Transmigrated Into The Body Of The Cursed Prince Wife
Chapter 98: The pet

Chapter 98: The pet

Everyone who heard the scream ran in the direction it had come from, mostly the guests who had been walking out to take a stroll in the palace garden. They hurried back to see who had screamed and why. Among the people was Princess Madeline, who was walking with her elder brother.

"From that scream, I think your pet must have eaten another servant in the palace like it did yesterday, Aaron. Tsk, the people here don’t know how to mind their business. It will serve them all right if they get eaten by Annala." She remarked, elegantly fanning herself with a hand fan while she walked slowly with her brother toward the gathering crowd, likely watching his pet eat another person, just like when they’d first arrived yesterday, and a servant had dared to drop a tray in fear startling the poor pet and causing it to pounce on her and tear her to pieces.

Aaron, the first prince of Banzai, smirked at her words. "Annala is in a bad mood lately because of the babies she’s carrying. Eating another person wouldn’t be so nice for her or the babies, they will only begin to get used to the taste of human flesh, dear sister, and that’s something I don’t want for her or the babies."

Madeline raised a brow. "It’s not like she hasn’t been eating many of our servants back at home. She’s already crazy about human flesh, and from what I know..." She trailed off as they arrived at the scene where everyone had gathered to watch. Her brother shouldered his way into the small crowd to reach his pet and the person it was probably eating.

However, when Madeline made her way along the path her brother had created, her eyes widened in astonishment as she took in the sight unfolding in the corridor. She had expected her brother’s pet, a mighty desert lioness, to be eating another servant, but what she saw was different.

Right there, in the corridor, Ave was petting the lioness, who was now lying on her back, making sounds like a cat as she rubbed its stomach. Madeline could hardly believe what she was seeing and pushed her way to the front.

Ave, on the other hand, couldn’t help but smile at the large animal acting like a cat.

She had stumbled upon it, and it had pounced on her causing her to scream thinking it was going to eat her. In her state of panic, she had held out her hand, and if Ave had kept her eyes open when the lion pounced on her, she would have noticed the little light that sparked from her hand and hit the creature’s eyes, causing it to immediately change course and begin licking her face instead of eating her, as it had intended.

After she’d managed to roll out from beneath the creature to make a run for it, the lion had surprised her by following her, growling softly, and rubbing its large head against her leg until she began petting its head, and now its stomach, not even realizing almost all the guests had gathered around her in surprise.

"This is a first," came a voice from behind her, causing Ave to look up and meet the gaze of a dark-eyed young man, frowning down at her. He wore a royal attire different from those worn here, and from what she’d noticed, only the Banzai royals dressed like that. He had an earring in one ear, with side bangs covering one side of his face completely, making him look somewhat mysteriously handsome.

"How did you do that?" the man asked as he came to stand in front of her, his eyes on the lion.

"Do what?" Ave asked in confusion.

"Tame Annala. She never allows anyone to touch her except me. The last person who attempted to pet her lost a hand," he said, looking from the lion to the woman petting her, who he had seen in the dining hall earlier.

Ave quickly pulled her hand away from the lion and stood to her feet. "I didn’t do anything. She just allowed me to touch her," she said defensively.

"Just allowed you without biting off your hand?" came Madeline’s question as she glared at Ave suspiciously. The person her brother had referred to, who lost a hand, was her best friend who was good with animals and even had a tiger as a pet. When she had tried to touch Annala, the lion had bitten off her entire forearm.

"You don’t think we’ll believe that, do you Selene? Annala isn’t just any pet you can touch and remain unharmed. What did you use on my brother’s pet?" She raised a brow in disdain as she walked forward, only for Annala to move in front of Ave and growl at Madeline, causing her to scream and immediately hide behind Aaron before she could control herself, which made the people around them stifle a laugh.

Ave, who saw how the lion stood in front of her, couldn’t help but pet the lion on the head. "Being protective, are you? You don’t even know me," she smiled as she ran her fingers through the lion’s little mane.

"If I didn’t know for certain that you’re human, I’d say you’re a... witch, because only they could tame a beast and get them to protect them," came Aaron’s words, with a slight smirk on his face as he stared at Ave, who had turned slightly pale from those words, which caused the royals around to murmur among themselves. He noticed but clicked his tongue and assured them.

"But you can’t be; it was said you passed the test years ago. Annala recognizes good people. You must be a good person by heart then, seeing how she’s trying to protect you, even from my own sister." He snapped his fingers to call the lion, who seemed reluctant to leave Ave’s side, looking back at her as if waiting for her permission.

Ave, who had been happy to touch a lion for the first time without getting eaten wasn’t sure if she should be happy about that now that this prince had mentioned something about witches taming beasts. The lion wasn’t helping by not going to its owner and was now staring at her, as if waiting for her permission.

What had she gotten herself into? She wondered as she smiled nervously and shooed the lion away with her hand. "Go on, go to him," she said, and immediately the creature walked away from her and went to stand beside Prince Aaron, though its eyes were still on Ave.

