Cliff (1)
Luna blinked to make sure what she saw was real, but when she refocused, Ghea’s figure had disappeared. Immediately, she wondered. If it was indeed Ghea, why was she so bold to appear in public? Ghea was not a criminal, but she had attracted the ‘attention’ of the Emperor, making her whereabouts a subject of search.
Luna bit her lower lip and glanced briefly at Alkrevas, watching Duke Veniam’s speech on the podium. The man’s hands were folded, and his false green eyes looked intently at the Duke. Luna turned to her right side again, feeling both restless and curious. After last night’s incident, she hadn’t heard any news about Beth and the black witch, Abigail, who had fled.
Slowly, Luna bowed her head, her heart feeling a bit hurt because she was used as a pawn for those two women to escape, but at the same time, they would help her return to her world. Ghea had promised to find a way for her to return, even if it meant meeting the black witch. She couldn’t doubt Giana’s kindness. Or was she ignoring reality and being naive?
Her eyes glanced at Alkrevas again. Instantly, memories of the man’s promise echoed in her head like a spell. Alkrevas’s offer tickled her heart. Just one month, no more. She could consider the one month as a vacation, and when it ended, she could return to her world.
Luna didn’t take Alkrevas’s words about joining her seriously because the man had a large country to lead, but she couldn’t ignore his words either. Adding one month to a place full of magic and supernatural things was pretty good. She could also sort out her feelings, and maybe when her trauma was gone, she could talk to Norris again, getting to know Norris’s wolf soul more deeply. Luna bit her lower lip and felt her fingers twisting the fabric of her dress. On the one hand, she owed Ghea and didn’t want to disappoint her, especially since Ghea was the first person to help her and the first person she asked for help.
Ghea willingly hid to avoid Alkrevas’s radar, looking for solutions and ways, even meeting the black witch to help her return. But on the other hand, there was Alkrevas. Could she trust him? Hold on to his words after everything that happened. Was there an ulterior motive behind Alkrevas’s offer? Luna sighed softly. For the first time, she couldn’t make a decision.
She wanted to curl up in a hidden place, out of everyone’s reach, especially Alkrevas, because being near him made her mind unable to think clearly. “What are you thinking about?” Alkrevas suddenly asked, bringing Luna back to her thoughts.
Slowly, Luna turned and looked up, her breath catching as his green eyes met her dark brown ones. Though they weren’t real, those green eyes could hypnotize her like his brown eyes. Both looked mysterious and deep. Luna held her breath as Alkrevas’s face got closer until their noses touched and their breaths mingled. Just a little more, and he could kiss her lips. What? What was she thinking? Where did that thought come from? “The speech and closing ceremony are over,” Alkrevas whispered in a baritone voice that was so enticing.
Luna quickly turned her head to the podium, and sure enough, Duke Veniam was no longer there, and some of the people who came were starting to disperse. She was so busy with her thoughts that she didn’t even notice the event had ended, nor did she hear any applause that might have happened after the speech.
Luna looked back at Alkrevas’s green eyes and murmured, “You’re right. It’s over.” Her heart pounded quickly when she saw where his green eyes were looking. Luna licked her lips, which felt so dry. That made a crooked smile appear on Alkrevas’s face. “Didn’t you want to take me somewhere?”
“Ah yes! You’re right.” Alkrevas said, pulling his face away.
He stared at Luna’s lips intensely, weighing whether to give in to his desires or stick to his decision. But then Alkrevas clenched his hands and looked away. He mustn’t waver. He had to be patient. If Luna made the right choice, he would do what he most desired.
With that thought, Alkrevas pushed back his raging desires and passions, calming his erratic heart and mind because momentary desires wouldn’t bring good results and would increase the likelihood that Luna wouldn’t give him a chance. Though he wouldn’t let her slip from his grasp by any means, the one-month opportunity to make her love him was the best option.
This way, he wouldn’t have to go through the trouble of chaining or binding her because Luna would entirely give herself to him. Wouldn’t that be better? He just needed to make her sympathize with him and change her view of him, and everything would go according to his plan, manipulating her mind. If he succeeded, Luna would undoubtedly not think of leaving him and entirely depend on him.
Why hadn’t Alkrevas thought of all this from the start? Oh, it was because he felt so desperate. After years of waiting for the presence of a soulmate in his life, he wanted to claim and bind her. He did not consider other factors like feelings because he thought his destined woman would immediately accept him. He lost sight of everything besides possessing her when what he had been waiting for stood before him. Honestly, acting rashly wasn’t his habit. The mate bond and Norris drove him to approach incorrectly.
As an Emperor, he always calculated and determined every step to take, using tactics and control over situations, staying calm, and ensuring every factor was in his grasp. Life as an Emperor was like a chessboard, with moves made carefully and thoughtfully, weighing all options, using everything available, and discarding what wasn’t needed.
So now he had to change his game, and if he succeeded, Luna would say ‘yes’ to his offer. The rest, he just needed to bind her minor by little without her realizing it. “We should go now if we want to arrive before sunset.”
“What exactly do you want to show me?” Luna asked with a suspicious look.
“I told you it’s a surprise. You’ll find out later.” Then Alkrevas walked to the exit of the Selene temple. Luna looked back-more precisely at the statue of Selene-for the last time before following Alkrevas, who had already started to walk away.Content © copyrighted by NôvelDrama.Org.
…