Chapter 56 - Nicholas Has To Leave

Leland clutched the balcony's railing and crushed the stone underneath his touch. Even the mere pressure in his palms showcased his strength, while the man himself didn't look like he was exerting power. His expression was as calm as ever.

How strong he actually was? No one really knew. He never lost a fight and those who dared challenge him were now all dead. The others didn't wish to find out just how strong he was because they might only get the answer on the way to their graves.

The Alpha looked down on the railing and muttered to himself. "Even these old wolves still know how to bark." 

It was true that Leland hated these humans who were all living good and decent lives in their kingdom, unaware of the sacrifices and the blood of the Lycans that spilled in the very land that they claim theirs.

However, Sophie was the only exception.

Perhaps Jack Hansley too. 

Except that the man had died so it was only Sophie who showed him the good that was in humanity.

Leland was aware that there were good humans but as the Alpha of the largest and most powerful across the entire continent—their lives were not his concern at all. He only cared about his tribesmen.

If those humans lived and kept their heads low, then the Lycans would accept their submission and use the lives of these humans according to their whim. However, if there was any blood that needed to run into the ground?

The entire bloodline of the royal family will perish during this reign of Leland.

Leland will make sure of it.

Unknown to the Alpha, he had unknowingly let one of the royal family members go when he decided to let Sophie's husband live.

***

Meanwhile, Sophie and Nicholas finally found accommodation in the town center of Hauntingen.

Sophie looked around the beautiful room inside of the inn and realized that her husband was really living a simple life by staying with her. This place was really luxurious and everything looked expensive.

She could imagine Nicholas must be used to the finer things in life. Now, when she remembered how modest her hut was, she suddenly felt embarrassed. She bit down on her lip once she saw him place her things down.

"Nick?" she asked once she saw him approach her.

"I need to head back into the forest, Sophie," Nicholas told her sweetly and gently kissed her forehead. "Please stay here until I return safely and ensure that the Blackwoods Forest is safe from intruders." 

"No! That's insane!" Sophie exclaimed as she grabbed her husband's shoulders. "What are you going to do? Throw yourself as bait? Do you have a death wish?"

Both of them saw the trunk broken into two and Sophie was frightened that she'd come across news that her husband was murdered in the forest. She grabbed both of his hands and held it tightly.

"Please stay with me here, Nick." Sophie bit her lip. Her eyes looked at him pleadingly. "I don't mind staying here at all in the inn, but I want you to be beside me throughout this time. We can inform the Village Elder about what happened and maybe they can send a hunting party for that? Let them do the search. You shouldn't do it alone."

"Do you think that these people will move…? I think they will more likely refuse even if ordered," Nicholas said. "It's dangerous to go out there and your people hesitate in even stepping into the Blackwoods Forest."

"You managed to convince them to come to our wedding. So, maybe they will go if you asked them," Sophie pointed out and it made Nicholas grimace. That was true, but even that was something different.

"I have money on my side at that time, but I doubt some people will throw their lives away for money, and even if they do, I don't want to risk anybody else," Nicholas said. "It is up to me to take care of this."

"So you'll put yourself in danger? What about me?" Sophie's eyes welled with tears and she averted her gaze. 

"I'll be more than careful," Nicholas raised a hand and gave her a grin. "I was also trained properly as a boy and am familiar with combat. Noble training if you understand? Some of us will lead armies in the future so we are also good at this."

He cleared his throat and, even though he really hated it, Nicholas decided to mention his condition so Sophie would feel more reassured.

"I'm also a lycan…" Nicholas said flatly. "I have greater strength than most humans, and I can move faster. If I met any dangerous animals or even other Lycans, I can protect myself. That's why I prefer to go alone, so I can move around more easily. Do you understand, honey?"

"I… I think so." Sophie wished that she could do something more and yet she knew that she'd just end up burdening Nick to look after her rather than himself. 

Nicholas really wanted to reassure her that he would be okay, but he also didn't want to let her know that he intended to take wolfsbane again because even that hurt Sophie. 

As the crown prince, it was his duty to conform to the palace's rules and laws. 

Right now, his father, the king, would kill any lycan on sight and Nicholas had a feeling that he wouldn't be an exception to the rule at all.

So once he got rid of the problem, both the lycan and the curse, he'd whisk Sophie back into the palace.

"That's good. When I come back, I have something important to tell you, okay?" Nicholas looked at his wife deeply. He really hated this situation where he had to leave the woman he loved to get rid of the curse from himself. However, he had no other choice.

His time was running out. His father would start feeling worried and send a search army to find him if he didn't fix his problem soon and returned to the palace.

.

.

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From Missrealitybites:

Yeay... I am so happy that the book has gone premium. I will publish 2-3 chapters per day starting December. And if we reach certain targets, I will throw in mass releases. I hope you are happy with the 12-chapter mass release yesterday ^^

By the way, this story only has 9 reviews so far. Would you be so kind as to write a review for this book? I only asked now because I think after 50s chapters, you can already have a sense of how the story is like. So, you can let me (and other potential readers) know why they should or shouldn't read this book.

Much love, Vina