I realized immediately that he had fallen asleep. The silence that suddenly settled was sufficient proof; his agitated heartbeat calmed down, and his breath became steady and deep.
I stepped over him carefully, leaving him to sink into the slumber of rest he deserved.
I headed to take my clothes, looking forward to a refreshing shower to soothe my nerves, which were tense from overthinking and stress throughout the day.
I left the room after organizing it from the utter chaos and scattered papers left behind by our work. I felt a piercing hunger, that hunger that always happens to me when I deplete a lot of energy.
This thing truly puzzled me.
Suddenly, a somewhat feminine voice pierced my head, its tone carrying clear sarcasm:
"This is normal; your powers depend on the health of your body, and your body depends on food. This doesn't require thinking, you fool!"
I stopped in my tracks, astonished. I knew very well that she was not my wolf; for Cyran is much warmer. I spoke to her quickly, inquiring, while my mind worked on uncovering her identity:
"Are you the Heart of the Forest?"
She laughed sarcastically, replying:
"And who did you think?... Stupid!"
My God, she is so provocative! She added with annoyance:
"And yes, I have a name, young lady!"
I replied to her with the same sarcasm:
"Oh, really? I don't remember you telling me, you!"
I felt her huffing with boredom at my words, realizing that I was right.
She spoke moments later while I was walking toward the dining hall because it was lunchtime:
"Minerva."
She said it, announcing her name with great annoyance.
I replied with a calm smile:
"A beautiful name, Minerva."
I felt her calm down a bit, accepting my praise. She replied coldly:
"Of course, you idiot."
I sighed with sorrow for myself; I think I will suffer a lot with this entity in the coming days.
While "Cyran" was listening to our conversation without saying anything, I sensed from her a lack of welcome for "Minerva," who had come to share the same body and mind with us.
I entered the spacious dining hall, and the scent of delicious food tickled my hungry nose.
I spotted my brother Jack sitting next to Julia. The scene before me was clear; he seemed to be flirting with her skillfully, judging by her shy laughter and her cheeks, which had turned the color of wild berries.
They were so immersed in their own little world that they didn't notice my presence at all.
I chuckled lightly at these "lovebirds," then sat in my usual place at the table.
"Hello guys! How is it going?"
I said it with a slight shout, finally drawing their attention to me.
My brother smiled at me cheerfully and happily:
"Oh, Cyra! Welcome."
Julia stared at me with even more shyness, her eyes trying to evade my gaze.
I said, enjoying her embarrassed look:
"How are you today, my dear brother's wife?"
I winked at the end of my words to increase her embarrassment. Julia screamed with a slight, feigned annoyance:
"Cyraaa!"
I laughed quietly at her cuteness, enjoying the light atmosphere before the start of the heavy tasks.
We were waiting for the rest when "Arin" and "Lauren" entered, with "Knight" right behind them.
They looked clearly confused, especially Lauren, whose gaze was anxious.
It seems Knight had already told her everything, or part of it.
"For goodness' sake, Knight, can't you wait a little?"
I said to myself with slight anger at his haste and lack of patience; we should have agreed on a plan on how to tell them first.
The scene suddenly felt charged with information we weren't ready to discuss yet.
Knight finally sat beside me.
I stared at him sharply and reproachfully; he didn't care at all, skillfully avoiding my gaze.
He began eating with a suspicious calmness to me, a calmness suggesting he was hiding something or simply ignoring my anger completely.
I turned my eyes to Lauren, who smiled at me with clear confusion, confirming my suspicions that she knew something.
I started eating quickly, trying to vent my anger which was beginning to rise again. My tension began to manifest in the surroundings, to the point that the cups and forks on the table started vibrating slightly.
Knight caught the situation quickly.
He grabbed my hand under the table, pressing it gently.
I stared at him, knitting my brows. He smiled at me faintly, stroking my hand with his fingers in a soothing motion.
I exhaled with boredom; his effect on me was immediate and strong, to the point that my anger vanished with a single touch from him.
I cursed him internally with the foulest words for his ability to control my feelings so easily, and I finished my food.
"Jack" said suddenly and without warning, breaking the silence:
"We are leaving today."
He was holding Julia's hand, who stared at Knight with fear of his rejection of this decision.
Knight stopped eating for a moment and said coldly without looking at them:
"Fine, I wish you happiness."
Then he continued his food as if nothing of importance had happened.
Julia's joy was indescribable now; she had obtained approval.
She stood up from her place and hugged Knight from behind quickly, kissing his cheek gently to express her thanks and gratitude.
I chuckled at "Jack," who clearly began to feel jealous of his mate's proximity to another man, even if that man was her brother. Jack's facial expressions were priceless.
Here we are saying goodbye to "Julia" and "Jack" for their departure.
He had to go, for he too is an Alpha and has a pack under his protection and care, and he cannot be away any longer.
I hugged "Julia" first with strength, then my brother "Jack," and I kissed him all over his face with tenderness and longing.
Suddenly, "Knight" pulled me away forcefully, and signs of annoyance and jealousy were completely visible on his face.
I chuckled internally with pleasure, enjoying his amusing reaction.
I stared at him with feigned sharpness.
I said to them before they got into the car:
"Give my greetings to my mother and the entire pack."
