The Princess And Her Alpha Bodyguard

46~ ASCIAN’S MOST BEAUTIFUL OMEGA

Valdemir held Lydia in his arms as we ran from the greenhouse. I followed behind him as close as possible, even though catching up with him meant having my lungs almost burst. He said we were going to meet someone who could heal all kinds of injuries. I wondered who that someone was if s/he wasn't a doctor.

"Ah, it hurts," Lydia said through gritted teeth.

Her pain broke my heart into pieces. I wished I could do something to help her. If I could transfer the pain to me, I’d do it without hesitation. Now that Ralph wasn't here because of me, I needed to stand in for him. I had to protect his baby at all costs.

"What happened to her? Why is she in pain all of a sudden? It can't be because of the baby trying to come out, right? Her pregnancy was only four months old." I asked Valdemir, even though he might not know its answer. I just needed someone to talk to. Or else I'd keep thinking about the worst scenario.

"I don't know. Perhaps she was just drained. I told her to wait until tomorrow, but she refused. Instead, she insisted on seeing you right after she arrived at the border. And I guess you were talking about Ralph, right?" He asked.

"Yes." I nodded, though I knew he couldn't see it.

"Maybe her emotions also play a part in this. I've heard pregnant women are sensitive," he said.

"You can say that." I remembered how easily Lydia cried while we talked in the greenhouse. It was my negligence. I should have pushed her too much. She only arrived, and I'd already exhausted her. "It's my fault. I should've taken better care of her." I murmured.

"Don't blame yourself. I think Lydia also needs someone to talk to. She needs to get it off her chest," said Valdemir in a gentle voice. It was as if he wanted to console me.

I sighed and kept running behind him. However, it'd been a while, and I saw no sign of houses. There was nothing but trees surrounding us as we headed toward the forest. The further we went, the bigger the trees were. And the darker it was. It was only a few hours after lunchtime, but it looked like it was time for supper. All thanks to the tremendous leaves that blocked the sunlight from shining through. Although I had no time to look up, I could tell from the size of the trunks. It took three of me to wrap my arms around each tree. I bet none of them had lived less than a century.

"Oh, gosh. It hurts so much," Lydia cried in pain.

"How long will we arrive at whatever that place is?" I asked as we went deeper and still found nothing new. The place looked like an inhabited area to me, judging by the thickness of the fallen leaves under my feet.

"We're nearly there," he said. "We're lucky that we were at the greenhouse. If both of you were to meet at your castle, it'd be troublesome."

"Why?"

"Because the distance from your place to there is farther. The greenhouse is the nearest to her residence."

Her. Did he just use a pronoun that was meant for a woman? A fit of out-of-place jealousy popped up at the back of my head. Not now, Lae. This is not the time. Lydia's health is the priority. I shook the thought out of my head.

"I'd be faster if I ran in my wolf's form," said Valdemir. "But I'm afraid it'd do the baby harm."

"No, please. I'm okay. I can endure this. Please help my baby," Lydia said in a weak voice, begging Valdemir to put her child's safety first.

"Don't worry. Everything will be alright. I won't let anything happen to both of you." Valdemir picked up the pace, and I followed suit.

Sweat soaked my entire body from head to toe as we continued running. The loose dress I wore clung to my skin as if I was wearing a skin-tight dress. My lungs were running out of air and my legs almost turned to jelly as I tried my best to catch up with Valdemir's steps. The only thing that kept me from collapsing to the ground was sheer willpower.

"We're here," said Valdemir as he came to a stop.

"G-good." I bent down and put my hands on my knees, catching my breath. "Wait," I said after I stood back straight. "Here as of… where?" I asked when there was nothing but a giant tree—bigger than the rest and perhaps the biggest in this area—in front of us. Its diameter would probably stand at forty feet.

"Lae," he called out my name. "Stand next to me."

I did as I was told and stepped up to his right-hand side. Although I was confused about the whole situation, I thought this wasn't a good time for questions.

"Put your hand on my waist," he said.

"Huh?" I looked at him in surprise, wondering what he meant by that. "W-why?"

"Under the belt, there's a pendant. Take it out."

"Oh." My mouth formed into an o shaped as I finally knew what he'd meant. My hand went to the brown leather belt on his waist.

"Not there. It's around the front," he said when I touched the side of his belt—the part that aligned under his underarm. "A little more." He let my fingers trace the shape of his waist patiently. "Yes, there. Take it out."

My hand stopped when it touched something rough under the belt. When I took it out, it was a silver, thumbnail-size pendant in the shape of a crown. The design was unique, for I'd never seen it before. It had three pointed shapes that resembled long and slim triangles for the top part. As for the bottom part, it was decorated with five Sphaerocoryne Affinis flowers.

"Alright. I got it. What's next?" I looked back at him.

