Goblin Terror (2)
“Miss, it’s freezing today; you should close the window to avoid getting sick,” said one of the attendants stationed in her room. Luna gazed at the sky for a moment before turning around to look at the attendant with an expression that was hard to describe.
She seemed remarkably calm for a woman who had recently gone through something terrible. Even in retrospect, Luna hadn’t roared or raged in front of Alkrevas nor tried to kill him in retaliation.
Her hand lifted to touch the two claim marks on the right side of her neck before moving to the mark on the left, the sign of an absolute bond. Luna needed to learn precisely how the absolute bond occurred or formed. Still, Alkrevas had mentioned it right before he sank his fangs into her neck, leaving a claimed mark that appeared larger and deeper on the left side when Luna looked in the mirror.
She stared at the attendant who had spoken to her momentarily and asked, “Are you sure you don’t know where my attendants are?”
“I’m sorry, Miss, I was only assigned to serve you.”
Luna sighed heavily and turned her gaze back to the evening sky. She wondered what had happened to Judith and the others. No one would tell her, and she hadn’t had a chance to ask Alkrevas. She should have taken the opportunity to ask Sigmund. Still, the man’s words had shocked her so much that by the time she recovered from her surprise, Sigmund had already left the room.
Luna had tried to wait for Alkrevas, but when she was informed that Alkrevas had left the palace for essential duties, her hopes of getting his information were dashed. “Do you know why His Majesty left the palace?”
“His Majesty, along with the Mages from the Magic Tower, is inspecting the critical points of the protective magic shield and repairing the damaged shields.” Luna frowned. Her heart ached and felt stabbed upon hearing that answer because, indirectly, the shield’s destruction was her doing. Luna lowered her head and looked at her hands clasped together. The wind blew stronger against her, and because the tower was relatively high, the wind felt twice as powerful.
“Is the impact really that big?” Luna asked the attendant.
“Yes, Miss, some areas on the Vasilos border have already experienced Goblin terror. I heard that right after the shield collapsed, the Goblins destroyed fortresses and attacked nearby regions,” as if they had been waiting for the right moment and had planned it meticulously. Luna concluded silently, and she wouldn’t be surprised if the mastermind behind the Goblin terror were Abigail.
“Why do the Goblins want to destroy Vasilos?”
“They are greedy creatures who desire Vasilos’s vast territory.” But it couldn’t be without a reason, could it? Luna asked herself internally. “In the past, the Goblin territory was adjacent to Vasilos, but the former Emperor took over the Goblin lands, not without reason, as the Goblins were destroying the ecosystem and the Rhodes plants that were highly protected. Foryeust was the first to request Vasilos to get rid of those monsters.”
So, does that mean Vasilos was doing someone else’s job? Well, Luna couldn’t blame Vasilos if, in the end, the territories seized from the Goblins would become part of Vasilos’s lands. It was something beneficial yet simultaneously disadvantageous. “It seems the palace attendants and servants know much about internal affairs.”
The attendant bowed shyly and murmured, “Some of the attendants are soulmates of the palace’s official staff.” That means the first thing Luna needed to do was ensure the staff kept their mouths shut and didn’t speak carelessly in the future.
Luna said nothing more and returned to staring at the sky. The wind blew strongly again. It seemed the cold air was the aftermath of last night’s storm. The simple dress she was wearing fluttered in the wind. Her mind returned to the attendant’s words, making her wonder what would have happened if she hadn’t sought Ghea’s help.
Could all that had happened have been avoided? Luna sighed heavily and looked up, observing the peaceful evening sky. Yesterday, at the same time, she was preparing to face her nightmare, and now, it felt like yesterday’s events were unreal and just a distant memory. Don’t hate His Majesty too much… Sigmund’s words from earlier that morning echoed in her mind, causing her heart and thoughts to clash. If her heart said no, her mind said yes.
“I better hear his explanation first…” Luna muttered to herself. She placed her elbow on the window frame and rested her chin on her hand, her eyes watching the birds flying freely.
The peace surrounding her was suddenly disturbed by a pair of hands draping a coat over her shoulders. Luna immediately straightened up and turned around, her eyes landing directly on Alkrevas, looking impeccable. Luna lowered her gaze and examined the Emperor’s coat. The fabric and stitching were of the highest quality, adorned with elegant decorations and details, and the colours reflected a dignified nature. Luna touched the medal hanging on the right chest of the coat before looking back at Alkrevas.
She glanced briefly into the room and noticed the attendant who had been with her had left. “What I don’t need right now is to see you bedridden and sick, Luna,” Alkrevas commented with a tone full of displeasure.
Luna looked back at the Emperor’s face. Her hand itched to brush aside the strands of hair that had fallen on his forehead. Luna walked past Alkrevas and stood by the side of the bed, and her back turned to where he was standing. She said nothing, just kept silent.
“So now you don’t want to talk to me?” A sigh was heard, and Alkrevas added, “It would be better if you vent your anger at me, do what you did to me last night, or give me hostile words like before, rather than being silent like this and avoiding me.” Luna still didn’t need to respond. “Say something.”
A sigh escaped Luna’s lips. She should have done this last night, too, but her body always acted independently regarding Alkrevas. However, the way she had handled it last night was more effective than what she was doing now to get Alkrevas to open up because Luna was one hundred per cent sure that he wouldn’t talk about the public mating with her and would prefer to be the ‘bad guy’ acting selfishly.
She turned around and saw sadness and pain filling the man’s brown eyes. “You just need to tell me honestly, Alkrevas. Explain to me what you meant by all your words to me.”
