The Villain Alpha's Cursed Mate
Chapter 226: Tasted Power

Chapter 226: Tasted Power

Esme drew in a quiet breath, her gaze shifting to Lady Clandestine. All kinds of questions swirled in her mind, and she barely knew where to start from. How much did Lady Clandestine and her husband truly know about the true bearer? How was he able to stop them from disclosing such important information? To the point it lasted until today?

What were they seriously dealing with here, and what can be done to stop it?

Esme knew Donovan had come into contact with the true bearer during his childhood— not physically, but mentally. The shadow she had seen when she was transported into Don’s past, during the night when his mother was murdered, the true bearer had been there as well. He was probably the one who also triggered Don’s curse in his moment of grief, which led to him killing the king and Lennox’s mother.

He wanted Don to suffer at the hands of the kingdom so he could break him. He wanted to twist his pain and take control of it when he was most vulnerable. All this time the true bearer was always there, but everyone was too busy blaming the wrong person to ever notice.

"Donovan didn’t want to drag his brother down with him," Clandestine murmured softly as she turned the soup into a small pot and wrapped it in a clean cloth to preserve the warmth. She paused, her tone growing empathetic. "As the elder, he’s always felt responsible for Leo’s safety. They may act like strangers, but even with all that distance, they’d die for each other without hesitation."

"Is that the reason why you adopted Leonardo?" Esme asked softly, keeping her voice low. "He must’ve been devastated about the whole thing, watching his family crumble before his very eyes. You took him because you knew that at some point, the true bearer, or Alucard would come for him next. If I was in Leonardo’s position, I don’t think I’d be able to work with Lennox after everything he’s done in the past. Those two brothers have been through so much already, and I hate myself each time I think about how I misjudged them."

If only they hadn’t erased her memory back then.

What stung even more was that they had done it without her father’s consent— as if her mind, thoughts, and her feelings were theirs to control. As if she was never truly her own person.

Illyria had a cruel habit of shaping innocent lives into weapons, and she had been a victim in both the court, and Dahmer’s hands. They had tried to do the same thing with Finnian the moment he got infected with the curse. Instead of helping him, they wanted to do the exact opposite. It was truly ironic how the one blamed eventually turned out to be her and Finn’s savior.

Sensing the guilt Esme had, Clandestine quietly approached her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don’t think about the past too much, my dear. It’s all behind us now, what matters is your view on the matter today. Mistakes can’t be avoided. Irwin and I are not perfect either, but right now, we’re aware that if we keep hesitating, nothing will get done."

"The true bearer must have some reason for doing all of these, right?" Esme asked. "Is there a reason behind the madness?"

"Not reasons," Clandestine shook her head. "Only excuses. He’s tasted power, and has become obsessed with it. He’s so obsessed with it that he’s been putting an end to all the Morgrim bloodline. He wants to be the last one standing, the undefeated. But when it comes to Don and Leo, I hate to admit this, but he’s taking a lot of time trying to get them on his side. It’s scary to think about the future, cause I know for sure, he isn’t sitting idly anymore."

After the conversation, Clandestine thought it was best to stop for now, since Esme also needed to rest. She was curious to know what had brought Esme all the way from the Northern borders to the kingdom, but didn’t want to pry yet.

After Esme left the chamber, she went to check on everyone else only to find them in the courtyard, sharpening their blades and chatting away with Revana about their next strategic move. For once, she missed having that talkative raven and his good eyesight around. If Kangee were here, they would have felt more safe and prepared, since the raven always alerted them of any nearby danger. It was one of the reasons she didn’t worry too much about Finn for now, because he had his friends and Kangee who would look out for him. Neville was also there as well.

When night fell upon them, Esme returned to the chamber to check on Irwin. She handed Lady Clandestine a medium-sized, wooden box. Opening it, her eyes widened slightly when she realized the box contained lycobane serum.

"This is—"

"Demon shifters are more rampant now than before," Esme explained. "Keep this with you, just in case. I refined the serum after studying the original compound closely. The previous formulation targeted the wolf specifically, but I enhanced its delivery and made a few biochemical adjustments. Now, it not only kills all kinds of wolf but also induces immediate neuromuscular paralysis. If you run into any trouble, this will stop them in their tracks."

"Oh," Clandestine blinked, a bit startled by Esme’s explanation. "You...did it all by yourself?"

"The whole process was fun to make," Esme replied, carefully closing the box for her. "The modifications were relatively simple, actually. The real challenge was synthesizing the base serum. But once that was stable, tailoring it to the subject’s physiology was just a matter of fine-tuning the dosage and the delivery method. I’m aiming to make more of them since they are useful for both defense and attack strategies."

"That is impressive, have you told the king about this?" Clandestine asked, hoping for some improvement. "There’s a high chance he’ll—"

"They don’t need us," Esme cut in sharply before Clandestine could finish, silencing her without another thought on the matter. The abruptness of it made Clandestine hesitate, and she soon realized that mentioning the king had struck a nerve.

Esme continued, her voice eventually softening. "Keep the serum. Let the king and his court handle their own mess, it doesn’t bother me at all. I’m done trying to salvage peace they clearly don’t want. I won’t waste any more of my strength on them."

Without waiting for a response, she dipped her head in a polite but distant bow and turned on her heel, gliding out of the chamber with quiet dignity.

Clandestine remained still, staring at the closed door before her eyes dropped to the unopened box, a glint of lost hope reflecting on them. Just as she suspected—something had shifted again between both sides.

Would there ever be peace?