114: 114 A Choice

114 A Choice

Delia's POV

The moment Albert's words left his lips, I felt a sudden tightness in my chest, and it was as if my very breath had been snatched away.

I couldn't believe Albert had made such a heartless demand. If Prince Kral followed his words, it meant that either he or I would have to meet our demise.

I yearned to rescue Prince Kral, to save Alen and the valiant soldiers, but did I truly have the courage to make that choice if it meant my own life would be the price to pay?

Numbly, my gaze shifted towards Kral, and I observed that he too was locked in our shared, silent exchange.

His eyes held a mixture of astonishment and a trace of deep sorrow.

Clearly, Albert's ultimatum was undeniably harsh on both of us.

"Why hesitate? Can't you bear to do it?" Albert's voice broke the silence once more.

"Kral, you're the prospective sovereign of the werewolf. Sacrificing yourself for the sake of a woman, don't you find it utterly wasteful?"

I detected Albert's attempt to sow discord in our relationship, though his words weren't entirely unfounded.

Prince Kral didn't need to lay down his life for my sake.

I dared not delve deeper into that thought and shut my eyes, refusing to meet Kral's gaze any longer.

"And you, Delia," Albert continued, turning his focus onto me.

"You haven't even unraveled the enigma of your own lineage. Do you genuinely wish to meet your end for a man? Even if that man is your betrothed, your acquaintance with him has been rather fleeting!"

"Enough!" I opened my eyes, clapped my hands over my ears, and refused to listen to Albert any further.

I demanded, my voice rising, "Albert, what is there to gain from all this?"

"What to gain? There's much to be gained," Albert responded with a cold, disdainful smirk, addressing my inquiry.

"As I mentioned, love is useless. Sacrificing oneself for love is sheer folly. If Kral indeed opts to sacrifice himself for this so-called love, then he's foolhardy in the extreme!"

"So, you want Prince Kral to aim for my pearl necklace and use my life to save his own?" A

Albert's words sent a chill through me.

I nervously touched the pearl necklace around my neck and asked.

"I won't make the choice for him. I just want you to see how insignificant love is when it is compared to life itself," Albert scoffed, then raised his hand toward Prince Kral.

"Kral, it's time for you to make a choice!"

Just as Albert was speaking, I suddenly heard an unusual sound.

I focused my attention on that sound and realized it was the sound of a heartbeat, a "thump-thump" coming from the pearl necklace!

Realizing the source of the sound, I immediately lowered my head and listened intently.

I could feel the heartbeat growing faster and more urgent, and soon after, my own heartbeat began to quicken until it matched the rhythm of the heartbeat emanating from the pearl necklace.

As my heart continued to race, I felt my blood boil throughout my body.

My surroundings blurred, and I felt like I had stepped into a blazing inferno.

Even though the fire was scorching, my body was equally ablaze, to the point where I couldn't distinguish the sensation of burning.

I sensed my consciousness departing from the real world, entering into a white mist. Passing through that mist, I heard someone softly calling out "Pearl,"

"Pearl."

When I turned around, I found myself back at the familiar lakeside, transformed into that little wolf cub once again.

This familiar scene confirmed that I had entered the dream realm I had visited before.

There, a woman in a white dress would treat me gently.

The last time I left the dream, I heard someone refer to her as the "Guardian Spirit."

I had heard the voice of the Guardian Spirit but hadn't seen her yet. Just as I was about to search around, I was suddenly lifted off the ground.

Feeling the warm and familiar embrace, I knew it was the Guardian Spirit who had picked me up.

I squirmed in her arms and nuzzled against her chest.

"Whimper, Guardian Spirit, I've finally found you!"

Being in the Guardian Spirit's embrace made me feel incredibly safe.

My heartbeat had returned to normal, and I lifted my head to earnestly look at her face.

"Pearl, what's happened to you?"

Perhaps it was because of my unusual behavior today, a hint of surprise flickered in the Guardian Spirit's light blue eyes.

However, she quickly caught on and hugged me tightly, kissing my forehead.

"I'm glad you came to find me, but why do you look so unhappy?"

"I've been through a lot lately, especially today..."

I recounted recent events, emphasizing what happened today when I encountered Albert. When I mentioned how Albert had given Prince Kral two choices, either he dies or I do, I couldn't hold back my grief any longer and started sobbing.

Tears streamed down my furry cheeks, flowing all the way onto the Guardian Spirit's hands.

At the moment my tears fell onto her hand, the Guardian Spirit's body suddenly became translucent.

She seemed to lose strength, unable to hold me any longer, and with a soft "thud," I fell to the ground.

Suddenly plummeting from the air, my body felt aching, but before I could even utter a cry of pain, I was overwhelmed by an intense sensation of tearing and agony coursing through my head.

I clutched my head with my paws, trying to alleviate the pain with this gesture.

"Pearl, don't be afraid," even though the Guardian Spirit's form had become translucent, her consciousness remained. She whispered reassuringly, "Stay calm, and you'll soon see many things."

Despite the Guardian Spirit's words, the excruciating pain left me unable to find any peace. I couldn't tell how much time passed before the pain in my head gradually subsided.

Simultaneously, I felt an influx of information in my mind. I held my breath, focusing on sorting through the flood of knowledge pouring into my brain.

Slowly, the image of my mother in her youth appeared before my eyes.

She looked to be barely out of her teens, with soft, flowing hair and a beautiful face radiating happiness and contentment.

I watched her sitting at a table, writing in a diary.

I leaned in to see what she was writing and discovered it was a love diary.

"Today, I had a date with the man I adore. He's tall, handsome, gentle, and caring. I feel like I've found my Mr. Right!" 0

I realized this was my mother in her youth, documenting her experiences dating my father. Perhaps she had written down many details that would shed light on what happened to her.

The images in my mind unfolded like a movie, frame by frame. I widened my eyes, determined not to miss a single moment.

After dating my father for several months, my parents had become convinced they were each other's true love and decided to embark on a lifelong journey together.

On their wedding day, I saw my mother maintaining her radiant smile, as it was the happiest and most joyous day of her life.

Shortly after getting married, my mother became pregnant. She endured the early morning sickness and the later stages of swelling with unwavering determination.

When it came time for my birth, she endured extremely difficult labor.

The intense pain tormented her for several days, but she gave it her all to bring me into this world.

Although I was born frail, she loved me deeply, feeding me, comforting me with gentle touches, changing my diapers, and sleeping with me at night. She took care of everything herself.

However, her life soon took a different turn. She discovered that my father was having an affair, and his illegitimate daughter was close to my age.

This meant that my father had stopped loving her long before my birth and had stopped hiding this fact after my birth.

Despite her deep disappointment in my father, he still showed her a semblance of affection by bringing her a glass of milk every night.

For several years, she drank milk without hesitation, until just before her death, she learned from my father that those glasses of milk were laced with poison.

My father's actions filled her with anger.

She knew about his ability to covet her blood, and she was certain that he would remove her heart after her death.

Before taking her last breath, she stored the most vital blood from her heart in the pearl necklace and left it to me, so it would accompany and protect me.

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