“Don’t pay attention to what I said. It was all just nonsense.”
“Nonsense? Hah!” Luna ran her hands through her hair in frustration. “You’re saying it was all nonsense you made up?” Luna asked incredulously. She then took a deep breath to calm her emotions and said, “You know that conversations in bed are more honest than anything.” Luna folded her arms across her chest and added, “Or do you want me to do that to you again? And this time, I won’t let you touch me.”
“Luna, I could go insane if you do that again.”
“That’s your choice.”Please check at N/ôvel(D)rama.Org.
Alkrevas walked up to her, grabbed her arm, and guided her to a chair in the room. He sat Luna down in one of the chairs and opened his mouth to speak but stopped when a mind link suddenly entered his head. His gaze became cloudy as Alkrevas listened to Thymos’s report on the situation at the imperial border, which Goblins had attacked. Then, a second mind link came this time from Markus.
“Alkrevas, I surrender. Come to the mansion now, and we’ll talk. I’m waiting.” After that, Alkrevas’s clouded eyes returned to normal. He breathed a sigh of relief because Markus had finally stopped being stubborn, then looked straight at Luna, watching him with a questioning look.
“I… tomorrow and the day after, I won’t come to see you.”
“Oh, that’s good…” Luna muttered coldly.
Alkrevas clicked his tongue and slowly stood up. “Don’t do anything strange or leave the palace. Tomorrow is the night of the full moon.”
“Full moon night…” Luna shivered as memories of that night resurfaced in her mind. She then studied Alkrevas more closely before nodding obediently. This time, she preferred to comply and do nothing rather than face the horrors like last time; besides, her body still needed recovery. “I understand…”
“Alright, I’ll go now.”
“What? What about our conversation?”
Alkrevas paused momentarily and replied, “I’ll explain everything when I find the right time.”
“But I don’t need the right time; I just need an explanation-Hey! Where are you going?” Luna stood up and looked in disbelief at Alkrevas, who had already taken long strides toward the exit. Before she could follow him, the door had already shut tightly, leaving Luna alone in the room with evident frustration on her face.
…
In the early hours, Alkrevas returned to the room in the East Tower where Luna was staying. He stepped cautiously and quietly to avoid making any noise that might disturb her sleep. His steps halted beside the bed, and he leaned down, gently brushing Luna’s face as he exhaled softly. Slowly, he sat on the edge of the bed, causing a relatively loud creaking sound. Alkrevas held his breath and froze when he saw Luna stir and mumble but breathed a sigh of relief when she remained sound asleep.
His hand moved to play with Luna’s hair, which was spread across the pillow, and a small smile appeared on his lips as he watched her move closer to him, seeking the warmth emanating from his body. Alkrevas removed his shoes and coat and lay beside Luna. There was no harm in lying beside his soulmate for a few hours before leaving.
He closed his eyes and inhaled Luna’s scent, which had returned to what it was before, a mix of her natural scent with his own. Then, his hand stroked the claim mark on the right side of her neck. Norris growled contentedly in his mind and said, “Imagine if our child is born one day, mortal. They would surely be as beautiful as their mother.”
Alkrevas sighed heavily. “Don’t think about that just yet, Norris; we can’t expect anything right now. Not when the situation is dire. Besides, it’s all up to mate’s decision and desire.”
Norris nodded in agreement. “What are you going to do about Markus? I can give Alpha Command to Oalo if you want,” said Norris with a broad, cruel grin. “Or have a duel? A little reminder of who’s in charge isn’t bad; besides, it’s been a long time since I’ve fought.”
“Norris, Markus is Luna’s family… we can’t…”
“As long as mate doesn’t know, it’s no problem,” Norris growled joyfully and was full of adrenaline. “He dared to threaten us. We must ensure he understands that Luna belongs to us, not Veniam.”
Alkrevas sighed deeply and cut off communication with Norris because he knew his wolf would only think about subduing Markus with violence and showing dominance, nothing more. However, Alkrevas had to remember that Markus’s dedication and contribution to Vasilos were significant; he couldn’t lose his chancellor and best prime minister. Besides, why was he even listening to Norris’s aggressive words? The influence of the full moon was starting to cloud Norris’s thoughts. “Ah. Don’t even think about trying to meet mate during the full moon, Norris.”
“Tch! She’s my soulmate too. I have the right to see her.”
“Do you remember what happened last time? Do you want to make mate even more afraid of you?”
Norris growled in frustration and chose to turn his back, flicking his tail arrogantly at him. Alkrevas shook his head, seeing his wolf spirit’s sometimes exasperating behaviour. His eyes lingered on Luna’s soft lips, and unconsciously, his fingers touched them, stroking and feeling their softness, making Alkrevas unable to resist stealing a kiss from Luna’s lips. Alkrevas murmured, “Do you know you have a family, Luna? Not just here, but in your world… you’re not alone…”
Alkrevas smiled sadly. “How lucky you are to still have family, while I only have you… so please, don’t leave me. Don’t abandon me, because you’re my only family; if you go, how will I survive?”
Alkrevas closed his eyes, recalling Markus’s words. “Alkrevas, let me tell you something. I can take Luna from you and bring her to the place she longs for, where you cannot reach her. Only I have access to it. So please don’t mess with me. If you keep hurting Luna, I won’t stand by. I will do what I should have done from the start: take Luna away… Remember, Alkrevas, the portal mirror belongs to Veniam. Unlike the portal mirror in Foryeust, I won’t let you get near that mirror and destroy it.”
……….