Hope Is Not Optional — Manuel Flores 121
Chapter 121
Chapter 121
Selene
A woman?
A woman dressed like a man?
And not only that, she was heading straight for the Crimson Warrior Rite.
How interesting.
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A lazy smile curved on my lips as I watched her walk beside me, her steps steady, her posture relaxed in a way that didn’t scream caution but didn’t invite familiarity either. I’d seen women disguise themselves as servants, as merchants, even as nobles fleeing their families, but disguising herself as a man, and doing it this well, was
new.
Most women overcompensated when they tried to act masculine, roughening their movements, forcing their voices lower, exaggerating confidence. She didn’t do any of that. Her appearance was still refined, her build lean rather than bulky, yet the way she carried herself fit seamlessly among men, as if she’d worn this role for
years.
Almost as if she could become whatever she wanted and make it convincing.
Anyone else would have missed it. Most warriors certainly would have. But I wasn’t anyone else. I was the best doctor in the world. No matter how carefully someone hid themselves, the difference between male and female was obvious to me. There was bone structure, muscle distribution, and subtle balance shifts. That was why I noticed her immediately. And that was only one of the reasons she intrigued me.
The other reason?
My gaze slid, almost unconsciously, to Damien.
He was walking ahead of us, tall and unhurried, every step exuding the kind of authority that didn’t need to announce itself. His eyes, however, were locked onto one person alone, the woman beside me. He was not scanning the surroundings, not watching the warriors gathering in the distance, but her. As if nothing else mattered.
At first, I didn’t understand it. Damien wasn’t the type to allow outsiders close, especially not someone unknown. Talent alone wouldn’t sway him. Strength didn’t impress him either. To the strongest man in the world, fighting was just fighting. Meaningless unless it served a purpose.
So there could only be one explanation.
My lips twitched upward, amused as the pieces slid together in my mind.
Oh.
So that was it.
I looked at her again, more carefully this time. She’d already moved a few steps ahead, putting distance
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Chapter 121
between herself and me.
Interesting.
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I lengthened my stride and caught up easily, falling into step beside her. She flicked a glance my way before looking forward again, clearly uninterested in conversation.
That only made me more interested.
“Noah,” I said casually, my tone lazy, “is there a reason you’re going to the Warrior Rite?”
She raised an eyebrow slightly, as if weighing whether the question deserved an answer. “A reason?”
I nodded. “Everyone has one. Some of us are expected to go. Some just want to watch people beat each other half to death.” I smiled faintly. “And some want to do the beating themselves. Which one are you?”
This time, she turned fully toward me. For a split second, I thought she might refuse to answer altogether. Her eyes were sharp, and calculating, like she was measuring how much to reveal and how much to keep buried. Then, as if deciding it wasn’t worth the trouble of evasion, she smiled.
“The third,” she said calmly. “I’m joining the Crimson Warrior Rite to beat people up.”
I raised an eyebrow at her answer, slowing my steps just enough to look at her properly. “Why?” I asked, genuinely curious this time.
She shrugged as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “Just like everyone else, I want to get my hands on a weapon.”
The moment the word weapon left her lips, her eyes lit up, sparkling with excitement, like someone thinking about something they had wanted for a very long time and could finally reach.
I studied her quietly. There was absolutely nothing normal about her. From the way she carried herself to the way
her emotions flickered just beneath the surface, everything about her felt layered, as if she knew far more than she let on. Then again, I hadn’t expected the first woman Damien would ever show interest in to be normal. Still, she exceeded even that expectation.
Behind me, I heard Kaius mutter under his breath to Jason, his voice filled with annoyance. “That bastard… he’s stealing Noah’s attention from me.”
“Stealing?” Jason echoed, clearly confused.
“Yes, stealing,” Kaius snapped quietly. “I’m the one who was supposed to talk to Noah, to test his strength, to see what he’s made of. I approached him because he’s special. And now that cunning bastard is hogging all his attention.”
I heard every word, but I ignored him completely. My focus had already shifted elsewhere. My gaze flicked forward to Damien, who was still walking ahead of us, his posture relaxed, his presence overwhelming even when he did nothing at all. And then there was her, walking just a few steps behind him, occasionally glancing his way as if she couldn’t help herself, and her attention was drawn to him no matter how much she tried to control it.
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Chapter 121
My lips curled upward slowly.
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“If I may, Noah,” I said, my voice smooth as I broke the silence again, “can I ask another question?”
She nodded absently, clearly distracted by her thoughts.
I stopped walking, and slipped my hands into my pockets. “Have you ever met the alpha before?”
She froze immediately, and her eyes widened. Her foot caught on a loose stone, her balance faltering as her body tipped forward. Before anyone else could even react, a strong hand shot out and caught her wrist, steadying her instantly.
Everyone stopped.
Kaius and Jason both stared in shock at the scene in front of us.
The cold-blooded alpha, the same man who rarely touched anyone, who avoided unnecessary contact, who wouldn’t spare a glance for people bleeding at his feet, was holding the young man’s wrist gently, his grip firm but careful, as if he couldn’t stand the thought of her getting hurt.
She looked up at Damien, surprise written plainly across her face, her gaze locked onto his as if the rest of the world had faded away.
Behind me, Kaius whispered in disbelief. “Jason… am I seeing things? Did the alpha just save the boy from tripping?”
Jason swallowed hard. “Y-you’re not imagining it.”
Kaius frowned even deeper. “Then… are the rumors true? Is the alpha really interested in men?”
Jason hesitated before muttering, “I don’t know. But this situation feels familiar. The alpha was attentive like this before to that woman from the Mooncrest pack. I didn’t think he’d do the same for a man.”
I smiled to myself, tilting my head slightly as I watched the scene unfold.
If only they knew.
If only they realized that the woman they were whispering about and the man standing right in front of them were one and the same. Damien wasn’t paying attention to just anyone. He never had been.
It was her.
It had always been her.
9:47 Wed, Jan 28
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