Crystal's POV:
The new speculation left me upset for a long time and I couldn't reign in my agitation.
My mind flashed back to my first year as Alpha. I had gone to negotiate with Hudson on behalf of my pack. When I met Hudson that day, his condition was worse than I had expected. He was huddled in a black robe, looking like he was on his deathbed. He was frail, and his prominent hand bones were horribly deformed. Thanks to the curse, he could only lean weakly against the chair.
I greeted him with a smile, but he stared at me with a clenched jaw. His lifeless face under his hood twitched subtly, and he looked eager to charge at me and tear me into pieces.
But by that time, I'd already mastered both the lycan power and the witchcraft practiced by black witches. I was not scared of Hudson, who was suffering from the black death curse. Even if I stood within arm's length from him, he wouldn't have the nerve to touch me.
After taking a sip of the coffee the servant had brought, I gently placed the cup on the table and took out the agreement from my bag. I waved the paper in front of his despondent eyes to show him the agreement. Then I placed it on the table for him to sign.
The agreement was quite straightforward. The most important clause was that from that moment on, the vampires and werewolves would not break the peace, and they would no longer invade the other's territory. Both sides agreed to these terms for fifty years. Neither would they step foot into each other's restricted zone, nor would they interfere in each other's matters.
Although several emotions flitted through Hudson's face, he finally picked up the pen and signed his name with a bleak expression. The negotiation back then had been exceptionally smooth and I returned immediately.
Over the next five years, the border had been safe and sound. As expected, the vampires had honored their side of the agreement and never entered werewolf territory. I gradually relaxed. I didn't keep the same vigilance against vampires and even lowered our security measures.
Not long after I returned to the imperial palace this time, I discovered that the curse on Blair had lifted naturally now that Noreen was gone. Did this also mean that Hubson was free of the black death curse?
Hubson was so crafty. He had been pretending to be weak all this time, while he was actually secretly planning something against me! I gritted my teeth.
I said to Blair, "After Noreen's death, the black death curse on Hubson might have been lifted. Now he has probably regained his strength. Maybe he is hatching a secret plot. You must stay alert."
There was a moment of silence on the phone. Blair seemed to be deep in thought. A few seconds later, his voice rang out from the earpiece.
"So we can be certain this is Hubson's scheme. Besides, I have some bad news for you. My subordinate just sent me the report that the two spies committed suicide during the interrogation. Their true faces were revealed when they stopped breathing." Blair paused briefly and continued, "They had fangs. They were vampires."
I gasped loudly. "So the vampires have already infiltrated the werewolf pack?"
Blair replied, "It's very likely. When we probed this matter further, we uncovered some vampire presence in the small towns far away from the city, some new and some old. It seems that these vampires have mastered the skills to disguise themselves as werewolves. It is quite possible that some of them have long crossed the border and penetrated the werewolf pack."
This news disturbed me. I muttered, "This is all my fault. I shouldn't have relaxed my guard."
Blair sighed. "It's not your fault. The responsibility for this issue falls on everyone. Don't worry yourself too much about it. Now it is also possible that the vampires have infiltrated the imperial capital. I think we should do something to weed them out."
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