Somewhere in the beastman kingdom, inside a luxurious room, a man was sitting on a sofa drinking alcohol.

He was a demi-human with gray hair and wolf ears and a tail, his expression serious, his gaze lost somewhere on the glass he held between his fingers.

He wore elegant clothes that made his high status clear, but his hunched posture and thoughtful expression contrasted with all the luxury surrounding him.

Around him were several demi-human women, all beautiful and of different races.

One had fox ears and several fluffy tails swaying at her back; another had long rabbit ears and a flirtatious smile, while a third had the body of a lamia and kept her tail lazily coiled across the sofa.

And all of them were competing for the gray-haired man’s attention.

"Darling, are you alright?" the one with fox ears asked in a honeyed voice.

"Sweetheart, why are you ignoring us?" the one with rabbit ears complained with a pout.

"My love, if something’s worrying you, you can tell us," said the one with the serpent tail, resting her chin on his shoulder. "That’s what we’re here for."

But the gray-haired man didn’t respond to any of them.

He remained completely absorbed in his own thoughts, his gaze fixed on his drink and his brow slightly furrowed.

As if all those women and all their caresses were nothing more than background noise he barely registered.

But then the room’s door opened and in came a tall man with bear ears, brown hair, and a pair of scars crossing his face.

His build was enormous, far more robust than the gray-haired man’s, and his mere presence filled the doorframe.

"Brother..." the scarred man said in a measured tone. "Your beloved ’guest’ is outside the room, waiting"

The gray-haired man snapped back as if waking from a trance.

His serious expression vanished instantly and he sat up on the sofa with an excitement impossible to conceal.

"Ah, excellent!" he said, setting his glass aside. "Thank you for letting me know, brother. Give me just a second."

Then he turned toward the women surrounding him, and his tone changed completely.

"Out," he said coldly. "All of you. Get out, and do it without making a scene."

The women protested immediately.

"Huh? Why, darling?"

"We just got here..."

"Is it because of that woman again?"

But despite the complaints, none of them dared to disobey.

One by one, with disgruntled faces and murmurs under their breath, they got up from the sofa and left the room through a side door, finally leaving the gray-haired man alone with his brother.

The gray-haired man got to his feet and began fixing his clothes and smoothing his hair with his hands, clearly trying to look as presentable as possible.

And it was then that he noticed his brother watching him.

"What?" he asked, turning toward the scarred man. "Do I look bad? Do I have something on my face?"

"It’s not that," his brother replied, slowly shaking his head. "It’s just that... I don’t understand what the hell you see in that crazy bitch"

"..."

"That woman gives me chills just looking at her," the scarred man continued, crossing his arms. "There’s something off about her, brother... And I’m sure I’m not the only one who thinks so."

The gray-haired man frowned, clearly annoyed by the comment.

"You know what? Keep your damn mouth shut," he said with contained anger. "You have no idea what you’re talking about... And instead of spouting nonsense, why don’t you just open the door already?"

The scarred man looked at him for another second, but didn’t press further.

He simply shrugged and walked to the main door of the room, turning the handle and opening it wide.

And then a woman of extraordinary beauty stepped through the door.

Her long golden hair fell over her shoulders and the white dress she wore stood out against the darkness of the room.

But what was truly impossible to ignore were the enormous angel wings that extended from her back, white and radiant, folding with elegance as she crossed the threshold.

"Hello, Prince Jack," she said in a soft, calm voice, giving the gray-haired man a warm smile. "I’m very glad you agreed to receive me."

She paused briefly, bringing a finger to her lips with a thoughtful gesture.

"Though... perhaps I should start calling you ’Your Majesty,’ don’t you think?"

Prince Jack, who just a moment ago had been sunk in a dark seriousness, now wore a smile he couldn’t possibly hide.

"You can call me whatever you want," he replied, approaching her with an almost exaggerated gallantry. "For you, anything... If you want to call me ’Your Majesty,’ I’ll gladly become king just to honor the title."

The winged woman let out a soft laugh at the comment.

Then both settled in, she sitting with elegance on one of the sofas and he taking a seat across from her, not taking his eyes off her for a second.

"I must confess I wasn’t expecting to see you here," Jack said, pouring her a glass. "Your visit was quite sudden."

Then, realizing how that had sounded, he quickly corrected himself.

"Please don’t misunderstand me," he added quickly. "It’s not that I didn’t want to see you. Quite the opposite. It’s just that... well, it was so unexpected that I barely had time to prepare to receive you as you deserve."

The woman laughed again.

"Don’t worry, your Majesty," she said, gently placing a hand over Jack’s. "I’m sorry for arriving without warning, but... we need to talk."

The touch of her hand made Jack tense slightly, though not from discomfort, but from the complete opposite.

"I’m all ears," he said without looking away from her. "What is it?"

The woman’s expression shifted, turning more serious.

"Tell me... did you hear about what happened in the elven kingdom?"

"I’ve heard some rumors," he replied, thoughtfully. "Though honestly, I didn’t give them much importance... They were saying the elven queen had handed her kingdom over to a human in exchange for power or some madness like that, so I assumed it was nothing more than exaggeration."

"I wish you were right..." she said, gently shaking her head. "But unfortunately, everything you heard is true."

Prince Jack was surprised for a moment.

But the surprise didn’t last long, because almost immediately a smile began forming on his lips.

"What irony... the proud elves ended up destroying themselves," he said with a mocking smile. "If they’ve truly fallen so low as to hand themselves over to a human, those border territories that have been disputed for generations will finally be ours."

"I wouldn’t celebrate so quickly if I were you."

"Why not?" he asked, confused. "The elves weaken, we grow stronger... It’s an ideal situation."

The winged woman looked at him steadily, and her voice grew even more grave.

"Because there’s something you don’t yet know, your Majesty," she said, gently squeezing his hand. "Your sister, Princess Luna, traveled to the elven kingdom not long ago... And it wasn’t a courtesy visit."

"Luna?" Jack repeated, frowning. "What does that little brat have to do with all of this?"

"She went to make a deal with that human," the woman revealed. "The same one who took the elven kingdom. Her intention is to secure his backing... to do the exact same thing here. To use him against you and take the throne."

Jack’s face froze completely.

"...She did what?"