Sold as the Alpha King's Breeder-Chapter 1717 - 159 : What Bravery Is

*Kryzen*

“It’s alright, sweetheart.”

My chest felt like it was twisting painfully as my wife kneeled to console our young daughter.

I had been ecstatic when we found out that Emberly had my powers. I already loved her so much and was so proud of the person she was becoming that it was overwhelming to discover her hidden abilities.

Unfortunately, the situation was delicate, and we couldn’t afford to simply celebrate.

Emberly was undoubtedly strong, but she was also still extremely young. I regretted that the way she found out about her powers was when she was unsupervised. Perhaps if Briella or I had been there, we could have seen her abilities start to bubble up and could have helped her control it from the start.

My little girl’s frightened eyes when we found her surrounded by scorch marks would haunt me for the rest of my life.

It quickly became apparent that Emberly needed to become our priority. She had a traumatic first experience with her abilities, and it caused her to fear them. She was already so powerful that being afraid of her powers led to it overtaking her.

We could have found her an instructor, but because of the severity of the issue and the fact that Emberly inherited my powers, we found it only fitting that I instruct her.

“I can’t do it,” Emberly said shakily, tears quickly building in her eyes.

I felt my shoulders sag. We had just completed a grueling training session. I had been trying to guide Emberly into creating a controlled forcefield. The exercise consisted of conjuring her energy within a small circle drawn on the ground.

It hadn’t gone well. Many of the flowers in our garden were completely destroyed. Burn marks were spread over one of the low white brick walls. One of the large trees caught fire at the edge of our garden.

I was filled with immense pride at what the little girl could do. She was so small but contained unspeakable abilities.

She just needed to learn to control them.

I lowered myself in front of my daughter, taking her tiny hands in mine. They were still extremely warm, nearly hot to the touch from our training session. I stroked the backs of her knuckles with my thumbs before pushing some stray hair from her eyes. “You’re doing amazingly, sweetheart,” I told her gently. “No one expects you to be a master after just a day. I promise you’ll get better and better the more we practice.”

Emberly’s lower lip trembled, but she nodded bravely. I kissed her forehead.

“Okay, that’s enough practicing for today,” Briella decreed, bending to scoop up our eldest in her arms. “You need to get to bed early, little lady. We’re leaving at dawn to go to Celestial Valley.”

Sulien was waiting for us just inside the door. He had wanted to go outside with us, but it was far too dangerous with Emberly learning to control her powers. He pouted at me and lifted his arms, asking to be picked up. I obliged, scooping my son up in my arms.

“Is Emberly going to be able to come to the wedding with us?” Sulien asked with a concerned frown.

My eyebrows flew upward. “Of course, she will,” I said. “Why would you think she wouldn’t be able to?”

Sulien’s eyes grew large. “She might burn the wedding.”

I craned my neck, relieved to see that my wife and daughter were ahead of us and out of earshot. “Mommy and I aren’t going to let anything bad happen at Uncle Kai’s wedding,” I told Sulien reassuringly. “Your sister is going to learn how to control her powers very soon, so don’t worry, alright?”

Sulien nodded obediently, and I ruffled his hair.

“Your Majesty.”

I turned to face one of our maids, who bowed low before holding a small box out to me. “This was just delivered from the temple, Your Majesty. I was told to deliver it to you immediately.”

I thanked her and took the box, already knowing immediately what it was.

“Is that the bracelet?” Briella asked, coming over with Emberly.

I nodded and set Sulien on his feet so I could look at Emberly. Briella got the hint and set the little girl down.

I kneeled in front of her and showed her the small pale blue box. “I know that finding out about your powers has been scary,” I said, brushing my knuckles across her cheek fondly. “This is going to help you harness your abilities until you can do so on your own.”

Emberly watched uncertainty as I lifted the lid of the box, revealing a gold-colored bracelet with rose gold filigree. I asked the elders to have something pretty made so that Emberly would like to wear it. I picked it up and showed it to her. “I had it specially made for you. It will make your powers a bit weaker and easier to control.”

Emberly stared at the bracelet for a moment before holding her arm out to me. I carefully fastened it onto her wrist. She wiggled her arm experimentally, watching as the small band caught the light and threw tiny rainbows on the floor. “It’s pretty,” she said. “Thank you, Daddy.”

I nodded and brushed some hair away from her face tenderly, hoping that the bracelet would be enough to help my little girl gain her confidence back.

It turned out that a little family trip was just what Emberly needed. She was still quite nervous and crestfallen during the journey there, staring out the car window most of the way. I caught her glancing down at the bracelet with a touch of fear in her eyes as well.

