Mated to alpha triplets at all-boys school Chapter 266

The king pov

I spent the entire night in the cold, echoing silence of my bedroom, alone with my thoughts. 

The Council’s words have been haunting me. Stripping Kaiden of his title, banishing him from the kingdom, or killing him. 

None of those options feel right. How could they? I’m a father, not just a king. 

I’ve watched him grow from a child full of promise into this thing that I can no longer recognize. 

Yet, the decision must be made. 

And at this moment, I’m forced to choose.

I wish Gio were here. Gio, who always knew what to say, always saw the solution before it became a problem. 

He was my closest friend, my confidant, someone I could rely on. But that was before everything fell apart. 

Now, I’ve locked him away in the cells, labeled him a traitor, and I can’t undo it. Not now. Not after all that’s happened. There’s no one left to help me. No one to guide me through this nightmare.

With the weight of my thoughts pressing down on me, I call for another meeting with the Council.

I’ve been pacing the floor of my bedroom for hours, trying to weigh my options, but none of them make sense. It’s a cruel twist of fate that I’m standing here, in this position, forced to make a decision that will change the course of everything. My kingdom. My son. Everything. 

The Council arrives, one by one. Their faces are grim. They know why they’ve been summoned. I saw the same look in their eyes yesterday, the expectation, the pressure for me to act. They’re waiting for me to make the call. 

They know, as I do, that this situation can’t be allowed to continue.

I stand in front of them, my hands clenched at my sides. “We need to talk,” I say, my voice rough. They all exchange glances, and then, their eyes fixed on are me, waiting for my decision. 

“My king,” one of the older Council members says, his voice cold, “the situation has gone on long enough. The prince’s actions threaten the kingdom. He can’t be allowed to remain in power. We need a decision.” 

I swallow hard. I know this. I’ve known it for a while, long before they demanded me to choose between the worst scenarios. 

But saying the words aloud, hearing them from someone else - it makes it real. 

I meet his gaze. “I know, and I know what must be done.”

The room grows even heavier with silence. I’m not ready to say it, to commit to what I know will come. 

The words are stuck in my throat. I’m fighting with myself, with everything I’ve ever known and believed in. How did it come to this? How did I lose him? How did Kaiden become this monster?

I glance at each of the Council members, and I see the fear in their eyes. They want a solution, but I know that whatever decision I make, it won’t bring them peace. 

Another Council member, a younger man with a sharp gaze, speaks up. “Mh king, we are well aware of the prince’s actions. His growing influence, his descent into darkness, we’ve seen it. But this isn’t just about him. This is about the kingdom. The future. If we allow him to continue unchecked, it will be the downfall of us all. We can’t risk it.” 

“Then what?” I ask quietly. “What do you propose? What does the Council want to hear from me?” 

There’s no easy answer. None of them can say it, but I know what they want. Stripping Kaiden of his title, banishing him from the kingdom, that’s what they want me to do. It’s a soft punishment. A way to distance him from the throne without killing him. 

But I know, deep down, that it wouldn’t work. Kaiden isn’t just dangerous because of his title. He’s dangerous because of the power he’s gained, the cursed magic that has taken root inside him. 

A curse he chose willingly. A curse that keeps him tied to this land, unable to leave, unable to escape.

I’m silent for a long time, the painful revelations sink deeper into my chest. The room is waiting. I’m waiting for myself to speak the words, but I can’t. I don’t want to. 

“I don’t believe stripping him of his title would be enough,” I say at last, my voice heavy with the pain of the decision. “I don’t believe banishment would work. Kaiden can’t leave. Not by his own free will. Not as punishment. He’s bound to this territory by a curse of the magic he bought, and there’s no way to break it. The witch gave him what he wanted, but she didn’t tell him the full price. She took his humanity and ensured he would never leave, never hurt the outside world.”

A murmur ripples through the Council. They know about the witch, the dark magic, and the bargain she struck with Kaiden. They know that the curse is beyond anything we can undo.

“There is no way for him to leave the land. Not unless the curse is broken. But even if we tried, we couldn’t break the curse. He is tied to this place. There’s no escaping it.”

I pause, allowing the weight of what I’m about to say to settle over us all. The words feel like poison on my tongue. 

“His power is too great. The risk he poses to the kingdom is too great. And I have no choice but to end it.” 

Sharp gasps fill the room and then nothing. The silence is deafening. I’ve just said it. I’ve made the decision. The worst decision a father could ever make. 

One of the Council members, the eldest of them all, speaks first. “My king, are you sure? Are you truly certain that this is the only way?” 

I feel my stomach twist. “I don’t know,” I admit. “But what I do know is that Kaiden can’t be allowed to continue. If I let him live, if I let him remain in power, he will destroy everything. The kingdom, the people, there will be nothing left. The curse will consume him, and he will take everything with him.” 

I pause again, letting the silence wash over me. I feel every ounce of regret, every ounce of sorrow, crush down on me like the heaviest of weights. But I know what I must do. There’s no other choice left.

“The witch sold him a curse in the form of power,” I mutter under my breath, the words slipping out like a confession. “Although Kaiden didn’t know the full price of what he took, I still have no other choice but to kill my own son.”

The words hang in the air, and I feel the weight of them settle deep in my bones. This is the path I’ve chosen. There’s no turning back. I can’t save him. I can’t save myself from this. 

The kingdom must survive. And this is the price we must pay.

The Council remains silent, their eyes on me. Some Elders look stunned, others resigned. But none of them question my decision. We all know that the worst decision has already been made.