The two wolves turned sharply as they sensed the threat behind them and Emira felt a sigh of relief as she pushed the knife back into her waistband.
While she was not sure of who the person was behind them, because her sense of smell was not powerful enough, she sensed the change in the two wolves almost immediately as one of the wolves changed into their human form and bowed," Your highness. Greetings. Apologies for having disturbed you."
This time, Emira relaxed completely as Prince Kael walked forward slowly and languidly into the light, uncaring that there were intruders on this land," Are you sure that was not your purpose?"
The other man straightened and smiled faintly. "We dare not. We were chasing a rogue when we crossed the border unintentionally. Once we realised whose land this was, we thought it best to offer our greetings- out of courtesy."
Prince Kael’s gaze didn’t waver as he walked to stand in front of Emira directly. "You should have gone to the packhouse directly. You almost frightened my guest."
That made the man pause. His eyes flicked past Kael, landing on Emira. "I apologize," he said, studying her with open curiosity. "She carried Prince Zen’s scent. I thought it was him which is why we stopped here. You can imagine my surprise to find an Omega instead."
Emira could already see the speculation and interest in the man’s eyes as he looked at her," Apologies, miss. For scaring you." He then turned to Prince Kael and bowed his head," Your Highness. I’ll head to the packhouse now."
Kael nodded and watched them leave for a moment before being reminded of his purpose. But before he could even reach out with his senses, he felt the feeling of fear almost suffocating him. He frowned.
But before he could even reach out with his senses, something stopped him—a wave of emotion so strong it almost knocked the air out of him. Fear. It was raw and suffocating, pressing down on his chest until he could barely think.
He frowned, startled. Was it her? Had she been so shaken by the intruders that her fear had spilt into the air like this? Or... was she afraid of him? The thought made his chest tighten. If she was, how had he not noticed before?
He turned, his eyes narrowing slightly as they found her. But instead of the trembling he expected, she was smiling as she looked upward. There wasn’t even a trace of fear on her face.
Kael’s frown deepened. What was going on? The emotions he’d felt were still lingering, but they didn’t match what he was seeing.
And then she spoke.
"You silly boy."
For a moment, he thought he’d misheard. His eyes widened. Did she just call him a silly boy?
Before he could ask, she turned away, moving a step to the side and looked down with a small smie.
Only then did he realized that she was not calling him a silly boy. From behind her, a small figure emerged- a young boy, half-hidden until that moment.
The boy was shivering and Kael realized that it was ’his’ fear that he was feeling and not hers.
He looked at the child, then at the flowers in his hands. He watched as Emira crouched down and took the flowers from the boy’s hand and said," Thank you for holding them for me, Jasper."
It took Kael a moment to recognise the child. The small face, the wary eyes-it clicked only after a few seconds. This was the boy she had saved that night. And he had probably come to thank her.
For reasons he couldn’t quite explain, a faint smile tugged at his lips as he looked at the child.
But the moment their eyes met, the boy’s expression changed. His eyes widened in alarm, and he instinctively stepped back, clutching at Emira’s dress as if seeking protection.
Kael froze.
What in the world was he doing smiling at the boy? His lips flattened immediately.
Of course the child would be terrified. He probably looked like some predator sizing him up. And with how things always went around here, someone was bound to twist this into another ridiculous story-something about him terrifying children for sport.
He sighed inwardly. It was best if he left now. He could check on Emira’s feeling later, when there weren’t so many interruptions or wandering witnesses.
But before he could turn away, Emira’s voice broke through his thoughts.
"Your Highness," she said softly, as if trying to explain. "Jasper has been frightened by the wolves just now."
He gave a small nod. Of course, he could see that.
Still, he wasn’t sure whether she meant the intruders or if she was trying to prevent his feelings from being hurt. But the moment the thought came to him, he rejected it. Her trying to protect him would be ridiculous.
The boy’s gaze kept darting toward him, as if unsure whether to hide or run. Kael didn’t comment on it. No point in thinking too much. He was about to turn around and leave when. quite suddenly, he was the one caught off guard.
Without warning, Emira bent down, gathered the boy into her arms, and turned toward him. Before Kael could so much as take a step back, she held the child out and placed him squarely in his arms.
"Please carry him for me to the packhouse," she said simply.
Kael blinked. For a brief, stunned moment, his mind went blank. He, the most feared Prince of the realm, was now holding a wide-eyed child who looked ready to burst into tears.
And for the first time in a long while, Prince Kael was genuinely frightened. He tried to tell Emira to take the child back, but she simply ruffled the child’s hair and pushed his head into his shoulders, urging," Just put your head here and close your eyes. We’re taking you to your parents."