Crowned: My Harem Academia, #3

By Xya Olsen

We survived the Trials by the skin of our teeth, but a new challenge threatens our final term at the Wildernesss Academy for Shifters: fatherhood.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xya Olsen
• Release date: Aug 28, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393195511

Xya Olsen

Xya Olsen is a MM author who writes wholesome paranormal harem romance. Her stories are filled to the brim with love and magic and features fated mates, harem, mpreg, and of course, lots of strong heroes yearning for their happily ever afters. To sign up for Xya Olsen’s newsletter for release updates, go to https://www.xyaolsen.com/newsletter

Book preview

LUCIAN

TWO MONTHS EARLIER ...

Lucian, you need to eat.

Tiberius sat across from me in the Arcane common room and pushed a plate of food towards me. His golden eyes searched mine, and his brow furrowed with concern. Ever since I’d woken up in the infirmary after the incident in the Forest of Endings—I’d barely been able to muster an appetite.

Under Faye’s care, I’d been forced to drink a number of magical concoctions meant to replace the meals I wasn’t ingesting. Now, after being released from the infirmary, I struggled to eat even the bare minimum.

I broke eye contact and stared at the plate he offered me. Strangely, not even the aroma of my late mother’s best dish could entice me to eat.

Worse yet, my stomach had turned into a wreck after the Trials. Eating was next to impossible with pain ravaging through my gut.

I can’t, I told him.

And not from a lack of trying, either. Usually, I’d manage to choke a few bites down before my mind overtook my body and refused to chew, much less swallow.

Faye said it was from the stress of the Trials.

But I knew the truth went much deeper than that.

Two of my mates were stone statues, and it was all my fault.

The guilt tore at me from the inside, and not a second went by that I didn’t think about it. Leaving the dorm didn’t help, either, given how the other students started treating me after I summoned a basilisk in the Forest of Endings.

Tiberius knew all of this, however—and he’d taken it upon himself to bring meals to and from the mess hall.

Even when I couldn’t eat more than a couple bites, Tiberius maintained a loving, encouraging demeanor.

I’m sorry, I muttered. After everything you’ve done for me... I still can’t.

He crossed one leg over the other, leaned back against the sofa, and sighed.

Try to take one bite for me? When I didn’t move, he added in a whisper, for them?

A single tear slipped down my cheek as the petrified expressions of Renard and Saber flashed in my mind.

My stomach churned—and once again, the thought of eating made me want to vomit.

I reached down for the fork and tried, anyway. After several bites, the food lost all flavor. I swallowed and chased the tasteless mush down with a glass of water. Pushing the plate aside, I shook my head in defeat.

My insides burned. I snaked a hand down to my abdomen and groaned. I’m sorry. I just... I really can’t eat right now.

Tiberius watched me for a quiet moment. Then, as gracefully as a cat, he slipped off the sofa and rounded the table. Plopping down next to me, he wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me close.

His warmth sucked me in and soothed the pain that lingered beneath the surface. But a part of me felt too guilty to enjoy it. How could I, when our other mates were so close and yet so far away?

Basking in the glow of my lion’s affections felt selfish when Renard and Saber were battling the petrification I’d put them under. Alone.

Your heart hurts, doesn’t it? Tiberius murmured suddenly, his voice soft.

How did you know? I asked, unable to find any other words to answer him with.

Call it a lion’s intuition, he rumbled.

We sat together for a while longer.

The crackling fireplace, creaking of the Arcane dormitory, and buzzing of nocturnal insects outside were the only sounds that disrupted the silence within the cozy space.

At last, Tiberius said, mine heart hurts, too, love. Why don’t we go see them?

His words were like a soothing caress. They eased the anxiety swirling in my raging heart for but a moment.

But it’s late... I said. Faye won’t let us in.

Tiberius flashed a wicked smile and shoved a hand into his pocket. He retrieved a small key and showed it to me. Faye isn’t the only one who can access the infirmary. I work there, too, remember?

Memories of our meeting in the infirmary flickered to life in my mind. During my first term at the Wilderness Academy for Shifters, Tiberius worked for Faye as a medical assistant. Back then, he’d shown concern for me just like he was now.

The thought gave me a little comfort and pulled me out of the haze of dread that had all but taken over my head space.

I’m surprised they let you keep the key.

Tiberius smirked. The Trials just delayed my work. I am still her assistant, so I get to keep the key.

Handy, I murmured.

Indeed, a voice said from the dormitory stairs.

I turned to find Blair and Ward standing at the top of the staircase. My heart dropped into the pit of my stomach as my veins froze like ice. When it came to breaking the academy’s rules—Blair, the headmaster’s son, was the last person I wanted to be caught by.

You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Ward commented, eying me. Don’t worry. We weren’t eavesdropping... I promise.

The panther shifter descended the stairs and plopped down across from us. Blair followed his lead.

We overheard your conversation... You’re going to see them again? His eyes drifted over to a clock hanging overhead in the background. "At this hour? You know that’s against the rules... Not that you aren’t already breaking rules by having Tiberius over this late..."

I shared a look with Tiberius before looking into the faces of my House mates. I know I’m breaking the rules and asking a lot of you—but I’d like to go see them.

Ward and Blair exchanged looks.

The panther shifter shrugged.

I don’t mind. He rolled his head to the side and gave Blair an inquisitive look. What about you, Mr. Rule Enforcer?

Rule enforcer? Blair scrunched his nose. "Is that how you see me?"

"You are the headmaster’s son."

Blair rolled his eyes. "Yes, unlike you three, I have to care about the rules. My father’s reputation is on the line."

An awkward silence filled the space between the four of us.

Was Blair going to rat us out to his father?

I frowned. Look, you can tell Headmaster Idris about this—but leave Tiberius out of it. I’m the one who asked him to bring me meals.

After everything that happened during the Trials, my reputation with my peers had fallen to a new low.

It was like a dark cloud followed my every move, sucking the life and joy out of anything it touched. Whenever I left the safety of the Arcane dorm, students fled before me. Even some professors averted their gaze.

No one wanted to be petrified.

Day after day, their fear was so palpable, I could barely convince my legs to leave my room.

Some days, the thought of seeing Tiberius, Renard, and Saber’s faces was the only thing that could compel me to action.

If it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t leave at all.

While I couldn’t fault my peers for their fear, I also couldn’t help my response to it.

The longer it went on, the worse I felt—and it wasn’t long before I stopped leaving the dormitory during the day.

In my mind, I reasoned, it was for the sake of the academy. With so much fear and tension lingering in the air after the Trials, no one could focus when I was present. Staying locked away in the dormitory seemed to be the best solution... at least for now.

Blair looked down at the unfinished plate of food on the table and sighed. I think you’ve already been punished enough, so I won’t say a word about this to anyone.

Really?

Yes, but under one condition.

I swallowed, my muscles tensing in my jaw. What is it?

He considered his words for a moment. Then Blair looked up at me and Tiberius and said, if you’re ever caught, you two leave me out of this.

I exhaled a breath and nodded slowly. I can do that.

Good. Blair turned his gaze to Ward and said, shall I start making the tea?

The panther shifter grinned and nodded.