[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her":3,"chapter-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-181":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","My Sister Stole My Mate, And I Let Her",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},764755,1010,"Chapter 181 TRUTH OR DARE","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-181",181,"\u003Cp>LUCIAN’S POV\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hadn’t slept in two days.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not that anyone could tell; over time, I’d become adept at masking exhaustion, shielding it behind a practiced façade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when I saw Sera standing at the edge of the campsite, frozen in shock at the sight of me, I knew no amount of composure could disguise what was written all over me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was that wall between us now; I could feel it as surely as the fire’s heat against my skin—almost as if it had been fortified.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet beyond the distance, what struck me hardest wasn’t hostility. It was her calmness, unsettling and serene.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t anger. It wasn’t resentment. It was something colder, quieter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acceptance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She’d already accepted my absence before I could even process what it meant. When Judy pulled her aside earlier, I didn’t need to hear the words to guess the conversation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And when Talia obliviously paired us together, Sera’s decision to stay—to work with me—felt both like mercy and punishment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I knew what she was doing—keeping the peace, trying not to ruin the experience for everyone else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was Sera: endlessly selfless and considerate, even to her own detriment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, her willingness to stay lit a dangerous, fragile spark inside me. Hope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As we worked side by side, I let myself imagine, just for a heartbeat, that nothing had changed between us. That the silence was companionable instead of strained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fire hissed as fat dripped into the flames; laughter rippled somewhere behind us. I almost believed we were fine—until her hand reached for the stack of napkins teetering near the edge of the table.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before I could think, my hand shot out, steadying the stack. Our fingers brushed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We both froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Here,” I said stiffly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her eyes flicked up, startled, like she hadn’t expected me to speak at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thanks,” she murmured, taking the napkins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Anytime,” I managed softly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She offered me a small smile—barely there, brief—and yet it hit me like a jolt to the chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t forgiveness. But maybe...a truce.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the first time in days, I felt like I could breathe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that fleeting, delicate moment unlocked something I’d kept tightly guarded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The memories slipped through before I could stop them—back to the exhibition hall, to the words that shattered everything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My first instinct was to regret telling her the truth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But deep down, what I really regretted was not telling her sooner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’d been blind. Arrogant. Convinced that by controlling what she knew, I could control what hurt her. That ignorance could shield her from pain. But all I did was rob her of choice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sera never needed saving. She needed honesty. Transparency.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And by denying her that, I became exactly what I’d despised in Kieran. Different sins, same result—the loss of her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thought sat heavy in my chest. I wished I could go back, rewind everything, fix us before we ever broke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I couldn’t. So I clung on to the only thing left—that fragile, dangerous feeling. Hope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because the alternative—the idea that she was truly gone from my life—was unbearable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’d finally understood it now: I didn’t want Sera for her bloodline, or because she fit some idea of what I thought I needed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back in that exhibition hall, my confession had been born of desperation—a reckless attempt to keep her from walking away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in the silence that followed, in the nights when missing her hollowed me out, I realized something else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hadn’t lied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I loved her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Somewhere along the line—I couldn’t say when—I’d truly, truly fallen for Sera.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I wouldn’t push, not until she was ready. But I wouldn’t walk away either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I would never stop trying to become someone worthy of her choosing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>***\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By nightfall, everyone lounged around the campfire laughing over half-burned marshmallows and melted chocolate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Halfway through eating, Roxy sat up and declared mischievously, “Let’s play Truth or Dare!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Judy groaned. “What are we, Roxanne, college kids?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Funny you should say that, Judith,” Roxy said, pulling a rectangular box from behind her. “Since I got this from my youngest brother, who is, in fact, a college kid.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She opened the box. “This isn’t some amateur hour game. This box has curated cards. Challenges, punishments, the works.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sera arched a brow. “That’s...elaborate.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you,” Roxy said proudly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That was so not a compliment.” Judy rolled her eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, come on,” Roxy kicked her. “We’re doing this, and it’s going to be fun.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amidst half-hearted groans, the circle formed around the fire, faces glowing orange in the firelight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I sat across from Sera, close enough to feel her presence, far enough to keep the fragile peace between us intact.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roxy grinned devilishly. “Okay!” She set the box down. “The instructions are simple: the bottle lands on you, you pick a card. One side has a dare, the other a question. You spin, you pick, you suffer. No exceptions!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She stabbed a finger at me. “Not even you, Alpha. You’re one of us tonight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I chuckled, tipping my head. “Noted.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bottle clinked as it spun across the uneven ground. When it stopped, it pointed straight at me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roxy snickered. “Perfect.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I sighed as all eyes turned to me expectantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Roxy pushed the box towards me. “Take it away, Alpha.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I exhaled softly and reached in, picking out the first card my fingers brushed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I drew it out and skimmed the words on the surface. And froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Well?” Talia pressed, eyes bright with curiosity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Lemme see.” Roxy grabbed the card out of my hand before I could react.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her eyes darted across both sides of the card and flared. “Oh.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What does it say?” Judy asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Kiss the person you find most attractive in the group, or”—she flipped the card—“reveal your deepest regret.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sera’s breath caught.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Awkward silence blanketed the group. They all knew what had happened between Sera and me, I was sure of it now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sera stared resolutely at the flames, pretending not to notice the eyes flicking between us. In the glow of the fire, I could see color rising in her cheeks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The game was silly, juvenile, and someone of my pedigree had no business playing it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I also had no business being on the camping trip. I’d abused my power as the founder of OTS to invite myself as an opportunity to see Sera.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I swallowed, my gaze lingering on her longer than it should have.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was a time I wouldn’t have hesitated. A time when I would’ve taken the dare just to make her flustered, just to see her try to hide that shy smile behind her hair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that time was gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And this, I realized, was another opportunity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So I cleared my throat. “Truth.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sera finally looked at me then. Just a glance—but it was enough. There was a faint crease between her brows, something unreadable flickering behind her eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Relief, maybe. Or curiosity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright, then,” Roxy said, a little subdued. “Make it good. What’s your deepest regret, Lucian?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even the fire seemed to quiet, crackling low and steady. The group shifted, glances passing silently as they waited for me to answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could’ve given a joke. Something safe. Something detached.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after everything, the thought of pretending again made my chest ache.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, I didn’t.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My deepest regret...” I began, my voice rougher than I intended, “was not being honest when it mattered.”\u003C\u002Fp>",1233,"2026-06-03T02:27:49.404Z",1,"novelbin.me","9a71021bbc8312cce31bd4b396aab2c15d4b1db6debd3d96c758b3af82bf73c4","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-182","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-180",488,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fmy-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-cover.jpg"]