” I repeated softly. “Where is the fun in that? How could walk away now, when things are only starting to become interesting?”

I straightened slightly in the chair and crossed my arms over my chest. “And it stopped being about the weapon a while ago, I have already lost interest in that prize.”

Yara’s gaze sharpened. “Then what is it about?”

“Now, it is personal.”

The air in the room seemed to shift.

“I will return to the challenge, no matter the cost.”

Yara and Kauis stared at me for a long moment before exchanging a look. Kauis crossed his arms over his chest and tilted his head. He finally let out a slow breath and said, “And how exactly are you planning to do that? There is absolutely no way you can reenter the Rite. Even if you are an interesting young man and I personally would not mind seeing more of your strength, we cannot help you. We are not allowed to interfere in the fights, and neither is anyone else. The Alpha himsel made that rule, and no one dares to go against it.”

I lifted my eyes to meet his and allowed a small smile to form on my lips.

The door behind him creaked open before he could finish.

A deep, lazy voice drifted into the room, smooth and unhurried “That is a very interesting view you have of me.”

The air froze.

Every single person in the room stiffened as if death itself had just stepped across the threshold. Even the guards by the wall straightened so abruptly that the sound of their armor shifting seemed deafening in the silence.

I lifted my gaze past Kauis’ shoulder.

Damien stood at the entrance, one hand still resting lightly on the door as though he had all the time in the world. His crimson eyes were not on Kauis. They were on me.

For a reason I refused to examine too closely, warmth bloomed in my chest the moment I saw his face.

Kauis’ expression drained of color, and I watched the blood leave his face in real time. His throat bobbed as he swallowed.

“He is behind me, isn’t he?” he asked faintly.

Yara smiled brightly and nodded.

Damien stepped fully into the room. “Jason,”

His beta who was behind him bowed his head. “Yes, Alpha.”

“Put Kauis on fire and bring me a glass of water. I would like to test his theory and see whether I will make the effort to give it to him.”

Jason glanced at Kauis before a slow smirk spread across his face “Yes, Alpha.”

Kauis, on the other hand, looked as though his soul had already left his body. His lips parted, but no sound came out. He looked like a man who had just realized he had casually insulted demon to its face.