~Aurora~

　　[Few moments before]

　　Odin was standing beside me as I took the scrutinizing gazes from people around us. I felt incredibly conscious about my outfit. But Odin's reassuring squeezes of my hand stabilized me greatly. But what about the thoughts which pondered and polluted my head over the fact that...my past cannot be changed?

　　"Whoa. Look at the audacity of this girl. After having such a great time with other men, especially Leif Lupus, she quickly jumped to another man. She couldn't even invite him to the banquet without cheating on him!"

　　"I guess the rumors about her were true, then. She is indeed a cheating scumbag. She's a bad label to all us women who are trying to make a living. You won't believe that she's a standard of comparison in our pack lately. If any woman misbehaves, her name comes up instantly!" Saying, the merciless women have a laugh about me, behind my back as I pass them by. Odin must not have heard what they spoke about me. My newfound friendship would be lost in an instant, otherwise. Although, I am starting to believe Odin seeks my friendship only for the sake of making me feel included and safe from these kinds of people. Otherwise, he is also one amongst the crowd...

　　Or, am I wrong about his nature?

　　I was wrong about a lot of things in my life anyway.

　　The environment slowly grew conducive towards me. Even if most guests ignored me, there was still a part of the crowd who were vaguely interesting in making the banquet a hell for me. To top it all off, I've caught Prince Emeric staring at me several times throughout the few moments of the night. I felt incredibly uneasy. And for the first time tonight, I left Odin's side to retreat myself into the restroom. And probably wait here until the banquet is finished or the crowd gets intoxicated with alcohol. At least that way, I'd rather not be slandered left and right by the rude guests.

　　After doing my business, the strange red eyed man I encountered made my evening even worse.

　　Let me explain the scenario in detail, again. From my perspective.

　　Before he spoke the words, he was dangling sideways like a drunkard would. He was totally wasted, but my mind wouldn't fathom any more words that came out of his mouth. Even if he was drunk, I held him by his shoulders.

　　I prayed to the Goddess above that there shouldn't be anyone who walked in on us at this moment.

　　"I somehow have s-started adoring you. And this is frustrating!" He spoke, ending his words with a hiccup. This is the third time he's ever spoke to me tonight, and the third time he's said the same words. I gulped harshly, staring at him from head to toe. I didn't know how to take this!

　　First of all...all that ever crossed to my head was his attitude towards me in the beginning. I'm still headstrong in my belief that he was making fun of me, in front of the whole crowd. That's how I got famous throughout the continent as well. He's the catalyst to my name being ruined across countries! Then, all of a sudden, his attitude seemed different than before. He had started giving out tips for power and strength training. His tips were golden, but why would he even initiate having a conversation with me?

　　Then...I couldn't help but suspect that his feelings have been growing on me since then. We've met at the gymnasium almost every night before my second and third trial. He respected my private space, which was away from me. But even then...I could feel his gaze over me.

　　It made sense.

　　Later, the assistance in the third trial while Odin was still with me spoke a lot about his confused interest in me. He tried to stay closer to me than Odin, claiming to catch me if I ever tripped and fell because I'm a clumsy person. Only someone close and observant of your actions can conclude you're a clumsy person. That means...he's been observing me longer than I thought.

　　It...made sense.

　　"Aurora," while I was divided by my thoughts in my head, his rough finger goes under my chin. He lifted my chin to face him, and I looked into his eyes filled with an icy grey color now. His previous switches between his wolf and him gave the red eyes. And now, they were gone. Thank Goddess they were gone, as he appeared far less intimidating to me.

　　"Look at me while I'm speaking, Aurora Fangbo." My eyebrow jumped at the way he misspelled my name, "Do you remember the night when you rejected me at the bar? Two...three years ago?"

　　Counting on his fingers animatedly, he reminisced the memory. I blinked at him, because...

　　"You don't seem to....remember." his disheartened tone spoke. It wasn't that I had the memory of a goldfish. But I had been thinking about that day, too. I do not know his perspective, but the feeling of guilt sits at the crown of my heart even today, as I think about Prince Emeric. Sniffling, the big man in front of me throws his sweaty hair back and starts blabbering,

　　"That night, Aurora...I still remember that night. You were wearing a gorgeous velvet skirt and a top that shimmered blue. Right?" I nodded slowly, wanting to hear more of it. A slight smile takes over his features,

　　"Aurora, you looked so beautiful and charismatic that I couldn't stop myself from asking you for a dance. But...The way you rejected me. The way you belittled me..." I shut my eyes tightly upon hearing his words. It shouldn't have been like this.

　　The guilt has been eating me away. And maybe, just maybe...I could apologize for it today. The way he shows how vulnerable he is at the moment tells me everything I need to know.

　　And his confession...

　　"Prince Emeric...I—"

　　"No. I'm not done talking yet," I was made quiet almost instantly. I blinked to look into his eyes,

　　"You know…?" He suddenly chuckles darkly and gave me a deadpan face immediately after. "You're exactly the woman I despise, Aurora. You're so selfish and unkind! Everything doesn't revolve around you! But I'm still attracted to you! Pft! Everyday when I think about you, all I can feel is pure frustration! You won't even allow me to be myself around you, you know that!? You're frustrating as hell!"

　　An unholy gasp came out of me as he finished speaking. Frustrated!? How does he feel frustrated about me!? Above that part, why does he feel attracted to me despite saying that I frustrate him!?

　　"Love has never crossed my m-mind until you came into my l-life. Ugh..." he spoke, and started dwindling again. The way his body moved as if he was being rocked by another persona around him made me feel few things. I thought that his words wouldn't make sense, because I know I look pretty tonight and yes, men of our species get attracted to female beauty a lot quicker than most.

　　Even though his species is slightly different from mine. The hierarchy, the feelings and the blessings from the Moon Goddess remain the same. There is no changing that. However, Prince Emeric is someone I can only trust as a mentor, as a guide. A person with whom I can gain knowledge from.

　　His confession of 'liking me', or what he kept iterating as 'loving me' must have roots stemming only from tonight! Maybe I was wrong in my analogy that things weren't specifically targeted in love, towards me! General acts of kindness from a powerful person are often misinterpreted as love or 'liking'.