Otis's POV
"No! Please! Please spare me! PLEASE!"
"Y...... you are demons! Devils!"
The flickering fire and screams in the distance poured frantically into my brain through the cracks in the closet, making my head almost crack. I curled up in the corner of the closet and covered my ears.
I didn't want to hear the sounds, but my actions to block them out had little effect. Even though I did my best to cover my ears and block the sound from entering, I was still able to catch and identify the fear coming from the air.
"Run! I'll hold them off!"
"Don't even think about running! This Pack has been completely blocked by our Pack! Not one of you can escape!"
"Fuck you all!"
"Dad!"
"Damn Grey Pack! I'll kill you all!"
Countless tiny voices merged into my mind. I felt like my head was about to explode and my body was trembling.
Those people who were killed... They were all members of the Bright Pack, members of my Pack, people who lived with me every day!
I was so scared that I forced myself out of this state and squeezed my eyes shut.
"Get out of my house!"
The voice that suddenly came from inside the house made my body tremble violently. I couldn't control it and jerked my eyes open.
It was my father's voice!
I braced my helpless arms that were trembling and approached the gap in the closet little by little, through which I quietly observed the situation outside.
A splash of blood flashed in front of my eyes.
My eyes widened. Through the gap in the closet, I saw my father pounced on the floor by two black wolves! They were tearing at my father's body with their teeth, red flesh and blood, and white bone falling all around the room. My father's blood was pooling on the floor in a pool of scarlet liquid, flowing in my direction.
I wrenched my eyes open as wide as I could and watched as my father was torn apart by their mouthfuls.
"No! Let him go! Devils!"
At this moment, a woman burst into the room into my view, the charred pieces of wood on the floor clacking as she stepped on them.
It was my mother!
"mo......"
I almost made a sound, but the next moment I tightly covered my mouth. I was so scared that I didn't dare to make a sound, and the words I wanted to tell my mother to run away were bottled up in my stomach.
No! Moon Goddess! Please don't treat me so cruelly!
Please! Please!
I beg you!
I prayed loudly and helplessly in my heart. Both of my tired eyes were bloodshot, but I dared not close them.
However, the Moon Goddess did not seem to hear my prayer.
I saw it. Another strong black wolf suddenly burst out from behind the door and pounced my mother to the ground. Blood bloomed like a mandala flower before my eyes, and my mother's back was torn apart by him. She tried to resist, but her strength was as weak as a puppy when facing the strong black wolf.
No!
Tears gushed out uncontrollably.
I saw my mother collapse helplessly on the floor, and her eyes turned to meet mine through the gap in the closet.
My body trembled even more. I covered my mouth as hard as I could to swallow all my sobs.
My mother. The mother who loved me the most and always took care of me. She looked at me with tenderness and sadness, her eyes filled with all the hope she had for me.
Otis, live.
She looked at me like that. She kept looking at me until her body was torn apart by the werewolves and the light of life in her eyes completely disappeared.
Mom!
My heart twitched as if it was being churned, and the pain that almost suffocated me spread to my mouth and nose.
Bang!
The closet door in front of me was opened by them!
"Ah!"
All the fear formed a scream inside my throat. My heart seemed to be stabbed hard by something as if I had fallen into an endless abyss. I kept falling and falling in the darkness.
My eyes snapped open.
Dream.
My consciousness regained.
It was this dream again.
I moved my stiff limbs as if they were frozen and slowly sat up from the bed. The fear from the nightmare still lingered in my mind like a dark fog that wouldn't go away.
Eight years. It's been eight years since that day.
The night breeze slips through the cracks in this cramped little cupboard, and my thin top is no protection against the cold. I hugged myself and clutched the worn sheet in my hands with shaking hands. Tears lingered in the corners of my eyes.
Damn Grey Pack! I will have my revenge!
Stabbing pains twanged my nerves. I pulled at my sleeves to cover the conspicuous bruises, but there were too many of them. There was no way I could cover them all with my sleeves.
The scars came from the beatings that members of the Grey Pack had inflicted on me over the years.
After that day, I was taken here to be their slave so that someone could do the dirty and busywork. I escaped many times during this period, but each time I was caught and brought back. To punish me, they beat and kicked me with whips, wooden sticks, and even iron bars. I was tortured endlessly at Grey Pack!
"What time is it that you're not up yet, Otis!!! Are you slacking off again?"
A middle-aged man walked in accompanied by his stern voice, berating me loudly, "You stupid lazy swine! We mercifully let you live and stay in the Grey Pack for you to atone for your Pack sins, not for you to sleep around!"
