The ride took about 30 minutes based on my estimation. Although I am not quite sure since it might have taken longer than that. We traveled in silence or at least everyone except the twins who kept talking about random stuff that I didn't bother to be interested in.

The forest was getting thinner and I was starting to see a path that led to a clear landscape.

"Just a little longer." Said Dan. "We just need to pass this neighborhood."

Neighborhood?

I looked up ahead to see that there were broken buildings up ahead that looked like it was burned or something. Piles of rubble scattered everywhere and just to my far left is a tall broken-down building that looks suspiciously like a castle.

I noticed that the prince's expressions turned grim and that made my curiosity tingle. "What is this place?" I asked them.

"It's the ruins of the former kingdom of Gija." Said Nate. He rode beside me so he could speak to me more clearly. "This is the kingdom of the Tamers. They control beasts and do their bidding."

"What happened to them?"

Nate's face hardened. "You don't want to know the details, but I'll give you a hint. Tereau."

So it was the kingdom of Tereau who did this?

"Why? Why would they attack this kingdom?"

"Because they are cowards." I looked ahead to me and towards Ren who had his back to us. "They were afraid of the power that the people had."

"It's not the only kingdom they destroyed. They also burned down Iroca. The kingdom of the shifters. A close family to the were." Said Dan. "They can manifest into any form. Be it human or animals."

"Enough dwelling on the past." Ace suddenly spoke. "Talking about it now won't change anything. Let's just hurry up and get outta here."

No one objected to his idea as we started to enter the dead kingdom. For some reason, my body started to shake at the sight of the ruins that I have to avert my gaze. Something moved in my peripheral vision and I turned to see what it was. It was standing by the ruins of the castle and I could just make out its golden brown fur and curious eyes as it watched us.

A wolf. By its small size I know that it isn't a werewolf. It must be an ordinary wolf. A young one judging by its size.
It suddenly turned its head and it looked me in the eye. I gasped.

"Rose? Are you alright? Rose?" I was broken from my trance as I averted my gaze from the wolf to Nate. He was holding my arm and was looking at me intently.

"There's a wolf by the ruins of the castle." I said and pointed out at the spot.

Nate and the others followed my hand. "Nothing's there." said Nate, giving me a worried look.

"Impossible it was just-" I paused and my brows furrowed in confusion when I looked up to see that the wolf was gone. My jaw dropped and I looked at them in embarrassment. "It was right there! I swear I did see a wolf." I insisted.

I saw Ace staring at me silently before looking at the twins. "Ren, Dan, did you feel any wolf nearby?"

The twins shook their heads. "No."

"Sorry. No wolf here except us."

Now I was getting more confused with the whole situation. "I think you're just tired and imagined the whole thing, Rose. Maybe a good rest at Sanver will help." said Nate.

No. I was sure that I did see a wolf and I was not imagining it. As much as I wanted to argue more, I didn't because I have a feeling that no matter what I say they won't believe me unless they saw it for themselves.

Everyone seemed pretty eager to move away from the ruins of Gija that there was a thickening silence forming in the air. We followed the path for a few more minutes when the twins suddenly stopped. "We're here." Ren announced to us as he gazed down the slope which led to another village - this time buzzing with life.

Dan turned his horse around to face us. "Alright, I'm just gonna say this once. As soon as we enter you guys better be ready for a run."

"What do you mean?" Ace asked as his face hardened. He grabbed the hilt of his sword like he was about to pull it out of its sheath. "Are there rogues down there?"

"Woah woah woah, Prince Ace. It's alright. No rogues here. The village is heavily guarded and safe." Assured Ren.

Ace seemed unconvinced though as he dug in further. "Then why warn us about running?"

Ren and Dan exchanged glances before they looked at us with sheepish grins. "It's nothing," Ren said. "Just something personal," Dan added.

"What did you guys-"

"Rose, I suggest you ride between Ren and me. I think it would be safer that way." said Dan as he cut off Nate. Then he tapped a finger to his chin as if he was thinking of something. "On second thought, stay close to Ren since I'm pretty sure that I would be leaving you behind when things get worse." He then finished it off with a laugh.

"Selfish Bastard," Ren told his brother.

As what Dan had asked, I positioned myself between the twins. Once that was settled, we started to head for the village. Like Vertez, you can see that the kingdom was well kept judging by their fine and sturdy house and the clothing of the citizens. The only difference between the two kingdoms is that Sanver was surrounded by trees.

"Greeting everyone! Your princes have returned." Dan announced as soon as we came.

