Chapter 67

Chapter 67: Chapter 67

Chapter 67

The lavish chambers of Alpha Frederick welcomed me with ample ventilation, allowing the sunbeams to pour through, illuminating the beauty of the beige-painted walls, imported furniture, and flower pots stationed by every doorway.

While Marcellan stayed outside, Alpha Frederick’s guards led the way to a room before stopping. Without a word, I knew I was meant to enter.

My mouth dropped.

I was unable to hide my shock as I came face-to-face with life-sized chess pieces, each of them labelled with the names of the Council members and Alpha Kai.

The piece bearing my name sat at the very end, unmoved as of yet. Though I was merely an amateur player of Chess, I knew without being told that I was the Queen.

How did he even get this constructed?

From my peripheral vision, Alpha Frederick appeared to my left, and I almost failed to notice him. His hands were clasped behind his back, his posture slightly bent as he watched me with careful observation.

His accent was entirely different from that of SilverFang, deliberate in the way he pronounced each syllable.

"My pursuit of triumph over SilverFang is an undying feat. I apologize if it scares you."

His features were sharp, sharper than I remembered, his eyes reflecting gold, and one could easily see the intensity swirling within them, as though his wolf could descend upon me at any moment before I even had the chance to cast a spell.

"I’m part of SilverFang. I don’t think your apology is sincere, is it?"

The man simply snorted a laugh.

Exposing his left hand revealed a remote. Upon pressing a button, the MoonBlade pieces, painted in black, removed two pawns from SilverFang’s white side.

"What is this..." Madness.

I wished to complete the sentence with that word, but I had come here for another purpose.

"I wish to kill the Queen of SilverFang." He said it casually.

The Queen bore my name. He knew that.

It made me cringe, caught off guard by his sheer nonchalance.

"Have the Queen expunged and then win the game. Yet here he is, in flesh and blood. Do you think I have the same chance as I do in the game?" He asked, facetiously-toned.

Shifting my attention from the towering pieces, whose movements caused the walls to vibrate and the ground to tremble whenever he pressed the remote, I took careful steps before replying.

"The game wouldn’t fight back, but I will."

A second passed, and he merely smirked.

I took that as my chance to continue.

"Before I was an orphan in SilverFang, before it became my home, I remember a time when I was much younger. My parents and I seemed to be travelling somewhere. I don’t know where exactly. However, it’s clear to me now that MoonBlade is the closest Pack to SilverFang and the same Pack that hypocritically condemns Mage-wolves while secretly employing them for jobs."

I paused.

"Though I may be wrong, I have reason to believe your Pack is connected to the death of my parents and the birth of my powers. I’ve come to bargain for legal access to the tower where the One Tree resides. I must revive the full extent of the blood I carry."

The man tilted his head.

"Do you speak of Aetherblood?"

Then his brows lifted with realization.

"You’re the Aetherblood Nathan used to speak about before his capture?"

"Failed capture. I know he escaped your men."

"Someone got him out, and if you know so much, perhaps I have reason to arrest you."

The man mused, sarcasm dancing across his expression.

Between us and the towering chess pieces, the sunlight poured through the windows as though matching the tension steadily tightening around me.

"I’m Alpha Kai’s mate and Luna of SilverFang. You’d be starting a war."

"You knew that, yet you still came into my territory. You must be a terrible Chess player." The moment he mocked me, he barked an order.

"Guards!"

My eyes wandered as men emerged from hidden entrances. I hadn’t even noticed those doors before. My heart plummeted, and my nerves spiked.

I had not felt this nervous in a while, and it reminded me that I was truly gambling with my life. As the men drew closer, I resorted to my final option.

The spell came subtly, short and sharp. "Close thine eyes and knoweth slumber."

The men collapsed into a deep sleep. My heart still pounded heavily against my ribs, making my fingers twitch as I walked between the towering pieces toward Alpha Frederick.

"Great trick. Now what? Make me bend the knee?"

"I know you detest Mage-wolves. That’s practically what your Pack stands for. But you’re missing a critical detail. I helped you capture Nathan in the first place, even though I never received a thank you for it."

"Lies." He barked.

"You know you and your men weren’t capable enough to catch that trickster. Surely, as a man of intelligence, you realized magic was involved. Magic against Nathan’s magic."

"Still, you came here to threaten me. There’s no reason I’d trust you." He remained hard-headed.

"Test me." I countered, as I met his eyes directly.

Alpha Frederick pursed his lips before turning around. The flipping of his tone to a subtle manner was shocking.

"Come with me."

Then, almost as an afterthought, he added, "And oh, do my men wake up later, or should I start arranging their burials?"

That was all he said before his long stride carried him from the room.

For real, what was wrong with this man?

∆∆∆

"Look at what the bastard did." Alpha Frederick said.

"This means death."

My voice carried every ounce of dread I felt in this place. The Adamic rune sigil was one I could never mistake. It was the language spoken by the One Tree. The same foreign words I uttered whenever I cast a spell. And here was one of its symbols in the middle of a deserted village.

Blood stained the ground, a lingering reminder of the bodies dragged away after the massacre that had taken place here.

The houses had been burned to the ground. Other buildings had been reduced to their foundations. Smoke filled the air, darkening it with ominous whispers of looming danger.

The sight turned my saliva into a lump that I forced down my throat.

"Who did this?"

"Who do you think?" Alpha Frederick stared at me.

The moment realization struck, I nodded.

"Nathan." My voice sounded brittle and small.

"So, how do you intend to help?" He was eager, and I took my time to think.

Everything I needed to become a stronger version of myself was here.

I could take the risk.

It was why I’d come here in the first place.

"In exchange for access to the One Tree and the truth about myself, I’ll help you capture Nathan. Whatever you choose to do with him afterward is your decision. I won’t be involved."

I laid out my terms, earning the faintest ghost of a smile from the man.

Alpha Frederick was anything but impressed or moved by my words. Or perhaps he was simply too skilled at hiding it.

He turned his back to me, surveying the ruined village.

"I’ll tell you a story. Your parents didn’t die here in MoonBlade. They died in SilverFang. That’s why you grew up there."

"H—how do you mean?"

"Exactly what you heard. They were paid workers, and they died while carrying out their duties."

He began to walk away.

"I believe that’s enough motivation for you to start looking for the son of the man who killed them."

Wait, what? What was he trying to say?

My mind reeled with a thousand thoughts, desperately trying to make sense of what he’d just revealed.

"Do you mean Nathan is the son of the man who killed my parents?"

"Of course. You didn’t think he learned about MoonBlade’s hidden tower because I was some blabbermouth willing to trust a SilverFang citizen turned rogue. And you certainly didn’t think he became interested in you or the magic you carry because he loved you."

That was all Alpha Frederick offered before disappearing behind the smoke.

My gaze fell to the ashes as the truth peeled away the lies one layer at a time.

And suddenly, everything began to make sense.

I’d been such a fool...

A naive fool.