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Romulus was happy to see the trusty informant of his. “Lorenzo! You are finally back from Lavinya, huh? You took your sweet time to come and see me.”

Lorenzo gave a subtle smile and replied, “Please forgive me, Alpha. There was an unprecedented event that needed my immediate involvement. And because I stayed there for a little bit longer than I had previously planned, I was able to dig out some fascinating news for you.”

“I expect nothing less from you.” Romulus was way too eager to hear the information that Lorenzo had brought back. So, he instantly asked, “Tell me, Lorenzo. What have you found out about the Crown Prince?”

Lorenzo smiled and proudly said to his alpha, “It’s a good thing you are already seated, Alpha. What I am going to say next will greatly shock you.”

Romulus’ eyes shined when he heard that. He shifted to the edge of his chair to listen to this news that Lorenzo claimed to be shocking.

And then, Lorenzo revealed all of the findings, “First of all, I found out who the Crown Prince was communicating with when he had sent that letter to Sorvando. It turns out that our Crown Prince is madly in love with the wife of the Vampire King.”

The corner of Romulus’ lips curved up slightly to form a sly smirk. “Interesting. Not what I had expected, but still, interesting.”

“I bet what you will hear next will be far more interesting than this.” Lorenzo took a deep breath before continuing.

.....

He then asked his alpha in a serious tone, “Alpha, have you heard about the mythical wolves that are said to be born every few centuries whenever the werewolf population is at risk of extinction? The ones who are supposed to be the great savior of the wolves because they possess the power of the moon goddess herself?”

A deep frown line appeared on the alpha’s forehead. “You mean the ones who are said to be able to create the werewolves?”

“Yes, Alpha.”

“And you are bringing this up now because?” Romulus questioningly raised his brows though he already had a guess why he was bringing up this issue now.

Lorenzo’s cheerful persona was replaced by an extremely serious one. He gave a slight nod to Romulus and said, “Yes, Alpha. You are right if you guessed the Crown Prince to be that mythical wolf.”

“Holy goddess!” Romulus abruptly got up from his chair and stood in front of the short man. “You better not be joking about this. That is a pretty serious matter.”

“I would never dare to joke about such matters with you, My Alpha,” Lorenzo replied while looking into Romulus’ eyes. “I have seen the proof with my own two eyes. Or else, I wouldn’t dare to raise this matter here.”

“What? What proof? Is he going around turning people into werewolves?” Romulus had a look of dread in his eyes.

All of the werewolves considered their powers to be a sacred gift from the moon goddess. And to think that a na?ve wolf was going around bestowing that sacred gift to random humans crushed his soul.

Lorenzo noticed the anger that was brewing inside of his alpha. So he was quick enough to give him the true picture of what he had witnessed. “No, Alpha. The Crown Prince isn’t that stupid to do something like that. He happened to turn one woman by accident. I learned that it happened when he transformed for the first time. So, it is understandable.”

“When he transformed for the first time? Did the Crown Prince trust you with all these pieces of information? Or you found it out yourself?” Either way, Romulus was already impressed by Lorenzo’s information-gathering skill.

Lorenzo then explained how he got to know everything. “Do you remember that unprecedented event that I was talking about earlier? It was the sudden arrival of the werewolf that the Crown Prince had created. And I had the chance to talk with her. The Crown Prince also confirmed what that lady had said.”

“A lady?” Romulus asked curiously.

Lorenzo subtly smiled and added, “And what’s even more interesting is the fact that she is originally from Sorvando. We now have our own personal source of information regarding vampires.”

“And...” He further emphasized, “It looks like the werewolves created by the Crown Prince are loyal to him and not to the alpha of the Crestfire clan. From the way she described the pull... I’m pretty sure that...”

Lorenzo took a pause for a brief second. A hint of confusion glimmered in his eyes. But he quickly concluded, “I’m pretty sure that she felt the sire bond towards Prince Everard. She traveled all the way to Lavinya in search of her sire.”

Romulus was now smiling ear to ear. He spread out his arms and then hugged his informant. “You are indeed brilliant, Lorenzo. I did the right thing by sending you to Lavinya. You have made me proud.”

For Lorenzo, being acknowledged by the alpha was the highest level of achievement that he could ever hope for. His chest was puffing with pride. But he calmly added, “I still have a lot to share, Alpha. About this mythical wolf as well as my progress with him.”

Romulus patted Lorenzo’s shoulder and started to head towards his private meeting room. “Then let’s talk over a fine dinner. You must be tired as well as hungry after the long journey.”

Lorenzo couldn’t be any happier. “Sharing the meal with the alpha himself... Thank you for bestowing this mere servant with such great opportunity.”

“Nonsense!” Romulus glanced back at Lorenzo and praised him again, “Who told you that you are my mere servant? You are the most important wolf of my clan. Our clan is going to thrive further because of this information that you brought me.”

“I am glad that I could be of your service,” Lorenzo finally smiled widely and proudly trotted behind the alpha.

—

It was already time for dinner, but King Alfred was still pacing back and forth in his study. He had a lot of things on his mind.

‘I wonder how Everard is coping with the sudden change. I hope he hasn’t done anything stupid. And I hope he is not drowning himself in self-loathing.’

He kept on thinking about his son and the future of his clan.

After a while, he heard a knock on the door.

“Your Majesty, may I come in?” His beta asked from outside the door.

Alfred stopped pacing and answered, “Jerome, yes, come in.”

Jerome walked inside the room and bowed to the King. “Your Majesty, the dinner is getting cold. I think you should have dinner and rest for the night. You have been getting less and less sleep these days. It isn’t good for your health.”

Alfred nodded his head and walked outside his study with his arms behind his back.

While on his way to the dining room, he asked Jerome, “The full moon will soon be upon us. Have you chosen the lads to be sent to Lavinya?”

Jerome gave a nod and replied, “Yes, Your Majesty. I have my eyes on a few of the best wolves of the clan. Do you want to see them yourself before sending them off?”

Alfred heaved a sigh and shook his head. “I will trust your judgment, Jerome. Just make sure that the lads are strong enough to handle Everard.”

“I will choose three of them for the task tomorrow then.” Jerome looked at the King and asked, “And maybe we can send them to Lavinya a few days prior so that the Crown Prince can get acquainted with them? That way, the Crown Prince can put his trust in them to aid his transforma-”

Jerome stopped speaking when the King suddenly entered a coughing fit.

“Your Majesty, are you alright?” he held the King by his shoulders and asked in a concerned voice.

Alfred stopped coughing after about a minute. He cleared his throat and answered, “I think it’s because the season is changing. It’s starting to get chilly.”

“I will ask the maids to dress you up in warmer clothes from tomorrow,” Jerome replied while offering a kerchief to the King.

The King took the kerchief and looked at Jerome with appreciative eyes. “Thank you, Jerome. You didn’t have to do all this. But I really appreciate the way you take care of me.”

Jerome gave a subtle smile to his alpha and said, “I am simply keeping your company, Alpha.”

He looked around the hallways and sighed.

And he said in a rather glum voice, “I feel like this large castle and empty halls haunt people. I know you can feel lonely even when you have the whole clan who calls you family.”

Alfred gave a subtle smile to his beta. He patted Jerome on the shoulder and asked, “Jerome, when the time comes, show your devotion to my son as well. He has a lot to learn. And I cannot think of a better person to teach him everything about the Kingdom as well as the clan.”