Seducing The Imprisoned Lycan Prince

01||~Thalsa. ~~~~ “Get in!” The guard shoved me into the cell, and I stumbled forward. The door slammed shut behind me. I didn't look back. Instead, I took in my new home for the next three months. It smelled better in here than the cell I had spent the last two weeks in. However, for a place holding royalty, I had expected better. The air smelled stale. The space was damp, and the walls were covered in ugly runes that sent an annoying shiver down my spine. My gaze moved from assessing the room to the man sitting at the far end of the cell. The Lycan Prince. He was huge. Not merely tall. His broad shoulders were barely covered by the grey fur coat hanging on him, and the silver dragon tattoo stretching across his exposed chest failed to hide the scars marring his skin. Both new and old. The scar on my cheek tingled at the sight, and I smiled. So, this was the man I had been sent to seduce? I stepped fully into the cell and said, “Hello, Prince. I was sent to seduce you.” He hadn't spared me a glance since I arrived, yet the moment I said this, he shifted in his seat and finally turned to me. As he assessed me, I also took in the full sight of him. His auburn hair was cut so short it barely covered his scalp, and his face was rough and devoid of warmth. But his eyes... They were purple. The same eerie shade as the ring gleaming on his finger. He tilted his head to the side, his lips curling as though I were something amusing. “Just you?” I raised a brow. “You think I can't do it?” The moonlight filtering through the small window above his head was our only source of light, yet I could see him clearly. He adjusted fully, giving me an unobstructed view of him. “You can't,” he said. “I should kill you right now and be done with it. But as you can see...” He lifted his hands, and my breath caught when I noticed the chains around his wrists and ankles. They were covered in those same red runes. “I can't do that right now.” My brows drew together. Was this it? The man I had been sent to seduce? I had heard that he was the most feared warrior in the whole realm. He had single-handedly killed hundreds of warriors before he was captured. He was said to be a beast, both in appearance and reasoning. But all I saw was a cocky bastard. His ring caught my gaze in the moonlight. The ring of madness. I had heard rumors about how formidable it was. A magical object connected to the Lycan royal bloodline. People claimed that the ring grants immense power and can open a gate to an army of supernatural beings that are neither human nor werewolf or Lycan and only the wearer can control that army. Was that why they needed it so bad? Enough to bring me here and take my baby from me? All I needed was to get that ring. And I needed him to give it to me willingly. Simple. At least, that was what Noyer had said. My fist curled against my palm. I could still hear his voice in my head. “Seduce him, make him give you the ring on his finger, and I will let you and Seona go.” “And if I fail?” I had asked. He had brought out a pink baby cloth, the same one Valsa had spent nights making for Seona. “If you fail...” He squeezed the fabric. Hard. “She pays.” My teeth ground together. He knew what she meant to me, to Valsa. My niece, my sister's daughter. My baby, not only by blood but also by the promise I had made. “When I am gone, our daughter will have only you. Take care of her, please.” Those were the last words my sister had said before her death. I swallowed the lump in my throat. It hadn't even been a month since she had left me to the silence, and those last words still haunted me. Yet I had already failed. I didn't even know where our baby was. “How will you seduce me if you stand over there like a ghost?” The prince's voice pulled me from my thoughts. “Come here.” Shoving my thoughts to the back of my mind, I adjusted my torn lilac dress, wanting to get it over with. I had only one chance. My eyes didn't leave his. Once I was close enough for my powers to work, but not close enough for him to hurt me, I finally let it out. “Your name is Artan, isn't it?” I asked. “I see you did your assignment.” His lips spread into a smile as he watched me, his eyes sparkling like those of an unhinged fool. I leaned forward, finally allowing myself to use my siren call for the first time in twenty-three years. “Come to me, Artan.” My voice came out soft, my only functioning eye zeroing in on his purple orbs. The effect was immediate. With his eyes glazed over, he rose to his full height, the chains rattling with his movement. I took a step back when he did, my lips parting as I took in his massive form. He was almost twice my size. Artan took a step forward, his feet thudding against the concrete. I forced myself to stay still as he approached me, completely towering over me. Then I said, “Give me the ring on your finger.” The instant I said this, the spell broke, and his eyes cleared. What the f**k?! He shouldn't have been able to do that! For a second, he stared between me and himself, his brows drawn together. For the first time since I had arrived in the cell, he seemed completely rattled. Just then, he spoke. “What did you just do to me?” he demanded. My lips parted, but I couldn't produce a response. This shouldn't have happened! My siren's call had always been powerful. Despite the fact that we had shared a body, even Valsa couldn't withstand it. So, how could he? Artan's gaze moved over my mismatched eyes. One was bright golden, the other pure white. Then realization crashed over his face, and his nose flared. “A siren.” He spat the word like a curse. “I should have known.” For the first time since I had lost Valsa, a bolt of fear slithered into me. I began to back away, eyeing him in case I had awakened the monster inside him. However, I soon discovered how foolish the action was. One second, there was space between us. The next, my back hit the cold iron bars. One of his hands gripped the bar behind me, while the other curled into my hair and pulled me close, so close that I could feel his hot skin against mine. My breath caught, yet I didn't look away. “What are you trying to do?” I demanded. “What? Are you finally scared?” “Of you?” My lips curled, and I edged closer to him. “There are worse things to be afraid of, and you are not one of them.” My fang elongated, and I sank it into his chest. Artan groaned, his blood rushing into my mouth. I had always hated using my fangs. Valsa had hated it too. However, as his blood filled my mouth, I couldn't ignore the tingling in my stomach. Heaven! He tasted like heaven. I expected him to scream or push me away. However, to my utter bewilderment, he wrapped his hands around my waist and pulled me closer. With my eyes closed, I relished the taste of his blood, wanting more. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and Artan grabbed the back of my neck to keep me in place. A low sound escaped his throat, while I moaned at the same time. I froze. He paused. Slowly, as though we had finally realized what we were doing, we released each other. I pressed myself against the bars, heaving. Artan still encaged me, his expression one of utter confusion. “W-What just happened?” I asked. Artan's expression changed, and he recoiled from me, his face accusing. “It wasn't me!” I denied, licking the rest of his blood from my lips. Was I losing my mind? How could his blood taste so good? “Then are you suggesting that I am attracted to you?” Artan countered, his voice bordering on disgust. His eyes, however, told a different story. Seeing this, I lifted myself away from the bars. “Do you still think I can't seduce you now?” At first, he didn't say a word. Almost a minute passed before his eyes began to glow. “You are more interesting than I thought. Fine. You can stay. Let's see if you can really seduce me.” “And if I do?” His gaze moved to the ring of madness in his index finger. “Then you can have this.”.My heart stuttered, a smile spreading across my face as I watched him rub his thumb over the ring. His gaze locked with mine once again. “It's why they sent you here, isn't it?” My smile froze. He knew. Of course he did. ~P-Lia~