Betrayed By My Mate, Claimed By His Lycan King Uncle
Chapter 166: The Pouch.

Chapter 166: The Pouch.

Just outside the palace, behind the eastern wing where only servants who worked in the royal kitchen typically passed through to transport cooking goods, Sorayah and Dimitri moved silently. They were dressed in cheap, shabby attire....garments so humble they barely resembled anything worthy of nobility.

A white horse waited patiently for them outside the service gate, its reins held by Liam, who stood calmly by.

Their escape had been made possible because the palace kitchens had already closed for the day. The royal chefs had long since retired, though many had found themselves summoned to the Empress Dowager’s quarters, trembling as they attempted to explain their failure to prepare a proper meal. It had been a disastrous day for them. Without Sorayah’s quiet efficiency and guidance in the kitchen, everything had fallen apart. Now, their heads were figuratively and perhaps even literally on the chopping block, as they scrambled for excuses to appease the Empress Dowager’s wrath.

"I still don’t think this is wise, Your Highness," Sorayah said softly, worry etched deep into her expression. She glanced around, lowering her voice. "I mean... I could go alone and return before anyone notices. There’s no need for you to take such a risk."

"I’ve already made up my mind," Dimitri replied, his tone firm but calm.

Though a mask concealed his face, it was designed so artfully...matching the tone and contours of his skin that only someone standing very close would even notice he wore one. A black scarf was also wrapped tightly around his head and neck, styled like that of a foreign traveler. With this disguise, he looked like nothing more than a humble outsider.

"Besides," he continued, his eyes locking on hers, "I want to walk among the people. I want to see for myself how they’re faring under the laws I’ve enacted since becoming Alpha Emperor. It’s one thing to receive reports. It’s another to observe them with my own eyes."

Sorayah could only heave a heavy sigh. There was no point arguing with him not when he had already made up his mind.

Before she could respond, Dimitri moved with swift decisiveness. Without warning, he bent and lifted her effortlessly into his arms, placing her gently onto the horse. Sorayah gasped, her hands instinctively gripping the saddle as she looked down at him in surprise.

A moment later, he mounted the horse behind her, his presence warm and solid at her back.

"We’ll dismount once we’re near the market place," he said softly, his voice brushing against her ear like a caress. "I don’t want to startle the people or draw unnecessary attention."

Sorayah gave a faint nod, feeling the heat of his breath linger against her skin. The horse began moving steadily forward, with Liam trailing closely behind them on a second steed, keeping watch in silence.

They headed towards the quiet forest first...an area untouched by the bustling sounds of city life. It was the place where Sorayah had buried Lily.

The moment they arrived at the edge of the glade, where sunlight barely reached through the thick canopy of trees, Dimitri brought the horse to a stop. He dismounted first, his movements graceful, before turning to help Sorayah down with gentle hands.

"Take your time," he said, handing the reins to Liam. "I’ll stay here and wait for you."

Sorayah nodded in gratitude, tightening the strap of the small bag slung over her shoulder. It held her prayer tools....simple items she carried for moments like this.

With quiet steps, she began walking toward the hidden path where Lily’s grave lay. Along that same path stood the tall, hand-carved tombstones she had erected for her parents. Though their bodies were never recovered....and none of their belongings were buried there...it was a sacred space for her. A place where she could honor them. A place where memories lived.

"I’m back," Sorayah whispered as the tombs finally came to view, her voice trembling as tears rolled freely down her cheeks. She knelt before the tall stone tomb, her fingers lightly brushing against the cold surface as though it could somehow embrace her in return.

"How have you been?" she continued, her tone soft and intimate, as if speaking to someone asleep rather than gone. "It’s been a while, no doubt. You see... I’ve risen from being a mere palace maid to becoming an imperial concubine."

She let out a shaky breath and gave a small, bittersweet smile. "And oh yes, Father... Mother... even though you’re not buried here, I know your spirits are with me. I can feel you here. Listening."

A pause. Then her smile wavered.

"Lupien is dead," she said, her voice colder now, almost trembling with suppressed fury. "He died from the hallucination-inducing poison I fed him little by little. Slowly. Quietly. Painfully. He bled from every sense, screaming until the end. A death worthy of a monster."

Her lips curled into a dark smile as she lowered her head. "And now... even one of his enemies...Dimitri is the new Alpha Emperor. Crazy, right?"

She gave a light, bitter chuckle, the sound thin beneath the weight of her grief. Tears continued to slip down her cheeks, but she didn’t wipe them away. They belonged here. They were her offering.

