Chapter 86: Pursue Alexander?
Chapter 86: Pursue Alexander?
(Celeste’s POV)
The Blood Moon festival glittered with a cruel kind of beauty. Lanterns hung from every corner, their red light casting eerie shadows on the crowd.
Wolves in human form moved through merchant stalls, their voices rising and mingling with the hum of the evening. The Blood Moon was high and full above us, painting the clearing in
shades of crimson.
Yet none of its beauty could distract me. My silver burns itched as if the moonlight coaxed the pain to surface. My wolf stirred uneasily, her energy cold and bitter in the pit of my stomach.
Then came the voice I’d been dreading all night.
“How dare you manipulate my brother?” Diana’s sharp words sliced through the festival’s
noise.
The crowd stilled, their joyful chatter dying into curious murmurs. Wolves turned to watch her confront me. Even the merchants paused, their goods abandoned on their stalls to better hear the brewing drama.
Diana stepped forward, her golden wolf flaring with aggression. Her narrowed eyes burned with resentment, her aura alive with anger designed to draw every eye in the field. She wanted this to be public.
“First, you ride on Marcus’s royal favor to push your way back into the pack,” she snapped, her voice raised loud enough to echo. “But now you pursue Alexander? I knew you were
shameless, Celeste, but this?”
I held her gaze, unwilling to flinch under her accusations. My wolf growled faintly in the back of my mind, urging me to respond. But I waited, letting Diana dig her own grave with her
words.
“I saw you earlier,” she hissed, stepping closer, her golden eyes flashing with outrage. “Leaning into him like–like some tavern wolf desperate for attention!”
The crowd gasped softly, their whispers growing louder. Wolves exchanged glances, their curiosity shifting into judgment as Diana’s words landed. They thrived on this chaos, on seeing me dragged through another scandal.
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Chapter 86: Pursue Alexander?
Nina moved closer, her silver–gray wolf stiffened with protectiveness. Her stance showed she was ready to act at the first sign of danger.
“Diana, enough,” Alexander’s voice cut through the mounting tension. His tone was sharp and commanding, filled with the strength fitting the pack’s strongest warrior.
The murmuring crowd quieted under his words, the weight of his dominance demanding
silence. Even weaker wolves nearby lowered their heads slightly, instinctively yielding to his
authority.
Diana faltered, her wolf whining faintly under Alexander’s disapproving glare. But I could see it
-her bitterness ran too deep for her to back down quietly.
“It’s not enough!” Diana spat suddenly, her golden eyes snapping back to mine. “How long are
we supposed to stand here and watch her tear apart this pack? She’s already manipulated
Marcus and fooled most of you! And now she has her claws in Alexander too!”
The crowd sparked back to life, her words fueling their interest further. My wolf rumbled softly
in irritation, but I stayed quiet, keeping my expression calm and cold. Diana’s anger was a
weapon she didn’t know how to wield properly, and I wasn’t about to give her an opening.
“Your brother isn’t so weak as to need your defense.” I finally broke my silence, my voice
steady and cutting. “Alexander can handle himself, or do you think he lacks the spine to shield
against unwanted attention?”
Her mouth opened and shut like a stunned fish. The murmurs grew louder, some wolves
chuckling under their breath. Diana’s golden wolf bristled, the sharp glow in her eyes dimming
for just a second before fury took over.
“You always have a clever remark, don’t you?” she sneered, stepping close enough for her scent to fill the space between us. “Just like when you manipulated half the pack into thinking you were one of us before Scarlett exposed you for the fraud you are!”
That one struck a nerve. Her words hit where I’d spent years building armor, and though I didn’t flinch outwardly, my wolf soured beneath the surface.
I held her gaze and forced my smile to sharpen. “If that’s all you’ve got, Diana, I’m afraid the crowd will find your tantrum underwhelming.”
Her snarl hit the air as fast as her body moved. In a single breath, Diana lunged forward, claws
extended, aiming for my throat.
But Nina was quicker.
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Chapter 86: Pursue Alexander?
