My Royal Romance

CHAPTER 2

Anne

His words shoot through my heart like arrows. But why am I even hurt? Who is he to affect me like this? Besides, everything he said is true. I am everything he just said. I’m this weak and poor little girl without a wolf and parents. A weakling orphan, just like he said.

I feel so small and worthless before these people. I kept my head down, looking at the floor. I can’t even bring myself to look up to their faces. For a moment, my mind is so blurry and so is my sight. I wanted to puke and cry my eyes out. But I suddenly reminded myself of my purpose, the reason I’m here putting myself in a very difficult situation.

“This is for my people, my pack, and my parents’ legacy,” I said to myself, reminding me that this is to save my pack. Even though I am not wanted here, I need to present myself before them and ask them for help.

~~~

I am Anne Ceasar and I’m from the Moon River Pack.

Moon River Pack is a pack located at the west most part of the werewolf kingdom. It is known to be the furthest pack from the capital. That being said, we are also one of poorest and less civilized packs due to difficult access to the capital which is the center of trade and modernization within the whole territory. We barely have access to the most advanced technology and first class services.

Even though Moon River is a very small and humble pack, I grew up with so much love, joy, and contentment in this place. Our pack does not have flashy palaces or crowded markets or advanced technology for moving vehicles and electric fences, but what we have is a very good educational system and that made us famous across the land. It even made people from other packs and even from the capital come to our pack to study. It is a place where you could actually learn and receive high quality teaching and mentoring while also meeting a very diverse group of students and educators, giving you wide view to the whole werewolf culture. This is the thing that I enjoyed the most in our pack. I have always been good at studying and I am proud of it. I even graduated with the highest honor among the whole batch of graduates in the whole werewolf territory.

My parents are Alpha Adam Ceasar and Luna Celine Ceasar of the Moon River Pack. They were two great leaders to the pack. My dad is not as strong and wealthy as the other alphas within the werewolves’ territory but he is known to be one of the smartest. He was once a member of the royal army and worked on the tactics group. He was trained to make effective plans and winning decisions when it comes to war. Aside from working in the tactics group for war, he is also very knowledgeable about the laws of werewolves and once served the judiciary branch after serving as member the royal army. After some years of working at the capital, he went back to our pack with all the trainings and wisdom he got from serving the army and the judiciary branch. He then took the position of an alpha, taking it after the former alpha who is his father. He met his mate, my mother, and made her his luna. My mother is the girl version of my dad. She’s very smart and clever. Sometimes my dad would even end up leaving some important pack works to her because he knows that mom is very competent and good at decision making. As leaders, they were loved and respected by the whole pack and I am very proud of that. I grew looking up to them. They were a very joyous love story, a very beautiful love song. They are my definition of a couple full of love.

I grew up having a dad protecting me, a mom supporting me, and a whole pack to enjoy life with. But the entirety of this beautiful and peaceful life was broken when the ogres occupied the land adjacent to the Moon River territory. Because the land they just settled in is barren, they would always come to the pack, steal our food and money. The first couple of intrusions where mainly to steal from us. But after my father stationed more patrols at the border and strategically placed skilled warriors at key places such as the pack house, banks, and food warehouses, the ogres became aggressive and they did not just come to steal, they would also kill and destroy. It was case of robbery turned into war. Even though my father is very good at planning and designing war tactics, he is not that strong as other alphas. He would just lead his warriors to war with amazing theories and plan of winning but he lack power on execution.

A lot of establishment, including schools and other educational institutions, closed. Our pack lasted for several months since the start of the attacks, but lately, attacks happen more often making our pack weaker than before. A lot of our assets were stolen and many of our warriors and pack members died. We were left with few of our warriors to protect our land. Terror foster to faces of every pack member that is still alive, especially the children. We were barely living, with no food to nourish ourselves at all. Some other packs sent help but it was not enough.

The last attack was the worst of all. We all know that this fight is between wolves and ogres. But unexpectedly, there were actually wolves on the ogres side too. We were all surprised to see both ogres and wolves attack our pack. We were clueless of what actually is happening with our own kind siding with the ogres. Both pack leaders, the Alpha and the Luna, went on a full on fight but did not made it. It was so much pain to see my parents died before my eyes. My mother was ruthlessly beheaded by an exceptionally huge wolf. My father howled seeing his mate without life. He was so heartbroken and was lost out of his mind. It must have been very painful for him. He automatically run to my mother’s side and wept there, ignoring all the fight that is happening around him. This is a very usual nature among mated wolves, that once their mates die, they would feel an extreme pain and sorrow that they would ignore everything and just hope to die too. The same wolf who killed my mother took advantage of my mourning father, bit him by the neck and beheaded him too. It was very heartbreaking to see him that helpless. I couldn’t blame him though. He belonged to my mom. He ought to be by her side. I just wish they could’ve taken me too with them.

Reinforcement from other packs and the palace came but it was too late. My parents are gone.

