I couldn’t help but feel bitter in my heart. Ethan was the same when he was the lycan king. The most important thing for him was always rendering his service to the people as their leader. He almost ignored his own health. In the end, his body had deteriorated to the point that no one could cure him. I sighed and didn’t know how to persuade Rufus. Before he lost his memory, he would listen to Crystal. Now that he didn’t remember anything, he listened to nobody.
“Mom, don’t worry. I know what I’m doing,” he reassured, sensing my distress.
I sighed and raised my sight at him at Rufus, complaining, “You’re a grown up, and I can’t decide for you. I just hope that you really know what you’re doing.”
After a brief pause, I asked, “So what happened this time? How could the vampire catch you off guard?” Rufus tightened his lips, and his eyes flashed a trace of anger. As soon as he talked about the vampires, his demeanor changed drastically for the worst. “I didn’t expect that the Alpha of the Cherry Bay Pack had already been killed by the vampires. What was more, his corpse was turned into a puppet by a vampire who had the power to command it. They deceived and led me into a trap.”
“What kind of trap could make you so badly injured?” I didn’t understand. My son is so powerful that hardly nobody could harm him, except maybe a witch.
“At that time, the trap was set with many complicated spells. One of them was crafted from the blood of a witch mixed with the blood of a vampire. It was the magic with the same strong deterrent effect on a werewolf as a silver bullet,” Rufus said in a low voice with a gloomy expression on his face.
Hearing this, I felt a little uneasy. If such was the case, it meant that the vampires had probably formed an alliance with the witches. For the past hundreds of years, except for black witches, most witches and wizards had always been neutral. How could they suddenly be willing to help the vampires fight the werewolves?
“Fortunately, Adela came to my rescue and applied some healing herbs on my wound. Otherwise, I would have already been dead,” Rufus added, u Subconsciously, I took a look at the girl who had been standing by the bed without saying a word from the very beginning. The girl wore her hair in braids and kept her head lowered. Noticing how her ears were a little flushed, I could tell that she was a shy and reserved person.
I had a strange feeling in my gut. Crystal was supposed to be the one who saved Rufus. I knew everything because she told me so. But why did the girl in front of me claimed she rescued Rufus?
Who was lying?
Laura’s POV
Naturally, I believed Crystal more. My prejudice was more or less objective, but my instinct told me there was more to this girl named Adela than she looked.
I smiled at Adela kindly and pulled her to sit down. “Can you tell me why you happened to be there and found Rufus?”
Adela raised her gaze at me, her plump, smooth face expressing a hint of shyness. In a low voice, she answered, “I’m a professional painter. When I went to the suburb to paint that day, and I came across King Rufus when he was injured…”
I turned to examine the artwork and painting tools in the corner. A soldier delivered them here just now. According to the people who followed Rufus, this young woman named Adela was indeed found in the area with her painting tools.
That seemed plausible, but when I looked at Adela, I couldn’t help but feel a peculiar connection.
I wasn’t one to keep my doubts to myself. If there was an issue, I would always address it directly. That was why I went right ahead and asked Adela, “Have I met you before?”
Adela seemed to feel an instant pang of embarrassment. She looked uncomfortable and replied, “I attended the ball last time. Maybe you saw me there.”
I frowned and tried to recall this girl from memory, but I came up empty. I would not deny; her face was utterly beautiful. Beautiful women such as this one always had a great impression on me. Every time I’d see them, I’d think whether or not they were deserving of Rufus.
Even though I know Rufus wouldn’t be interested in them, my concerns remained. I knew I said didn’t care, but my concerns about Rufus’ marriage still persisted. After all, he was of age to get married now. Thinking of this, I couldn’t help but sigh. Startled, Adela said in a tearful voice, “Have I disappointed you in any way?”
I was surprised. She was too timid even though she was the daughter of an Alpha. Why did she look like she had never seen an elephant before? From what I was seeing, her behavior didn’t match her identity. I couldn’t help but pull a long face. Her fearful reaction made me feel like an old witch who devoured people.
This further added to my suspicions of her true identity. There would be no reason for me to stop looking into her, even if investigation turned up no cause for concern over her identity.
Without changing my tone and showing no doubt, I asked “How did you meet Rufus? And how did you save him? I heard the cliff was steep. Why did you go down there?”
“I saw the king fall off the cliff, so I rushed down without hesitation. Fortunately, I learned how to swim when I was a child. I risked my life to get him out of there.” Adela’s answer to my question was heartfelt and genuine. When I observed her facial expression, she didn’t flinch and just looked straight into my eyes.
Was what she said true? Did this girl really save Rufus?
Her words did make sense. People who didn’t know the truth could imagine what happened based from her story.
But somehow, I just didn’t want to believe her. Perhaps I was just biased. I’d rather believe Crystal saved Rufus than this girl in front of me.
At this moment, the door suddenly opened. Crystal rushed in angrily and glared at Adela. “Nonsense! You didn’t save him at all!”
I looked at Crystal and then at Adela in bewilderment. Suddenly, I realized something. Adela’s hairstyle, behavior, expression, and tone mirrored Crystal’s when the latter first entered the imperial palace!
Crystal’s POV
When the soldiers informed me that someone had taken credit without an explanation, I believed it was the vampires’ ploy.
I was enraged. I hadn’t expected these vampires to be so persistent!
After hurriedly bidding the soldiers goodbye, I entered the lycan king’s palace and directly marched to Rufus’ room. I was worried that the vampires’ conspiracy would succeed again.
But when I reached the door, I hesitated. I didn’t know if I was in a position to inquire about Rufus. I stood by the door for a while, scratching my ears and cheeks, but couldn’t come up with a suitable excuse. I carefully pushed the door and opened it slightly so I could survey the situation inside.
I convinced myself that if things weren’t as serious as I believed them to be, then I was better off leaving.
The crack slowly widened. I was instantly greeted with the sight of a beautiful coy she-wolf standing beside Rufus’ bed. She was watching him shyly. She had a sweet and charming expression on her face, looking as if she wanted to wrap her body around him.
Rufus was lying on the bed. The doctor who was changing his dressing was sweating profusely as he put away a long piece of gauze that was stained with blood.
The she-wolf gently mopped away the cold sweat that drenched Rufus’ forehead with her handkerchief. Her eyes were filled with pity. Although Rufus maintained a stoic expression, he didn’t refuse the she- wolf’s kindness.
My blood began boiling when I saw this cozy scene. Damn it! How could he not deny her help? Why didn’t he refuse her? Wasn’t he disinterested in women? The she-wolf stood in such close proximity to him, but he didn’t push her away.
I was so furious that I almost couldn’t restrain myself from rushing in and slapping the woman’s hand away.
But my rational mind interrupted me, telling me that I couldn’t stop Rufus from finding new happiness.
My fingers curled into fists as the soldier’s words ran on a loop in my mind. “It’s Miss Adela. She saved the king.”
These words struck my already volatile nerves.
Bastard! Who was this she-wolf? How dare she take the credit for something she hadn’t done?
Laura, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, also asked her how she had saved Rufus.
The she-wolf confidently made up a long story and Laura almost believed her.
I couldn’t tolerate it anymore. I threw the door open and charged inside. I directly approached the she- wolf and called her out as a liar.
She was taken aback for a second, and a hint of panic flashed in her eyes.
From the corner of my eye, I noticed Rufus turn around and regard me suspiciously.
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