The Crown's Entrapment

In another part of the camp, Gideon and Bartos went back to their respective tents. Bartos was in deep thought when Gideon suddenly barged inside his tent.

“Prince Ezekiel already had someone to prepare the tents for our cavalry’s arrival,” Gideon shrugged. “I insisted that it’s not needed, but he’s stubborn in saying that our men would need a comfortable place to rest in this camp.”

He then chuckled, “Hah, I feel touched though. It’s the first time we actually have a nice shelter like this before the battle. Truly, humans are indeed different from us.”

“Of course, they are,” Bartos scoffed. “They’re weaker. And unlike us, their bodies can’t withstand all kinds of weather.”

Gideon raised an eyebrow as he scoffed, “What’s with the mood? Aren’t you supposed to be in high spirits since you and Jayra seem to be on the same page? You unexpectedly found your mate, and she’s even an open-minded human who’s willing to give you a shot. At the very least, don’t blow it up with that temper of yours.”

Bartos refused to comment. In reality, he was acting like that because he was nervous. Jayra had asked him to visit her in her tent tonight so that she could begin removing his scar, and he didn’t know how he would act around her.

“Hey. Are you even with me? You look lost…” Gideon asked him with furrowed brows.

Once again, Bartos didn’t reply. Instead, he took in a deep breath before he stood up and said, “I’ll be going out for a while.”

Leaving the tent, Bartos didn’t bother waiting for Gideon’s reply as he walked towards Jayra’s tent. His steps were taken slow pace, his hesitation still gripping him on whether or not he should continue with what he was about to do.

‘It’s a bad idea to be confined in a small space with her alone like this,’ Bartos pensively thought. “I should’ve asked her to do her work in Gideon’s tent instead. At least Gideon would be around by then…’

Still, his feet took him to his destination as he finally reached Jayra’s tent. With a body’s distance from the entrance, he didn’t know how long he stood there rooted in place. Even now, he was still debating himself on whether or not to announce his presence to her.

“This is a bad idea,” he murmured with a sigh. Changing his mind, he was about to turn around when the tent’s entrance suddenly opened.

“Huh… I knew it was you,” Jayra greeted him with a warm smile. “I felt your presence outside for a while now. What’s keeping you?”

Bartos gulped. He didn’t know how to respond. He was about to try and leave again when he suddenly felt a shot of electricity travel through his veins. Looking down, Jayra had suddenly held his wrist, keeping him in place before she then unceremoniously pulled him inside her tent.

“Wouldn’t it be inappropriate of me to enter a maiden’s tent like this?” Bartos couldn’t help but ask. He was well aware of human customs, especially those of the Ebodian people since their kingdom was closely connected with theirs. A part of Ebodian land was in the southern part of Cordon, while the remaining part was already encompassed by bodies of water.

“Hmm… I’m a healer apart from being a mage, Lord Bartos. It’s only natural for me to receive both male and female visitors alike often,” Jayra reassured him as she led him to down to a seat in front of her.

“Just call me Bartos,” he suggested with a low tone.

Jayra simply smiled at his words. Whether or not she acknowledged them was a mystery as she then asked, “So, if I’m supposed to be your mate, how come you’re always so grumpy around me the first time we met, Bartos?”

“I’m in denial. For me, it’s hard to accept that my mate is a human. I feel that it’s too complicated to handle, especially since humans are weak compared to our kind,” Bartos confessed. “Besides, it’s my nature… being grumpy more often than not. I can’t help it. I have a temper.”

Humming at his answer, Jayra sat in front of him as she began her work. Leaning into him, she was hovering way too close to him while she looked at his scar.

She was nodding as she said, “Alright. I understand where you’re coming from. I’m honestly worried too since I actually have no experience in relationships. This is kind of a new thing for me, but don’t worry. I’m sure I have enough experience just from listening to all of my previous patients’ experiences.”

Letting her work, Bartos gulped when Jayra touched his scar. Just from that, he was already burning, her fingertips filling him with enough heat that it was almost painful for him to keep himself calm. It was way too much, and he was already struggling not to go feral at this point.

‘Relax… Relaxxx… Calm your nerves…’ he inwardly chanted together with the wolf within him. He unknowingly closed his eyes, avoiding to drool all over the beautiful and angelic face in front of him.

“This scar’s pretty deep, but I’m confident that I can remove it. It’ll just take a bit of time due to how old the scar is,” Jayra coolly explained before she eventually let her deviousness get to her.

“Although, would you mind telling me where you got it?” She couldn’t help but smile. She already couldn’t help but stare closely at the man, while the latter still had his eyes closed, completely unaware of what she was doing.

Looking at it now, she still couldn’t believe that her destiny would exactly be like her friend, Xenia… Sure, he was a werewolf, but she still considered herself lucky knowing that Bartos was one of the best in Cordon. And that wasn’t to mention how handsome he was despite the scar on his face.

She could probably get over her initial feelings of creepiness towards him just based on how good he looked. Besides, she also liked a roguish and a prankster-like partner like Bartos.

As for his temper? Well, she was confident she could handle this brute enough along with some of her annoying uncomfortable feelings for the man. Everything was perfect for her. So long as Bartos wasn’t the type to physically hit or abuse women, she could easily live with having him as a partner.

“Tell me, Bartos, do you hit women?” Jayra directly asked, causing Bartos to open his eyes in astonishment.

Staring back at her, he immediately denied, “No! I’ll never hurt my mate. I’ll only protect and take care of her with all my might, and I will love her with all my heart.” He then passionately added, “She will be the only woman for me, just as I will be the only man for her.”

Hearing his reply, Jayra’s lips stretched into a wide smile as she answered, “Alright then. Make sure you keep to your words then. Because if you don’t, I will purposefully use all my knowledge in magic and spells to make you suffer. I will destroy you so utterly and completely that nobody would even be able to find a body no matter how much they tried. And that’s only after I’ve already had you wish for death with how much pain and suffering I will inflict on you.”

Bartos gulped, his eyes wide at how graphic and full of contempt Jayra’s threat was to him. Still, he was in too much awe that it took a bit of time for her words to register in his head. “You mean- You and I…”

Instead of answering, Jayra leaned closer and pressed her lips against his. It was as sudden as it was exquisite, and Bartos immediately lost consciousness before he could even realize what was happening.

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