Chapter 21 Danger

Chapter 21 Danger
The Land of Veritas felt different now.

I could not explain it properly, but the air itself felt heavier, as if the entire land was silently watching me.

The golden breeze that usually carried warmth through the floating island now brushed against my skin with an odd softness, almost cautiously. The rainbow-colored soil shimmered beneath my bare feet while the glowing streams flowed quietly around the massive crystal trees.

Everything here was breathtaking.

Peaceful.

Ancient.

And yet my heart refused to calm down.

I sat beside the stream while Stella grazed nearby peacefully, her white wings folding elegantly against her body. Tiny golden butterflies fluttered around the flowers growing near the water, and somewhere far away I could hear soft musical chimes echoing through the air.

This land truly felt alive.

But my thoughts were far too tangled to appreciate it fully.

I wrapped my arms around my knees and stared blankly into the sparkling water.

Christian.

The moment his name crossed my mind, my chest tightened painfully.

Even after running away…

Even after knowing he hated witches…

Even after everything…

I still loved him.

My fingers unconsciously drifted toward my stomach and rested there softly.

A strange warmth spread through me.

For the past few days, my body had started changing slightly. My senses had become sharper. I tired more easily. Sometimes I felt strange waves of heat inside my body, while at other times I felt emotional for absolutely no reason.

At first I thought it was stress.

Then Aunt Fiona confirmed the pregnancy.

A small smile formed on my lips despite myself.

Christian would become a father.

The thought should have terrified me.

Instead, it made tears gather in my eyes.

“You miss him.”

Celesta’s soft voice broke through my thoughts.

I turned slightly and saw her approaching slowly through the glowing grass. Her long silver hair danced behind her like moonlight itself while her white dress flowed around her elegantly. Golden jewels adorned her wrists and neck, making her look less like a human and more like some celestial goddess.

Maybe she was one.

At this point, nothing surprised me anymore.

I sighed softly.

“Is it that obvious?”

Celesta sat beside me gracefully.

“You think of him every few seconds.”

I frowned dramatically.

“Wow. That bad?”

A small laugh escaped her lips.

For a while, silence settled between us comfortably. I stared at the glowing stream while Celesta simply watched the horizon.

Finally, I turned toward her fully.

“Can I ask you something?”

“You already have many times.”

“And you answer nothing properly,” I grumbled.

That earned me another soft laugh.

Honestly, it was impossible to understand this woman. One moment she sounded warm and motherly, and the next she became cryptic enough to rival Uncle Nicholas.

I huffed and leaned back against the crystal rock behind me.

“Seriously though… who are you exactly?”

“I told you already,” she answered calmly. “I am the guardian of Veritas.”

“Yes, but what does that even mean?”

“It means exactly that.”

I stared at her flatly.

“You know, for someone who looks so elegant and wise, you are extremely annoying.”

To my surprise, Celesta laughed properly this time.

The sound was soft and beautiful, blending strangely with the music flowing through Veritas.

“I like you, child.”

“I would appreciate that more if you stopped talking in riddles.”

Her silver eyes softened.

“There are truths that cannot yet be revealed to you.”

“There!” I pointed at her dramatically. “That! That mysterious talking thing!”

Celesta only smiled.

I groaned loudly before lying flat on the glowing grass dramatically.

“This is torture.”

For a few moments, neither of us spoke.

Then suddenly…

Celesta’s gaze shifted downward.

Toward me.

More specifically—

Toward my stomach.

I blinked at the sudden intensity in her expression.

Her silver eyes widened slightly.

Shock flashed across her face.

Real shock.

“You are pregnant,” she whispered.

My hand instinctively flew toward my stomach.

A soft smile spread across my lips immediately.

“Yes.”

For some reason, hearing someone else say it aloud made it feel even more real.

But the next thing Celesta whispered made my smile falter.

“Too soon…”

My heart skipped painfully.

“What?”

She was already standing now.

Fast.

