The Lycan King's Second Chance Mate: Rise of the Traitor's Daughter-Chapter 38: The Plan

Zane~

The heavy wooden doors to my office shut behind us with a dull thud, sealing Roland and me inside. My anger was undeniable, thick like an impending storm. I strode toward my desk, my fingers tightening into fists at my sides. Red, was restless beneath my skin, his growls vibrating through my mind, demanding answers.

Roland stood before me, his shoulders squared, awaiting my wrath. I didn’t keep him waiting.

"What the hell happened out there?" My voice was ice, commanding like a sharpened blade.

Roland flinched, a rare crack in his composed facade. "I’m sorry, Your Highness," he said, bowing his head slightly. "I got distracted. I stepped away to get the ice cream, like Natalie asked. I didn’t think..." He trailed off, guilt etched into his features. "I didn’t think I’d be gone long enough for anything to happen."

"You didn’t think," I echoed, my voice dangerously low. "Your job was to protect her. She could have been taken, hurt, or worse. What were you thinking?"

His shoulders sagged, and he nodded. "I’m really sorry. And I take full responsibility. I promise, Your Highness, it won’t happen again."

I studied him, my sharp gaze drilling into him as though I could extract the truth buried in his thoughts. Something about the way he avoided my eyes told me he wasn’t finished.

"There’s more, isn’t there?" I asked coldly. "Spill it."

Roland hesitated, glancing at the floor before meeting my eyes. "When I returned, I saw the men surrounding Natalie and Jacob," he began. "But something was... off."

"Off how?"

"One of Darius’s men was already down. He wasn’t moving—might have been knocked out or dead. And the others looked..." He paused, searching for the right word. "Terrified. Like they’d seen something they couldn’t explain."

My brows furrowed as I processed his words. "Terrified?"

"Yes," Roland confirmed. "Natalie and Jacob were cornered, but they didn’t look nearly as scared as I would have expected. Especially Natalie. She looked more dumbfounded than scared."

A muscle in my jaw ticked. Natalie had left out that part. Again.

Of course, she did.

She never tells me everything.

I knew better than to ask her for the truth. She wouldn’t tell me—not unless she wanted me to know.

I exhaled sharply, pinching the bridge of my nose. "We’ll deal with that later," I said. "For now, I need you to carry out an important task."

Roland straightened, his expression shifting to one of focus. "What do you need me to do?"

I crossed the room to my desk, leaning against its edge. "Darius refuses to leave Natalie alone. If he insists on being a persistent little thorn in my side, then I’ll make him too busy to remember she even exists."

Roland’s brows lifted. "You’re planning something." It wasn’t a question.

I smirked. "Of course I am."

Roland frowned. "May I ask how you plan on doing that? You’re a prince in hiding, Your Highness. No one’s supposed to know the extent of your power until you ascend the throne."

I smirked, a glint of something dark flashing in my eyes. "Don’t worry. Nothing will be traced back to me."

Roland gave me a skeptical look. "What exactly are you planning, Sir?"

I stepped closer to him, my voice low. "I’m going to make Darius’s life a living hell. Piece by piece. Until he has no choice but to crawl into a hole and stay there."

Roland’s interest was piqued now. "Alright, I’m listening."

I smirked, settling against my desk again. "First, I want you and Abel to find his biggest threat—another Alpha, a Beta, anyone with enough resentment toward Darius to want him gone. The more the merrier. I’ll fund them, give them warriors, resources, alliances—anything to keep Darius looking over his shoulder."

Roland nodded slowly. "A rival Alpha would definitely be a headache for him. We can get that done. What else, Your Highness?"

"I want you to find people in his pack who would spread rumors within the pack," I continued. "Enough to make his pack doubt him. Leak false information about his bad deals, failed alliances, anything that would make him look weak."

Roland’s grin widened. "I like where this is going."

"Oh, I’m just getting started." I leaned forward. "Every Alpha has elders to answer to. I want you to infiltrate his pack and make sure those elders lose faith in him. Give them undeniable proof of his failures. Which, luckily for us, won’t be hard to find."

Roland let out a low whistle. "You really want to destroy him from the inside out."

"Exactly."

He chuckled. "What next?"

"We highlight his inability to protect his pack. Find a way to orchestrate a few well-placed attacks—nothing deadly, just enough to make his people question his strength."

Roland’s grin turned sharp. "And financially?"

I smirked. "We cut him off. I know for a fact that his pack relies on businesses and resources to stay stable. I’m going to buy out all his suppliers, block his deals and cripple his economy."

Roland’s eyes gleamed. "That’ll force his own allies to start turning against him."

"Precisely. And when that happens, we’ll bribe or convince his key supporters to abandon him. Every leader has weak links. I need you to find them and exploit them."

Roland exhaled, shaking his head. "Damn. You’re ruthless, Sir"

"He deserves worse," I muttered.

Roland nodded."

I smirked darkly. "Once we’re done with the first stage, I’m going to hit him with the next step: psychological warfare." Roland frowned,

"What do you mean by that?"

My smirk deepened. "We make him doubt his instincts. Feed him false leads—make him believe a rival is preparing to attack when nothing happens. Drive him into paranoia."

Roland chuckled. "That’ll make him erratic."

"Exactly." My voice turned cold. "We’ll make him experience failure after failure. Whether it’s business, alliances, or power struggles—every time he tries to build something, we’ll make sure it crumbles."

Roland exhaled. "And if that doesn’t break him?"

"Then we humiliate him," I said simply. "Arrange a fight where he’s forced to hesitate or retreat. Make his own pack question his strength."

Roland’s expression darkened with satisfaction. "He won’t survive that."

"No," I agreed. "He won’t."

Roland let out a low whistle. "You’ve really thought this through." I nodded and he smiled. "So, do you have a final blow or this it?"

I smirked. "Of course. Once Darius is drowning in betrayals, financial losses, and internal chaos, he won’t have time to chase after Natalie anymore. He’ll be too damn busy trying to hold his crumbling world together, then I’ll reveal my next move."

Roland let out a low chuckle. "And by the time he realizes who was behind it all, it’ll be too late."

I nodded.

Roland exhaled, rubbing his chin. "Alright."

"Good." I turned back toward the window, staring into the city skyline. "Make sure Darius never sees it coming."

Roland studied me for a moment before speaking. "You really care about her, don’t you?"

I froze, his words striking a nerve. "This isn’t about that," I said curtly.

"Sure it’s not, Your Highness," Roland said, a hint of amusement in his voice.

I shot him a glare. "Focus on the task at hand, Roland."

He raised his hands in mock surrender. "Fine, fine. What’s the next step?"

"Contact Abel," I said. "We’ll need him to coordinate the attacks and gather intel on Darius’s pack. And remember, nothing can be traced back to us."

Roland nodded. "Understood."

"And one more thing," I added, my voice low and dangerous. "Make sure Darius knows fear. I want him too distracted, too paranoid, to even think about anything else."

Roland smirked a glint of respect in his eyes. "Consider it done."

After everything had been said, I told him he was free to leave but then, he hesitated. "Your Highness."

I looked at him with a slight frown. "What?"

His gaze flickered with something unreadable. "Natalie."

My chest tightened. "What about her?"

He hesitated. Then, finally, he shook his head. "Nothing."

I narrowed my eyes but didn’t push him.

Not yet.

I turned back toward the window, my jaw tight.

Darius made a mistake coming after someone under my protection.

Now, he was about to learn just how big of a mistake that was.