~~~

After reminding myself of my purpose here, I closed my eyes, inhaled and exhaled three deep breath, and took the courage to lift up my chin and marched towards the center of the court, just beside the prince. He is looking at me so intently as if he’s going to eat me alive. I took every ounce of courge I have and return his gaze but I cannot take it. After a very few seconds, I moved my gaze away from him. He has this certain aura that drowns me into his presence but after hearing what he just said and thinking he must really hate me right now, I feel quite uneasy around him and suddenly felt this urgency to ignore him.

He was so breathtaking. His alpha presence is so dominating that I felt knees weaken. His very masculine and contoured face is so beautiful. His green eyes are so mesmerizing and those red lips of him are looking so kissable. And just to mention, his towering height and huge body built are jaw droppers. He has this certain scent like of a white musk that is really inviting, it suddenly makes my mind go blank. Everything about him just left me star struck. If he would have just been my mate, everything will be perfect. But he is not. Why would the moon goddess mate this perfect prince to a poor girl like me. We are from two different worlds. He even thinks I’m not worthy of him.

I am now right beside the prince and before the emperor and the empress. I’m trying to find the perfect greetings and words to say but could not bring myself to speak. To begin with honestly, I really don’t have an idea of what to say after the lengthy speech of disapproval from the prince. So what I did was just to look at the empress. This might be so disturbing, that I’m directly looking at the empress but I needed her to begin the talking because she was actually the one who suggested this engagement.

“It’s nice to have you here Anne. Thank you for coming. I know you must be really devastated right now and is still mourning over the loss of your parents but I do hope too, that you understand why we are being hasty here. The situation of your pack needs and immediate action. We need to settle the plan of your engagement with the prince.,” said the empress.

I can see from my peripheral vision how the first prince clenched his jaws and closed his fist as the empress spoke. He must totally hate the idea of me becoming his fiancé and soon be his wife. The distaste is so evident in his face. I can feel him tensing up. I suddenly feel like a villain destroying his plans.

“I do understand, your highness. In fact, I am grateful that you have invited me over here and proposed a way to help my pack. I am very broken right now and I cannot think of anything that will save my people. And here you are supporting me,” I replied.

It’s the empress’ idea to engage me with the prince. According to her, the situation of our pack is not simple and it needs intervention by the palace. Leaving the pack without an alpha is really dangerous but so is putting just anyone else to the position without any consideration. I am the heir of the Ceasar legacy and leadership on the Moon River Pack but since I am only seventeen and is too weak and inexperienced to become the alpha, they cannot allow me to take the position specially in this type of situation. The urgency and complexity of making the decision of who to put in the alpha position got everything messed up and she suggested that it is best if it would be the prince to become the new alpha while I take the position of the luna. The prince will be taking responsibility for the protection and recovery of the pack while I still carry the Ceasar legacy of leading the Moon River Pack. If he will be the alpha and I will be the luna, that means we need to be married to each other.

But I cannot do it knowing it is against the will of the first prince. I may be so desperate for help but forcing him is not an option. He said he would like to marry his mate that the moon goddess has destined for him. He also belong to her, his mate. I would not take that happiness from them just because I’m needy. If he agrees later on, then I am grateful. If not, I will accept it. There must be another way the royal family could help me.

“I am deep sorrow too as I received the news about your parents passing,” said the emperor. “My condolences goes with you and the whole pack. Adam was a good friend of mine and I would do anything to help the pack he once lead. I know how great as couple your parents are. Their eyes were always filled with love for each. They were a picture of a perfect partners. It is surely a great loss for us but we have to move on. Go back to reality and solve things out. Today, we will be discussing about the idea of having the two of you married and see if this will make sense. If we have decided that this is the best choice to do, then we will do it even if marriage is needed. But also be reminded that this is just a proposal and we will not be forcing the two of you against your will.” I felt so assured by the emperor’s word but something really feels so wrong.

My parents were really a picture of love just like what the emperor has said. I’ve always look up to their kind of relationship. It is something that I wanted to have too. A relationship which results from mutual love and not just because of some agreement. I want to meet and marry my mate. I want to love someone and be loved back the same way I love him. Wouldn’t it be amazing to start a family and grow old with my mate just like what my parents did?

After being reminded of how much I dreamt of having a love story like my parents’, I have decided, I won’t be forcing things anymore. In the first place, I am not even worthy of the prince. The title of a princess will only suit someone who is beautiful, smart, and with great background. I don’t want to be in a place I don’t belong to and I don’t want someone in my place when they don’t want to. This is my problem and my responsibility. I have decided that I won’t be taking the prince to share this burden with me. I will refuse the engagement.

“I promise to do my best to help the Moon River Pack. Thank you for considering me to become their next alpha.”

I was just about to withdraw myself from the idea of this engagement but I wasn’t able to because Prince Erlan suddenly spoke these words.

For the second time today, I found myself frozen. Am I hearing things right? Is this a joke?