Chapter 121\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 121\u00a0<\/p>\n
Selene\u00a0<\/p>\n
A woman?\u00a0<\/p>\n
A woman dressed like a man?\u00a0<\/p>\n
And not only that, she was heading straight for the Crimson Warrior Rite.\u00a0<\/p>\n
How interesting.\u00a0<\/p>\n
98\u00a0<\/p>\n
55 vouchers\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2019t scream caution but didn\u2019t invite familiarity either. I\u2019d 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\u00a0<\/p>\n
new.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Most women overcompensated when they tried to act masculine, roughening their movements, forcing their voices lower, exaggerating confidence. She didn\u2019t 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\u2019d worn this role for\u00a0<\/p>\n
years.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Almost as if she could become whatever she wanted and make it convincing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Anyone else would have missed it. Most warriors certainly would have. But I wasn\u2019t 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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The other reason?\u00a0<\/p>\n
My gaze slid, almost unconsciously, to Damien.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was walking ahead of us, tall and unhurried, every step exuding the kind of authority that didn\u2019t 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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At first, I didn\u2019t understand it. Damien wasn\u2019t the type to allow outsiders close, especially not someone unknown. Talent alone wouldn\u2019t sway him. Strength didn\u2019t impress him either. To the strongest man in the world, fighting was just fighting. Meaningless unless it served a purpose.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So there could only be one explanation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My lips twitched upward, amused as the pieces slid together in my mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Oh.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So that was it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked at her again, more carefully this time. She\u2019d already moved a few steps ahead, putting distance\u00a0<\/p>\n
9:46 Wed, Jan 28\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 121\u00a0<\/p>\n
between herself and me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Interesting.\u00a0<\/p>\n
:\u00a0<\/p>\n
98\u00a0<\/p>\n
B\u00a0<\/p>\n
55 vouchers\u00a0<\/p>\n
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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That only made me more interested.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNoah,\u201d I said casually, my tone lazy, \u201cis there a reason you\u2019re going to the Warrior Rite?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She raised an eyebrow slightly, as if weighing whether the question deserved an answer. \u201cA reason?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I nodded. \u201cEveryone has one. Some of us are expected to go. Some just want to watch people beat each other half to death.\u201d I smiled faintly. \u201cAnd some want to do the beating themselves. Which one are you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2019t worth the trouble of evasion, she smiled.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe third,\u201d she said calmly. \u201cI\u2019m joining the Crimson Warrior Rite to beat people up.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I raised an eyebrow at her answer, slowing my steps just enough to look at her properly. \u201cWhy?\u201d I asked, genuinely curious this time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She shrugged as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. \u201cJust like everyone else, I want to get my hands on a weapon.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I studied her quietly. There was absolutely nothing normal about her. From the way she carried herself to the way\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2019t expected the first woman Damien would ever show interest in to be normal. Still, she exceeded even that expectation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Behind me, I heard Kaius mutter under his breath to Jason, his voice filled with annoyance. \u201cThat bastard\u2026 he\u2019s stealing Noah\u2019s attention from me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cStealing?\u201d Jason echoed, clearly confused.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, stealing,\u201d Kaius snapped quietly. \u201cI\u2019m the one who was supposed to talk to Noah, to test his strength, to see what he\u2019s made of. I approached him because he\u2019s special. And now that cunning bastard is hogging all his attention.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2019t help herself, and her attention was drawn to him no matter how much she tried to control it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
9:46 Wed, Jan 28\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 121\u00a0<\/p>\n
My lips curled upward slowly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
93\u00a0<\/p>\n
55 vouchers\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I may, Noah,\u201d I said, my voice smooth as I broke the silence again, \u201ccan I ask another question?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She nodded absently, clearly distracted by her thoughts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stopped walking, and slipped my hands into my pockets. \u201cHave you ever met the alpha before?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Everyone stopped.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kaius and Jason both stared in shock at the scene in front of us.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The cold-blooded alpha, the same man who rarely touched anyone, who avoided unnecessary contact, who wouldn\u2019t spare a glance for people bleeding at his feet, was holding the young man\u2019s wrist gently, his grip firm but careful, as if he couldn\u2019t stand the thought of her getting hurt.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Behind me, Kaius whispered in disbelief. \u201cJason\u2026 am I seeing things? Did the alpha just save the boy from tripping?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jason swallowed hard. \u201cY-you\u2019re not imagining it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kaius frowned even deeper. \u201cThen\u2026 are the rumors true? Is the alpha really interested in men?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jason hesitated before muttering, \u201cI don\u2019t know. But this situation feels familiar. The alpha was attentive like this before to that woman from the Mooncrest pack. I didn\u2019t think he\u2019d do the same for a man.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I smiled to myself, tilting my head slightly as I watched the scene unfold.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If only they knew.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2019t paying attention to just anyone. He never had been.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It had always been her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
9:47 Wed, Jan 28\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hope Is Not Optional \u2014 Manuel Flores 121 Chapter 121\u00a0 Chapter 121\u00a0 Selene\u00a0 A woman?\u00a0 A woman dressed like a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[82],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-ruthless-tycoons-obsession-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27915"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27915\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}