CHAPTER 4 - A POSSIBLE ALLY

Realizing that her new self might be the last descendant of Cytheria, a plan had come into her mind. Her goal was to enter the Kingdom of Elysium and use her beauty to seduce Elias Lagerfeld.

Now, all she had to think about was how she could infiltrate the palace without anyone suspecting that she was a fugitive.

For weeks, she had to avoid crowded places. In Amelia's diary, she killed a wealthy man in a town called Riverdale which was a thousand kilometers away from where she was now.

"I think Amelia has been running away for quite a while now." She said to herself.

First on her list was to know about Elias Lagerfeld. She had to find out what he looked like and what he actually liked.

The women in the tavern informed her about the proclamation. It was on the announcement board of the town and a picture of Elias was posted. She was curious about her target so she went to look at it, only to be surprised by what she saw.

Elias Lagerfeld was indeed gorgeous. His shoulder-length black wavy hair complimented the pair of his amber eyes. She was just staring at his photo, but his gaze was striking, making her feel a mixture of fear and excitement.

"So, are you interested?"

She was startled by the woman who suddenly walked to her right. It was the same woman in the tavern.

She wanted to ignore her, but she had to gather information about the next Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack and his kingdom.

"I don't think I have a chance." She muffled.

The woman chuckled. "If you're indeed a Cytherian, nothing is impossible. They are known to give an irresistible charm to men."

"But how about the mating pull between werewolves? The prince surely has a mate, right?"

The woman shrugged her shoulders. "Probably. But there's something more powerful than that."

She frowned. "What's that?"

"Desire."

Not sure of what the woman meant so she snickered and didn't give a comment.

"You wanna gamble?" The woman asked which sparked her interest.

She turned to her, giving the woman a malevolent look.

"Jolene Page. I'm a baroness. I own an inn near the gate." The woman introduced herself.

She understood she had to answer Jolene, but she was still in doubt. Why would the woman approach her and seem very interested in her? She thought inwardly.

But she needed someone's help to start her plan. And in a world she barely knew, an ally was all she needed.

She found herself sitting on the couch of a rented room. The tiny space was shabby and almost empty with just a chair and a small round table three steps away from the single bed.

"So, care to tell me your name?" Jolene asked while handing her a cup of tea.

"Helena." She simply answered.

Jolene nodded. "With the way you dress, I can easily say that you are a rogue."

She was a bit surprised. But with her appearance, who wouldn't suspect that she had no one. She was wearing a white shirt paired with black tights. A brown cracked leather purse was belted around her waist and her feet were covered with almost torn black boots.

"So what? Are you going to report me?" She asked.

Jolene tittered. "If I tell them, what would I gain from it? Nothing."

"Then what do you want? As you can see, I have nothing to offer" She said looking directly into Jolene's deep blue eyes.

Jolene then threw some papers on the small round table. With a frown on her face, she picked them up to see what it was.

"Elias Lagerfeld. That's your target, right?" Jolene sounded so sure when she asked her.

Still, she didn't respond. There were doubts and a feeling of uncertainty toward the woman.

"Fine. I'll tell you what I want. In exchange, tell me what you want. I think that's fair."

She chuckled. "I'm sorry. You approached me and asked me to come here. I don't think I am required to answer your questions."

Jolene wasn't surprised at all by her answer, instead, her face looked pleased.

"I need someone to enter Elysium for me. But I'm too old to be one of the maidens." Jolene chortled. "And it looks like you need help to do what you want. It's not easy to enter that kingdom. The security is too tight. You'll be caught before you could reach the gate."

The woman had a point. She should start accepting that she could not accomplish anything without someone's help. She was now a werewolf, but she was still trying to adjust to her new life. There were a lot of things that she needed to learn about werewolves and it would be better to not base her assumptions on books.

"Can you help me attend the grand ball?" She asked.

Jolene slightly smiled. "To tell you the truth, I can't. But I can help you enter the palace."

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

"The proclamation said that every maiden can attend the grand ball, but do you think anyone can enter Elysium?"

She shook her head. She already had a doubt when she read about it. They were talking about the next king of the most powerful kingdom, it's impossible that anyone could be accepted as its queen.

"It's just a strategy to pacify the people's anger toward the current king. They were trying to divert everyone's attention by using Elias and the grand ball. The maidens who would appear in front of the next alpha were already chosen. So it's impossible for you to attend."

She had no idea what Jolene meant by the people's anger. She decided not to ask and find out about it on her own later. Her priority was to know Jolene's plan.

"And what do you suggest?" She asked instead.

Jolene grinned. "Enter the palace as a palace attendant. Start with the lowest rank and slowly reach the top."