Mated to A Rival Alpha-Chapter 62: Just A Normal Day in Incayon

[RANIA]

In every werewolf pack, if ever there was a visitor, either the alpha, or the beta would come to receive them. However today, the only person who had shown up to receive Jeon Jungwoo, their prince, was Luna Kim, Rania’s mother.

Sure, her social standing allowed her that, but she wasn’t who Jungwoo had been hoping to meet first. It had been a really long time and he could see that the werewolf luna had gone through so much. Maybe they could talk about it over their coffee or tea. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Welcome to Incayon, my prince," Luna Kim said, and Jungwoo respectfully jumped off his horse, before bowing to the luna. It was something that was inevitable considering the luna was older than him.

"Thank you, Luna Kim. I hope you have been well," Jungwoo said to the Incayon Luna who was all smiles. No one could even believe that this woman had let her own child go through hell alone, and hadn’t even bothered to stand up for her.

"If it’s not too much trouble, may I know where Alpha Rania is?" Jungwoo asked while everyone was watching the interactions with the luna.

He knew they were excited to see him, but he could tell there was a hint of questioning in their eyes. It was almost like they wanted him to know something, but what could it be?

"She’s here," Jungwoo heard as the whispers erupted. Why the hell would Rania’s people refer to her like that? There was disdain in their voices and for a moment, Jungwoo wanted to know more about what was going on here.

There was just no way that things had changed that much. Then again, he had been away from home for thirteen years. Even the children born when he had been captured, had grown into young warriors.

"Get back to work, all of you! This is not a spectacle for you to be watching. You’re making the prince uncomfortable and we all know you won’t deal with the damn consequences, now leave!" Rania growled and everyone went back to their duties. Including the Incayong luna.

It was then that Jungwoo knew there had to be more to this.

"Take the horses to drink, one of the warriors can help you with that," Jungwoo said to the two royal knights he had come with, and they just heeded him, and took his horse with them, leaving the two friends looking at each other.

Rania looked different from what she had been looking like, yesterday. She looked so frail without the body armor. She had so many scars that had been hidden too and she looked like she had been walking in the valley of death.

Jungwoo looked at his best friend, and he was at a loss for words. So he did the only thing that he could. He rushed to her and pulled her into a hug, making Rania freeze.

"I’m sorry, I was away for too long, Rani. I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened but you can tell me. You were so determined to get me back that I didn’t even notice you were hurting.

"Was it Incayon? Or was it Obren as a whole? Tell me," Jungwoo said, while he was still hugging Rania, and while the alpha wanted to push him away, she figured it wouldn’t hurt to reciprocate the warm hug that Jungwoo had pulled her into.

The worst had already happened and if anything, the only thing that Jungwoo could do to her anytime after this, was to kill her. But she had died on the night of the mating ceremony years ago, so this wouldn’t make any difference.

"You reek of sweat, you big oaf," Rania said and Jungwoo chuckled, tightening the hug even more.

"I know, now it will be both of us," Jungwoo said excitedly, even though he had made a mental note to know what had happened to Rania and why she had so many scars.

There was a difference between the scars that were intentionally inflicted on a person and the scars gotten in war. Even though Rania was one of the best alphas, Jungwo could tell that her scars had certainly not been gotten on a battlefield.

When they broke the hug, Jungwoo took that chance to study his best friend even more. The wolves who were watching them were in shock. This was the only man who had publicly shown Rania affection in a span of seven years and they didn’t know what to make of that.

Maybe he was her mate, but then that couldn’t be, right?

The woman was a walking tornado, it just didn’t make sense that she would get the most elite of the werewolves, right?

"I thought you’d still be sleeping, considering you haven’t seen a bed in so long. Anyway, come with me, to the packed house," Rania said to Jungwoo who was looking at her keenly. He was studying every frown and smile and every reaction from her.

Rania was painfully aware of it.

It had been a while since anyone other than Dalrae had taken an interest in her and frankly, she was getting uncomfortable, not that she would tell that to the prince.

With Jungwoo all smiles here, it was so obvious that he didn’t know that Yanna, his sister, had been murdered by Rania. So Rania could take the chance and pretend like everything was okay, after all, she couldn’t outrun her fate.

If this was the day, then she wouldn’t mind.

"I was excited to come to see you. I missed you, you know. It’s really been a long time, Rani. Anyway, how are you? And don’t give me the usual okay. I have eyes.

"I can see the way they are looking at you, I noticed your mother disappeared when you told the wolves to leave, what happened, Rani?" Jungwoo asked and Rania just smiled at him, making the prince have even more questions. What was even going on?

"Relax, Woo. Everything is alright. We just came from a mission, and the werewolf prince followed me barely a day after, wouldn’t you be curious too? My people are okay, and are on their best behavior. And about my mother, maybe she just panicked.

"Don’t worry too much," Rania said just as a pissed Dalrae walked out of the house, glaring daggers at Rania, ignoring everything around that wasn’t Rania.

"I told you to take the fucking medication and you disappeared. Oh, I’ll kill you today! You want to die so bad, huh? You’ve been hurt one too many times, and you now want to give up, yeah?

"I’ll turn you into a human steak like you— now who the hell is this, and why is he staring at me amusedly?" Dalrae asked when she saw Rania and Jungwoo. However, that didn’t stop her from yanking Rania by the ears and dragging her into the house.

"Save me, man, c’mon," Rania said to Jungwoo who was confused for the third time today.

"You’re asking him to save you? Why the hell did you not take your medication, huh?" Dalrae scolded when they reached the alpha’s office, with Jungwoo walking after them.

He wasn’t sure where he needed to go, but the fact that no one was doing anything when Dalrae dragged Rania into the office, had to mean that these two were so close, and that this fiasco wasn’t even the worst the Incayon wolves had seen of the two women.

"I’m okay, Dalrae. I promise. I’ll take the medication, see, I had them before I left the house," Rania said and Dalarae looked at her like she was crazy.

"You carried them out of the house, to take them? You, Kim Rania, who is scared of pills, carried your medication? Don’t fuck with me, woman, pop the damn pills before I count to three," Dalrae said and Rania looked at her helplessly.

"One—"

"Okay, okay! See I’m done, yeah? Damn, you’re getting barbaric each day woman," Rania sighed popping her pills faster than her best friend could blink.

"Someone’s gotta take care of you, and as usual, that responsibility is not yours. Now scoot over," Dalrae said before looking at Jungwoo.

"You look worse than Rania, Woo. Are you sure she didn’t eat you up on her damned mission?" Dalrae said to Jungwoo who just looked at her. So the woman remembered him and had decided that his presence wasn’t worth acknowledging?

"Don’t worry too much, I know you are curious, but she’s sick. Sometimes in the head, which is every day, but today, she’s got wounds that never healed because she let the damn rogues beat her senseless to save that stupid ass Jihoon.

"If I see him, he’ll be getting it from me," Dalrae ranted and Jungwoo smiled. They truly hadn’t changed.

"It’s good to see you too, sweet Lim Lim."