"Annala really seems to like you," Aaron remarked with a small smile as he ran his hand over the creature’s head, while his sister clung tightly to his back, terrified of the lion despite coming from the same household. And when Annala growled, Madeline hurriedly fled the scene along with the other curious bystanders, leaving Ave and the prince alone in the corridor.

"So, now that it’s just us, are you going to tell me how you managed to tame my pet? What’s the secret?" He looked up from the lion to Ave’s face, his dark eyes boring into hers as if he could see through her soul. "Selene, isn’t it?" he asked as she was about to speak.

Ave nodded, and the prince’s smile broadened, revealing a dimple on his right cheek. "Do you mind taking a walk with Annala and me outside in the garden? Everyone is out there, and from what I see, you don’t have anything to do now that you’ve been... disposed of by the second prince of Pendragon."

Ave wanted to be alone and didn’t want to be around anyone at the moment, but something about this prince rubbed her the wrong way. The way he was looking at her was like he knew a deep secret about her, and her refusal to walk with him would lead to her own undoing.

She plastered a forced smile on her face and said sarcastically, "Alright, Your Highness. I’m indeed a divorced woman, and since I have nothing to do, I’ll walk with you—not because I want to, but because I don’t have a choice. Shall we?"

Aaron arched a brow. "Divorced? Is that another word for disposed of? Just like I heard the Pendragon Empire has come up with another word for warrior? What was that new word again?" he asked, curious, as he began to lead them toward the exit to the palace garden.

"Fucker," Ave provided. "It’s obvious you’re one big fucker, Your Highness," she smiled, making it sound like a compliment.

Since he had forced her to walk with him, she might as well insult him without his knowledge. Not to mention, his face looked a bit like her annoying cousin’s in the modern world. It seemed this Banzai family had some sort of connection with her family in the future; how else was it possible that Madeline looked like her, while this person resembled her cousin?

Aaron smiled, taking her words as a compliment. "I’m indeed a fucker, and very soon I’ll be taking the throne of the Banzai Kingdom," he said proudly.

Ave was intrigued by that knowledge. The next king of Banzai, she thought as they walked out the door, and immediately, the scented garden breeze and guests’ laughter greeted them.

"I heard Banzai Kingdom is a beautiful place," she said conversationally, trying to find a way to bring up Lucian and get this man to support him, if possible.

He shrugged casually. "You could say that. We do have the most beautiful of everything, from materials to people and women. Though, I must say, not as beautiful as you, Milady." He said quietly, then looked at her with slight interest. "Though it’s a pity your husband is blind to have let you go."

A small frown settled between Ave’s brows as she glanced at the prince. "You don’t mean I’m more beautiful than your sister, do you? From what I’ve heard, she’s the most beautiful maiden," she questioned. If he said Selene was the most beautiful, it meant Victoria was more beautiful than she was, and she would forever be her number two in the modern world. Not that Ave cared about looks; she just wanted assurance like every single person does.

Aaron smiled, revealing his white set of teeth with a gold tooth on one of them. He tilted his head to the side and regarded her for a moment.

"Well, compared to my sister, you might fall short of one, but compared to others, I’d say you are the most beautiful, and I feel a little disheartened that I can’t choose you as my bride instead," he said, then added, "Not until your fate to be thrust back as a servant is decided."

Ave blinked at Aaron, momentarily caught off guard by his bold words. The conversation had shifted completely from the direction she wanted it to be. She forced a tight smile, trying to mask her discomfort. The idea of being chosen as his bride wasn’t just unsettling—it was laughable.

But instead of showing her unease, she tilted her head slightly and offered a sarcastic reply.

"How flattering, Your Highness. Though, I must say, I’d rather not be anyone’s second choice after my disposal, especially not the bride of a fucker," she said with a sweet smile on her face.

"You never know what would happen, Milady." He flashed her his charming smile that reached his eyes and made Ave feel even more uneasy.

She cleared her throat and was about to speak when she felt the hairs on the back of her neck prickling, like someone was watching her. Frowning, she looked to her right and was met with intense flame-colored eyes that seemed to be boring holes into her soul.

Lucian. He was standing with one of the princes of Nazia, a kingdom known for having the greatest fighters. He was shirtless and holding a sword in his hand, along with the other prince, as if they were about to spar. She could also see some servants moving garden chairs to give them space.

However, Lucian had stopped to look at her, his expression devoid of any emotion as his eyes locked onto hers, boring into her soul from a distance. Perhaps it was her imagination, but she saw his gaze momentarily shift to Prince Aaron, darkening for a second before he looked back at her.

Ave could feel heat rising to her face as his gaze reminded her of what they had done in the corridor, but then, recalling how he had disposed of her without telling her, she glared at him and looked away.

"Well, well, well, it seems we came out just in time. Prince Lucian is about to spar with the elder prince of Nazia," came Aaron’s voice, holding a hint of excitement at the thought of the entertainment he wouldn’t want to miss — two warriors about to fight.

Ave’s eyes snapped back to Lucian, but he had stopped looking at her and was now swinging his sword as if to warm up before the fight. She couldn’t help but wonder why he was going to fight with a prince when he should be working on bringing them to his side.