The Princess And Her Alpha Bodyguard

20~ HAUNTED LIST

"Good. See that wall over there?" He pointed to the wall behind me. He waited until I nodded before picking up his words. "Go and run from that wall to there." He pointed to an enormous tree about three kilometers from me.

"What? I thought I was here to do sword fighting or archery." I frowned in confusion.

"You're not wrong. But do you really think your small, weak body is ready to wield a sword or draw a bow?" He raised his right eyebrow, giving me a challenging look.

"I've tried archery a few times," I retorted.

He squinted his eyes, looking at me up and down. "Really? And how many targets did you hit? Are you confident you could hit the target seven or eight times out of ten?"

I thought back to the times I snuck out to try archery while my siblings were training. Ralph had taught me how to handle a bow, and I knew how to shoot an arrow, but I rarely hit the targets. My best was two out of fifteen tries.

When he saw I had nothing to say, he continued, "I need to build your body first. So, you'll need to undergo basic physical training. When you're fit enough, I'll teach you the rest."

"Fine. How many laps?" I asked.

"Ten."

"Ten?" My jaw dropped open in disbelief. "You know this is my first time. Yet, you want me to run ten laps?"

"Rule number one that you must learn in this training camp is never to question your instructor. Understand?" He narrowed his eyes at me.

"Y-yes." I gulped, thinking it'd be better to keep my mouth shut.

"Good. Now, go."

Without another word, I hurried away from him and went to the place he had assigned. I was already out of breath on the fourth lap but bit my lips and continued until I made it.

"D-o-o-n-e. T-ten." I breathed out the words in a struggle. My body bent over, almost kissing the ground, but the shaking hands on my knees helped support it.

"You took way longer than I'd expected. But I'll let it slide since this is your first day. Now, for your next task—"

"W-wait." I cut him off. "C-can I t-take a s-short b-break?"

"Did you see anyone here taking a break?" he asked. Before I could say anything, he said, "No. Continue. Your second task is to lift these two buckets and run for another five laps." His feet pointed to the two buckets filled with water on the ground.

He's crazy! I thought to myself. This wasn't training. He was just toying with me. I didn't even know if I could lift those two heavy buckets simultaneously. Not to mention carrying them and running for five laps.

"Are you messing with me?" I asked, trying my best to steady my breath.

"Do I look like I have time for that?" He returned my question with another one of his own.

"Yes, you do. If not, you wouldn't waste my time with these buckets and running. You told me you were trying to make my body fit. Yet, I think you're trying to kill me instead. Is that your plan all along?" I glared at him.

"Look here, woman." He stepped closer until I could sense his hot breath on my forehead. "I don't like beating around the bush. So, I'll be honest with you," he said in a lower voice. It was as if he didn't want anyone else to hear it. "It'd be my pleasure to break your neck, rip your head off your shoulder, and dump you in the river. The only thing holding me back is Valdemir. Don't you know what he has to go through to help you?"

"Help? By disgracing me to a servant? By making me endure all these useless training things? I doubted that. He couldn't even keep his word when he promised to send me a bodyguard." I hissed. "Besides, If he really wanted to help, he should've agreed to send an army to kill Iory. It could've saved both our times."

"I swear, if you weren't a woman, I'd punch you in the face. Someone needs to slap some senses into that dim-witted brain of yours," Gerold said through gritted teeth.

"It's too bad. I am a woman. And from what you've just said, you don't hit a woman," I smirked.

"He doesn't." echoed a silvery voice from behind my back. "But I do."

I found my body being swirled around as someone grabbed my arm. Before I could register that person's identity, my face was turned to the left.

Or rather, it was slapped.

"How dare you slap me?" My hand covered the hot cheek that must have turned red by now as I turned to face the person who caused it.

"Give me a reason I shouldn't do it," said Mez. The look in her eyes was like a lion looking at a lamp.

"Because I'm the qu—" I held my tongue. Although she was Gerold's girlfriend, I wasn't sure if she was in Valdemir's pack. I couldn't risk exposing my identity. He might have mentioned that some people in the pack knew about me, but I wasn’t sure who those people were.

"Can't find the reason?" She raised her right eyebrow, giving me a challenging look. "Then let me list down the reasons I did it."

I bit my lips and stared at her in silence like an obedient kid waiting to hear her parents' reprimand. When she lifted her right hand in the air, my body jerked backward. I thought she would slap me again.

But she didn't.

"First, you're a bitch." She raised her index finger as if she was counting. "Second, you disobeyed your instructor's words. Don't think I didn't hear you questioning my boyfriend's method of training." She pointed the same finger at my face.

