Hunting Season (A Royal Hunt Trilogy)

Living in isolation deep within the forestry under the Crescent Peaks Mountain range, were a pack of werewolves led by a well-respected alpha named Lucian. Since his founding of the settlement, he was stern on keeping distance from the humans living on the southern regions of the continent. No werewolves were allowed to attack humans, unless they were the ones who ventured into their territory first. During his reign as the alpha, the werewolves dutifully lived like normal humans; they farmed, they foraged, they care for livestock, they have houses, and they commune together as neighbors. Their way of living reflecting the knowledge he earned through his travels from his homeland, until he settled in the location with his companions. In time, though, werewolves developed a discriminatory stance against humans and any creatures they regard as lesser to their kind. It was in their nature to be prideful of their strength. It was part of their culture that they would loo

The library is by far the most unpopular place in all of Crescent Peaks – most werewolves in town regard books as waste of good trees. As a result, the library became a clean, silent place to spend time in and learn interesting things at the same time. Just as always, Archibald Novak sat at the solitary long table placed exactly in the middle of the building. It was surrounded by bookshelves on both ends – the books in the shelves were sparse for Archibald’s taste, but he had no choice. He was reading a book about warfare as part of his self-studies as one of the zetas in the pack. He was expected to be knowledgeable, especially about military strategies. He was not complaining, but more references would have been nice. In between paragraphs, he would look up and take a glance at the librarian’s assistant. Without hindsight, she looked exactly what you would expect someone living in a town to look like; she looked ordinary. If you did not know her to be a human, you

The night was covering the forest in almost pitch darkness. The woman proudly walked with only a small lamp as a source of light. Perseus has no problem seeing clearly in the dark; his eyes pierces through the darkness like it’s not even there. The zeta followed her closely, like a loyal house pet. Perseus marched behind them, observing her. She was wearing a bonnet covering her long bright red hair. She was wearing winter clothes; her dress covered her entire torso and feet, too modest for his taste. “Hey, zeta,” Perseus called out. “You smell that?” The zeta looked back at him and just nodded without saying a word. The smell of rotten flesh was wafting from the forest, surrounding the beaten path they were walking on. Perseus felt giddy with excitement at the introduction of new challengers. Ghouls are stalking us. Five, maybe more, he informed the zeta. The girl is yours; the ghouls are mine. For the second time that night, Perseu

Selene never felt as full as she did after eating the breakfast Ida prepared. Her exhaustion from last night’s events made her ravenous to the point where he devoured every meal the old woman brought them without even thinking about it. If her mother was there, she would be ecstatic to see her daughter eating as much as she did. She thanked Ida before and after the meal, and every time she did, the widow always brushes her off and would just sweetly smile at them. She wondered if she could take her in as an assistant, then she could stay in the town. A woman burst through the door and rushed to the stairway. “Where are you going, Elise?” Ida greeted her. The woman turned around but her eyes seemed glassy and inattentive. “Up,” she replied and continued on her way. “Who is that?” Selene inquired. “She is the baker’s daughter,” Ida replied. “Wait a minute while I check where she’s going.” She stood from her seat and walked up the stairs.

In the end, the group decided to go south to another human town, Ulminster. Archibald did not approve of Perseus bringing Elise with them, but it’s not as if he can do anything to make him do otherwise. So, the four of them – Selene, Perseus, Elise, and him – ran out of Mournstead as the town went into chaos.It seemed like one of the townspeople found out about the dead guards and the mayor’s dead family. They immediately gathered outside their homes with torches and whatever weapons they came across. “Werewolves! Werewolves!” the increasing number of crowds screamed into the night. Archibald knew by then that they would inevitably come to the inn to inform Ida and realize they had Elise in captivity.They moved quietly under the protective cover of the trees in the forested part of the path. Perseus had Elise gagged and tied on his shoulders. Archibald saw disgust in Selene’s eyes as she rolled them whenever she glanced at hi