The Villain Alpha's Cursed Mate-Chapter 125: Demon Shifters In The Building

"Let go of me!" A young lady thrashed as two guards roughly hauled her down the desolate corridor, her lustrous black hair cascading over her face. She was clad in a dress meant for courtesans, the fabric clinging to her frame as she fought against their hold.

"Stop!"

"Quiet!" One of the guards snarled in return, and they halted abruptly, their faces twisting with frustration. One of them tightened his grip, glaring at her with barely contained fury. She tilted her head to the side, her dark, piercing brown eyes locking onto his with a calm, defiant coldness, revealing the beauty hidden beneath her disheveled appearance.

"Enough of your insolence!" The guard hissed, venom laced in his voice. "You’ll pay dearly for stabbing your first client in that manner, you wretched whore! The Alpha has ordered your execution. Speak one more word, and I’ll silence you right here and now!"

"I didn’t do anything wrong!" Her voice quivered in desperation, trembling at the injustice of it all as they continued to drag her forward. "He deserved to die! You can’t execute me when I haven’t seen the Alpha. I need to see him, let go of me! I don’t want to do this! I don’t want to be anyone’s whore! Release me!"

One of the guards laughed darkly, yanking her roughly against his chest. His breath reeked of liquor, making her stomach churn in revulsion. The stench of him clung to the air, suffocating her with every word.

"Well you won’t be anyone’s whore," he sneered, his eyes gleaming with malice. "Since the Alpha has no need for you, we might as well have some fun before you meet your maker." He grinned, his foul breath hot against her cheek. "Tell him you met two men who gave you a taste of heaven before sending you there."

His partner’s laugh echoed in the empty hallway, feeding off the vile amusement.

"We are not commodities!" Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. The fury that burned inside her was enough to kill them both, but she refused to let her tears fall, holding on to her wounded pride. "One day, I swear, you’ll all pay for this, the Alpha, you, and every last one of you who’s wronged us! I’ll make sure you suffer! And when that time comes, I’ll forgo heaven just for the chance to watch you miserable, rotten men burn in hell!"

She spat in the guard’s face, defiance radiating from her every word. His reaction, however, was swift. A brutal slap whipped across her face, sending her tumbling to the cold stone floor, a sharp taste of blood filling her mouth as it dripped from her split lips.

"Enough of your loudmouth! I’ll teach you a good lesson!" the guard stepped forward, his hand raised to strike her again. But before he could accomplish his ill intent, a voice echoed through the hallway, freezing them in place.

"Hitting a woman?" the voice rang out, smooth yet filled with disgust. "My mother always said it was a beastly thing for a man to do, and now I know why. In addition, when she says let go, you should listen and let go"

Stunned, the guards looked up to see a figure emerging from the shadows. A young man strode towards them with effortless confidence, his coat billowing behind him as he approached.

Leonardo’s eyes narrowed at the scene before him, and his gaze shifted from the lady to the two confused guards.

"Where is your etiquette? It’s pretty obvious neither of you have a sister or a female figure in your life to dish some logic sense to you. So, let me do the honors... and I won’t even charge you for it."

The lady on the floor looked up as well to see someone approaching at a leisurely pace, and her eyes widened, as she had no idea who he was.

"Who are you?" one of the guard’s barked, turning his attention to Leonardo, who, in return, stopped in his tracks, a faint smile curling at his lips.

"Wrong question."

Before the guards could grasp what he meant, two boys suddenly jumped on their backs, immediately covering their noses with a handkerchief. The guards struggled to throw them off, and one of the boys was laughing gleefully, as if he was relishing in the guards futile struggle.

It wasn’t long before the guards bodies went limp, crumpling to the floor in an unconscious heap.

The woman instinctively recoiled, her breath catching as her gaze shifted between the two girls standing over the fallen men and the mysterious young priest who now stood before her, his expression unreadable.

"That was fun!" Luca declared, placing his hands on his hips with a satisfied grin. The sound of his voice caught the lady off guard, cause it wasn’t the feminine tone she assumed she’d hear.

"Simon hasn’t returned," Leonardo cut in, glancing at the boys. "Do you know which wing he’s on? Go and check if he’s stuck somewhere so you three can head back. Alpha’s orders." He added, and they both nodded before hurrying off.

The woman leaned against the wall frozen, still sitting up and was yet to rise from the floor. Her thoughts were muddled, but when Leonardo’s gaze finally met hers, a strange intensity flickered in his eyes, sending a shiver down her spine.

Before she could react, he was on his knees, and to her utter surprise, he removed his coat, draping it over her trembling frame and shielding her exposed skin. His face was like a mask of calm that gave nothing away, yet his features were strikingly handsome — easily one of the most beautiful men she’d ever seen. But what in the world was a priest doing here?