He smiled at me tenderly, then they left, leaving behind the rising car smoke.
Knight stood staring at us all, then headed somewhere. We looked at each other in confusion and followed him with curiosity.
We finally reached a place I hadn't seen before in the palace. It was a large, massive metal door with no visible handle.
Knight placed his hand on the iron door, and it opened immediately through some technology.
I stared in awe and was amazed by the place inside, looking like a secret and advanced operations room. A childish cry escaped my mouth:
"Waaaow! This is amazing!"
"Arin" chuckled at my somewhat childish comment.
The door closed as soon as we entered. Knight said seriously:
"This place is safe for the discussion we will have... you know, spies are everywhere."
We all nodded to him.
Speaking of spies, I remembered what I had to tell him. I said:
"Do you know anything about them? I mean, have you tracked any new movements or actions?"
Arin said calmly:
"No, they haven't done anything or caused any problem, as if they are planning something big."
I nodded to him, confirming his suspicions.
I stared at Knight, who was looking at me inquiringly at this question of mine.
I said while focusing on him completely:
"I think I discovered who they are."
In the blink of an eye, Knight was holding my shoulders, asking with deep concern:
"What? How? Don't tell me that you..."
I sighed for the thousandth time today to immediately deny what he was going to say. I told them about that night, about the masked man, and about the maid I saw.
As I spoke, the veins in his face were frighteningly prominent, and his hands squeezed so hard that his knuckles turned white; anger was boiling inside him.
His dominant and angry aura rose in a terrifying way, to the point that the air became much heavier in the closed room.
"Arin" and "Lauren" had their heads lowered in obedience, their fear rising from this overwhelming Alpha aura.
They were barely standing on their feet from terror.
While I, unlike all of them, was not affected by it at all. I said to him calmly, trying to soothe his agitation:
"Calm down, Knight."
I heard him cursing, clutching his hair with both hands, and stomping the ground violently with his foot, angry at the betrayal I had just revealed.
The hall was charged with dominant anger energy.
I decided to intervene. I released my soothing pheromones into the air strongly on everyone. Since I am the "Luna" here, I liked trying them on them for the first time and seeing their effect.
The atmosphere calmed down immediately; I felt the tension dissipate. Lauren and Arin were sending me silent looks of gratitude, thanking me for delivering them from this tense situation and overwhelming fear.
I saw his shoulders and hands slowly relax, stopping his aggression. Staring at me, he blinked several times, knitting his brows, unsure if it was really me who had done that.
I chuckled in confusion, scratching the back of my neck with slight tension:
"Aaah... Look, we have to talk calmly, and don't forget that we have a pregnant woman here."
Knight gave Lauren a quick glance, then exhaled forcefully from his mouth, a sign of his surrender to the situation.
He walked toward the laboratory chair and sat on it, finally ready for a rational discussion.
"How will we expose him? Many here have tattoos,"
Arin said, inquiring seriously and thoughtfully.
I said quickly and decisively:
"It is possible to identify him when I see the tattoo myself."
I saw Knight's features sharpen with clear anger, and signs of jealousy began to appear on his face at the idea that I might see other men's tattoos on their bodies. I quickly caught the matter and said:
"Knight and I will do that, and you, Arin, tighten the security these days, especially in the back courtyard of the palace."
I said it in the commanding and firm "Luna" tone.
Arin lowered his head in obedience and respect. I stared at Knight, who was aiming his gaze at us, not objecting to my decision or the division of tasks.
I saw the look of pride and admiration in his eyes from my quick action and firmness, along with that slight side smile that I have come to adore and which increases his attractiveness and charm.
I cleared my throat slightly, trying to break the tension caused by his looks. Knight advanced toward Lauren to say coldly, which suddenly turned into complete seriousness:
"What do you know about the Heart of the Forest?"
Lauren's eyes widened in surprise at his words; it seems Knight had not told her this part yet. She said with confusion from Knight's piercing looks at her:
"And Your Majesty, how do you know of its existence? I mean, it is from ancient times and no one knows anything about it except a very few!"
Lauren stared at us all with a smile carrying some embarrassment and said frankly:
"But I don't know much about it because I didn't have the honor of reading the book that speaks about everything related to it."
Knight hummed with understanding and went to one of the desk drawers to take out a book.
Its appearance suggested extreme age, with its yellowed pages and worn edges carrying the scent of thousands of years. He raised the book before her inquiringly:
"Are you talking about this?"
Lauren was shocked that he possessed this rare relic. She nodded her head with great eagerness, her eyes widening with the desire to read and uncover the secrets buried between its folds.
Knight continued his speech coldly:
"But it is in another language, I think a Roman language or something like that, so I didn't read it."
Lauren said very quickly, her eyes fully fixed on the book in his hand; she seemed to be crazy about history and ancient worlds:
"I am fluent in all languages, even this one!"
Knight raised his eyebrow coldly in amazement at her broad and unexpected knowledge.
He immediately gave her the book and said with complete seriousness:
"Tell us what is in it."
Lauren nodded to him with excitement, then sat on the comfortable chair in the secret operations room and placed the book before her on the table.
She began flipping the pages with caution and eagerness, reading what was written while her facial expressions changed between intense excitement and utter surprise at the valuable information she was reading.