The Alpha's Regret Return Of The Betrayed Luna (Addison) novel Chapter 456

Chapter 456: Chapter 456 The Curse

"It gives me some leeway to act on my own. As long as I don’t say or do anything that would directly harm the master, I can survive. But speaking to you... revealing anything about the plan or the reasons behind it... anything that could directly affect the master... would kill me."

He paused, drawing in a shaky breath. Addison could see him struggling, jaw tight, chest rising and falling as if he were waging a silent war against the curse. A fresh trickle of blood gathered in the corner of his mouth.

Seeing this, Addison immediately stopped Chase from speaking. It was obvious that the curse was reacting, and if he forced himself to continue, he might truly die.

Even Levi blinked in surprise. Chase looked like a man on the brink of collapse, and Levi could no longer maintain his sharp skepticism. If what Chase was saying was true, then losing him here wouldn’t just devastate Addison as she lost one of her fated mates; it would also shatter their only chance of gaining an insider within the enemy camp, someone who could one day turn the tide in their favor.

"Then if all of that is true," Levi asked coldly, "why are you back here? Aren’t you afraid we’ll kill you? And why are you even daring to go against your master?"

He chose his words carefully. These questions didn’t touch on that master’s plans or identity, nothing that should trigger the curse. If Chase could answer anything at all, it would be this.

Before answering, Chase drew in a deep breath, but the moment he did, it felt as though the air had been hollowed out of his lungs. His chest constricted, his heart seized as if an invisible hand were squeezing it tight, and he struggled just to breathe.

He forced himself to wait for the pain to subside, afraid that if he pushed any further, he would cough up another mouthful of blood. And if that happened, Addison would only worry more.

A part of him felt a quiet warmth spread in his heart because of her concern, but seeing that worry etched on her face made his chest ache even more. He didn’t want to test her feelings this way.

Chase lifted his gaze and offered her a slow, reassuring smile, even as he weakly leaned against the bars of the cell, his body barely holding itself upright. He was almost heaving now. His face had gone pale, drained of color from the pain.

Seeing him like this, even Levi could no longer doubt his words. He said nothing, no longer pressing for answers, and waited silently for Chase to steady his breathing before continuing.

After a while, Chase finally steadied himself. His face was still pale from the lingering pain, but his breathing had evened out, the violent rise and fall of his chest gradually calming. Only then did he speak.

"Coming here under the pretense of scouting the territory to supposedly investigate what went wrong with our last mission didn’t count as harming them," he said slowly. "So the curse didn’t react."

A faint, cold smile tugged at his lips.

"Besides, I’ve sabotaged them more than once without consequences," he continued. "I let their people walk straight into annihilation without lifting a finger, then reported it as our enemies being far stronger than expected, claiming they had more Alphas on their side."

A low chuckle escaped him, edged with disdain. It wasn’t aimed at Addison or her people, but at the mastermind pulling the strings behind him, at how easily Chase had outmaneuvered them, time and time again.

"Even Greg nearly died here," Chase continued hoarsely. "I actually considered letting him die and doing nothing at all."

His lips curled faintly.

"But I knew that if he really died, that person would notice something was wrong. So I had no choice but to save him and flee so I could pin all the blame onto him." He paused, breathing shallowly. "At the same time, didn’t I let your people wipe out the ones I brought with me? That way, their strength dwindled instead."

The moment Addison’s hand touched Chase’s shoulder, his entire body reacted.

Her touch was soft, smooth, and warm, yet it sent a searing rush through his veins, as if molten magma had begun to flow inside him. He shuddered despite the pain. And yet, at the very spot where her hand rested, there was a strange, soothing coolness. The contradiction made his senses sharpen, every nerve hyperaware of her presence.

More than that, he felt as if the curse was loosening its grip.

The crushing pressure inside him slowly receded, his muscles relaxing as the pain ebbed away. Chase let out a shaky breath, then another, carefully steadying his breathing as the worst of it passed.

When he lifted his gaze, his dark eyes, deep and endless like the ocean, locked onto Addison’s. She was watching him with open concern, her golden eyes bright and unwavering, like a blazing sun. And for the first time in a long while, Chase felt as though that light was reaching someone like him, someone who had lived too long in the shadows.

"I–I’m okay now..." Chase managed to say, his voice still strained.

But he was far too consumed by Addison’s touch, and by the warmth in her golden eyes, to immediately realize what had just happened. He didn’t notice it at first at how her hand had soothed the curse when nothing else ever could.

Whenever his darker thoughts surfaced, whenever the murderous fury toward the ones who had slaughtered his family surged beyond his control, the curse would retaliate without mercy. It would tear through his body, tormenting him until he collapsed, weak and barely conscious.