"Sir, I ......"
Without listening to my explanation, he pulled me by the hair and yanked me hard out the door. A sharp pain came from my head.
"Today we have invited many allies to our banquet. Get your ass to work! If I catch you slacking off again, you'll go to the lockup hungry today!"
With disgust on his face, he yelled at me as he yanked me outside.
I stopped trying to defend myself, frowned and endured the pain, and obediently followed him.
After all, I had heard these insults here countless times and had long since gotten used to them.
The time soon came in the afternoon. The grand banquet organized by Grey Pack was well underway in the hall. The guests who had come to the banquet were dressed in fancy clothes, gulping down their drinks and eating the sumptuous food on their plates. I carefully placed the food on the table slowly in order.
"It's that slave! She finally came out!"
"Get over there! Catch her!"
"Throw the rocks at her head!"
A group of children under ten years old ran toward me, and then they excitedly picked up branches and stones from the ground and threw them at me.
These children had seen me being beaten by the adults since they were children, so they followed the example of the adults and chased me.
Sticks and stones were thrown at me. My brow furrowed, but I didn't resist, because my status now is just a lowly slave, and slaves are not qualified to resist the victor. If I showed the slightest dissatisfaction with the behavior of these children, I would have been beaten and treated even worse.
Although my heart was very humiliated, I still had to put up with them.
I carefully continued to place the dishes on the table without bothering about those children.
Bang!
A sudden sharp pain came from my left hand. A stone had hit my left hand! The bowl of boiling soup I was carrying tilted to one side uncontrollably!
No! Please!
My heart almost jumped out of my chest. I tried with all my might to control my balance, but the pain from my wound made it impossible to adjust quickly.
Damn it!
The bowl of soup spilled on one of the guests and he let out a scream. Fear almost made my heart rise to my throat, and I could sense a nightmare was about to befall me.
I quickly placed the rest of the plates on a side table, got down on my knees, and humbly apologized to that guest, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do that! I'll take care of it for you right away!"
I anxiously took a towel and tried to wipe the stain from his body. However, before I could get close to the guest, a dark shadow quickly zoomed in front of my eyes.
A sharp pain took over half of my face, and the tremendous force coming from my face caused me to fall uncontrollably askew to the ground.
"Filthy slave! Look what you've done! What did your master teach you!" The man shouted angrily, and I covered my burning cheek stubbornly without making a sound.
"What happened? Was that slave beaten again?"
"It was just a lowly slave. It's a normal thing to be punished for wrongdoing."
"She's finished. I remember that guy has a bad temper."
Everyone's eyes were on me. Some were drinking their drinks and watching slowly, some were laughing and talking with people on the side, and some were even applauding. The emotions hidden in their gazes were all different, but one thing was the same: they all didn't care about the life of a slave.
They were laughing happily as if they were watching the performance of a clown, and I was the clown who was giving them the show.
The man with the burns wasn't going to let me go, "Lowly slave! Filthy swine! Do you know how expensive this dress of mine is? You couldn't sell yourself to pay for my loss!"
He kicked me one after another.
"Filthy slaves like you deserve to die!"
"Wow! Well done! Kick her in the head!"
"Kill her! Kill her!"
"Beat her to death!"
The children next to me clapped their hands in excitement, their faces wreathed in innocent malice and joy.
I curled my body up like a baby to protect my insides and silently endured the pain and humiliation, looking at the cheering people out of the corner of my eye and carving their faces into my heart.
One day, I will take my revenge.
Time seemed to pass for a long time, and it seemed to be very short.
"What bad luck! I wasted so much of my time on a slave!"
That man let me go with one last disgusting word and walked away into the distance.
When the man was far away, I breathed a little sigh of relief and slowly stood up with the pain in my body, then dragged my heavy steps out of there.
I feel like I need to take care of my wounds now. This party still needs me. If I didn't do all the work, I would not only go without food, but I would continue to suffer their brutal beatings.
I breathed heavily and continued on my way, passing a strange man on my way.
This was the most handsome man I had ever seen.
My heart was pounding.
His brilliant blonde hair was as dazzling as the sun. The dark blue pupils seemed to have an ocean living inside. His body was far taller and stronger than the others, and the scent from his shirt mesmerized me.
I had no control over my heartbeat and slowly walked past him.
"Trash."
Suddenly his voice came to my ears with an uncontainable disgust in it.
In that instant, my heart seemed to be hit hard by something. I was chilled as if I had been placed in a vacuum, and my heart gradually became sluggish.
