Alpha's mate is a male?!?-Chapter 55: Whatever happens!

"Just leave me alone! I can’t take this anymore! Why does everyone keep taking advantage of me?!" Ace shouts, his steps never faltering.

"Ace, I was doing this for you, for us! You can give up those supernatural powers, and you’ll be free. We can live like before! We’ll never have to keep running around like we are now. It’s fine if you don’t want to be with me as lovers, but I want to help you regain your normal life," Jun pleads, desperation etched in his voice.

"I don’t know what I was thinking when I joined her... I’ve scolded myself so much, and I wanted to come back to your side, but it’s too late. Ace, I’m sorry..." Jun explains, but Ace isn’t ready to hear any more words. Now, it feels like everyone in the world is not who they seem to be.

"Ace, I can take you to her if you want. I can take you to her so you can finish her off, please!" Jun pleads, but then stops, realizing Ace isn’t going to listen.

Kieran is not far behind.

Ace has no idea where he is going. Every day, things seem to grow harder, and if given the chance, he would gladly give up his powers and just live a normal life, far away from it all, from everyone in his current life!

"Where are you going?" Kieran calls after him.

"Stop following me. I don’t know what to do anymore. I give up!" Ace exclaims.

"I’ve already told you what your problem is. You trust too much. Just because you’ve been with someone for a long time doesn’t mean you can trust everything that comes from them! Ace, I’m not saying Xiao Jun is a bad person or that he hasn’t been a good person. It’s just that right now, we can’t trust him so readily. I already told you he’s working with Lila. Come on, we’re so close to ending this. Don’t let your emotions get the best of you," Kieran says, stopping Ace in his tracks.

"What should we do now?" Ace asks, his voice surprisingly calm.

"Let’s test your powers to see if they work, we can try to track her with it... but you don’t have to do it now. We can try first thing in the morning, once you’ve rested," Kieran suggests, his voice soft and gentle.

"I’m fine. I can do it," Ace says firmly.

"Okay, if you’re sure. Do you want to come back with me to the mansion?"

"No. We can do it here. There’s no one around, and it’s already night," Ace replies, finding a place to sit before Kieran can say anything further. He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes, trying to center himself.

He channels his focus toward Lila, trying as much as he can, but all he sees is her mocking face.

Her face in darkness. She’s saying something unclear, her words distorted. Ace tries to locate her as flames surround him, but he fails. He sees the same vision over and over again.

He sighs heavily in frustration. "I can see her, but I can’t pinpoint her location. She’s the only thing I see in the darkness!" Ace says, his voice laced with irritation.

"Do you think that’s some kind of message?" Kieran asks.

"I don’t know, honestly."

"How about we head back and figure it out in the morning?" Kieran suggests.

"I’ll meet you tomorrow morning," Ace replies, getting up and walking away.

"Ace, where are you going? You know you can come back to the mansi—" Kieran begins, but Ace cuts him off.

"I told you, I’ll meet you tomorrow morning. Stop asking me where I’m going as if the world has boundaries," Ace snaps before walking away, leaving Kieran stunned.

Kieran stands there, feeling uneasy about Ace’s attitude toward him_ or maybe because Ace just rejected him.

That night, Kieran doesn’t sleep. His mind keeps drifting back to Ace’s attitude, his words, and about the after effect of the mate bond. He replays how Ace brushed him off. He wonders if it is true that Ace has been going after him just because of the after effect of their severed bond?!

He ends up staying awake the whole night, planning and sketching possible strategies to track Lila.

....

The next morning, Kieran is startled by a persistent knock at the door.

He opens it to find a guard standing there. "Alpha, you told us not to let Xiao Jun into the mansion, but he’s here, demanding to see you. He won’t leave," the guard reports.

Kieran sighs, annoyed though curious about what Jun could possibly want now.

When he gets to the gate, Jun is there, pale-faced, with tear stains marking his cheeks. He’s pacing frantically.

"They... they really took him!" Jun cries as soon as he sees Kieran. "Kieran, I’m not lying! They took my dad!" Jun’s voice trembles with desperation. "I was there, and I couldn’t do anything. She wants me to bring Ace to her! I swear I never intended to do it... It’s just that she... she..." His voice falters, and tears spill from his eyes.

At that moment, Ace arrives. He stays on the other side of the gate, his expression cold and detached. Jun turns to him, but Ace doesn’t even spare him a glance.

Kieran steps out to join them.

"Ace... Ace, I’m begging you. Please believe me this time. They really took him," Jun pleads desperately.

"Do you know where she is?" Kieran asks, his tone sharp and commanding.

"She doesn’t have a specific place she stays anymore. I don’t know how she does it, but she finds you—you don’t find her," Jun explains, clinging to the hope that Kieran believes him now.

"Then how do you get her to find you? Where do you go?" Kieran presses.

"Mostly in the woods."

"Then we’re doing this. You’ll go with Ace first, let her show up, and I’ll back you up with the others," Kieran declares.

"You were the one who said he was lying

_ and he was! And now you’re just going to go along with this?!" Ace speaks for the first time, his voice tinged with disbelief.

"He was lying yesterday, but now he isn’t," Kieran replies firmly.

"And how do you know that?!"

"I just do. Trust me. You have to go with him. I hope your energy is back, but don’t worry, I’ll be right behind you, around," Kieran assures him.

Without further arguments, Ace starts walking. He is tired of everything and even arguments, so whatever happens, he doesn’t care anymore.

Jun takes the lead to show the way while Kieran returns to prepare his men.

It doesn’t take long before they all set off.