Ethan's life had bought us precious time to retreat.
Drake and Ulf supported the unconscious Kaelen as our battered group fled the Wailing Canyon. We finally regrouped with Ethan's remaining men and our horses at the rockfall slope and found a hidden cave deep in the forest.
The party was safe, for now.
Kaelen was laid on the ground, on the brink of death from his grievous wounds and the poison, his face ashen.
"This is all your fault!" Rosalind suddenly rushed at me, her beautiful face streaked with tears and hatred. "If it wasn't to save you, you useless thing, Kaelen wouldn't have been so badly injured! And Ethan… Ethan wouldn't have died! You southern jinx!"
"Silence!" Drake's voice was cold and stern, showing disrespect to Rosalind for the first time. "Lady Rosalind! If it wasn't for Lady Luna killing that monster with the silver dagger, we would all be dead in that canyon right now!"
Rosalind was taken aback. She was about to say more but was cowed by Ulf's warning glare. She could only retreat to the side, cradling her injured arm and sobbing quietly.
I ignored her accusations.
I knelt on the ground, holding the dying Kaelen in my arms.
"Kaelen… Kaelen!" I called his name.
He slowly opened his eyes. In his lightless eyes, the black poison and his curse were mixed, frantically shifting between a deep black and a fiery crimson.
"You…" he looked at me, his voice hoarse, each word seeming to be squeezed from his throat. "Go… now… I… I'm losing control…"
"I'm not leaving!"
I looked at him and tentatively placed my hand on the gruesome wound on his back.
I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and focused all my mental energy on my palm.
For the first time, under the watchful eyes of everyone, a silver light bloomed from my hand, unrestrained.
The deadly black poison, as if alive, was slowly forced out and purified by the silver light. The wound on Kaelen's back, which had been deep enough to see bone, slowly healed at a visible rate.
The process was a massive drain on me. Sweat soaked my clothes, and I felt my life force being rapidly depleted.
When the last trace of poison was purified and the wound had completely healed, the silver light faded. My vision went black, and I nearly collapsed.
"Aila!" Ulf immediately stepped forward to support me.
Kaelen's breathing finally steadied.
We rested in the cave for two full days.
Once my strength returned, I treated everyone's wounds one by one. Drake, through gritted teeth, thanked me politely. Rosalind, though still arrogant, managed a grudging "thank you." When I healed Ulf's leg again, the seven-foot-tall tough man's eyes welled up.
"My Luna," he knelt on one knee. "I owe you two lives."
On the evening of the third day, Kaelen finally regained full consciousness. At that moment, a commotion sounded from outside the cave. It was the Grey Wolf commander, Gavin, who had personally led a party to find us.
When he saw the bandage on Rosalind's arm and learned of the death of his most capable captain, Ethan, the usually arrogant man's face, for the first time, showed remorse and grief.
He walked straight to Kaelen and solemnly knelt on one knee.
"Lord Alpha," his voice was hoarse. "Ethan… sacrificed himself to cover our retreat. It was my men… who failed to protect you and Lady Rosalind."
Kaelen just shook his head, motioning for him to rise. "Ethan was a true warrior. His honor will be remembered forever."
Gavin stood, then immediately turned to Rosalind, the stern expression of a military commander vanishing, replaced by an undisguised concern.
"Lady Rosalind, how are your injuries? I brought the best medicine from the Grey Wolf tribe! And your favorite snow-berries!"
He took an exquisite leather pouch from one of his men as if presenting a treasure.
Rosalind just nodded haughtily, basking in his attention, but her gaze kept drifting towards Kaelen and me.
"Lady Rosalind," Gavin said, coming to her side and asking gently, "The return party is assembled. Would you… deign to inspect it with me, to ensure everything is in order?"
Rosalind clearly didn't want to leave, but she couldn't refuse him. She shot me a resentful glare and finally went out with Gavin.
I was finally free of Rosalind's murderous glare. Ever since Kaelen had woken up, her eyes had practically shot fire whenever I came near him.
Ulf and Drake, over the distribution of a piece of roasted meat, began their daily "friendly" exchange.
"The biggest piece should go to Lady Luna!" Ulf insisted.
"Nonsense!" Drake retorted. "The Alpha has just recovered and needs to regain his strength!"
"Lady Luna also expended a great deal of energy!"
Seeing the two of them bickering like children, I couldn't help but smile.
"Alright," I interrupted. "Give it to the most seriously wounded guard."
"You two," Kaelen's voice suddenly sounded. Though weak, it still carried the authority of an Alpha. "Out. I have something to say to the Luna alone."
Drake and Ulf immediately fell silent, then, shoving each other, they left.
The cave was suddenly silent, leaving just Kaelen and me.
The atmosphere became a little… awkward.
I moved a little further away from him. I couldn't reconcile the man who had unhesitatingly chosen to save me with the cold Alpha who had embraced Rosalind at the hunt.
"Come here," he commanded.
I didn't move.
"Come here," he said again, a hint of impatience in his voice.
I still didn't move.
"Hiss—" he suddenly let out a pained grunt, clutching his just-healed back, his brow furrowed.
My heart tightened, and all my defenses fell away. I immediately went to his side.
"What's wrong? Did the wound open up again?" I asked nervously, reaching to check his back.
He grabbed my hand.
His palm was still hot, full of strength. His lightless eyes, in the dancing firelight, for the first time, looked at me with an intense focus.
"Thank you," he said suddenly, his voice hoarse, with a sincerity even he might not have noticed. "In the canyon… if it wasn't for you, we might not have made it back."
I was stunned. This was the first time I had ever heard him say the words "thank you."
"Why… why did you save me?" I finally asked the biggest question in my mind. "At that moment, why… didn't you choose to save Rosalind, like you did at the hunt?"
Kaelen's gaze flickered, and he avoided my eyes. "I just… did what an Alpha should do."
He didn't want to explain, or perhaps, he didn't know how.
"Also…" he looked at me, a hint of awe in his voice. "Your 'Moonlight Healing'… it's very powerful."
Then, he suddenly smiled. The smile looked exceptionally weak on his pale face, but it held a trace of tenderness.
"It seems Liam… taught you well."
"You… how did you know it was Liam who taught me?" I was stunned.
"I…" he seemed to want to say something, but in the end, he just shook his head and didn't answer.
He didn't answer but asked a question of his own, his voice hoarse. "What you said at the bonfire…"
"What did I say?"
"About the 'concubines'," his gaze sharpened. "Do you… really care?"
"What is there for me to care about?" I immediately retorted, trying to pull my hand away. "The Lord Alpha has three thousand beauties in his harem. I am just one 'offering' waiting to be bled dry, am I not?"
"I have never touched them," he said suddenly, his tone exceptionally firm.
"Ha," I laughed as if I'd heard a joke. "Then why did they 'disappear'?"
"I don't know," he said, looking at me, his gaze steady. "But I promise you, it has nothing to do with me. I've always suspected that Morgana and Barton are up to something with the 'concubines'."
I didn't believe him. Every word he said sounded like an excuse for his own cruelty.
"Then show me some proof!"
He looked at me, his lips moved, but in the end, he just let out a frustrated sigh and released my hand.
"One day, I will make you believe me," he said in a low voice, full of helplessness.
Just as the stalemate between us was reaching its peak, Gavin and Rosalind walked in.
"Lord Kaelen, Miss Aila," Gavin said. "The party is ready. The carriage outside is also prepared. It is time for us to return to the castle."
Kaelen glanced at me, said nothing more, and stood, walking out of the cave first.