Bound To The Ruthless Lycan

Chapter 16 : The Infiltrator in the Rear Guard

"Take the three of them to the dungeon right now!"

Damon's command thundered through the silence of the Royal Moonflower Garden. The elite guards moved swiftly, dragging away Baron Logan's three helpless spies across the wet grass.

Damon rushed toward Sera, his eyes sweeping over her with frantic concern.

"Sera! Are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?" Damon asked, his hands gripping her upper arms tightly.

Sera shook her head softly. "I'm fine, Damon. The poison didn't touch me at all."

"How could you face three elite intruders all by yourself without telling me?" Damon's tone was a chaotic mix of relief and fury. "If anything had happened to you in this garden, I would never have forgiven myself!"

"We don't have time to argue right now, Damon," Sera cut in quickly. "Cassandra and Logan have devised a scheme far grander than a simple abduction. We must interrogate them in the dungeon before the nerve toxin in the lead spy's body wears off."

Damon stared at Sera for a moment, then gave a firm nod. "Follow me downstairs."

The stone floor of the castle dungeon was ice-cold and damp. The smell of kerosene from wall sconces mingled with the stale air inside the cell.

The lead spy was bound tightly with heavy iron chains to a wooden chair in the center of the room. Cold sweat slicked his face. The silver needle remained embedded in the back of his neck, locking his entire body completely immobile. His two henchmen were locked away in adjacent cells, crippled by broken bones and the scorpion venom.

Damon stepped up to the interrogation chair. "Sera, why is this man still frozen like a statue?"

"The silver needle locks his motor nervous system," Sera said, approaching the chair. "He can't move a muscle or make a single sound."

"Then how are we going to make him talk?" Damon asked, his brow furrowing.

Sera retrieved a small glass vial from beneath her dress. A bright yellow liquid sloshed gently inside.

"I brought a truth serum," Sera said. "This elixir breaks the brain's ability to lie. His tongue will answer every question truthfully, beyond the control of his conscious mind."

Damon gazed at Sera with growing awe. "You prepared this elixir beforehand?"

"I always prepare for the worst," Sera replied simply.

Sera took a step forward and pulled the silver needle from the back of the lead spy's neck.

Instantly, the man pitched forward. He coughed violently, gasping for air as his chest heaved frantically.

"Hold his head," Sera commanded the two guards beside her.

The two guards grabbed the man's hair and forehead from behind, forcing his head backward.

Sera unstoppered the glass vial and poured the entire bright yellow liquid straight down the lead spy's throat. The man tried to spit it out, but the guards pressed his throat until he was forced to swallow every drop.

A few seconds passed in tense silence.

The lead spy's eyes went blank and glassy. Veins bulged prominently across his neck and forehead. His gaze unraveled, entirely under the spell of the truth serum.

Sera stood directly in front of the man. "What is your name?"

"Kael..." the man rasped, his voice trembling.

"Who ordered you to come to the Royal Garden tonight?" Sera pressed in a cold, demanding voice.

"Lady Cassandra... and Baron Logan..." Kael blurted without hesitation. His eyes widened in sheer panic as he realized his mouth was moving beyond his control. "No, stop! What did you give me?!"

Damon slammed his fist onto a nearby wooden table, producing a thunderous bang. "How many troops has Baron Logan amassed to attack this place?!"

Kael gritted his teeth, desperately fighting to hold back his words. But the truth serum burned in his throat, compelling him to speak.

"Two thousand men..." Kael groaned, panting heavily. "There are two thousand mercenaries..."

Damon recoiled in shock, the Alpha's face hardening instantly. "Two thousand mercenaries?! Where is their staging area right now?"

"The Western Outpost..." Kael squeaked, eyes bulging in terror. "They are assembling in the hills near the Western Outpost..."

"Why is Logan striking now?" Damon barked in fury. "Why didn't he wait until winter, as agreed upon by the high council?!"

Kael looked up at Damon with a rasping, desperate laugh.

"Logan isn't waiting for winter, King. He's waiting for you to die during your Frenzy surge."

Those words froze the room solid. The guards standing in the corners held their breath.

"Cassandra informed Logan that your Frenzy surge cycle is coming in two days," Kael continued, his voice quivering. "When the peak Frenzy strikes you, you'll lose control of your strength and your mind. That's when two thousand mercenaries will tear through the Western Outpost gates and slaughter everyone in this castle."

Sera clenched her hands into tight fists. "Cassandra truly sold out all of the castle's internal intelligence to Baron Logan."

Sera turned and walked over to the wooden table where the guards had piled the three intruders' belongings. She rummaged through the pocket of Kael's heavy cloak lying on the table.