I stepped out of the car and immediately took Emberly’s hand. She had been staying close to me since finding out about her abilities, and I wouldn’t have had it any other way since I was feeling rather protective of her. I could sense not just her fear but a touch of outcastment. She was confused and felt lost.

She needed support and guidance more than ever.

The entire valley was alive with activity. A festival was being held all week to celebrate Kai and Lillian’s wedding. While the valley didn’t have royalty, since it was the elders and head priests who made the decisions, Kai and Lillian were the closest there was to a prince and princess of the community.

Briella was holding Sulien’s hand as we entered the valley, and her eyes grew wide. She suddenly rushed forward and practically dove into the arms of her parents.

I watched fondly as the little family was reunited. Kellan was there as well and quick to come over to me so he could slap me on the back in greeting.

“This is my girlfriend, Celia,” Kellan said, gesturing to a young woman behind him.

Briella’s jaw dropped, but she immediately hugged the petite woman, who laughed and hugged Briella back as if the two had known each other all their lives. “It’s so good to meet you,” Briella said. “I’m so excited to get to know you.”

Sulien immediately rushed forward and greeted everyone, babbling excitedly about the ride over and all the treats he was promised if he behaved.

Emberly took a step back so she was hidden behind my leg. I stroked her hair comfortingly.

Briella’s gentle mother kneeled in front of Emberly, smiling softly. “I’m so glad to see you, Emberly. It’s been a long time. I’ve missed you.”

Emberly smiled at Luna Zara. She’s always loved her grandmother, and I was relieved when she stepped away from me so she could hug her.

I was happy to see that Emberly was talking to her family members and interacting with the other children in the valley, but she often glanced back at me as if she was making sure I was still there.

Throughout all the festivities, she was always within my sight. During the feast the night before the wedding, she sat on my lap, curling into my chest. Briella and I were normally stricter with her, but we couldn’t bear to order her to sit properly when she had such a traumatic experience.

“What are we going to do, Kryzen?”

We were given a guest house for the duration of our stay. While there were three bedrooms, both children insisted on sleeping with us. They were both exhausted and fast asleep after all the excitement, but Emberly slept fitfully, her tiny eyebrows knitted together as she frowned.

“I think we’re doing the right thing,” I told Briella soothingly, wrapping my arms around her as we watched our children sleep. “It’s going to take time for her to come to terms with her powers, but we’ll be with her every step of the way.”

Briella leaned into me. I could feel how tired she was. “I know we will,” she said. “But I just hate that she’s having to go through this. It wasn’t this bad for you or me. Why is it so severe for her?”

“She’s powerful,” I said. “And once she can get a handle on it, she could even be stronger than you and me. Until then, her dampening bracelet should help a lot.”

Briella smoothed her hand over Emberly’s hair and sighed. “I hope so.”

The day of Kai and Lillian’s wedding finally came, and the whole valley was alive and full of joy. People were practically skipping through the garden gates where the ceremony would take place. Even Emberly’s eyes were bright with excitement as she took in the colorful flower garlands and rose petals scattered on the ground.

I carried Emberly in one arm and held Briella’s hand with the other. Briella held onto little Sulien, who was practically skipping as we moved to take our seats in the front row. I wasn’t surprised when Emberly crawled into my lap as soon as I sat down. I held her close for a moment and then patted her hip lightly.

“Are you sure you don’t want to sit beside me like a big girl during the ceremony?” I asked gently.

Emberly hesitated before nodding reluctantly and slipping off my lap so she could dutifully take the seat next to me.

“Good girl,” I praised, pressing a kiss to the top of your head. “You’ve been very brave lately. I’m so proud of you.”

Emberly looked up at me, her wide gray eyes shocked. “I don’t feel brave at all,” she said. “I’m scared all of the time.”

I moved so that I could face her more fully, wanting to look her right in the eye. “Being brave doesn’t mean that you’re not scared,” I explained. “Bravery is doing things that you’re scared of doing, like learning to control your powers. That’s why I’m proud of you. Even though you’re afraid, you still try your best. That makes you very, very brave.”

I gave my daughter one more kiss on the forehead before facing the front again. The ceremony was going to start any second. I looked up at my brother-in-law and couldn’t help the smirk that rose on my face.

Kai was practically shaking with nerves. It vividly reminded me of my own wedding. I was so excited to marry Briella but also nervous to do so.

Briella noticed her brother’s nerves and sent me a smirk before her eyes rounded as the music changed.

Lillian was about to make her way down the aisle.