The Witch and Her Four Dangerous Alphas

Chapter 194: Chapter 194: Meeting Them

Serena’s POV

The moment | saw them, my whole body went still.

Four pairs of eyes. Four different kinds of intensity.

| didn’t need to look up to know they were staring at me. | could feel it. Like heat against my skin. Like

something heavy pressing down on my chest, making it hard to breathe.

| tried to act calm, tried to walk toward my seat as if nothing was wrong, but my hands were cold and my steps

felt slow, too careful. Every sound around me...the music, the laughter, the soft chatter seemed to fade until all |

could hear was the sound of my own heartbeat.

| didn’t dare meet their eyes. | didn’t have to.

| could already picture each one of them. Aeron’s sharp, unreadable stare. Luca’s smirk always carried a hint of

danger. Lucian’s dark, steady gaze made it impossible to look away once you did. And Kael’s wild, restless eyes,

like he could tear the whole room apart if he wanted to.

Just the memory of them was enough to make my throat tighten.

| stopped near the table, pretending to look at the decorations, pretending not to notice the way the room had

gone quieter.

Slowly, | reached for the chair, but my hand trembled slightly. I hid it quickly, placing it on my lap once | sat

down.

Lira leaned closer and whispered, "Princess, are you alright?"

I nodded, though my voice didn’t cout. | didn’t trust it either.

| could feel their eyes still on me. All four of them. My pulse quickened. My cheeks felt warm, even though the

room wasn’t hot. | lowered my gaze, focusing on the edge of my plate. The silver reflected the light from the

chandelier above, bright enough to sting my eyes.

| told myself to breathe. To focus. To not look up.

But curiosity was a cruel thing.

Against my better judgment, | lifted my eyes...just a little. Just enough to see them.

The eldest, Aeron, sat straight and calm, his face unreadable. But his eyes... they were fixed on me, deep and

steady.

The second, Luca, leaned back slightly, one corner of his mouth curved into that half-smile that made my

stomach twist.

Lucian’s gaze was quiet but piercing, like he was trying to read every thought inside my head.

And Kael... Kael's eyes were wild, untamed, and burning with something | couldn't name.

| looked away quickly, heart pounding.

My fingers curled around the fabric of my dress. | could feel their stares following me, and no matter how much |

told myself to ignore it, my chest refused to calm down.

Lira whispered something again, but | barely heard her.

All | could think of was how close they were now. After all this time. After everything that had happened.

| swallowed hard, forcing my face to stay neutral, pretending their presence didn’t shaketo the core.

But deep down, | knew it was useless.

Because even without looking at them, I could still feel it...four intense gazes locked on me.

| sat quietly, trying to act normal. My hands stayed folded on my lap, my posture straight, my face calm. On the

outside, | probably looked fine, just another princess attending a royal dinner.

But inside... | was still a mess.

Their eyes were still on me. Every t| tried to look around the room, | somehow ended up catching a glimpse

of one of them. And every t| did, my heart skipped a beat, and | had to quickly look away again.

| didn’t even taste the drink in front of me. | was too focused on pretending | didn’t notice them.

When the king and queen finally entered, everyone stood up. | followed quietly, bowing slightly. The noise and

movement helpedcalm down a little. At least for a moment.

Then | saw him.

Vaelen.

He walked in right behind the king and queen... tall, calm, and graceful as always. His expression was polite but

soft, and when his eyes found me, a faint smile appeared on his face.

Something in my chest loosened.

For the first tthat evening, | felt like I could breathe again.

He cstraight towardafter greeting the others, his steps sure and easy. A few eyes followed him, but he

didn’t seem to care.

When he reached me, he stopped and smiled warmly. "Serena," he said, his voice low and calm, "how are you

doing?"

Just hearing his tone made my heart steady. | smiled back, a small, genuine one this time. "I'm fine," | said softly.

"Just... a little tired, that’s all."

He nodded, his gaze gentle. "You look lovely tonight."

My cheeks warmed slightly. "Thank you," | said, trying not to sound awkward.

It was quiet for a second ... calm, comfortable. Like we could actually talk. But, of course, peace never lasted

long around here.

Before | could say another word, a loud, cheerful voice cut through the moment.

"Oh, Prince Vaelen! There you are!"

1 didn’t even have to look to know who it was.

