Kill The Luna

48

"As you already know very well, my first and foremost duty in this world is to protect you and keep you completely safe from harm," Elda murmured, her eyes shining with an intense, unyielding focus as she looked down at me.

She stepped back slightly, her expression turning deeply thoughtful as she began to pace slowly across the soft green grass of the hidden garden. "So, our immediate priority is that we must find a reliable way to stop this ancient prophecy from ever happening. We admittedly do not know every single detail about how it works just yet. However, the old texts make it very clear that if we allow this dark power to fully break out of your blood, it will somehow end in total catastrophe, with thousands of innocent people dying. That is exactly what we are trying so hard to avoid here."

She stopped pacing and turned her body back toward me, her sharp features tightening with absolute determination. "Our best option right now is that we must find a way to completely suppress the curse all over again. We need to bury it so deep inside your soul that your enemies will never be able to detect your energy signature, no matter how hard they search for you."

Elda’s gaze locked back onto my face, her voice dropping into a firmer, more commanding tone. "And because the world out there has become so incredibly dangerous for you, I will be personally training you with my own hands. We will train daily, every single morning and evening, to make your body and mind much stronger. If any bad situation happens in the future, I want to ensure that you have the raw power to defend yourself without needing anyone to save you."

I listened to her words carefully, my jaw setting flat as I mentally weighed my options. "I will agree to this," I stated coldly, my tone remaining stiff and distant. "But I have just one absolute condition."

Elda raised her perfectly shaped eyebrows, her face softening into a calm, patient expression as she tilted her head to the side. "And what exactly would that condition be, my dear?"

"I don't want my father to ever find out that I am hiding here with you," I hissed, my hands clenching into tight fists at the very mention of his name. My chest heaved with a sudden wave of buried anger. "I want absolutely nothing to do with that man ever again. I don't want him knowing my physical whereabouts, I don't want him knowing who I am with, and I definitely do not want him receiving any updates about my current condition or my life. He is dead to me."

A knowing, satisfied smile slowly spread across Elda’s lips, and she gave an easy, reassuring nod of her head. "Consider it completely done, Fedora. Your father will be kept entirely in the dark about everything we do here."

I let out a slow, heavy breath, forcing my tense muscles to relax just a little bit. "Okay. Then we officially have a deal."

"Wonderful," Elda beamed, her eyes wrinkling at the corners with genuine delight as she smoothed down the fabric of her dress. "All I truly want for you in this life is to become incredibly strong, powerful, and independent. I want you to live the kind of good, free life that I was never able to live when I was your age. But for any of this to work, you will have to lay low and stay completely hidden inside this estate for a while."

A sudden, sharp pang of worry hit my chest as a familiar face flashed through my mind, and my expression quickly changed into one of deep concern. "But what about Alpha Michael?" I demanded, my voice rising slightly. "I absolutely need him to know about my current whereabouts. He has been incredibly kind and protective to me when everyone else treated me like garbage. I don't want him wasting his time and resources looking all over the world for me, thinking I'm in grave danger."

The cheerful warmth instantly drained from Elda’s face, her lips pressing together into a thin, hard line. "Do not worry your pretty little head about him," she countered flatly, waving her hand in the air as if the matter were entirely trivial. "You will see him soon enough, but right now, that man is not important to our goals."

"It is important!" I snapped back, taking a sharp step forward and glaring directly into her eyes. "You need to remember exactly who he is—he is a powerful Lycan King! If he finds out you took me, he might kill you before you even get a single chance to open your mouth and explain yourself. You need to remember that you literally kidnapped me from the road, if I am not mistaken. It is not like you are the good person in this situation."

Elda’s expression darkened instantly, a cold, mocking look taking over her features as she let out a bitter chuckle. "Michael does not own you, Fedora, and he is certainly not the savior you think he is," she stated sharply, her voice dropping into a chilling, serious whisper. "He wants something very specific from you too, just like the rest of the Alphas in that council. You are nothing but a prize to him, and if you had any sense in you, he is the one person you should be deeply scared of."

Before I could even open my mouth to argue with her, a sudden movement in the grass caught my attention. The seven armed guards who had been standing quietly by the house suddenly marched forward into the garden. They moved with terrifying, synchronized precision, slowly walking in a wide circle around the two of us. They adjusted their positions, deliberately pushing outward to clear a massive, wide space directly in the middle of the green lawn, trapping me and Elda inside the center.

One of the men stepped forward, holding two thick, heavy wooden training sticks in his hands. He offered them to Elda with a respectful bow.

My eyes widened in pure shock as I looked back and forth between the armed guards and the heavy wooden weapons. A wave of total surprise and confusion washed over my face. "Wait... what on earth is happening right now?" I asked, my voice trembling slightly as I took a defensive step backward.

Elda took the two heavy sticks from the guard, a cruel, playful smirk stretching across her slim face as she tossed one of the weapons straight at my feet.

"Oh, I completely forgot to mention one tiny little detail," she whispered smoothly, her eyes glinting with a dangerous excitement as she raised her stick and assumed a fighting stance. "Your training starts right now."