Chapter 6

The King stared at his little princess with a worried expression. He scooted closer to her, but Odessa quickly backed away. This man was the father of the witch that had killed her, she'd be damned if she let him come close to her, dream or not.

Moon Goddess! What fucking game are you playing this time?

Odessa scowled when she felt a pricking pain in her heart at the sight of pain in the eyes of the King.

“You must have hit your head badly when you fell. I knew I should never have allowed you to venture out alone.” The King said with sadness. His princess was the only thing of joy in his life and even now, she was avoiding him like a plague.

Odessa looked around the room she'd woken up in for the first time and her jaw almost detached from her head.

This is not a bedroom! She thought to herself. Her gaze roamed the entirety of the bedroom. Different shades of purple and white damask hung from one part of the wall to the other.

‘Is that…Is that a freaking gold and purple velvet tapestry on the ceiling?’ She exclaimed in her mind.

This…This is too much. Odessa had to grab her head from too much pain; her vision was becoming blurry, and her head felt heavy. Soon, it became a pain trying to hold it up. Without fighting it any further, she gave in to the darkness trying to suck her in, and her body fell backward as she lost consciousness.

The King immediately caught her frail body in his arms and gently, he laid her on the bed, placing the soft pillow to aid her head.

Odysseus hovered over his daughter, his eyes staring at her with so much love and care; his fingers brushed away the strands of hair that were all over her face.

“I won't let you get hurt…ever again.” King Odysseus leaned downwards and pecked his daughter on the forehead before walking out of the room.

The next time Odessa woke up, her brain was working double time the second, everything that happened in her past life, including her encounter with the Moon Goddess, came gushing back like a train of memories, hitting her by the minute. Tears began to flow down her cheeks as she remembered all the pain she went through in her last life. Her hand slowly moved down to her tummy.

Her child… He was gone.

She could feel the emptiness of her womb. At the cost of her stubbornness, she'd lost her baby. Out of desperation and a need to know she wasn't alone, she tried to reach out to her wolf.

‘Katia, Katia, if you're there please answer me.’ Odessa’s hand gripped the bedding tightly as all she was met with was silence.

‘Katia, please. Respond…please…’

Silence again, and this time, Odessa couldn't hold it back; she burst into tears, gut-wrenching sobs escaping her lungs as she walked through the loss of her baby and her wolf.

She remembered the words of the Moon Goddess as clear as day.

‘A life for a life, Odessa.

But for yours, two lives shall be taken.

A pact, a promise made.

A revengeful soul seeketh not love,

But destroys all in its path.

A blank slate, do with it, what you will.’

The door to Odessa’s room bursts open, and King Odysseus, with some men and maids, rushes into the room.

“My sweet flower,” The King cooed and hurried to his daughter’s side. He sat beside her and pulled her shaking body against his. Odessa didn't give a damn about who he was at that point, she needed a pillar to hold on to and he was hers.

Odessa was bedridden for days to the extent that it made the King worry-sick. Despite the physician’s constant assurance that the Princess was okay health-wise, the King couldn't help but summon him daily to check on Odessa.

Odessa on the other hand, wondered if she'd done the right thing by asking to be put in this world. The memories of her current and past lives were weighing heavily on her. She didn't even know how to handle them.

As Odessa the maid, she was at the bottom of the food chain, ignored by all with a questioning existence, mated to a prince that sent her to her early grave.

As Odessa, the Princess of the werewolf realm, she was desired by all, the apple of her father's eyes. A wolfless Princess, protected by her kingdom.

What an ironic twist of fate.

Every minute she spent dissecting, revisiting, and reconstructing her memories, Odessa’s rage boiled, and her anger surged. She wanted both of them to pay and heavily they would. As the months rolled by, Odessa got up the courage to face her destiny, she began to plot her revenge.

Her father, or better said, Eira’s father was a bargaining chip to her. She convinced him to let her train with his strongest and harshest soldier, to give her a seat among his council members, and to be actively involved in the Kingdom’s governance. She rejected every single marriage proposal that came her way and manipulated her father into doing every single bidding of hers.

But King Odysseus was a loving father and a wonderful ruler. His kind heart and warm smiles were able to get through the cold wall surrounding Odessa’s heart.

Odessa slowly began to care for King Odesseus and before long, she saw him as the father she never had in her previous life. Odessa waited for years to receive Victor’s marriage proposal but it never came.

She made every single plan, every single act in accordance with the exact timeline of her past life, but it's been more than two years since she had been reborn, and Victor still hadn't proposed.

Odessa slowly let go of her hunger for revenge and began to live like a true Princess of the Rising Sun. Perhaps this was the moon goddess’s wish. To give her a clean slate, to let her live her life to its best, with no worry of what tomorrow might bring.

And Odessa realized that being a princess wasn't so bad after all.

THREE YEARS AFTER HER REBIRTH

“Father! Father!!” Odessa screamed with joy, one hand holding her surprise for him and the other holding onto her gown as she hurried through the large ballroom barefooted.

The crown on the King’s face disappeared as soon as he heard his daughter's voice.

He immediately got down from his throne and walked up to meet her as she ran to him.

“Silly girl,” He flicked her forehead, “You're barefooted again.” King Odysseus said with a fake angry frown.

Odessa pouted, “I hate shoes. It's limiting.” And then suddenly remembering what she had wanted to show her father, she released her gown and cupped her closed hand, “See what I found.” Odessa squealed, slowly opening her palm to show the King who was also getting excited to see what his adventurous daughter had brought home this time.

The King’s eyes widened with astonishment, not quite understanding what was settled warmly in his daughter’s palm.

“It's an egg.” Odessa giggled.

“The tiniest egg I've ever seen but an egg nonetheless. I don't think I've ever seen it before.” King Odysseus stroked his chin as he stared at the small oval object.

“Oh, I was hoping you'd tell me what it is,” Odessa said with a little disappointment in her tone.

“Where did you find it? You really shouldn't take eggs, their parents might get worried.” King Odysseus chuckled. His daughter had a weird fascination with eggs and he always made her return them.

“I swear Father. I didn't steal this egg. It…it came to me.” Odessa frowned, glaring at the egg. She didn't want to take it, but the glittery she'll was just too tempting. Now she was going to receive a lecture for stealing an animal’s egg.

“Oh really?”

Odessa nodded vigorously. King Odysseus stared at Odessa’s maid, Evelyn, and she, too,o nodded, supporting the Princess’s claims.

“I was bathing in the north river and–”

“Well, that explains the wet hair.” The King smiled, cutting her off. “Go on.”

“The egg just came drifting down the river towards me. So I picked it up.” Odessa shrugged.

“Of course. Still, you must return that egg to its original abode. It could be dangerous for you, Little Flower.” King Odysseus said softly, pushing back a lock of wet hair behind her ears.

Her shoulder slouched back, “Fine. I'll return it. But you owe me one horse racing an archery contest.”

“Consider it done.” The King laughed and Odessa turned to walk out of the ballroom but suddenly stopped when the sound of throat clearing echoed in the huge room.

The King turned to the source and frowned. He had forgotten the reason for his anger before Odessa had burst in.

“Sorry to break the moment, Your Highness. But I was hoping you could introduce me to Her Majesty.”

Odessa froze and almost shattered the egg.

It was him! She knew it was him.