The Betrayed Princess Rising (Lylah and Ezra) novel Chapter 96

Lylah’s POV

Finished

“Lost his will?” Ezra echoed, a quiet scoff rumbling in his chest. “That’s a dramatic way to put it. But yes. I left, and Grimwood took it personally.”

His words settled between us like falling ash.

“I can’t believe you were ever part of the Healing field,” I said before I could stop myself. My voice came out softer than I intended, edged with disbelief. “I can’t even picture you studying it.”

It unsettled me–how much of him remained a mystery.

A faint smirk touched his lips. “Grimwood thought the exact same thing.”

I hesitated, but the question clawed its way free anyway. “Then why choose it at all? And why did you leave?”

His gaze drifted somewhere past me, distant and cool. “I left when I realized Healing was never meant for someone like me,” he said. “It demands restraint and endless patience. I was not born with either.”

I could understand that. It was rare–almost unheard of–for an Alpha to devote himself to Healing.

“And the reason you chose it in the first place?” I asked softly.

“I wasn’t someone who had much vision for the future back then,” he said.

Something in my chest tightened.

He asked, “Do you remember the rehabilitation center where your grandmother stayed?”

I nodded immediately.

“You may not remember,” he said softly, “but once, you told me your dream was to become a great Healer whose name would be known across Verdanth–the first female Master Healer from Ironcrest. You were standing there, watching the patients… and you murmured that one day, you’d take their pain away.”

My breath caught.

I didn’t remember saying those words. But I remembered the feeling.

The dream.

It had lived inside me for as long as I could remember.

My lips parted. “You remembered that?”

He nodded.

Warmth spread through my chest.” So you chose Healing because of me?”

1:49 pm

Chapter 96

He hesitated.

Then nodded again, a faint, almost boyish embarrassment crossing his face.

649

Finished

“Whether you realized it or not, you were my compass.” His smile faltered slightly. “Even though in the end I couldn’t live up to it.”

“Ezra, don’t say that,” I said quickly, “You’re exceptional in your own field.”

Even though he had once chosen the wrong path, I was glad he had finally found the one he was meant to walk.

His attention shifted to the open texts beside me. “You said you were studying acupoints.”

I nodded. “Professor Clark assigned it deliberately. Now I understand why.” A small laugh slipped past my lips. “He knew you’d help me.”

“That sly old wolf,” he murmured.. “Where are you struggling?”

“There are seven hundred and twenty points,” I said. “Three hundred and sixty are used most often. I can remember their names… but their locations blur together.”

He watched me for a long moment, his eyes intense enough to make my pulse stutter.

“You’ve always had a sharp mind, Lylah,” he said. “You just need the right method.”

He went still.

Then something shifted in his expression. “I know what to do.”

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