"And we come in peace! For real this time." Continued Ren as he and his brother raised their hand to wave at them.

There was a very pause as the people turned to look at their prince. At first, nothing happened and it gave me the chills and a feeling that something bad was about to happen. And something did.

"GET THEM!" Someone yelled and suddenly they brought out pitchforks, sticks, and shovels that shone brightly from the sunlight and looked ridiculously sharp.

Yes, even the shovels.

And yes, even the sticks which is weird.

Still smiling at the man, the twins held onto Cloud by the reigns. "Run." They said in unison.

I looked at them in confusion. "What?"

I almost fell from my horse when they suddenly took off and dragged Cloud and me along with them. I grabbed onto the reins tightly so I wouldn't fall. When I said that I have gotten used to riding doesn't include running!

"What the heck is going on here!?" I screamed. I dared to look back to see Nate and Ace following behind us. Ace looked really annoyed while Nate looked terrified. Just behind them are the townspeople.

"Why are they chasing us?" Nate wondered out loud. "I haven't even done anything to their women yet!"

At this, Ace looked at Nate. "The fact that you said 'yet' means that you are planning on something."

Nate blushed. "Really, Prince Ace, really? Are we really gonna have this conversation now?"

"I just pointed out the obvious." Ace said.

"You two frightened my chickens that they weren't able to lay eggs for two weeks!!"

"One of you was chasing my sheep that they scattered!"

"You vandalized my roof!"

"You broke my fences!"

"Stole one of my shoes!"

"Shaved my tree!"

"Broke my door!"

"My daughter likes one of you and I don't even know which!"

Hearing the complaints of the villagers made me wonder what kind of prince they were. Like wow, really? They did all that? To be honest, I am not surprised. "What the heck have you guys been doing to your people?"

"Exactly as what they've said!" Ren sounded frantic.

"But it was a long time ago!" Defended Dan.

"It was before you left for Thalia!" The people screamed.

"Exactly!" Replied the twins.

I think we can all agree by now that they deserve whatever wrath the people are supposed to give them.

"Almost there." Said Dan as he looked ahead of us. I followed his gaze to see that we were approaching the castle in the middle of a huge green landscape. The castle was surrounded by tall stone walls and in the middle is a gate made of steel bars crossed together.

"As much as we are glad that you seem to have taken a liking to our home I must remind you that we have angry villagers chasing after us."

I turned to glare at Ren. "And who's fault is that?!"

Ren chuckled before looking at Dan. "Have you called the guards yet?"

Dan nodded. "Yeah. I just used my link to tell them to open the gate. Look." He pointed at us and to where the gate was starting to lift open. We dashed in and entered the gate. Once all of us were inside Ren commanded the guards to close it.

We got down from our horses - Nate helping me down. "Phew! For a second there I thought we wouldn't make it." said Dan as he started to laugh. My hands balled into fist and I stalked him and hit them both on their heads.

"Exactly what kind of princes would play pranks on their people?" I was about to hit them more when surprisingly Ace held me back.

"Calm down. What's done is done and we can't do anything about that now." He said calmly.

I took his words in as I relaxed my fist. I glared at them one more time before I sighed. "Thanks for stopping me. I wouldn't know what I would have done if you haven't." I told him.

"No. It's I who should thank you because if you hadn't acted then I would have done something much worse." he said and from my peripheral vision, I could just see that he was gripping the hilt of his sword.

Oh.....

"Prince Ace." Nate suddenly appeared beside him. His eyes turned cold which was really out of his character. "If we kill the princes of Sanver, how many years do you think we will be placed in the dungeon?"

Ace, with the same fierce and cold look as Nate, replied, "None. We're princes of other kingdoms so surely we can use our power and influences to make our way out." Then both princes turned their gazes towards the twins and they emanated a dark aura with them that I have to back away myself.

Demons. I knew it. Any minute now Ace and Nate will have a long and pointed tail growing at their butts. But whether my theory was right or wrong, I didn't have any proof since the guard announced something and the double doors of the castle opened.

As if on cue, we all stopped what we were doing and collected ourselves to appear more proper, which horrified me because once upon a time, the old me would not try to act properly or princess-like.

Coming out of the door is a man and a woman in their mid 40's. The man was muscular and tall. His hair was brown and of the same shade as Ren and Dan. He wore a tight gray shirt tucked in brown pants and boots that clicked as he walked. Although his clothes don't look that much, his stance and the way he walks screams authority. The woman has dark hair and brown eyes - like the twins. She's tall and has an amazing figure which was emphasized by her tight white shirt, slim pants, and boots - basically the girl version of the man's outfit. She has a gentle aura coming out of her as she always wore a smile.

