Chapter 7 Blood Clad Pack

AS YOU CAN SEE, the ending was me joining them in this small festivity. None of them was killed by my final blow. That was a joke I couldn't afford to make. None of them sustained serious injuries as well.

They accepted me and even arranged a feast as my welcome party because I was gracious enough not to kill them.

I had already explained to them that I was not a member of the Dark Region Pack and that I was only staying with them because I didn't have a place to live. When they saw that I was unmated, they unexpectedly accepted that reason.

"Girl, think about it carefully. "There's no way you'd come here alone, considering you had a coachman with you," Kara, the red-haired woman, said. As I had predicted, she was mated with the huge man earlier. And that huge man was Jug, the rogue's leader.

Except for Jug, Kara refused to accept anyone. She, like me, thought of only having one man unless, of course, a man unexpectedly captured her heart. That's exactly what she said earlier.

Regardless, I was moved. Finally! Aye, finally! I met someone reasonable!

"They are decent people. And I don't think Lake would betray me," I shrugged. I would never jump to conclusions without a solid foundation or proof.

He either abandoned me or was involved in an accident, and I was kidnapped without my knowledge. Then, the kidnapper sent me here.

"You are too kind," said Kara in displeasure.

I giggled. "Thank you!"

Kara took a breath and sighed. Her mate, then, suddenly joined us. "Little girl, where are you going?" Jug asked as he sat beside Kara.

I blinked. "Why?"

"We can show you the way."

"You won't insist on me staying here?" I asked curiously.

Jug stilled. "You want to stay here?"

"Not really. I'm just curious why you're willing to let me go," I shrugged.

Jug sighed. "Although we are rogues, we also make our own rules. And one of our rules is that we should never force women to do anything. If you wish to stay with us, we will gladly accept you. If you don't, we won't hold it against you."

Is it wrong of me to believe that rogues were the good guys and those in packs were the bad guys?

Now that I'd had a proper conversation with them, my perspectives had broadened. In the eyes of those werewolves in packs, rogues were the villains who didn't adhere to the rules and their number one enemy. It was expected of them to refer to rogues as if they were describing the criminals who had murdered their loved ones.

"You don't have to show me the way. Just tell me which way to go," I said. When I saw their dejected expressions, as if not allowing them to accompany me would sentence them to death, I immediately explained, "I'm going to the summit. I doubt the elders would welcome your presence."

"What are you going to do there?" asked Kara curiously.

"I'm not sure. The Dark Region Pack alpha told me it was an emergency. As for what it is, I still have no idea."

"Understood," Jug said, nodding. "We'd be killed just for entering the elders' territory. We're afraid we won't be able to accompany you. However, we will accompany you until you reach the mountain near the summit. The elders wouldn't be able to feel our presence with such distance."

"Thank you. I appreciate it. I truly do."

I know nothing about the terrain of the realm. So, I was extremely grateful to these rogues for showing me the way.

I sighed.

Now, what to do with traitors?

---

Warning! Violence Ahead!

SEVERINO STEFANO

Dark forest. Hidden moon. The animals around didn't dare utter a sound, trembling as they hid among the bushes and trees. Their eyes widened in fear as they watched the terrifying scene before them.

A white rabbit choked in horror and jumped out of fear as a limb tossed in its direction.

A tiger whimpered when golden-glowing eyes glared at it.

Suddenly, howls started filling their ears together with painful screams. The animals around immediately scattered away.

Lake, writhing in pain and covered in blood, looked horrifyingly at the man who had broken his arms. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Instead, blood started gushing out.

He gasped, trying to catch his breath.

The Blood Clad Pack's cruelty was not without basis. They play with you, torture you, and wait for hours before deciding whether to kill you.

They had been making fun of him for more than an hour, yet they still had no plans to kill him. They let him run around the forest, catch him, and then release him, only to hunt him again.

Lake wanted to shout, curse, and eat them alive for treating him like a plaything. He was a gamma. The gamma of one of the five powerful packs in the realm, yet they kept on shaming him, stripping him of his dignity.

