"Kongar, don't leave me," I said, the words slipping from my lips.
My hand suddenly broke free from Alpha's grip. As I lifted my head to understand what had happened, I saw Kongar standing right in front of me. Despite the yellow liquid running from his nose, he was smiling at me. His eyes had returned to that thin, familiar line, and the darkness in his skin had disappeared, giving way once again to that pale yellowish tone.
In response to his smile, I found myself smiling too, without even realizing it.
But that strange moment was broken by Alpha's growl.
I was truly getting tired of that sound. Grabbing Kongar's wrist, I pulled him back so that he stayed behind me, keeping him behind me, and then I faced Alpha once again.
His appearance was, at the same time, both terrifying and… striking. The moment that thought formed in my mind, I felt disturbed with myself and shook my head slightly, trying to push it away.
"Look, Alpha—"
"Arkan," he interrupted me.
I frowned and looked at him. "Arkan?"
"My name is Arkan," he said, pointing at his chest with one hand.
My gaze shifted to that movement on its own and lingered there for a brief moment, lingering on his chest for a brief moment before I quickly pulled my eyes away.
What was happening to me? Since when had I started looking at a man like that? All my life, I had kept my distance from people, never truly getting close to anyone. Because I saw things others couldn't, people had always stayed away from me.
But for me, they had always been real.
And now, when I thought about what I was experiencing… maybe they truly were.
Noticing Alpha walking toward me, I snapped out of my thoughts. He had come too close. The confidence I had felt just moments ago had completely disappeared—though I still didn't understand where I had found that courage in the first place. I was standing in front of a werewolf, and not just one, but with an entire pack surrounding us.
I took a few steps back, and when my back hit Kongar, I stopped.
"My master, what is your command?" Kongar asked. I turned my head back toward him, and he continued, a faint smile on his lips,
"If you wish, I can get you out of here."
Then he turned his gaze toward Alpha, that same faint smile lingering on his lips. I had a feeling he was doing it on purpose; maybe he enjoyed provoking him. But I didn't think that would do us any good.
"How—"
My words were cut off.
Alpha suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me toward himself. The moment my back collided with his bare body, my breath was knocked out of me. His broad arms wrapped around my waist, trapping me in place as if I couldn't move at all.
I struggled in his hold, but it was useless. He didn't seem to feel even the slightest strain.
"Let me go!" I shouted.
"Kongar…" I pleaded.
The moment that word left my lips, I felt the body behind me tense.
Just as Kongar took a step toward me, the other man approached him from behind and slipped something black around his neck—a collar.
Before Kongar could even raise his hands to it, he dropped to his knees.
The movement was so sudden that my chest tightened.
I turned my head as far as I could, trying to face Alpha.
"What did you put on Kongar?" I asked, but before waiting for an answer, I turned back to him.
"Are you okay?"
Kongar lifted his head and looked at me, then lowered it slightly, letting me know he was.
But like this… he didn't look okay at all.
"I think this is the creature we've been looking for," said the man who had put the collar on him, as if speaking more to himself than to anyone else.
"What is your name…" Alpha said.
Then he inhaled the air, his gaze sharpening.
"You're from the Beta's line… aren't you?"
Without hesitation, the man tilted his head to the side and lowered it, exposing his neck completely.
"Alpha… my name is Soren," he said.
His voice was calm, but the respect within it was unmistakable.
"In your absence, I was the one leading the pack."
My brows drew together involuntarily. What did that mean… weren't they together?
"Don't you even know your own names?" I asked, not bothering to hide the mocking smile that settled on my lips, while at the same time trying to free myself from the arms wrapped around my body.
"Luna—" Soren began, but the growl that rose from Alpha's throat cut him off mid-sentence.
With that growl, I felt the body behind me tense, and I shivered without meaning to.
He leaned toward me.
Bringing his mouth close to my ear, he said, "It's a long story."
When his breath brushed against my skin, my body trembled; maybe I was just being sensitive, I thought.
"We should go home now… before it gets dark."
After saying that, he lowered his head from beside my ear to the space between my neck and shoulder, then took a deep breath; as the warmth of that breath spread across my skin, the low rumble that followed made his body tremble again, and he kept his head there.
Slowly, I tilted my head to the side; my body felt as if it was melting in his arms. A strange warmth spread through me in waves, loosening something inside me as my thoughts began to blur.
In that moment, a soft sound slipped from my lips; my eyes widened in shock, and I quickly covered my mouth, but it was already too late.
Alpha's rumble deepened, as if he had taken pleasure in it.
"Stay away from my master," Kongar said, his voice cold, sharp, and far more unsettling than I was used to.
When I turned my head, I saw that his gaze was locked onto me; he was standing, and the collar was still around his neck, but this time it seemed to be faintly glowing.
His voice shattered that strange state I had been in, and the moment I came back to myself, I struggled to break free from Alpha's arms.
"Don't bother… the collar prevents you from using magic," Soren said, his voice calm as he walked toward Kongar.
Alpha's arms wrapped around me loosened slowly, and from behind me, I heard the sound of bones cracking. My heart began to race; as that sudden change filled me with an unexplainable fear, I turned around without thinking.
The massive black wolf stood in front of me. Its breath hit my face, its warmth spreading across my skin as his eyes locked onto mine for a brief moment.
That look…
It lasted less than a second.
And then, with a single movement, he leaped over me.
Struggling to keep my balance, I turned back again, only to see the black wolf crashing down onto Kongar; its massive body pinned him completely as it pulled its head back, opened its enormous jaws, and lunged forward to sink its teeth into him.
"No!" I screamed.