Esmere POV “The night after tomorrow?” Ophelia blurted out. “The alpha must be kidding. We cannot possibly invite every northern werewolf on the continent on such short notice.” I breathed a heavy sigh as I looked out the big window of my room that night. The full moon shone brilliantly above, and the calm wind caressed my skin. “It’s a full moon,” I whispered. Ophelia gazed at me cluelessly. “Madam, have you heard even a single thing I said?” I glanced back at her and gave her a bitter smile. “Yes. I heard everything you said, but there is nothing I could do but follow his orders, right?” Yes. I could do nothing but agree. I did not want to see that angry expression again from Aamon. “If only Miss Cecilia is here. She can certainly help us with this problem,” Ophelia murmured in a sad voice. I pat Ophelia’s shoulder and answere
Esmere POV Elisa emerged from where Aamon came from — from the top of the stairs. She wore a long white dress that flowed with her every move while she carefully went down the stairs. Every eye on that place was set on her, watching her as if she was the moon goddess descending from heaven. And Aamon… Aamon could not hide even an inch of delight on his face — I knew he was so proud of her. My heart painfully throbbed upon seeing that scene. Aamon used to give me that kind of glance, but at that time, I was just another werewolf standing there. “Her name is Elisa,” Aamon introduced her when they reached each other. “But, Master…” One northern werewolf suddenly talked. “I get you found your mate, but as we already know, we have a Luna now. We already have a northern queen.” And then, all the northern werewolves there suddenl
Esmere POV It had been two days since that night Aamon confronted me, and I still could not get his words off my mind. “She is my mate, and you are someone I marked out of duty. Don’t be confused.” Aamon and I were together for five years, and he never made me feel like I was a stranger in his pack. But that night, it all came out. He revealed his true feelings for me. I gripped my chest when I felt a stinging in my heart. I did not know it could hurt this much — so painful that I could feel it physically. Two days passed, and I never left my room even once. Ophelia was the one who did all the things I should have been doing outside. And… And Aamon never once checked out on me. Maybe he did not even notice my absence. His mind was clouded with the ideas of his lovely mate and the things they should do after not meeting for ma
Esmere POV “Hey, bastards. Tell me how you want to die,” someone’s voice uttered when I was about to be captured by the three attackers. All of us turned our gaze to the direction where the voice came from and saw a silhouette casually walking towards us. The moon shone on the figure, and I realized it was a man wearing a white long-sleeved and a pair of black pants. And I was quite taken aback at seeing his features. He has black hair with gray eyes — just like Aamon’s. “Who are you, punk?” One of the attackers aggressively asked him. The man smiled as if he was not caught in a bad situation. He was chilling while one of his hands was casually in his pocket. “No need for introduction; you are going to die, anyway,” he replied. “What can a pretty boy like you do to us?” the attacker said, mocking the mysterious man. Suddenly, he pulled out a gun and pointed it at the
Esmere POV “Seeing that you are doing nothing and just resting here, I want you to do something for me,” Aamon told me upon seeing that I was on the bed. I immediately stood up and composed myself so he wouldn’t notice that I was sick at that time. “What is it?” “I want you to lead the alteration of the entire castle.” My eyebrows wrinkled upon hearing what he had just said. “What do you mean by changing the castle?” Aamon gave me a sharp gaze and answered, “Elisa was hurt by touching a sword inside. I want you to remove every dangerous weapon in this castle.” Elisa. That one name again. “But those weapons are where they are supposed to be,” I protested. “We need them in case of a sneak attack.” “Oh goodness, Esmere. Do you hear yourself?” he said, and he seemed very annoyed. “We are werewolves. Our claws are the weapons!” And when I heard
Esmere POV The northern werewolves were rounded up by the entrance as if they were ready to fight at any moment. Aamon had a stern look on his face. “What’s happening?” I whispered as Ophelia and I watched them in curiosity. Suddenly, a man entered the castle. He wore a coat made of fur. And upon seeing his face, my eyes widened in astonishment. “That man — that mysterious man!” I exclaimed. I couldn’t be wrong. That man was the one who saved me last night. “Do you know him, Madam?” Ophelia asked me. I couldn’t tell Ophelia what had happened to me that night and why I was familiar with the man. I did not want to worry her furthermore. “No. It’s the first time I have seen him,” I lied. We continued to watch the scene as the ambiance got darker and darker. “Why is everyone so te
Esmere POV Fortunately, my condition did not worsen after we finished gathering all the weapons inside the castle. After finishing the task Aamon had given us, Ophelia assisted me to my room and brought some medicine. Seeing how tired she was, I told her to retire for the night and take some rest. Initially, Ophelia did not want to leave me and insisted on sleeping in my room, but I told her I wanted to be alone and assured her I wouldn’t leave my room that night. The wind that night was so cold, and there was a crescent moon above. I could hear the singing of the crickets, and that sound could somehow comfort me. My room has an expansive terrace that’s directly facing the northern forest. Aamon used to enter from there whenever he wanted to visit me before, and then we would talk about the future of the northern pack and our future children until sunrise.