"I wouldn't have doubted him if he'd been serious. But he was only toying with me," I said.

"Toying with you?" Mez shook his head. "Human girl, we don't have luxurious time to play with you. Everyone who enters this training ground takes things very seriously. Gerold is the captain and the head instructor. Do you think he has time to entertain you?"

"I don't know. But I still don't think carrying two heavy buckets has anything to do with this training. The sword isn't that heavy. What's the point of making me do that?"

"What do you even know about it? Have you ever trained before?" she asked in a stern voice.

"W-well…" I trailed off, not wanting to say it. Because if I did, the answer would be no. The archery that I did was only out of curiosity. It wasn’t formal training.

"From the look of it, you haven't. I wasn't surprised, though. Those slender fingers with no callous, tiny arms and legs of yours say it all." She stared at me from head to toe.

"Fine. I haven't." I admitted.

"Good. Then let's move on to the second point." She raised another finger in the air. "You're slow. The way you ran looked like someone was sleepwalking. I thought your brain was falling asleep, so I slapped it to wake it up. You don't have to thank me."

Before I could say anything, her ring finger moved to join the other two. "Third, you're dumb. So, I wanted to slap some sense into you. Since my boyfriend is a gentleman, and he can't hit a woman, I'm more than happy to do it in his place. Besides, a spoiled human girl like you needs someone to teach you a lesson."

"Don't. Call. Me. Dumb." I enunciated each word through gritted teeth.

"Why? Can't I state the truth?" She put her arms behind her back and leaned closer. "If you're not dumb, then how do you explain exposing yourself?" she whispered into my ear.

"What?" I frowned in confusion.

"It's lucky that Gerold brought you here because it's outside the werewolf's hearing range. Or else, the talk about the kingdom and army would've blown your cover away, Queen Laelia." She stepped back and stared at me with a condescending look in her eyes.

"You know?" I gasped.

"Yeah. I'm a part of Valdemir's pack." She shrugged.

"Then, how could you…?" I trailed off in disbelief. She already knew who I was, and she still slapped me. Not only this, she even dared to call me dumb. I'd never been so insulted in my life.

"How could I treat you like this?" she asked, taking the words right out of my mouth. "I already listed the reasons for you. Have you forgotten it already? If you don't remember, that means you're really dumb."

"I told you not to call me dumb." I glared at her.

"Oh, the pretty face is angry. What's she going to do?" Mez's lips curved up into a lopsided grin. "Are you going to kill me with those fierce eyes? Or are you going to cry? But let me remind you. No one is here to wipe your tears if it's the latter. This is not that old place, and you're not the old you. Nobody here wants to lick your boots. We're too busy trying to stay alive."

"I know I'm not. You don't have to remind me," I said.

I knew I was no longer a golden swan. I had fallen into a white goose. I lost everything I once had: a kingdom, family, fiancé, and people. There was no need for her to remind me of those painful memories.

"Really? But you don't look like you know. Because if you really remembered who you are at this moment, you wouldn't talk back to the vice-captain with no respect." Mez narrowed her eyes.

"W-what? You're a vice-captain?"

"Yes," said Gerold. "She's the vice-captain of the guard and the second-in-command here at this training ground."

"Remember your place, human girl. You're just a trainee here. You can't disobey your instructor," said Mez. "Stop daydreaming about the past that is long gone. The luxurious life that you once had is no longer yours. Better make use of the present if you don't want to be in a worse situation than you are."

Rage crept up to every inch of me. I knew her words were true. Still, she didn't have to say it like this. It was like rubbing salt into an open wound.

"Is there even a worse situation than this?" I asked in a challenging tone.

Mez remained silent as her dark brown eyes fixated on mine without blinking. Then, she turned to Gerold and said, "Gerold, I changed my mind. I'm interested in this one. Will you let me be her instructor?"

"If that's what you want, it'll be my pleasure," said Gerold with a smile.

"Good." She turned to me. "Let me show you what a worse situation is."

All of a sudden, Mez was gone. The place where she stood was replaced by a giant, white werewolf. The contradiction of her black hair and white fur shocked me.

"What the… WOAH!" I screamed in shock when I found my body thrown in the air. I braced for the impact on the hard ground, but I landed on soft and warm fur instead. When I opened my eyes, I realized I was lying on the wolf's back.

"I'd hold tight if I were you," said Gerold. "Enjoy your lesson." He waved goodbye leisurely, showing no sign of helping me out.

When the giant wolf began to run and leaped over the six-inch wall, I squeezed my eyes shut and held on for dear life to the thick fur, hoping I wouldn't fall off.

If I died today, I'd make sure to add Valdemir's name to the list of people I'd planned to haunt.

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