Chapter 84 - The Replacement

LUNA ASTERBELLE'S POV

The stench of Nero's blood crept to my nose as Shin kept on whistling as his footsteps drew near me. I heavily breathed from my slightly parted lips at the same time that I exposed my wings, which I flapped consecutively before I flew down to purposely stumble upon Shin's head.

I pretended like I received a fatal impact that caused me to fall and roll to the ground while groaning in pain.

"I don't want to plan bruises on your beautiful skin, little wolf. Admit defeat already; you won't even succeed if you have any ulterior motives," Shin arrogantly said, contradicting his action as he stepped on my hand, rotating his foot, almost with the intention to break it. "I heard something intriguing recently. Your plan was to fake your death; am I right or am I right?"

My eyes flickered in fear that Shin knew my scheme all along, even before I discussed it with Nero. "Your hobby of eavesdropping is such a hassle. Guess I should tear your ears off."

I forced my way out of Shin's trap. My hand could have been dislocated, but Shin released it a few seconds after he sensed that I wanted to break free. Fortunately, it still regenerates hastily.

"Let me shift, Luna!" Astra became irritated with my constant restraint. "If you want to achieve victory, then release me from your chains!"

With little hesitation left, I finally let Astra do everything she could do as I shifted to my wolf.

The alpha chuckled when he saw my wolf with wings. "You look like a unicorn," he commented.

We spent hours on our duel, and I'm proud to say that I won. I made Shin not only kneel; I even got him lying on the floor with the mixture of his blood and sweat running down his face.

My memory was a complete mess; the moment that I shifted back, I could barely remember what Astra did to Shin.

"I underestimated you, Luna," Shin muttered with a weak voice. "Go. I won't stop you from saving my brother. It's too humiliating for me to go up there in this state," he said.

I took one last glance at him just to assure myself that Shin no longer has the ability to catch up to me. "The alpha lost to me, Nero," I mumbled as I tried to get him out of there. "But he isn't dead yet. So if you have anything else left to tell him, go," I said.

The beta shook his head. "I'm tired," he shortly uttered, continuously panting for breath. "Let's regroup with your allies."

My heart thumped like crazy when he mentioned allies, since I sensed that Jerome was on his way here.

I immediately turned to gaze upon the door, which was broken from Jerome's entrance. It felt like time stopped when our eyes met. Jerome's eyes were sticky like Shin's, but even so, it was quite hard for me to look elsewhere.

"You fucking shit!" Jerome rushed to Shin, who wasn't aware of his presence beforehand, which is why Shin got surprised by his attack. "You're going to hell, Shin Holmes."

Jerome grabbed Shin's hair, pulling it while marching towards our spot. I took Nero out of Jerome's way, knowing what my mate wanted. He placed Shin inside the same torturing cage where the beta suffered when he lost his arm.

Jerome had a terrifying aura. "I'll take this chance to slowly burn your soul to pay for what you made them go through, Shin," he whispered to his ears that he pinched, then let his fingers run through the different sets of weapons nearby.

Those smirks that came from Jerome had never been creepy before. It gave off the vibe that he possibly entered the zone, a private place inside a person's mind wherein one could surpass their limits without getting interrupted by any minor inconvenience.

"I can't choose one. What do you think about piercing all of these into your whole body?" Jerome murmured without looking back at Shin.

The alpha didn't bother to answer. My conscience won't be able to handle the sight of Jerome killing an alpha if ever it gets to that point, though I won't stop him.

"You're healed?" I suddenly asked when I saw how Nero's arms were back to normal. There wasn't any blood stain on it either.

I thought that we would still have to wait for Joseph's arrival here to heal him, but I guess he earned the spot as the pack's beta for a reason, aside from being Shin's brother.

"Fast recovery is one of my greatest assets, but it's only applicable to me. Unlike doctors and shamans who can treat anyone they like," Nero replied, which made me think that he's energized again. "Your man hasn't changed since the first time we saw him."

I glanced at him with confusion in my eyes. "Were Jerome and you on bad terms since the beginning? Shin kept on saying how the Dark Shadow Clan was useless, so..."

Nero shrugged, eyeing my mate. "Shin entrusted Jerome with Yuki," he said before returning his gaze to me. "Shin believed that the Dark Shadow Clan was the safest place for Yuki to grow up. Our pack wasn't favorable for her, so we agreed to at least let Yuki grow in an environment where she could be happy."

