The Alpha King's Broken Omega

CHAPTER FIFTEEN: BLOOD IN THE MEADOW

CHAPTER FIFTEEN: Blood in the Meadow

Alcaide

The first warrior reached me with a savage roar.

His sword flashed through the air.

Clang!

Steel crashed against steel.

The force of my strike sent him stumbling backward before I drove my boot into his chest. He flew several feet across the meadow, crashing into another attacker.

"Protect Lila!" I commanded.

Two royal guards who had accompanied us stepped in front of her immediately.

The enemy leader laughed.

"You still think two guards can stop us?"

He raised his hand.

"Take the girl!"

More than twenty wolves charged at once.

The peaceful meadow transformed into a battlefield.

The scent of wildflowers disappeared beneath the smell of blood and steel.

---

Lila

Everything happened too fast.

Swords clashed.

Warriors shouted.

The ground shook beneath pounding feet.

One of the attackers broke through the guards and rushed straight toward me.

Fear gripped my heart.

But this time...

I didn't freeze.

Captain Aria's voice echoed in my mind.

"Fear isn't your enemy. Let it sharpen your instincts."

I tightened my grip on the dagger strapped to my waist.

As the warrior swung his blade, I stepped to the side exactly as Aria had taught me.

The blade sliced through empty air.

The attacker stumbled.

Without thinking, I struck the back of his hand with the hilt of my dagger.

He cried out in pain, dropping his sword.

I immediately ran instead of trying to continue the fight.

"Good."

Aria's lessons echoed in my thoughts.

"Survival isn't about defeating every enemy. It's about making the right decision."

---

Across the meadow...

Alcaide saw everything.

A fierce pride filled his chest.

She hadn't panicked.

She had remembered her training.

She was learning.

His brief distraction almost cost him.

The enemy leader attacked from behind.

A blade slashed across Alcaide's shoulder.

Blood stained his black shirt.

"My King!"

The royal guards shouted.

Alcaide barely seemed to notice the wound.

His golden eyes burned with fury.

"You've made a mistake."

His wolf surged closer to the surface.

The air around him became suffocating.

Several enemy warriors instinctively stepped backward.

The enemy leader frowned.

"So this is the Alpha King's aura..."

Alcaide slowly raised his sword.

"No."

His voice was cold enough to send chills through every warrior present.

"This..."

"...is only a fraction of it."

A powerful wave of Alpha authority exploded across the meadow.

Several weaker wolves dropped to one knee.

Others couldn't even hold their weapons steady.

The enemy leader clenched his teeth.

"Impossible..."

---

Hidden among the trees...

A hooded figure watched silently.

He never joined the battle.

Instead, he observed Lila carefully.

"So..."

"She's beginning to awaken."

He smiled beneath his hood.

"Not yet."

"But soon."

He quietly disappeared into the forest before anyone noticed him.

---

"Lila!"

Alcaide called.

She looked toward him.

"I'm here!"

Before either of them could move—

A loud howl echoed through the forest.

Every attacking warrior suddenly stopped.

The enemy leader raised his hand.

"Retreat!"

The Black Moon warriors immediately withdrew into the trees with remarkable discipline.

Within seconds...

They were gone.

Only silence remained.

Lila looked around in confusion.

"Why did they leave?"

Alcaide frowned.

"They weren't trying to win."

His gaze darkened.

"They were testing us."

He looked toward the forest where the hooded figure had disappeared.

"No..."

"They were testing you."

Lila felt a chill run down her spine.

Whatever game the Black Moon Pack was playing...

It had only just begun.

Lila

Silence settled over the meadow after the Black Moon warriors disappeared into the forest.

Only the sound of heavy breathing remained.

The once peaceful field had become a battlefield.

Broken arrows littered the ground. Deep sword marks scarred the earth, and patches of crimson stained the wildflowers that had danced so beautifully in the morning breeze.

My hands trembled.

It was over.

At least...

For now.

"Lila."

Alcaide's voice pulled me from my thoughts.

I turned toward him, relief flooding through me.

"You're all right!"

Without thinking, I ran into his arms.

For a moment, the world disappeared.

He wrapped his arms around me tightly, resting his chin lightly against my head.

