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By now, he had gone through that letter more than 50 times. Still, he was unable to accept what was clearly written in the letter.

And he was closing his eyes and mumbling to himself, “She is happy with her husband? How can she be happy with that damned monster? Ruby said that Anna witnessed that monster torturing her. She even spoke up for Ruby! There is no way in hell she can still look at that monster’s face without feeling disgusted or scared for her life.”

He clutched the letter tightly and sighed. “Yes, that’s what must have happened... It’s definitely that monster husband of hers who dictated her what to write in this letter. Or, she just wrote all the lies so that Alex wouldn’t be too worried about her.”

“Ugh!” He threw that letter on the table in frustration.

Lorenzo had made Everard aware of how he wasn’t supposed to talk about the werewolves and the vampires with the humans. And the frustration was eating him up from the inside because he couldn’t make his friend understand how Anastasia could be in real danger without telling him the exact reasons why.

“And why the hell would Alex believe that rude bastard’s words over mine? That red-eyed bastard filled Alex’s ears with all the good lies. Why can’t Alex sense that? Ugh! But how would he? He doesn’t even know a drop regarding his damned brother-in-law. And that blond bastard made him believe that he is a saint. And Anna’s sugarcoated letter confirmed his lies.”

Everard got up from the sofa and went to stand by the window. He looked outside at the night sky. The moon was closer to being whole again.

And he thought with determination in his eyes, ‘I should pack my things and head towards Sorvando before my father sends his minions here. I’ll camp near the border before the full moon. And when the night comes, I will scale the walls and go to fetch Anna myself. No one is going to save her from the clutches of that monster if it’s not me.’

.....

‘Lorenzo said that most of us can retain our consciousness from the second transformation onwards. I really hope that it will also be true in my case. I don’t want to accidentally hurt Anna instead of saving her.’

While he was drowning himself in the thoughts, he heard a soft knock on the door. He knew who it was right away.

He glanced at the closed door and said, “Yes, Ruby. The door is not locked.”

Ruby gently pushed the door open and then peeked inside. She gave a wide smile to Everard when her eyes met with his. And she asked in a soft voice, “I umm... I was wondering if you needed anything.”

Everard raised his brows and asked her politely, “Ruby, how many times do I have to tell you? You’re not my maid. They can take care of my needs. And don’t walk alone at night. The night streets are not friendly to the ladies.”

Ruby gave a subtle smile and said, “But still... You are providing me a place to live and you are putting food on my table. So, the least I could do is help you in one way or another.”

Everard sighed. He had said the same thing countless times. And he said it again, “You don’t have to feel obliged towards me, Ruby. I already feel guilty for putting you in this situation. I don’t want to feel guiltier by making you work for me.”

Ruby smiled and gave a respectful bow to the Crown Prince. “I will go back to my room then. Have a good night, Your Highness.”

Everard gave a nod to Ruby. But as she was about to close the door, he asked, “On second thought, why don’t you come inside and sit with me for a while? I have a few things to tell you.”

Ruby walked briskly and happily into the room.

“Please, take a seat,” Everard pointed at the sofa and he also sat down in front of her. He could see how happy she was to be in his company. And he felt bad because the thing that he was about to say to her wasn’t happy at all, it was depressing.

“Ruby... Er...” Everard rubbed his palms together and then awkwardly asked, “You know that the full moon is approaching, right?”

“Umm... Yes, of course,” Ruby said with a nod. She could take a guess what this talk was going to be about. “Are we going to talk about how werewolves and full moon are related?” she asked curiously.

“That’s right.” Everard nodded and then got to the point, “From the way you can already grow fangs and claws, I believe that you will have your first full transformation this full moon. I believe that you already have some idea about what will happen to you.”

As expected, Ruby’s smile withered away from her face. “I do have some idea. I think that I will be breaking all of my bones. And my body will change into a wolf. And maybe... I will go wild... like you?”

“Yes, it’s possible that you might run wild like me.” Everard heaved a deep sigh as the look on Ruby’s face turned gloomier. “I would have loved to say that it’s going to be easy. But it is not. You will wish that you would rather die than go through such pain each month. But from what I have heard, it will get easier with time.”

“I sure hope so,” Ruby didn’t know what else to say than that.

Everard kept looking at her sad face. He would have liked to offer her some consolation. But he would rather be truthful and prepare her for the upcoming full moon than provide her with a moment of comfort or keep her in the dark.

“Ruby, I would have sent you to Xanmar with a letter addressed to my father. It would have been easier for you during the full moon if you were under the watch of other wolves. But according to Lorenzo, they might treat you like an outcast because you are an anomaly.”

Ruby carefully listened to what Everard was saying.

“So, I need you to be prepared when the full moon comes. I have located a secluded place. I will take you there tomorrow. And I want you to prepare strong chains for yourself so that you can tie yourself up during the full moon. That way, there’s less chance of you running rampant in the town. We don’t want that. I don’t want the townspeople to cause you harm, thinking you are a wild beast.”

Ruby was already sweating just by listening to what Everard was saying.

He was making it sound as though she would be all alone during the full moon. And the thought of being tied up in some secluded place, going through a drastic change and excruciating pain, that also all alone made her feel like puking.

She looked at Everard with terror in her eyes and asked, “But you will be there with me during the full moon, won’t you, Your Highness? You will also transform alongside me, right?”

Everard felt a pang in his heart when Ruby asked him that question. She sounded terrified to her core.

He looked away from her and replied, “I think I will be somewhere else during the full moon. That’s why I am telling you all of these in advance. I don’t want you to be clueless and I certainly don’t want you to... to be gone when I return.”

Ruby was now horrified when Everard confirmed that she would indeed be alone during the most difficult phase of her life.

She didn’t say it, she thought she had no right to say it, but deep down in her heart, she wished that Everard would stay by her side. She didn’t want to be left alone.

And even though she didn’t utter a word, Everard could see in her eyes what she wanted to say. Or rather, he could feel the pain that she was feeling at the moment.

He had been planning to go to Sorvando during the full moon and rescue Anastasia for a while now. But now, upon seeing Ruby getting terrified and hearing her heart beating like never before, his heart started to falter.

‘Should I stay back?’ he wondered.

But he instantly shook away that thought. ‘No. What am I even thinking? I have been waiting for the full moon for so long. I cannot go back on my word now. Especially not when I know that Anastasia’s husband is a ruthless and sick monster.’