Chapter 3 A mother's wrath

8 YEARS LATER~~~~

Lyra's POV

I wipe the sweat on my forehead and continue to wash the pile of clothes. I was rushing because I still had to go to the market to buy clothing materials.

After several years of learning how to make ladies' clothing designs, people were beginning to patronize me.

Oceania was a home of hospitality when we first migrated here, but they began to have a tiny tolerance for us Genovians because of Ragnar's strict marketing dealings with them after he ascended the throne.

The enmity was so fierce that those Genovians in the city were bombarded back home, but thankfully we were able to escape to this countryside. Even though we were subjected to heavy racism, it was still bearable.

I am delighted that we didn't give up because recently, the two countries decided to make a union through marriage.

Of course, I didn't get indulged in the gossip to know the Genovian Royalty the Princess of Oceania was getting married to. I was rather delighted because the situation was helping me to get customers, especially because their hunting festival was in two days and everyone in this village wanted a new dress.

"Mother, mother!" Juliana screamed, panting heavily as she ran towards me.

"Do you want me to spank you? You know Auntie is resting inside and you keep disturbing the area with your loud voice" I cautioned.

"Some scary soldiers took Julian away to the palace because he caught a boar!"

"Did he go to the forest again? I told him that we have enough money for tonight's food" My heart dropped.

"Yes, mother. They are not from the village...."

"What are you still waiting for?!" Some women from the neighborhood bagged into our small compound. "They are soldiers from your country. Who knows...they might spare your son. One of them mentioned taking him to their Alpha!"

"I heard that their Alpha is here to celebrate the hunting festival with us. He was known to disrespectfully summon leaders, but he had traveled here just to impress our Alpha to marry our Princess. Their soldiers have been touring our country for the past week. They would want to train your son as their soldier after they witness what he caught. Even though I was surprised, I still can't believe that he is the same age as my son...."

I wobbled backward as their voices began to sound far away. My body felt exceptionally cold, body shivering in fear as I ran like a mentally disturbed woman. "Don't go outside unless you don't want to see me again!" I growled in a shaky voice at Juliana and wiped my soapy hand on my clothes. She scurried into the house before I could pull her forward.

Lusine's aunt, my greatest savior, yawned continuously as she walked towards me, eyebrows creased in worry "What is going on?"

"I need to meet up with those soldiers before they get to the palace. You see the reason why I never wanted him to leave the house? He has gotten me in trouble" I lamented, on the verge of crying.

Without waiting for her response, I pushed the rickety door and frantically searched for my purse, hands trembling as fear gripped me.

I opened it, and tears almost fell from my eyes. The money I was supposed to use to buy materials will have to go for renting a horse.

The journey to the place I would rent a horse was about three hours. I would have preferred transforming into my wolf, but I would get easily exhausted when I haven't eaten since morning. I had been working throughout. All because I don't want my kids to starve.

I dashed out of the house as the tears I had been trying hard to hold for years began to fall freely. My painful days flashed through me, causing an awakening to my body system. All my hard work would be in vain the moment the soldiers familiar with my ex-mate set their eyes on my son. My son is an extreme replica of Ragnar while my daughter is a copy of me. Julian possesses the exact similarities to his father, stubbornness, hunting skills, and huge stature. He looks ten even though he was just seven years old.

God knows I had tried to grow his hair to give him a different look, but it just wasn't working.

Anyone who had seen the two of them wouldn't think twice before saying that they were related, and I would rather die than let that vicious being claim my kids as his. The thought of that made my body boil in rage. I growled in annoyance at my assumption and shifted into my whole wolf form, running at full speed.

Within an hour, I got to the livery stable, but someone else had rented the horse for three days. I thought the owner was being racist until he swore with his life that it was only one horse used for his business. What's worse is that he is the one who runs a livery stable business here.

How unfortunate.

I couldn't risk wasting one more hour.

Feeling dejected, I stopped at a food vendor to eat. The other customers looked at me weirdly as I aggressively stuffed the food in my mouth. I heard someone mocked, "She looks like a foreign beggar."

Considering my situation, I wouldn't care about eating, but I had to because my wolf might collapse on the way. My weak self might also not be able to summon my invisibility power if I find myself in a desperate condition.

Once I felt energized, I embarked on my journey through the route I knew might be the easiest way to the palace. I was not familiar with locations in Oceania because I had lived in hiding, not wanting anything to get people's attention. According to the people, it takes a day and a half to get to the palace if the horse is at high speed.

Without allowing anything to weigh me down, I began my journey, praying to the Almighty to let this route I was about to take be the same place the soldiers took.

Like a pack of wolves on the hunt, I ran tirelessly through the shadowy forest, my paws beating a steady rhythm on the forest floor. The night was a blur of speed, the wind whipping through my fur as I navigated the darkness with my keen sense of smell.

As dawn broke through the trees, the exhaustion of the chase settled deep in my bones. Slowing to a halt, I caught the first rays of sunlight, my eyes aching from the sudden change in light.

I had taken the longest route and now it's morning.

I almost broke down as another wave of tears clouded my eyes at the realization that I had almost a day left before getting to the palace. I could not go back again to pass the other route.

Besides, which of those villagers would trust me with their clothes again, before I could succeed in getting my boy back, it would take us roughly a day to get back, and they would have been done with their hunting festival.

With the single-minded focus of a mother seeking her child, I forged ahead, undeterred by the scorching sun of the desert or the treacherous twists and turns of the terrain.

As I navigated the rugged landscape, my thoughts were filled with the image of my son, his face etched in my mind as a beacon of hope. The biting cold of the desert nights, the hunger pangs in my belly, and the relentless thirst for water were merely obstacles on my quest, quickly forgotten as I kept my sights on the horizon.

Finally, my second night on this journey. I winced in pain at the wound on my left arm. I was shivering terribly as blood rushed out but I couldn't bring myself to give up.

As my gaze lifted from the dusty ground, the sight of the distant royal camp brought a flicker of recognition to my tired eyes. Even from afar, I could hear the lively chatter of servants bustling about and the echoes of soldiers' orders ringing through the air.

Despite the familiar scene, my heart pounded in my chest. The camp seemed both a sanctuary and a reminder of all that I had left behind. Yet, as I pressed forward, I knew that my son was somewhere in that camp.

The Royal family had settled there for tomorrow's hunting festival.

I moved to a corner of the hill in an attempt to treat myself with some herbal leaves I cut on my way. The moment I settled on a clear space, I heard footsteps.

I froze on my spot when it got closer.

"I'm very sure that I heard someone groaning in pain," the tiny voice insisted and then showed up before me.

The petite lady dressed in a beautiful uniform staggered in fear. Suddenly, she creased her brows like she just got a hint of recognition. She looked shocked as she stared at me pitifully, "Why are you looking like this, my Princess?" She cried out and covered her mouth. "Were you trying to escape from marrying the Alpha of Genovia?!"