Chapter 6

Morning arrived far too quickly.

Kaelis had barely slept. He had intended to spend the entire morning at the cathedral, making one final inspection before the wedding, when his phone suddenly rang.

It was Selene.

“I’m at the hospital.”

Her voice sounded unusually weak.

“I’ve been throwing up since this morning.”

Without another word, Kaelis abandoned the preparations and drove straight there.

By the time he arrived, Selene had just stepped out of the examination room.

The first thing he asked wasn’t whether she felt better. Instead, his eyes fell on her stomach.

“…Are you pregnant?”

For a brief moment, Selene simply stared at him. Then she looked away.

“No.”

Her answer was quiet. When she looked back, she caught the unmistakable relief that crossed his face. His shoulders relaxed.

He let out a slow breath. “Good.”

The word pierced her more deeply than she expected.

She forced a smile.

“You’re that relieved? You really don’t want me carrying your child?”

Kaelis frowned.

“I told you to wait.”

His voice turned cold.

“Don’t test my patience, Selene. This is the last time you scare me with a fake pregnancy.”

She looked at him for several long seconds before laughing bitterly. Sometimes, she wondered why she had fallen in love with a mafia man like him.

It all started five years ago. The night House Virel celebrated Kaelis and Nyra’s first anniversary.

The banquet had barely begun when assassins attacked. Chaos erupted. Gunfire echoed throughout the ballroom. Everyone fought to protect themselves.

Selene still remembered the moment a sniper aimed directly at her. She thought she was going to die.

Then someone grabbed her.

It was Kaelis.

He pulled her into his arms and shielded her from the bullets. For those few seconds, she felt safer than she ever had in her entire life. From that day onward, she could never forget him.

Back to the present, she smiled faintly before standing on her toes and kissed his cheeks.

“It won’t happen again, husband.”

Her lips curved playfully, but Kaelis didn’t react. He simply turned toward the exit.

“I’m busy. The wedding is today. Don’t cause any trouble.”

He walked away without looking back.

Just then, her phone vibrated. An unknown number. She frowned before opening the message.

A beautifully designed digital wedding invitation appeared on the screen. Beneath it was a single sentence.

Unknown Number: Make sure you come.

Selene’s lips slowly curved upward. She recognized the sender immediately.

“Nyra, you bitch…”

She quietly slipped her phone back into her purse. She suddenly remembered on the first night Selene and Kaelis got together, she had known Kaelis went to his mansion to get fresh clothes so she deliberately took the chance and pounded on his door until Kaelis opened the door.

When he did, she wasted no time and kissed him. At first, Kaelis resisted but as time passed by, he was responding to her.

The next night, she appeared as a nurse at the hospital. Kaelis was furious but ended up strangling her and did it again and again in the bathroom.

The next night, Selene appeared as a delivery woman, then the next night, she appeared as a room maintenance worker. Every encounter, Kaelis never turned her down.

Until, he sent her to that mansion under the big trees, hiding and protecting her from everyone, where they couldn't find her.

“…This is interesting.”

…

By noon, preparations at the cathedral were complete. Guests from every major syndicate across Europe filled the pews. Commission elders. Mafia leaders. Politicians. Business magnates.

Everyone had gathered to witness what many called the wedding of the century.

Meanwhile…

Inside the groom’s waiting room, Kaelis adjusted his tie for what felt like the tenth time.

His assistant smiled.

“You seem nervous.”

Kaelis gave a faint smile.

“I am.”

He had faced wars, executions, commission trials, yet none of them had made him as uneasy as today.

Before leaving the mansion, Nyra wasn’t home but his assistant reminded him that she had made only one request.

Don’t come to escort me.

She wanted to walk into the cathedral on her own, so he respected her decision.

When the ceremony began, Kaelis stood waiting before the altar. The orchestra started playing. Everyone turned toward the cathedral doors.

One minute passed. Then five. Then ten.

The doors remained closed.

Whispers spread throughout the hall. Kaelis glanced toward the entrance again. Still nothing. His heart slowly tightened.

“Where’s Nyra?”

No one answered.

Just then, another figure entered instead.

Selene.

She walked calmly down the aisle as countless eyes followed her.

Kaelis immediately strode toward her.

“What are you doing here?”

She blinked innocently.

“Attending the wedding.”

Kaelis gritted his teeth. “I didn’t invite you.”

“No.” She smiled. “The bride did.”

She held up her phone. Displayed on the screen was the digital invitation.

Kaelis frowned.

Before he could say another word, his assistant came running.

“Don!”

His face had turned deathly pale.

“We have a problem!”

“What happened?”

“Our confidential files…”

He struggled to catch his breath.

“Every classified operation… every hidden transaction… every underground secret belonging to House Virel… has been delivered to House Noctis.”

Kaelis froze.

“What?”

Just then, the cathedral lights suddenly dimmed. The massive projector behind the altar flickered to life.

A video began playing.

The date in the corner read… Five years ago.

An underground fighting arena appeared on the screen.

Everyone watched in stunned silence as Orin Sorell was dragged into the center of the ring.

Punch after punch landed on his body. Blood covered the floor.

Standing above him… Was Selene.

Her laughter echoed through the cathedral.

“So this is the useless crippled brother? Hah! Keep going. I want him dead until she gets here.”

Gasps spread through the crowd. Selene’s face instantly turned pale.

Then, the video changed. Next was the dashcam footage.

Inside the speeding car, Selene’s own voice filled the cathedral.

I am Selene Ravka.

Another recording followed.

“I bribed that senior officer years ago. The investigation into your limping brother. He closed it exactly the way I wanted.”

Then another.

“I’m sorry that I slept with your fiancé.”

“I’m sorry that he chose to save me before you.”

“And I’m sorry that I replaced your brother’s bones with a beast’s.”

The next recording played. This time, Kaelis’s voice filled the cathedral.

“She became part of my life.”

“I can’t abandon her either.”

“She’s my woman now.”

Then, another.

“I’ll marry Nyra as promised…”

A pause.

“…But the marriage registration with the government will be yours.”

Silence consumed the cathedral.

Then, the entire hall erupted.

“What is the meaning of this?”

“You protected Selene Ravka?”

“You lied to the Commission!”

Commission elders stood from their seats. Mafia leaders shouted over one another. Selene’s face twisted.

“That’s fake!”

She pointed wildly at the screen.

“I’m not Selene! Someone framed me! They edited everything!”

She screamed until her voice became hoarse, but no one believed her.

Then, the cathedral doors burst open. Dozens of armed officers stormed inside.

“Selene Ravka! You’re under arrest!”

Handcuffs clicked around her wrists. She struggled violently.

“I’m innocent! I didn’t do anything! You can’t arrest me! Kaelis, do something!”

No one listened because across the cathedral, Kaelis remained frozen.

Everything he had built, everything he had hidden, had collapsed within minutes.

His assistant grabbed his arm.

“Don… We can’t find Miss Nyra.”

Kaelis’s heart stopped. “What do you mean?”

“We searched the mansion, the hospital, every convoy… She’s gone.”

For the first time in years… Fear finally appeared on Kaelis Virel’s face.

Everything collapsed exactly as I had planned.

I leaned back against the soft leather seat of the first-class cabin and quietly locked my phone. Outside the window, Europe was slowly disappearing beneath a sea of clouds.

A flight attendant approached with a warm smile.

“Champagne, Miss?”

I looked at the sparkling glass for a moment before accepting it.

“Thank you.”

And by the time Kaelis realized I was gone, the engines soared high to the sky. And I never looked back.