The Rejected Luna and The Cursed Nephilim

The Hidden Secret

| Author POV

The night was almost over, and some mansion guards had started to yawn even though they knew they could not leave their posts because it was their duty–to guard and protect all members of the Eclipse pack alliance.

They had been recruited and given the noble task of ensuring that Eclipse's security remained intact, no matter if they had to sacrifice for it.

However, even though their hearts and souls were fully dedicated to guarding the Eclipse residence, they still could not escape their own physical conditions. Even a werewolf guard could feel sleepy after days of watching without rest.

Some yawns became their weakness, causing two guards in leather uniforms to be completely unaware–or they had even lost consciousness when odorless black powder flew towards them and made both guards fall into a deep sleep. They leaned against each other, like lovers, and let a black shadow dart quickly past their post.

"Heh... they both were so easy to bypass," the dark figure muttered, revealing his true identity as a messy-haired man with green emerald eyes.

He was on a mission to complete his long-awaited revenge before time ran out due to the curse that afflicted him. Therefore, Alaric was searching for an ancient artifact belonging to the werewolf clan located in the Eclipse mansion—a rumored artifact that could lift even the deadliest curse.

Additionally, he had another intention.

However, since Alaric did not know where to find the ancient object, he had to take the risk of coming to this place and exploring this large building himself. Nevertheless, Alaric didn't need to rush for now.

He already had Isabella in his grasp. He just needed to ensure that the woman remained afraid of him and submissive to Alaric.

"Hmmm, she looked pretty gloomy at the dinner party earlier. Are the people in this place really that awful?" Alaric muttered as he walked through the hallway without making any footsteps, making him perfect for being an assassin. Alaric was very skilled at making his presence thin. He blended so easily with darkness and shadows.

Alaric had been searching this building since earlier, and he did not find anything interesting except for some cheating scandals in the garden between two married people, a poorly buried body under the flower plants in the garden, or some very expensive old items that even Alaric could sell and get a fantastic price for them.

He could not explore the entire mansion in one night, especially since Alaric knew there were probably many secret paths and rooms that even Isabella herself didn't know about.

The day was almost morning, marked by a hint of sunrise appearing in the eastern horizon, making Alaric stop walking and look to enjoy the sunrise through the mansion's window.

"That's enough for tonight, I'll continue exploring the building tomorrow."

The man had turned around and was about to blend in with the remaining shadows when he heard some footsteps approaching. Alaric quickly assessed the situation and instinctively hid among the shadowy pillars, waiting for them to come.

"Alpha Adrian, maybe you could consider this first–"

"Again, are you intend to oppose me, Sean? Huh!"

Sean? Adrian?

Alaric seemed familiar with those names. He tried to enhance his vision and hearing senses when he realized that he had encountered with both figures when he was still staying in Isabella's dress as a black feather.

They were Sean and Adrian.

Both of them were acquaintances of Isabella, and also two guys she did not like.

"They really do seem like a pair of bastard, though."

For some reason, Alaric suddenly realized that he, too, was joining in criticizing the two men after recalling their attitude towards Isabella.

Alaric spontaneously covered his mouth and shook his head briefly.

"You must be crazy, Ric. Not even 24 hours in the enemy's residence, and you're already getting infected by their strange way of thinking."

He tried to convince himself that he was okay and had no issues with what was in his head when he heard another voice from both of them.

"I was sure about my decision. And you know I'd never consider that doll-like woman as my partner."

"Alpha... but you need to know that Isabella is set to be your partner for a reason. She can help you lead and organize the pack, Adrian. You're free to choose anyone as your lover, but you have to understand that with your responsibility as an Alpha, Isabella's presence is something you really need." Sean tried his best to provide the most sensible explanation. After all, the dark auburn-haired man had been planning to take the coronation crown and intended to place it on Grace at their engagement party the day after tomorrow.

"I've said it before, I didn't like Isabella! No special feelings, just pure hatred for her!"

As an Alpha, Adrian had a special power to turn humans into wolves. However, the issue here was that Grace might not want to become a wolf, and Eclipse still needed Hawthorn as a crucial support, meaning Isabella's presence was crucial for the continuation of this alliance.

Sean, even though he was just a butler and also a Beta in command, was trusted more by George than Adrian himself because of his mature and reliable nature. He could handle quite a lot of tasks and never failed even in missions—though in physical and skill matters, Sean was far behind Adrian, and his not-so-famous family background prevented him from climbing higher.

However, Sean never showed any greedy desires and chose to be Adrian's butler, helping the younger man learn to be a good leader. Therefore, Sean felt that Adrian's actions this time were too much, and he had a responsibility to stop him.

"Alpha, just think about it. I understand if you didn't like Miss Isabella. But weren't your Dad and Mom were going through the same way?"

"What?" Adrian frowned, while Alaric found this interesting and chose to stay in the dark, listening to their conversation.

Sean sighed; he really had to be patient dealing with their Alpha, who was a bit late in growing up. "If you keep Isabella as the Luna and Grace as your girlfriend, wouldn't you still win? You won't have to bother with pack matters and can have fun with Grace all the time."

After hearing Sean's words, Adrian finally put on a face as if what the man said was a really good idea. "Not you, not Dad, both of you always force me to do something."

Adrian seemed to think for quite a while before turning back to Sean. "I won't accept Isabella again."

"Alpha–"

He cut Sean off and continued on his own, "She has to come and beg me herself. I still remember how she embarrassed me at our engagement party back then."

Alaric listened, raising one eyebrow while putting on a confused and amazed look hearing the nonsense from the arrogant man's mouth. Wait, was not he the one who openly embarrassed Isabella back then?

Alaric could not believe it. He thought werewolves could be jerks. But he had no idea there was a type that was completely shameless like this. He didn't budge from his hiding spot as the two people walked away from the hallway, and Alaric then slowly came out, watching where they went while letting out a small grin—a sign that he had a good plan.

Hmmm, maybe I can use this to make Isabella side with me and unable to escape my grip … forever.