"Put the pendent on your palm. Then walk to that tree and place it on the trunk. Make sure not to drop it." Valdemir's eyes fixated on the giant tree before us.

"Which part of the trunk?" I asked. There must be a keyhole somewhere on that tree if this was a key. But the question was… where exactly was it? This tree was so big that there was no way I could find such a tiny place.

"Anywhere is fine," he said.

"Anywhere?" I confirmed. "You mean I can place this wherever I want?"

He nodded. "After you place it, don't pull your hand out yet. Say this word." He looked at me. "Listen carefully." Clearing his throat, he said, "Rom Sai."

"Rom Say?" I repeated.

"No." He shook his head. "It's Sai. Not Say. It ends with I not Y. Make it flat and long."

"Alright."

"Try again."

"Rom Sai," I repeated and enunciated each word carefully.

"Good. Now go."

I took a deep breath and walked toward the tree. It looked so big that the size alone already scared me. But now, it became even more terrifying to know that it was enchanted. After all, why would I need to recite something if it was just an ordinary tree? This was more than a secret. It was magic.

Don't be a coward, Lae. You've already been through a lot. You even found out about the existence of werewolves and vampires. There is nothing to be afraid of. A voice inside my head encouraged me. Lydia needs you.

"Here we go." I took another deep breath to calm myself. Then I lifted the hand that held the pendant and placed it on the tree's trunk. Since Valdemir said I could put it anywhere I wanted, I chose the most convenient one—my eye level. Clearing my throat, I said in a loud voice, "Rom Sai." I closed my eyes right after I finished speaking it. I didn't dare to watch what happened next. All I knew was that the cold metal on my palm was gone, telling me that the pendant was no longer in my possession.

"That's enough, Lae. Step back," said Valdemir.

I opened my eyes and ran back to stand next to him. Just then, the giant tree moved. Wait. It didn't move. It… shrank.

The once intimidating trunk became smaller as each second passed by. It kept shrinking until every part went down to the ground, making the giant tree disappear entirely from view. It was as if we had watched the reverse time of a tree's life. And guess what? There was no sound or movement when the tree did that. With such an enormous tree, the grounds were supposed to shake, and the sound should be deafening. But none of this happened.

As if this wasn't shocking enough, the magic didn't end here. When the tree disappeared, the area before us suddenly went wavy like a fabric fluttering in the wind. If I was to compare, it was similar to the theatrical play where actors painted pictures on a giant canvas and used it as the scenery behind them.

"What's happening?" I widened my eyes in shock. I thought what we saw was real: the trees, the forest, and the ground. But looking at it now, it seemed… fake.

"Just watch," said Valdemir in a calm voice, contradicting the situation at hand. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine."

I wasn't sure why, but his words reassured me. It put my fear aside as I stood still and watched what was about to unveil. I expected to see a hidden pathway that glowed with golden lights. Or perhaps a secret passageway that led to an underground vault. Just like those in the fairytale books that I'd read.

But what I saw was something else.

Or rather, someone.

A hole in a pentagon shape appeared from that wavering scenery (if I were to call it). And through that shape stood a woman in a floor-length, cerulean empire dress. The golden belt stood just below the bust, giving a high-waisted appearance to her tall frame. A see-through Arctic cape draped over her shoulders and downed three feet behind her to the ground. The dress was so gorgeous that it made one's eyes unable to look anywhere else.

And yet, it paled in comparison to her ethereal beauty.

With a heart-shaped face and natural bow-shaped red lips that went so well with her ocean blue eyes, her beauty was unearthly. But what mesmerized me the most was her waist-length hair. It was a color that I'd never seen before in real life. It wasn't white like old people. It was the combination of silver and white like the moonlight. And that wasn't all. It glowed. Not just the hair. Her entire body was glowing. Literally.

It made me wonder if she was even a human. I didn't think she was a werewolf either.

"You're finally here," she said. Her voice was small and soprano, resembling the birds singing in spring. It was as beautiful as its owner. "I've been waiting."

“Photine,” said Valdemir. "I'm sorry for coming here. But it's urgent."

Wait. Photine? I remembered hearing this name before. But where did I hear it?

"She needs help." He looked down at Lydia.

"I know. That's why I am here. Come in. She's been waiting long enough. I'll give you all a shortcut." She took three steps backward and extended her hand to the inside. It was as if she was inviting us in.

"Come on, Lae." Valdemir turned to me. "Stay close to me. Or you can hold my arm. That'd be better."

As we walked toward the magical side (I called it so because of how it showed itself), I finally recalled where I'd heard of that name. Lumina told me once about her. She'd said that Valdemir had never cared about any other woman like the way he did with me, except Photine.

No wonder she deserved the title 'the most beautiful Omega in Ascian.' I thought to myself. No wonder the council members want Valdemir to marry her. She really deserves the title of queen. My free hand balled up into fists, making the nails dig into my skin.

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