The Cursed Alpha's Fifth Luna

Ethan had barely taken a step outside when a terrified scream shattered the courtyard.

“Help! The lady! She’s up there!”

The servant’s voice sent a jolt of ice through his veins. Ethan crossed the threshold before his brain even registered the words. A crowd was already massing in front of the west wing—servants and Lycans staring upward with horrified, pale faces.

Ethan pushed through them, looked up—and his heart stopped dead in his chest.

No.

Hanging over the iron railing of the third-floor balcony was Ruri.

Her entire body was suspended in empty air, her knuckles white as she gripped the iron bars, her feet dangling helplessly above the stone courtyard. She was holding herself up by sheer arm strength alone. If those fingers slipped for half a second, the fall would kill her.

“Ruri!” Ethan’s voice tore through the court. “What the hell are you doing?!”

She flinched, her tear-stained face turning down toward him.

Before Ethan could move, Hades stepped up behind him, a sickening, amused smirk playing on his lips as he watched the scene unfold.

“Seems I won’t need to do anything,” Hades said, shrugging effortlessly. “The lady has decided to take matters into her own hands.”

Hades chuckled softly. “I hope she falls to her death so you come back to your senses.”

Ethan ground his teeth as he watched his brother’s grin widen.

“It would be fun,” Hades added.

Ethan drew a strangled breath as he looked away from Hades, returning his gaze to Ruri hanging by a thread. Every instinct screamed at him to charge up the stairs, but one wrong move could make her panic. If he ran inside and she jumped, he wouldn’t be here on the ground to catch her. The terrifying calculation held him glued to the cobblestones, his mind trapped in a split-second deadlock.

“Ruri, listen to me,” Ethan called out, forcing a calm he didn’t feel. “Don’t do anything foolish. Stay right there, okay? I’m coming up.”

“Don’t!” Her voice cracked, echoing across the stone. “If anyone comes up those stairs, I’m letting go!”

Ethan froze, his hands curling into tight fists at his sides. Sweat beaded along his hairline as he turned to the guard beside him. “Get the Alpha and Lord Vance. Now!”

The guard bolted.

A few minutes later, Lord Vance and Rodrigo burst into the courtyard. The moment Vance lifted his eyes to the third floor, all the color drained from his face.

“Ruri!” Vance cried out, his hands trembling as he stepped forward. “Ruri, come down from there! Have you gone insane? Get down this minute!”

“No, I am not coming down! I would rather die than marry Hades!” Ruri screamed down at him, her body shaking from the brutal strain in her arms. “If you don’t cancel this wedding, Father, you’ll be taking my corpse home!”

Rodrigo folded his hands in front of him, tilting his head to the side as he casually watched the scene unfold.

“Listen to your father,” Ethan spat, one second away from snapping completely. “You’re only going to hurt yourself, Ruri!”

Ruri glanced down at them for a second—and then slowly peeled one trembling hand away from the iron bar.

The crowd below gasped in collective horror.

“Rurina!”

Seven’s roar thundered through the courtyard.

Before the sound of his own voice even faded, Seven was already moving. He didn’t look at Ethan. He didn’t even glance at Lord Vance or Rodrigo.

Seven slammed through the grand doors.

Up on the balcony, Ruri could hear Seven’s heavy footsteps approaching from inside the manor. If he reached her before she forced a deal with her father, all of this would have been a waste.

She drew a ragged breath, her remaining fingers slipping on the sweat-slick iron. “Father, please…”

Silence stretched across the courtyard. Vance remained frozen in horror.

“Alright,” she whispered, her head lowered, tears spilling over her lashes. “I have my answer.”

She closed her eyes—and without waiting an extra second, she let go.

Screams exploded across the courtyard below. Ethan lunged forward, his arms outstretched toward the sky—

Ruri dropped like a stone, the wind whipping through her hair—but before she cleared the balcony floor, Seven lunged.

He threw his entire body over the stone balcony, his arm shooting down into empty air. His fingers slammed around her wrist with punishing force just as gravity pulled her down.

The violent impact dragged Seven halfway over the edge. His ribs slammed against the stone wall with a sickening crunch, his boots digging into the masonry as his other hand locked around the balustrade.

“Got you!” he roared.

Ruri snapped her eyes open. She hung in open air, suspended entirely by Seven’s brutal grip on her wrist.

