My Alpha Mate's Christmas Gift novel Chapter 45

　　"B-BETA?!"

　　Roxanne changed her fighting posture, her eyes still fixated on the man who seemed to be ready for whatever she would dish out. With a stoic expression, slightly tilting toward amusement, he rubbed both his arms, feeling the impact of her earlier hit.

　　Rita, who stayed in a corner, a small distance from where Roxanne fought, sighed as she watched. She used her eyes to signal to Roxanne to stop the pointless struggle, but Roxanne stubbornly refused. Even though she still felt a kind of favourable vibe with Rita, she also had the idea that she couldn’t trust her. After all, she was on his side, not hers.

　　“This Asher guy must be looking down on me!” She said to herself, still thinking that the opponent she faced was the greatly famed Wolf King and Aloha of the pack she was residing with.

　　Shaking the thoughts from her head, Roxanne increased her pace and dashed straight toward the man who stared at her with a curious gaze, wondering what she would do next. She bent down and aimed for his left side. He quickly held her hand, stopping it from making contact. Roxanne smiled at this.

　　Quickly turning her body to compensate, she pushed her weight to the opposite direction, making him lose his balance a bit. He let go of her hand so he wouldn’t be dragged any further than he was, but she had already achieved her aim.

　　As he tried to regain his footing, she appeared by his side and tackled him, not giving him enough time to stand upright. He waved his hands to swat her away, but she quickly bent, easily dodging his strike. His clumsy and wide movements made Roxanne sure that he clearly wasn’t properly trained in specialised combat and most likely relied on his superior physical ability to win any fight. However, against Roxanne that was a terrible move.

　　Roxanne had fought several opponents who were physically stronger than her in the arena, with both of them going all out, she had to find a way to win even with her overwhelming disadvantage. She usually managed to win due to her freakish stamina and endurance, but her coach taught her another way. Using the opponent’s strength against them, making them overexert themselves or panic, leaving openings for her to exploit. That was the way for her to win against someone who only relied on his strength.

　　Roxanne grabbed his hand that he waved and planted her feet solidly on the floor. Using the already existing momentum to her advantage, she pulled his arm, dragging his entire body along with it and aimed to fall him down, knocking him into the ground.

　　As her hand was locked with his arm and she pulled, he showed surprise as he was suddenly taken into the attack. He was raised up and turned upside down, on his way to the ground, which would be a massive thud. Even Rita placed her hand in her mouth as she was also amazed by Roxanne's tenacity.

　　However… That still wasn’t enough.

　　The man twisted his body in the air, releasing himself from Roxanne's grasp forcefully as his large arm slipped from her already weaker one. He landed with his feet, rather than his back as his legs bent in a squat, making contact with the floor.

　　Due to the sudden movement of the man, Roxanne was now the one who lost her footing, unable to maintain her stance. Realising this, he moved quickly to her back and held her before she fell. As he took her up in his arms, he muttered to her

　　“Be careful”

　　This ticked Roxanne off, as she quickly raised her elbow and gave him a quick jab. For the first time since they started fighting, her attack landed, hitting him on his cheek. However, instead of letting her go, hold her even more tightly than before. After making sure her balance was preserved, he let her go as she still squirmed in his arms. Releasing her, he used his hand to run his cheek and moved his jaw a little, indicating her attack stung.

　　“You’re very feisty, aren’t you?” He said to her,

　　Roxanne felt entirely embarrassed. Not only was she not able to beat him in combat, he also saved her from a mere fall. She wasn’t even going to fall in the first place, yet he still made sure to grab her. The gesture he showed to her was insulting to her, as well as the fight. Till the end, he underestimated her.

　　“Stop with the nonsense and fight seriously! I don’t need you to be so considerate, it’s sickening” She said to him with an angry glare.

　　“Fight? Was that a fight?” He asked her in a calm manner.

　　His statement struck her as her glare immediately turned into a look of helpless realisation. For the first time, she noticed… Throughout the entire exchange he never once attacked her, yet she did so on several occasions. To him, it couldn’t be considered a fight, after all he never even needed to raise his fist once. Such a condescending attitude, it made her feel so angry that the rage permeated through her body. However, that rage was doused with the cold winds of helplessness that also swirled within her. She was weaker than him, so much so that he didn’t bother taking her on seriously.

　　“Y-You… Just let me go… Let me go…”She said, her voice breaking a little as her body throbbed. For the entire time she was in the village she had been putting on her strong suit, her fighting spirit and got blooded nature. However, she felt like breaking down at this point. The pressure was getting too much for her to handle that she felt so desperate and lost.

　　The Lord before her, Asher… He brought her here without any explanation, her family and everything she knew, she might never see them again. Her life as she knew it could be over… Forever! When these thoughts hit her, her body trembled and her kegs list strength. Before she knew it, she had fallen to her knees. With a shaky voice and desperate eyes, she looked at the man standing in front of her and pleaded with her look.

　　“Asher, Wolf King… Whatever your name is. You’ve proven your point already, but… I can’t do this. Please just let me go home! I don’t want to be here anymore!” She cried out in frustration, fighting back even the slightest hint of tears.

　　She had to stay strong, if she broke down now she would show herself to be pathetic. She wouldn’t be able to pick up the pieces, and so she needed to still hold herself together. As her eyes gazed upon the man. He let out a slight smile, and then his lips opened up and bright forth words.

　　“Young lady… I am not Asher, ``he said.