Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Nova’s heart was pounding, James’s words stuck in her head like a burr she couldn’t shake. “Perhaps… because I am a human spy?” he’d tossed out that cocky grin of his daring her to bite.

Was he just poking at Adolph’s temper, or was there something real behind the joke? The question chewed at her, but the werewolves’ growls snapped her back, their eyes glinting like knives in the dusty training grounds.

“No!” Nova yelled, her voice rough, almost tripping over itself. “That’s nonsense! I don’t know you from anywhere, and you are no spy for the Human Kingdom. We will never stoop so low to send a spy to other races!” The words spilled out, hot and jagged, though a sliver of doubt wormed through her.

She didn’t know James, except for the knowledge from Isabella that he is also a candidate of the Child of Light, that’s not enough to claim that he knows her so well but here she was, sticking her neck out for him.

Her chest tightened, like she’d bet on a bad hand. Adolph’s stare was pure poison, sliding from Nova to James, then to Isabella. His lips curled into a nasty smirk, all teeth and malice. “So, you’re all traitors, skulking into my Werewolf Kingdom,” he growled, each word sharp as a lash.

“You’re begging for your death! I will gladly grant your request for death.” His voice boomed, thick with the kind of swagger that made folks flinch. He wheeled on the pack warriors, arm slicing the air. “Kill them all! They are all traitors.” he barked.

“I order you all my loyal pack, seize James, Isabella and her lap dog—kill them!” The warriors charged, swords catching the sun like fire, claws ripping up dirt, their snarls a wall of noise crashing over the grounds. James, pinned under a pile of warriors, let out a laugh—sharp, reckless, like he was spitting in fate’s face.

“Adolph, you puffed-up jackass!” he shouted, voice raw as torn leather. “You’re so full of yourself, so you will choose to harm the Elemental Master and the Princess of theHuman Kingdom and not even blink!” The words hit hard, and Adolph’s face twisted, flushed with fury, his eyes screaming murder. “You will end up bringing ruins into our pack.”

“Shut it!” Adolph roared, his sword flashing as he lunged at James, ready to carve him open.

The blade dropped fast, a silver blur, and Nova’s breath jammed in her throat. Everything slowed, the world shrinking to that killing edge. She couldn’t let it land—not on James, not like this, if he is the candidate of the Child of Light,he is needed alive and not dead. She needed to do something to help him but what can she do?

Then, something kicked awake inside her, a wild, itchy heat, like lightning trapped in her bones. With a yell that burned her throat, Nova shoved her hands out, and the air listened. A blast of wind tore loose, rough and angry, smacking Adolph’s sword clean out of his hand.

The blade spun wild, thumping into the dirt like a drunk’s bad throw. Adolph stumbled, eyes bugging out, but he shook it off quick, his sneer back in place. “Get her!” he snapped, and the warriors swung toward Nova, their growls louder, closing in like a noose of claws and steel. Nova’s pulse was a drumbeat, her hands shaking as she tried to grab that power again. “Come on, come on,” she thought, reaching for the spark, but it slipped away, slick as mud. Panic clawed her insides. “Why’s it gone? I need you to work again please…” She clenched her fists, begging the air to stir, the ground to buck—something, anything—but nothing answered.

The warriors were too close, their blades winking at her. Adolph’s laugh was a knife, sharp and mean. “Look at you, scampering after the Elemental Master like a kicked pup!” he jeered, grinning like he’d already won. He faces Isabella, his voice dripping scorn. “And you, you stuck-up fraud! You Elemental Masters prance around, tricking everybody with your fake magic. You’re dirt, and you don’t deserve a bit of respect! You should have remained at the Elemental Academy and not come to the Werewolves Kingdom, you are meeting your doom today.”

“Isabella didn’t flinch, her face steady as a rock, though her eyes smoldered, fierce and tired all at once. She let out a sigh, like she was sick of Adolph’s noise. “You’re blind as a bat, Alpha, and it’s your own damn fault,” she said, her voice quiet but hard, like a blade wrapped in silk. Before Adolph could sling another insult, Isabella flicked her hand, and the air buzzed, thick with something alive.

A wave of power exploded from her, wild as a flood, smashing into Adolph and tossing him ten meters back. He hit the ground hard, dirt spraying like a busted sack, his pained grunt swallowed by the chaos. The warriors got the same treatment, flung back in a tangle of limbs, their swords clattering like dropped coins. The grounds went quiet, the kind of quiet that presses on your ears. Nova’s breath caught, her eyes wide. Isabella’s power was a slap to the face, a reminder of what a real Elemental Master could do. Relief trickled through her, loosening the knot in her gut. They weren’t done for yet.

Adolph, coughing as he dragged himself up, shot them a look that could burn holes. “You’ll regret this,” he rasped, voice like gravel. “You’ve pissed off the whole Werewolf Kingdom!”

His warriors, groaning and stirring, started pulling themselves together, their glares promising trouble. Nova glanced at Isabella, hunting for her calm, but her mind kept tripping over James. How’d he know who she was? Why’d he think they were here for him? The prophecy, this whole messed-up journey, its half-spoken warnings—it was a knot she couldn’t untie. She wanted to grab him, shake answers out of him, but her tongue felt heavy. Isabella stepped up, solid as an oak. “We’re not here by chance,James,” she said, her voice even but firm. “The prophecy brought us here. You being in the middle of this? That’s no fluke.” Her eyes pinned him, sharp enough to cut through his grin. James hauled himself up, brushing dirt off his torn shirt, his gaze bouncing from Isabella to Nova. Shock and something else—maybe curiosity, maybe a dare—flashed across his face.

He straightened, that crooked grin creeping back, like he was weighing his next move. Nova’s stomach flipped, his stare hitting her like a spark. The air felt heavy, like it was holding its breath for what he’d say next. She braced herself, the prophecy’s shadow stretching long and dark over them all. James tilted his head, his voice low, teasing, but with an edge that made her skin prickle. “Why have you come to the enemy Werewolf Kingdom?” he asked, eyes locked on

Nova’s. “Could it be… for me??”