"I told you I'd protect you."

His heartbeat echoed steadily beneath my ear.

I closed my eyes.

"And you did."

Behind them, Xander cleared his throat loudly.

"I hate to interrupt this touching reunion..."

"But His Majesty is bleeding."

I immediately pulled away.

"What?"

Only then did I notice the blood soaking through Alcaide's black shirt.

The wound across his shoulder had grown worse during the battle.

My face drained of color.

"You're hurt."

"It's only a scratch."

Xander snorted.

"If that's a scratch, I'd hate to see what you call a real injury."

Alcaide shot him an annoyed glance.

"I've had worse."

"You've also fainted before from refusing treatment."

"I was sixteen."

"And stubborn."

"I still am."

"I noticed."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Lila couldn't stop herself from smiling.

Their friendship reminded her that beneath the crown and responsibilities...

Alcaide was still just a man.

A man who laughed.

A man who argued with his best friend.

A man who had quietly become the most important person in her life.

---

The journey back to the palace was unusually quiet.

Lila rode beside Alcaide, stealing worried glances at him every few minutes.

He tried to pretend he wasn't in pain.

But she noticed the way he occasionally clenched his jaw.

She noticed the slight stiffness in his movements.

She noticed everything.

As they crossed the palace gates, servants rushed toward them in alarm.

"The King has been injured!"

"Heal the wounded!"

"Summon the royal physician!"

The courtyard erupted into chaos.

Captain Aria approached immediately.

Her sharp eyes examined Alcaide's shoulder.

"You should have retreated."

He gave her a tired smile.

"And let them reach Lila?"

Aria sighed.

"I knew that would be your answer."

---

Inside the royal infirmary...

The physician carefully removed Alcaide's torn shirt.

Lila looked away at first.

Not because she was embarrassed.

Because the sight of the wound made her stomach twist.

A deep cut stretched across his shoulder, still slowly bleeding.

"This isn't a scratch," she whispered.

The physician nodded.

"Fortunately, the blade missed anything vital."

He began cleaning the wound.

Alcaide didn't flinch.

Lila, however, winced every time the cloth touched his skin.

"Does it hurt?"

"A little."

She frowned.

"You're lying."

He smiled.

"Perhaps."

When the physician finished applying medicine, he bowed respectfully.

"Your Majesty should rest."

"I'll prepare stronger herbs."

After he left, the room became quiet.

Lila picked up a clean bandage.

"May I?"

Alcaide looked at her in surprise.

"You want to help?"

She nodded.

"You were injured protecting me."

"The least I can do is take care of you."

He didn't argue.

Slowly, she wrapped the fresh bandage around his shoulder.

Her hands were gentle, though they trembled slightly.

"I'm sorry."

He looked at her.

"For what?"

"If I hadn't come into your life..."

"You wouldn't have been hurt."

He reached out and gently took her hand.

"Lila."

She looked up.

"Listen to me carefully."

His blue eyes held hers.

"I would rather suffer a hundred wounds than watch you face one alone."

Tears filled her eyes.

"You mean that?"

"I've never meant anything more."

Unable to stop herself, Lila stepped closer.

She rested her forehead lightly against his.

"Thank you..."

She whispered.

"For choosing me."

Alcaide smiled softly.

"I'll keep choosing you."

"Every single day."

Outside the infirmary door...

Lady Evelyn had come to check on the King.

She stopped when she heard his words.

For a moment, she simply stood there.

Then she smiled sadly.

There was no bitterness in her heart anymore.

Only acceptance.

Quietly, she turned away, leaving them alone.

As she walked down the corridor, she whispered to herself,

"He finally found the one who healed his lonely heart."

Far beyond the palace walls...

Hidden inside an abandoned fortress...

The hooded leader removed his cloak.

A sinister smile spread across his face.

"The King grows weaker."

"And the omega grows stronger."

He looked toward the Blood Moon rising in the distance.

"Excellent."

"The time to awaken the last heir is drawing near."

His laughter echoed through the empty hall.

And somewhere deep beneath the fortress...

A prisoner slowly lifted his head at the sound.

His chains rattled in the darkness.

A familiar voice escaped cracked lips.

"Lila..."