Secrets Under the Moonlight"

Chapter 4

Moon City's Lieren Villa District, Byers Mansion.

It was dinner time, a customary affair for the Byers family, with members of all ages gathered in the dining room.

"Can't make it to the European Youth Technology Forum?" Joyce asked, her eyes half-lidded.

Mr. Byers, the patriarch, slowly raised his gaze at his grandson, who had been quietly dining.

"No," Ryder set his utensils neatly aside, dabbing his mouth with the folded napkin, then sat upright. "I missed the invitation, so it seems I won't be attending."

"Careless. Don't let it happen again. You must seize your opportunities," Mr. Byers admonished sternly.

"Yes, I won't let it happen again," Ryder replied meekly, bowing his head slightly.

Joyce glanced at the adults a few times, casually flipping her ponytail, then teasingly remarked, "Brother, does this mean you can't go to Europe? And your recent leave for the mission will be forfeited?"

Ryder lifted his eyes, casting a sidelong glance at his sister, but remained silent.

"Such a shame. There's a mission tonight. The Deities Religion will come to fetch us," Joyce pouted. "The Byers family is going to lose face again."

"Joyce, mind your words," Mr. Byers warned in a low, stern voice.

Joyce shrunk her neck and glanced at her grandfather and father, closing her mouth.

Ryder rose from his seat and addressed the elders, "I'm done with dinner. I'll head to my room now."

"Remember to join me for the mission later," came the reminder from his sister as Ryder made his way to his room.

Back in his room, seated at the mahogany desk, he gazed at his calligraphy practice, sinking into silence.

The Byers family, a lineage of hunters with a history of over five hundred years, boasted many branches across various cities, serving as leaders among hunter families.

In the Byers family, each legitimate heir would become the next patriarch. Despite the family's prestigious lineage, Ryder was not one of them.

At eleven o'clock at night, a black unmarked car parked at the side gate of the Byers Mansion. Two figures cloaked in black emerged from the vehicle, their cloaks enveloping their bodies entirely, their hats shading their faces, resembling emissaries from the underworld.

They stood side by side, heads slightly bowed.

It wasn't until Joyce and Ryder, also cloaked in black, emerged from the door that one of the figures handed them a document. Their voices were cold and devoid of warmth as they said, "Deities Religion requires the agreement to be signed before the mission."

The other figure held a pot of red ink.

Joyce and Ryder pressed their handprints on the agreement, after which the two figures stepped aside to let them board the car first. Then the car departed from the Byers Mansion.

Deities Religion, with a history spanning over a thousand years, was an authoritative presence that has balanced the human and werewolf realms since ancient times.

Comprising humans, hunters, and a few werewolves, its main task was to investigate any misconduct in both realms and arbitrate major cases according to werewolf laws. In modern times, prominent hunter families had already signed treaties with Deities Religion, which assigned tasks to various hunter families. The hunters were responsible for apprehension, and very rarely were they required to kill on the spot.

The car returned to Deities Religion, the busiest time for the organization being at night.

During the day, to avoid disrupting human life, Deities Religion rarely dispatched tasks, usually focusing on court trials.

As night fell, various teams were busy with capture or assassination missions.

Joyce and Ryder's hunter group was one of the stronger teams. They arrived at the preparation area, where they saw several team members.

"Everyone's here," Joyce remarked, leaving her brother and joining the group for a reunion.

Three young men were gathered, two of them from unknown families.

Leading them was Dustin, a scion of one of the four major merchant families. Despite being only sixteen, he exuded grace and elegance, making him quite popular among the young hunters.

"D-Du, long time no see," Joyce greeted Dustin, slightly older but unwittingly showing some dependency.

Dustin handed her a bouquet of roses from his pocket, his expression gentle as he asked, "How have you been lately?"

"Pretty good. Heard you got into the high school division of Moon City First High?"

"Yeah, too bad Moon City Girls High didn't accept me, or else I would've been your junior."

"You're quite the joker," Joyce replied, blushing slightly, feeling upbeat.

Meanwhile, Ryder stood by, wearing a casual smile on the surface but inwardly labeling this scion of a business family as someone who was flirting with his sister.

With everyone gathered and ready, the 'Blue Moon' team began their operation.

Five dark figures moved through alleys, sometimes darting around street corners or leaping onto rooftops.

They quickly reached the docks, where Dustin pulled up information on his phone. "This time, our mission is to capture a four-person criminal g**g led by a werewolf named Mark. They've been profiting around seven million yuan over the past four years from illegal d**g trafficking."

