Chapter 481: Chapter 481 Maxwell’s Secret

“I don’t even know what to say anymore. This is spiraling out of control,” Zion said in a low voice. “Addison, using the Light Fairy’s borrowed power has become inevitable. We’re lucky she survived this time, but the next?”

His jaw tightened. “Our enemies aren’t just backed by Dark Witches anymore. They’re using demonic energy, even demonic insects. That level of depravity is beyond vile.”

Careful not to disturb Addison, Zion kept his voice restrained, but his frustration bled through. He dragged a hand through his hair, exhaling sharply.

“And that Chase…” he muttered. “Are we truly certain he’s Addison’s fated mate? Or is this another scheme, some twisted spell woven by the Dark Witches to deceive her?”

“I thought the same,” Maxwell said quietly. “But with the Light Fairy bonded to Addison, I believe such tricks wouldn’t work on her anymore. The Light Fairy’s power naturally repels curses and dark influences.”

He paused, his gaze lingering on Addison. “The only reason the curse on her hasn’t been dispelled yet is because it was placed long before she formed the contract with the Light Fairy. And judging by its persistence, it must be exceptionally powerful.”

“Still… given time, it should gradually weaken and eventually fade under the Light Fairy’s influence, but if it does not, then we could only try our original plan in searching for a way to take that curse off of her.”

As he finished, silence settled over the tent. Maxwell, Zion, and Levi all looked at Addison, each wearing the same complicated expression, worry, guilt, and quiet admiration tangled together.

She had shouldered far too much, repeatedly placing herself in danger to protect everyone else and prevent horrors from unfolding, and none of them could ignore the weight she was carrying.

“But we can’t deny that Chase did help us this time,” Levi said thoughtfully. “If he hadn’t come to warn Addie, we might have walked straight into the enemy’s trap. All our preparations would’ve gone to waste, and those locust swarms would’ve only grown stronger, strong enough to break through the barrier and wreak havoc across the kingdom.”

His expression darkened as the implications sank in. “I don’t even want to imagine how disastrous it would’ve been if that had happened.”

“Let’s give Chase the benefit of the doubt for now,” Maxwell added. “After all, this isn’t the first time he’s helped us. Remember when he got Greg into trouble and stopped the demonic insect from escaping the barrier? That alone was a huge favor.”

“Hmph!” Zion snorted, but his expression quickly turned contemplative. “Addie, using the power of Light, didn’t just purify the demonic energy in the biochemical agent; it reversed it. She infused it with Light, turning it into poison that wiped out those damned demonic insects.”

His gaze hardened as it shifted to Maxwell. “But how did those insects even make it this far?” Zion demanded. “Did your people grow lax in guarding the gate to the demonic realm? Or did the plague create a breach, an opening your guards couldn’t hold?”

Zion’s scrutiny was sharp and unrelenting.

Maxwell’s jaw clenched in frustration. The accusation wasn’t baseless. The North was reeling from the plague; too many of their weaker wolves had already died, especially the elderly and the children. Just thinking about it made his blood run cold.

“Quite possible,” Maxwell said hoarsely. “It may have been the enemy all along, the plague deliberately introduced to the North to weaken us, to make us suffer. With our defenses stretched thin, they could force an opening and let the demonic energy seep out from the gate to the demon realm.”

His eyes darkened, hatred flickering within them.

“But what I can’t wrap my head around,” he continued, voice low and edged with fury, “is how they managed to obtain those demonic insects. Creatures like that should be buried deep within the demon realm, far beyond anyone’s reach.”

“Could it be that our enemy’s influence has already reached into the demon realm?” Levi mused. “That they have an insider working for them on the other side of the gate?”

He shook his head almost immediately, dismissing the thought. “No… that shouldn’t be possible. The demon realm is completely sealed. Exchanging even a single word across the gate would be impossible, unless the seal itself had weakened enough for a demon to slip through unnoticed.”

His gaze sharpened. “And for something like that to happen without the Northern guards detecting it… something is clearly wrong.”

Levi then turned to Maxwell, as if recalling something long overdue. “That aside, Alpha Maxwell, I’ve been meaning to ask, why were you searching for traces of the Dark Witches in the first place? Do you hold a grudge against them, or were you looking for them for another reason?”

His voice remained calm, but there was unmistakable curiosity in his eyes. Now that they had reached this point, Levi felt it was time to understand Maxwell’s motives, the reason that the search had led him to Addison in the Midnight River Pack’s Territory six years ago.

More than anything, it was necessary for all of them to understand one another’s intentions, so they could judge whether any of it might harm Addison in the long run. Especially now, when dangers lurked around her from every direction, far more than they could ever hope to guard against all at once.

If they couldn’t protect her from every external threat, then the least they could do was secure themselves first.

That meant guarding from within, and that included them.

That was why Levi needed to know.

Addison’s collapse into a coma after overusing her newly acquired power had shaken him deeply. It made him realize that he could no longer keep letting her shoulder everything while he remained safely in the background, offering nothing more than support from afar. That wasn’t enough anymore.

This time, he had to be proactive.

He needed to find ways to protect her before danger reached her, to take on the burdens himself whenever possible. If he could, he wanted Addison to step back, to stand above the chaos and simply command, rather than be forced to stain her hands with matters this ugly and cruel.

If there was any way to keep her hands clean, Levi intended to find it.

More than that, Levi was genuinely curious about what Maxwell was hiding.

And sure enough, the moment Levi asked the question, Maxwell visibly flinched. He clearly hadn’t expected the discussion to turn toward him, and the reaction was obvious enough to be caught by both Levi and Zion. Zion’s gaze immediately sharpened, scrutinizing Maxwell with cold intensity.

Maxwell frowned but said nothing. He took a few slow, measured breaths before turning his eyes toward Addison instead, an evasive move that only deepened the suspicion growing in the room.

Levi and Zion exchanged a silent understanding. Pressing him now would only back him into a corner, making him more guarded and defensive. If they wanted answers, brute force, verbal or otherwise, wasn’t the way.

They needed Maxwell to lower his guard on his own.

That meant earning his trust, understanding him first, and giving him space to speak when he was ready. Only then could they be sure that whatever Maxwell was hiding wouldn’t eventually become a threat to Addison.

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