Chapter 9

Elijah's POV
I ignored the crowd behind me and quickly walked towards the outside of the wolf pack. I felt unable to breathe just imagining the days after Isabella left, and I had to get her back.
But where could I go to find her in such a big jungle?
"Elijah, have you forgotten that you're a werewolf? You can totally find Isabella based on the scent she left behind." Mason muttered in the back of my head. "You're too flustered."
Mason was right, and I shook my head in chagrin; I was so flustered that I had forgotten something so important.
Just as I was about to feel Isabella's scent, a strong wave suddenly came from the mate link.
A bad feeling hit my heart that Isabella was in danger!
I quickly closed my eyes and carefully identified her scent.
She was walking inside along the jungle, and I followed the scent and started running wildly.
With the scent of Isabella getting closer and closer, I could smell the blood and couldn't help but breathe heavily.
She was in a very dangerous situation! I had to go help her as soon as possible!
The hiss of a fierce beast rang out as a huge brown bear flashed past me, smashing through a fist-thick tree. It hissed in pain and charged again at the figure not far away.
Isabella was standing there. Blood was running down her face and she looked very messed up, but her eyes were as bright as the eyes of an owl in the night sky.
She tightened her grip on the dagger in her hand and took a defensive stance.
"Isabella!"
At the sound of my voice, she looked at me like a frightened deer.
But thankfully, there were no particularly visible injuries on her body. I clenched my fist and stepped forward, ready to help her subdue the beast.
"I can do it, Elijah," she said, about reading my thoughts and even waving her hand at me. "This is my sacrifice to the Moon Goddess, and I have to do it myself."
Sacrifice?
My boiling brain calmed down.
So that's it, Isabella didn't want to leave me, she just wanted to settle that sacrifice on her own. This realization gave me a slight sigh of relief.
But the situation at hand did not allow me to relax too much. The bear was huge, and now that it was fully angry, she was still in danger.
Before she could finish her sentence, the bear lunged toward her once more.
Isabella kicked violently at a nearby tree trunk, spun through the air at an angle that almost defied common sense, and then flew straight toward the bear. I had no doubt that she would have broken the bear's ribs with this blow.
"Watch out!"
A fine sweat creeps across my forehead.
The scene was just too frightening. Just a little bit, she would have been hit and slapped to the ground by the bear, and she could have been torn to pieces by that bear. But she seemed completely unafraid and remained nimble as she attacked beside the bear.
This made me realize that she was indeed not a soft girl, she was far stronger than I could have imagined.
Isabella's POV
The bear's ragged breathing sounded above my head and I bent back a step.
But it obviously couldn't carry it.
As I kicked at its wounds again, it fell to the ground no longer in spirit. I quickly rushed up and slit its throat.
"It's finally over." I patted the dust on my hands with a smile.
It was the first time I had ever hunted such a large prey, and my heart was full of accomplishment.
In the sky, as the sun was gone, the moon was slowly rising, and soon this forest would be back in danger.
Elijah stood beside me, examining the bear. "It's too late, Isabella. it's too dangerous in the jungle, and we have such a big bear with us. Let's just spend the night here and go back in the morning."
I nodded and then watched as he turned into a giant wolf. I placed the bear on his back and sat on it myself.
"There are caves around here that I remember..." he said as he ran.
I held the bear and found the scenery around here eerily familiar.
Soon we arrived at the cave he had mentioned. I jumped down and settled the bear carefully. But just as I was holding the bear's paw, my movements suddenly stopped.
Wait a minute, why did this place look so familiar? Wasn't this the same cave where we first met?
I looked at the fire that had burned out next to me, my face was getting hotter and hotter, and I couldn't help but cover my face.
I was afraid that Elijah also felt the same, otherwise his expression would not be so strange.
I glared at him.
"I'm going to catch a rabbit." He touched his nose, turned around and walked out.
I swept the floor as clean as I could and started the fire again. We both still sat together calmly roasting rabbits as we had done that time.
His approach was careful, as if what he had in his hands was some great treasure.
"It tastes good." I ate those rabbit meat and praised him sincerely.
"Is there anyone here? " suddenly a loud cry rang out from outside the cave. "We're from the White Birch Pack, why are you making a fire in here?"
