Devotion

Chapter 40

Aurora

After calming Ali down, Caz was still suspicious, but upon seeing me use my magic with the bracelet, he relaxed.

"Why?" he asked her as Seth treated her injuries. Ali chewed on her lip, trying to find the courage to explain why the second heir of the Lumar Kingdom was helping me. "My lady has sent me to protect you because she doesn't agree with her Majesty's actions," she said, wincing as Seth disinfected her wounds.

We all stayed quiet, trying to process everything. If the King and Queen of Lumar found out what their daughter and her lady-in-waiting were up to, they would immediately be sentenced to death. It was treason against the crown.

Seth's face flushed with crimson, likely embarrassed by his actions, but it's understandable once you're ordered to torture anyone from the Lumar Kingdom except the Princess, Prince, King, and Queen.

"How will you protect Princess Aurora?" Caz asked while chewing on a piece of steak. Based on her memories that I viewed earlier, Ali had not been educated to use her magic, making her defenseless.

She looked at Caz determinedly as she stood up and walked towards me. Her teal eyes were filled with fierceness. "You will train me in close combat," she announced, causing Caz to choke on his food and Seth's jaw to drop open. No one had ever willingly demanded to be taught close combat, especially Ashes.

Grinning, I passed a cup of water to Caz to help soothe his coughs as he looked at Ali, incredulously. "Do you have any idea what the hell you just asked?" he scolded. Even after we met 8 months ago, he's always been a sweetheart. He's never liked the idea of hurting women or women being hurt. If he ever has to hurt a woman, he does it out of pure defense.

She turned to look at him, unfazed by the scolding she was receiving. Her body shifted to face him, holding her chin up high. "I know what I said," she said sternly. They both glared at each other, refusing to back down. They looked like two stubborn bulls about to obliterate each other as Seth and I glanced at each other.

Seth never finished treating her wounds, but with how stubborn the two were, it was evident that they would not be leaving the restaurant for the next few hours. I stood up and began to walk away when Seth caught up to me. "Aren't you staying with them?" he asked as we began to walk down the streets.

He grinned and rolled his eyes. "If you think I'm staying with those two bulls, you're sorely mistaken," he groaned, kicking the rock that was in his way. We kept walking until we reached a small park by Erix manor. The park was extremely small but cozy. There was a small lake covered in lotus flowers with a little deck nearby. We sat on the deck and looked towards the lake. It was so peaceful, and it was the calmest I'd felt in years.

Seth reached towards the lake to grab a lotus flower and handed it to me with a big smile. "Erix told us that we should give you a flower every time we're with you," he mumbled shyly as I smiled. The lotus flower was a beautiful white until my hands touched the tips of the petals, causing the lotus flower to turn a lavender color. Seth and I looked at each other, surprised at the sudden color change.

"Did you?" he asked, trying to process the change in color. I wasn't sure how to process this. I knew that my power unleashed more whenever I touched flowers, but I never had the ability to change them. Why did it change? What did it mean? Before I could answer the question, the lavender lotus flower began to float and head towards the others.

We both watched silently as all the lotus flowers began to dance around, leaving a small trail of petals throughout the lake. When the lavender one began to float through the air towards me, it slowly began to glow and transform into a beautiful key engraved with my name, landing on my lap before we heard whispers.

"Fulfill your Destiny... Your Kingdom awaits," was all that soft voice said before all the lotus flowers disappeared out of the blue. My eyes shifted to lavender while looking at the key when Erix sat down next to me. His warmth instantly made my inner turmoil at peace, but the sight of the key on my lap made my stomach lurch.

"What's this?" he asked as he reached for the key, but Seth grabbed his hand before he could touch it. He gave Erix a warning glare, but Erix glared back before grabbing my chin. His eyes widened when he saw the blue in my eyes had shifted to lavender.

"What the?" he asked before the ground began to rumble and the lake's waves were higher than anticipated, heading towards us. Seth and Erix immediately stood up to run, but something told me to stay. It was saying something. Something about it was begging me to stay, but that didn't stop my fiancé from throwing me over his shoulder and beginning to run.