Jae slept less and less as the days went on. His nights were restless, and his days were dull. The prince's mood was dark as he sauntered down the hall. The source of his distraught was nothing other than the approach of the convention between the five strongest packs of the east. As much as Jae longed to run away from the inevitable occurrence of the convention, he could not escape his duties as prince.

The true blood had not uttered a word the past several days, and his mood only darkened. Jae's gaze was dull as he passed the blue-eyed alpha and returned to his office to continue tending to his duties for the day. Yejin released a breath when he watched the prince walk past. Yejin wanted to lift the prince's mood, but he did not know how. One wrong move and a very upset true blood would be on his tail for the remainder of the day.

The alpha shook his head and rid his mind of the possibly haunting memory that was yet to come. Come on, Yej, you have to do something. You can't let Jae stay like this. He's going to blow at some point. The alpha berated himself for going this long without helping his friend and prince.

Yejin sucked in his breath and prayed to the moon goddess for his safety before starting after the prince. Jae was already seated behind his desk and was going over documents when Yejin entered his office. The true blood flicked his eyes up at the alpha for a split second before returning to the paper in his hands.

"What is it, Yej?" The prince's voice was low and tired, and he did not move his attention from the document when the alpha came to stand before his desk.

"How busy are you?" Yejin inquired as he looked down at the sitting true blood.

"Why do you ask?" Jae returned, his eyes still on the document in his hands.

"Can you spare a moment?"

The prince let out a huff as he tossed the document on his desk and began, "Yej, what-"

Yejin was quick to cut off the prince. Jae was getting agitated, so he needed to provide his reasoning for the pestering. "Race me."

The prince knit his brows at the alpha's request. "Yej, I can't just up and play with you. I have duties," Jae said as he reached his hand out toward the document.

"If you won't race me, spar me," the alpha insisted as he leaned down and placed his hand on top of the cluster of papers, stopping Jae from picking up the document. The prince released a soft scoff and leaned back in his chair. "I just told you I can't. Why are you so persistent today?" The true blood ran his fingers through his dark hair and let out a breath as he looked up at the alpha with bewilderment. "What is going on?"

"Race me, and I'll tell you."

"Yejin-"

"Do you want to know or not?" The alpha hoped the lure would be enough to pull the true blood out of the castle and into some good ole' nature. There was, in fact, something of importance Yejin needed to tell Jae, so he decided to use it to his advantage.

"How important is it? Must I race you?" The true blood inquired as he placed his arms on the wooden desk in front of him.

"Ae, you must." Yejin did not waver from his decision to have the prince race him.

Knowing the alpha would refuse to tell him the information he was holding unless he raced him, Jae finally agreed to Yejin's terms. "Very well, I will race you. But once I catch you, you must tell me." Jae lifted his finger and pointed at the alpha to emphasize his one condition.

Yejin tilted his head in a shallow bow as a show of compliance to the prince's agreement. "Of course."

"Okay, then," Jae sounded and stood to his feet. "Let's get this over with."

Yejin lifted up a silent prayer to the moon goddess before following the true blood out of his office. The prince was known for being vigorous when it came to races, and Yejin had received the brunt of it as Jae's friend and right-hand. Please don't let me die, Moong Goddess. Yejin was exaggerating to the moon goddess, but he did genuinely fear for his safety. Jae was a ruthless pursuer.

The true blood remained in the lead as the two made their way out of the castle and to the wide field north of the palace that separated the castle from the dense forest. The true blood and alpha came to a stop at the edge of the field before shifting into their wolves.

You had better not regret this. The prince's large, black wolf linked Yejin's dark brown wolf as it turned to face the forest. I will not go easy on you today.

Shivers ran down Yejin's spine at the prince's warning. I'm gonna die, I know it. The alpha's internal thought was halted by the true blood beginning the count down.

Three.

Two. Yejin threw away all thoughts of backing down as he voiced the second number through the link. He needed to last as long as he could. He needed Jae to blow off as much steam as possible. Yejin knew Jae was irritated at the moment, but the alpha hoped that after a good run the prince would have released some of the pent-up emotions and energy and would feel better. Therefore, the alpha was ready to give his all. He would race the prince to the best of his abilities and hope he would come out relatively alive.

The alpha and true blood readied themselves as they both voiced the final number. One.

>>>>>>

"You are healing up nicely," Estan told the beta as he redressed the bandages that covered the slashes from the noblewoman's riding whip.

"Thank you, Physician," Kip said to the gamma respectfully before slipping his shirt over his head.

"Still be careful, though," the gamma added in warning when the beta stood from the bed on which he had been sitting. "No more running like you did yesterday. Doctor's orders." Estan raised a brow to emphasize his words.

