The Princess And Her Alpha Bodyguard

27~ LET YOUR BODY MOVE WHEREVER MY HAND GUIDED

"Lae is an exception because King Valdemir has his reason," said Edward as he came to stand next to me with his hands folded across his chest. "Do you question your king's decision?"

"My… I mean, Sir Edward. I didn't see you there." Zelda took a step back in shock. It was as if she was guilty. Or rather, fear. "Why didn't you show yourself sooner? If I'd known, I wouldn't have said that." She lowered her head.

"I'm glad you didn't notice me. Because if you did, I wouldn't get to see how brave you were. You dare to talk behind His Majesty's back. You've grown bolder, haven't you, Zelda?" Edward said in a stern voice and face. Even though I knew that facial expression wasn't for me, I'd still get goosebumps after seeing it through my peripheral vision.

"N-no. That wasn't what I meant. I.. I… was just…" she trailed off and fidgeted with her fingers like she didn't know what to say.

"Sir Edward, Zelda was only upset because of me. She was short-tempered and couldn't control her temperament. As an older sister, it was my duty to educate her. And I failed," said Petra as she came to stand before Zelda. It was as if she was trying to protect her younger twin from Edward's eyes. "If there is a punishment, please allow me to take it in her stead." She put her hand on the left side of her chest and bowed.

"Petra! You can't do that." Zelda lifted her head and turned to look at her older twin with her eyes widened.

"Not another word." Petra glanced sideways with a serious determination in her eyes, making Zelda clamp her mouth shut and drop her gaze back to the ground. Then she turned to Edward again. "Please, Sir Edward. I'm willing to accept anything you order."

Edward remained silent for a short while before he turned to me. "What do you want, Lae?" His question caught me by surprise since I'd never thought he'd ask for my opinion.

"Why are you asking me?" I frowned in confusion.

"Zelda's words were directed at you, so you're the victim here. How do you want me to punish her?" He asked.

"But I'm just an outsider." I shook my head, looking between him and the twins.

"Outsiders or not, you've done nothing wrong. It was her who had made a mistake. We wouldn't tolerate this behavior even if Zelda was our people. Those who are wrong deserved to be punished," he said.

I sighed and averted my eyes to the ground next to his feet. If I were Laelia from a month ago, I'd definitely give him a list full of punishment. But now, I saw there was no point in doing that. Zelda's words might be rude, but she wasn't wrong either. As the only human in a werewolf’s kingdom, I should've expected this to happen. Not everyone could accept a change, and not all people love a new face in their territories. Besides, Zelda was right. I wasn't supposed to be here. Valdemir had already got himself in a tight position when he stood his ground and challenged the council members to let me stay. Not only that, but he also continued to break the rule by sending me here to train with other werewolves. There was no need to bring more trouble to him. If I let Edward punish the twins, they'd only hate me more. I had already made a bad impression with the rumor that I was a waste of time, and I hadn't cleared this one yet. I didn't want to hear another new rumor that said I was taking advantage of my connection with the king. I didn't want to give them excuses to badmouth Valdemir.

With all the reasons above in mind, I made my decision.

"Edward." I lifted my face and looked at him without blinking. "I don't know about their other wrongdoings or how you handle your situation here. But since you asked me how I want it to be, I hope you can respect my decision."

"And your decision is?" He furrowed his brows.

"Let them go." I smiled. "Don't punish them."

Edward narrowed his eyes at me. It was as if he wanted to see if I was being serious. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yes." I nodded. "I'm the only human here, so it's natural for me to get on the wrong side of everyone. But I'll use time and effort to prove myself to them. I hope I can let them know that even if we come from different backgrounds and identities, we can still be friends."

Edward peered into my eyes without uttering a single word. His black eyes emit power no less than the pair of Valdemir's red eyes. It almost made me look away. Still, I stood my ground, hoping to prove how genuine my words were.

"Very well," he finally said the words. "I'll respect your decision."

I hoped my fever wasn't making me delirious. But I seemed to see the corner of his lips curved up.

Is Edward smiling? A shocking voice popped up in my head.