The man looked at us until his eyes settled on the twins. "I have heard of a few trouble makers in town and I wasn't wrong to assume that it was you two." He smiled and looked amused.

I looked at the twins to see them grinning from ear to ear before they ran to the man and tackled him in a hug. "Dad!" The man laughed as he ruffled their hair. "Welcome home my boys."

The woman looked at them and she smiled herself. "Indeed. Welcome home, my children. Would you like something to eat?"
I blinked as I looked at them. The way the man held on to the twins and the way the woman smiled gently at them. Are they their parents? Does that mean that these two...

As if noticing my stare, the twins broke off from them and led us towards us. They paused as they started the introductions. "Rose, Prince Ace, Bloodsucker meet King Dominic and Loisa Rutledge, the king and queen of Sanver and also our parents." Introduced Ren.

I knew it! So they are their parents! But they really don't dress like royalty though.

"Mom, Dad these are Prince Ace Ferraden, Prince Nathaniel Denver, and Princess Rosalie - Oh! By the way..." Dan suddenly dragged their parents aside as he whispered something to them that I couldn't hear. I was curious about what he said to them so I looked at Ren and Nate since they both have sensitive hearing, but apparently, Ren and Nate told me that they could not hear anything. They said that Dan must have used his alpha link. But I bet Nate knows what they were talking about because he seemed amused by this.

"Oh really!?" The king suddenly exclaimed.

"Dad! Shh!" Dan hissed and shushed his father.

"Oh my." The queen giggled while blushing.

When they headed back towards us again, I noticed that they have a grin on their faces that looks really suspicious. Suddenly, the queen grabbed both of my hands. Her face and eyes suddenly brightened as she did. "It's a pleasure meeting you, dear. Call me mom."

"What?"

"Mom!" Both Ren and Dan said while the King placed a hand on his wife's shoulder. "Darling, step away from the girl right now. Don't get too excited." The kings said. The queen pouted as released my hand as she stepped back.

The king cleared his throat. "Now." He started as he looked at me. "Princess Rose, how would you like to live in our castle forever?"

"Huh?" I asked again. Hang on.....are they telling me that they want to adopt me?

Dan stood in between me and his father before he pushed him. "Dad, you are far worse than mother. Stop embarrassing your kids! And don't you and mom have to go?"

The king laughed at his son and patted his head. "Sorry, son. I can't help it. You two are growing up so fast." He said and looked to his right as he called for a servant. Immediately a woman appeared and bowed to the king. "Have the guards carry their belongings and to take care of their horses. Also, please lead them to the guest room to rest. Have some servants on standby to attend to their needs."

The servant nodded and she motioned for us to follow her. We followed her and just as I was about to enter, Ren grabbed my arm.

I need to talk to you. He spoke in my mind. There was a hard and serious look on his face that told me that it was important that I found myself nodding yes.

I turned to the other princes and waved at them. "I'll catch up on you guys later." I said as Ren grabbed my hand and dragged me away before any of them could ask. He led us towards the back of the castle. He stopped and looked around us.
"I think this is safe enough." He said.

"Ren, what-"

"Rose." He cut me off and turned to look at me. "I-I 've noticed something about my brother lately." He looked away. "The way he acts when you are around me. He becomes so...quirky and cheerful. And he always has a goofy grin on his face when he sees us talking."

I stared at Ren like he was crazy. Like wow. He only noticed this now? "Doesn't he always do all that?"

He shook his head. "No. It's different this time. It was as if he was passing on a message. I wasn't sure what it meant at first but I do have an idea though." He said. "And it all made sense today when he spoke privately with mother and father. It finally became clear to me."

"What the heck are you talking about?" I asked. Seriously, he's not even answering my questions. He's just having a monologue.

Ren turned to face me. His eyes became soft. "The way my mother and father acted after the whole conversation proved it. How could I have been so blind all this time?" He sounded frustrated.

"You mean they really wanted to adopt me?"

"No." He said and started towards me. He grabbed me by the shoulder and pulled me towards him and gave me an intense look in the eye.

"R-Ren?"

"Rose, I-I....." He paused. His face turned bright red and he looked away for a second before he shook his head and face me again. This time with a more determined look that made me squirm uncomfortably.

"Ren? W-What is it?" I stuttered at this new side of Ren. It wasn't like him to be this serious.

With his eyes boring into mine, he said the following words in a very very serious tone.

"I think Dan likes you and he doesn't even realize it."