Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder-Chapter 1617 - 59 : A Precarious Journey

*Kryzen*

Patience was never really my strongest point.

As a matter of fact, it was probably the quality that I had the most trouble with. Briella liked to tease me constantly by calling me restless. I would shoot back that she was just too relaxed, even though I knew that to be far from the case. Briella was constantly on the move and wasn’t very good at staying still either.

It was something we had in common, but my restlessness far surpassed hers.

“You don’t have to come with me to the temple if you don’t want to,” Briella told me as we walked through the town. “You could continue training or head back to the Alpha’s mansion. I’ll be completely fine on my own.”

I knew that Briella was doing me a favor, but staying behind to train or going back to the pack house to sit around and wait would just make me more restless.

I was touched that she was concerned for me. A part of me felt like an ass for worrying her. I wasn’t bothering to be discreet about the fact that I wanted to leave this place as soon as possible, but I meant what I said to Briella as well. I did trust her. She had insight that I didn’t, and I needed to respect that.

While I doubted the elders of this city would be able to help, I reminded myself to be patient and follow Briella’s lead this time. I hated not having full control of this situation, but I was going to support my mate in any way I could.

“I’m coming with you,” I said in my no-nonsense voice. I sent her a teasing smirk and rubbed my knuckles against her temple. “Besides, I should be there to make sure that you accurately paint me as the valiant hero when you explain the events that led up to this point.”

Briella rolled her eyes, but I saw the amusement flash across her face. “Oh, I will tell it accurately, don’t you worry.”

I raised an eyebrow at her tone, narrowing my eyes. “What’s with the tone?” I asked. “Could it be that you don’t view me as the true hero of this story?”

Briella laughed at my wounded expression. “You are one of them,” she allowed, bumping into my side playfully.

I frowned when she looked down at the ground, her expression dejected. “What’s wrong?” I asked.

She looked up at me with large shimmering eyes. “I guess I’m just hoping the elders will have some insight,” she admitted softly. “Otherwise, our time here will have been wasted like you thought it might be.”

I was again feeling like a jerk as I stared into her sad, gorgeous eyes. “This hasn’t been a waste,” I told her firmly. I tilted her chin up with my hand when she tried to avert her gaze again. “Even if the elders don’t know anything, we learned a lot and these new friends you made could very well be allies should we need them in the future.”

Briella nodded. I stroked her lightly under the chin until I coaxed a small smile out of her.

The temple was significantly smaller than the Alpha’s mansion but much more extravagant, which I hadn’t thought possible until we stepped up to the large building.

“This makes the Celestial Valley temple look like a shack,” Briella breathed with wide eyes.

She wasn’t that far off. The Lumina Mountain temple looked like a crystal palace with a shiny icy facade, glittering stained glass windows, and golden fixtures.

We entered slowly, feeling a little like we were trespassing despite being honored guests in the mountain.

The ceilings of the temple were endless with stunning, intricate architecture that made the ceilings look like a part of the sky. The translucent walls and pillars were tinted with glowing purple and blue hues.

Even though this was a temple far different than we had ever been in, the way the elders were waiting for us was consistent. They were standing at the far side of the large sanctuary, their wise eyes looking us over carefully as we crossed the space and lowered our heads in respective bows.

“You come seeking guidance,” said the withered old man in the middle, which I presumed to be the lead elder. He had a snow-white beard and warm eyes.

“Yes, that is correct, Elder,” I said, lifting my face. “We come seeking guidance on how to find the land shrouded in shadows.”

The elders glanced at one another with unreadable expressions. I noticed Briella bite her lip nervously.

The head elder’s face fell, his eyes apologetic. “Unfortunately, we hold no such knowledge of a land shrouded in shadows.”

Briella’s shoulders sagged. I reached out to give her hand a reassuring squeeze.

“However,” the elder continued, descending the steps and crossing the room to a wall covered in bookshelves. He murmured quietly to himself as he skimmed the bindings. He grunted when he found what he was looking for, plucking a volume off the shelf and skimming through it. His withered hands shook.

Briella and I followed him eagerly. “Yes?” Briella asked, her green eyes fixed on the book the elder held.

The elder stared down at the book before turning it so we could see the page he had landed on. “There is an ancient fortune-telling technique that I believe could lead to the answers you are searching for. It involves traveling to the very summit of our mountain and manipulating the clouds.” 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Briella looked eagerly at me. I nodded firmly. “Yes, we will do it,” I told the elder.

