Page 53 of The Alien Noble's Little Human

“It’s an emergency. Hanai was given a serum from the Cloud Kingdom. They thought it would work, but all it did was make her condition deteriorate even further. She’s unconscious!”

“Oh, no,” I mutter. “Is she still in her bedroom?”

“Yeah,” replies Taurek, his voice breaking. “Please, I need your help more than ever, and so does she.” He throws his hands together. I’ve never seen him look more vulnerable and afraid than I do at this moment, noticing he too is on the verge of tears. I don’t hesitate.

“Okay,” I say firmly. “Let me grab the roxolite, then take me down to a sterile environment.”

He taps his foot impatiently as I gather the ingredients. I then hastily follow behind him as he leads the way through various twists and turns, taking me to a fresh, clean kitchen that looks more like a laboratory than somewhere one cooks food.

“How long will it take?” he asks with a shaky voice.

“I’m afraid the process itself is slow going. Every step has to be perfect and well-executed, but if you help then we can speed things up.”

“Alright,” he says immediately. “You tell me what to do, and I’ll follow.” It almost shocks me to hear this, especially now. He’s the Prince of Mountain Kingdom, and I’m down here like a glorified scullery maid. I reach over, taking his hand in mine and giving him a reassuring squeeze.

“Taurek, we’re going to save your daughter, I promise.” His eyes light up with confidence, allowing him to speak with restored grace. Even I find myself motivated by my own words to accomplish the task at hand.

He rushes to grab all of the equipment I need as I carefully remove the roxolite from its wrapping. The purple rock still glows as vibrant as when it was embedded within the mine walls.

Now that I have the roxolite in front of me, the time has come to put this cure to the test. Voices in the back of my head start to whisper doubts, but I tune them out. My sole motivation now is Hanai herself, her face remaining as a still image in my mind. And the thought of the smile on Taurek’s face at the sight of the healthy glow returning to his daughter’s cheeks.

I take a deep breath and get to work creating the serum, starting by having Taurek grind down a chunk of roxolite. I add the now powdered substance into a bowl, adding a touch of salt and slowly adding a chemical mix to extract its healing properties.

I take things slowly, noticing how nervous Taurek is growing from the corner of my eye.

“I’m sorry this is taking a while,” I tell him. “If I go too fast then I could mess this whole batch up.”

“I understand,” he says, his forehead furrowed, seemingly locked in a battle of logic and emotion.

Once all of the chemical mix is added, I then strain the mixture, letting liquid accumulate in a small vial below. Soon, I have enough, pulling some into a syringe. I turn to Taurek, showing him what is hopefully the answer to all of Hanai’s problems.

He leads me to his daughter’s quarters. Upon our entry, he looks around, his nervousness replaced with what looks to me like annoyance. He acts as if he’s expecting to find someone else here. I consider asking if he wants Kantha here with us, but I decide against it.

My heart drops when I spot Hanai on the bed, looking worse than she did when we left. Rushing to her side, I throw a hand to her neck. Her pulse has become even more oddly irregular, veering from extremely fast and hard to virtually nonexistent in the span of seconds. Her chest barely moves with shallow breaths. Taurek joins me at the bed, tears now welling in his eyes as he glances down at his daughter.

I pull up Hanai’s sleeve.Here we go.I slowly pierce her skin and inject the serum. After I do so, I take a step back, praying that all our efforts were worth it.Come on, Hanai. Wake up, wake up!

A few seconds pass, and in that split moment of time, everything changes. Her dulled skin now returns to its own vibrancy that I had never seen before. Her breathing becomes normal, as does her pulse when I go to check it.

But the biggest shock comes when she opens her eyes, batting them as if waking from a peaceful sleep. I’m too stunned to speak, as is Taurek, when Hanai slowly moves her gaze to meet his.

“Daddy?”

“Hanai,” he gasps, the tears finally falling. He leans down, wrapping his arms around his daughter. They bury their faces in each other’s necks as he silently sobs. I’m only glad they’re tears of joy. I take a step back, giving them some space to relish in their reunion.

My heart leaps with joy and relief, knowing I can take my leave after doing one last good deed for the prince of the Mountain Kingdom.I did it,I think to myself as I giggle with delight.I helped save Hanai’s life. We really did it.

27

TAUREK

Irealize as I wake up that I might not have slept so well in years. My daughter is cured and back to her normal self after so long. I can finally relax, feeling a literal weight being lifted off of my spirit.

With Hanai back in good health, I can at last take things easy for a while.Normally at this time of the morning, I’d be consulting with a doctor for the next steps on Hanai’s healthcare journey, only to be left with no answers.

Or trudging through impassable trails on deadly mountains, feeling pulled to my fated mate beside me.

Today is a new day, the start of the rest of my life where it can be just me, Hanai, and Zaya.

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