It was possible they’d rely stumbled upon these cursed artifacts and found a way to harness them for their own gain. Or perhaps they were pawns in a far more sinister ga. Either way, Zion couldn’t afford to make assumptions.
To uncover the truth, he would need help—a mage, soone capable of delving into the origin and purpose of the blood stones. But therein lay the problem. The Mage Tower, which housed the most powerful and knowledgeable mages, was currently under the control of Archmage Elric, the Royal Mage. As the chosen successor and rightful master of the tower, Elric held absolute authority over what knowledge and resources the mages could share.
And unfortunately, Elric had sworn allegiance to the Alpha King.
That alone made things complicated. The Alpha King had marked Zion as soone he dislike, placing him firmly in the crosshairs of the crown. Would Elric even be permitted to assist him? Would the archmage dare defy the king’s will?
Zion wasn’t sure. But one thing was certain—he couldn’t face this darkness alone.
Zion couldn’t help but furrow his brows in deep thought. The repeated rogue attacks against his pack were far too frequent and coordinated to be dismissed as coincidence. In any normal situation, the Alpha King would have already dispatched an envoy or a trusted agent to investigate—such was his duty as the sovereign ruler of all werewolves within his domain.
Yet now, despite the escalating danger, there had been no response. It was as if the Alpha King was deliberately turning a blind eye, using the chaos as a form of punishnt against Zion and his pack.
The realization hit hard. If the king truly intended to isolate them, then even the royal mage—his last hope—would likely ignore any plea for assistance. Zion clenched his jaw. If no help was coming, he would have to face this threat alone... or find an alternative path.
But what could he do? If Elric refused his request, then no mage under his command would dare assist him. Should he turn to a witch instead? Or perhaps reach out to the Sacred Land? Yet, contacting the Pope or the Saintess was even more difficult—nearly impossible, in fact. Not even mbers of the royal family could summon them easily. What chance did he have?
Zion’s thoughts spiraled as he considered every possible alternative when Levi’s voice ca through again.
"Alpha Zion, I had the warriors sweep the periter on my side of the border. It’s clear..." Levi reported with a sigh.
"Sa here..." Zion replied, then paused, his gaze fixed beyond the clearing toward the distant border where his scout wolf was returning. The report matched Levi’s—no sign of rogues. But that was exactly what made it troubling.
’It’s too quiet. That’s what’s suspicious,’ he muttered. ’Sothing’s wrong with the rogues’ behavior.’ He turned his attention back to the mindlink. "Levi, have you sent the statistical reports of rogue attacks over the past few years to the Royal Capital? As required by all packs?"
"I did. Every month, I’ve submitted reports detailing the rogue attacks in our territory. By now, the palace should have a stack of them—likely more than the total reports from all the other packs combined. The Royal Family should have noticed the pattern by now. Under normal circumstances, they would’ve sent a trusted aide to investigate, either openly or in secret. But we’ve heard nothing. No response. That can only an one thing—we’re being deliberately ignored."
"And I fear I know why. This situation could pose a threat to the Princess’s safety. If she were truly valued, they would have acted. So I can only assu... she’s fallen out of favor with the Alpha King. They’re discarding her quietly, letting her fade into obscurity to avoid tainting the Royal Family’s na. I suspect they’ve already chosen to back her cousin instead."
"Hmm," Zion murmured in agreent, his expression unreadable. He had been thinking the sa thing. After all, too many ’coincidences’ could never truly be coincidental.
The relentless rogue attacks—they had to be after the Princess. Under normal circumstances, the Alpha King should be doing everything in his power to protect his so-called beloved daughter. But if she had truly fallen out of favor, that would explain the silence from the capital.
Still, what didn’t add up was the retaliation against him. Why would the Alpha King turn his back on Zion?
Zion had earned his hero’s rit in the previous war. In just three years after his return, even while isolated and unsupported, he had restored his pack’s strength and prestige—bringing them back among the top-ranking packs. His potential and leadership were undeniable.
If anything, the Alpha King should have been working to form an alliance with him.
Even though Zion’s initial plan to use the Princess as leverage hadn’t gone as expected, he had still succeeded in raising his pack’s power and influence.
Sothing didn’t add up. The Alpha King was retaliating against him over what happened to the Royal Princess, yet at the sa ti, he was ignoring the very real danger threatening her life. The contradiction was glaring.
Zion couldn’t begin to guess what the Alpha King was thinking. For now, all he could do was focus on what was within his control.
"Alright, finish the cleanup and return to my office," Zion instructed through the mindlink. "Send another report and include our latest findings to the Royal Capital. But leave out any ntion of the blood stone and curse for now—we’ll use that to gauge their willingness to cooperate. Aside from that, make sure to detail everything else, including the use of poison."
He kept his tone calm, but his mind was already calculating the next move.
Levi was slightly puzzled. If he wasn’t mistaken, his Alpha should be focused on finding a mage to examine the earrings embedded with blood stones—they were clearly dangerous. And yet, instead of reporting them directly to the Royal Family, Alpha Zion was choosing to keep it quiet.
Unable to make sense of it himself, Levi finally asked, "Alpha Zion, if I may—don’t you want a mage to inspect these earrings? Why are we keeping them a secret instead of informing the Royal Family? Shouldn’t we report it so they can send soone? Perhaps even the Royal Mage Elric? If the Alpha King learns about these artifacts along with the rogue attacks, wouldn’t he be more likely to take it seriously and send soone to investigate, maybe even assign mages to keep watch?"
Zion crossed his arms and looked up at the sky for a mont before answering.
"That artifact is exactly why we can’t report everything just yet," he said calmly. "The poison can be ntioned—because anyone could have used it, and it could point to a conspiracy against us or an attempt to harm the Princess. That alone should be enough to gauge the Alpha King’s response. But the curse... and the artifact? That’s another matter entirely."
He paused before continuing, his tone more serious.
"If what we’re dealing with ties back to the ancient cults ntioned in the history books—the ones that worshipped the Dark Witch—then we’re talking about sothing far more dangerous. Besides, the Alpha King isn’t even the first person to see these reports."
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