I took a deep, deep breath.
I have heard such words countless times, there is no need to care about it.
But I don't know why, but hearing this werewolf's voice made me feel sad and angry.
I couldn't help but respond in a loud voice, "That's right, I'm a dirty slave. So please stay away from me, sir."
Paying no more attention to the reactions of those behind me, I quickly left the
place and concentrated on my wounds.
Otis, revenge is what you need to focus on, not the eyes of others.
I thought to myself, trying to ignore the pain caused by the man who had made my heart flutter.
As I finished treating my wounds, Alpha Ryan's men found me and brought me to the stranger.
What had happened?
I calmly looked at the gaily-dressed crowd standing in front of me. One by one, they viewed my body with scrutinizing eyes that cut like knives on my body, making me feel like a monkey in a zoo.
Was it that the guest was still angry so he wanted Alpha Ryan to give me more punishment?
If this was the reason I was called to come, then I should be tortured and punished like hell next.
They might even kill me!
No way! I can't let them beat me up. If they intend to kill me, then I need to escape from here immediately.
I haven't gotten my revenge yet, and I definitely can't die here!
Conrad's POV
Mate!
It's here! I sense her! She's right here! She's at this party!
I was surprised by this sudden situation.
Conrad! Find her! Find her! Find our mate!
My inner wolf Carl urged me over and over again. He reminded me over and over again that my mate was at this party.
With him constantly urging me on, my heart couldn't help but start to get excited. I was looking forward to seeing my future mate, whom I hadn't sensed since I was an adult, and as the Alpha of the Blue-moon Pack, I had longed to have my mate for a long time. My Blue-moon Pack also needs a Luna to lead them!
I didn't think I would be told by my wolf today that my MATE was at this alliance party hosted by Grey Pack!
Following Carl's lead, I walked into the hall and the feeling inside me became stronger and stronger. I could feel Carl seemingly wanting to burst out of my body.
I looked closely at the guests who had come, identifying them carefully. I thought my mate would be one of them, but a single figure suddenly made me stop in my tracks.
How is this possible?
I stopped where I was in disbelief and sized up the slave in front of me.
Her clothes were tattered and torn, her thin dress had long since faded, and she was filthy. The indistinguishable color of her hair dragged scruffily behind her back. The worn shoes could still faintly see the toes.
Is she my mate? This slave? This dirty slave?
No! How can my MATE be a slave?
"Ah!"
The woman's scream woke me up. I saw the slave knocked to the ground.
"Filthy slave! Look what you've done!"
The man cursed, stomping on her with one foot after another. And the slave was like a piece of wood, letting him beat her without any resistance.
Conrad! Help her! She is our mate!
Carl kept screaming inside me, but I felt sick just looking at this slave's useless and cowardly appearance.
I never help useless people.
But she's your mate!
No.
I looked at the slave with indifference.
She didn't deserve it.
I wasn't there to help the slaves.
Carl was still fighting me for the use of his body. He wanted to come out and save the girl, but I didn't, so I had to try to control him. This out-of-control situation was getting on my nerves.
I hate weak people. They waste food and are useless! Such a woman doesn't deserve to be my MATE!
I looked towards the slave. She was still being scolded, but her eyes were as firm as ironstone. There seemed to be some faint hope hidden inside, so no matter how she was beaten and scolded, her eyes didn't change. Tough and strong.
These kinds of eyes made me confused.
She was a weak slave who did not dare to resist power. Why did she have that kind of look in her eyes?
It was so strange. Such a look should not appear in a weak slave.
I felt that the wine in my hand seemed to have lost its wonderful taste. I turned around and walked over to a man from Grey Pack, "Hey, man. Do you know what just happened to that stupid slave? Who is she?"
"Oh... Don't mention it. She's a slave we brought back from the Bright Pack. Dirty and lazy, I don't want her to appear in front of me, she'll keep me from eating." The man spoke with a face full of disgust. He smiled after taking a sip of wine, "Don't mention the slave that spoiled our fun. You must be the Alpha of the Blue-moon Pack, right? I've heard of you, you're famous and our Grey Pack's most honored guest! Let's have a nice drink!"
I feel like the party is going by fast and it's already getting close to an end.
Go get her out of here, Conrad! She needs our help! She's going to die if she stays here!
Carl was clamoring in my head again, which in turn made me feel so annoyed I almost lost my drinking mood.
I'm not taking a dirty slave! She's just a useless piece of trash! A loser who doesn't want to fight back! She doesn't deserve it!
