Anastasia's POV
When I awoke, darkness welcomed me.
I am blindfolded, gagged, and tied up. With my sight impaired, using my other working senses, I felt how we are currently walking in an uphill manner or rather, how I am being dragged in an uphill road or whatever sh*t we are walking on.
I have no idea how long the walk have been before I woke up but what I am sure of is that I am extremely tired.
‘I don’t think my legs have any more strength to walk any longer’
Unfortunately to my pained whims and grunts, I am continually getting dragged to who knows where they wish to put me – perhaps a prison or worse to where my tomb would be.
---
After a century of suffering, I felt my weak body flop down on the floor. My eyes quickly watered as I tried to adjust to the sudden brightness as my blindfold and gag were removed. The ropes continued to stay intact but perhaps because of the arduous walk, it became loose.
I roamed my now adjusted eyes to where they put me at. This place reeks of holiness. The walls, ceiling, and beams were all painted white with touches of subtle gold. No dust could be seen and it is very much obvious that the place has been kept clean at all times.
‘The only dirt this place has might be me’
But what truly captures one’s eyes is the gold statue of a woman holding what seems to be a wolf in the very middle of this place and a small stage-like altar right in front of it.
“A temple?” I quietly mumbled
“A temple indeed,” someone behind me answered
I looked at the source of the voice and met a beautiful middle-aged man. Although it is the first time that I have met the person in front of me, I get this sense of extreme familiarity.
‘He looks like me’
From the reddish-brown hair, thick eyebrows, pointed nose, pale complexion, and greyish eyes – everything is similar.
“Father” I mumbled
‘My father’ smiled widely as he heard what I mumbled. He walks towards me and stood right in front of me. After a while of him observing me, he motioned to a subordinate to put me on what seemed like an altar. There, he gracefully sat down on a chair in front of me and mockingly stared at my appearance.
“Ahh my precious daughter,” he jeeringly stated. “You are a pain to capture, you know?”
“What do you want from me?”
“Straight to the point eh”
“We both do not wish to converse any longer no? Even breathing the same air that you breathe is enough to make me feel disgusted” I uttered, scornfully.
“HAHAHAHA” The man laughed like he is truly amused by what I just said. “Quite sharp”
I merely glared at him as he continued to suppress his laughter.
“Anyway, you are here now because it is finally time for you to fulfill your purpose. Aren’t you excited?” he cheerfully said. I only looked at him, confused.
“Haa where do I begin-” he said as his hands went up to his chin. “Well you probably already heard of the legend of the goddess of the moon. When humans and werewolves coexist and humans betrayed werewolves and the goddess sort of cursed us humans? That legend is popular, pretty sure you already know that, yes?” he looked at me with eyes full of certainty.
“You see, my daughter, that legend is true and we are still facing the punishment of our ancestors’ actions. The flood last year that killed thousands of people, the frequent earthquakes, the massacres, drought, just everything you know. So〜 the people of power who are truly concerned for everyone’s well-being, I included, taught of offering a sacrifice”
“I-I don’t think I understand,” I said as I try to process what I just heard
“Ahh〜 simply put, you are to be sacrificed for the sake of every human in our nation – such an incredible honor, I know,” he said with a wide smile, nodding, sincerely thinking that what he said is something to be proud of.
“But… I am your daughter” I unconsciously uttered
The man’s expression immediately changed from a smiling one to an annoyed one as soon as he heard what I said. He stood up and towered over me with an expression clearly looking down on my very existence.
“How foolish of you!” he shouted angrily as I felt a rush of pain in my right cheek and taste the rusty, disgusting blood drip out of my mouth. “Is that what your grandmother taught you? That after every rain there would be a rainbow? Pft HAHAHAHA”
He laughed hysterically, paused a little, and harshly grabbed my hair to make me face him.
“I am indeed your father – so what?” he nonchalantly state. “Why do you think the high and mighty me would woo your lowly maid mother? It is for this very moment! You are the sacrifice I prepared for long ago and there is nothing wrong with you fulfilling what you are intended to!”
“I actually should have done this sooner if not only for that persistent old hag. How dare she blackmail me and threaten to put my REAL PRECIOUS one to be the sacrifice” he added, mumbling
He continued yapping and slandering my caring grandmother and the mother whom I have no recollection of while I sat there emotionally lifeless.
