Chapter 3. Alpha Albert

Ryn was trapped. Her eyeballs scrolled wildly around, and there was no chance of escape. The girl had just realized that she had entered Golden Moon Pack territory. Everyone in Freemega said that the land was off-limits to them. Even Lance never tired of warning her to stay away from the river that was the boundary of the pack's territory.

"Damn it!" cursed Ryn.

The burly men with strange tattoos on their arms locked eyes with Ryn while grinning. The only man who looked calm was the one standing directly in front of her. Ryn was sure that man was the Alpha. His gaze was so cold and sharp. Ryn could even feel the powerful aura from every breath he exhaled.

"Who are you?" asked Albert—the Alpha—as he eroded the girl's distance.

Every step Albert took forced Ryn to step back to maintain a safe distance. The man's aura was so strong and intimidating that Ryn almost lost control of her body. Ryn kept stepping back until her back bumped into another man behind her.

"Hah!" The girl squealed and instantly turned her head with widened eyes.

Ryn moved to dodge but instead bumped into Albert, who was nearby. The Alpha grabbed one of Ryn's hands with their distance so close. He sniffed the girl's scent and felt something strange. Something that was hard to describe and made his heart rate increase.

"What is this?" Albert wondered inwardly. He was sure this wasn't his mate's scent, but it felt very strong and binding.

The feeling caught the Alpha off guard, giving Ryn a chance to find an opening and escape. The girl remembered the pouch of wolfsbane powder she always carried to protect herself. With her free hand, Ryn picked up the powder and sprinkled it on Albert's face.

"Aaargh!" The Alpha growled with a burned face.

"Albert!" his flock cried out in alarm.

The handcuffs came off. Ryn wriggled away, but that didn't mean she was instantly free. Their eyes turned golden with sharp fangs and nails. They snarled and prepared to pounce on Ryn.

"Oh, hell!" The girl stepped back. She looked back and saw a free area. There was no other way but to run as fast as possible out of their territory. The girl then scattered all the wolfsbane powder in the bag toward Albert's flock.

What Ryn did, made them even angrier. But it also gave her a chance to escape.

Albert's wolves were already taking off in pursuit. However, the Alpha's call held them back. Some of the wolves seemed to growl, suppressing desire under orders.

The recovered Alpha walked over to his pack. The man stood looking in the direction the girl had gone with a look that was hard to interpret.

"Let her go!" the Alpha said.

Even though they were infuriated by the girl, no one dared to argue. Then one of them came closer to Albert.

"Why did you let the girl go?" asked Jayden, the Beta.

Albert took a deep breath until his chin lifted. He then turned to his Beta.

"She's just an ordinary human," Albert replied calmly. After giving that answer, Albert immediately turned around and walked away from his wolves.

Jayden's brow furrowed faintly. The man looked at Albert's back with great curiosity. He had never seen Albert be that soft on someone who had dared to attack him. It felt a little strange, but Jayden quickly dismissed the feeling. He also assumed that Albert was just in a good mood to let the girl go.

Meanwhile, Ryn spurred her legs to continue swinging fast. The girl no longer looked back. She continued to run through the wolfsbane into the area where Freemega lived. After successfully crossing the Wolfsbane Gate, Ryn slowed her pace. Her chest felt tight. The air she breathed in felt like fire burning her lungs. She stopped running and bent down. Two hands rested on her knees. The girl caught her breath while grimacing at the heat in her respiratory tract.

"I can't take it anymore," she said with a gasp.

The distance to Freemega was still quite far. Ryn dragged her feet to a giant oak tree and sat down to lean against it. She needed time to rest and catch her breath before heading back to Freemega.

"I think I'm going to die," the girl said desperately.

Her throat was very dry, and she needed water immediately. Right now, she was just hoping for a miracle, as there were no springs around.

"Ryn!" called Lance from a distance.

The girl turned her head and immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness, I'm here!" Ryn said it in a barely above-average voice.

Lance ran over to the girl. The man looked worried. He crouched down beside Ryn and asked, "What happened to you?"

"Water," Ryn said while clutching Lance's clothes.

"Water?" Lance furrowed his brow.

"I need water. Please, give me water," the girl pleaded.

Ryn looked very thirsty and exhausted. Lance didn't know what had happened, but he wasn't going to let the girl die of dehydration.

"Wait here!" he ordered.

The man got up and quickly ran towards the spring. However, he did not bring a container to carry the water to Ryn. Lance wandered around and found a caladium-like plant growing wild not far from him. He took two leaves from the plant and shaped them so that they could be used to hold water. Then he took the water and quickly brought it to Ryn.

"Here. Drink it!" said Lance.

Ryn gulped down the water impatiently. It wasn't enough to quench her thirst, but it was enough to wet her throat.

"This is the freshest water I've ever drunk," the girl said.

After Ryn calmed down enough, Lance then asked, "Where have you been? You know, I was so worried about you. I looked everywhere for you."

Ryn's breathing gradually normalized. The girl looked at Lance and then said, "Sorry, I was just running without direction, and suddenly I've arrived at the other side of the river."

"River?! You went to the other side of the river?" Lance scolded.

"I didn't mean to go there," Ryn said. The girl then turned toward Lance and said, "They're there."

"They are?" Lance gave her a curious and worried look.

"Albert and his wolves," Ryn replied.

"Oh, no. This is bad. It's very bad. Walter is definitely going to be very angry," Lance said, shaking his head lightly. He then took Ryn by the shoulders and looked at her intently. "Tell me, did they see you?"

Ryn looked at the man's two eyes in turn. Should she answer that she not only saw them but was facing them? That she felt a strange pounding in her heart when she touched and locked eyes with Albert?