How to Protect My Tyrant Alpha

04| Assassin Attack

Elaia gazed out of the carriage through the glass, staring at the signpost that said "entering Sargia city", the last city of the Lumina kingdom towards the border.

She had truly left her birthplace behind. She may have been a princess, but an unwanted princess born from the womb of the king's favorite personal servant. Living a cruel life as the king's illegitimate child made her tormented. The queen and the two princes disliked her. The king also acted as if everything was fine.

"Finally, I won't be beaten anymore. The queen mother will definitely miss that moment." Elaia took a deep breath, feeling the heavy burden in her heart lift a little.

"Are you alright, my lady?" Asked Soraya, the loyal servant Rhystan had placed beside Elaia specifically.

Elaia smiled slightly with a small nod.

Soraya was also one of the victims killed in her previous life for trying to restrain her from soldier, who was about to drag Elaia. Soraya, the loyal handmaiden that Elaia loved with all her heart. She would take care of her with all her might.

The maroon silk curtains on the window moved gently in the breeze, and she occasionally flicked them open to see Rhystan riding a horse, accompanying the carriage on the right side.

"Why didn't Rhystan sit here with me and ask you to accompany me instead? Why did he choose to ride a horse?"

Soraya smiled warmly, "Alpha Rhystan wants to keep this journey safe and smooth, My Lady. By being on a horse, he can better monitor his surroundings. He keeps walking beside you..." she whispered the last sentence.

"Or maybe he just doesn't want to sit with me." Elaia giggled at Soraya's stuttering reaction, trying to deny it.

Soraya looked at her, trying to be reassuring. "No, my lady. I'm sure he just wanted to ensure your safety."

"You defended him so hard, huh," Elaia narrowed her eyes, "It seems you became my handmaid not only to serve me but... To spy on me?"

As if caught off guard, Soraya stuttered, then in a stammered voice she said, "I don't understand what you're saying, my lady..."

"How much longer before we enter Bagaard territory?" asked Elaia, changing the subject, her soft voice almost drowned out by the rattling of the carriage wheels as they moved over the cobblestone road.

Soraya, sitting across from her, smiled in relief. "Not much longer, my queen. You must be missing home already, aren't you?"

Miss what? Elaia had wanted to escape the palace for a long time. Even though she was invisible in her husband's kingdom, at least no one beat her.

Soraya watched her queen, who was also a luna, carefully. "Are you all right, my lady?"

Elaia nodded, then turned her eyes back to the carriage window. The sun had already begun to set, the beautiful golden light beginning to turn into a darkening purple sky as the moon took the place of the sun.

Rhystan occasionally glanced at Elaia, the expression on his face indicating how full his head was. Many questions remained, as well as an uneasy feeling that was hard to shake.

"She must feel burdened by this marriage." Rhystan thought as he glanced at Elaia, who leaned her head against the window frame and closed her eyes.

Elaia felt as if her waist would fall off after hours of sitting. Even lying down in the carriage felt uncomfortable, unlike in bed.

Then suddenly Rhystan called out loud and clear.

"We're going to rest here and spend the night!" Rhystan said.

The carriages and horses of the guards and knights began to stand still.

"Rhystan!" Theodore shouted as he brought his horse closer. He was the Beta who had also been Alpha Rhystan's best friend since the Academy. "There are no inns nearby, we'll be at the border soon. We better--"

"We'll pitch tents," Rhystan said as he looked at Elaia, who looked confused, "Our horses seem to be exhausted as well. It can't hurt to be a day behind schedule."

Theodore clearly disagreed with this decision. He tossed his hair back, "A day, you say? We've already stopped many times. If we stop again, it will take us even longer to reach the capital. We haven't even crossed the borders of the Lumina Kingdom yet." He said in a half-whisper for fear of being heard by Elaia, who continued to stare.

Elaia looked intently at Theodore, wondering what had happened to him when Mark started the rebellion in her previous life. Was Theo also killed by Mark's warrior? Or did he survive? Elaia did not see or hear of Theodore Dax's whereabouts.

Soraya, who continued to watch Elaia, could only guess what kind of fear surrounded her. After getting the order to rest, everything started to move and Soraya tried to distract Elaia.

"My lady, you must be tired. While we're waiting for the tents to be set up, why don't we go outside and enjoy the view? The sunset light looks beautiful from here too. Would you like that?" Soraya said excitedly.

Elaia smiled slightly, then looked out through the glass for a moment before getting out of the carriage.

She saw Rhystan's shadow jump from his gallant horse and lead him away.

"Even though he's known as a tyrant, he's the one who made sure everything went smoothly for me in that foreign kingdom. Let's not fall in love. Just run." Elaia said under her breath, her hand touching the glass that showed Rhystan's figure outside.

Elaia blinked when Soraya reprimanded her again, pulling her out of her reverie.

"Alpha Rhystan is indeed handsome, you are his wife. Just address him directly." Soraya said with a smile.

"What are you talking about? Let's go down, it was so tiring sitting in the carriage." Elaia rushed out with the help of the accompanying soldiers as she climbed the small stairs.

***

The clamor of warriors and servants from outside could be heard through the gap in the tent, but it did not calm Elaia. Cold sweat broke out on her forehead. Her eyes moved alertly, watching all sides around her. She knew that something life-threatening would soon present itself, and she had to stay alert.

In the midst of her anxiety, she heard footsteps approaching.

Is that the servant? Elaia muttered, and sure enough, the servant appeared at the tent door with a tray in his hand. His smile seemed friendly, for at first glance no one would suspect him.