Too fast.

The calmness around her vanished instantly.

I sat up quickly.

“Celesta?”

But instead of answering me, she grabbed my wrist and pulled me to my feet.

“Come with me.”

Fear instantly surged through my body.

“What’s wrong?” I asked quickly while stumbling after her. “Is my baby okay?”

She did not answer.

That terrified me more.

We moved quickly through Veritas, passing glowing trees and sparkling waterfalls until we reached a massive cave hidden behind crystal vines.

The moment we entered, my breath caught.

The entire cave glittered magnificently.

Giant crystals covered the walls and ceiling while glowing gemstone fruits hung from trees growing inside the cavern. Blue, pink, silver and golden lights reflected everywhere, turning the cave into something out of a fantasy dream.

The air smelled sweet and fresh.

But Celesta looked tense.

She immediately started searching through the crystal trees hurriedly, brushing branches aside while muttering quietly to herself.

I stood there anxiously watching her.

Minutes passed.

Then more.

Almost an hour later, she finally returned holding something in her hand.

It looked like a raspberry made entirely out of blue and golden crystal.

She pushed it toward me immediately.

“Eat.”

I stared at it suspiciously.

“You sure you want me to eat a crystal?”

Celesta rolled her eyes so dramatically that for a second she reminded me of Drake.

“They only look like crystals,” she said impatiently. “Inside they are soft like fruit jelly. Eat it.”

I still looked doubtful.

“Are you trying to poison me?”

“Aurora.”

“Okay okay!”

I quickly took the strange fruit from her hand before she decided to shove it into my mouth herself.

Cautiously, I bit into it.

The moment the fruit melted on my tongue, my eyes widened in shock.

It tasted heavenly.

Sweet like berries, cool like mint and warm like honey all at once. The texture really was soft like jelly, and as I swallowed, a soothing warmth spread through my entire body.

My exhaustion disappeared instantly.

Even the strange heaviness in my chest eased.

“Oh my God…” I mumbled while quickly finishing the rest. “This is amazing.”

Celesta visibly relaxed.

“Good.”

I frowned.

“Now tell me what’s happening.”

Her expression softened slightly.

“Your child is perfectly healthy.”

Relief flooded through me immediately.

But then…

“Children.”

I froze.

“What?”

“You are carrying twins.”

For a moment, the world genuinely stopped.

Twins.

I stared at her blankly.

Then slowly looked down at my stomach.

Two babies.

Christian’s babies.

My throat tightened painfully as emotions crashed into me violently.

Shock.

Joy.

Fear.

Love.

Tears burned my eyes instantly.

“Oh…”

A shaky laugh escaped me.

“I’m having twins?”

Celesta nodded calmly.

“Yes.”

I placed both hands protectively over my stomach while tears slipped down my cheeks silently.

A strange warmth spread through my chest.

Despite everything happening around me…

This felt precious.

Sacred.

A tiny broken smile appeared on my lips.

Christian would probably lose his mind if he found out.

The thought hurt and comforted me at the same time.

“How do you know?” I whispered softly.

Celesta smiled mysteriously.

“I just know.”

I groaned immediately.

“Again with the cryptic answers!”

That earned me another small laugh.

I wiped my tears and looked back at her seriously.

“But why did you say too soon? Is something wrong with my babies?”

Celesta’s expression softened instantly.

“On the contrary,” she said gently. “You and the babies are perfectly healthy.”

I released a relieved breath.

“Then what’s wrong?”

She sighed quietly and sat beside me near one of the crystal trees.

“The world outside is slipping toward chaos, Aurora. Darkness is beginning to move again. Wars, greed, power… they are all awakening.”

Her gaze slowly lowered toward my stomach.

“And pregnancy will make things more difficult for you.”

I swallowed nervously.

“But my babies are safe?”

“Yes.”

Her answer came immediately.

“No matter what happens now, your babies are safeguarded.”

Something about the certainty in her voice calmed me slightly.