My loyal guard slammed herself between us with practiced precision. Diana’s paws collided with Nina’s, the force sending both crashing into the nearest merchant stall.
The wooden structure crumbled under their weight. Decorations, glass trinkets, and fine fabrics scattered in the aftermath. The crowd surged backward momentarily, only to lean in closer than before, eagerly watching the drama unfold.
Nina rolled back to her feet, blood trailing down her cheek from a fresh scratch. Despite this, her silver gaze burned cold with determination. Her stance remained steady–protective and unyielding–despite a slight limp in her step.
Diana, tangled in the remnants of the stall, shrieked loudly, drawing all eyes back to her. “Did
you see that?” she screamed, her claws slashing the air dramatically. “Her guard attacked me
without warning!”
More murmurings from the crowd–some angry, some hesitant. Their reactions mixed, unsure
who to believe, which only fueled Diana’s growing theatrics.
“What just happened was your doing,” I said clearly, stepping forward now. My voice carried authority, slicing through the rising tension in the field. “You attacked first and were stopped. Should we blame the guard protecting her charge, or the wolf too reckless to control herself?”
Her golden wolf bristled as she scrambled to her feet. Her snarling lips twitched with fury, but
before she could spit another accusation, Alexander stepped toward us.
“I saw what happened.” Alexander’s tone was steel. His ice–blue eyes stared at his sister, cold
and piercing. “Stop making excuses.”
Diana stiffened, her wolf whining faintly under his judgment. But rather than admit defeat, she
turned her venom back toward him.
“And you’ll let her continue like this?” she snapped. “When the whispers about you and her alone could ruin what’s left of our reputation? Are you blind to how she’s been pulling strings
since Scarlett returned?”
Scarlett chose this moment to step forward. Her emerald eyes shimmered under the Blood Moon’s light as she approached with an air of kindhearted grace.
“Diana,” Scarlett whispered softly. Her delicate tone barely carried, but it was enough to pause the moment. “Please don’t press this further. You’ve already been hurt.”
Scarlett’s gentle, almost saintlike presence was meant to pour oil over the fire. Her verdant gaze flicked to Diana’s injuries as she fished into her gown’s pocket, producing a silk handkerchief. She dabbed at Diana’s barely–there scratches with exaggerated care.
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Chapter 86: Pursue Alexander?
“I’ve… I’ve seen things myself,” Scarlett added after a long pause. Her voice trembled with
carefully practiced hesitation. “I’d hate to speak out of turn, but there’ve been moments I’ve
witnessed…”
She allowed the silence to hang in the air, deliberate and cruel. Every wolf in earshot leaned
closer, hungry for details Scarlett would never explicitly provide.
Lucas stormed forward then, his russet wolf all but vibrating with rage. His green eyes locked
onto me, the disgust within them sharp enough to stab.
“Even now, you sit there smugly,” he growled, his voice rough and unforgiving. “First, you
manipulate Scarlett. Then you cling to Alexander, the only thing Marcus hasn’t torn apart yet!
Do you even know what shame is, Celeste?”
The judgment in his words swirled thickly around the clearing. I felt every wolf’s eyes burn into
me again, the weight of their silence pressing like chains.
I didn’t flinch. Instead, I laughed.
It wasn’t a warm sound. It dripped with cold amusement, sharp as broken glass. The clearing
froze as my laughter echoed faintly in the air, cutting through rising tension like a weapon of
its own.
“Lady Diana,” I addressed her first directly, letting her wince before continuing, “Do remind the
gathered crowd of one simple thing.”
I turned my attention fully onto Alexander. My violet eyes locked on his ice–blue ones, seeing
more there than he likely wanted to admit.
“Do you really think your reputation as the pack’s strongest warrior can be pulled down so easily?” My eyes locked with his, unflinching. “Unless you’d like to claim I somehow forced every moment of our interaction?”
The crowd froze, stunned into silence by my words. No one dared breathe, waiting for
Alexander’s response.
Even Diana seemed at a loss, her golden wolf bristling but unsure how to counter. Scarlett’s emerald eyes flicked nervously between me and Alexander, fear written across her face.
