Chapter 88: The old Caius

When Hazel woke up again, she found herself alone in the bed, and for a moment, she wondered where Caius had gone. She slowly sat up, expecting her body to feel as weak and sore as it had earlier, but to her surprise, she felt much better than before. Her legs no longer felt as heavy, and even the tiredness that had made her want to sleep all day seemed to have disappeared. She looked around the room, hoping Caius hadn’t returned yet, because the thought of facing him after everything that had happened made her want to dig a hole and hide inside it.

She quickly reached for her robe and put it on, already planning to run back to her own chamber before anyone could see her. However, just as she was about to leave, she noticed a beautiful set of clothes folded neatly on the table beside the bed. The material looked expensive, and the design was so lovely that she couldn’t help touching it. Since she couldn’t return to her room wearing the same clothes from the previous night, she picked them up and walked into the bathroom.

The bathroom was so luxurious that Hazel almost forgot why she had entered it in the first place. Everything inside looked expensive, from the large bathtub to the shiny mirrors and the beautiful decorations around the room. Even the towels smelled fresh, but beneath all those lovely scents, she could still smell Caius everywhere. It was as if the entire room belonged to him, which made sense because it was his bathroom, but that didn’t stop her cheeks from turning red.

After washing herself, Hazel put on the new clothes and stood in front of the mirror to comb her hair. She was feeling much better, but the marks scattered across her body reminded her of what had happened the previous night, making her wish she could stop remembering every embarrassing detail. She had never imagined that she would become so close to Caius, and now she didn’t even know how she was supposed to look at him without blushing.

While arranging her hair, she noticed something shining on her neck. Hazel frowned and moved her hair aside so she could examine it properly, only to discover that Caius’s mark was still there, looking beautiful against her skin. However, something else caught her attention. The small wounds on her neck had healed completely, including the place where Caius had taken her blood.

"Damn!"

Hazel stared at herself in the mirror, finally understanding what must have happened. Caius had probably called Akeelah to heal her while she was sleeping, which meant he had been concerned enough about her condition to make sure she recovered properly.

She touched the mark gently, but the moment her fingers brushed against it, a strange feeling passed through her body. The place had become more sensitive than before, and she quickly pulled her hand away, staring at her reflection with a confused expression.

It looked like a beautiful signature left on her body by Caius himself, something that connected her to him whether she liked it or not. She couldn’t help letting out another sigh as she wondered what she was supposed to do with her feelings for this man.

Then she remembered the secret door and the things inside the hidden chamber. Caius had wanted her to do something....

Hazel’s smile slowly disappeared. What if he’s only being nice to me because of those things?

The thought made her chest tighten. Perhaps Caius wasn’t treating her differently because he had started to care about her. Maybe he simply needed her to help him uncover a secret, and once he got what he wanted, he would return to being the cold Werewolf King she had always known.

She lowered her hand from her neck and stared at the mirror for a few more seconds before shaking her head.

"Let’s not think about it now," she whispered, although the question remained in her mind as she finally left the bathroom.

...

Inside the throne hall, Caius stood in front of the two demons with one eyebrow raised while Ethan explained what had happened the previous day. The demons had finally recovered from the injuries Alexander had caused by dislocating their joints, and they had been brought before Caius as soon as they could walk properly.

Ethan and Alexander had been busy dealing with the Alphas earlier, which was why they hadn’t informed Caius about the incident immediately. Now that the Werewolf King was available, they decided it was time to tell him exactly what had happened inside the palace.

Caius listened without saying much, but his expression changed when his eyes settled on the black-haired demon.

"How old are you?" he asked suddenly.

The demon looked away and released a tired sigh, clearly wondering why Caius was asking such a strange question. "One hundred and fifty years."

"Hmm." Caius nodded thoughtfully. "You weren’t born before I entered my long sleep, yet you’ve been corrupted for a long time. Which pack did you come from?"

The entire hall fell silent.

Ethan glanced at Alexander, who looked just as surprised as everyone else. Even the demon standing before Caius seemed shocked by the question. How had the Werewolf King discovered what he was so quickly?

They had assumed the demons were ordinary enemies who had come to challenge their lord, but now Caius was speaking as if he knew something about their past that they had tried to hide.

The demons had probably expected Caius to remain weak after hearing that he had vomited blood on the battlefield. They wanted to find out who could stop their lord and whether the Werewolf King was still powerful enough to protect his people. Yet the man standing before them looked completely healthy, and the dangerous aura surrounding him was enough to make even experienced warriors nervous.

The black-haired demon swallowed when he realized that Caius wasn’t going to let the question go. Knowing he had already made a serious mistake, he finally answered, "Blackwood Pack."

Caius scoffed. "Is that why you appeared in my mate’s room in the Dragon Kingdom?"

The demon froze, his eyes widening as he took an unsteady step backward.

How did Caius know about that?

He hadn’t told anyone what he had been doing that night, and there was no reason for the Werewolf King to know about his secret mission. Yet Caius was looking at him as if the demon’s thoughts were written across his forehead.

Caius waved one hand in front of his face. "You smell bad." Why won’t he recognise the smell?

Alexander nearly laughed at the blunt insult, but the smile disappeared from his face when Caius moved closer to the demons. The Werewolf King’s lips curved into a cold smirk, and the nails on his right hand began to grow into sharp claws.

"Tell me," Caius said, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. "What were you planning to do to my mate that night?"

Janet, who was standing near Rita, immediately looked at the witch with concern. "Didn’t you say you needed demons?" she whispered. "Where are you going to find another demons?"

Rita’s expression tightened, but before she could answer, the black-haired demon began to panic.

"I... I..."

He struggled to find the right words. How could he tell Caius that he had been following his master’s orders to corrupt Hazel? The Werewolf King would tear him apart before he could finish the sentence.

Finally, he forced himself to speak. "Actually, I was following my master’s orders, and you know you can’t kill us."

For a moment, Caius simply stared at him. Then he chuckled. "Master?"

Before anyone could react, Caius swung his hand across the demons’ necks with terrifying speed. The movement was so fast that most of the people in the hall barely saw it happen.

A second later, two heads rolled across the floor. The demons had been beheaded at the same time.