Chapter 615.
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A chilling realization dawned on me, one that made my wolf stir with a predatory satisfaction. This wasn’t just a spirit–core fraying; it was the Lunar Micro–Sentinels again, a swarm of silver micro–points tearing through his neural spirit–pathways at an impossible speed. They were tiny, imperceptible to the naked eye, and no one else in the room–not even the most perceptive Alphas–could possibly detect them.
Julia was the first to notice something was terribly wrong. She rushed forward, her scent spiking with a sharp, metallic tang of fear, grabbing his arm to steady him.
“Grandpa? What’s wrong?”
But the moment her hand touched him, everything went black for the Elder Master. His eyes rolled back violently, and he toppled backward, his Alpha presence collapsing as he hit the floor with a sickening thud, rigid and lifeless. His body convulsed, his limbs flailing, and I watched through the feed as his mouth began to droop at one corner, the spirit–bond between his mind and body snapping.
Everyone in the room shot to their feet, hackles raised and ears pinned back, a collective gasp catching in their throats. It took a few agonizing seconds or the screams to erupt in the conference room.
Grandpa!”
Quick! Summon the emergency healer’s transport!”
What happened? He was just fine a second ago!”
Th–this… these are spirit–core fraying symptoms!”
Wait, wasn’t his spirit–core already restored by Julia? How could it fail again?”
The entire conference room instantly erupted into total chaos around me. Grandpa Miller, who had been so spirited and commanding just moments go, now lay like a dying wolf on the cold floor, foaming at the muzzle, completely unconscious. The shareholders who had just been so vehemently wearing their support now looked utterly drained, their scents ashen with dread.
knelt on the ground in my mind, staring at Grandpa Miller through the screen. His body convulsed violently, his mouth twisting, his eyes askew. Even hough I had planned this, my wolf let out a low, mourning whine for the fallen Alpha of our lineage.
My mind went utterly blank for a moment. How could this be happening to him? I’d explicitly used the sentinels to repair his spirit–damage. How ould he suddenly relapse? And… this was worse than any time before. Far worse.
Amidst the chaos, healers rushed in, frantically lifting Grandpa Miller onto a stretcher. Watching his lifeless form on the stretcher as it was hastily vheeled away toward the sanctuary, all the shareholders stood rooted to their spots, exchanging bewildered glances. I knew what they were all hinking simultaneously: Would word of this blatant power grab reach Grayson?
Barely a moment after the deed was done, I saw Faye’s tablet ping with an urgent alert. Her eyes snapped wide, fixed on the few lines of text that flashed cross the screen: Elder Master Miller… at the council meeting… suffered a recurring spirit–core stroke, collapsing instantly
Faye’s head snapped up, her gaze instantly locking onto my back as I continued to work at the lab bench, my hands steady. I didn’t need to turn around o feel the question radiating off her, the same one I knew was burning in her eyes: How did I do it?
Faye took a sharp, shaky breath, clearly trying to calm her racing heart, before she quickly reported:
Isabella, Elder Master Miller just collapsed!”
I didn’t even turn my head, just hummed a faint “Mm”
Faye, unable to contain the torrent of shock and curiosity that clearly surged through her, finally asked
“You… how did you do that?”
I didn’t bother to lift my gaze, answering nonchalantly
“First–gen Micro–Sentinels had a loophole”
My words were simple, but Faye understood She knew I was referring to a loophole, a backdoor, something akin to a hidden vulnerabdity in an ancient wolf contract. Faye must have realized why I hadn’t bothered to stop Juha from aggressively seizing territory influence. So this was my endgame, the trap I’d been patiently setting.
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< Chapter 615.
I saw a slow smile play on Faye’s lips. She clearly understood now: the more Julia expanded her reach, the more she was unknowingly laying the groundwork for my victory.
“I understand,” she said, her voice laced with dawning comprehension.
Mer
My eyes, which had briefly drifted to Faye, snapped back to Grayson in the medical pod. My wolf nudged my consciousness, urging me to finish the work for my mate. My voice, when I spoke again, was sharpened with my earlier focus.
“Given all this, can you buy me some time?”
Faye straightened her spine, a renewed spark of determination igniting her whole demeanor, her Alpha–assistant aura flaring.
‘Absolutely! Any stir among the others is entirely because the old wolf–Elder Master Miller, that is–stood up. He’s old, yes, but he still carries some serious weight in the Silvermoon Pack.”
Faye’s lips curved into a cruel, cold smirk. “But now that he’s collapsed, the Miller Group is headless. Those stakeholders who were incited are probab rembling in their boots right now, terrified Grayson will find out what they did today!”
Alpha Isabella, rest assured,” she continued, her voice firm.“Focus on letting Grayson’s spirit–core recover. Leave everything else, everything outside he territory, entirely to me!”
With that, Faye turned sharply and strode out of the vessel.
The news hit the Capital Territory like a shockwave. Elder Master Miller’s second spirit–core failure at the council meeting, his critical condition, an mmediate hospitalization in the healing sanctuary–it instantly swept through the entire Howlnet. The city’s elite Alphas absolutely erupted.
Did you hear? That old wolf Miller–he collapsed right after trying to seize control!”
ulia’s ritual skills must be worthless, she couldn’t even save her own grandfather!”
What are we going to do? I’ve already committed pack resources, that’s 35% of our territory assets!”
Me too!”
We have to make her give those resources back!”
Exactly! We need to get them back from her!”
L
I wave of cold dread seemed to wash over those who had, moments before, clung to even a sliver of hope in Julia and her technology. I could ractically feel their icy relief turning to stark fear through the collective mind–link. In an instant, any remaining trust they’d placed in Julia simply hattered.
Lepresentatives from countless clans, all across the room, immediately snatched up their communication devices. Across the room, I heard hurried hispers turn into frantic shouts. “Hello! Cancel that ritual appointment with Ms. Julia immediately! Yes! Even if we have to pay a pack–penalty, wer ulling out!”
alia was in the middle of Elder Master Miller’s second treatment, her telepathic link unreachable, and I knew her assistants commuan, ation lines had > be practically melting down from all the calls. All of them, every single one, were demands to cancel appointments.
wen her own grandfather’s treatment would only last less than a lunar cycle. These wolves were paying an astronomical price, only to extend a pirit–life for a month, maybe even less? Who in their right mind would agree to that?
heard the news just as Julia, having completed another spirit -clot removal for Elder Master Miller, finally emerged from the sackroom, clearly ready or some much–needed rest I watched, my wolf snarling in my chest, as her face dramed of all color while she listened to her assistants frantic report.
t was right then that Aurora also rushed into the sanctuary. The moment Julia saw her mother, the right control in her expression crumbled. Her eyes isually so guarded, now swam with a desperate mix of hurt and panic
Grandpa’s health had clearly been improving,‘ she pleaded ‘I monitored all his vaala daily. How could he relapse so suddenly Mother, my career is just aking off. What am I supposed to do?”
Aurora looked at her daughter, who was clearly on the verge of a full shift from the stress, but her own expression remained utterly unreadable.
‘Why the panic?” she asked, her voice cold and steady
Just those two words somehow reined in Julia’s spiraling thoughts
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