Miranda stood up in alarm.
Her eyes were red in the corners and one could tell from the dark circles under them that she had no proper rest recently.
However, all the traces of exhaustion in her expression disappeared upon feeling the threat directed at her son.
"What do you want from my son?" she asked agitatedly.
In her wolf form, the fur on her tail would have probably stood up.
Lucas remained seated and was not the slightest bit affected by the hostility directed to him.
He replied, "As the leaders of a pack, we know security is the most important. You also understand that a wolf's loyalty is not so easily broken and given, right?"
"What do you mean?" Miranda impatiently interrupted him.
Lucas was not fazed at all and was still talking as leisurely as before, "Letting you free even if you have submitted to Shiloh does not guarantee that you won't one day turn on him."
"How does this have anything to do with an omega?" Miranda gritted her teeth.
"At 23, Shiloh has not found his mate yet."
The pupils in Miranda's eyes shrank at the implication of Lucas's words.
The alpha was mateless. Therefore, he could use an omega to bear an heir. One that was from a fallen pack and has no political relations.
"His quest to reclaim the Pentagon Alliance is hard work full of uncertain dangers. Before it's too late, I want to secure the future of White Moon Pack," Lucas continued.
"You want me to sell my son?" Miranda asked incredulously.
She had always secretly hated the way White Moon stuck to its traditions and still treated themselves like the mighty and prideful hunters of the past.
The Pentagon Alliance was long gone and all the packs are peaceful now!
Shiloh was indeed her best friend's son, but she hated his guts.
How dare he disrupt the quiet that's been undisturbed for decades now!
Lucas shrugged his shoulders. "He's not your blood and flesh. Also, anyway, it's not the only option."
"What's the other option?" Miranda instantly asked. There was no way she was going to let Nevada become just a tool for breeding.
"Let go of Blue Crescent. The pack will be in good hands under Shiloh. Of course, that includes your son. Luna Miranda and Alpha Theo will have to turn themselves in."
Beep!
[Hidden Scene Unlocked! The host has discovered a scene that was not shown in the original plotline.]
Beep!
[The host is rewarded with one free pass. Free passes can be used to take any OOC action for a given time limit. Please use it wisely.]
Nevada's eyes brightened.
He let the screen, where the luna of Blue Crescent and the beta of White Moon were currently discussing serious matters, fade out.
He was even the main subject, but he could still lose interest.
The system was puzzled at his actions.
Their topic was interesting and it was indeed not told in the plot clearly.
However, Nevada's thoughts were only along the lines of: "So this was what really happened. This was how the leaders of a pack were easily taken down. But anyway…"
To actually be able to act freely!
The free pass caught his attention more. There may be a limit, but that's already a given.
What a steal!
"If I discover more of these hidden scenes, will I always get more free passes?" Nevada giddily asked, even forgetting to spit out the seed of the tangerine he was eating.
[To answer the host, there will be rewards, but they will be random.]
Nevada nodded.
As long as the rewards aren't useless, whatever is fine.
Wondering, he asked again, "I got a warning a while ago. Will there be a punishment if I get too many warnings?"
[To answer the host, there will be a total of three warnings. The world system must make sure that nothing is amiss. If it realizes that someone who was not originally part of the story had entered, you will be ejected immediately.]
"By ejected, what do you mean?" His eyebrows were raised in question, even though he already had a hunch.
[You will either be brought back to your world, or you will disappear.]
Nevada did not have much of a reaction to this. He already expected an answer along these lines.
Still, the system could see the displeasure and slight concern in his face.
"There is a time limit to the free pass I received, but are there lines I shouldn't cross? I know it said I can act out of character, but what if the world system thinks I acted too out of character?"
[The host need not worry. If the system says it's an OOC free pass, then it is just as it is. You only need to take note of the time limit.]
Nevada wanted to discuss more things with the system, but he was alerted.
He thought it was odd at first, but it seemed like his senses had really greatly improved.
Nevada could tell someone was heading to his room, although their footsteps were as light as feathers.
It must be his wolf characteristics functioning.
There was no knock on the door, and it just opened quietly.
Theodore was surprised to see his son already up and looking a little fine even though his heat just arrived last night.
He was sure he would still be struggling on his bed since heats mostly last 48 hours on average.
"Nevada, you're up. Did you get a good rest? Are you feeling well now?" Theodore greeted him cautiously.
After all, he was still a male and an alpha. It would be a lie to say he wasn't affected by his heat at all.
It was fortunate that he already has a mate and that he has a strong bond with Miranda, so he had more control over his instincts.
"Father." Nevada smiled, shifting in his seat uncomfortably. "I feel a little better."
Theodore noticed him fiddling, so he dotingly asked, "Do you need anything? Are you still uncomfortable?"
Like a go signal, the corners of Nevada's eyes instantly reddened and were filled with tears.
His father was shocked, but that was natural.
Nevada was delighted at successfully tearing up, but they almost dried when he felt that even the system was taken aback.
A big green exclamation mark appeared in front of his eyes without warning which made him flinch.
Getting a hold of himself and ignoring the system, he sniffled and continued his flawless acting.
"Father, I'm sorry that I disappointed you," he began, then tears rolled down to his cheeks.
Theodore spoiled this son of his so much, and he was instantly taken.
He hugged his frail son, rubbing his back to comfort him.
"I can't be your heir. I caused trouble with the other clans and the pack also hates me. I'm so sorry," Nevada continued.
Theodore sighed. "No, son. They are just surprised at the unexpected turn of events. They will come to in a few days. Give them time."
So that was what his parents believed.
They thought that everything would have been fine for their son even if they peacefully left the pack and walked to the prison on their own.
They trusted their pack and the beta's words.
However, they never knew until the day they died that their son had suffered greatly and passed away long before them.
"Ouch," Nevada groaned when Theodore accidentally rubbed a part of his back.
Theodore's eyes became alert and he immediately let go of the teen in his arms.
With a stern look on his face, he shakily said, "Take off your shirt."
Nevada shook his head.
According to the data, Nevada wasn't stubborn but he usually keeps things to himself as long as he can without seeking any help from others.
In the past, he didn't even turn to the alpha, so no action was made against his bullies.
"Now," Theodore firmly commanded using his alpha voice.
Coerced, Nevada whimpered as he moved to remove his shirt.
Theodore hitched a breath at the sight of Nevada's body.
There were bruises and swells on his chest and stomach.
When he turned him around, his back was even full of blue and purple marks from probably being beaten by whips.
Aside from his broken arm, he didn't remember him getting more injuries from the previous night's chaos.
With the big incident, he also was not stupid not to know who did this to his son and why he suffered.
Madness crossed in his eyes and Nevada felt his anger.
Countless wolves also shivered when they felt it.
Due to his rage, Theodore was unable to control himself. Every wolf in the pack felt it through the link.
But because Nevada was the nearest to Theodore, he was the one who had caught all the emotions their alpha released.
He fell to his bottom with shaking legs.
The alpha's threatening growl and killing intent towards the wolves who hurt his son sent everyone a crawling current to their spine.
Nevada was dazed at the sudden surge of emotions.
He did not expect for werewolves and packs to have this much of a connection.
It took a moment before he got a hold of himself and managed to lift himself up.
And somewhere across the Blue Crescent's borders, pass the river to their north, two bright golden orbs flickered red.