Chapter 22 Saving Lives

Chapter 22 Saving Lives
Aurora's POV
Before anyone could do anything, Christian suddenly shouted, his voice raw and furious.
“No, Aurora! Run!”
The sound of his voice echoed through the dark forest.
For one horrifying second, everything around me seemed to slow.
The Witch Queen laughed.
It was not a normal laugh.
It was sharp, cold, cruel… the kind of laugh that made your blood freeze inside your veins.
The black smoke around her thickened and twisted like living serpents while the witches behind her stood with wicked smiles on their faces.
My heart slammed painfully against my chest.
Christian was hurt.
Badly hurt.
Even from above, I could see blood staining his clothes.
His breathing looked uneven.
His shoulders were tense as he tried to stand in front of the injured wolves despite his condition.
And yet… even now… even while bleeding… he was trying to protect me.
Protect me from his own enemies.
Protect me from the woman who wanted me dead.
I sat firmly on Stella’s back high in the air, gripping the reins tightly.
The cool wind whipped against my face and hair, but my body remained steady.
Of course I knew this was dangerous.
I was not stupid.
I was not reckless enough to throw myself and my babies into danger without thinking.
My hand instinctively moved to my stomach.
A strange protective feeling surged through me.
I was not alone anymore.
Whatever happened now… I had to survive.
For them.
For my babies.
I inhaled deeply.
Then slowly, just the way Celesta had taught me, I raised both my hands in front of me.
My arms formed a wide circle.
Immediately, golden energy began gathering around my palms.
The air vibrated.
Leaves rustled violently.
The ground beneath the witches trembled.
But unlike before, the golden light was no longer pure gold.
There were streaks of black mixed within it.
Darkness.
Evil.
Negative energy.
Celesta had explained it carefully.
“Every place carries energy,” she had told me softly while standing beside the silver stream in Veritas. “Light and darkness exist together. You do not always have to create power, Aurora. Sometimes you only need to redirect it.”
At that time I had not understood the true meaning of her words.
But now I did.
The Witch Queen herself had filled the surroundings with dark magic.
Hatred.
Violence.
Cruelty.
I pulled all of it.
The black aura around the battlefield twisted violently before rushing toward my spell.
The Witch Queen’s smile slowly disappeared.
Her sharp eyes widened.
“What are you doing?” she hissed.
I ignored her.
Sweat formed on my forehead as the energy continued growing bigger and bigger between my hands.
The pressure hurt.
It felt as if my veins were burning from inside.
But I endured it.
For Christian.
For the wolves.
For my babies.
The energy sphere became massive.
Golden.
Black.
Violent.
Unstable.
The witches below looked alarmed now.
Some even stepped back.
The Witch Queen suddenly raised her staff.
“Stop her!”
Several spells shot toward me.
Stella neighed loudly and flew upward with incredible speed.
The attacks narrowly missed us.
I tightened my jaw.
Then I slammed both my hands forward.
The energy blasted toward the Witch Queen.
A terrifying explosion shook the entire area.
Golden and black light erupted everywhere.
Trees bent violently.
The wolves stumbled backward.
The witches screamed.
The Witch Queen spat blood.
But that attack was never my true intention.
Hidden beneath the energy blast… intertwined carefully within the spell itself… was another spell.
A portal.
The moment the explosion distracted them, glowing symbols appeared beneath the witches’ feet.
The Witch Queen’s eyes widened in realization.
“No!”
A massive portal opened behind them.
Before they could react, powerful suction pulled them backward.
One by one the witches screamed as they were dragged inside.
The Witch Queen tried to resist.
Black smoke exploded around her.
But she had already been weakened by the attack.
Her eyes snapped toward me.
Hatred burned inside them.
“You…” she whispered venomously.
Then she too disappeared into the portal.
The portal closed instantly.
Silence fell.
Heavy.
Shocking silence.
For a few seconds nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Even the wind seemed to stop.
I exhaled shakily.
My hands trembled from the effort.
I had done it.
Not defeated her.
No… I was nowhere near powerful enough for that.
But I had managed to save them.
That was enough.
That was all I wanted.
I immediately looked toward Christian.
His body swayed.
Blood covered his arm and shoulder.
Several wolves were injured around him.
Without wasting another second, I guided Stella downward.
The wolves instantly tensed.
Some growled softly.
Christian’s golden eyes locked onto mine.
Shock.
Disbelief.
Possessiveness.
Relief.
Too many emotions flashed in them at once.
I quickly jumped off Stella.
“Everyone stay still,” I ordered.
To my own surprise, authority rang clearly in my voice.
The wolves froze.
I immediately formed another spell.
Golden symbols appeared beneath the injured wolves.
One by one they vanished.
Transported safely inside the Dragon Palace.
Christian stared at me the entire time.
His chest rose and fell heavily.
He looked furious.
Relieved.
Emotional.
