[The Social Predator]

[Rank: Bronze Title]

[Effect 1 - Pack Dynamics: Grants an instinctual ability to read the social hierarchy of a room. Alphas, challengers, and outsiders are immediately identifiable.]

[Effect 2 - Predator's Allure: Your presence is now subtly more compelling. When you speak with purpose, people are 15% more likely to believe you matter.]

Nel, you always know exactly what I need.

The social vacuum around me didn't last long. Nature abhors a vacuum, and high society abhors missing the chance to align with a rising star even more. The first to approach was a group of young men, led by a tall, stoic figure moving like someone who's spent thousands of hours mastering the sword.

The man approaching was Kenjiro Takeda. My mind supplied the details instantly, as if reading an invisible dossier floating above his head. Not a legacy, but self-made. Ranked third in his year at Tōhō Preparatory. Known for a punishing training regimen that bordered on self-flagellation. An alpha in his own pack, but a challenger on this bigger stage. The quiet, deadly type. Interesting.

"That was a foolish gamble, Nakano," Kenjiro said, his hand resting casually on his sword hilt, fingers drumming a slow, measured rhythm against the ornate tsuka. "You've made a powerful enemy today. The Valerius family doesn't forget slights."

I smiled, meeting his gaze directly, neither dropping my eyes in submission nor challenging too aggressively. "I find it's better to know where the snakes are, Takeda-san, than to let them hide in the grass. At least now we all know where we stand."

A flicker of respect crossed his otherwise impassive face, softening the hard line of his jaw for just a heartbeat. "A valid strategy, if risky. I look forward to testing your strength at the Academy."

It wasn't friendship he was offering—it was recognition. The currency of power in this world. I had just upgraded from "insignificant" to "rival worth acknowledging" in his eyes. A small victory, but those add up. In this game, being seen is the first step to being feared.

As Kenjiro and his entourage moved away, their expensive shoes clicking against the marble floor, I felt new presences approaching from behind. The scent of cherry blossoms hit me first—expensive perfume, too much of it. I turned to find myself cornered by a pair of identical women circling toward me.

The Miyamoto twins, Akari and Hikari. Their rose-gold gowns shimmered under the atrium's lights as they closed in on me from both sides, a pincer maneuver they'd likely perfected on countless other targets. Pack Dynamics labeled them as challengers with alpha potential—beautiful, dangerous, and hungry for advancement. The queens of New Vein's gossip network, with tongues as sharp as any blade.

"That was quite the performance, Nakano-san," said the one on the left—Akari, if the slightly sharper gleam in her eye was any indication. She leaned in closer than strictly necessary, giving me another wave of that cherry blossom scent. "We didn't realize Natalia's stepbrother was so... eloquent."

"Eloquent is one word for it," Hikari added. "It takes a certain kind of man to stand up to a Valerius. Tell us, where have you been hiding all this time?"

I gave them an enigmatic smile. "I wasn't hiding. I was waiting for the right moment."

It was a nothing statement, empty calories of conversation, but I could see it land with unexpected weight. Their eyes widened slightly, their bodies leaning in unconsciously.

"And what were you waiting for, exactly?" Akari asked, her voice dropping to a sultry murmur.

"For people to look past what they thought they saw," I replied.

"And what should we be seeing?" Hikari stepped closer, her hip nearly brushing mine.

I was about to answer when I caught movement over their shoulders. My gaze automatically drifted to a figure in white across the room—Celeste Vance, standing beside her sister Seraphina.

For a fraction of a second, our eyes met. The corners of her mouth turned up in a small, almost secret smile—barely there, then gone. It wasn't flirtation; it was recognition. One tactician acknowledging another on the battlefield.

That smile was immediately followed by a chill down my spine. Standing just behind Celeste was a young woman with short blonde hair and the coldest amber eyes I'd ever seen. She wore a suit, but it did nothing to hide a figure that rivaled Natalia's.

Her glare carried a simple message: Come near my charge and die.

So, the princess has a guard dog. A very beautiful, very dangerous guard dog.