Esmere POV The sun that day did not appear, and as usual, I was hanging out with Ophelia in the garden outside the castle. Aamon wouldn’t give me even a fraction of his day. All his attention would be divided between his duties and being with Elisa. It was a never-ending cycle. We were sitting in our favorite spot under a gigantic tree when I suddenly saw a group of young women entering the castle. “What’s happening?” I asked Ophelia, who was peeling a fruit at that time. “Didn’t you hear about it, Madam?” she whispered. My eyebrows wrinkled in curiosity. “About what?” “Every chance the alpha’s brother is here in the north, maiden werewolves who haven’t found their mates would flock where he is in hopes that he would be their fated mate.” “What?” I exclaimed, astounded. “That’s a thing?” “Yes,” Ophelia smiled as she answered. “Apparently,
Esmere POV: It was still raining that night when I woke up. My whole body hurt as I stood up from where I lay down. “Are you all right?” An older man with white hair and a beard asked me as he sat before a small bonfire. We were in a provisional tent that was poorly made. “W-who are you?” I asked as my entirety shivered. “I am an eastern wolf wandering around the continent. Who are you? And why are those northern werewolves adamant about killing you?” Hearing what he had just said, I automatically held my stomach and felt a sharp pain in there. “M- my child,” I murmured with widened gazes. The older man looked at me with a pitiful countenance. “Sorry, but you were badly injured when I came to you that I thought you were already dead. I could not do anything to save the child inside you.” As soon as I heard him say that, my whole world fell. “No. You are lyin
Chapter 22 Esmere POV My eyes widened, and my mouth almost fell upon seeing the situation in the western mountain. The western castle was burning, and the western werewolves’ burned corpses were lying on the ground. “We have been attacked!” One werewolf with me screamed at the top of his lungs. And out of everything that happened there, two enormous wooden crosses particularly caught my attention. There were two individuals pinned in each of them. My chest pounded as I gradually walked toward them, and I screamed in horror upon recognizing their faces. “Mother! Father!” They were lifeless. Silver daggers were pierced into their hearts and their throats. I instantly fell to the ground because of the shock I felt. “W- what’s happening?” I stuttered as my whole body trembled excessively. “Madam! We
Esmere POV A week passed, and the group of werewolves that the western pack had sent to fetch me from the northern castle arrived. Six western werewolves had come to get me, including Ophelia. She was so overjoyed upon seeing me getting out of the castle. “Madam!” she enthusiastically yelled as she hugged me tightly. “I missed you so much!” I wore an oversized robe at that time. “I missed you, too,” I said while smiling. “It’s never the same without you here.” “Sorry, Madam. I left you alone,” she answered apologetically. “It’s not your fault,” I replied. I wanted to tell her the truth about how Elisa manipulated her to go savage, but I thought it was not the right time to spill it out. The maids were at the entrance, watching me departing from the northern castle. Aamon was not there at that time. He left ear
Esmere POV "I am planning to remove my mark from Esmere!" I clutched my chest so tightly as soon as I heard those words from Aamon. I leaned on the wall so I wouldn't fall because of the shock I felt at that moment. "But removing the mark from her could cost her life. Are you ready to face the consequences?" One of the influential elder werewolves asked him. "Yes," Aamon answered without even hesitating. "Let's be honest here. This is also what you want, right?" Everyone in that room fell silent. No one could even answer. "We all think Esmere is not suitable to be the luna if we want to take this pack to a higher and stronger level. So why not just remove the mark from her? You are all thinking that, right?" Aamon spoke again, and there was a hint of anger in his voice. "You also wanted me to mark the rightful one, right?" "But what about the western pack?" Rocco was th