I drained my drink from my hand, not wanting to pay any more attention to Carl, who I felt was howling for no reason at all. To be honest, for the first time I felt my wolf was such a tiresome presence. He wanted me to take a weakling like that!
She'll come for you when she turns into an adult and be able to sense you!
Well, maybe she die before that day!
I retorted fiercely to my wolf, but he was still barking as if he wouldn't stop until I accepted that slave!
Don't you think she looked a lot like you when you were a child? I saw the look in her eyes and I'm sure she won't always be the weak one! And she's the MATE Moon Goddess chose for you! How can you let her stay here as a slave to be bullied by those people?
My heart pumped up.
My Wolf's words touched me.
The eyes of that slave, her eyes did remind me of myself at a younger age, of my tragic childhood.
That time when my pack was attacked by a combination of other packs. Countless pack members lost their lives, and only a few wolves survived. As the son of Alpha, I had to lead several pack members looking for shelter. To rebuild our home, we hid our names and identities and trained hard to make the pack strong to survive that dark period.
We survived one crisis after another and grew the pack on the edge of life and death to get the Blue-moon Pack to where it is today.
The look in that slave's eyes made me feel there was something in common between me and that slave.
My heart was beating fast. I admit I was really kind of convinced by my wolf. And just asking Grey Pack for a slave was a very common thing. Grey Pack's Alpha wouldn't refuse this simple ask from an Alpha of another pack.
Whether she was useless or not, at least I shouldn't let her suffer here.
I considered this in my mind for a moment before finally agreeing to my wolf's request.
Refilling my glass with liquor, I walked through the noisy crowd toward Alpha Ryan of Grey Pack not far away. He was a tall man, surrounded by the crowd, and as strong as iron, almost as strong as I was.
"Alpha Ryan. I want to take that slave from earlier."
I put on an easy smile and raised my glass toward him.
"Who? Is it that filthy slave Otis?"
Alpha Ryan raises an eyebrow, he seems a little surprised.
"I don't get it. She's just a dirty and dumb inferior slave. What are you asking me for a slave like that for, Alpha Conrad?"
His confused eyes swept over my face, and I feigned a wicked grin in a flirtatious manner. "She has beautiful eyes. I want to take her back as my sex partner."
After hearing my words, Alpha Ryan gave the same obscene grin that any man would understand, "Oh, no problem! Of course, it's no problem! To be your sex partner is the best luck of that slave's life!" He immediately opened his mouth and ordered his subordinates, "Bring Otis here."
The Grey Pack warriors were fast. It didn't take long for the slave to be brought to me.
I looked at Otis and she was silent. Standing aside Alpha Ryan looked at her with disgust in his eyes.
"Don't stand here staring, lowlife bitch! You should thank the Moon Goddess for your good fortune! Alpha Conrad wants you as his sex partner. You'll follow him to the Blue-moon Pack afterward!"
Otis's POV
Alpha Ryan's disgusting voice reached my ears, and I couldn't believe what I was hearing was true.
Wouldn't I be punished?
Yet the next moment I felt uneasy again.
What? I was being given to the Alpha of the Blue-moon Pack?
I frowned.
Although I didn't have to suffer from horrible torture, this result was still something I couldn't accept. Since eight years ago, my only purpose for living was revenge.
If I leave the Grey Pack, how am I going to take revenge on them?
I know that in my current situation, revenge is very difficult. To challenge a pack with my own is almost like a foolish person's daydream. But this is my only goal in life!
I endured the danger of being brutally beaten by them to escape, not because I wanted to escape from the Grey Pack, but to exercise my speed and power.
I had to make myself strong, strong enough to take revenge!
"She's already here, let's leave now."
At that time, a powerful voice interrupted my thoughts. The man made a gesture in a commanding tone, and then several Blue-moon Pack warriors came toward me.
They wanted to take me away.
I looked at the man's strong body and his face. He had blond hair and blue eyes, and every movement carried a powerful aura.
Wasn't this the man who had humiliated me earlier? What was he thinking? He loathed me! Why did he take me to his pack?
I couldn't understand this man at all. Just now he humiliated me, but now he wanted to take me away. That was ridiculous!
I can't let this man interrupt my revenge plan.
I raised my head and looked squarely at this gorgeous and tall man.
"Alpha, I can't leave Grey Pack, I want to stay here. I can't follow you to Blue-moon Pack, you can choose someone else."
The man seemed so surprised by my answer that he didn't say another word, but Alpha Ryan suddenly crushed the glass in his hand. I watched as the expensive glass turned to crumbs and the wine made from the highest quality grapes spilled randomly on the floor.
