Chapter 580 Telling Them The Truth At Last 2

Chapter 580: Chapter 580 Telling Them The Truth At Last 2

Leon had forcefully chosen her as his mate through a ritual that had been acknowledged, and even approved, by his own God. Whether she liked it or not, they were now tied together by something far more complicated than a simple alliance. At least for now, that bond prevented Leon from directly harming her.

And because of that, Addison decided to take the risk.

For the time being, she could trust him.

For the time being, she could consider him someone standing on her side.

So, instead of hiding the truth from him and creating more suspicion between them, Addison decided to tell all of them.

She said nothing else as she continued walking through the palace, her footsteps echoing softly through the quiet halls.

Behind her, her mates exchanged puzzled looks, clearly wondering what Addison was planning. Still, none of them questioned her. One after another, they simply followed behind her in silence.

Zion looked around, and the more he took in their surroundings, the stronger the sense of familiarity became.

He had been here before.

As Addison continued leading them toward the back of the Royal Palace, Zion’s gaze eventually landed on the vast lake ahead. His steps unconsciously slowed.

If his memory served him right, this was the exact place.

Back then, when he first came here, he had discovered a strange barrier surrounding a piece of land near the lake. Whatever was inside had immediately caught his attention, and he had tried everything he could to get through, but in the end, he hadn’t been able to breach it.

And now, Addison was leading them straight back to that very place.

For some reason, Zion’s heart began pounding so hard against his chest that it almost hurt. An unfamiliar sense of anticipation mixed with unease coiled inside him, tightening with every step they took.

At the same time, Shura began pacing restlessly inside his mind.

Back and forth.

Back and forth.

The creature’s agitation only made Zion more nervous.

"What’s wrong with you? Can you stop pacing around like that?" Zion snapped internally, already on edge. Seeing Shura act so restless only made the uneasy feeling in his chest grow stronger.

He felt as though something was waiting for them beyond that barrier.

And judging by the way Shura was reacting, whatever it was had something to do with them.

"I can’t help it," Shura growled, its voice carrying a hint of agitation. "I’m nervous. I started feeling it the moment we arrived in this place. It’s the same feeling I had before... as if something important to me is here. Something is waiting inside, but I can’t explain what it is..."

"Tsk." Zion clicked his tongue inside his mind.

He wasn’t actually annoyed with Shura. The problem was that he was just as restless.

Shura’s agitation was getting under his skin, rubbing against his already frayed nerves until Zion couldn’t tell whether the uneasiness in his chest belonged to him or his wolf inside his mind.

And he didn’t know why.

The deeper they went down the path, the heavier the feeling became.

Dread slowly crawled beneath his skin.

Then Addison suddenly stopped.

Zion’s eyes narrowed.

They were standing right in front of the invisible barrier that had stopped him before.

The very barrier he had failed to enter no matter what he tried.

Addison slowly extended her hand and pressed her palm against empty air.

Ripples immediately spread across the invisible barrier.

Everyone could see it now.

The space in front of them distorted, the surface trembling like the calm water of a lake after a stone had been thrown into it.

Zion’s heartbeat grew louder.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

Addison stood silently before the barrier, her hand still resting against its surface. She then took one long, heavy breath, her chest rising before she slowly exhaled.

It was as though she was making one final decision.

As though she was forcing herself to bury whatever emotions she was feeling and prepare herself for what was about to happen.

Then, without another word, Addison took out a token.

The moment she activated it, the barrier reacted.

A small opening slowly appeared before them, tearing through the invisible wall and creating just enough space for everyone to pass through.

Zion’s body instinctively tensed.

Shura had gone completely silent. For the first time since they arrived, the restless creature inside his mind had stopped pacing. And that silence somehow made Zion even more nervous.

As soon as the small opening appeared, Addison stepped aside.

"Please, go in."

Her voice was calm, but her expression was so serious that no one dared question her. Whatever they wanted to ask died in their throats.

One by one, they passed through the opening.

Once everyone was inside, they stopped and turned back to wait for Addison.

Only then did she step through the barrier herself.

The moment she was inside, Addison immediately activated the token again.

The small opening began to close.

The distorted surface of the barrier rippled once more before sealing itself completely, leaving no trace that anyone had entered.

Addison didn’t intend to leave even the smallest opening behind.

There were still too many moles lurking within the Royal Palace, people they had yet to identify and root out. No matter how careful she was, she couldn’t shake the feeling that someone might be watching her every move from the shadows.

She couldn’t afford to take that risk.

This place was too important.

And until she knew exactly who she could trust, she would not allow anyone else to get close enough to discover what was hidden behind this barrier.

Not even by accident.

After closing the small opening behind them, Addison took the lead once more. Her teeth sank into her lower lip, and her hands curled tightly into fists at her sides as nervousness slowly gnawed at her.

She had dreaded this day for so long.

But she knew she couldn’t keep the truth buried forever. Continuing to hide it would do no one any good, not her, not Zion, and certainly not the others. Sooner or later, they all deserved to know.

The group walked in silence for nearly ten minutes before they finally reached the lakeside. Even before they could get close enough to see what lay ahead, the sound of two young boys arguing reached their ears.

Yet the boys were nowhere in sight.

Instead, the first thing they noticed was a narrow path lined with blooming flowers, stretching quietly toward the water. And beyond it, sitting near the edge of the lake, stood a small cabin.

But Zion suddenly froze in his tracks.

A familiar scent had reached him.

His eyes widened, his pupils dilating as realization crashed into him. Slowly, his gaze lifted and locked onto Addison’s back.

Addison felt it immediately.

His blazing stare seemed to bore straight through her, and her body stiffened involuntarily. Guilt clawed at her chest as she bit down hard on her lower lip, her fingers tightening until her knuckles turned white at her sides.

She waited.

She waited for Zion to demand an explanation.

She waited for him to question her, to accuse her of hiding something so important from him.

She even braced herself for him to explode in anger.

But nothing came.

Only silence.

A heavy, suffocating silence settled over the group.

The other three had no idea what was happening, but Maxwell and Levi could clearly feel Addison’s unease through their connection with her. They immediately grew alert, their eyes shifting back and forth between Zion and Addison with questioning looks.

Everyone had stopped walking.

Yet no one spoke.

The silence stretched between them, thick with tension, as if they were all waiting for someone to finally say what none of them dared to ask.

"Brother! You’re cheating!"

The sudden, whiny cry of a child shattered the heavy silence hanging over the group.

The voice came from somewhere ahead.

With their heightened senses, they could roughly pinpoint where the child was. Whoever was arguing couldn’t be far from the lakeside, most likely somewhere in front of the cabin. The flower-lined path and the cabin itself blocked their view, however, keeping the two boys hidden from sight.

"I’m not!"

Another childish voice immediately fired back.

"And you shouldn’t call me a cheater just because you lost, Kyle! Our instructor said we should always stay on guard. You thought you had already won, so you started celebrating too early. Is it my fault that I counterattacked?"

The second boy, Aiden, spoke with a strange seriousness that almost made him sound like a miniature adult.

Of course, he didn’t truly think like one.

He was simply repeating what his instructor had taught him. Aiden had always had an excellent memory, and once someone taught him something, he remembered it almost word for word.

Besides, he absolutely hated being called a cheater.

So, with his little face probably scrunched up in indignation, he stubbornly defended himself with everything he could remember.