Betrayed By My Mate, Claimed By His Lycan King Uncle-Chapter 177: Divine Blessing.

Meanwhile, Mellisa was fast asleep in her chambers, thanks to the sleeping pill she had deliberately taken to fall into a deep slumber with ease. Her loyal maid, Nyla, remained in the room with her, keeping watch in silence. All was calm....until piercing screams echoed from the direction of the prayer grounds. It was the desperate cries of the burning priests. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Nyla’s eyes flew open in horror as smoke invaded her nostrils. She bolted upright, heart pounding. "Your Highness!" she screamed in alarm, rushing to Mellisa’s bedside. "The room is on fire!"

Mellisa stirred groggily, but the urgency in Nyla’s voice jolted her into full consciousness. She sat up with a gasp, panic flashing in her eyes. "What in the world is going on?!" she cried out, covering her nose with her hand in a futile attempt to block out the toxic smoke. "How in hell did the prayer ground catch fire?!"

"We must leave now, Your Highness!" Nyla urged frantically, already trying to steady Mellisa on her feet. The sharp scent of burning wood and incense stung their eyes and throats, making it hard to breathe.

Mellisa, now wide awake, dashed toward the room’s entrance, only to halt in horror. The hallway beyond was littered with the lifeless bodies of priests....bloodied, broken, and motionless. The floor was also filled with blood sending waves of fear and terror down her spine.

"The prayer ground... it was actually attacked?" Mellisa muttered, her voice trembling with disbelief. Her hand clutched her chest as her gaze darted frantically from body to body. "Was this attack meant for me?!"

Nyla stood protectively beside her, eyes wide with fear. "It seems so, Your Highness," she replied, her tone laced with dread. "Whoever did this... they must have questioned the priests about our whereabouts. When they got no answers, they murdered them and now they’ve set the entire place ablaze, certain that we would burn with it."

The crack of falling beams overhead made Mellisa flinch, pulling her thoughts back into the moment.

"We need to find a way out of here first," Mellisa said sharply, gripping Nyla’s arm. "We’ll worry about everything else once we’ve escaped this death trap."

"Yes, Your Highness," Nyla responded with a hurried nod. The two women moved swiftly, dodging crumbling debris and falling embers as the building threatened to collapse around them.

But just as they passed through another corridor, a sound froze them in their tracks.

Babies cries.

It was faint at first, muffled beneath the chaos, but undeniably real.

Mellisa halted, eyes wide, heart hammering against her ribs. "Did... did you hear that?" she asked, slowly turning toward the sound. Her voice was barely above a whisper as she swallowed hard, her hand instinctively pressing tighter against the artificial belly beneath her robe. "I really don’t want to think about childbirth or babies right now. I just want to get out of this place alive."

"I heard it too, Your Highness," Nyla said softly, her eyes shifting toward the doorway ahead. "That was definitely a baby. Possibly more than one."

Mellisa’s lips parted, her breath catching. The weight of her role, the danger surrounding them, and the symbolism of that cry all collided in her chest.

"If we don’t save them, they’ll die once the fire reaches this part of the building," Nyla continued, her voice firmer now, conviction burning in her tone.

Without uttering another word, Mellisa turned sharply and rushed toward the door from which the cries had come. Her steps were reckless now, driven more by instinct than logic. Panic flooded her veins, but something else had taken over....an unshakable determination.

She didn’t care about the danger. She didn’t care about the smoke, or the heat, or the debris falling from the ceiling. All she cared about in that moment was finding the child....especially if it was a boy.

"Your Highness, it’s dangerous to rush in like that!" Nyla shouted, chasing after her mistress, eyes darting nervously as flames licked the wooden beams above them. "Please, wait for me!"

But Mellisa was already inside the room, heart racing, eyes scanning for the source of the cries as the smoke thickened.

"Just shut up and find the baby!" Mellisa shouted, her voice sharp and laced with urgency as she continued frantically searching the room. Her eyes darted across the scorched furniture and collapsing beams until they landed on the heavy curtains by the corner.

With trembling hands and her heart thundering in her chest, Mellisa rushed to the curtain. She threw it aside only to gasp at the sight before her.

