Chapter 68

68 When The Wolves Met Again

With every step that Ronan Silverback took, his feet felt heavier and heavier. Almost as if he were dragging two blocks of iron up the deserted stone steps.

The north side of the Alpha Camp was not known by too many people. Beyond the thick, untouched section of the forest, lay an unparalleled, incredibly beautiful scenic area.

The first thing that people saw once they got out of the woods was a two-meter-high waterfall that fed water from a huge lake into a smaller stream underneath. The tiny river flowed between the woods and an orchard. It was packed with fat and succulent trout in the summertime.

Lucien and Ronan found the spot by chance when they were looking for places to be alone. They never expected to find such a beautiful nook in the wilderness.

The werewolves who found the spot before them must have put some effort into planting all sorts of fruit trees to create a piece of heaven.

In summer, the orchard bloomed beautifully. The sweet, enticing smell of ripe fruits was appealing to their noses. It caused the two teenagers that were already drunk from love to get drunk even more.

Further up from the orchard was a huge stone platform where they used to sit to laze around while feeding each other a bunch of strawberries, cherries, and raspberries.

The sweetest fruits that Ronan ever ate were the ones that he licked off Lucien’s fingers.

The greatest joy that Ronan ever had other than bullying Lucien on the bed at night was pampering Lucien, watching the young man glow with happiness from the love they shared.

.....

Sometimes they would catch some trout and roast them over an open fire. None of them knew how to cook so their first attempt was a fail. They still ate it all up anyway. After browsing for some good outdoor recipes, they finally managed to cook more or less decent dinners.

It was supposed to be their safe haven.

And then Lucien just had to ruin it by breaking up with him there.

Ronan never again stepped a foot into the orchard.

Never again fished for trout and roasted them over an open fire.

The once so wonderful place lost its appeal when he lost Lucien. The same thing happened with the hut. It was only then that Ronan realized something.

The only reason why he liked such remote places was the opportunity to be alone with Lucien.

For as long as he remembered, Ronan had always preferred bustling, crowded areas.

Lucien on the contrary enjoyed the serenity that only solitude could offer.

The orchard and the hut were something like a compromise. Ronan made do with only Lucien as his company, and Lucien tolerated Ronan’s noisiness for love.

After climbing the steps for some time, Ronan arrived at the place that used to be their place for secret rendezvous. The orchard was still there despite lacking some housekeeping efforts. The river was still the same.

He could see the huge stone platform some distance away.

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After walking a few steps toward the said platform, he stopped in his track. Something, or someone, was resting on top of it.

It was a lone wolf with a glorious brown-red coat.

Ronan sucked in a deep breath and held it in as he continued to move as quietly as possible toward the stone platform.

Although he was very skinny, he was bigger than any other wild wolf. He was most definitely a werewolf. And not just any werewolf.

This distinct fur pattern...

The burning longing in Ronan’s heart that screamed a name into his mind incessantly...

Ronan’s heart pounded hard against his chest. It was Beowulf who first recognized his fated mate.

‘Landon...?’

The brown-red wolf on top of the platform opened its eyes when he heard the unusual sound of rustling leaves. He jumped to his feet in one swift movement and shot Ronan a fierce look. Two rows of sharp teeth were brandished at the Alpha, a warning for Ronan to stay as far away as possible.

But Ronan could not stop himself from drawing near.

“Landon...?” He called while extending his hand toward the wolf. “Landon, it’s me...”

It’s me, Ronan.

Landon, do you still remember?

It was unclear whether Landon remembered or not. He always had a hot-headed temperament, very much the opposite of Lucien. Since he already warned Ronan not to get close and the latter chose to disobey his direction, Ronan ought to reap the consequences.

The giant wolf pounced at Ronan with a thundering roar and two sets of sharp claws. Ronan gritted his teeth. He dodged the two sets of claws just in time before they tore him into shreds.

Ronan took off his long coat to catch Landon once he turned for another attack, but the second attack never came.

Landon ran away and disappeared into the woods.

“Ck...!”

Ronan clicked his tongue. He threw his coat to the ground and ripped his clothes open as he ran in pursuit of Landon.

Within an instant, a giant black wolf took his place and ran with a speed that was not inferior to the Landon’s.

Just as Lucien was tied to Ronan by fate, so was Landon tied to Beowulf. The brown-red wolf faltered in his movement for some time when he sensed his fated mate approaching. His desire urged him to turn around and run into Beowulf’s arms, but his instinct told him to run away.

Run away, run as far as possible.

A sad whine escaped Landon as he continued running blindly across the forest. Anywhere was fine as long as he could escape Beowulf.

He must not get caught.

Landon already ran as fast as possible, but he had been out for days with barely any food. He was starving and weak. Beowulf easily caught up with him within minutes.

The giant black wolf jumped at Landon’s back as soon as the latter was close enough. Beowulf tackled Landon to the ground hard and pinned him onto the grass.

Landon struggled to break free, but he could not escape Beowulf’s persistent grip. Beowulf indulged Landon’s useless endeavors for as long as possible. Until the latter gave up and whined pitifully while laying his head on the ground, exhausted and defeated.

Beowulf nuzzled against Landon’s cheek intimately. He licked at the wolf that was trapped under him many times until Landon nuzzled back at him.