"I know you must be happy. But... I also know this revenge isn’t over yet. Not while humans are still enslaved. Not while they’re being used like cattle. Like toys. Sex slaves, servants.....stripped of their dignity and treated like less than nothing by these... werewolves."

Her hand clenched into a fist on top of the tombstone.

"But don’t worry," she whispered, her voice tightening. "I’ll bring them down. I swear it. I’ll make sure our people are free. I only need your blessing... the strength to keep going."

She inhaled deeply, composing herself as best she could, then gently placed her palm flat against the cold surface of the tomb.

"Did I forget to mention... there’s a way to bring down the Empress Luna too?" she murmured, a trace of determination returning to her voice. "Oh yes, there is."

She leaned forward slightly, her gaze fierce now. "And now that Dimitri has confessed his love for me... it’s only a matter of time before I rise even higher....before I become Empress through his favor. I’ll rule over the werewolves. I’ll make them bow before me. a human. I’ll make it happen, Father... Mother. No matter what, I’ll make them kneel before us."

Her gaze slowly drifted to the smaller grave beside her parents’. Her voice softened.

"You always made me the best perfume pouches, Lily. Every day. But the most beautiful ones... those were always on my birthday."

She reached into her outfit and pulled out a delicately embroidered pouch, golden thread glinting faintly beneath the soft light filtering through the trees.

"Funny, isn’t it?" she whispered, holding the pouch close to her chest. "This was the last one you ever gave me...last year. And this year, there won’t be a new one."

Her shoulders trembled as a fresh wave of tears surged through her.

"But I’ve decided," she continued after a moment. "I’ll consider this one my gift from you again this year. As long as I breathe... this will always be with me."

Her fingers traced the fine embroidery gently, reverently.

"And yeah," she added softly, reaching into the bag once more and pulling out a small box. She opened it carefully, revealing star-shaped cakes, decorated in blue icing.

"You always baked these for me, too. Stars. Always blue stars for my birthday, to match the dragon scales you believed I had. You used to say it was a prayer....that I’d awaken my dragon powers soon." She gave a wistful smile, though her eyes remained wet with sorrow. "You loved dragons, Lily. You always hoped to see me transform one day."

She placed the box down gently before Lily’s grave.

"I promise... I’ll awaken that power. I’ll find it. Next year, on my birthday, I’ll show you. I’ll become the dragon princess you loved so much. The one you believed in."

She inhaled deeply, her voice taking on a darker, more venomous edge.

"And just so you know... I’ve found him. The bastard responsible for your death. I know who he is now. And I swear, Lily, it’s only a matter of time before I destroy him. Him and the Empress."

Tears ran freely once more as her lips trembled. "I’ll make sure he suffers. I’ll make him scream. And when you see him in the afterlife... make sure you deal with him too. Let him feel your fury."

With solemn care, she placed the cake box in front of Lily’s tomb, arranging it neatly. Then she moved to her parents’ tombstone, where she laid out other food items...dishes they once loved.

When she finally rose to her feet, her legs gave out slightly from the long time spent kneeling. She nearly stumbled....only to feel a strong hand catch her firmly by the waist.

Startled, she looked up and met Dimitri’s gaze.

"You... What are you doing here?" she asked breathlessly, pulling away from his grip. "You said you’d stay behind. You said you’d wait."

"I was," Dimitri replied quickly. "I swear, Sorayah, I just got here. I only came to check on you... and saw that you were finished."

Sorayah narrowed her eyes, unconvinced. "Did you hear everything I said? Everything I told my parents and Lily?"

"No," Dimitri said, shaking his head, voice calm but sincere. "I didn’t hear anything. Truly. I only just arrived."

She studied him for a long moment, then swallowed hard and turned away. "Okay then. Let’s go," she said quietly, her voice laced with exhaustion.

As she began to walk off, something slipped unnoticed from her outfit and landed on the grass behind her. A pouch...Lily’s final gift.

Dimitri bent and picked it up, examining it briefly before tucking it into his robes without a word. His expression was unreadable as he followed silently behind her.

"Is today Lily’s birthday?" he asked after a moment, his voice soft and curious. "That star-shaped cake... It’s only ever baked on birthdays. But it’s coated in blue, not red. That’s not tradition. Red symbolizes joy. But blue..."

"That’s none of your business, Your Highness," Sorayah replied firmly, her tone suddenly sharp. Her posture stiffened as she walked ahead, unwilling to say more.

Dimitri said nothing in return.

But he held the pouch just a little tighter.