There, nestled together behind the drapery, were two tiny bundles swaddled in tattered linen. Their skin was still streaked with blood, and their umbilical cords had not yet been cut. Their wails pierced the smoke-filled room, raw and desperate.

"They’re newborns!" Nyla cried out, joy momentarily overtaking the fear in her voice. Her eyes sparkled with disbelief as she ran forward and gently picked up the babies, cradling them delicately. "A girl... and a boy. Your Highness, they’re twins!"

"Really?!" Mellisa’s face lit up with a mixture of awe and cunning glee. Her eyes locked onto the boy with fervent joy. "A little prince...? I actually have a little prince? This is a divine blessing!"

She stepped forward and reached out with open arms. "Hurry! Hand him to me. The Moon Goddess has finally delivered him to me. Drop the girl....I have no business with her."

"But, Your Highness..." Nyla’s voice softened into pleading, her gaze shifting from the baby boy to the girl. "There’s nothing wrong with saving her too. It’s obvious their mother died in this fire. We’re the only ones left alive who can protect them."

She paused, glancing around the smoke-thickened room with a heavy heart. "The priests are gone. The prayer ground has been reduced to ashes... It won’t be long before the news reaches the palace. This is where Your Highness was expected to be."

Mellisa remained silent for a moment, staring at the crying baby girl. Then she scoffed and turned away.

"Fine," she muttered coldly. "Let’s consider me doing her a favor by sparing her. But don’t forget, I only have use for the boy."

With a swift motion, she collected the infant prince from Nyla, cradling him gently in her arms. Despite the heat, despite the danger, she smiled....her plan finally had a chance.

"Hurry! We need to get out of here before the fire spreads any further."

Nyla nodded without protest, clutching the baby girl to her chest as she followed Mellisa through the debris. But before they exited the burning structure, Mellisa paused with a calculating expression.

"Wait," she said, lowering herself beside a fallen priest whose body was yet untouched by the flames. Blood still pooled around him. Without hesitation, Mellisa dipped the hem of her robes into the blood, staining the fabric with the blood. She then smeared smoke and ash across her face and arms, creating a disheveled appearance.

"Your highness." Nyla called.

"If I’m to return to the palace as the mother of newborns, I must look the part," Mellisa said hoarsely. She gritted her teeth and, with a shaky hand, pulled a sharp pin from her hair. Without warning, she stabbed it into the side of her abdomen....not deep enough to be fatal, but enough to bleed. Her lips paled instantly as pain flashed across her face.

"There," she gasped, her voice weak and trembling. "Now I look like someone who just gave birth. Between the blood loss and this smoke, even the palace doctors won’t be able to tell whether it was childbirth or injury. Either way, they’ll rush to treat me... replenish my blood... restore my health."

"You’re incredibly smart, Your Highness," Nyla said with reverence, her tone filled with urgency. "But let’s get out of here first. The structure is collapsing!"

With the plan in motion, the two women rushed from the burning building. They hadn’t even gotten far before a deafening explosion erupted behind them. The fire had reached the oil-stored chambers. The force of the blast hurled them several feet forward.

Screaming, Mellisa and Nyla fell to the ground, shielding the infants with their bodies. Debris rained down, the flames roaring louder than ever.

Covered in ash and trembling from the shock, Nyla clutched the baby girl tightly to her chest. Tears streamed down her soot-covered cheeks as she looked over at Mellisa.

"A little bit late... and we would have died," she whispered, her voice breaking. "What do we do now, Your Highness?"

Before Mellisa could respond, the sound of thundering hooves and shouts filled the air. Soldiers’ boots could be heard as well as the metallic clanking of armor.

A regal black-and-gold carriage rolled into view, pulled by majestic horses. Mellisa didn’t need to be told who it was meant for.

"They’re here, Your Highness! They found us!" Nyla cried out, rising to her feet as hope returned to her tear-stained face. She waved both arms toward the guards, her voice echoing, "We’re here! Over here!"

Mellisa collapsed onto the scorched grass, still clutching the baby boy to her chest. Tears welled up in her eyes....not from sorrow, but from a sense of triumph and relief.

She looked down at the crying boy in her arms, her expression melting into one of gentle affection. "Don’t cry, my darling. Mother is here now. Once we return to the palace, I’ll have fresh milk prepared for you... just hang in there a little longer."