"Ae, do not worry, no more running for me," Kip replied, his face falling when he recounted the events of the day before that had required him to run.

"Good," Estan returned as he disposed of the soiled bandages and walked to his desk to jot down his patient's notes.

"Oh? Kip Inso?" A cute voice at the door caused the beta and gamma to turn to see Syri standing at the entrance to the clinic.

"Syri," Kip greeted. "What are you doing here?" The beta walked over to the zeta and ruffled the smaller male's pink head while smiling down at the zeta.

"Lili came by and dropped off lunch. She asked me to give this to Inso as thanks for caring for you," Syri explained as he gestured to the covered box in his hands.

"Lili came by?" Kip inquired, his face lighting up at the epsilon's name.

"Ae," Syri answered. "She may still be at the stables. She sent me to deliver this as soon as she got there." As soon as the words were out of the zeta's lips, Kip dashed out of the clinic.

"Thanks, Syri! You're the best!" Kip hollered as he rushed past the zeta.

Syri blinked his warm brown eyes and processed the past few seconds, a smile coming to his lips when he determined Kip was utterly in love with the girl.

"So, why has my little one come to see me?" Estan inquired in greeting to the zeta.

"I come bearing gifts," Syri said happily as he walked to the gamma and set the box on the physician's desk.

"Ooh, what is it?" Estan pondered aloud and removed the lid, revealing a delicate, delicious assortment of lunch items.

"It's from Lili. She wanted to thank you for taking care of Kip Inso," Syri explained before propping himself on the desk.

"Ahh," Estan sounded and bobbed his head. "Those two...are they...?"

"Mm," Syri replied. "But they haven't officially told each other. It's like: everyone knows, but no one is saying anything."

"Is Kip waiting for Lili to turn eighteen?" The gamma inquired before selecting a mystery rice ball and plopping it into his mouth.

"Ae, he doesn't want to tie her down before she has the chance to find her fated one."

"Makes sense. That's smart of him," Estan commented before scooting the box toward Syri and motioning for the zeta to enjoy its contents as much as he wanted. The zeta obliged the gamma's gesture and selected a piece of toast topped with soft cheese and cured ham. The two fell silent as they devoured the items in the box.

"That was delicious!" Syri exclaimed and patted his full tummy.

"Give Lili my thanks, will you?" Estan requested of the zeta as he placed the lid over the empty container. Syri replied to the gamma with a nod at the same time a knock on the clinic door sounded. The gamma and zeta looked to see the Luna's right-hand beta standing beneath the doorway.

"I should let you get back to work," Syri said when he spotted the gamma's visitor and slipped off the desk.

"Okay, I'll see you tonight, Little One," Estan replied with a soft smile as he watched the zeta exit his office.

"Ae! Bye, Inso," Syri bid in farewell before making his way to the clinic's entryway. The zeta bowed in passing toward the beta as he slipped past the female and disappeared down the corridor.

"Is everything alright, Inna?" Estan asked the beta who entered and approached the physician.

"How do I dampen the affects of a bond?" The beta inquired when she sat in the chair opposite the gamma's desk.

"Ae? What do you mean?" Estan knit his brows at the beta's inquiry, his eyes then widening when he realized the implications of Yehwa's words. "You've found your mate?"

Yehwa nodded. "Ae. I have actually known about them for a while, now."

"Does your fated one know about you?"

Yehwa was silent for a moment before she nodded. "Ae, they do."

Estan was shocked by the beta's answer. "Then, why do you want to dampen the bond?"

"I can't mate them right now. I have duties." Yewha turned her face toward the floor as she added, "I...I can't leave the Luna. She has done so much for me. I can't leave her to the Alpha. She has no one else. The prince is busy with his duties, and the Alpha does not care for her. I am all she has...I can't get mated. Not right now, at least."

Estan remained quiet as he mulled over what the beta said. Yehwa's situation was complicated. Estan understood the beta not wanting to leave the Luna, but Yehwa's request for bond dampeners meant she clearly was fond of her mate and was trying her best to remain loyal to the queen. The gamma released a breath before slowly beginning, "I'm afraid there's nothing I can do. The sigma may have better luck with your request. I'm sorry, Inna."

Yehwa slowly nodded in response to Estan's reply. "Thank you, Estan," the beta thanked before standing from the chair and exiting the clinic.

Estan released a sigh and leaned back in his chair. The gamma's heart ached for the beta. She was in a difficult situation. Choosing duty over love was never an easy thing. Estan shook his head at the difficult situation and returned to his work, but there was one question that remained on the gamma's mind. Who is this mate?