Chapter 103: Hazel anger

For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then relief washed over their faces as they hurried toward her.

"Hazel!" Akeelah exclaimed. "Where did you come from? We thought they had taken you somewhere else!"

Janet looked around the building, then back at Hazel. "Wait, where exactly did you come out from? We’ve been searching everywhere, and we couldn’t find you."

Hazel walked past them without answering, her face dark with anger. She was in no mood to explain anything while they were still standing inside a place where their enemies could be hiding.

"You wouldn’t know where I was," she said coldly. "We’re dealing with witches, after all."

Janet let out a long sigh of relief and followed her, while Akeelah quickly caught up with them. The sun was already beginning to set, and the streets of Basileia were growing darker. Janet had been worried about what Caius would do when he discovered that they had allowed Hazel to be kidnapped, but seeing Hazel alive and well was enough to make her feel a little better.

However, Hazel’s next words made her stop worrying about Caius and start worrying about something else.

"What? You mean dark witches?" Janet asked, staring at Hazel in disbelief. "Damn! I’m sure you came out through a wall or something. How else could you have escaped without us seeing you? No more going out alone, Hazel. Do you hear me?"

Hazel glanced at her with an expression that made Janet wonder whether she was joking.

"It’s an illusion," Hazel replied. "You can’t always tell what is real when you’re dealing with witches."

She paused before adding, "And I don’t want to be a good person anymore. Good girls suffer the most."

.Janet and Akeelah exchanged confused looks. They had expected Hazel to be frightened after what happened, but instead, she seemed angrier than ever. There was something different about her, something they couldn’t explain, and neither woman dared to ask more questions while they were on their way back to the palace.

...

The Throne Hall

Caius sat on his throne with a cold expression, but the tension in his body showed that he was far from calm. Everyone had gathered in the throne hall, and the longer Hazel, Janet, and Akeelah remained missing, the more dangerous the atmosphere became.

Doris stood beside her mother, trying hard to hide her nervousness as she kept glancing toward the entrance. She had expected Janet and Akeelah to return first and explain what had happened before Hazel arrived. By then, Caius would have punished the two women for failing to protect his mate, leaving Hazel to return to a palace where she would have no one she could trust.

At least, that had been her plan.

Hazel was supposed to return changed, with something important stolen from her. Janet and Akeelah would blame themselves for what happened, and they wouldn’t dare get close to Hazel again after Caius punished them. Everything would have gone perfectly if the people she had arranged to do the job hadn’t failed her.

Doris swallowed nervously as she looked toward the entrance again.

Why were they taking so long?

Ethan, who had been reviewing the situation in his head, sighed and creased his forehead. There was something strange about the kidnapping. No one in the entire werewolf world would dare attack their leaders without a good reason, especially when their identities were easy to confirm through the badges they carried. Their faces and names were recorded in werewolf history books, and anyone who had lived among wolves for long enough should know better than to attack them carelessly.

Whoever had taken Hazel and the others had either been extremely foolish or had planned everything carefully.

Caius’s patience finally ran out. He was about to call the guards and order them to search every corner of Basileia when the doors of the throne hall suddenly opened.

Hazel walked in first, her face filled with anger, while Janet and Akeelah followed closely behind her.

Everyone turned toward them, and relief spread through the hall. However, before anyone could ask what had happened, Hazel suddenly changed direction and walked straight toward Doris.

Doris barely had time to react before Hazel grabbed her and pulled her away from Lady Mira.

SMACK!

The sound of the slap echoed through the throne hall.

Doris’s head snapped to the side, and she stared at Hazel in shock. She had never expected Hazel to attack her in front of everyone, especially not when Caius was sitting right there.

"How dare you!" Doris screamed, raising her hand to fight back.

But Hazel was faster. She caught Doris before the woman could strike her and threw her away with terrifying force. Doris’s body flew through the air, rising so high that she almost reached the upper windows before crashing toward the floor.

A heavy thud shook the hall.

Lady Mira immediately stepped forward, but she stopped when she saw the expression on Hazel’s face. She had never seen the girl look so furious, and the strength she had just displayed was enough to shock everyone present.

Doris slowly pushed herself up from the floor. Her face twisted with rage as her eyes turned golden, and sharp teeth appeared in her mouth.

She was ready to attack.

Hazel’s eyes changed as well, and before anyone could stop her, she lost control and shifted into her wolf form. Her powerful wolf charged toward Doris, its claws tearing across the floor as it rushed forward.

"Stop!" Lady Mira shouted, but Hazel didn’t listen.

Seeing what was about to happen, the High Priest turned toward Caius in panic.

"His Majesty, please, do something!"

Caius remained seated for a brief moment, his silver eyes fixed on Hazel’s wolf. He had seen her angry before, but this was different. The strength she had shown, the rage in her eyes, and the way she had attacked Doris without hesitation made one thing clear.

Something had happened to his mate while she was missing. And he was about to find out exactly what it was.