Chapter 132: _ Duty To The Pack
Halric, whose face is red, turns his fury elsewhere after Amias’s little intervention. His gaze hooks on Lady Mirenia.
The fairy sheepishly adjusts her cufflinks, wings that are visible this time, twitching like a guilty child. The headmaster doesn’t speak but the look he gives her is a spear. As though he’s telling her: I know this is you, you snake. It’s your mess, so fix it.
Mirenia clears her throat, coughs sheepishly, and spreads her arms wide as if this is all some pageant. "Ahem. Survivors, welcome back. Your triumph in the labyrinth is proof of exceptional strength, teamwork, and leadership."
Heidi nearly chokes.
Teamwork? Leadership? Oh yes, what fabulous teamwork we had, watching each other die in pools of blood. What dazzling leadership—led straight into the demons’ jaws. Bravo; she fumes internally.
Remember how her number one goal was to climb to the top of the hierarchy in the school? Now, that’s upgraded. She doesn’t just want to conquer her foes in the school—she wants to become the Luna of the pack. She’ll make sure every single damn corrupted leader pays in blood.
Yes. This is what it is; an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
The moon be her witness~she swears.
Mirenia beams on in a sugary voice. "Now, have all returned so that I may close the portal?"
Oh, they haven’t all returned. There’s a poor girl alone and scared in that bloody labyrinth. Someone who is trapped and has no way of returning unless the school lifts their restriction on the portal to let her out – which is a risk they definitely wouldn’t take for a mere Moon Blessed, Heidi can’t help but continuously seethe inwardly.
Silence follows the fairy’s question until Valentina’s voice cuts through. "No."
Every head swivels toward her.
Val turns to Heidi, eyes wide, glassy, and wild. "Where’s Junie?"
The name is a knife to Heidi’s chest. Tears well instantly, blurring her vision. She can’t form the words. But Val doesn’t need them. She sees it in Heidi’s silence. She sees it in the tears. Her face falls, and then fury takes its place inside of her.
"No!" Val shrieks. She jumps forward, seizing Heidi’s collar with both fists. "No, no, no—don’t you dare! You left her?!"
Heidi’s sob bursts out, ripping her throat raw. How could she say yes to that when that’s the only answer?
Val shakes her violently, screams pouring out of her like fire. "How could you leave Junie? How could you...?"
Heidi only sobs, choking on guilt. Words tangle uselessly in her throat. The courtyard bubbles with gasps, students surging forward, whispers hissing like snakes.
And then it explodes.
"Cut that shit out!" Grayson’s roar crashes through the noise like a thunderclap.
He storms forward, eyes blazing, and throws Val off Heidi like she’s made of straw. The sheer force of his fury makes the ground quake.
"If you touch her again, I swear, I’ll tear you apart."
The courtyard freezes. All eyes snap to him. The Bellamy prince who shouldn’t even know Heidi’s name, let alone roar on her behalf.
Heidi’s lungs also stutter. He’s... he’s defending her?
Grayson whirls on Val, snarling. "It wasn’t Heidi’s fault. Junie wouldn’t come. She was a coward! She gave up! Heidi tried—she gave everything to save her... but Junie refused! Heidi did her best! The bitch just wouldn’t step into the portal, no matter how much Heidi begged her."
The words echo harshly and oh boy, were they utterly out of character? You bet.
Whispers ripple through the crowd. Eyes widen, jaws drop. The infamous Grayson Bellamy who is savage and untouchable is standing up for a mere Moon Blessed?
Morgan steps in immediately, noticing the paparazzi his twin is stirring with his usual behavior. "That’s enough, bro."
Grayson stiffens, clears his throat, then smooths his expression into its usual mask. "With that said, I’ll join the rest of my siblings and leave the school to address the Moon Blessed."
He turns and Morgan turns with him. Side by side, they stride to the section where Darien, Amias, Isolde, and Daphne stand.
Darien’s gaze is calculating. Isolde just seems to be staring into the nothingness in front of her like she’s not even present in the scene and is instead, overwhelmed by her own anguish. Daphne leans forward, scrutinizing every angle like she’s reading a dangerous play. She knows something’s up, and Heidi knows what she’s in for after today.
This... and everything that’s happened up till this moment has done nothing but to paint a target on her back. It’s a lot being fated to the pack’s precious Alphas at once, isn’t it?
And oh, Amias... Amias remains stoic.
Meanwhile, Heidi collapses.
She’s on the ground, still sobbing, her shoulders shaking until she can barely breathe. The guilt wracks and chokes her. Val’s cries join hers, the two voices twining into a chorus of grief. Around them, the other survivors—only fourteen besides them, break too. Tears, gasps, trembling bodies.
The courtyard that was so full of applause moments ago, is now full of wailing. Eighty-four gone. Sixteen left. And Heidi’s heart feels like it’s been ripped out of her chest and left bleeding on the stones.
The portal shrinks.
At first, it’s just an oily shimmer in the air that folds in on itself like water slipping down a drain. Then, with a sharp crack, it snaps shut entirely. The echo ricochets through the courtyard like the clang of a prison door, final and merciless.
And just like that, it’s done. No more waiting. No more praying for stragglers. No Junie walking out at the last second with her crooked smile and sarcastic wave. The labyrinth is closed to them forever.
Or until the school deems it worthy of being reopened.
Heidi’s stomach knots. It feels like watching a coffin lid slam down, sealing away the last of her friend.
The fairy responsible—Lady Mirenia, smooths her hands as though she hasn’t just slammed shut the only way home for a lost kid. She pastes on her diplomatic smile, wings fluttering faintly in the courtyard’s light. "There. Secure again."
Headmaster Halric steps forward. "Moon Blessed," he calls, sweeping his arm out to herd their attention back.
Heidi barely hears him over the ringing in her ears. Her eyes blur with hot tears. Her chest heaves like it might cave in. Beside her, Val is still sobbing, half on her knees, half folded into the dirt. It’s a miserable orchestra.
Halric clears his throat, the sound. "As wolves of this pack, your duty is its protection." He pauses, gaze flicking across the survivors—sixteen out of one hundred. The words wobble, but he recovers quickly. "And you have done just that."