Page 52 of An Enigma for the Lycan Crown Prince

I still don’t know how to feel about her, but at this point, I just feel thankful for her voice of reason.

“Oh?” Geneva blinks. “Vincent Gray? I don’t know much about the young man, but what Emilia said aligns with what I’ve heard so far. I don’t see how he is a bad choice, Caelum.”

“No way can a high school dropout become beta,” my father snarls.

“I actually agree with that,” Samuel adds.

I fight the urge not to roll my eyes. “Really?” I say. “So, a diploma is raising his worth for you.”

“That’s not it,” Samuel argues. “It will raise the respect he gets from others.”

“Are you aware I could wait to become alpha, and then just announce him as my beta?” I ask.

“And you have to be aware that he won’t be able to grow into his role then, especially for someone who barely knows the pack.”

“Goddess,” I say, shaking my head. “I can see why you two are friends.”

Samuel looks taken aback once more. “Caelum and I are friends?”

Geneva and I exchange a look, but none of us answers his question.

“Hm,” Emilia tilts her head, “I don’t think we should force this decision on Vincent. I’ve heard he went through a lot. However, if he agrees to going back to school, I think it would benefit him. Some packs and their alphas are very elitist, and it will give him the higher ground, if he at least can shoot down their complaints about his lack of education.”

I’m not sure if she is aware that she just made a subtle dig at my father, but it’s kind of funny. I do find her words resonating with me, though. She isn’t wrong, unfortunately. “I will talk to him,” I say, “but I won’t force him.”

“What do you think about that, Caelum?” Emilia asks. She takes his hand, smiling at him.

Goodness, she actually likes him, doesn’t she? How? Why?

Dad looks torn. Clearly having her in the room has taken the wind out of his sails. Maybe he also doesn’t want her to see how ugly he can get. “Under one condition.”

“What condition?” I ask.

“I want you to add a second beta to your team,” he says to me. “And I want us to choose someone fitting.”

I’m too surprised by his words to even react at first. A second beta? He wants me to have two betas? My initial response is to decline because it’s his idea, but I can see Geneva nodding slightly. “Does that even make sense?” I ask.

“It’s not unheard of,” Emilia says. “A lot of royal lycan alphas have more than one beta.”

“I agree,” Geneva says. “I don’t necessarily want to push this on you, Elden, but, like Emilia said, alphas from your lineage often have more than one beta. Royal lycan alphas are incredibly strong, and they usually rule over huge packs. Two betas can make sure to keep up with you, to stop you in case your lycan loses control in his rage. They can also focus on different tasks around the pack.”

“Usually, even the luna gets her own beta,” Emilia says, “like an assistant who can fight. Plus, her gamma, of course.”

“I didn’t know that,” I say. “I’ve read so many books about the royal lineages, but there weren't any about that.”

“I can get some of the drier ones for you about pack organization and structure,” Samuel offers.

I’m still pissed at him for butting in and admonishing me without knowing what’s really going on between my father and me, but I want to know more about this, so I nod. “Yes,” I say.

“Then it’s set?” Geneva asks, looking at my father and me.

Dad looks annoyed while I still feel conflicted. At the end of the day, I don’t want to just disagree or decline because I haveissues with my father, like a rebellious teen. I want what’s best for the pack, and for Flora and me.

“It’s fine with me,” I tell Geneva. “After hearing your and Emilia’s reasoning, I can at least give it a shot. I still want to read up on it, though.”

“Fair enough,” she says, smiling at me. There is a hint of pride in her eyes.

Dad has no other option than to agree, which is kind of fun to watch because he looks truly disgruntled.