05

KADE'S POV

My chest rose and fell slowly. “She’s my mate,” I said again. My eyes were still locked on the direction she’d fled.

I stood still for a long moment, staring into the shadows where the girl had disappeared. The red string had vanished as quickly as it appeared, but the memory of that connection burned into my skin like a brand. My wolf was howling inside, restless, clawing at the walls of my chest. I tried to run after her but my beta, Dax, stopped me.

“Alpha,” Dax stepped closer, “she’s terrified. You shouldn’t chase her and besides, we came here for business.”

My jaw clenched. My instincts screamed to follow, to protect, to claim. But Dax was right.

“You are right. I will find out who she is later,” I finally said, my voice like steel.

Dax nodded. "Yes, we will. I can help you do that."

I looked at the door one last time and was about to step forward when I heard footsteps. Vanessa, Tanya, and Ria were giggling as they walked out of the room but froze as they saw me.

The man before them was me — Alpha Kade of the Veilmoor Pack. My pack was rumored to be brutal and dangerous, and anyone who dared to mess with us never lived to tell the tale.

"Where's your Alpha?" I thundered, and the whole place shook.

Vanessa was frightened, she couldn't even speak. She just looked at me with fear in her eyes.

"I don't like repeating myself," I said.

Before anyone could talk, Caleb came out. "What's all this noise all ab—" He stopped dead in his tracks.

"You… Alpha Kade... What are you doing here?" he said, trying to brush off the fear in his voice.

"He came here to take over the Crescent Fang. You don't deserve to lead this pack because of your cowardice behavior," Dax said, voice dripping with disgust.

"You can't... you can't do that while I'm still here. I am the future Alpha of this pack and you can't just come up here and tell me that you want to take over," Caleb said.

Everyone gasped. No one had ever spoken to me this way.

"He is certainly gonna die," someone whispered in the crowd.

"I guess so," another person answered as they continued watching the drama that was about to unfold before their eyes.

I chuckled darkly. "Seems you have too much ego and I will help you bring it down to dust. I suggest a duel — anyone who wins gets to be the Alpha of the pack."

Caleb looked around, his fear visible and his knees trembling. "Ohh, what have I done?" he thought to himself.

"Ohhh, are you scared?" I asked, tilting my head.

"Fine, I agree to the duel," Caleb said.

"Great. Let the battle begin," Dax said while smirking.

---

TRAINING GROUNDS

"Let the duel begin." Dax's voice lingered in the air like a sharp sword.

The crowd fell into tense silence as the challenge echoed through the clearing.

Caleb’s heart must have been hammering against his ribcage. I could see it. The eyes of the entire pack were on him. Some were pitying him while others were eager to see their future Alpha in action. His throat looked dry, his palms sweaty and shaky, but he squared his shoulders, clearly wanting to prove himself, wanting to keep his pride as the future Alpha he claimed to be.

I began circling slowly, like a predator toying with prey. My smile was laced with cruelty.

"You're shaking, pup," I sneered. "Want to go cry to your mommy before I break your spine?"

Caleb’s jaw tightened.

“No,” he said, his voice trembling at first but growing steadier, “I’ll fight.”

Without another word, I shifted. My bones cracked, fur rippling across muscle. My transformation was swift and brutal. I stood as a towering wolf, my fur dark like midnight storm clouds, fangs sharp, crimson eyes glowing like cursed fire, and claws ready to pounce.

Gasps filled the air as everyone watched.

Caleb hesitated.

Then, through sheer will, he shifted too.

It was slower, more painful, less graceful. His bones bent, stretched, and realigned. Fur burst through skin, and when he finally stood on four paws, his black coat shimmered under the moonlight, his gold eyes glowing with uncertainty.

We stood across from each other. A massive, veteran wolf versus a trembling but determined challenger.

“Fight!” Dax shouted.

And so the battle began.

I lunged like a cannonball, slamming into Caleb with bone-crushing force. He was tossed back like a ragdoll, rolling hard into the dirt, choking on dust and blood.

But he got up.

Again, I charged, this time aiming for the neck, but he ducked low, narrowly escaping my killing bite, and snapped at my flank.

His teeth sank in. The action took me by surprise and I snarled in response.

The crowd held their breath and Vanessa watched the fierce battle with a flare of hope that Caleb could win. For a moment, it looked like he might — he landed a few blows.

But I recovered fast, faster than he could anticipate. I clawed across his side, slicing through fur and flesh. Blood splattered onto the dirt. Caleb howled and staggered, falling on the ground.

“Get up, Caleb,” I heard him mumble, probably to his wolf, Ronan. He staggered to his feet, trembling uncontrollably.

I slammed into him again, this time biting into his shoulder and slamming him down.

His vision was blurring.

The strength was leaving his body, his lungs burning. I towered over him, a dark god of war, fangs dripping red.

"It’s over," I growled. He tried to get on his feet again, but I roared and threw him off with a vicious snap. He hit the ground hard, groaning in pain, unable to rise again.

He was bleeding badly.

The crowd watched in stunned silence as both of us shifted back to human form. Caleb was bloodied, bruised, while I didn’t have a single scratch. As expected of the most feared Alpha.

He lay flat on the ground, eyes fluttering but still conscious.

I stood above him victoriously. "I had lots of expectations from you, boy," I muttered, my voice dark with both anger and disgust. "You’re not ready to lead this pack."

Then I turned my back and walked away with Dax. The duel was over. I had won, and Caleb had lost the Alpha title.

The crowd hovered around Caleb. Some people carried him back to the school’s main hall.

Vanessa watched me retreat and smirked. "I think I like him. I'm gonna win him over," she whispered to Tanya and Ria.

"What of Caleb?" Ria asked.

Vanessa shot her a death glare. "That poor thing... Ewww, he is so not my type," she retorted.

"Yeah, I bet you can win Alpha Kade over. He looked like he was into you tho," Tanya said, smiling.

"Of course. Who wouldn't?" Vanessa said and chuckled as they all returned to the school's hall.