Page 15 of Monster's Pretty Bride

A breath of hesitation. “I question whether you are still fit to lead.”

The silence that follows is deadly.

In a single movement, Naranus moves.

He doesn’t lunge, he doesn’t need to. He steps forward, smooth and unhurried, like a predator closing in on prey that already knows it is doomed. His claws extend slightly, his wings shifting just enough to make the challenger brace himself, anticipating an attack that has yet to come.

He stops.

“You challenge me in front of my kin,” he murmurs. “You challenge me because you think I am weak.”

The challenger does not flinch.

Naranus exhales slowly, shaking his head. “You have no idea what weakness looks like.”

Before the other gargoyle can react, Naranus strikes.

The motion is brutal, effortless, his claws lash across the challenger’s chest, stone and flesh splitting open in the same breath. The force of the impact sends the gargoyle skidding back, wings flaring as he struggles to regain his balance. Blood spills onto the sand, dark and thick.

Naranus does not give him time to recover.

He closes the distance again, this time wrapping his hand around the challenger’s throat and slamming him against the stone wall of the arena. The impact cracks through the silence, a sharp exhale of pain escaping his opponent’s lips.

Naranus leans in.

“I let her live,” he murmurs, voice a low rasp, “because she is mine to destroy. Not yours.”

The words sink like a blade in my core.

Mine to destroy.

I swallow, pressing further into the shadows.

The crowd does not cheer. There is no applause, no celebration.

Only silence.

Only the sound of Naranus releasing the broken gargoyle, his body slumping against the stone.

Only the slow, deliberate turn of his head—toward me.

My pulse spikes.

His golden gaze burns into the darkness, unblinking, his lips parting slightly.

He sees me.

He feels me.

My breathing steadies.

I do not step back.

I do not turn away.

I hold his gaze, unflinching, as the rest of the gargoyles shift, their attention dragging toward the hidden alcove where I stand.

Naranus tilts his head, something unreadable flickering behind his molten eyes.

---