The Alpha’s Unwanted Bride

I swam down to the plant and then pulled it out.

It shocked me when I saw that the Lyrun has roots.

Usually, Lyrun didn't come with roots.

It had a flat mouth at the end and could not be transplanted.

It cost one Lyrun per dead Lycan and was extremely expensive.

Urma had told me stories of Lycans who had been haunted and killed because of the plant.

So much so that they had even gone into hiding and concealed their identity out of fear of being killed for the plant.

Hopefully, this one would be able to grow if we replanted it.

It would be the first.

And then I swam back up to the top of the swamp.

When I emerged, I took in a large gasp because I had been holding my breath for so long, and then I pressed my hand over my wet hair.

I swam to the bank of the swamp, and then I picked up my clothes and hurriedly wore them.

I had to wait for a few minutes for myself to dry up, even though I was in a hurry.

I couldn't let people know that I was going to my secret lake.

I had no intentions of letting them find my lake out of fear of what they would do, and I had never really had a place for myself.

The last one I had was burned by Luna Maria.

When I was dry and my hair had returned to its frizzy curls, I hurried out of the swamp.

I made sure to be certain that no one took notice of me as I walked back to the castle.

Once the coast was clear, I hurried back to the castle.

I went past the servants and the busy people in the hallways and went up the stairs.

I caught sight of Aurora and Belle arguing.

I didn't even have the time to see what was happening.

I hurried on my way.

I flung the door open, and Loren shook so much that the glass in his hands almost fell to the floor.

"My Goddess!" He shouted at me. "What is the rush about?! You ran off from the room first, and then you ran back in like the devil was chasing you."

I hurried up to him.

"If you keep on with that attitude, young she wolf, then I just might have to send you to sleepouts.

I showed him my hands.

He stopped right in his tracks.

His face was white with shock. "My God!"

He pushed the glasses he was holding aside and then wore his glasses quickly.

He collected it from my hands.

His eyes were literally entering the plant.

"Is that... is that?" He asked me, looking back at me in disbelief. "Is that what I think it is?"

I nodded. "It's Lyrun."

His mouth was open.

"Where did you find Lyrun?" He asked, still unable to believe what he was seeing.

I looked up at him.

Do I tell him the truth? If I told him where I had gotten it, then he might report me to Alpha Xaden.

My lake would be taken away from me the same way it had been back home.

But if I didn't tell him, he would be suspicious. He knew that Lyrun could not be found anywhere.

Then he looked at me. "Did you kill a Lycan a long time ago and hide the body?"

That was the thing with Lyrun—it couldn't grow on a fresh body. It had to already be decaying.

"No," I said.

I took a deep breath and eventually decided to tell him the truth. "There is a place I found. It's a swamp. I was going strolling one day. No one else seems to have visited. I swim them when I'm free with work to escape."

He was watching me closely. "I remember Urma telling me that it was a myth, but that Lyrun could be found in pure water bodies. I went to the swamp when you said you didn't have anything to give the queen. I didn't like seeing you distressed. And I found it."

I finished.

He said nothing.

I was waiting for him to tell me that he was going to report to Alpha Xaden.

"It has roots." He said. "No, Lyrun has roots."

I said. "I know. This is the first one I have seen myself. Hopefully, it can be transplanted. That way, Lyrun can grow. Lycans can be free from the persecution they face.

We could save them."

"We haven't even planted it yet." He told me. "One step at a time."

I closed my mouth, ashamed of my over-excitement.

He turned to me and said, "But you're right. It can save lots of lives."

I beamed with a smile.

Then I remembered that I had told him about my swamp.

He turned his back to me, and I waited for his judgement.

For him to announce that he would take me to Xaden.

Then he shocked me by saying: "I don't know what you said about a swamp. But wherever you got this plant from is a blessing."

I gasped. "So you won't tell Alpha Xaden that I have a swamp?"

He frowned at me. "A swamp? What are you talking about? Stop saying nonsense, girl!"

Then it dawned on me what he was doing.

He was pretending like he didn't know what I was saying and indirectly telling me my secret was safe with him.

"Thank you," I said softly.

He ignored me and went on to be grumpy. "If you have had enough of just standing there doing nothing, then you would come and help me prepare the medicine."

I looked up at him. "Me?"

"No, the ghost is behind you." He snorted. "Of course, you!"

I smiled and went on to assist him.

I giggled, and then he gave me a stare that told me to close my mouth.

I suppressed the giggles and smiled.

Loren was a good man, and I knew that I could trust him.