Chapter 6 He is not a stranger

After breakfast, everyone moved to the living room and sat on the couches. Alina looked around, trying to find the man who always appeared in her dreams; she could not believe he was her mate.

Alina whispered to Crystal, "Where are the other men who lived in this house?" She felt relieved when she saw that none of the officials were her mate.

She thought about him and how he was to her last night. She needed to overcome her fear and speak with him.

"What other men?" Crystal asked.

"The pack fighters."

"Who told you that the pack fighters live with us in the pack house?"

Alina was confused after hearing her. "What do you mean? Where do they live then?" She asked Crystal.

"Alina, what are you saying? I can't understand why you are even asking. Only the king, his family, and his officials can live in the Lycan manor, which we call our pack house. All the other ranks live in their own houses. They come here to work all day, but at night, they have to return home," Crystal explained to her.

Alina just stared at Crystal without saying anything. She was in deep thought.

"Why did you ask, Alina? Did you fall for any of them?" Crystal winked at her.

Alina shook her head. She wanted to tell her everything, but now was not the time. She needed to take time for herself first. Because what if her mate came to see her today?

Daisy was talking with Atlas, but when she saw Alina looking sad, she was curious about it.

"What happened to you, child? Are you not okay?" She asked Alina while smiling.

Alina looked at her and shook her head. "No, aunt, I am fine."

"Why do you look sad, dear?"

"It's nothing, Aunt Daisy."

Daisy nodded and glanced at Delta Darren.

"Darren."

"Yes?" Darren replied.

"You will go to the village side today, right?"

Darren gave her a nod.

"Take Alina and Crystal with you to the village side. Alina came back to the pack after a long time. She should go to see the sights."

Alina cast a glance at Daisy. "How did you know that I came back after a long time here?"

Daisy grinned. "Crystal told me about you."

Alina turned her attention to Crystal. Crystal responded with a nod.

"Okay, I will take them with me," Darren spoke to Daisy before turning to face Alina and Crystal.

"Go and get ready. I will be leaving for the village side in ten minutes."

Alina and Crystal nodded and stood up from the couch. They went back to their room and got ready.

When they returned, Delta Darren announced, "We are going to the Eastern side today. Let's go."

They went to the car and got in the car. Darren sat in the front passenger seat beside the driver while Alina and Crystal sat in the back seat. The driver started the car.

Alina gazed out the window, thinking about the man in her dreams.

'Where are you, Mate? Were you just an illusion last night? You are not one of the officials, and fighter wolves are not permitted to stay in the pack house at night. So why were you there? Why did you go inside? Did you go there for some work?'

"Delta Darren," Crystal called Darren.

"What?" Darren asked.

Alina thought he was rude to Crystal.

"When did Aaron get back yesterday?"

When Alina heard the name "Aaron," she looked at Crystal. 'Who is Aaron?' she wondered.

"It's king for you," Delta Darren replied.

Crystal shut her mouth and did not ask any further questions.

Then Alina realized she was asking about the Lycan king.

After an hour, they arrived at the village side. They reached the village market a short while later.

Alina got out of the car and looked around. She felt refreshed when she saw the village's surroundings.

They started to walk when Delta Darren said, "This is one of the active markets in our kingdom."

Alina was surprised that Delta Darren was talking to her because he had been rude to Crystal and did not like to talk to her.

Crystal frowned at Delta Darren and grabbed Alina's arm. "I will show you around the village market." She walked ahead with Alina while Delta Darren was walking behind.

"I really like this market. Every time I came here, I bought something for everyone in the pack house," Crystal said happily.

"You never bought anything for me from here," Alina said jokingly.

"Oh Alina! You know it's a village market; their things are only for village people to use. I thought you wouldn't like these things," Crystal replied.

"I was just teasing you, Crystal. But tell me one thing. Why didn't you contact me whenever you were here? I recall you telling me that there were no networks in the pack."

Crystal stopped walking. "Sorry, Alina. I thought you would get angry that I came here every time."

"But you had always said you would come here," Alina said. She was confused by Crystal's answer, as if she was hiding something.

"Oh yes! How could I forget you knew I was here? Forget about it, Alina. Let's enjoy the time right now. We will talk about it later," Crystal said, dragging Alina to a stall.

They bought a lot of things. Delta Darren paid for them. Alina insisted on paying for the things, but Delta Darren didn't let her.

The village market was very clean. People came here to buy daily accessories at the same time they could buy clothes and jewelry.

"How beautiful!" Alina said.

Crystal nodded and said, "You two stay here. I would like to buy something for Aaron."

She looked at Delta Derran, who was looking at her with a grim face. "I mean, for the king. I want to buy something for our King Aaron." Then she went to a stall.

Alina and Delta Darren were both standing outside. Alina turned her attention to Delta Darren. "Will you be angry if I ask you something?"

Delta Darren gave her a look. "Ask," he replied. He was not rude to her, which made her feel relieved.

"Why do people call it a pack? Shouldn't they call it a kingdom?"

Delta Darren nodded. "It is a kingdom. However, our king's kingdom is divided into two parts. This is one side, the eastern side. We live here. We all are normal wolves. Here Alphas, Betas, Thetas, Deltas, Gammas, and Omegas all live together just like a normal pack. So that is why we called it a pack. The pack house was previously known as "The Lycan Palace." It was built a century ago. Our king's ancestors lived there during their lifetime. But we call it a pack house because we are living in a pack, and it is situated on this side."

Alina got her answer. She nodded her head. "That is why we called it a pack, and the manor a pack house. I see.'

Then, suddenly another question popped into her head. "What about the other side? What about the Western side?"

"The western side is the main side of our kingdom. That side is full of Lycans. Whenever we need to go to any war, we first go there, and from there we go for war."

"Then why is the King living here? Even his father lived here when he was King."

"All Lycans have the ability to protect themselves. And that side is full of Lycans, so you can guess they don't need major protection. But here in this pack, the pack members need protection from other packs and the rogues. They can't fight like Lycans. Here, people have their families, who they need to protect every time. So that is why all the kings decided to settle here and protect the entire pack."

Hearing Delta Darren's explanation, Alina nodded. "Wow. There is so much to know."

Delta Darren responded with a nod. "By the way, why are you back after such a long time?"

Alina averted her gaze to avoid answering the question. She was unable to tell him that her parents had not contacted her in a long time.

Delta Darren realized she did not want to discuss it, so he said, "It is fine. You don't have to answer. But if you need any help, you can ask our king for that."

Alina looked at him when he told her that the king would help her. "Will he really help me if I need to search for someone?"

Delta Darren was stunned when he heard the question. "Search for someone?"

Alina nodded her head. "Yes. I can describe his features. I believe he is one of your fighter wolves. I need to find him."

Delta Darren inquired, "Okay, tell me his name; I will speak with my king about him."

Alina was quiet. She didn't get a chance to ask her mate his name. How could she reply to Delta Darren?

"What? You don't even know his name? When did you meet him? Who is he to you, and why do you want to find him? Do you have a crush on some stranger?" Delta Darren asked her a bunch of questions. Because he had no idea how they would find a nameless man.

Alina just looked and smiled slightly while thinking about the encounter last night. She could not say to him that the man she was looking for was her mate. So she told him,

"He is not a stranger. He is very special to me."