"How many have died?"
Knight's hoarse voice cut through the evening's humid air. Everyone dismissed their thoughts and stood up, giving solemn respect to his position.
The screaming children were hushed into silence by their weeping mothers. Even the injured tried to stand, but Knight gave them a stern look and waved a hand, signaling that it was all right.
The destruction lay before Knight's penetrating gaze. The flickering fire at the center cast long shadows against the overarching trees that concealed their territory.
The forest was bright, but the light was not kind. Sparks of embers flew across, piles of ashes dusted the land, and broken debris littered the ground.
The sight was all too familiar to him. The ravenous fire had burned a part of their village again.
Logan, his second in command, approached and bowed with a fisted hand against his chest. He said firmly, "Over twenty-two are found dead, eleven in critical condition, and nine are missing, Alpha."
Knight gritted his teeth. He had been away for only a few days, yet he returned to this much casualty. He had been tracking down those who had stolen the Night Howler with his men.
The crescent moon shone brightly over the endless lines of covered corpses lying across the ground. Knight surveyed his subjects. Most of his men were burned, while the women carried their little ones, the future of the pack.
"Missing?" He tried to hide both the annoyance and surprise in his voice, but Logan knew him all too well and immediately provided details of the incident.
"The unidentified witch used their Life Essence to conjure her magic. We've already found three women, but we are still trying our best to find the rest."
Knight's body tensed, but he masked his anger. He needed to use his mind, not his emotions. He must protect his pack and ensure their territory was safe, which meant controlling his emotions.
"How sure are we that it was indeed a witch?"
"The first kid saw the witch early in the morning, and the second one saw her an hour before the fire. They are just five and seven, Alpha Knight. They might not know her abilities well, but we figured it out because they both saw her blue hair."
Logan gestured to a soldier. A few strands of hair were handed to him, found a few meters away from the fire. It was enough to confirm they were dealing with a powerful witch.
"Do not worry," added Logan. "Caesar and his squad are already tracking her down. We've secured the front route to ensure she won't escape toward the Capital."
Knight took the strands of hair. They felt like normal hair, soft and silky, against his palm. He examined them closely, then closed his eyes and breathed in the scent.
The scent brought him back to that night when he had lost everything. His body trembled with indescribable anger, but he buried the memories deep in his mind.
Instead of reliving the past, Knight focused on tracking down the witch's scent.
It was difficult as the air was filled with suffocating ashes from the burned homes. But once his wolf had awakened almost a decade ago, his heightened senses doubled. One sniff alone, and he memorized the scent.
"How many trackers and hunters are left on standby?" Knight asked again.
"Seven trackers and two hunters are within the perimeter," Logan answered. "The remaining dozen are scattered around for their regular patrol."
Knight's gaze was blank. "The border?"
"Team Wane is guarding it. We've already deployed additional guards after the report."
Knight sniffed the hair once more to ascertain himself.
"Southeast…" He commanded his men through their shared pack's link. The remaining trackers and hunters immediately transformed and ran toward the given direction.
Knight wanted to follow and ensure that this time, the elusive witch was captured. She might be alone, but there were already over twenty werebeasts hunting for her. Besides, his presence was needed here.
Protect the pack, he reminded himself to stay calm.
"Collosus is well-guarded, but a witch attacked our territory alone. She managed to get inside the Elderwood and burned half of Vernon Forest. How did this happen?"
Knight's voice was controlled and firm, but anger was palpable. The Night Howler had gone missing, there had been two rogue attacks in a week, and now this witch had burned their territory.
All men bowed their heads. The women took cautious steps back, clutching their bundled babies tightly. The young ones hid behind them.
Everyone in Elderwood knew that Knight was unlike the former Alpha. He might be like his late father, who ruled the territory for decades with iron-gripped laws, but his people knew he was not to be messed with.
Logan stepped forward and bowed his head. As the Beta of the Pack, it was his utmost duty to protect everyone when the Alpha was not around. He had failed miserably, and for that, he must be punished.
"It was solely my fault, Alpha Knight," he said. "I deployed too many of our men to track down the thieves of the Night Howler. I failed to strengthen our security against others. I take full responsibility for this matter and as such…"
"The emergency protocol?" Knight interrupted. He did not want to hear Logan's explanations or apologies. He knew Logan had made a grave mistake, as it was his primary job to oversee the security of the territory.
But Knight also knew he was at fault. The Night Howler, the most sacred artifact of their kind, had been stolen from his own home.
He was too preoccupied with chasing the latest possible hint of his mate's whereabouts.
It had been ten years, yet he still had not found her. He had given up the active search after five long years, overwhelmed by responsibilities that consumed most of his time. But that did not mean he had given up on her.
So, when he found a letter in his office from an unknown source claiming to know her location, he took the bait, even though his gut told him it was a trap. He hoped.
And look where hope had landed him and his people.
"The emergency protocol is currently underway," Logan said as the medical squad arrived.