Still…

Fear lingered.

I gently caressed my stomach again.

“I’ll protect them.”

Celesta looked at me strangely then.

Almost sadly.

“You will have to protect much more than that.”

Before I could ask what she meant—

She suddenly stiffened.

The entire atmosphere changed instantly.

The glowing crystals around us flickered slightly.

My heartbeat spiked.

“Celesta?”

Her silver eyes widened as if she was hearing something far away.

Then she looked at me sharply.

“Your mate is in danger.”

My entire body went cold.

“What?”

“The Alpha King,” she said urgently. “He is being attacked.”

My heart nearly stopped.

“Christian?!”

Celesta nodded grimly.

“He is outside the Dragon Palace borders. The Witch Queen found him.”

Panic exploded inside me instantly.

Without another word, I turned to run.

But Celesta grabbed my wrist tightly.

“Aurora wait!”

“I have to go!”

“You cannot rush recklessly anymore!”

Her gaze flickered meaningfully toward my stomach.

That only made my panic worse.

“Christian could die!”

Something shifted in Celesta’s expression then.

Understanding.

Sadness.

Love.

“You truly love him,” she whispered softly.

Tears filled my eyes instantly.

“Of course I do.”

For a moment, she simply looked at me.

Then she nodded once.

“Take Stella.”

The white mare immediately appeared near the cave entrance, neighing softly.

Celesta hurried toward another crystal tree and quickly gathered several glowing fruits into a silk pouch before thrusting them into my hands.

“Feed these to him,” she instructed urgently. “They will counter the dark magic.”

Fear gripped me harder.

“Dark magic?”

“The Witch Queen is stronger than you realize.”

A chill ran down my spine.

I quickly climbed onto Stella’s back, but before we could leave, Celesta grabbed my hand once more.

“Aurora.”

I looked at her.

“Do not tell anyone about Veritas yet.”

I frowned.

“Why?”

“Because if the wrong people learn about this land…” her silver eyes darkened slightly, “the entire world will drown in blood trying to possess it.”

My breath caught.

Even now, despite everything, I still did not fully understand what Veritas truly was.

But the seriousness in Celesta’s voice made me nod instantly.

“I won’t tell anyone.”

She released my hand slowly.

“And Aurora…”

I paused.

“He will not kill you.”

My chest tightened painfully.

For a moment, I could not breathe.

Because despite everything…

A part of me had still feared that possibility.

I looked away quickly.

Then Stella spread her massive white wings and launched into the sky.

The clouds of Veritas tore apart around us as we flew at terrifying speed.

Wind lashed against my face violently while my heart pounded uncontrollably inside my chest.

Christian.

Please be okay.

Please.

The world shifted around us suddenly.

Golden skies vanished.

Cold night air replaced them instantly.

We emerged above the Dragon Kingdom.

And immediately—

I felt it.

Dark magic.

It polluted the air like poison.

Smoke rose from the forests near the palace borders.

Trees were shattered everywhere.

The earth itself looked burned black.

Fear exploded inside me.

“Faster Stella!”

She screeched loudly and dove downward.

Then I saw them.

Dead wolves.

Injured guards.

Destroyed earth.

And at the center of the destruction—

Christian.

My breath caught painfully.

He was in his wolf form.

Massive.

Terrifying.

Beautiful.

But injured.

Blood stained his black fur while strange dark smoke curled around his body like chains.

And standing before him—

The Witch Queen.

She looked horrifyingly beautiful.

Long black robes swirled around her unnaturally while dark magic danced around her fingers.

Christian roared furiously and lunged toward her again despite his injuries.

But with one flick of her wrist—

He crashed violently into the trees.

“CHRISTIAN!”

The scream tore out of my throat before I could stop it.

Everything froze.

The Witch Queen slowly turned toward me.

Then she smiled.

Cold.

Cruel.

Interested.

“Well…” she murmured softly. “So this is the girl.”