I couldn't believe what I'd seen. It was as quick as the blink of an eye, but I was lucky to

catch this rare sight. To see the solemn-face Edward smile like that didn't come often. The chance might be rarer than seeing the sun rising from the west.

"Zelda, you know what to do," said Mez, breaking the silence. "You too, Petra." Her eyes fixated on the twins.

"Yes, Miss," Petra said to Mez before turning to look at me. "Thank you, Lae, for not punishing us. I'm also sorry for the way my younger sister has behaved."

"It's okay." I shook my head and smiled.

"Zelda, what are you waiting for?" Mez raised her eyebrow as she turned to the younger twin.

Petra nudged her sister and whispered something that I couldn't hear. Only then did Zelda turn to me. "I'm sorry for what I've said. And thanks for letting my sister and I go."

I could tell Zelda wasn't genuine with her words, given the deadly glare she was giving me. She must've forced herself to do this because Mez and Petra told her to.

"Don't mention it," I said, maintaining my smile. There was no need to hold it to the heart. I knew it'd take time, but I'd already planned on getting along with everyone here. And it should start with the twins.

"Alright. Back to your position. Zelda, go back to your place." said Mez as she clapped her hands three times. "Petra, I hope you don't mind us borrowing your spot today. "

"Definitely not, Miss Mez," said Petra. "I'll join the others in the knife-throwing area."

"Thanks." Mez nodded. Then she turned to me. "Lae, stand here." She pointed to the spot where Petra had left.

"Okay." I moved to my assigned place.

"I'll brief you about these." Mez picked up the bow and explained what each part was called. When she finished with the theoretical explanation, she nocked an arrow to the bowstring and moved on to the basic archery posture skills: stance, grip, finger position, and so on.

Even though I had learned this basic before from Ralph, I paid attention to Mez’s every word, nonetheless. After all, it’d been a while since I last did it.

"See? It's like this. Then, you let it go," she said and released the arrow. It hit the red dot straight away.

"Wow. That's awesome." I looked at the target in amazement.

"Here. Try it." She handed the bow and a new arrow to me. "Don't be greedy since it was your first time. Just get the posture right, and make sure to put what I've explained to you into practice."

"Alright." I didn’t correct her and just took the things from her hands.

"Miss Mez, can you come with me for a second?" asked a young girl with a freckled face who looked the same age as my late twin brothers.

"What's wrong?" asked Mez.

"Linzy won't stop crying. My wooden sword hit her forehead by accident when we practiced. I'd already apologized to her, though." She pouted.

"Okay. I'll go." Mez then turned to me. "Lae, just try it yourself first, okay? I'll be back soon."

I nodded and watched her walk away with the little girl that reminded me of my late twin brothers—the ones I'd never have a chance to meet again. I held back tears, trying not to think of that tragic fire that took them away from me.

No time to cry, Lae. You must become strong as soon as you can. Only then can you avenge them. A thought popped up in my head, acting as a reminder to keep me going.

And so, I took a deep breath and started practicing with the bow and arrow. Unfortunately, I wasn't sure if it was the fever or the muscle ache or something else, but I just could never get it right. The arrow didn't get farther than three feet before it fell to the ground in front of me. Was it possible to forget how to do archery if one hadn’t practiced for a long time? Or was it just me being dumb?

"You did it wrong," said Edward as he came to stand behind me.

Given the hot air brushing against my ear, I could tell he was standing close. Way too close. And so, I didn't dare to turn around because I didn't want another wrong move so soon.

"Sorry. I'll try again," I gulped, pretending not to be affected by this proximity.

"I've seen you try several times, but they were all the same. Wrong and useless," he said.

"Great. Thank you for the encouragement. Maybe if you keep saying this, I'll hit the bull's eyes in no time. Since I'll be picturing your face there." I chuckled, trying to make a joke to distract myself from thinking about a thing that made my heart pulsate. Or rather, a person.

"That won't be necessary," he said. "You can hit the bull's eyes now."

"How?" I frowned in confusion.

"With my help," he said, sliding his hands from behind and letting it rest on my waist. "I'll correct your posture first. Relax your body and let it move wherever my hand guides it, Lae."

I sucked in a breath when it wasn't only his hot breath but also his warm hand brushing against my skin.

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