It was a small group of five members. Werewolves could heal on their own with the help of their beasts, so they did not need as much medical attention as other creatures.
But when it came to witch attacks, Knight wanted to ensure his people were safe and well-protected.
No one knew the extent of spells the wicked could cast, so it was better to prepare and counter them with all the available knowledge.
Knight approached Logan's muscular frame. In a subdued voice, he said, "The next time you mess up, I will personally punish you, Logan."
The medical squad prioritized the children who had not yet awakened their beasts and therefore lacked the ability to heal quickly and well.
Those who had lost their homes were moved to the evacuation area near the pack mansion, while two other teams stayed behind to survey the area and ensure the remaining fire would not consume the forest.
Knight made sure that everyone who had survived was well taken care of, but it was hard to see them personally because he could hear their whispers even when they tried to be discreet.
He did not want to hear them cry over the family members they had lost. It made him think about his own. But he also did not want to return to his house, which only reminded him of how incapable and weak he had been.
If he couldn't protect his pack, what kind of Alpha was he?
"Did you find the Night Howler?" Lance, Knight's younger stepbrother, asked as he entered the pack mansion after surveying the survivors in the evacuation area. "Or at least any leads? No?"
Lance was sitting casually on the sofa with two ladies on each of his muscular arms. They were laughing heartily before Knight arrived.
But when Knight saw the trash and numerous empty bottles littering the carpeted floor, his stare darkened.
The other werebeasts stopped dancing when they felt Knight's foreboding aura. The instruments fell silent, and everyone else stood awkwardly, bowing their heads.
The ladies beside Lance saw Knight's expression. They swiftly stood, fixed their clothing, bowed their heads, and rushed out. Silence remained, and Lance furrowed his eyebrows.
"What the hell is that all about?" Lance asked, throwing his arms up while still eyeing the ladies with a seductive gaze.
"Vernon Forest was attacked," Knight said calmly, still standing before his stepbrother.
"So I've heard." Lance sunk deeper into the couch as he yawned. "What of it, brother?"
Knight was exhausted from his failed attempt and stressed about the witch. When his annoyance knocked, he let it in.
He moved so swiftly that by the time Lance noticed, he was already pinned against the cold wall with a thud.
"What the hell, man!" Lance grinned, beginning to be overtaken by the drinks.
"I gave you an order," Knight roared. "Just one. I charged you to guard the border. That's it, easy. But when I got back, I found out you snuck out from your post and threw a damn party while everyone else is miserably dying!"
Lance tried to pry Knight's fisted hands off his collar. But Knight was too pissed, and when he was, his feral beast took over.
Lance groaned. "It was just five minutes. Besides, I was almost done with my hours. Almighty!"
That made Knight clench his jaw. "That mere five minutes were enough for the witch to sneak in unannounced, kill thirty of our people, burn the forest, and escape unscathed."
Knight tightened his hold on his stepbrother until Lance's cheeks turned red.
"Many lives are lost," Knight's voice was firm. "And many more with each passing second."
The entire pack who were with Lance bowed their heads even lower, almost kissing the ground. Knight's frustration flared, and he punched Lance straight in the jaw.
After, he saw the indifference swirling in his stepbrother's eyes.
"You were supposed to protect our people while I was gone. You are next in line whether you want it or not. When are you supposed to be a man, Lance?"
Knight punched him again, feeling bones crack under his fist. Despite that, his anger did not lessen.
"People are grieving, and you're just partying when you know more than anyone else that you should be out there helping, or at least out there!"
Everyone was silently watching. No one dared to stop them. No one dared to intervene with Knight, their Alpha.
"But…" Lance began. "If you did not leave, that witch would not have attacked!"
Knight's frustration tripled, and he threw Lance across the room, landing him on a small wooden table, breaking it.
Lance stood up, catching his breath. Then he raised his knuckles, his unwavering gaze inviting Knight into a duel. His wolf was already emerging at the surface, threatening to come out. His nails were turning black, and so were Knight's.
"I don't know why you're retreating from your responsibilities, Lance. You're not a kid anymore. Why do you always make stupid, selfish decisions that you know well can endanger our people?"
"It was just five damn minutes, shorter than a shit." Lance was also fuming mad. "It's not like I lost the Night Howler just because I was stupidly chasing an imaginary mate…"
Knight's beast roared within, so loud his chest seemed to burst. Those around them must have felt the immense strength of the beast as they took cautious steps back.
The expansive hall seemed tight under Knight's sweeping gaze. Lance was nothing but prey under his raging anger. Knight heard his clothes snapping, and his wolf growled with delight. He was about to lose control and let the heavens decide how the upcoming event turned out.
"Alpha!"
It was Logan. Behind him arrived Caesar, dragging along a lady with blue hair by her neck.
Everyone inside gasped once they saw the witch smile eerily straight at Knight.
"Alpha Knight of Elderwood," she said in a seductive tone. "Nice to meet you again."