Seven was gasping, his veins bulging against his neck, his knuckles bone-white. His eyes were blood-red with terror as he used every ounce of his Lycan strength to heave her upward.

“Hold on to me!” he rasped, his voice cracking on the command.

Ruri reached up with her free hand, digging her nails into his forearm. With a final, agonizing pull, Seven dragged her over the railing, tumbling back onto the balcony floor with Ruri collapsed against his chest.

He wrapped both arms around her so violently she could barely breathe, crushing her against him as if trying to merge her into his own skin. His breath came in ragged, terrified gulps, his face buried deep in her hair.

“Why the hell would you do that?!” he barked, his voice trembling with a terrifying mix of fury and anguish.

His hands moved frantically over her back and ribs, checking for broken bones, mapping every inch of her skin as if he needed physical proof that she was still whole. He pulled back just enough to press his forehead against hers, his breath hot and ragged against her skin.

“Do you have any idea what you almost did to me? Do you have any idea?!”

Ruri couldn’t speak. She buried her face into the crook of his neck, her small hands clutching his torn shirt as violent sobs wracked her entire frame.

“There was no other way,” she choked out, her voice muffled against his throat. “My father refused to cancel the engagement.”

“Is that why you had to kill yourself?!” Seven barked, his arms snapping shut around her so tightly it was hard for her to take in air. He cradled the back of her head, burying his fingers in her hair, pressing her small body against his chest as if he could hide her inside his own skin from the rest of the world. He was trembling—a deep, visceral tremor vibrating through his muscles.

Ruri bit her lower lip tightly, but no words could leave her mouth.

Gradually, the frantic storm of Seven’s breathing began to ease. Without thinking, he leaned down and pressed a soft, lingering kiss against her forehead. His lips stayed there for a long beat, warm and desperate, savoring the heat of her skin.

“Don’t you dare scare me like that again,” he rasped against her hairline.

Ruri froze at the touch, completely taken aback by the sudden gentleness of it.

She lifted her eyes to look at him, and the expression on his face caught her clean off-guard. His gaze was filled with a raw, agonizing concern—something so intense it felt almost unnatural for him. His face was ghostly pale, his dark eyes searching hers frantically, tracing every tear track as if he believed she were going to dissolve into air if he blinked. His fingers gently tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, his touch surprisingly soft for hands that had just heaved her over a stone ledge.

Ruri felt a thick knot form in her throat. She tried to swallow, but her mouth was dry.

What was this feeling?

Before she could process it, Seven pulled her right back into his arms, burying his face in her hair again.

Ruri blinked once, and then again, her heart hammering against her ribs. When did Seven begin to care about her so much? Was this part of the plan? But Ethan wasn’t even here… so what was going on?

A thousand questions rushed through her mind, but she didn’t push him away. She let herself lean into his solid warmth, grounding herself in the steady beat of his heart.

Almost immediately, the heavy balcony doors slammed open as Ethan, Lord Vance, and the guards burst into the room leading out to the terrace.

“Ruri!” Lord Vance dropped to his knees, his face ghostly white.

Seven tightened his grip on her for one selfish, protective second longer—defying the world for one beat—before forcing himself to let go and step back. He turned around immediately, brushing his fingers through his messy hair, desperately schooling his features into a cold, impenetrable mask before anyone could read the terror still burning in his eyes.

Lord Vance pulled his daughter directly into his arms, holding her tightly as tears finally spilled down the old lord’s face.

“It’s okay… it’s okay, my sweet girl…”

“I’m sorry, Father…” Ruri sobbed into his coat. “I’m so sorry…”

“No,” Lord Vance shook his head fiercely, squeezing his eyes shut as he kissed the top of her head. “No, don’t apologize.”

He took a shaking breath, opening his eyes and looking over at Seven, then down at his weeping daughter.

“I’ll cancel the engagement,” Vance whispered, his voice breaking completely. “I’ll cancel it today. You won’t marry him. I won’t force you.”

Ruri froze, her sobs turning into soft, disbelieving gasps against her father’s chest.

“Thank you, Father,” she whimpered. “Thank you.”

She lifted her gaze, and her eyes met Seven’s. Something silent and unnamable passed between them—something Ruri had never felt in all the years she had known him.