Chapter 72 072

Chapter 72 072
LYKA

I had been drowning in deep thoughts ever since the maid’s narration about the former Luna, and now my mind felt like a tangled web I couldn’t escape from. Every detail she had shared kept replaying in my head, each one more unsettling than the last, and I didn’t even know what to believe anymore or what conclusions I was supposed to draw from it all.
“I don’t think I have anyone to worry about right now… I still have to think about who left that incense in my room… what if it contains poison?” I mumbled under my breath, my voice barely audible, yet the weight of my own words made my heart jolt violently against my chest.
My eyes widened in shock the moment the thought fully registered.
‘I am sure it’s going to be that witch. I don’t like her aura,’ Elysia purred darkly within me, her tone laced with unmistakable disdain.
I couldn’t even argue with her.
There was something undeniably off about that girl...something unsettling that I couldn’t quite place my finger on. Just like Derrick had mentioned before, there was an odd tension surrounding her presence, something that made my instincts restless. But I wasn’t particularly interested in her…
Zuri.
That name alone stirred unease in me.
She looked calm, composed, almost harmless on the surface, but I couldn’t shake off the feeling that she had more tricks hidden beneath that quiet exterior. She maintained a low profile, always appearing distant from unnecessary drama, yet somehow, everything seemed to circle back to her.
“She is obviously in love with Derrick, but she was cool with…” I started, only to trail off abruptly as the maid’s words resurfaced in my memory.
The way she had spoken about Zuri.
The way her tone had carried both fear and suspicion.
Zuri had been close...no, inseparable...with Derrick’s first mate. They were said to be like sisters, bound by loyalty and trust. Yet, on the very night that the Luna died, while the entire pack was drowning in grief and mourning…
Zuri had thrown a party.
A party.
For the guards.
The thought alone sent a chill creeping down my spine.
Who does that?
Who celebrates on the night their supposed friend dies?
Even if there were explanations...excuses...it still felt wrong. Deeply wrong.
And yet, despite how suspicious everything sounded, another question gnawed at me just as fiercely.
Why did the maid tell me all this?
Was she trying to help me? Was it a warning, a desperate attempt to prevent me from suffering the same fate as the former Luna?
Or…
Was there something more beneath it?
A hidden agenda?
“What if there is more to that? What if the Luna didn’t just die like that, and…” I murmured, my voice trailing off as my thoughts spiraled into darker territories.
I felt lost.
Completely lost.
What was I supposed to do with all this information? Pieces of a puzzle that didn’t quite fit together yet felt too important to ignore. Was I expected to act on it? To confront someone? To dig deeper?
Or was I just being dragged into something far more dangerous than I could handle?
“Should I just go and confront Zuri about what I just learned?” I whispered, more to myself than anyone else.
But even as the words left my lips, doubt crept in.
Was that even how this worked?
“What if the maid got it all wrong… and is just going around trying to manipulate people?” I wondered aloud, my hands instinctively gripping my head as a wave of frustration and confusion washed over me.
I couldn’t believe I had allowed myself to get this worked up over something so uncertain.
And then there was the matter of the crippled man.
That encounter still left a bitter taste in my mouth.
He had clearly fed me false information, twisted words wrapped in deception, but I still didn’t understand why. What did he gain from misleading me? What role did I play in whatever game was unfolding around me?
Everything felt like a trap.
Maybe… maybe I should just go and ask Derrick himself.
The thought came suddenly, yet it felt like the only solid option I had.
He would understand better. He had to.
Unlike strangers whispering half-truths and riddles, Derrick was someone directly tied to all of this. If there was anyone who could give me clarity, it would be him.
I couldn’t trust just anyone.
But him?
At least with him, I could be certain I wasn’t being deliberately misled.
Or… could I?
Was the Demon really killing his Lunas?
The question lingered heavily in my mind as I pushed myself up from the bed, my movements slow but determined. My feet carried me toward the door almost on their own, driven by a desperate need for answers.
Yet even as I stepped into the hallway, doubt lingered.
Was this really what I wanted?
I had gone to him before.
And I had left with nothing.
No answers.
No clarity.
Just more questions.
And yet… here I was again, walking the same path, clinging to the same fragile hope that this time would be different.
As I walked down the hallway, something felt off.
The atmosphere had shifted.
The maids’ stares followed me, sharp and unwelcoming, their gazes laced with something that hadn’t been there before.
Hostility.
It was subtle, yet unmistakable.
My steps faltered slightly, but I forced myself to keep moving, pretending not to notice.
Maybe I was overthinking it.
Maybe...
“And here comes the rogue, ungrateful brat,” one of the maids said loudly as a group of them approached from the opposite direction.
My entire body went still.
The words hit me like a slap, sharp and unexpected.
Confusion flooded me instantly.
Had I heard her right?
My steps came to a complete halt as I turned toward them, my brows knitting together in disbelief.
“What did you just say?” I demanded, my voice low but firm as I reached out and grabbed the maid by the arm, stopping her from walking past me.
She scoffed, clearly unimpressed by my reaction.
But I didn’t care.
Not this time.
I needed answers.
“What are you doing, you cheap girl?” she snapped, her tone dripping with disdain.
Anger surged through me at her words.
Who did she think she was?
Who gave her the audacity to speak to me like that?
“How dare you talk to me like this!” I roared, the fury I had been suppressing finally breaking free.
Before I could stop myself, my hand moved on its own.
Smack.
The sound echoed sharply through the hallway as my palm connected with her cheek, the impact catching her completely off guard.
Gasps erupted from the surrounding maids, their shock filling the air.
But I didn’t care.
None of them mattered right now.
“What… what did you just do?” she stammered, her hand trembling as it rose to touch her cheek, her eyes wide with disbelief.
I grabbed her wrist before she could recover.
“What does it look like I did?” I replied coldly, a dangerous smirk tugging at my lips. “If you don’t start talking, I can assure you that I’m going to start a slapping spree...and you can take my word for it.”
Fear flickered across her face as she instinctively took a step back.
But it was too late.
She had already crossed the line.
“You might want to start talking,” I added, my voice dropping into something far more threatening. “I don’t have all day.”
She swallowed hard before nodding, her confidence completely shattered.
“I… I shouldn’t have told you this, but…” she began, her voice wavering as her eyes darted toward the other maids gathered around us.
Then, hesitantly, she leaned closer and whispered into my ear.
The moment her words sank in, the world seemed to tilt.
Shock coursed through me, so intense that for a second, I felt detached from my own body.
It was as if I were standing there… yet not truly present.
As if something else had taken over.
Have I become like Derrick now?
Did I have two minds?
“That was the rumor that started going around earlier today,” she continued, pulling back slightly. “And now everyone in the pack knows… and I can tell you this...I’m not the only one who wants to throw a knife at you.”
Her voice carried raw anger, almost seething with it.
But I barely registered it.
My thoughts were elsewhere.
“That rumor…” I repeated slowly, my voice quieter now, more controlled despite the storm raging within me. “When did it start?”
A suspicion had already begun forming in my mind.
A dangerous one.
But I needed confirmation.
“It started early this morning,” she replied. “And it spread so quickly… like someone was pushing it, making sure everyone heard it.”
Her words sent a chill down my spine.
Someone was behind this.
Someone deliberate.
Someone calculated. Who could it be?
Who was targeting me?