Spoiled By My Nine Beast Husbands (Emma Tibarn) novel Chapter 430

**When She Opened the Door to the Life She Was Afraid to Live by Nora Vale Kingsley 430**

Marcus found himself suspended in the air, his intense gaze locked onto Calum, who lay crumpled at the bottom of the crater, his once-vibrant aura now a mere flicker. The enormous wolf felt utterly stunned, as if the very ground beneath him had shifted.

Could I have truly inflicted this much damage on Calum? It seems unfathomable.

In that desperate swipe, Marcus had poured every ounce of his strength and speed, unleashing everything he had.

Yet, standing before Calum, who operated on an entirely different plane of power, it felt like a mere whisper—too slow, too weak to leave any real impact.

Marcus was convinced of one thing: Calum could have easily evaded that attack. He might even have retaliated without so much as a scratch on him.

As soon as Marcus had drawn near, Calum must have realized that he wouldn’t hold back.

So why isn’t he dodging? Why is he pressing his back right into my claws? He’s pretending! That bastard is doing this intentionally!

A surge of anger coursed through Marcus, nearly choking him with its intensity.

Yet, lurking beneath that fury was a gnawing fear—what if that swipe had genuinely harmed Calum? He lunged toward the crater, urgency overriding his rage.

Despite his disdain for Calum, Emma’s feelings complicated the situation. He couldn’t allow Calum to perish, not when it would devastate her.

Calum groaned, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth as he struggled to pull himself from the crater’s depths.

He glanced up at Marcus, who was rushing to his side, and managed to murmur weakly, “I lost.”

At that moment, Marcus felt a constriction in his chest, a tumult of anger and dread.

He’s faking it! He’s definitely putting on a show, mimicking Lucien’s smug antics.

He wanted nothing more than to turn away and leave, but the gaping claw marks marring Calum’s back and the crimson stains on his lips forced any thoughts of anger to the back of his mind.

Whether he liked it or not, that strike had struck true. If Calum ended up severely injured, there would be no way to explain it to Emma.

Snapping back to reality, Marcus concentrated, shifting his formidable wolf form into that of a human. With a few swift strides, he reached the edge of the crater, leaping down to Calum’s side.

He halted in front of him, his jaw tightening at the sight of the deep, raw claw marks etched into Calum’s skin. Without uttering a word, Marcus reached into his storage band, pulling out two of Silas’ healing flowers and thrusting them into Calum’s mouth with little regard for gentleness.

The petals disintegrated almost instantly, releasing a gentle, healing warmth that began to mend the wounds.

Leaning weakly against the pit wall, Calum managed a faint smile, the corners of his mouth twitching. “Marcus… you won.”

That was the final straw. Marcus snapped, the tension within him boiling over.

“Won?”

A cold, scornful laugh erupted from him, his silver-gray eyes gleaming with disdain, his voice cutting through the air like ice.

“Won? You call this a victory? Just because you stood there and let me strike your back?”

He gasped for breath, rage coursing through him as he seized Calum by the collar, yanking him off the wall to force him to meet his gaze. His voice dropped low, a harsh whisper laced with fury. “I lost!

“I lost to your shameless little stunt. Do you think I didn’t notice?

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