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A silent understanding passed between them. They lingered in Addison’s room for a moment longer, while waiting for Elric. Elric returned to his quarters to wash up and change into his robes, and once he was ready, they all made their way down to the cafeteria.
Zion barely registered the sting of her avoiding him earlier–her words hit harder, sending a jolt through his chest. The dark fairies hadn’t been purified yet, and their disappearance could only mean trouble. A cold sweat prickled at him.
Knock… Knock… Knock…
After Elric’s incantation, the cloth floated in the air for a few seconds. Everyone held their breath, expecting it to start pulling them toward the dark fairies‘ trail. Instead, it dropped limply to the floor. No movement. No lead.
She had already weighed the risks. If the pack members learned that dark fairies had gone missing within their territory, panic would spread quickly. Worse, once their Alpha who was still in the Royal Palace, heard of it, word would travel, and everyone would know they had brought dark fairies into the kingdom and then lost them.
He hadn’t even opened them fully when Levi yanked him into the hall, pulling him along before he could protest.
“Archmage Elric, we need your help,” Levi said. Seeing the old man still half–asleep, he decided not to waste time and dropped the bomb. “The dark fairies are missing”
“Your Royal Highness…” he began carefully, choosing his words. “I don’t think this is a mistake.” He paused, scanning the room with sharp eyes. “Since none of you sensed the fairies leaving, and my tracking spell refuses to respond… perhaps the truth is simpler.” He looked at Addison, his voice low with unease. “The dark fairies may never have left this room at all.”
Addison, however, walked with steady confidence, her head held high as though nothing was amiss. As the one holding the highest position among them, the former Luna respectfully prepared the Alpha’s seat for her.
“Addie, are you alright?” Zion’s voice came from outside the door. Only then did Addison realize they hadn’t left yet, they were still waiting for her.
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“Thank you, everyone, for waiting—and for arranging this lovely breakfast,” she said warmly, her gaze settling on the former Luna to acknowledge her thoughtfulness. “We truly appreciate it.”
Addison bit her lip, recalling how she had tried earlier to catch even the faintest lingering scent from the cloth, hoping to track them down herself. But there had been nothing. That failure was what had set her panic bubbling in the first place.
Addison forced herself to stop thinking about it–or perhaps her mind simply went blank–as she kept searching. She already turned the room upside down, but no matter how hard she looked, the dark fairies were nowhere to be found. A creeping nervousness began to coil in her chest, edging toward fear.
But now that she thought about it, something felt off. She was a rational woman–she knew how to separate what mattered from what didn’t. Yet yesterday, it was as if her emotions had been magnified beyond her control. ‘Could this be a delayed effect of the same phenomenon that affected Zion and the others? Or perhaps the work of the dark fairies, amplifying one’s darkest thoughts?‘
The problem was, she hadn’t been entertaining any dark thoughts at all. She had only been… more emotional than usual.
With the people’s hearts already fragile and restless, the last thing they needed was
more unrest.
The room was already filled: the pack members of this territory, the people of the caravan, and the guards who had accompanied Addison’s entourage were waiting. As the five of them entered, conversations hushed and heads turned toward them.
That did the trick. Elric’s eyes snapped wide open, his jaw dropping so far he could’ve swallowed a duck egg whole. For a moment, he was struck speechless.
They all knew too well that if this news spread, panic would follow, morale that was already fragile would plummet, and the people’s work and focus would suffer. With the kingdom already facing so many challenges, one more blow could break their spirit entirely.
“Let’s look around,” Zion said quickly. Maxwell and Levi were already poised to act, but froze when they saw Addison shake her head. Her eyes lowered, heavy with
self–reproach and guilt.
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The silence that followed was heavy. Addison had already scoured every corner,
overturning furniture and searching every shadow, but she had found nothing. It was as if the creatures had simply vanished into thin air.
Elric frowned, muttered under his breath, and tried again. The cloth rose, hovered, then fell, useless once more. His expression darkened.
“If they’re not in my room and managed to escape, we might never find them…” Addison’s voice trailed off, until an idea struck her. Her eyes lit up as she looked at the others. “Elric! Let’s ask him to use tracking magic and see if he can trace where the
dark fairies went!”
Her fated mates took their places at her side, sitting where the Luna would
traditionally sit. The gesture gave Addison a strange, unfamiliar feeling, but she pushed it aside and focused on the gathering.
Elric’s brow furrowed further. He couldn’t explain it, but the thought of the dark fairies loose and might cause harm to others set his nerves on edge. He wanted to find them as much as she did, but for now, they were left with nothing.
Addison quickly stepped forward and explained the situation, and before she had even finished, Elric spun on his heel, dashed back into his room, and snatched up his staff. He hurried after them to Addison’s room, all traces of drowsiness gone.
She strode over and yanked the door open, startling Zion, Maxwell, and Levi. All three had sensed the sudden fluctuation in her emotions and grown worried, which was why
Zion had knocked.
“I understand,” Addison said after a moment of thought. She drew in a deep breath, steadying herself. “Let’s go down and have breakfast first. The people of this pack are waiting for us. If we keep dawdling, they’ll notice, and it might cause unnecessary alarm. We’ll just send a few people to search quietly, without drawing attention.
The moment he stepped inside, he grabbed the cloth that had been used to cradle the dark fairies the night before. Muttering an incantation, he began to weave magic through the fabric, using it as a medium to track the fairies, much like a hunting dog sniffing out a trail.
“I can’t find the dark fairies…” Addison said quietly, glancing at Maxwell and Levi so they would all know.
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Fortunately, Elric’s room was on the same floor. Levi strode a few steps down the hallway, knocked on a door, and waited. After a short pause, a groggy old man shuffled out, still in his nightgown, rubbing sleep from his eyes.
Zion, Levi, and Maxwell understood her reasoning. Each of them governed their own packs in their territories, and Levi, as second–in–command, was deeply involved in day–to–day governance.
“What’s going on?” Zion asked as he closed the distance in a single step. He cupped her face in his palm with a familiar tenderness, studying her expression, but Addison turned away and stepped back, avoiding his touch.
Now, seeing her up close, their concern deepened. Addison’s face was pale, her lips trembled slightly, and her eyes were unfocused–she didn’t look well at all.
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