EASY PEASY

[IT'S NEAR.]

Graham caught a whiff of a nasty smell earlier, but it was faint. Thankfully, his sense of smell was sharper than an average Wolf's. He managed to follow the stench that mixed with the air in that city.

He found himself in an underground pathway near a subway station where the homeless slept. It was also scarily near where Yeri's cram school was.

[The police aren't here.]

It seemed like the police were patrolling the wrong area. The cops probably stuck to the place where the murder happened. But he couldn't blame them. It wasn't like the cops would know where the culprits could be hiding at.

[These people are in danger…]

He was talking about the homeless people sleeping on either side of the path walk. Those people were sleeping on cardboard while covered with thick blankets and ragged clothes. They appeared to be sleeping, but he knew better than that.

[They are unconscious.]

A Cage required human life force to keep the doors open until the Lycans who got out returned. That was the reason why Cages would often appear in a place where humans gathered– just like this one.

[Ah, there you are.]

He clenched his hands when he came face-to-face with something he didn't expect to see in a peaceful world like this.

The entire wall at the end of the pathway had turned into a Cage.

Ordinary humans wouldn't see it.

But as a Wolf, he could clearly see a cage with steel bars and an open door. The inside of the Cage, however, was just pitch black. A swirling pitch of blackness, to be precise.

[If the Cage is still open, that means the Lycans are still roaming outside.]

Only one victim was found so far. But it didn't mean the killings would stop. Lycans were gluttonous beings. They wouldn't be satisfied with one meal only.

[If only I have the ability to close a Cage…]

He tried touching the door, but as expected, he got electrocuted. It stung, so he had to pull his hand away while hissing.

[I barely grazed it and yet, it felt like my fingers were about to melt…]

No wonder not even Nathaniel, his brother, and the Crown Prince, could close a Cage.

"Graham-ah, are you hurt?"

He flinched when he heard the familiar sweet and gentle voice. When he turned around, he was surprised to confirm it was really Eclaire.

[And she doesn't look good.]

Eclaire's face was flushed, she was trembling from the cold, and she was breathing heavily.

"Noona, did you run?" Graham asked worriedly. "You shouldn't have run. Your body is very weak, isn't it?"

"I'm not that weak," Eclaire said while waving her hand dismissively. But she had to take a deep breath before she spoke again. "Ah, I'm relieved the Lycans aren't here. I know my presence here would only become a hindrance, but I can't help it. A strong force inside me just urged me to follow you, so I ran after you without thinking much."

He knitted his eyebrows. "But how did you know where to follow me, Noona?"

[I'm pretty sure I blended well in the crowd when I left their group earlier.]

"I know, right? I lost sight of you as soon as you blended into the crowd earlier," she said, then she raised her left arm to show him the birthmark on her inner wrist. "But this mark keeps on glowing. Then it released some sort of glitter that created a pathway. I had a feeling the glimmering path would lead me to you, so I followed it. It's crazy, but I remember you hyping up my birthmark saying it's special. And so, I trusted my instinct."

His heart suddenly thumped loudly and hard against his chest.

[Eclaire noona… is really a Luna.]

The first sign of being a Luna was the birthmark on the wrist that resembled a full moon. That mark had the ability to affect a Wolf's transformation.

Second, a Luna could find any Wolf near the vicinity.

The last sign was considered a myth, since it had been a long time since their world had found a real Luna, so he wasn't sure if it was real or not. But he needed to confirm whether Eclaire was indeed a Luna or not.

[But can Noona even see the Cage?]

"Is this the infamous Cage?" Eclaire asked while looking at the Cage, answering his question earlier. "It looks like how it was described in the novel, but it's creepier in person. I feel like there are several eyes looking back at me, even though all I see is pitch black inside."

Ah, she could really see the Cage.

"Graham, a Cage has opened up in my world," Eclaire said worriedly. "This confirms that the ones who killed the man in the news were Lycans and not "big wild dogs," right?"

He nodded. "That's right, Noona. The Cages have reached your world now."

She looked absolutely terrified and devastated upon hearing that.

[I can't sugarcoat the truth even if I wanted to…]

"Noona, I have a favor to ask," he said seriously, then he pointed to the door of the gate. "Can you try closing the Cage?"

To be honest, he was feeling guilty. If he was wrong about Eclaire being a Luna, then she would get hurt once she touched the door.

But for some reason, he was confident that his hunch was correct.

"But according to the novel, none of the Fangs has the ability to close a Cage," Eclaire said worriedly. "Not even the Crown Prince could do that. And won't I get hurt if I touched the door? I remember you've been electrocuted several times when you tried closing the Cage on some occasions."

Ah, right.

He forgot that Eclaire had 'read' a huge portion of his life story.

"I'm sorry, Noona," he said, his heart heavy with guilt. "I got scared of telling you that you might get hurt in the process because I didn't want you to back out. It was selfish of me to try and trick you to do my bidding. I'm really, really sorry."

He was ready to be yelled at and to accept Eclaire's anger.

But none of his fears came true.

Eclaire remained calm. "Graham-ah, why do you think I could close the Cage without getting hurt?"

"Because I believe Noona is a real Luna," he said and to his surprise, he sounded confident. "You may not know it because in my life, Lunas weren't talked about much. But as far as I know, a true Luna could open and close the Cages without consequences."

"Do you have that much faith in me?"

He nodded firmly. "I wouldn't put your life at risk if I'm not confident, Noona."

"Alright, let's give it a try. I trust you, anyway," she said, then she squinted her eyes at him. "But in case I get hurt, I'm kicking you out of the house."

Graham flinched because Eclaire's threat sounded serious, but he nodded. "Okay, Noona."

"Good," Eclaire said, then she took a deep breath before she raised a hand and poked the door of the Cage with her index finger. She gave the door a light push as if she was testing whether it would budge or not. "Oh, it didn't sting…"

She trailed off because of what happened next.

Even Graham was shocked.

Eclaire barely pushed the door with her finger, but it already moved and closed on its own.

[Noona… is the chosen one!]

***

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