My assessment was interrupted by a warm hand slipping into mine, fingers interlacing with possessive force. I didn't need to look to know who it was.

"Akari, Hikari," Natalia said, her voice dripping with artificial sweetness. "So sorry to interrupt. But my brother promised he would help me find Father. You know how he gets when he's networking."

The emphasis on "brother" might as well have been a slap across their faces. The twins' perfect smiles faltered as they processed the scene: our interlocked hands, Natalia's possessive stance, the subtle shift in her body language. A silent message passed between women, one I understood clearly despite not being its intended recipient.

He's mine.

"Of course," Akari said, recovering quickly. "We wouldn't want to keep you."

"Perhaps we can continue our conversation at the Academy, Nakano-san," Hikari added, giving me one last lingering look.

Natalia's grip on my hand tightened painfully as the twins gracefully retreated.

"That's enough performance for one night," she whispered fiercely, pulling me away from the crowd. "I need you. Now."

Her voice was tight with barely controlled desire, her nails digging into my palm.

As we passed through the crowd, I caught sight of Kimiko. For a moment, I thought she hadn't seen us, but then her eyes landed on our intertwined hands. I watched the sequence of emotions play across her face: hope, realization, disappointment, and finally, resignation. She didn't shout or make a scene. She simply turned away.

Natalia pulled me down a less crowded corridor, her breathing shallow and quick. "Your speech," she murmured, glancing back at me with hunger in her eyes. "The way you destroyed Julian without even raising your voice..."

I raised an eyebrow. "Careful, Princess. Your mask is slipping."

"I don't care," she hissed, scanning the corridor before spotting a door labeled 'Archives - Authorized Personnel Only.' "In here."

"Bad idea," I said, though my body disagreed vehemently. "Security—"

"Is focused on the main hall," she finished, pulling a small device from her clutch. "And I have this."

She held up what appeared to be a keycard with the VHC logo. I recognized it immediately—a staff access pass. When I raised an eyebrow, she smirked.

"I lifted it from one of the waitstaff earlier. Just in case we needed some... privacy."

"You realize this is reckless," I said, even as I let her pull me toward the door.

"Says the man who just declared war on the entire Hunter aristocracy," she countered, swiping the card. The door unlocked with a soft click. "Besides, my father is busy with the guild heads, Kimiko is avoiding us, and everyone else is still talking about your little speech."

She was right about one thing—the timing was perfect. The entire gathering was focused on the aftermath of my confrontation with Julian. No one would notice our brief absence.

As the door closed behind us, Natalia transformed. Gone was the ice princess, replaced by a desperate, hungry woman. She shoved me against the wall, her lips finding mine with savage need.

"Do you have any idea," she gasped between kisses, "how hard it was to watch you with those twins? To see them looking at you like that?"

I gripped her waist, pulling her against me. "Jealousy looks good on you, Princess."

"Don't call me that," she growled, biting my lower lip. "Not when we're alone."

"What should I call you, then?" I asked, my hand sliding up her back to grip her hair.

Her eyes met mine, pupils blown wide with desire. "Your queen," she whispered. "The only one who truly knows what you are. What you're becoming."

I tugged her head back, exposing the long line of her throat. "And what am I becoming, Natalia?"

"Something magnificent," she said, her voice breaking as I pressed my lips to her neck. "Something terrible."

I chuckled against her skin. "And that excites you."

"God help me," she whispered, "it does."

The Liar's Brooch inside my jacket remained cool. No lies detected. My queen truly did crave the monster within me.

"We can't stay long," I reminded her, though my hands were already exploring the curves beneath her formal gown. "People will notice."

"Then you'd better be quick," she challenged, her hands working at my belt.

As I lifted her against the wall, her legs wrapping around my waist, I caught our reflection in a darkened computer screen across the room. The heir to the Kuzmina legacy, wrapped around her stepbrother in a forbidden embrace. The ice princess, melting in the arms of a former Zero.

Sometimes, the best rewards aren't system points or new abilities. Sometimes, they're watching a proud, beautiful woman come undone because of you.

And in that moment, I felt like a king indeed.

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