CHAPTER 360: CHAPTER 360 WANTING TO KNOW WHY

So when Greg saw Levi, all he could think about was revenge. Levi didn’t notice him at first, Greg had masked his scent with a special spray and appeared out of nowhere. Without hesitation, Greg lunged, driving a silver dagger laced with Wolfsbane into Levi’s chest.

That weapon had been meant for an Alpha, for Zion, to be exact, but the moment Greg laid eyes on Levi, his rage took control. He abandoned his original plan and struck out in blind fury, unable to resist the urge to make Levi suffer.

Greg had aimed straight for Levi’s chest, intending to kill him with that strike. But by some twist of fate, or perhaps because of his mate bond with Addison, Levi survived. Ever since becoming one of Addison’s mates, and with her other mates all being Alphas, a subtle connection had formed among them, slightly enhancing Levi’s strength and instincts without him even realizing it.

If this had happened before, Levi might have died instantly. Greg had always been a powerful fighter, second only to Zion in their pack, and though Levi had grown stronger after being promoted to Beta, he would’ve still been no match relying solely on his own strength.

Fortunately, just before the dagger could pierce his heart, Levi sensed a shift in the wind and heard the faint whistle of movement beside his ear. Acting on instinct, he stepped back sharply, creating some distance between himself and his attacker.

Even so, Greg, despite missing an arm, remained a deadly opponent. His blade still found its mark, leaving Levi with a deep, bleeding wound.

"You fucking bastard," Levi hissed, venom blazing in his eyes. "I thought you’d never show that disgusting face of yours again after betraying us... but who would’ve thought you’d deliver yourself right to me?"

His voice was rough and strained, each word forced out between shallow breaths as blood seeped from his wound. His lips had turned pale and trembled slightly, but he refused to show weakness in front of Greg.

Instead, he straightened his posture as much as he could and scowled, meeting Greg’s gaze with defiant fury.

Levi despised Greg more than anyone else, and he refused to let him see even a hint of weakness. Greg’s ambush on the Golden Hue Pack made one thing clear, he was after something.

The problem was, no one knew what that something was, and the uncertainty only fueled their frustration and wariness.

But what if Greg’s true goal was to abduct Addison again, just as he’d tried before? And if not her, then perhaps one of her mates, just to force her into submission and manipulate her actions.

The thought sent a chill down Levi’s spine.

He tightened his guard instinctively. If Greg managed to capture him and use him against Addison... Levi didn’t know if he could bear that.

Greg snorted and toyed with the dagger that had cut Levi, flicking it between his fingers as if savoring the pain he’d caused. He looked at Levi with a cold, provocative smile, exactly the sort of look that would make most men lash out. Levi, though, forced himself to stay calm. He couldn’t afford to be baited.

The warriors of the Golden Hue Pack tightened around Levi, forming a protective ring as he sank to one knee, clutching the ragged wound in his chest. He was too weak to stand, much less strike back; any rash move now would hand Greg the victory and possibly his life. So he held his ground in silence, studying Greg through narrowed eyes.

Right now, Greg looked nothing like the man he used to be when he was still the Beta of the Midnight River Pack. He reeked of decay and darkness, the stench of a true rogue clinging to him like rot.

Levi could tell immediately, this wasn’t the faint, artificial scent that fake rogues used to disguise themselves. Greg was a rogue now, through and through. The smell confirmed he hadn’t joined any pack since his betrayal.

But what puzzled Levi was how he could even smell that scent. Greg had clearly used masking spray, yet the rogue stench still reached him. Levi couldn’t explain it. The only thing that made sense, at least to him, was that it had something to do with his mate bond with Addison.

Whenever something defied reason, his thoughts always led back to her.

At first, Levi hadn’t caught any unusual scent from Greg. But as time passed, beneath the strong stench of blood coming from him, he began to detect something else, a faint trace of decay and darkness seeping from Greg.

It was subtle, but unmistakable. What made it stranger was that no one else seemed to notice. The Golden Hue warriors around him showed no reaction, which told Levi that he was the only one who could sense it... and that they had no idea Greg was actually one of the rogues.

"You think that just because I lost an arm, you can win against me now? You’re nothing but that slut’s mutt..." Greg sneered, a wicked grin twisting his face as he spat out the words meant to provoke.

The moment Addison’s name was dragged through the mud, Levi’s composure shattered. His entire body bristled with rage, his eyes darkened, his fangs slightly bared. Whether Addison was his mate or not, he would never allow anyone, especially Greg, to insult her that way.

"Watch your fucking mouth! You’re not even worthy to speak her name," Levi snarled, his voice rumbling with barely restrained fury. "You’re the real mutt here, homeless, packless, and alone. You betrayed your own people, and now you have nothing. That’s all you deserve."

His wolf surged beneath his skin, clawing to break free and tear Greg apart. If Levi hadn’t fought to restrain it, he would’ve lunged without a second thought. Even so, the rage boiling inside him was unbearable.

To keep himself grounded, he bit the inside of his cheek hard, so hard that the metallic taste of blood filled his mouth.

"Ha! Angry that I called her a slut?" Greg taunted, voice dripping with contempt. "You haven’t changed, Levi. You still treat that useless girl like a treasure, when she’s nothing but a breeding tool. She can’t even shift, much less fight for herself. What is she but a broken doll?"

Greg pushed every one of Levi’s buttons, deliberately goading him. If he couldn’t get to Levi by force because of the ring of warriors protecting him, then he would break him where it hurt most, psychologically, until Levi made a mistake and Greg could finish him off.

But contrary to Greg’s expectations, Levi didn’t lunge at him in rage. Instead, he let out a sharp snort and retorted, "If she’s so useless, then why did you send this many people just to get to her?"

Greg’s smirk faltered for a split second, but Levi was already lost in thought. He realized that Greg must have already pieced together the truth about Addison, now that everyone knew she was the missing princess.

Greg, of all people, knew she had never shifted and had even been mistaken for an omega before. Yet, instead of using that knowledge to expose her and turn others against her, he chose to come here himself, risking everything to conspire against her.

Why?

That question struck Levi harder than any blow. The more he thought about it, the more it unsettled him. His anger began to ebb away, replaced by cold contemplation.

Right.

Although Greg had spent most of his time at the frontlines of the war alongside Zion, he was well-informed, and he knew more about Addison than most people in the Royal Capital ever did. After all, Addison once lived in the Midnight River Pack, and one of the main reasons Greg despised her so much was because she couldn’t shift.

She was weak, far weaker than an omega, and because of that, Greg never saw her as someone worthy of respect.

Back then, he even conspired to replace her with a stronger Luna, someone he believed had connections to the Alpha King. But now that the truth had been revealed, that Addison was the real princess, it was impossible to think Greg hadn’t found out as well.

Before, when he and his men tried to abduct Claire under the false assumption that she was the missing princess, it had at least made some sense. But now that everyone knew the truth, Levi could only conclude one thing: Greg had come here again to abduct Addison.

The question that haunted him, however, was why? Why were they still so obsessed with taking her?

Now that Greg had shown himself, Levi’s hatred was slowly replaced by a pressing need to understand, to dig deeper into what Greg and the people behind him were truly planning.

Why were they so obsessed with Addison?

Was it because she was the rightful heir to the throne, and they wanted to use her claim to gain influence over the werewolf kingdom?

Or perhaps they intended to take her hostage and use her as leverage against the Alpha King? Maybe their real goal was to turn her into a puppet queen they could control from the shadows.