The Second Chance Of The Rejected Moon (Celine and Bastian) novel Chapter 86

Chapter 86

Magnus lets out a quiet laugh and shakes his head as he pours himself another cup of coffee.

“Father… I still wonder how I survived your upbringing.”

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“Because I’m an excellent teacher,” Silas replies with complete seriousness before helping himself to another piece of cheese. “If it weren’t for me, the two of you would be completely useless.”

“I’m not entirely convinced of that,” Magnus mutters with a resigned smile.

I return to my seat beside Bastian and, taking advantage of the fact that no one seems to be paying attention to us, gently. kiss his cheek. The frown he’s been wearing ever since Jared arrived relaxes just a little.

At least it works.

“I got used to your annoying presence, and fortunately, I happen to like you.” Silas continues, pointing a finger at Jared. “Finding someone willing to put up with me for this long isn’t exactly easy.”

Jared rolls his eyes.

“I knew you’d end up admitting it.”

Magnus smiles and shakes his head once again.

“I have plenty of warriors who would kill for the chance to train under you. You could always come back to the kingdom and torture whoever you feel like. At least we’d get to see you more often.”

The amusement slowly fades from Silas’s expression.

For the first time since we sat down for breakfast, the room loses some of the warmth and lightheartedness that had filled it.

The old man sets his coffee cup down on the table with a dull thud.

“I can’t leave this place. A few years ago, there was a Strigoi invasion in the human world. The United States, Mexico, and several countries throughout Central America barely survived the slaughter. I can’t leave and risk one of those bloodsuckers taking refuge in my territory, much less inside my palace.”

His words fall over the table like a stone.

My smile disappears.

What is a Strigoi?

Bastian stops eating as well. His fingers freeze around his coffee cup, and his dark eyes lock onto his grandfather with an intensity that even wipes the smile from Magnus’s face.

“Strigoi?” His voice is low, filled with a restrained anger I know all too well. “How is it possible that we never heard about this?”

Silas calmly raises his eyes.

He doesn’t seem surprised by his grandson’s reaction. On the contrary, he looks as though he had been expecting that exact question from the moment he mentioned the invasion.

“Because what happens in the human world is not our concern, son.”

Bastian drops his silverware onto his plate with a sharp clatter and fixes his grandfather with a furious glare.

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The Second Chance Of The Rejected Moon

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This palace, this land, and everything in it isn’t worth what your life is worth, Silas. Have you completely lost your mind?”

His grandfather pretends to be touched and dramatically places a hand over his heart.

“Are you worried about your grandpa, Basti?”

The horrified expression that appears on Bastian’s face forces me to bite back a laugh.

“Don’t be ridiculous, and stop calling me that,” he snaps with obvious annoyance before letting out a heavy sigh. “You’re right about one thing. What happens to humans isn’t our responsibility, but when it comes to a plague like the Strigoi, we have to help one another. Don’t forget that werewolves live here too, and they might need us.”

Magnus hides a smile behind his coffee cup as he calmly takes another sip.

“The only thing you’re interested in is chopping the heads off infected vampires. Admit it,” Silas teases, clearly enjoying himself.

“Were they eradicated?” I ask, turning my attention toward him. “I had no idea infected vampires even existed, let alone that they were called Strigoi.”

“Don’t worry, Celine. You’re safe here, and you’ll be even safer in Lemuria.” Bastian notices my concern and immediately tries to reassure me, resting one hand over mine beneath the table. “Grandpa is talking about something that happened many years ago.”

“That’s right. It all ended a long time ago.” Silas nods calmly as he finishes the last sip of his coffee. “Now finish your breakfast. We need to leave.”

Jared, who has remained silent throughout the entire conversation, casually reaches across the table, steals a slice of bread from Silas’s plate, and starts eating it as though it were the most natural thing in the world.

“T’ye been packed for days. All you have to do is say, ‘We’re leaving, so we can load everything up and get out of this damned freezer.

Silas lets out a resigned snort, although an amused smile tugs at the corner of his lips.

“You’re just as opportunistic as you were when you were a pup.”

Jared shrugs without the slightest hint of remorse as he finishes the bread.

“And you still take too long.”

I can’t help smiling as I watch them argue so naturally. For a moment, it’s hard to believe I’m sitting beside a family whose members have lived for centuries. They insult one another, tease each other, and argue exactly like any other family.

Silas finally nods and rises to his feet.

“Well, it’s time to head back.”

A few minutes later, we leave the palace and begin our journey back along the same trail that had led us to these snow- covered lands.

I can’t really explain it, but this time the walk feels much shorter.

Maybe because my mind is still spinning with everything I discovered.

Or perhaps because, for the first time since I arrived, I no longer feel like a complete stranger in this place.

Jared and Thomas chat animatedly a few steps behind us, while Bastian walks beside me with a calmness that contrasts with the carefree attitude of Magnus and Silas, who lead the way as though returning to Lemuria were nothing more than

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The Second Chance Of The Rejected Moon

another pleasant stroll.

The enormous wall of mist appears before us once again.

My fingers tighten slightly around my mate’s hand.

“It still makes me a little nervous to walk through that.”

Bastian smiles with that quiet confidence that only he can inspire in me.

B

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