Anastasia's POV My life was never peaceful nor was it a life of happiness. At five years old, I already started working small jobs like helping Uncle Ben with his vegetable business. At eight, I, unfortunately, picked up pickpocketing from other kids in the village. I lost all innocence and childishness at ten years old when surviving became my only goal. I was forced to grow out of my childish desires and face reality at such an early age. I do not have the time and liberty to help and care for others - I was not given the freedom to. No matter how my grandmother, Uncle Ben, and Uncle Teddy tried to fill the void left by my parents and silence the roars and chaos of reality, the truth about the world’s ugliness was bound to seep out. I am already at rock bottom – I didn’t know I could go lower. I looked at my father who is now smiling maniacally at me. I do not have any expectations of him. Heck! He was never even part of any event, significant or
Anastasia's POV “Hey! A cute girl!” the man on the left said. They are now near our location enabling me to see their appearances better. The man who just spoke is the shortest among the three. His jet-black hair has splashes of blood. Actually, he has the most bloodied look out of all of them. I already got the gist of what his expression would be with just the tone of his voice but it made it clear that he is the one finding this situation most enjoyable when his mischievous expression became visible. “What do we do with her?” the man on the right asked. His somewhat slicked light brown hair made him look the most proper among the three. He is also bloodied but definitely lesser than the one on the left. His aura and eyes look gentle despite his now scary appearance. ‘If worse comes to worst, I might try pleading with this guy. He seems to be someone who I can emotionally appeal to’ “She also trespassed so…” said the man with jet-black ha
Anastasia's POV “Daughter! My precious daughter!” my father bawled as he tried to go near me. With just a few steps away from me, the werewolf with light brown hair kicked his knee making him fall to the ground. “Do not make the girl uncomfortable, old hag” I heard him threateningly whisper to my father. He then smiled at me brightly, hiding his bloodied hands behind his back. “Oh you would not know how worried I am about you,” he said as fake tears roll down his cheeks ‘Award-winning act’ “Worried… he was being protected by those other guys while the girl is left alone. Dude seriously think we will believe that?” the black-haired werewolf whispered to the light brown-haired one. “Pfft” the man beside me snorted. I redirected my attention to my father who continued to weep in front of me. ‘He might think that staying close to me would let him escape this situation as these wolves have been strangely frien
Anastasia's POV I looked at him, slightly panicking. “Wha – No! Why?” I said, voice rising a little. “I did not intentionally come here! I did not even think of this place when I am planning my escape!” I might have forgotten how scary their strengths and appearances were earlier with my sudden outburst but this is my freedom we are talking about here. “Look, I am sincerely thankful for killing that bastard and letting me live but I really don’t see any reason for you to not release me” I added. My outbursts were not without reason. I am trying out the waters before planning my next actions. If they would still not show hostility towards me even after I shout and cause hysteria, I can try a few more extreme measures to ensure my safety. If they would show any form of hostility, I would tone it down and even try begging. The three of them were whispering with each other, expressions clearly showing that they do not care about
Sebastian's POV “This is the first time I have seen Rozen laugh this much” Dane whispered beside me, scrutinizing the sudden bloom of the Alpha’s positive mood. I simply nodded, also confused. I have known Rozen for over nineteen years but this indeed is the first time that he shows such a sincere smile. That guy has always been cold and have his signature poker face ever since three years old. We’ve been friends for such a long time but I can only recall him giving me mocking grins, sarcastic ones, or those that are forced. This guy has been weird ever since we went inside that temple thing – no actually, he is weird even before that. --- “Dane and I would be the ones patrolling today right?” I asked We are currently inside the conference room having our weekly meeting. “Why the need for the two of you to move together?” asked Roxanne, Dane's mother, one of the elders in our pack. "Just my son's strength a
Sebastian's POV "Okay... Why exactly do you want to go?" I asked Rozen who is currently behind Dane and me. We are now walking into this vast forest as we planned on starting the patrol from the highest point of the mountain range before working our way down. "Precaution" he simply answered "Stop playing, dude! Those elders may not be able to say anything about you but not us! You would not even get out of your chambers even when we beg you to come with our patrols and yet you just impulsively decided to go now???" Dane pries which I silently agree on. Rozen is a hands-on alpha but patrolling has never been part of his responsibilities. He always says that his time would rather be spent in his room doing whatever work he is doing and in the training hall. "I don't know, really. Just had the urge to come" he nonchalantly replied "Shut up, Dane. Your annoying voice is disturbing this peaceful walk" he
Anastasia's POV I woke up in a room unfamiliar to me. Sage green painted walls, a small chandelier in the middle of the room, two large windows making the whole room well lit, multiple plants in every corner and windowsill, and some nature-themed decorations. This whole room is what I expect to see in a room in the middle of the forest. 'The bed is also very soft. When I became rich I would want my room to be this warm, refreshing, and comfortable looking.' "Is it up to your taste?" a sudden voice from the room's entrance uttered Following the source of the voice, my eyes met the beautiful smirking man leaning at the room's door. His chuckle made me realize that my hands were still on my chest from my reaction to his sudden voice earlier which I frantically removed and then glared at him. "You like the room?" he asked again, not dropping the subject. "It is nice..." I replied, my voice fading out. 'Hi
Anastasia's POV The lunch prepared is, with no exaggeration, a feast! There were all kinds of delightfully looking dishes that I don't even know existed. The best dish that I have ever tasted is a piece of chicken given to me by a vendor which I only seasoned and fried, the smell and look? Divine! The taste? Even better... but even that dish can't seem to even compare to the dishes on this long table. All varieties of meat like pork, beef, chicken, fish, and those expensive seashells are served with such enticing scent and look. There are even fresh fruits! "Would this be my last meal?" I unconsciously uttered All of them stopped in their tracks and looked at me, expressions different from one another. Dane looked at me as if he is weirded out by me, Sebastian looked like he is genuinely concerned with my way of thinking, and Rozen looked like he have lots of questions to ask "We already told you we won't kill you right?" said Sebastian