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Game-over?

After two games, Lian and Matteo were tied, each with a win. Olivia was sitting on the balcony of her room watching as they resolved their indifference, fighting. She didn't know who would win a hand-to-hand fight; the two were good at many things, but Matteo was the best at night hunting, and Lian was better at archery.

And not to mention that Matteo was disgruntled. She didn't know how to react when he showed up at dawn with a big white wolf skin. All of them were droopy when he displayed the piece as a trophy, putting it on Oliva's body, and no one knew when he found the time to cut that piece of leather as if it were a cloak. The head on the torn animal was like a cruel hood.

It was a message.

Even though she didn't want to admit it out loud, Oliva had enjoyed Matteo's boldness. It was a clear representation of who he was, but it was a surprise for everyone, it really was. Even Lian, who had brought a bear that weighed almost 600 kg, was surprised at how shameless his brother was. He had a cynical smile all morning that day.

After a while, Lian also appeared with another gift, a blood-stained arrow and an eagle feather. It was a beautiful black feather, almost the size of Olivia's arm. She was delighted, but just when she realized her boyfriend's expression, she realized that he wasn't even a little happy.

From the moment they were alone in the room, he walked away and did not exchange a single word with her in private. He was pretending very well in front of the others, and it made her more distressed than ever. She had no idea what was going on in his head or how far he wanted to be from her.

Oliva spent the last 24 hours in irritation. She did not want to be part of this circus, did not want to be receiving dead animals in the morning. But if she had a chance to marry, it would be with Lian. She trusted him enough.

Matteo had always been a cause of headaches. Since childhood, he couldn't bear to lose to anyone, especially her younger brother. He made a point of showing the authority he always imagined he had over him. Lian couldn't bear to have his older brother take away his patience. He always wanted to show that he was superior and more skilled than him, and that made him extremely angry.

Despite being close, the two were completely competitive. This was only exalted in childhood, but now it was annoying and frustrating to see two adult men take a competition that, in the eyes of the girl, would lead to nothing more than a marriage contract. It was drawn up by her with the most detailed clauses she would ever forget to include to test them.

She did not feel ready to marry, and no inheritance in the world would make her naturally consummate this marriage if it were not with Lian. It certainly would not be with Matteo.

She would have to convince everyone that she did not prefer one of them. Oliva kept a serious face as she watched from afar as they prepared for a physical fight. The two wore the same clothes, with black jogging pants and white shirts. It was like seeing the reflection of the same person in a mirror.

They were at the end of the small improvised ring in the middle of the garden, facing each other seriously. Oliva knew why Lian was fighting fiercely to win, but she didn't understand at all Matteo's motives. They were friends, but not so close. He liked to pick on her, make unnecessary jokes, and she hadn't seen him in years.

Nothing made any sense.

"Oliva won’t go down to see more closely?" Samuel entered the balcony of his room, and Olivia turned to her brother, noticing a slight smile on his lips, and responded with a stern look of disapproval. "What is it?"

"You must be loving all this." She rolled her eyes. She always had a good relationship with her brother and liked the closeness they had, but the toast came with jokes and too much intimacy.

"It's obvious! Dad was a genius," he said, clearly having fun. "Dad forced you to do something that would take years for you to do alone and even promoted a disputed team out there; some think that Lian will win, others that Matteo, but my favorite is 'no matter who will win, Olivia will say no at the altar.'" The boy laughed even more, and the girl sighed. "We even made bets."

"Will they fight like wolves?" Olivia changed the subject. She did not want to prolong the conversation.

"Yes."

"And who will stand to part if they get too aggressive?" She had a slight tone of worry mixed with indifference in her voice.

"Do you swear you have someone really worried about this?" Samuel said and took her by the hand. "Come, if anything happens, you can separate them. It’s scary when you’re mad."

The boy pulled her through the corridors, taking her closer to where the dispute would take place.

"Don’t look like that, it could be worse."

"I just didn’t want things to be this way..." she said casually and downcast. "I have a boyfriend, Sammy. Well, now I guess I don’t have one anymore."

"What??" Samuel widened his eyes and stared surprised at his sister. "Why didn't you say anything? He could have annulled the marriage proposal to the Allens!" he said.

"It is complicated." Oliva put her hand on her face, trying to contain herself. She could not reveal that coincidentally she was dating an Allen. It was a cruel irony of fate. No one would believe that coincidentally Lian Allen was her boyfriend. Remembering that made her feel her insides burning like they were cooking in a lie fire.

"How complicated? Did any alpha mark you?" Samuel took his hands to his mouth. He did not want to take into consideration if it were really true. That would be rather complicated.

"No!"

"Miss Moore, the fight has begun." Marie appeared before the two who were standing at the foot of the staircase, informing them.

Olivia was not enthusiastic about all the other competitions, but she could confess that this time she was a little nervous. It would be the end point of her agony, the tiebreaker. Samuel exchanged glances with his worried sister. He did not quite understand what was going on in her head and how he would react to this sudden change in her life.

The two walked the fangs towards the garden. Many of those who had stayed for the reading of the will had already left, but there were still some who wanted to witness closely the huge circus that revolved around Olivia's personal life. She was still very embarrassed.

And now she stood before two wolves, watching one growl at the other. Matteo had a large wound on his right arm, and the blood flowed like a trail, dripping on the mat. But he still managed to attack his brother with ferocity, hitting Lian in the abdomen with sharp claws.

That fight had already taken a turn.

The process of mutation of a Lycan lupus was not like that of a complete wolf. Their body mass multiplied, and large claws emerged from their hands and feet, allowing them to fight more freely and possess greater strength to bring down their enemies. In this way, they shed their animalistic nature and exuded dominance. Olivia, even as the worst omega, hated being subjected to transformed alphas because it affected her too much.

She felt repressed and cornered, like a fragile and sensitive woman, willing to do anything to stop the infernal pressure that was building up inside her. That was the worst part of being an omega. Since she began experiencing her periods of heat, she drank inhibiting teas to avoid mating with an alpha. It wasn't that she was a virgin; she simply didn't like surrendering herself to someone else during such a vulnerable time.

The strong essence that emanated from both of them mingled with the sweat and blood dripping from their bodies, creating an abstract painting on the floor.

Olivia held her breath when she saw Lian throwing brutal punches into her brother's stomach, causing him to spit out more blood from his mouth and nose. For a moment, she thought that torturous ordeal was over, but Matteo stood up.

And as if everything were happening in slow motion, he rose with such anger and adrenaline that he immediately knocked Lian to the ground and viciously attacked him. Fearless and almost unrecognizable, Matteo turned his brother's leg forcefully, and the sound of the bone breaking was audible to all present. Taking advantage of the distraction, Matteo managed to grab Lian's arm and break it as well. Lian roared in pain, caught off guard, just like everyone else there.

Finally, Matteo released him after breaking his brother's arm and leg. Covered in tattered, torn, and bloodied clothes, he limped toward the center of the ring and found Oliva amidst the crowd. Horror was evident on the girl's face.

Still muttering in pain on the floor, Lian desperately wished to send everyone to hell and tend to her boyfriend's injuries. She felt guilty for being involved with him, leading things to end up this way.

"It seems he was truly right," Samuel said behind Oliva. "Matteo will be your husband."

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