She pulled his coat tightly around her, covering herself as her sharp, brown eyes traced his features. "You’re not from here, are you?"

Leonardo raised a brow, glancing down both deserted hallways to ensure they were still alone. "Funny," he muttered, "I was expecting a thank you. But I see you’re more concerned with staying on high alert. Not that it’ll matter if you can’t remember."

And just like that, his curse mark appeared on the skin of either side of his mouth. The lady’s eyes widened in disbelief, and before Leonardo could utter a single word, she pleaded.

"Don’t wipe my memories! Spare my memories! If you wipe everything that has pushed me on to this point, how am I supposed to get my revenge on the Alpha? He’s... he needs to suffer for all the pain he’s put us through. I don’t know who you are, or why you’re here, but I know the fortress, and I can... I can be of help! Just... don’t do anything to me!"

Leonardo’s eyes narrowed as he noticed the desperation etched on her face. He could tell she wasn’t lying, but letting a courtesan of the north know about him would prove to be risky.

Since he had activated his curse, communication would be prohibited. If she knew exactly what he was by seeing his dark mark alone, why would she choose to help a cursed being? Did she despise her Alpha that much to willingly align herself with the enemy?

Then, to his surprise, she whispered, "Velesh’ith tel." The words, spoken in a safe curse language, sent a jolt through him. He hadn’t expected anyone outside of the Damned to know it. It was a rare language, one that, when translated from the curse language, meant ’thank you’ without invoking harm.

"I can speak the safe curse language," she continued, her voice trembling but determined. "I know what you are. I’ve done my research on your kind... I even learned the the curse language... you... the North really needs your help, nothing is going right and I happen to know why."

"Do you know where your Alpha is currently?" Leonardo asked in the same language, and she nodded her head without delay.

"He’s in the ballroom. There’s an event happening tonight, and the king himself is present. Everyone is busy with the event, but no one is aware of what our Alpha has done. He’s committed a big crime! I don’t know what will happen tonight, but I’m sure the moon goddess brought you here for a reason. Please... help us."

"Take me to the fortress’ weaponry," he said. "Something isn’t right about this fortress."

Leonardo wasn’t exactly sure what he felt, but the energy he sensed was ominous, yet faint. It was not his duty to help the Northerners, after all, the Northerners were also present to throw stones at his brother. But, in the meantime, he would use the woman in front of him to gather some effective weapons.

"Move," he uttered, and the lady didn’t hesitate before walking ahead.

At the south wing, Finnian and Luca were able to find Simon, who was crouching underneath a table.

"There he is," Finnian murmured to Luca, and they both rushed to the table where he hid under. The moment Simon saw them, a wave of relief washed over him, and his tear-filled eyes glimmered with hope.

"Simon, what are you doing under the table?" Finnian asked softly, "we were worried about you, come on, it’s time to go. We’ve opened the doors, so now we can leave while the warriors handle everything."

"Wait... you guys," Simon resisted when Finnian tried to pull him out, his body stiffening with fear. Luca simply ran out of patience and grabbed him in a swift motion, forcefully pulling him out of his hiding place.

"Stop being a baby! You’re delaying everyone at this point!" He snapped, glaring at Simon. "This kid with the weird hair already told you we need to get out of here! Quit being a burden and move your feet!"

"I’m sorry," Simon answered, his voice shaking as fear gripped him. Finnian stepped in and quickly freed Simon from Luca’s graspp. Unlike Luca’s arrogant tone, Finnian spoke more gently.

"Did something happen?"

Simon lowered his head, and he whispered, "there are demons...shifters in this building. It killed... It killed the servant I was working with and dragged her body in that direction. I... I saw it and I ran."

"Demon shifters?" Finnian glanced at the corridor that seemed to stretch into darkness ahead.

He exchanged glances with Luca, and a smirk curled Luca’s lips. "This night just got a whole lot more interesting!"

"Simon, see if you can find any of the warriors and alert them. Luca and I will check it out in the meantime." As Finnian spoke, he and Luca were already pulling out their concealed blades from beneath their dress.

"Are you sure?" Simon felt bad about leaving them behind. "Let’s all go together and inform the warriors. It’s dangerous to face that thing!"

"You said it killed someone, so we must keep track of its movement to make sure it doesn’t harm anyone else, now go!" Finnian urged him on. "We’re counting on you to get the message out. I can’t reach the Alpha, so find the others and alert them."

"But..."

Before Simon could finish, Finnian and Luca were already moving swiftly in the direction where Simon had seen the demon shifter, their forms vanishing into the darkness ahead.

"I don’t get it...how are they not scared?" No matter how hard Simon pondered on his roommates bravery, he knew he’d never be able to match up to their skills. At least they trusted him with one thing, and he was going to find help.