59 Baby’s Breath
Selma Payne’s POV:
My father suddenly became serious. He acted like a king and not my father.
“Kindness is a necessary quality of a leader.” He advised me, “the people cannot recognize a cruel rule without mercy.
“However, a benevolent king will not last long. People will always commit crimes, so you can’t be kind to everyone. That’s cowardice and irresponsible to others.
“Strictness is as important as kindness. Only a strict and kind king can treat his people fairly and lead the country well.”
The King’s solemness suddenly bloomed with kindness. He touched the top of my head and said with satisfaction, “I’m very happy that you have these two qualities, Selma. Do you remember what I told you on the first day?
“You will become a great Queen.”
I didn’t expect to receive such high recognition. I was so excited that I couldn’t help but cry. Yet, at the same time, I felt a little embarrassed.
Was this the feeling of being acknowledged? It was so wonderful I was almost addicted to it.
My father and mother patiently waited for me to calm down. I quickly composed myself, wiped the tears from the corner of my eyes, and asked, “So, what should we do next?”
“We’ll do as you say. Keep this a secret and inform the southern Duke.” My father said, “The pack has been peaceful for too long, and the werewolves haven’t bared their sharp teeth in a long time. It looked like some people can’t sit still and want to stir up trouble to get something.”
I felt that my father seemed to have some ideas about this. “What do you think?”
Mt father shook his head and smiled at me. “It’s just some random commentaries. It doesn’t matter.”
He didn’t want to say, so I didn’t ask.
After interacting with the King, I gradually concluded: The King bore responsibility, and with responsibility came secrets.
As my identity was a secret, I couldn’t participate in the conversation between my parents and the southern Duke. My parents could only speak on my behalf.
Today, I was still with the girls, picking out dazzling accessories.
The girls weren’t as carefree as they were yesterday. Even the bravest of them all, Avril, was being a little cautious. I didn’t understand. Was it wrong to ask?
Mara said to the pile of dazzling metals and gems, “Selma, these are too expensive. We can’t afford them.”
Avil seemed reluctant to part with the brooch, but she held back and did not look at it. “This brooch looks like it’s worth a year of my living expenses. It’s so beautiful, but it makes my heart ache.”
There was no need to mention Dorothy. I supposed she was thinking of putting a black veil on her head and leaving. I had to say that this was more in line with the theme of the ‘girl in the shadow’.
It was only then that I understood my friends’ concerns. While condemning myself for being careless, I told them, “There’s no need to worry about the price. These gowns and jewelry are gifts from Her Majesty the Queen.”
“What?” Mara and Avril’s eyes widened again. “B-but these are too precious. We can’t take such precious things.”
To calm their worries, I deliberately winked and said, “Don’t be embarrassed. This is the royal family’s style, you know. The Queen can’t possibly entertain you with factory goods on sale in the mall, right? That would be too embarrassing for the royal family.”
“So… ” I brought over a tray of jewelry and winked at them, “To honor the reputation of the Lycan King and the Queen, please give us some face and accept it?”
The girls laughed at me; their worries swept away.
As expected, the first thing Avril did was to take away the star-shaped broken diamond brooch.
“It’s said that baby’s breath is made of the tears of the Moon Goddess. It’s to commemorate a Valkyrie who died protecting children,” she said.
Mara said, “I’ve heard about it in an elective class. It seems that some witches also use the baby’s breath to display power. After all, in the legend, the Valkyrie died under a witch’s curse.”
“It seems so.” Avril showed a disgusted expression. “Now that you mention it, I suddenly feel that this brooch isn’t as beautiful as it was.”
Mara didn’t respond as usual. Instead, she seemed to be thinking about something. Suddenly, she said, “On the first day of Carolyn’s transfer, she seemed to have worn a baby’s breath-shaped jewelry. It’s a silver ring. I saw it when she submitted her application to the club.”
As soon as she said that, the entire place fell silent.
“Let’s not talk about this anymore!” Dorothy shook her head and said, “The more we think about it, the more skeptical we will be. If this continues, every detail could become ‘evidence’ of Carolyn’s crimes. In fact, everything is just nonsense.”
The girls quickly changed the topic and continued to pick out the accessories they liked.
I silently noted this suspicious and colorful baby’s breath pattern in my heart. I even used silver, which was harmful to werewolves, adding another layer of doubt to Carolyn’s suspicion.
The highly anticipated Moonlight Festival was finally coming.
The day before the festival, the girls left the palace. They followed the tradition and set off with their families for a carnival parade.
