The Lycan Prince's Unwanted Mate

A Groomless Wedding

~Lyra~

Through the corner of my eye, I saw Lady Ana, ever poised and elegantly dressed, approach the King. She leaned in and whispered, “Your Majesty, Kael has always been resistant to your plan. Don’t upset yourself over his disappearance. I suggest we just go through the procedure and be done with it.”

The King’s jaw tightened. “And how do we go through the motions without a groom?”

Ana turned her gaze to me before she chuckled. “She’s blind, isn’t she? Just find someone to stand in for the groom position. What matters is the pub in her belly, not the bride’s feelings.”

She spoke as if I weren’t there, as if my blindness rendered me deaf as well.

The King hesitated. “That would be too unfair to Lyra.”

“Unfair?” Ana scoffed. “The Evergreen fell apart years ago—she’s nothing more than a fallen Alpha’s daughter. Marrying into the Royal Lycan family is her fate being fair to her.”

The King’s brows furrowed, but in the end, he relented. He chose a maid to stand in as the groom.

The rings were exchanged. The vows were spoken. The crown placed upon my head signified my new title: Lycan Princess Lyra.

Every step of the ceremony proceeded flawlessly.

Then, I was sent to the bridal chamber. Likely Kael’s personal quarters.

“Princess Lyra, Prince Kael had urgent business and left. He may not return tonight. Please rest early,” a young maid's voice sounded from outside.

A groomless wedding. A groomless wedding night. For most brides, this would have been a humiliation.

But I felt nothing. Whether the King used a dummy, a lycan, or a maid in Kael’s place—it didn’t matter. I had to marry. Or I would be died, or worse, sent back to stay with Rylan.

Locking the door, I finally took in the luxurious bridal suite. The room was adorned with rose petals, yet despite its beauty, an inhuman coldness lingered. Photographs of Kael decorated the walls, but no personal belongings remained.

From my pocket, I retrieved a ruby necklace, my fingers tracing its smooth surface. My ringed hand gently caressed the gemstone as exhaustion pulled at me.

I slowly closed my eyes—

“After four generations, the Alpha of the Evergreens finally had a daughter, our precious jewel, Lyra. Of course, she must be raised like a princess!”

“Why is Lyra crying? Did your brothers steal your toy again? Don’t cry, don’t cry, Father will go spank them!”

“Lyra, see, I brought a surprise for you. Isn’t this the princess’s dress that you wanted so badly? Go put it on.”

“Lyra, I will protect you. I will be your family from now on. I promise you’ll never suffer, not even a little.”

Then—

“A fallen Alpha is worse than an Omega! Do you still think you're the high and mighty Daughter of Alpha Magnus? The Evergreen pack disappeared long ago. They’re all dead! Killed by rogues, torn apart by their merciless claws.”

“You blind wretch! For so many years, you’ve been eating and living off my family. And now, what’s wrong with letting a man sleep with you to earn some money? Without my family's protection, with those useless blind eyes of yours, you’d be nothing more than the cheapest street w***e!”

The memories twisted, overlapping with non-stop nightmares.

Rogues, their madness overtaking them, tearing everything, everyone apart. Blood pooling, staining the sky crimson.

No, stop! Stop tearing everything up!

A monstrous paw reached for me, claws extending, aimed at my throat—

My eyes snapped open to find the cold, empty bridal chamber. Outside, rain pattered against the window, each drop echoing in the silent night.

Lowering my gaze, I tightened my grip around the ruby necklace. My fingers curled around the stone, my heart turning to steel.

Everything the Evergreen lost—one day, I would take it all back.

...

After waking in the middle of the night, I failed to fall back asleep.

By the time the maid knocking on the door, I had already washed up, changed into an ankle-length emerald dress, and was sitting on the bed, 'watching' television—absorbing the latest news through the voices and commentary.

“Princess Lyra, you are already up?”

The maid, Eli, stepped inside. She had been assigned as my personal attendant, and her round eyes widened in disbelief as she took in my appearance.

I offered a faint smile. “I likes to get up early.” As I spoke, I subtly lifted my hand, revealing the red marks I had deliberately inflicted to make it appear as though I had struggled while dressing—an image befitting a blind woman. “Can you find me a cane later, Eli? I think I might accidentally hurt myself getting dressed.”

Eli hurriedly replied, "My bad, Princess Lyra."Then she assisted me out of the room and guided me toward the dining hall.

Unfamiliar were-maids and servants passed by frequently, their gazes flitting toward me. Some looked on with curiosity, others with disdain or pity. And even some the bold ones whispered among themselves.

“It seems after what happened with Prince Kael, even the King has lost hope in him. He let him marry a blind she-wolf.”

“Shh… She is the Prince’s fated mate. Isn’t fate playing a cruel joke? Kidnapped and now bound to a blind woman. No hope of claiming the throne for him.”

“They had a maid stand in for Prince Kael during the wedding. And the bride spent her wedding night alone. He clearly doesn’t care about her. She’s in for a miserable life.”

“Should we go greet her?”

“What for? She'd probably be replaced once the royal pub was born. Why bother?”

Eli shot them a sharp glare and turned to me, her voice gentle with reassurance. “Princess Lyra, don’t listen to their nonsense.”

I continued walking, neither hurried nor hesitant, my expression composed as ever. “Mm.” I gave a small smile. “Can you describe the layout of the Prince’s mansion? I sensed its structure is different from the one I stayed.”

“Well,” Eli began, her tone lighter, “this mansion has five floors. The first floor is for public spaces and guest rooms. The second floor houses the Prince’s office. The third floor holds the private quarters—your shared bedroom, bathroom, and closet. The fourth and fifth floors are currently empty. I heard the King plans to turn one of them into a nursery for the baby in your belly, Princess Lyra.”

After a brief pause, she added thoughtfully, “If you ever get bored, I’d suggest visiting the first floor. There’s a theater, an opera room, and a botanical garden.”

“And how often am I required to visit the main mansion to greet the King?” I asked.

“It would be best if you could visit once a week,” Eli replied. “And you are expected to dine with the royal family at least twice a week.”

“Then what about today? The first day after the wedding seems like the perfect time to formally greet the King.” I suggested lightly.

Eli hesitated. “The King has already left for official matters… but Lady Ana and Lady Evelyn are at the main mansion. We could go and greet them instead.”

Lady Ana had struck me as calculating and arrogant from the way she carried herself at the wedding. As for Lady Evelyn, she hadn’t attended at all. I had yet to see her face or get a sense of her personality.

“Let’s go, then,” I decided. Today seemed like the perfect opportunity to meet the rest members of the royal family.

If I was to live among these Lycan royals, I needed to understand who they were—and more importantly, which boundaries I had to be careful not to cross.