Chapter 5 Journey to The Summit

I YAWNED.

Sleep was enticing me, but the hard road prevented me from having one. Sleeping on such an uneven road is difficult, especially when the carriage moves as if fleeing for its life. Sometimes, my head would occasionally collide with the carriage's roof.

When nightfall came, and we stopped for the night in an inn, I asked my good chauffeur if he had anything against me.

Lake laughed it off, and with a slap on my back, he replied, "We have to get to our destination as soon as possible. Anyway, the night is long. You may sleep as much as you like."

He appeared to find his response adequate, as he quickly left me and went to rest in his room. The following day, the same thing happened. I didn't bother interrogating him when we arrived at the next inn. First, I don't believe he would take my question seriously. The second reason was that we encountered a problem as soon as we entered the inn.

"What do you mean you don't have an empty room? I didn't see more than three carriages outside, and your place is big enough to accommodate fifty people. Don't tell me each carriage outside held more than fifteen people?"

Lake's last question appeared to be impossible. Those carriages were no bigger than ours. Unless it was magical and the inside was bigger than it appeared outside.

The caretaker appeared to be in a difficult situation. His look indicated that he did not want to offend us but was compelled to. "My dear customer, it's not that I don't want you in the inn, but the customers before you wanted the inn for themselves, and they've already paid their rental price for the night. I can't go back on my words."

Lake's face contorted even more. "Who rented the whole inn for the night?"

"The Blood Clad Pack," the caretaker said quietly as if frightened that someone might hear him and punish him.

It's the first time I've heard the name of that pack. However, based on Lake's expression, which changed from angry to glum, it appeared that the pack was bad news.

"Un-understood. But can you ask them if my lady companion can rest inside?" Lake asked while gritting his teeth.

My heart immediately warmed. Lake's concern for my well-being moved me. My annoyance with him for being such a lousy chauffeur was quickly forgotten.

I patted his arm. "Let it be. If they want this inn for themselves, then let them have it. I don't mind sleeping outside. We should even thank them for saving us from spending money."

"But--"

"Listen to me. Now, let's go," I didn't wait for Lake to respond as I immediately got out of the suffocating inn.

The blood I had been holding back gushed out of my mouth as I stepped inside the carriage. My nerves were tense, and my heart was pounding. I would have fainted on the spot inside the inn if it hadn't been for my strong will.

"Lady Alinta, I---" Lake couldn't continue whatever he wanted to say. He was quickly horrified to see me in my current state.

"Let's leave this place. The farther, the better."

I appreciated Lake's efficiency in both work and danger best. He didn't question me or spend time with small conversation; he rushed and hollered ho, and the horses galloped away!

Half an hour later, Lake stopped the carriage in a dense forest. I'm already feeling better. Witches' self-healing ability was on par with werewolves'.

When Lake entered the carriage, I didn't wait for him to speak as I immediately asked, "What's with the Blood Clad Pack?"

My predicament earlier may have had anything to do with them. Aside from me, Lake, and the caretaker, I didn't sense any presence other than them. Seven men were observing and watching us upstairs. Two possessed the same aura as the betas and gammas. While one had the coldest and strong aura, which I believed their alpha. I've never met somebody in this place who possesses such power. Only my father or grandmother could match with him.

My heart tightened in an instant. It is best to avoid a dangerous man. My current power would not be able to compete with that man. I could have held on just like I did earlier, but my life would have been at risk if I had been there for more than five minutes.

I hadn't expected to encounter somebody as strong as my father or grandmother in this realm, at least not a man. I wouldn't believe myself if I said I wasn't astonished and impressed by a werewolf with a strength that could battle against a witch like me.

"Did they do something to you? Is that why you spurted blood earlier?" Lake asked in worry.

"I'm fine," I assured him. If not for Lake's afraid of offending me, he would've done a thorough check on my body. "Now, tell me who those guys are."

He exhaled in relief when he saw that I was fine. "The Blood Clad Pack members are a bunch of mad werewolves, especially their alpha. They only know how to kill and nothing else, which is how they gained status as the strongest pack in the realm. I'm not sure whether it's true, but I heard a rumour stating that they don't know how to cherish women. The ladies slaughtered through the hands of their alpha could be counted in hundreds."

My eyes narrowed. It was not a rumour; it was a fact. Earlier, that alpha used all his strength to exert pressure on me. If I had been a regular woman, I would have died horrifyingly. I couldn't help but cringe as I imagined myself bursting, blood and internal parts scattered throughout the inn.

Now I was debating if attending the summit was a good idea. Part of me was shouting how foolish I was for agreeing without knowing anything about the packs in this realm, while another part criticised me for being a coward.

Why did I not even get information on the werewolves after agreeing? I didn't expect to be as foolish as Nieva.

Nope.

It was more appropriate to say that I was just being careless. I immediately relaxed my guard after seeing and noticing that werewolves just possessed strength and couldn't compete with my power. It never occurred to me that there might be a living entity as strong as or more powerful than myself.

In short, I was belittling the werewolves.

Now, great! Look at where it got me!

"Do you want to go home? You don't need to attend the meeting on behalf of Alpha Drake and Luna Hyacinth. The elders won't blame us for our absence," Lake suggested. He might have detected my uneasiness.

I shook my head. "Let's go on with it. The matter might be important for them to have this emergency gathering."

It's not in my nature to flee as soon as danger approaches. I'm not a wimp!