LEILANI ***Under Editing***

⚫ Chapter 30⚫

I said goodnight to the others and watching them leave the garden. I told them to keep their mouths shut. After all, I didn't want others to know about this. It was now just Jasper, Nathan, Elias, and I remaining.

"Uh, how are we going to know how to get to Regnum Ignis?" Jasper asked. "Oh, I didn't even think about that..." I muttered feeling foolish.

"Why don't we wait for a couple of days before leaving?" Nathan suggested.

"What do you mean?" I asked him. I wanted to leave as soon as possible. "I don't think we're ready to leave tomorrow. I mean we don't even know how we are getting there..." Nathan said. "But who's going to tell us? I can't just ask Sebastián. I don't want him knowing about this," I said.

"What about Mateo?" Elias suggested.

"Oh yeah... and there's Mateo. If I was to ask him about how to get there do you guys think he would tell me?"

"Well he seems pretty chill and easy-going, so I think it's worth a shot," Jasper said.

"Alright, tomorrow I'll ask him. Over the next couple of days, let's just relax and enjoy ourselves. I think we'll leave around Tuesday."

"Sounds good to me. Now I don't know about you guys, but I'm very tired. See you tomorrow," Jasper said with a yawn before leaving the garden.

"I'll see you at the house," Nathan said to me. We then followed Jasper leaving the garden.

Saturday, December 15

The next day I arose early in the morning to go for a stroll. I felt the need to explore a bit. Once I made it outside, I began my journey. It was around 5 am as I began walking. I made sure I didn't go too far so I would know my way back to the house.

Just as I was about to start walking into the direction that my friends and I went yesterday; I suddenly had this urge to go to the bridge. I was glad I remembered my way there as I speedily arrived at its entrance. I had forgotten how narrow it was. I began to walk making sure to admire the water down below. The morning sun peeked over the blanket of water casting a beautiful reflection. I traced the vines intertwined with the bridge's structure as I made my way towards the other side. Once I got there, I took a left knowing that I wanted to go near the water.

I ran down the grass heading straight towards the water. I wanted to go for a swim.

After finally making it, I stood on the sandy beach staring at the view in front of me. It was magnificent. It somehow resembled a tropical island. I turned around to see the bridge not too far away in a distance. I could also see the castle on the other side.

Just as I was about to dip my feet into the water, I saw a male lying on the sand in front of a tree trunk with his head facing away from me.

"Hey," I said while slowly walking towards him. He didn't move and remained in his exact position.

"Hello?" I walked in front of him before I screaming in horror. His neck had been slit causing me to stagger away feeling nauseous. "Oh m-my," I stuttered as I covered my mouth.

"What happened?" I heard someone ask from behind me. I turned around fast to see my mate looking at the male in front of me. He scrunched his face with disgust as he pulled me away from him.

"What are you d-doing here?" I asked him in fear. "I couldn't sleep. Come on, let's go tell Sebastián," he responded.

-

Soon both Elias and I arrived at the castle to be greeted with yet again a different set of male guards.

"We need to speak to Sebastián. It's urgent," Elias told the one standing on the left-hand side. He gave a weird look indicating that he wasn't going to open the doors.

"Someone has been murdered. Please hurry," I added.

He immediately let us in and took us straight to Mateo.

"Mateo?" Elias called out as he knocked on the door of a room. We instantly heard a bit of shuffling until the door opened revealing a tired Mateo rubbing his eyes.

"Where's Sebastián? Something bad has happened..."

-

"So, you're telling me he was just lying on the sand in front of a tree trunk?" Sebastian asked as we all jogged down the grass hill.

"Yes. It looked like he had been dead for a couple of hours," I mentioned. We finally arrived at the sandy beachside. Elias and I hurried over towards the tree trunk.

"I cannot believe it," I muttered staring at the sight in front of me. The dead male was no longer there. It looked as if we were crazy. "I swear he was right here..." Elias muttered beside me.

"So... where is he now?" Sebastian asked sounded irritated.

"I don't know but he was literally right here!" I exclaimed while staring at the bare sand.

"Why were guys wandering out here this early anyway?" Sebastian asked us. Before we could even respond he opened his mouth to speak again. "I would prefer it if you guys didn't wander early in the morning. You don't know this place well," he stated.

"Check the surrounding areas for anything unusual," he commanded the other males he had brought along with us.

"This better not happen again," he warned us before shifting into his wolf and running up the hill.

-

"I don't understand. Was someone messing with us or are we going crazy?" I asked Elias as we stood in front of his packhouse. "No, I mean I was there when you found him. Something just doesn't add up," he muttered while running his hand through his hair.

"Yeah."

"Try getting a bit of rest. I'll see you in a bit," he responded. I watched him disappear before heading over to my house. There was no way I could sleep after what had just happened. I should've just stayed in my bed. Why did I even bother waking up early to go exploring?

As I made my way back to my room my thoughts troubled me. Elias was definitely right. Something just didn't add up. Even though I was beyond curious to find out what exactly had happened, I knew I needed to ask Mateo about Regnum Ignis so the boys and I could be on our way soon.