The Villain Alpha's Cursed Mate-Chapter 129: Deal With A Demon

Jason yanked the scarf from the lady’s head, and the suspicion in his eyes faded as raven-black hair tumbled down her shoulders. Her body trembled under the weight of his icy stare, and she exhaled in relief as he turned away, uninterested, and he strode off.

The door slammed shut behind him, making the women flinch in unison. A heavy silence hung in the air for a moment, and once they were certain that he was gone, the ladies exchanged glances and cautiously opened the door, peering down the empty corridor to confirm Jason was no longer near before closing the door and locking it. frёewebnoѵēl.com

With quiet urgency, they moved toward the pile of discarded clothes where Esme had hidden herself. Two women reached down, helping her up to her feet, and as she stood, her heart swelled with gratitude for their discreet cooperation.

"You shouldn’t leave yet, he won’t stop looking for you," one of the women warned, her voice low but urgent. "You’d hate to end up in Beta Jason’s hands. He’s exceptionally cruel."

Esme raised an eyebrow, curiosity flickering across her face. "How old is he? It seems like he has far too much energy for his age. Not that it matters but I truly appreciate your help in hiding me. If you hadn’t intervened, goodness knows what he would’ve done."

"It’s no trouble," one of the courtesan’s replied with a knowing glance. "We know him too well. He’s never up to any good, just like his daughter."

"He’s ruined so many lives," another woman spat, her voice laced with pure bitterness. "Him and that vile daughter of his. I still remember the time the king visited, she was practically reserved for him, and he only had eyes for her because he thought she was beautiful. Then he found out she was his mate."

She scoffed. "She turned us into her personal slaves because she was the king’s mate. I really wonder how the king will react when he realizes Emily isn’t all that special as he thinks. If anything she would be no different from us if the king didn’t take interest in her."

Esme blinked in stupefaction, processing the information they carelessly poured out. This was hardly the time to dwell on such matters, but the truth was undeniable.

If Lennox had known all along that Emily was his mate before proposing to her, he had deceived her from the start – playing with her emotions and treating her like a fool. Desperation had blinded her, and in her vulnerability, she had given him the perfect opportunity to manipulate her even further.

All the while she believed he was helping her, but he had his own hidden agenda from the beginning.

How foolishly naive she had been.

"You’re not from here, are you?" one of the courtesan’s asked, her eyes carefully studying Esme from head to toe. "You don’t sound or dress like a local. Are you one of the guests our Alpha invited? What part of the region do you belong to?"

"Can you at least refer to Lord Thadius as Lord Thadius and not an Alpha," another courtesan interjected sharply. "He’s no Alpha. Do you really think someone as cruel as him deserves that title?"

She adjusted the shawl she used to wrap her body. "He’s treated us like property, forced our families to sell us to him just so he could use us for his own sick games. And lately, he’s been acting strange — like he’s lost his wolf or something. I don’t know what’s going on with him."

"He only became an Alpha because his father held that title, not because he had an Alpha wolf of his own," the first woman explained, her voice dripping with disdain. "He’s just a regular man, but his greed pushed him to claim the throne. And, to be honest, his schemes are working out well for him. Knowing what kind of man he is, he and Beta Jason probably conspired with his daughter to deceive the king. Who knows? He might even be after the real throne. You can never really tell with someone like him."

Voices echoed from every corner, conversations spilling freely without concern that Esme was listening, absorbing as much as she could from it.

So far, no one has mentioned anything about the guests who were unconscious, which means the courtesans were probably unaware of the impending chaos.

A sudden, unsettling thought hit Esme, and as far-fetched as it seemed, could the Alpha of the North be orchestrating all of this to eliminate potential threats and claim Lennox’s throne? Had he struck some kind of unimaginable deal with those demons?

"Listen, can your people fight?" Esme asked the courtesans, her voice cutting through the chatter. The room fell silent as they blinked at her, clearly puzzled by her unexpected question.

"Why?" one of them asked cautiously.

"As much as I’d wish to inform you of the ordeal without causing much panic, you ladies need to leave, like right now," Esme said in a grave tone, making sure she sounded serious enough for them to grasp the caution in her voice and realize the weight of the danger ahead.

"Demon wolves have been spotted, and they’re approaching North. There’s no one to fight your battles at the moment except yourselves. You need to leave and warn the others before it becomes too late to react."

Silence ensued after her words, the gravity of the situation hanging in the air. Then, one of the females let out a dismissive chuckle, "Demon wolves? It’s not possible. The last time a demon wolf was seen, it was shot with a Lycobane serum."

Another courtesan nodded, "Even if they were to attack, the guards will handle them since that’s their job, to protect the city walls."

"As hard as it is to believe, this really isn’t the time for misplaced confidence," Esme retorted, knowing the threat was far more treacherous than they realized.

"I’m telling you, all your defenses are down," reaching for the door, Esme swung it open after undoing the locks. "It’s up to you whether you believe me or not, but since you helped me with the beta, it seemed fair to inform you of the chaos that’s headed your way. It’s better to prepare and be wrong than to be negligent and face the consequences."

Without waiting for a response from them, Esme quickly scanned the corridor before darting off.

The courtesan’s exchanged uneasy glances, the doubt clear on their faces.

"But what if she’s telling the truth?" one of them finally spoke up, rising from bed. "Before Coraline was taken by the guards, she mentioned something about the Alpha making deals. She didn’t get a chance to explain before they hauled her away, but what if she was trying to warn us?"

"Coraline?" The women began whispering amongst themselves, their unease growing.

Meanwhile, Finnian and Luca were locked in a relentless battle with the demon shifter in the farthest wing.

The creature’s speed was almost impossible to counter, dodging every attack with unsettling ease. Finnian’s frustration grew with each failed strategy, and Luca, who had initially enjoyed the challenge, was now showing signs of pure irritation as the fight dragged on longer than anticipated.

The demon chuckled in an unsettling tone, watching as their breaths came in labored puffs, and it had to admit that it was quite impressed with their persistence.

It never actually believed they would last this long in a battle. The demon too, never hesitated to kill, but when it came to these two, there was a strange resistance within it.

"Tired?" It taunted them in a gentle voice. "Then I think it’s time I end our little game. I had hoped you two would join me and accept your curse so we can play like this all day without tiring out, but your stubbornness... It’s disappointing."

Its elongated nails scraped against the stone walls as it advanced. "I won’t even need to shift to kill you both. It’s been fun, but you’ve reached the end of your ro–"

"Leave them alone!" A voice shouted from a distance. To the boy’s surprise, Simon unexpectedly appeared, and he drew the demon’s attention just in time to fire a Lycobane serum at it.

The serum shot through the air with a sharp hiss, like a tranquilizer dart cutting through the silence, and it struck the demon squarely in the neck.

The demon barely had time to react as thin, crimson threads shot out from the shadows with a sudden speed, wrapping around its body like a web of living fire. The threads tightened, lifting the creature off the ground and slamming it down with brutal force. The creature thrashed and struggled, trying to break free, but the strange bindings only tightened its grip, as if someone was controlling it.

"What is this?!" The demon snarled, sharp canines gnashing in irritation. From the shadows, a man in a blindfold stepped forward, and the demon’s eyes widened in disbelief when it recognized Donovan.

"You...!!"