Chapter 18: The Mastermind Revealed

The Grand Assembly Hall erupted into chaos.

Steel clashed against steel.

Tables overturned as Alphas rushed to defend themselves.

Panicked servants fled toward the exits.

"Protect the council!" Ethan shouted.

"Don't let anyone escape!"

Jaxon blocked another poisoned dagger aimed at Jasper.

The assassin was incredibly fast.

His movements were precise.

Disciplined.

Almost military.

'He's not fighting to win,' Drax growled.

'He's buying time.'

'Time for what?'

Before Drax could answer...

A second explosion shook the palace.

The western doors burst open.

Smoke poured into the hall.

"Another attack!"

"They're inside the castle!"

Sable spun, cutting down another masked assassin before he could reach an elderly Alpha.

"Everyone move away from the walls!" she yelled.

Several Alphas immediately followed her instructions.

Jaxon noticed it.

Without realizing it...

They had begun trusting her.

Suddenly...

The assassin fighting Jaxon smiled.

"Too late, Alpha."

He threw a handful of black powder onto the floor.

The room filled with thick smoke.

Visibility vanished.

"Jaxon!" Sable called.

"I'm here!"

He reached toward her voice.

Their hands found each other through the smoke.

The instant their fingers touched...

The silver mate bond flared brightly.

A pulse of energy spread through the hall.

For one brief moment...

The smoke around them seemed to part.

'The bond is protecting us,' Drax whispered.

Together they pushed forward.

When the smoke finally cleared...

Every assassin lay dead.

Not from Jaxon's sword.

Not from Sable's.

Each one had been killed by a single arrow.

Straight through the heart.

The hall fell silent.

"Who fired those arrows?" Ethan asked.

No one answered.

Jasper slowly stepped forward.

"It appears someone wished to silence them before they could speak."

Jaxon looked directly at him.

"Convenient."

"Very convenient."

Jasper met his gaze calmly.

"Are you accusing me?"

"I'm questioning the timing."

"Fair enough."

Before the argument could continue...

A wounded assassin suddenly coughed.

He wasn't dead.

Barely alive.

Jaxon knelt beside him immediately.

"Who sent you?"

"Talk!"

The assassin laughed weakly.

Blood stained his lips.

"You still... don't understand..."

"Understand what?"

"The war..."

"It was never... about territory..."

"Then what?"

"The Crown..."

His breathing became shallow.

"Which crown?" Ethan demanded.

"The... Lunar Crown..."

His eyes widened suddenly.

A tiny dart struck his neck from somewhere above.

Within seconds...

He was dead.

"Damn it!" Ethan cursed.

"Another sniper!"

Warriors rushed toward the balconies.

Nothing.

The killer had already disappeared.

But the assassin's final words echoed through the hall.

"The Lunar Crown..."

Several older Alphas exchanged nervous glances.

Jaxon noticed immediately.

"You know what that is," he said.

No one answered.

Finally...

An elderly Alpha named Cedric stepped forward.

"It's an old legend," he said quietly.

"Not just a legend," another Alpha corrected.

"A secret."

"Long ago, before the Eastern Region was divided into separate packs..."

"There was only one Wolf Kingdom."

"One King."

"One Queen."

"And one sacred relic."

"The Lunar Crown."

Sable listened carefully.

"What does it do?"

Cedric sighed.

"According to history..."

"The Alpha chosen by the Lunar Crown could unite every wolf pack under one ruler."

"Impossible," Ethan muttered.

"We thought so too."

"Until today."

Jaxon looked toward Jasper.

Jasper remained perfectly calm.

Almost...

Too calm.

"Interesting story," Jasper said smoothly.

"But surely none of us still believe children's legends."

"Maybe not," Jaxon replied.

"But someone just died trying to protect that secret."

"Which means someone believes it's real."

For the first time all morning...

Jasper's smile disappeared.

Only for a second.

But Jaxon saw it.

'He knows something,' Drax growled.

'Yes.'

'And he's terrified we'll discover it.'

Just then...

One of Bloodlust's guards rushed into the hall.

"Alpha Jasper!"

"The royal archives have been broken into!"

"What was stolen?" Jasper demanded.

The guard swallowed nervously.

"Only one item..."

"The ancient map leading to the Lunar Crown."

Every Alpha in the hall stood frozen.

The legend...

Was real.