Her fingers brushed against a thick parchment roll bound with black cord hidden inside a secret lining of the cloak. Sera pulled out the scroll and unrolled it wide across the table.

"Damon, look at this," Sera called out.

Damon stepped up quickly to Sera's side. The map depicted a secret invasion route from the Western Outpost leading to the castle's rear gate. But Sera's focus wasn't on the troop movement lines.

In the lower-right corner of the map was a red wax seal depicting crossed swords and a signature Sera knew by heart.

Sera's body froze solid. Her fingers trembled violently against the map's surface. Years of suppressed rage and ancient wounds erupted in her chest.

Damon noticed her sudden paleness. "Sera? What is it?"

"This signature..." Sera's voice faltered, tears of rage welling in her eyes. "This is General Valerius's seal."

Damon frowned. "Valerius? The former southern army general discharged ten years ago?"

"He isn't just any former general, Damon!" Sera cried out, spinning toward Damon with bloodshot, emotional eyes. Her voice trembled violently. "He is the murderer of my family! He led the m******e at my home five years ago!"

Damon froze in shock. He cupped both of Sera's shoulders tightly. "He was the one?"

"Yes!" Tears spilled down Sera's cheeks, but her eyes blazed with intense vengeance. "I watched with my own eyes as that man burned my home and slaughtered my parents right before me! I will never forget this crossed-swords seal!"

Sera whipped around toward Kael. "Is Valerius personally leading the two thousand mercenaries at the Western Outpost? Answer me!"

Kael, still under the serum's spell, gave a weak nod. "Yes... General Valerius holds command at the Western Outpost..."

Damon released his grip on Sera's shoulders. The Alpha's face burned with raw fury. His mind was made up without a single shred of doubt.

"Guards!" Damon roared, his voice echoing violently off the stone walls.

"At your command, Your Majesty!" the elite guards chorused.

"Emergency war mobilization, tonight!" Damon commanded with thunderous authority. "Assemble five hundred elite werewolf warriors in the main courtyard! We launch an assault on the Western Outpost tonight before Valerius realizes his plot has been exposed!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" The guards sprinted out to spread the call to arms.

Damon caught Sera's shoulders once more, staring deep into her eyes.

"Sera, you remain inside this castle," Damon said, his voice firm yet brimming with protective care. "Stay in your room with Marta and lock the door tightly. I promise I will bring you Valerius's head and avenge your family tonight."

"No! I must go with you, Damon!" Sera protested, clutching his hands. "Valerius is no ordinary enemy! He relies heavily on paralyzing poisons and dirty traps! I know how to neutralize his army's toxins on the battlefield!"

"I said no, Sera!" Damon barked fiercely, his tone rising with anxiety. "This is a real battlefield! Two thousand mercenaries are gathered there! I will never allow you to stand on the front lines in harm's way!"

"Damon, this is my family's vengeance!" Sera cried out.

"And your life is my responsibility!" Damon snapped, looking her straight in the eye. "Stay in your room until I return!"

Damon released her hands, turned around, and marched swiftly out of the dungeon without looking back.

Sera stood frozen in the chill of the room. She stared at the empty doorway with fierce, stubborn determination.

"You're mistaken if you think I'll sit idly by waiting in my room," Sera whispered to herself.

Half an hour later.

The scene in the castle's main courtyard was a hive of frantic activity. Tall torches flickered along the outer walls. The whinnying of horses, clanking of iron armor, and heavy footsteps of hundreds of warriors filled the crisp night air.

Damon sat tall atop his massive black warhorse at the head of the ranks, issuing final instructions to his captains with a drawn sword in hand.

At the very rear of the massive army, a row of ten canvas-covered wooden wagons was being prepared. These were military supply and medical wagons, loaded with medicine, bandages, and emergency provisions.

Amid the flurry of medics busy moving crates of medicine, a figure cloaked in a heavy black hooded mantle walked briskly without drawing a single glance.

Sera kept her head low, concealing most of her face beneath the hood. Hidden under her thick attire, two poisoned daggers and pouches of various herbal elixirs were secured tightly at her waist.

As the medics turned away to tie down supply ropes at the front, Sera moved with lightning speed. Agile and silent, she slipped into the back of medical wagon number three.

Sera stowed away between high-stacked wooden medicine crates and rolls of canvas bandage. She held her breath tight in the darkness beneath the wagon's tarp cover.

Through a gap in the canvas, Sera saw Damon raise his sword high at the head of the werewolf vanguard.

"March to the Western Outpost!" Damon bellowed, leading the charge.

The massive host began to file through the castle gates, cutting through the night toward the battlefield. The medical wagons followed slowly at the rear, while Sera wore a faint, sly smile in the dark of the wagon.