The Alpha's Temptation

The inn owner again emphasized, "Remember not to pluck anything. Because if you will, the fish out here will come to know and they will relay this information to the guard. He will simply kill you. He is too dangerous."

"I will not," Nerio replied with a polite smile.

The herb garden was... huge. There were sea herbs growing in neat rows with lots of fish that had made home in them.

When the inn owner saw Nerio looking at them with interest, he said, "These fish are important for the herb's growth. They clean up the place like scavengers and are vital for the sustenance of herbs. These fish are found only in this region of the Jade Sea."

"Nice," Nerio murmured. He was looking for an opportunity to break away from the man in front of him. "Where is the rare herb?" he asked.

"That is a little far from here, but we are going to see it from outside and not go in that enclosure."

"Why?"

"The king has kept special serpents to protect it. I am afraid the serpents first attack you even if you are the guard. They only recognize the king."

"That's some strict harvesting!"

The inn owner scoffed, "The king has gone mad with it. The herb is worth its weight in gold!" Ten minutes later when they reached the enclosure, he pointed it out to Nerio. Nerio's curiosity increased. He had to get inside the enclosure, steal as much herb as possible and get out but for his plan to be a success, he had to do two things.

Nerio let the man swim ahead of him when they reached the area where long various hued planktons swayed with gentle water currents. As soon as he had swum a good distance from him, Nerio turned back and dashed straight to the guard. He took a curved dagger out of his saddlebag that he had strapped across his shoulder.

He cast a spell of his dark magic on the guard from behind to stun him. As soon as the facial expressions of the guard became blank, Nerio stabbed him from behind through his chest. The guard collapsed instantly. Nerio dragged the guard to his small station. He dumped him there and in order for his blood to not get mingled with water, he plucked a large number of herbs and applied it all over his wound around the dagger.

Next, he returned to the inn owner, who was already looking panicky. "Where the hell did you go?"

Before he could speak another word, Nerio cast a spell on him too and stabbed him too. This time he dragged the inn owner's body to the enclosure of the rare herb. He opened it slowly. The herbs were gently swaying in the water current. Each long plankton was tipped with a silvery tinge. They looked like stars floating at the bottom of the sea.

A wide smile spread across his lips. The place was a gold mine of his herb. If he got it all, he would be so rich and also stay in his human form for eternity.

Nerio had swum for barely five minutes, when he heard a wild splash in front of him. A large, black serpent with gleaming orange eyes rose. As soon as it saw Nerio, it opened its mouth making a shrill sound, baring its sharp fangs. Another one raised its head behind him.

Nerio knew he didn't have enough time. He waited for the serpents to attack him. He was prepared for them. As soon as the serpents attacked, he threw the body of the inn owner at them. The serpents caught it and shred it apart. In the meantime, Nerio plucked as many herb planktons as he could and dashed out of the enclosure. The serpents darted out at him, but he closed the enclosure in a swift move and swam outside the herb garden in powerful strokes.

However, the moment he reached there, he encountered a dozen guards. And this was what he wasn't prepared for. Using dark magic was tedious for him. Every time he used it, his body would get a trauma. A wound would open up or something inside him would hurt. He narrowed his eyes at the guards who were now blocking his way.

"Surrender!" One of them shouted. "This garden is off the limits!" Their leader.

From the corner of his eyes, he saw that the guard who he had stabbed-- his head was rolling on the floor. They had beheaded him for his crime.

Nerio knew that no amount of gold coins was going to work at this time. And he was in a great rush. "You are making a big mistake!" he growled. "I am here from the capital and I am working on King Izo's command."

"That's a lie!" The leader shouted back. "King Izo has himself banned this garden. Why would he send someone from the capital to get it?"

With a ferocious growl, Nerio pulled out something from his saddlebag and hurled it at them. It was a small ball which came to a stop right in front of them. The guard standing right in the front grabbed it and the moment he grabbed it, an explosion occurred. There were loud screams and shrieks as the bomb killed all those standing close by. Taking advantage of the mayhem, Nerio rushed out from there.

He swam as fast as possible towards his seahorse. He mounted it and rushed to the main gates. He had to get out of Garduff capital quickly because this action was going to raise a lot of suspicion. By the time he was near the gates, he saw that a large number of soldiers were gathered over there. "Idiots!" he murmured in anger.

He pulled out another explosive and hurled at them. It blasted and killed more. He rushed out through the mayhem, hurling more explosives around. However, he had just crossed the gates and had gone not more than a hundred meters when he came face to face with his nemesis.