Chapter 43

43 The Side Effects

Selma Payne’s POV:

Damn confidentiality regulations! When I become the Queen, I’d first abolish this old rule from thousands of years ago!

I thought before I fell asleep in the bathtub.

I slept until late in the morning. When I opened my eyes, the sky was already bright. Kara and Tracy were standing before my bed. My mother was sitting by my pillow, looking worried. Then, seeing that I was awake, she heaved a sigh of relief. “Thank Moon Goddess. You’re finally awake, baby.”

“What happened?” I was a little confused.

“You’ve slept for almost fifteen hours, Your Highness,” Kara said. “It’s noon now.”

What?

I suddenly sat up and wailed, “So, I’m already late? Oh no, my end-of-term summary will show a few large ‘truant’ stamps!”

“You don’t have to worry about that,” Kara said. “It is Saturday today. The school is off.”

I paused for a few seconds and heaved a sigh of relief. “You’re right. It’s Saturday, Saturday...”

However, since it was Saturday today, it shouldn’t be a problem for me to sleep in, right? I swore I wouldn’t miss tonight’s training, although my dear instructor boyfriend was absent.

My mother pulled me into her arms and asked gently, “Baby, have you been feeling unwell recently? For example, chest tightness, shortness of breath, dizziness, weakness, and so on.”

I enjoyed the warm embrace and lazily shook my head. “No, I’m in good health. I even ran seventy-four laps last night! I’ve broken the record!”

“My little princess, I’m proud of you.” My mother chuckled and kissed me on the cheek. “Are you not feeling well? You’re about to come of age. I only want to ensure everything is well.”

My mother asked again and again. This was very normal. I was the daughter she had lost and found again. She was the mother I had wanted for many years. It was expected that she paid a little too much attention to me. I adapted well to everything.

However, I didn’t know why, but I felt very irritated today.

Just like how I felt toward Aldrich last night.

This unusual emotion was because I realized that something was wrong.

“Actually....” I said hesitantly, “I feel I’ve been in a bad mood these few days.”

My mother asked nervously, “Did something happen at school? A quarrel with friends? Did someone bully you?”

“No.” I shook my head. “It’s because nothing happened that I feel irritated for no reason. That’s why I said it’s abnormal.”

My mother looked at Tracy, hoping that she would give her an answer.

Tracy looked very calm, which greatly soothed everyone present.

“It’s completely normal for a werewolf close to the shift to show signs of sleepiness and abnormal emotions,” she said calmly.

“Your body needs more energy to handle the shift, so you need more sleep. You’re awakening the wolf side of you. This process is silent but has a huge impact. A restless mind is indeed more likely to make you more irritable. Sufficient rest and correct self-venting can solve it easily.”

“So it’s not a big deal. It’s just a necessary process for my wolf to wake up?” I asked.

“Perhaps this is a little too intense,” Tracy consoled. “But it’s nothing to worry about. Everything is completely under control.”

Hearing that I was fine, my mother finally calmed down.

It was only then that I realized she was missing a person inseparable from her – my father.

“Where’s Father? Is he still busy?” I felt a little hungry. “Maybe we can have lunch together after he finishes his work?”

My mother smiled apologetically. “Trust me, baby. If your father knew about your abnormality, he would have grown wings and flown to your side. However, there are still some things to deal with last night’s turmoil. As the leader, he has to go to the scene to calm the people personally.”

The relationship between the werewolves and the witches was not good, even if they were not as incompatible as fire and water. After such an appalling incident as a witch attacking a school, those old farts who always loved to oppose my father would jump at the chance to cause trouble.

I understood my father’s difficulties, so I wasn’t angry that he was absent.

“Well then, let’s have a candlelight lunch today, okay?” I pounced over and acted coquettishly. “You must always have candlelight lunch with Father, but you’ve never had it with me. This is not fair!”

My mother caught me, and we fell onto the soft four-pillar bed together. She laughed and said, “Who taught you this? Hurry up and tell me. I’ll kick that glib-tongued bad guy out of the pack!”

Aldrich’s figure flashed before my eyes. I felt guilty for a second and immediately acted even more coquettish to make my mother forget this little episode.

After a satisfying lunch, I felt sleepy again. My mother said I could skip my training for the next few days. She wanted to be sure that nothing would affect my safe transition.

“There’s still a long way to go.” I said to her in a daze, “It’s just a small incident. You don’t have to be so nervous. Tracy also said that it’s no issue, right?”

“Of course, sweetheart. Everything will be fine. We promise.” My mother caressed the top of my head. “Now, have a good sleep.”

Without realizing it, I once again fell asleep.