The elder nodded seriously and handed me the book. “The spell you will need is on this page. Once the land on the summit is prepared, you will utter that chant.”

“How do we prepare the summit?” Briella asked.

“Fear not,” the elder said. “I will send a couple of our young priests to accompany you. They will know what to do. You will also need them to ascend the rest of the mountain. It is not an easy endeavor.”

“We will be just fine,” Briella said bravely.

The elder just stared at her for a moment. “Your confidence is admirable, but I would advise you to be a little more cautious as well.”

Briella gaped at him while I tried to stifle a laugh.

“What the hell did the elder mean by that?” Briella demanded a couple of hours later.

I gripped my mate’s hand when she slipped slightly on the slippery rock. We had suitable footwear for this kind of trek, but it was still a harrowing journey.

“I wouldn’t take it too personally,” Teela said from ahead of us. “Our elders do mean well, even if they can be a bit blunt.”

“I’m sure he was attempting to give you sound advice,” her twin brother, Tye, added consolingly.

The twin priests were assigned the duty of accompanying us up the mountain and would prepare the summit for us to begin the fortune-telling ritual. They were a cheerful pair, seeming eager to go on this trip with us. They claimed that us showing up in their community had been the most exciting thing to happen in their entire lives.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at that comment. They longed for excitement, but little did they know they should be careful what they wished for.

Not all excitement was pleasant.

I had to suppress a chuckle as I watched Briella tear up the path ahead, violently grabbing the edges of cliffs to pull herself up. I had been prepared to help her several times, but she hadn’t needed me to save her yet. I kept my arms braced whenever she was in a precarious position, prepared to catch her or support her if needed.

I offered Briella my hand after we had to scale a sizable cliffside. She took it gratefully, seeming more than a bit winded as she straightened and started to pack away the rope and climbing gear.

“Thanks,” she said breathlessly as she slid her backpack back on.

I gestured to the heavy bag. “Would you like me to carry that for you?” I offered.

“No,” she said immediately, barely giving me enough time to finish the suggestion. She waved me off and pushed past me to continue after Tye and Teela. “Don’t be silly. You have your own bag to carry. It would just slow you down even more.”

I shook my head to catch up with her. I raised an eyebrow at the scowl still plastered across her pretty face. “You’re not still brooding over what the elder said, are you?” I asked, knowing that I was right. I was trying and failing to keep the amusement out of my tone.

Briella glowered at me, her green eyes in thin slits.

I grinned and mussed her hair up a bit. “He commended you for your bravery,” I reminded her gently when it was clear that it was truly eating her up inside. “I actually should admit that I agree with him.”

Briella whirled around to face me fully, her eyes practically popping out of her sockets. “What?” she screeched.

I made a show of wincing at her high volume. “Relax, Briella. You’re going to start an avalanche with your screaming.”

She just stared at me, clearly not amused. “How could you say that you agree with him?” she demanded. “I thought you were on my side.” She glanced away.

“Hey, I am on your side,” I said, grabbing her hand and tugging on it gently so she looked at me again. “I’m always on your side. I just meant that you are extremely brave, and I admire you for it, but you do have a tendency to dive headfirst into danger without any serious thought.”

She scowled but didn’t say anything. She also didn’t pull away from me. She even relaxed slightly. “I don’t always have time to think when there is danger,” she pointed out wisely.

“True,” I allowed. “And that’s a lot of what makes you brave. I do wish you would pause more and assess the danger though.”

It was true. Even while we were climbing this mountain, Briella showed a fearlessness that left me in awe but also terrified. She leaped from rock to rock, making me fear that she would fall and bash her head open. She seemed to jump and act and climb without thinking.

I squeezed her hand as we continued walking. “I guess I can put up with it for the most part since you have me now to keep an eye on you.”

She rolled her eyes. “That really should be my line,” she quipped.

I laughed and shook my head as we continued up the mountain. Briella might not have always looked before she leaped, but she was a strong and capable warrior. I shouldn’t have been surprised that she could hold her own while we ascended the mountain. She went through a lot of the same intense physical training that I had.

I still marveled at that. She was small but fierce.

Her obvious strength and agility still didn’t stop me from worrying. I was extra attentive as we climbed the steep slopes.

We were both almost completely out of breath when we finally made it to the top.

We turned the bend, and our eyes grew wide as we stared in awe at the scene before us.