"Good evening, Your Majesty. Here is your dinner," he said as he walked over and placed the tray in front of Elaia.

Elaia looked suspiciously at the food on the tray, then said, "I'm not really hungry. Why don't you eat it? Or just test it, I'm new to you, and you're strangers to me, so...

"Thank you, my queen. But I've already eaten. This food is especially for you, a queen and Luna for us werewolves. And I can assure you that this food is safe, we are also adjusting to the tastes in your kingdom." The servant smirked.

Elaia looked at the servant coldly, "That smile of yours... are you belittling me now?"

"No, Your Majesty. I would never dare to do that." Said the servant.

"Then..." Elaia mixed the soup, rice and other extra food. "Why don't we eat together? This is an order."

The servant looked increasingly agitated and excused himself. "Your Majesty, this is not in accordance with our rules, the Werewolves of Bagaard. I am not allowed to touch the food prepared, especially for you."

Elaia became more and more convinced that something was wrong. "Eat it, or I won't touch it at all," she said in a challenging tone.

The servant was backed into a corner, his face showing tension. He thought the Luna that Alpha had chosen would be as stupid as rumored, but she wasn't. He thought it would be easy to poison the weak human in front of him, so it was surprising when Elaia acted as if she knew there was something in her ood.

"Please don't make my job difficult. I am a servant, but not your personal servant. Just eat it." The servant began to show a rudeness that made Elaia even more annoyed.

"You really look down on me, huh? Why, because I'm human? Look, I may report your behavior to His Majesty, the Great Alpha that you are really proud of." Elaia said with a stern warning.

"Damn, you're a nuisance."

The servant finally lost his temper. His face changed from a fake smile to one full of anger.

Brakh!

The bowl Elaia was holding was knocked away, crashing to the ground and spilling its contents. Quickly, the servant grabbed the dagger hidden under his shirt and attacked Elaia. Elaia screamed and tried to dodge, but the servant grabbed her arm and pulled her close.

"Let go of me!" Elaia continued to struggle. Damn it, I can't die now.

"Stop resisting, or I'll kill you right now!" the servant threatened with the dagger at Elaia's throat.

Elaia screamed loudly, hoping someone would hear her. "Help! There's a killer! Somebody help me!"

Slit.

A slit grazed Elaia's ear, sending blood running down her shoulder.

Not long after, Theodore quickly entered the tent. His eyes widened as he saw Elaia in the servant's grip.

"Don't come any closer!"

"Let her go!" Theodore shouted as he drew his sword.

The fake servant pressed his dagger even closer to Elaia's neck, "I said don't come any closer, or I'll rip her beautiful neck apart."

"What the hell?! Everybody stop!" Theodore stopped the three warriors with him from pushing the assassin to hurt Elaia any further. "We must not be hasty." He whispered.

"Stand down or she dies!" he threatened in a shaking voice. He was afraid, but far more afraid of failing to finish Elaia than of losing his own life.

Before things got out of hand, Rhystan suddenly appeared through the tent door and his gaze fell on Elaia.

His anger peaked when he saw the drops of blood running down the neck of his wife, the Luna he had chosen without caring for the opinions of others. He did not even want to know if the moon goddess had prepared a mate for him.

"R-Rhystan..." Elaia mumbled incoherently, her body shaking with fear. She did not even notice the blood flowing from her slashed earlobe.

"Calm down." Rhystan said, drawing his sword, his eyes full of anger, "Let her go now!" he ordered in a low, threatening voice.

The servant shook his head, "No! Let her go or not, you will kill me. I'd rather die with this b***h! At least I can save the werewolf race from impurity."

Rhystan and Theodore exchanged glances, trying to figure out a way to save Elaia without risking her life.

"What do you mean by 'impurity'?" Rhystan approached slowly, trying not to provoke the fake servant boy, the assassin.

"The royal bloodline will lose its pure werewolf blood if you make her our queen!!! I will not let you!" His scream echoed, his anger far greater than Elaia had expected.

Rhystan lowered the tip of his sword a step closer, "Look, you don't have to do this. This human girl is innocent."

Right! Elaia couldn't even shout that. She kept hoping to survive, she just wanted to live. "Why is it so hard to live in peace...?" Her tears flowed.

"You even married her without the permission of the elders. You may be a tyrant, but isn't it too much to ignore the fate prepared by the Mood Goddess? What if your mate, your fate..."

"No one knows fate."

Klank!

With a swift movement, Rhystan kicked the dagger from underneath with his sword until it slipped from the servant's grasp.

Rhystan pulled Elaia up and pushed her towards Theodore, who immediately caught her body.

"Damn you, tyrant! You betrayed your own people!" The servant picked up the dagger from the tent floor.

"So you want to kill her in her own land? You'll only incur the wrath of many sides, not just the kingdom of Lumina, you bastard!" Rhystan leaped forward, then punched the servant so hard that he fell backwards against the goods.

The servant coughed up blood, "At least I was trying to preserve the blood purity of the successor to the throne of the Werewolf Nation!!! Even if it starts a war..."

Rhystan pressed down on the servant's chest with his sword, which slowly began to pierce his outer shirt.

"Kill me, the others will come after her."

Unexpectedly, the servant threw the dagger in his hand at Elaia in hopes of finishing her off.

"No!!!" Rhystan panicked as he turned his head.

Elaia screamed, closing her eyes as the sharp object flew quickly towards her. "Am I going to die?" Her heart murmured.