I was taken back and had a feeling that something bad might happen next.
It seemed that I was not able to escape the punishment, and even if I could stay, I would be beaten by them. But I don't regret it, there was only a slight chance I had to take revenge. I had already endured this kind of beating countless times, and I could still endure one more.
"Stupid slave! How dare you disobey my orders! Who gave you the guts to disobey my orders? You guys hit this stupid slave hard!" Alpha Ryan roared in anger, and then two men rushed towards me.
I had expected this, and I hurriedly curled up on the ground to protect myself.
"Damn slaves! How dare you disobey our Alpha?"
"You deserve to be killed!"
They cursed angrily as they kicked my body one by one, causing pain that made my body tremble slightly. I endured it all in silence, clenching my teeth.
"Stop it, she's mine now."
I heard the man's voice ringing out, and in the next second, they stopped. I looked up at the men who stood in front of me, standing still with hesitation.
"I'll handle this slave. Put her in the cage."
"Since this is Alpha Conrad's request, go put her in a cage."
Their conversation ended, and I saw several Blue-moon Pack warriors coming towards me, while those belonging to the Grey Pack who were surrounding me turned away.
No! Don't take me away!
I tried to escape, but the pain from the beating that wracked my body had not yet dissipated. The Blue-moon Pack fighters grabbed me and I knew they wanted to put me in a cage. I tried to resist them, but those men were too strong! Their arms were like pincers made of iron, and I couldn't break free with all my strength.
Soon I was put into a metal cage. Next to the cage stood two strong guards so I had no chance of escape.
I reluctantly struck the hard iron cage but to no avail. My heart felt as if it had been burned to ashes and I had lost almost all hope.
No! There was no way I could escape!
My heart was wailing. As the carriage lurched, the territory that belonged to Grey Pack faded away from my eyesight. I sat frozen inside the cage with my knees in my arms, not bothering to notice the sights along the way.
"Go! Take everything they have! Money and women stay! Kill all the men!"
Suddenly, I heard a ferocious roar coming from high up in the mountains. The leaves in the surrounding woods began to shake, and a pack of werewolves in wolf form rushed out from inside the trees.
They surrounded us.
I looked up nervously and looked around.
Rogues?
"Everyone spread out! Guards stay where you are! Fighters in pairs! Conrad calmly gave one order after another to his soldiers, his attention seemingly focused on the rogues that had suddenly appeared to attack the group.
This is a good opportunity!
Now that everyone's attention was off of me, I had a chance to escape!
With a glow of hope burning in my heart, I broke the lock of the cage with all my remaining strength, while keeping an eye on those fighting rogues and the crowd of Blue-moon Pack, and then I turned around to escape.
I thought no one could spot me or care if I escaped.
Suddenly, a tall man burst out of the crowd. His body swelled and grew so fast that his clothes crumbled like confetti. Beautiful dark blue fur quickly covered his skin.
He turned into a huge, fierce wolf and charged toward me!
Damn it! I've been spotted by him!
Am I going to be killed by him? No! I don't want to die here yet! I haven't gotten my revenge! I have to figure out what to do!
I stared warily at the huge wolf and raised my arms to protect my head.
I had to find a way to block his attack first.
The wind whistled in my ears, but I wasn't pounced on and torn to pieces by him.
What happened? He didn't attack me?
My arms blocked my view and I couldn't see what was happening in front of me, but I didn't unload my defenses easily. Because even a small oversight could cost me my life!
Suddenly there was a scream in my ears, and then something fell in front of me.
What did the hell happen?
Driven by curiosity, I was alert and slowly moved my arm away.
A rogue died on the ground next to me, blood pooling into a stream. His torso was viciously torn apart, and his abdominal organs were scattered like garbage. His bones were as fragile as thin twigs under Conrad's attack.
He didn't kill me. He... He killed the rogue who tried to attack me! Conrad killed him as easily as he would have killed a puppy!
The dead attacker's eyes stared deadly at me, his lifeless eyes made me tremble, his body and blood reminded me of the day of the fire and the death of my parents in a pool of blood.
The terrible memories of that day appeared in my mind.
"Ah..."
I couldn't control a scream from inside my throat and kept backing up.
In front of me, the man who had caused all this was walking towards me step by step. Covered in blood and a vicious murderous aura, he walked up to me and leaned down to stare at me with a fierce gaze.
"Don't try to challenge me by running away. I don't have much patience for you."