"Safest? But that was literally the vampire's den; why choose that clan instead of the Blood Moon Pack?" I inquired.

"We weren't fond of the Asterbelles. And besides, we had full trust over Jerome, who called himself King Dawn. We were fooled by him; he never told us about the mafias that hid below their pack house," Nero explained, his voice kind of cracking as he reminisced about each scene that flashed through his mind. "Yuki was mistreated by those filthy mafias. Whatever she experienced there made her traumatized, so we didn't ask her anymore than what we currently know."

"Then why didn't you expect that Yuki would have a connection with Jazpher or anyone else there?"

"We prohibited her; we warned her every single day not to make friends with a man. But her heart still prevailed, I guess..." Nero scratched the back of his head, disappointed by how their past efforts weren't effective.

Neither Yuki nor Jazpher can be blamed in that type of situation. They were opposite genders and kindred; it's just impossible for them not to feel affection for one another.

"Ahh!" Shin's frustrated scream resonated all throughout the execution grounds, disrupting the conversation between me and the beta.

"Ah, yes. Your voice screaming in agony is soothing to my ears." Jerome giggled as he struck another silver sword in the middle of Shin's stomach and one more in his neck.

I bit my lower lip, trying to suppress the urge to stand in front of Shin to make Jerome halt. "If your brother dies here, will Jerome be the one to replace Shin as the alpha, or would you rank up?" I asked Nero.

"It depends; if I'd challenge Jerome to a duel after Shin dies, then it would depend on the result, but if one of us gives up the title, then that's that," he answered with a straight face, not showing interest in replacing his brother. "I'd choose the latter, since I know that Jerome won't surrender without putting up a tough fight."

Nero's broad perspective on life was commendable. When he first introduced himself to me, I initially thought that he would be much more ruthless than anyone else I've met, just like Yuki described him before.

"I never imagined that I'd die in your hands," Shin murmured, his voice trembling.

The last time I looked at Shin, he was still full of himself, like he had lots of confidence. However, right now, his eyes were the first to go lifeless, as if he had already given up without trying to fight back.

Jerome scoffed, then pulled the swords out. "I doubt that. You clearly knew that I'd get back here."

"Aren't you going to protect Shin as his brother one last time?" I asked Nero, noticing how he couldn't keep his attention out of Shin's situation.

The beta shook his head, inviting me to go near the two. Nero held some sort of wheel, which led the cage to compress even more. If he keeps it up, then Shin will definitely die.

Jerome stepped in front of Nero with a fierce gaze. "Don't interfere, Nero. I'm taking Shin's life," Jerome coldly said.

Jerome pushed him away, creating tension between them. "Finish him off in a minute if you don't want to go through me as well before you can be the alpha," he replied before going back to my side.

My mate's gaze only passed through me. He literally had no emotion within, as if he'd been consumed by an evil spirit. He didn't have to wait for a whole minute to pass by. He spinned the lever to its maximum point until Shin's body was crushed by the cage, which made Shin's face red.

"Farewell, Shin Holmes," Jerome mumbled before he decapitated the alpha.

The ruthless alpha has finally reached the end of his lifespan. The Crimson Moon Pack would change overall, especially if Jerome decides to take or replace Shin voluntarily.

Nero kneeled to the ground with both of his hands on the back of his head, then gazed towards Jerome. "You killed the alpha of our pack. As stated in our guidelines that keep our pack governed well, the one who takes the life of the current alpha during a valid duel shall take the title instead," he said.

Jerome grinned. "You're basically telling me that I should bear the responsibility of being the next alpha."

I gulped, thinking about the possibility that Jerome would merge his clan with this pack. There would be a disadvantage since his clan was filled with vampires.

It's unlikely that they would be cooperative.

"Luna! Jerome!" Dr. Joseph called us from behind. He was holding a piece of paper as he approached us, together with Yve and Mrs. Asterbelle.

"The alpha's dead," the other two commented.

I crossed my arms below my chest, asking why they looked worried.

"I found Shin Holmes' will in his office. Judging from the way it was written, this was recent." Joseph lent the paper to me, which I immediately read as he continued to speak. "It seems like their sister is in danger."

"If you're reading this, then I already got killed by my archenemy. This would be my final request about Yuki: save him from Jazpher. Don't let her be reminded of the same pain she got from them and keep her safe." I read the content loudly, which instantly led Nero to stand up and rush out of the execution grounds without waiting for us.