Esmere POV The aloe vera’s scent circulated in the room and greeted me as I woke up. When I opened my eyes, I saw an older woman with white hair sitting beside me and massaging my legs. As soon as I felt her touching my wound inflicted by the silver chain, I groaned out of pain. “How are you feeling, Madam?” The older woman asked me when she noticed I woke up. “This is a nasty wound.” “Are you the priest-doctor?” I asked. “Yes, Madam. The alpha has called me to check on you,” she answered. “I heard your health is deteriorating.” I tried to stand but couldn’t since my legs were still shivering. I asked her, “What do you mean my health is deteriorating?” The older woman slightly stroked her forehead as she hesitantly answered, “I heard from the alpha that you are getting weak mentally.” “What?” I exclaimed upon hearing what she had told me. “
Esmere POV Realizing that Aamon would not believe in me, I yelled, “Cecilia! Tell the alpha the things you just told me.” But despite calling for her name, Cecilia didn’t come forward. I looked in the direction where she was standing and said, “Please, Cecilia. I need you to tell them the truth.” The resounding voice of Aamon then filled the room. “What are you waiting for, Cecilia? Come forward!” And that’s when Cecilia proceeded to the room. I stared at her as I clasped my hands in anticipation. I wanted everyone to know that Ophelia was innocent and Elisa was behind everything. “What do you know?” Aamon asked the older maid. “What the hell did you say to the luna?” Cecilia’s shoulder shook as she fidgeted with her fingers. “I- I,” she stuttered. “I have no idea what the luna is talking about.” My heart almost fell out of my chest after h
Esmere POV “It’s about the day Ophelia attacked Madam Elisa,” Cecilia muttered. I could see the hesitation in her eyes. “W- what about it?” I stuttered. I didn’t know why, but I felt nervous at that time. Then she reached for her pocket and handed me a small purple flower. “What is this?” I asked as I gazed at the flower in my hand. Cecilia’s shoulders uncontrollably shook as she lowered her head. “That flower is called night howler.” “What does it do? How is it relevant to Ophelia’s situation?” She clasped her hands as she tried to speak. “That flower, Madam, when ingested by werewolves, could make them a ferocious beast that mindlessly attacks humans.” My eyes widened in astonishment. I stammered, “W-what did you say?” Cecilia suddenly kneeled before me and cried, “Madam. I am really sorry. I didn’t mean to do it to Ophelia. I didn’t mean
Esmere POV “Sorry, Madam. But he does not want to talk to you in the meantime,” Rocco told me as I stood in front of Aamon’s room. It was my third attempt to talk to Aamon, and all those efforts went down the drain since he didn’t want to talk to me, let alone see my face. I lowered my head. “Aamon, I know you can hear me even if I whisper as weak as this,” I muttered, hoping he could hear me with his sensitive ears. “I understand you do not want to talk to me now, but I am desperate to see you. I would appreciate it if you could only spare some time to meet me.” But even after I pleaded so much, there was no reply. “Sorry, Madam,” Rocco muttered in a sad voice. I bit my lower lip as I turned around to leave, but suddenly, I heard Aamon’s stern voice. “Let her in.” I instantly looked at Rocco; he nodded as he opened the door. I slowly approache
Esmere POV And, to my sheer horror, I saw Ophelia in her werewolf form as she viciously attacked a frightened Elisa. The maidens earlier were also shifted to their werewolf forms, trying to stop Ophelia. But at that time, she was so strong that no one could defy her. “Ophelia!” I yelled as I ran down to stop her. But as soon as I saw her up close, her appearance made me shiver. Her eyes were so red that they creeped me out. She was drooling so much that it felt like she was an uncontrollable beast. “Ophelia, stop it!” I yelled again, but it seemed she didn’t recognize my voice or face. Three maiden werewolves were holding her, but their combined strength was proven insufficient, as Ophelia managed to free herself from them. And what she did next made everyone scream. She scraped Elisa’s shoulders with her claws.