Arlena.

| almost groaned out loud.

She appeared from behind a group of maids, smiling like she owned the room. Her gown sparkled in the

candlelight, her every step full of exaggerated grace. And the moment she reached us, she practically plastered

herself to Vaelen’s side.

"Prince Vaelen," she said sweetly, clutching his arm like they were the closest of lovers. "I was looking for you

everywhere. Why didn’t you csit with me?"

| rolled my eyes before | could stop myself.

Seriously? Could she not stay away for even one night?

Vaelen’s smile faded almost instantly. His expression turned stiff. | could see the slight twitch in his jaw that

always showed when he was annoyed.

"Lady Arlena," he said flatly, "I was only greeting Princess Serena."

"Oh, of course!" she said quickly, pretending to be all cheerful again. "I just thought you might be lonely without

company."

| almost laughed. Lonely? The man barely tolerated her existence.

I glanced at Vaelen, half-amused, half-pitiful. He looked like he was silently begging the heavens for patience.

Poor him.

Arlena, completely oblivious, kept talking, twirling a lock of her hair as she leaned closer to him. "You must be

tired, Prince Vaelen. You've been so busy lately. Why don’t you csit with me? | saved you a seat."

Vaelen’s tone didn’t change. Calm, even, cold. "That won't be necessary."

Her smile faltered for a split second before she forced it back. "Oh, don’t be shy. I'm sure Princess Serena won't

mind, right?"

| smiled sweetly. "Not at all. You can go wherever you want."

She blinked, as if she expectedto sound jealous. But my tone was so casual, it only made her frown a little.

Vaelen, on the other hand, didn’t even move. "I prefer to stay here," he said simply.

That shut her up for a moment.

She tried again, asking a few meaningless questions, giggling over nothing, and even trying to adjust a strand of

his hair, but Vaelen didn’t respond. His answers were short and polite, his attention clearly not on her.

After a few minutes of awkward one-sided conversation, Arlena’s smile started to strain. She looked like she was

running out of ideas.

And the whole time, | sat there quietly beside Vaelen, sipping my drink, pretending to admire the hall

decorations.

It must've been torture for her to be completely ignored by the very man she was trying so hard to impress.

| almost felt sorry for her. Almost.

When Vaelen finally turned back toto ask something about my day, Arlena’s expression darkened just a

little.

I hid my smirk behind my glass.

) q q

| couldn't help it... the sight of

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Arlena’s strained smile was pure

entertainment. She wa tryingsen

hard INES graceful » the cracks

werk showing. Her eyes darted

betweenand Vaelen, her fingers

fidgeting with her dress as she

forced out another fake laugh that

died halfway through. The content is

on novelenglish.net! Read the latest

chapter there!

| sipped my drink slowly, hiding my smirk behind the glass. For the first ttonight, | actually felt... amused.

Watching her fail this miserably was strangely satisfying.

Vaelen, as usual, looked completely

done. He gave her the kind OR

: son

empty expressipniat hid: ease

ON :

stop ta Rha without saying a word. |

almost wanted to applaud him for

that level of patience. The content is

on novelenglish.net! Read the latest

chapter there!

Arlena finally gave up pretending and stepped aside to "greet the queen," though we both knew she just needed

to escape before she embarrassed herself further.

I was still quietly laughing to myself when it happened.

A deep, calm voice spoke right behind me.

"Princess."

My body froze.

That voice... | knew it too well.

Slowly, | turned, and there he was.

Aeron Duskdraven.

Up close, he was even more

intimidating than | EEE ell

broac shouldered chesoec in

farial Mask t at somehow made his

presence heavier. His grey eyes were

fixed on me. The content is on

novelenglish.net! Read the latest

chapter there!

"I am Aeron Duskdraven," he said quietly, "Alpha of the Silver Dawn pack."

My breath hitched. | managed to nod, my lips parting slightly to return the greeting, but before | could speak, he

reached forward.

His hand caught mine in his.

And then he did something | didn’t expect.

He lifted my hand to his lips and pressed a soft, deliberate kiss against my knuckles. His eyes never left mine the

whole time.

My heart stopped.

For a second, | forgot how to breathe. The air around us felt too still, too quiet.

His touch sent a strange shiver up my arm... warmth spreading, pulse quickening, skin burning where his lips had

brushed.

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