The Witch and Her Four Dangerous Alphas

Chapter 173: Chapter 173: The Slap of the Queen

Serena sat there quietly, her food untouched. Her heart was still heavy from what she had just heard.

The queen’s words kept echoing in her head...Lady Elara... the love story...

She couldn't even breathe properly. Everything felt strange. The air, the people, even her seat. She looked down

at her plate, but the food looked tasteless.

When she lifted her eyes, she saw the queen watching her silently from across the table. There was something in

that gaze...maybe disgust. Serena didn’t know. She just felt small, unwanted, and out of place.

Her chest tightened.

She couldn't stay there anymore.

She stood up suddenly, bowed deeply to the King and Queen, and said with a trembling voice. "Forgive me, Your

Majesty... | must leave."

And before anyone could say a word, she turned and ran from the hall.

"Serena!" Vaelen called after her with a worried voice. His eyes followed her disappearing figure with sadness.

But Serena didn’t stop. She ran as fast as she could, her heart pounding in her ears.

Queen Isadora’s smile faded as she looked at her son. Her eyes turned cold. Slowly, she put her wine cup down

and said in a sharp tone,

"Vaelen. Stop right there." Who was ready to chase her down any moment.

Her voice was low, but it carried across the whole hall.

Vaelen froze. His steps stopped immediately. He looked at his mother with a gaze full of quiet anger. His hands

clenched at his sides.

He didn’t want to stop. Every part of him wanted to run after Serena. But he knew his mother. If he disobeyed

her now, she would make him regret it.

Queen Isadora stood up slowly. The sound of her chair scraping against the floor was soft, but it felt heavy.

Everyone's eyes followed her.

She walked toward her son gracefully, her chin held high.

When she reached him, she looked up at him for a moment. Then, without a word, she raised her hand and

slapped him hard.

The sound echoed through the silent hall.

Her five fingers left a red mark across his face.

Vaelen’s head turned slightly with the force, but he didn’t move. His jaw tightened, and his eyes stayed cold,

staring straight ahead, not at her.

Queen Isadora looked satisfied. She spoke in a calm but sharp voice, "Do you know what you have done?"

Vaelen didn’t reply.

Her tone grew colder.

"If you ever follow that whore again," she said, "I will make sure that girl won't be able to live peacefully in this

palace. Not for a single day."

Vaelen's eyes darkened. He finally looked at her, his voice low but filled with disgust.

"Mother, she’s just a girl. Uncle Maximus’s daughter. What has she done to you?"

He couldn’t understand. Why was his mother like this? Why did she always have to control everything? Every

person he tried to be close with...she would ruin it. Every the tried to care for someone...she would destroy

i)

He knew this feeling too well. She must have already heard that he was spending twith a girl. So she came

herself to see who it was. And even after finding out that Serena was his own cousin, she still didn’t stop.

Because that was Queen Isadora.

She wanted everyone under her command. Even her son's heart.

But Queen Isadora only looked at him calmly and said, "Do you know what | hate most in my life?"

Vaelen didn’t answer. He just glared at her.

She tilted her head slightly, her tone smooth but full of venom.

"I hate whores... and bastard children."

Her words cut deep. She didn’t wait for his reaction. She simply turned around, lifted her chin proudly, and

walked away with graceful steps without even glancing back at her husband or her son.

The hall stayed silent.

Vaelen stood there, shaking slightly from anger. His eyes burned, his hand clenched tightly at his side.

He turned his head toward his father, King Lysandros, who was still sitting on his throne as if nothing had

happened.

That look on his father’s face made Vaelen’s blood boil.

For a second, he wanted to break something. But he didn’t. He just gave his father a long, hard look full of hatred

before turning away and storming out of the hall.

The queen’s words still echoed in his head...

I hate bastard children.

And somehow, deep inside, those words hurt more than the slap itself.

Serena didn’t stop running.

From the royal dining hall to the long corridors, through the gates, down the stairs...she just ran.

She didn’t even know where she was going. She just wanted to get away. Away from the palace, away from the

people, away from those words that kept echoing in her mind...

Her heart hurt so much that she could barely breathe. The world around her blurred.

She ran until her legs burned and her lungs screamed for air. But she didn’t stop.

Because if she stopped, she would break.

Who is Lady Elara? The thought stabbed through her again.

And then she remembered the sad

look in her mother's eyes whegeyer

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Now she understood everything.

Maybe her mother had known all along.

Maybe her mother had always known that her husband's love belonged to another woman.

Maybe her mother had loved him with everything, but he had never loved her back.

Serena's throat tightened. Her eyes burned.

Then what am |? she thought bitterly.

An unwanted childaa (Mistake? dst

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chapter there!

No wonder he never visited them.

No wonder he never looked at her mother with love.

No wonder she and her mother lived alone all those years.

Her heart clenched painfully.

And now, she didn’t even know how to face him again.

Why now? she thought as tears blurred her vision.

Why did he suddenly decide to come

for me? What happened preset)

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There were too many questions and not even one answer.