They Hated Me in My First Life, But Now I Have the Love System
Chapter 353: Possessive

Chapter 353: Possessive

Later that evening, after the tension had eased and King Mesha had been properly reinstated on his throne, the Lionara party began preparing to leave. Their mission in Purlit was over. For now.

The skies were darker than usual, like even the heavens were exhausted from the day’s events.

Abuchi lingered beside Ruth, eyes troubled. He didn’t want to part with her, not yet, but he also had no choice. Their family had to return home, and fast. There was still much to do.

The official coronation of Somto as king.

The public announcement of their father’s death.

And, perhaps most importantly… the message they needed to send to the world.

Lionara wasn’t weakened.

The kingdom had feared revealing the former king’s death because it would have exposed their vulnerability. Predators always circled wounded prey.

But now?

Now that their elder brother was back, alive, dangerous, and cold as iron, no one would dare test their strength.

Somto was Lionara’s hidden weapon.

A ghost in the shadows. A blade drawn only when needed.

And those who dared challenge Lionara now would only be hurling themselves into the jaws of death.

The journey back to Lionara was smooth, eerily smooth. It took less than a week, especially with the private jet Somto had arranged.

To Abuchi, it was just a normal flight. Another day, another jet. But to the others, Nnenna, John, and Ekene, it was something else entirely.

None of them had ever flown like this before.

This wasn’t just a plane, it was an experience. Spacious interiors, leather seats that reclined like beds, food served on golden rimmed porcelain, and servants in matching uniforms offering towels and imported tea like it was a royal ritual.

Nnenna, ever composed, kept her surprise to herself, but the awe in her eyes was unmistakable. John was quiet, wide eyed. Ekene, on the other hand, could barely sit still.

But it wasn’t just the jet that had Ekene anxious.

It was her.

Nnenna.

Since they left Purlit, he had been searching for a moment to talk to Nnenna, just one moment. He had kept his feelings locked away far too long, and he was finally ready to let them out.

But every time he got close, Prince Somto was there.

Always beside her. Always watching.

And that aura, it was something else entirely.

Cold. Commanding. Possessive.

Whenever Somto was around, it was like the very air shifted, thickened. It made Ekene’s courage shrivel into nothing. Like his tongue was suddenly too heavy for his mouth.

And even when Nnenna left for the bathroom, one of Somto’s people would, conveniently, assign Ekene to some task or errand. Something urgent. Something time consuming.

By the time Ekene was done, Nnenna would be back in her seat… and Somto would be beside her again, like nothing happened.

It was getting harder to believe it was all coincidence.

Still… what would the First Prince of Lionara gain from keeping him away?

Why him, specifically?

Was it just a coincidence?

Or was there something more?

Ekene didn’t have an answer.

But one thing was clear.

He had have to find a different time to tell Nnenna how he felt… because something told him that as long as Somto was around, that moment might never come.

Finally, they reached Lionara.

The moment the convoy approached the towering castle gates, Nnenna and Abuchi froze in stunned silence. Lined on both sides of the long marble entrance were dozens, no, hundreds, of people: high ranking officials, royal guards, nobles, and even their extended siblings. All of them dressed in their finest, standing at rigid attention.

But what struck Nnenna and Abuchi the most… was the look on everyone’s faces.

Hope.

Fear.

Relief.

The moment the cars pulled in, the crowd bowed low, and then, as if a signal had been given, a unified chant broke out like thunder shaking the skies:

“Long live the King! Long live the King! Long live the King!”

Somto hadn’t even been crowned yet, but it didn’t matter.

To the people of Lionara, he already was their king.

They were desperate for strength. Hungry for stability. Terrified that his long absence had meant abandonment.

They had thought his absence was because the king was still alive. That maybe he didn’t want to appear too eager for the throne, didn’t want to seem like a crown prince already reaching for the crown.

But when he still hadn’t shown up even after the king’s death, anxiety had crept into their hearts like a slow, tightening vine.

Had he abandoned them?

Would he ever return?

Would Lionara become a leaderless kingdom, weak, unstable, vulnerable?

For months, they had wrestled with those fears. Every day without news felt like another nail sealing Lionara’s fate. Some whispered in doubt. Others prayed in silence. Many feared that if he stayed away much longer, the throne might pass to someone else entirely, someone…. less worthy.

And then… the livestream happened.

Not only had the crown prince reappeared, but he had reappeared with power. With presence. With fire.

He had saved the second princess.

He had saved the third prince.

He had single handedly taken control of a crumbling situation in Purlit, and by doing so, reminded the world, and his own kingdom, that Lionara was not to he trifled with.

The crowd had waited at the gates all morning and well into the afternoon, standing in the punishing sun. But no one moved. No one left. Not even the elderly nobles.

They had received word when Prince Somto’s private jet neared the Lionara airport.

They didn’t need a coronation to recognize their ruler.

To them, the ceremony was now just a formality. A stage for the rest of the world to see what they already knew.

The throne already had its king.

The convoy rolled steadily all the way to the castle garage and finally came to a stop. One of the two ever silent guards who flanked Somto stepped out of the car behind his and swiftly moved to open the door for him.