Page 222 of The Wild Prince's Favorite
Ekata came back by her side, although she kept sending panicked glances toward the sky.
“Let’s get out of here,” she muttered, a bit late. “Before those bastards bring reinforcements...”
Something cracked loudly nearby.
On the other side of the river, a couple of fights were still going on besides Ekut’s, but everyone stopped and froze at the strange sounds coming their way, an ominous feeling filling the air. There were more noises of wood brutally creaking, a heavy thud, and then crisp steps on the rocks. Something large and heavy was coming toward them, and their steps were far too steady on the treacherous ground.
To her credit, Ekata extended a shaking hand before Alezya, and everyone turned their weapons south. The steps got closer, and everyone held their breaths as a large silhouette busted through the trees.
“Kassein?” Alezya gasped, unable to believe her eyes.
The man himself stood on the other side of the river, his eyes darker than ever before. In a split second, those dark irises met Alezya’s teary, shocked ones, and she saw him slowly take in her state, lying on the river bed, probably not looking good at all.
His eyes went from dark to hellish, and the nearest man hadn’t had a chance to move yet when Kassein kicked him brutally in the torso, sending him crashing down the rocks. Somewhere above their heads, Kein echoed his master’s fury with another deafening growl.
Kassein had just turned around when several men suddenly stepped out of the trees, long blades drawn, and Alezya couldn’t guess if they’d been waiting to ambush or if the foreign clans’ reinforcements had arrived at the worst possible moment. Either way, their timing was most unfortunate, as they ran right in Kassein’s path.
They hesitated for a second, before one of them launched themselves at him; he didn’t even get to finish his attack when Kassein’s large sword swung, and a limb flew.
“Oh, gods...” Ekata muttered.
Alezya was thinking the same. As much as she was relieved to see him, she had never seen Kassein look so furious or so terrifying.
He moved slowly, like a predator amongst prey, dominating the whole area effortlessly with his sole presence. He was simply walking, taking a couple of steps to place himself between Alezya and the incoming men, and yet no one dared to move an inch. Their eyes were riveted on him with a mix of raw fear and sheer terror, almost too scared to even blink.
Alezya swallowed slowly. The scene had gone so eerily quiet that she could hear her own frantic heartbeat and Ekata’s panted breaths.
The realization hit her: those men were all going to die. They had come as reinforcements to save men who were already deador dying, and they were all going to die. And judging by the ice-cold tension and the seconds that passed with everyone perfectly still, none of them were too eager to meet this god of death.
“K-Kassein,” she muttered, her voice breaking a little.
He slowly pivoted his head just enough that his eye met hers over his shoulder. It was the first time Alezya felt so much apprehension toward this man, and yet, she didn’t flinch.
“D-don’t,” she muttered. “Don’t hunt them.”
She didn’t have the exact word for “kill,” but she knew he would understand. She waited a couple more seconds before she redirected her eyes to the men who’d emerged from the trees, the ones who had survived the previous fight, and the ones who were stepping away from Ekut, crossing the river to join the others. Ekata supported her as she fought the pain to sit up.
“I’ll let you go,” she hissed, glaring at all of them with tears in her eyes. “I’ll prove what your clan leaders don’t want to believe. The Dragon Clan doesn’t want to kill you. This man could kill you all, but he won’t because I can ask him not to. Tell your clan leaders that if they follow my father and choose to fight, you won’t survive. Tell them to choose whether you all die or live.”
A few seconds of silence followed her words, before Ekata scoffed.
“Didn’t you hear her? Fuck off!”
Her voice seemed to jerk a couple of men into moving, and then, progressively, they all stepped away toward the trees, disappearing one after another. Alezya watched until all of them were gone, and Kassein glared at the tree line for a few seconds longer.
Then, he spun around and ran to her.
“Kassein,” she whispered.
“Alezya.”
He dropped to his knees next to her, immediately brushing Ekata’s hands aside to take her in his arms. One arm wrapped around her back to support her, while the other began checking her body for injuries, his eyes scanning every inch of her.
But Alezya had momentarily forgotten about the pain, too relieved to see him to care. She lifted her hands to his face, an overwhelming wave of relief filling her like never before. Only once she touched his face did she confirm that he was truly there, tears of happiness filling her eyes.
He pressed a long kiss to her forehead, and she closed her eyes, taking in his scent, her limbs relaxing as his familiar smell surrounded her. He was sweaty, and he looked like hell, but he was there for her, not an ounce of resentment to be seen, and that was all she needed.
Suddenly, while Kassein held her, something flashed to the top of her mind, and Alezya urgently patted his arm.
