Chapter 570 - SIMILAR SCENE

"Kace, are you sure you want to go to the funeral?" Hope asked as she stared at the sky. 

The sun was almost set, probably within thirty minutes it would lose its light. For now, the four of them were walking towards the village with Chiron walking a few meter ahead, behind them was Mr. and Mrs. Lori together with little Bree in their arms. 

Hope glanced a few times towards that family of three, the distance that they put between them, showed very clearly that they were afraid of them. Mrs. Lori never let Bree roam around inside the house when Kace was there.

Hope became curious with their behaviors since they were fine with Lana and the twins, but how could they act very strangely and differently when Kace was around. 

Later Hope knew that they didn't like the lycan because of the rumor about them--about how vicious their beast could be. 

Well, Hope couldn't blame it, compared to werewolves, Lycan was a more complicated creature as they held more power among the shapeshifters. 

Apparently, in that realm, lycans were famous with their brutality. Plus, with the story about how the lycans eliminated many creatures and shapeshifters. Just like those centaurs, who were forced to leave their original realm--their home, to escape from the lycans' atrocity, which in this case was the Donovans.

"Sure," Kace answered casually, his expression didn't show any emotion, but he had been keeping Hope close to him and didn't let her go since they left the house. 

There was something different with the way Kace held his mate. Hope felt as if she was walking with a nervous young boy who would enter an audition. 

"You know, you don't have…" Hope wanted to say that he didn't need to attend the funeral. After all, those people were the hunters that Kace killed that night. She was also worried about the people in the village. 

They wouldn't be so understanding to accept the killer of their family members, right? Above all that, why did Chiron give them such an offer? 

"I will go back to that house if you go too." Kace didn't give any room for negotiation. His intention was clear, wherever Hope would go, he would follow. No questions asked. 

"We need to see the priestess to heal your wound and to ask if she knows or has any idea where Lidya is." They had been talking about this over and over again. 

"To heal my wound, you will need me, right? So, I will go," Kace said casually. 

After saying that, they walked in silence. 

When they walked closer to the village, they could see many white flags ruffled by the evening breezes and people from the village were also wearing the same color. 

Apparently, white was the color mourning in this village. 

Good thing Chiron gave them this white cloak since they didn't have white clothes neither could they provide it for themselves at this moment. 

At the village's gate, Hope could see Carina, Tyrox, Zarrn, and along with them a crowd of centaurs--which seemed like the whole pack of centaurs. She remembered their name, since it was only Tyrox and Zarrn's name that Carina had mentioned when they were in the forest. 

Wordlessly, all of them, together with the horde of the centaurs walked inside the village. 

There were around fifty to seventy centaurs, who walked beside Kace and Hope. This scene was truly fascinating and stunning, not even for Hope, but apparently those villagers also stopped whatever they were doing to take a second glance towards the entourage. 

This village was surrounded by a huge wall with two entrance gates, inhabited by about a thousand people and shapeshifters or any other supernatural creatures that managed to be saved and brought there, living in one big community. 

They walked a long road towards the village square where the funeral would be held, where the dead bodies of the hunters would be burned into ashes. 

Hope glanced at Kace and she found there was a sign of discomfort in his blue ocean eyes, as if every step that he took, needed a big effort from him to keep going. 

Hope squeezed his hands, to remind him that he was not alone, and that it was okay to feel whatever he felt now. 

Kace glanced at his mate and found her beautiful smile that brought a warm sipped to his cold heart. He squeezed her hand too, as if saying he understood. 

They walked this long road wordlessly, under the eyes of the curious villagers. It seemed this was their first time to see a horde of the centaurs entering their village, since they had never left their territory before. 

"Chiron," Leroy, who led the procession of this ceremony, approached the chief of centaurs and crossed his hand in front of his chest while bending his body slightly as a form of formal greeting between them. 

"Leroy, my friends. My condolences for your loss." Chiron also did the same gesture while saying in his shooting voice. 

Leroy stared at Kace, but his impassive expression didn't give anything for the hunter to see his feelings right now. 

Not only Leroy, but the other hunters behind him were looking towards Kace in disdain, hostility and hatred. They knew that Kace had killed their fellow hunters. While talking among themselves, they had this questioning look, wondering why Leroy would let the murderer here.

This was all Chiron's will, he asked Leroy to let them in and watched this whole procession. 

After that small talk, all the centaurs blended with the hunters.

At this village square, there was a big podium made of white stone, where the dead bodies were laid on. 

Kace stood beside Chiron while Hope was at his other side and then Lana and the twins. Opposite from them, they could see all the families of the dead hunters were crying their heart out. 

Since they were right in front of them, of course, Kace could see and hear them clearly. It reminded him of something from his past. 

"Don't you feel this scene is similar?" Chiron asked Kace.