"Shall we kill him, now?" a playful voice asked. Silver hair and greyish eyes suddenly emerged from the dark. He wore no clothes, revealing his muscled and toned chest. The gamma of the Blood Clad Pack, Cross Stefano, stood confidently, grinning before their bloody victim.

"He shall live until we reach the summit," the man wearing a black robe answered. His tone indicated his impatience. He, too, has silvery hair but golden eyes. Frowning, he gave their alpha a look before adding, "You must learn to abide by the alpha's words. What was said must be obeyed."

Parviz Morozov didn't want to waste his time pursuing a good-for-nothing gamma from an unknown pack, to be honest. However, their alpha suddenly got interested in this gamma's lady companion. Regardless of his protest, they had to obey their alpha.

Aside from him, everyone was happy to hear that Alpha Severino was finally willing to take a mate. However, in Parviz's opinion, the said woman was lacking in every aspect. It would be better if their alpha chose a woman from their pack. His lovely sister, for example.

"I saw this man pitted our future luna," said Cross, "I say, brother. Why don't we kill him right away? How about chopping him into pieces?"

He looked at the alpha with pleading eyes, begging him to let him do the deed.

Severino didn't give him an answer. He stood still, 6′5 in height, silently observing Lake. His red golden eyes emitted coldness that no one had ever seen. His long silver hair swayed along the breeze. And his pale, thin lips pursed together.

His aura could almost frighten the dead, and his gaze could kill. He wore a dark, bloody colour robe, and a pair of skull earrings pierced his ears.

He didn't utter a word for almost a minute before finally saying with a deep voice, "He will be in your hands once we arrive at the summit."

After giving his instruction, he returned to his carriage. He then closed his eyes as soon as he sat down.

The elders were starting to pressure him. They had presented many women as his luna, but none got his attention. None of them was to his taste. All of them were a bunch of weaklings who only knew how to seduce men.

And none of them even withstand his power. They didn't manage to stay alive.

However, the woman earlier did.

She was alive when no one managed to.

And during her fight against the rogues, he saw her capability and strength. His companions weren't with him at the time. Hence, they didn't know how the woman singlehandedly defeated hundreds of rogues.

At the time, he decided to make the woman his mate, the future luna of his pack.

Just by the previous events, Severino could tell she would be the best distribution of bloodline. Their children might become the most powerful in the realm. And he could secure that their pack would stay on top. With the woman's blood, the Blood Clad Pack would never bore a weakling.

An indescribable feeling suddenly emerged, but he quickly shoved it down to the deepest part of his heart.

He shoved it down.

He erased it---

--- like what he always did in the past.

------

Alinta Devereaux

For the third time, we stopped.

The first time because the horses got tired.

The second time, we had to eat and sleep.

And now, we had to stop because of separation. We were already on a spot which was a mountain away from the summit.

I looked back and saw my dear companions watching me depart. Somehow, I could feel my eyes moisten. Regardless of our differences, we still clicked. And despite being rogues, they were, in fact, pleasing to look at. They were good acquaintances as well!

Waiving my white handkerchief and giving them one final longing look, I turned around and began walking. They told me I could reach the summit in just a day by walking.

They offered me a horse to ride, but I declined. The werewolves had a good smell, and those from the summit would certainly question me once they smelled the rogues from the horse. Animals and things belonging to a pack, they marked them. The same goes for the rogues.

The werewolves marked them through rituals. The smell would never come off regardless of what one does.

Although I don't fear the so-called elders and other powerful alphas, I avoid unnecessary trouble, specifically when it might involve killings.

I must say, though. The werewolves' way of differentiating their kind from being a pack and a rogue fascinated me.

I wonder how the rogue smells. Do they smell foul? Do the werewolves in a pack smell fantastic? Or was it the other way around?

I am starting to get curious. If given the opportunity, I would ask a werewolf those questions. And I might as well ask how I smell. Who knows, maybe I stink?

I hope not. Otherwise, my world would crumble.