Dustin put away his phone and looked towards the serene water and boats in the distance. "A boat will arrive shortly to supply them. Our job is to capture them alive and wait for Deities Religion to take them into custody."

The five of them dispersed, hiding in the shadows. Before long, a small boat slowly approached the dock, and four figures appeared on the platform.

The air was thick with moisture, and the moonlight was obscured by clouds. The five members of the Blue Moon team silently drew silver daggers from their waists.

Silver was the werewolves' greatest fear.

It could inhibit werewolf cell regeneration, preventing them from unleashing their full vitality and weakening their combat abilities.

Even a slight touch of silver would cause excruciating pain to a werewolf.

Thanks to the unique silver crafting techniques of the Citiban hunter family over the past century, silver knives used by hunters were deadlier than ordinary silver knives.

Before the wind could catch up, the five figures flew out, and the four werewolves reacted swiftly, transforming into their wolf forms upon seeing the shining silver blades approaching them.

"How could there be hunters!" one werewolf roared in anger.

Joyce's martial and blade skills were renowned among the younger generation of hunters. Despite her petite stature, she was agile in combat. After a few rounds of grappling, the werewolf seemed unable to withstand her.

While her teammates provided cover, Joyce circled behind and directly stabbed the werewolf in the knee with her silver dagger.

"Ah!!" With a painful cry, the werewolf knelt on the ground, unable to stand.

With silver handcuffs secured, they successfully captured one of them.

Joyce glanced into the distance, where Dustin stood calmly, wiping his silver needles with a handkerchief.

In front of him, two werewolves knelt straight, their faces filled with pain and fear, covered in numerous silver needles. Blood flowed profusely, dripping onto the ground.

But Dustin's expression was relaxed, as if he had just finished a flower arrangement, collecting the remaining needles and waiting for others to complete the task.

"Get him!" a loud shout came from afar. The three of them looked towards the distance, and Dustin instructed, "I'll go check. Keep an eye on the captured individuals."

It turned out that Ryder and another team member had encountered the leader of the g**g, Mark. Mark's combat prowess was clearly different from the other three, with wildness and strength still evident in his bones. After transforming into a werewolf, Mark's size was two sizes larger than that of a human.

Originally, both of them were about to capture Mark. However, Mark threw the other team member to the ground, leaving Ryder alone to deal with him. Prior to this, Ryder had already inflicted numerous wounds on him with his excellent martial arts and a silver dagger. But unexpectedly, at the critical moment, Mark burst out with his last bit of strength, scratching Ryder with his claws and successfully escaping.

Joyce and Dustin rushed over, and Joyce anxiously asked, "Where's the guy?"

The other team member was injured and somewhat disoriented. Ryder kept his head down and said softly, "He scratched me and escaped."

Dustin's eyes remained steady, showing some consideration as he glanced at Ryder.

Joyce looked at Ryder, her eyes full of anger, and scorned, "He just scratched your face! And you let him go!"

Blood oozed from the scratch on Ryder's face, a trail of blood slowly sliding down his handsome face. He didn't offer any explanation, just apologized, "Sorry."

"Ryder," Joyce's eyes were full of anger and mockery, "You're such a waste!"

"Still the heir, if this gets out, the Byers family will be completely disgraced because of you!"

Before long, Deities Religion came to escort the prisoners. Due to the escape of the ringleader, this mission was deemed a failure.

Back at Deities Religion, even hunters from small families outside the four major clans didn't hesitate to gather and mock, "Heard that? It's the heir of the Byers family. He got scratched by a werewolf and let the guy go."

"Didn't they say he accidentally killed a teammate on his first mission at fourteen?"

"I've heard that the heir of the Byers family is a waste who's more likely to fail than succeed. Didn't expect him to be so timid and delicate."

"Hahaha, indeed. He's not even as good as his sister, Joyce. I've seen that girl before. Despite her cute and petite appearance, she's ruthless. Won't come home until she's bathed in blood."

In the early hours of the morning, after completing the mission handover, Dustin returned home.

Executing missions didn't tire him out, but he didn't expect this one to fail. However, it didn't matter to him.

Success or failure in missions held no significance for him.

The phone rang, and Dustin picked up the cellphone on his desk. "What's up?"

"The information you requested about the person has been sent to you." With that, the caller hung up.

Dustin turned on his computer and stared at the photo of the girl on the identification card in the dossier, a faint smile playing on his lips as he murmured to himself.

"Rachel, the only daughter of Citiban."