And completely shaken.
The mate bond pulsed violently between us.
Before he could say anything, I walked toward him.
“You are injured,” I whispered.
“I came because of you.”
His jaw clenched.
“Aurora—”
“No arguments.”
I pointed toward Stella.
“Get on.”
His eyes widened.
“What?”
“We don’t have time, Christian!”
He actually looked offended.
Even injured and half bleeding, the Alpha King still had pride.
“I can walk myself.”
“You can barely stand.”
“I absolutely can.”
The moment he took one step forward, he nearly stumbled.
I crossed my arms.
He glared at me.
I glared back.
Stella snorted as if mocking him.
Christian looked personally insulted by the horse.
Despite the dangerous situation, I almost laughed.
Finally, with visible irritation, he climbed onto Stella behind me.
The second his arms wrapped around my waist, my breath caught.
His warmth.
His scent.
His touch.
Everything came rushing back.
The cave.
Our night together.
His kisses.
The pain of leaving him.
My chest tightened painfully.
I quickly pushed the emotions aside.
Not now.
Stella flew toward the Dragon Palace.
The entire journey, Christian remained silent.
But his grip on me never loosened.
Not even once.
When we finally reached the palace balcony connected to my room, I quickly climbed down.
Christian followed more slowly this time.
He was clearly weakening.
I immediately supported him.
“I said I’m fine,” he muttered.
“And I said stop talking.”
He looked down at me.
Then surprisingly… he smiled.
A small tired smile.
“You still boss me around.”
My throat tightened.
I quickly looked away.
“Sit.”
He obeyed this time.
I hurried toward the cabinet and grabbed the crystal fruits Celesta had given me.
Their blue and golden glow illuminated the room softly.
Christian frowned.
“What is that?”
“Medicine.”
“That does not look like medicine.”
“It works.”
He looked suspicious.
“You expect me to eat glowing fruit?”
“Yes.”
“Aurora—”
“Christian.”
He sighed dramatically.
Then finally took one.
The moment he bit into it, surprise crossed his face.
“It tastes good.”
I blinked.
“Were you expecting poison?”
“You are a witch.”
The words hit harder than they should have.
Silence filled the room.
Christian realized it immediately.
Regret flickered in his eyes.
But before either of us could speak further, the bedroom door suddenly burst open.
Nicholas stormed inside first.
Fiona followed right behind him.
Drake came last.
All three froze.
Completely froze.
Christian sat shirtless on my bed covered in blood while I stood beside him holding glowing crystal fruits and bandages.
The room went deadly silent.
Drake blinked.
Then blinked again.
Nicholas looked between me and Christian slowly.
Very slowly.
Fiona placed one hand dramatically over her mouth.
Nobody spoke.
Nobody moved.
Then all four pairs of eyes turned toward me.
I suddenly became extremely aware of how this looked.
My ears turned red instantly.
I smiled sheepishly.
“Um…”
Nobody responded.
I awkwardly lifted the bandage in my hand.
“He was in danger?”
The silence somehow became worse.
Drake looked at Christian.
Then at me.
Then at Stella standing proudly on the balcony.
Then back at me.
His lips twitched violently.
Nicholas finally pinched the bridge of his nose.
Fiona looked seconds away from laughing.
And Christian…
Christian sat there staring at me like I had personally destroyed whatever sanity he had left.
Then simultaneously—
“Aurora!”
All four shouted at the same time.
I flinched.
Drake pointed at Christian dramatically.
“You brought the Alpha King here? Into the Dragon Palace? Into your room?”
“He was dying!”
“He is literally glaring at all of us!”
Christian growled lowly.
“I can hear you.”
“That’s even worse!” Drake exclaimed.
Fiona finally burst out laughing.
The tension in the room cracked slightly.
Even Nicholas looked like he was struggling not to react.
I rubbed my forehead tiredly.
“This is not the time.”
Nicholas immediately became serious again.
His sharp eyes landed on Christian.
“What happened?”
Christian’s expression darkened.
“The Witch Queen.”
The atmosphere changed instantly.
Fiona’s smile disappeared.
Drake straightened.
Nicholas’ face hardened dangerously.
“She found the palace?” he asked coldly.
“No,” I answered quietly. “She found Christian.”
Everyone went silent.
Christian’s eyes shifted toward me slowly.
The mate bond pulsed heavily between us.
Drake looked confused.
Nicholas narrowed his eyes.
Then realization suddenly crossed Fiona’s face.
“Oh no.”
I swallowed.
Nicholas looked between me and Christian carefully.
Then toward my stomach.
Then back toward Christian.
And suddenly the Dragon King looked like he was developing a headache.
A very massive headache.
Meanwhile Christian’s eyes slowly widened.
His gaze dropped.
Straight toward my stomach.
The room fell silent again.
Completely silent.
And for the first time since entering the room…
I realized exactly how close Christian was standing to the truth.