Free Web NovelChapter 40: The Witch’s Trial
"Lyra, Tala, both of you calm down," Selka said, her voice dropping like a heavy stone. "She did not try to kill our Alpha!"
"But... but Mother!" Lyra yelled, her eyes wide with rage. "Alpha went out into the woods with her. She is completely fine, but Alpha is broken and won’t wake up! And she came back with that snake, the Silent Coil!"
Nuan let out a long, tired sigh inside her head. Seriously, this girl is just reaching for reasons to hate me. If I wanted to kill Kael, why the hell would I drag his heavy, dying body all the way back to his own pack?
Selka let out a frustrated growl that made the ground feel like it was vibrating. "Do not speak about things you know nothing about! The Alpha was injured during a hunt. The snake leader helped her bring him back, so do not throw around accusations without any proof!"
Tala looked confused, her mouth opening and closing, unsure of what to say. But Lyra was quick to counter. "She first made everyone follow her rules about the meat! Now she is trying to get rid of our Alpha while pretending to be a helpful witch. She is after our territory! She wants to take over the pack! Before she came, our Alpha was healthy. After she came, he keeps risking himself for her."
The older wolves exchanged uneasy looks. One of the elders lowered his voice, his fur bristling.
"prophecy told stories about witches... creatures who arrived with strange powers, changed the way beastworld lived, and brought disaster wherever they settled."
Another old wolf growled softly. "They say witches never join a pack without a reason. There is always something they want."
The elderly wolves around them started murmuring, nodding their heads. "She is right... she wants to control us..."
Selka sighed heavily and turned her head toward Nuan.
Nuan took a step forward, keeping her knife hidden flat against her wrist, ready for a fight. She looked the elders dead in the eye. "The Alpha was injured because he tried to hunt a massive, adult male bull moose all by himself near the lake." freewēbnoveℓ.com
"Why should we believe you?" one of the elders barked. "What is the proof that you are telling the truth?"
"If other predators haven’t stolen it yet, the meat is still sitting right there by the shore," Nuan snapped back, her voice sharp. "Go look for yourselves. You will find your Alpha’s bite marks deep in its neck. You will find half of my wooden spear stuck right in the base of its skull, and a deep knife stab directly through its heart."
She took a deep breath, her eyes flashing. "In fact, I protected Kael just in time. If I hadn’t thrown that weapon, he wouldn’t have made it back at all!"
Selka looked around at the restless crowd and raised her chin. "Whoever does not believe her words, go down to the lake right now with the younger hunters. Check the ground. And bring our Alpha and the witch’s hunt back to the camp!"
The wolves looked at each other, unsure and hesitant. Then, a few of the younger hunters stepped forward. "We will go! We will bring back the Alpha and the witch’s hunt!"
A few of the older, grumbling wolves decided to follow them, slipping into the dark treeline to check the story.
Lyra and Tala stayed behind. They marched over to a flat rock nearby, sitting down and keeping their annoyed, hateful glares locked onto Nuan.
Selka turned to Nuan, her face tired. "You might want to go inside and see Kael... but you must wait out here until your innocence is proven to my foolish children."
Nuan just gave a tired, understanding nod. Selka turned around and walked back into the dark mouth of her den to watch over Kael.
Sigh... I’m just so damn tired of all this drama, Nuan thought as she slouched down on the cold rock. This is exactly why I never got married back on Earth. You don’t just marry a man—you end up having to please a whole bunch of family members who are never satisfied with anything you do. They just wait around for a single chance to throw mud at your face.
Nuan stared up at the darkening sky as the jungle grew colder. Better get a fire going, she muttered.
She quickly gathered some loose stones into a small pit, threw in some dry sticks, and struck her ferro rod. Sparks flew, and a small, crackling fire lit up the chilly night. She sat right beside it, pulling her knees close.
She was completely exhausted and her eyes felt heavy, but she forced herself to stay awake.
Her fingers never let go of the knife handle, and she kept one ready-made wooden torch right next to her feet.
If any of the wolves decided to launch an attack in the dark, she was ready to light it up and fight back.
Hey, Blue Buddy, she whispered in her mind. What are my realistic survival chances if even half of this pack turns on me tonight?
[ The survival rate is incredibly low, Host. Please do not ask me for the exact data. ]
[ Suggestion: How about you abandon this pack right now and find a new, strong mate? ]
[ I can provide a special perfume from the system shop to completely hide your human scent. Let us sneak out. ]
Shut up! Nuan snapped back internally. I’m going to leave this pack eventually anyway, but I am not running away like a thief in the night. If I leave, I’m going to make sure there are no misunderstandings left behind. The last thing I need is a whole pack of angry wolves hunting me down across this jungle.
Time passed slowly in the quiet chill of the evening. After a while, Koda walked over from the shadows and sat down on the dirt right beside Nuan’s rock.
"Don’t sit near me right now," Nuan said softly, her eyes locked on the dancing flames of her campfire. "They might give you trouble for being near the outsider."
"It’s fine," Koda murmured, his small ears twitching as he looked at the fire too. "I know you didn’t do anything to hurt him. Even though you really are a crazy super-predator."
Nuan looked down at the young wolf, a soft chuckle breaking through her tired expression. "Yeah? And why exactly do you think I didn’t do it?"
"Because I can feel your honesty," Koda said simply, tilting his head. "And the other young ones can feel it too."
"Hm?" frёeωebɳovel.com
Before Nuan could process his words, a strange, warm sensation buzzed in the back of her mind. Suddenly, her awareness expanded.
Even without looking, her brain started picking up the distinct emotions and presence of several younger wolves scattered around the dark territory, lighting up in her mind like blips on a radar screen.
Ding!
[ Ability: Pack Sync Activated ]
Nuan smiled faintly, staring back into the crackling fire. So, I’m actually good with the kids, huh? Welp, the older generation is always terrified of any new changes. Can’t really blame them for being cautious either.
Just then, a loud rustling broke out from the edge of the camp. The hunting party that had left for the lake finally marched back into the firelight.
Two of the younger wolves were grunting under the immense weight of the moose’s massive head, its heavy, sweeping antlers dragging slightly against the dirt.
Behind them, the other wolves carried large, hacked-off pieces of the beast’s body.
Pheww... Thank God the local scavengers didn’t steal everything before they got there! Nuan thought, letting out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.
She gripped her hidden knife, pushed herself off the rock, and stood firmly on her good leg as the rest of the pack began to crowd around the freshly brought meat.
