The Crown's Entrapment

At Everett Manor, Black Claw Pack Territory.

[I'm glad that we're able to attend your friend's Ritual of Marking,] Jayra telepathically murmured as their convoy entered the Black Claw Pack. It was such a grand celebration, seeing the decorations plastered on the roads the moment they entered Gideon's territory. Also, the warm welcome of Gideon's pack members for their Alpha's Ritual of Marking was so overwhelming that it almost reminded her of her own Ritual of Marking back when it happened in Bartos's territory.

Looking around, Jayra couldn't help but keep the beautiful smile on her face as she recalled her own marking. It just felt like she was going back in time to those days of celebration.

"Well, it's a good thing that we'll pass by Gideon's territory on our way to the border anyway," Bartos commented as they stopped by the main entrance of Everett Manor.

They had left Cordon Castle this morning, and she rode her husband in his wolf form after reassuring him that she was already well enough to travel.

Her energy levels were back to normal, but that didn't mean she was already well. She still needed to be observed a bit more, and she also had to meditate more to control the surging power within herself. All in all, she really needed to come and stay in Ebodia to have proper guidance on using the foreign energies now running throughout her body.

Reaching their destination, Jayra came down from Bartos's back. She then nodded at wizard Lurio who did the same together with Osman, and Bella, most of them having ridden on some of their soldiers in their wolf forms. She could only watch as they entered the shifting area by the gatehouse, all of them slowly coming out clothed and in their human forms once more.

Wizard Lurio was now beside her waiting. "No wonder they have such huge and vast gatehouses…" the older wizard commented, making Jayra chuckle.

"Well, I for one would prefer they didn't have a shifting area," she humorously remarked. "It would be entertaining to witness these werewolves shift back and forth without a care in the world. It's like a free lesson in anatomy whenever they shift back into a human…"

"You never change…" Wizard Lurio scoffed with a slight shake of his head.

"Well, I bet you missed me so much milord, having left with the boring mages back home," Jayra snorted.

"Well, I won't lie," the old wizard chuckled. "The world seemed more silent without you around…"

Shrugging, Jayra was just about to retort when she felt something in the corner of her senses. Her eyes went to the five people from Cordon Castle that harbored dark energy.  Two of them were Lycans while the other two, including Osman's squire Sephiro, were humans. The remaining one was a vampire, it would seem.

"Do you see or feel anything off?" Lurio curiously asked.

She sighed deeply. "I can't see the demon's bloodthread yet, but I definitely felt its power lurking around," she murmured. "One of them definitely has it. All of them have the same dark energy, but Sephiro's seem to feel more familiar…" She let out another sigh as she mumbled, "Still, I'm not sure about it. Somehow, I feel like something inside of me is blocking me from reading their energies more clearly."

"That's normal since your body is still adjusting to the presence of Queen Mineah's angelic blood in your veins," Lurio explained. "You'll soon get a hold of them in time, including your demonic blood. We only have to make sure that your demonic heritage will always be overpowered by the light energy in your body. Queen Dana will be able to help you on that end…"

Jayra nodded before she turned her gaze back to the five people harboring the darkness inside them. "One of them is the true successor, and we must protect him. If the prophecy in Helion is right, then that successor will be the only solution for peace that we can get to fight against their Kingdom," she stated. "That successor will end Devon's life…"

Another sigh came out of Jayra's mouth as she uttered, "I need to hurry up in learning to control all of this new power inside me before the Demon King's bloodthread ends up eating all of the inner energy of the true successor."

They were on a timer. While the bloodthread wouldn't become poisonous once inside the true successor of Helion, it would instead slowly eat up all of the inner energy and demonic blood in that person, a process that could take months if let happen. After that, the Demon King would then summon his own bloodthread back, killing its host in the process.

Of course, there were different ways of how one could use a bloodthread depending on how they cast a spell on it. The Demon King's bloodthread was unleashed simply to destroy life, unlike Mineah's which was meant to give life in exchange for the caster's lifespan. It also bonded her life with her's in the sense that if she dies… Mineah would also die. Still, the irony of it was that if Mineah died, she wouldn't share her fate.

"I bet the Vampire King is cursing me right now…" Jayra murmured upon recalling how Lurio told her the way the Vampire King barged inside the chamber. The King supposedly quickly took Mineah away with the gloomiest aura on him, his face contorted in a way that he had never seen a vampire have before.

"Well, it's his wife's call and decision," Lurio shrugged. "It's not your fault."

"Well, there's still a way, right?" Jayra asked.

Lurio nodded. "I'm sure you'll be able to pull through this. You only need to get a hold of your demonic power and control it. That way, Queen Mineah can retrieve her bloodthread from you once your body is stable in controlling the dark energy," he explained. "Still, that could take years… You-"

Jayra chuckled as she turned at Lurio and finished his thought for him. "I just need to stay alive during those years to make sure our Queen Mineah will live, right?"

"Well, you have enough guards around in your shadow to keep your life safe," Lurio commented with a serious tone.

"What do you mean?" she asked, a frown forming on her face.

"The Vampire King had sent his best men to guard you in the shadows to make sure you're safe…" Lurio confessed.

"Huh?! Since when?!" Jayra burst out. "Does my husband know about this?"

"Yes," Lurio nodded. "He's also worried about you, so there's no reason for him not to agree on it."

She sighed before letting out a resigned shrug. Well, it was for the best anyway. She understood the Vampire King's sentiment after all. His Queen's life depended on her now, and anyone in his shoes wouldn't want any harm to befall their spouse by any means necessary.

'It seems like he truly cares for our Princess Mineah then,' Jayra inwardly smiled. She only regretted that she was not conscious to witness such a romantic scene of how the Vampire King took Mineah away. 'On the other hand, sending a shadow guard for me is more than reassuring of how he indeed treasures our Mineah… Xenia will be happy to hear about this.'