It's the White Birch Pack's werewolf!
My pupils clenched, what were they doing there?
I quietly hid myself behind that bear, afraid they would see me.
"We are the werewolves of the Green Creek Pack." Elijah stood up to the entrance of the cave. Even though I couldn't see his expression, I could feel his intimidation as an Alpha.
They left after a brief exchange of pleasantries, much to my relief.
This cave was too close to the White Birch Pack! If they find something different and come here, I wouldn't be able to escape. Even Elijah could be dragged down with me.
"Let's go back, Elijah. I'm a little scared." I wrapped my arms around myself uneasily.
I didn't want to tell him about my days at White Birch Pack, that's too bad.
"It's too late now, and it would be dangerous to go back." Elijah looked at the sky outside the cave. "Besides, we have such a big bear with us."
"But it's more dangerous to stay here." I took his hand in mine, trying to make him feel the unease I was feeling right now.
Eventually, he sighed and agreed to my request.
"Okay, let's go then."
The way back was the same as the way we came, but it was already night, so we walked extra hard.
"Sasha..."
I suddenly heard an unusual sound. I turned my head back and met eyes with a pair of crystal eyes.
"Ow!" A pitch-black panther swooped down from the canopy.
I kicked towards the leopard, but even though I kicked it accurately in the abdomen, it seemed to be unaffected and still lunged straight at me.
Unable to avoid it!
I subconsciously put my hands in front of my chest to protect myself.
Immediately, Elijah jumped on me, and then we both rolled off the cliff together. The sharp rocks didn't hurt me, but I heard Elijah's soft grunt.
He's hurt!
My heart was aching as it was going to split open.
If I hadn't insisted on going back tonight, then he wouldn't have been hurt, and it would have been my fault.
"You're not hurt, are you?" Elijah lay on the ground and caught my arm.
This made me feel even more guilty.
"No..." I shook my head and tried to distract him. I was really going to cry when he continued to stare at me like that.
"It's just that the stones on the ground are too painful, and why is it so white?"
I got closer to the ground. With the moonlight, I finally saw its full appearance. It wasn't just any stone, it was clearly the skeleton of a werewolf! The white rocks that covered the valley, all of them!
How many wolves would have to die for this to happen!
"Maybe this used to be a battlefield, don't take it too hard." Elijah took me into his arms and comforted me. "For a warrior, dying in battle is a good way to go."
"It's not quite right...I'm afraid it's not like that." I picked up the remains of the clothes that still remained on one of the bodies for a closer look.
Those particular fabrics were the only ones still in use by the White Birch Pack, so all of them were from the White Birch Pack!
"Look at their bones. Such proportions would only be found in women." I picked up a piece of white bone with trembling hands.
The White Birch Pack had no female warriors, so there would be no women dying in battle. And the only thing that could make a large number of young women die was the only one I could think of.
They should all be breeders.
I'd heard people say before that breeders couldn't live more than five years. I actually didn't fully believe it, but I also knew it would be a hell of an experience.
But today, when I saw this hill with white bones, I suddenly understood that those words may be true. These bones may really be the corpses of those who died over the years one after another reproduction.
Among Liam's lies, all these women had a wonderful place to go in the end. But seemingly they had nothing at all!
But among these scattered bones, there was a pair of corpses that were hugging each other tightly, as if they both died at the same time.
There must be some strong connection between them.
I looked at the two bodies and sighed deeply. No matter what the reason, such relationship was worthy of respect.
For people who have to die, it must be nice to be able to go to the end with the people they care about.
"Wait a minute, this one doesn't seem to be a werewolf body." Elijah had been standing next to it, but at that moment it came up and squatted down. "It looks like it's a...wizard?"
I also looked over carefully. The corpse bones were indeed not quite the same as the werewolves', and there were even unique patterns on them that belonged to their wizards. But why would a wizard appear there?
Perhaps it was a pair of werewolf and wizard that combined.
I found the emotions of these two people even more saddening.
"But...I always feel as if I'm a little familiar." I raised my hand and punched my chest.
I didn't know why I always felt a little stuffy, and the two bodies are as if I'd seen them before.
Maybe they were connected to me in some way.