CHAPTER 43: INVESTIGATION STARTS AGAIN!

Hiro checked their class for Angel, but he was nowhere to be found. The whole building felt strange and empty, not even a single student in sight. It didn’t feel right. He pulled out his phone and checked the timetable for the Junior classes. Then it made sense. There was a combined test today—form one to three—so they had all been moved to another venue. That explained the silence, but it didn’t explain the tight feeling in his chest. Angel had a lot to explain once he saw him.

He turned toward the direction of the combined class, but just as he was about to take another step, he froze. Angel’s scream echoed in his head. Loud. Sharp. Desperate. Hiro stopped moving, staring around with wide eyes. The place was still empty. No voice. No presence. Nothing but his own racing heart.

What the hell was that? Why did he hear Angel’s scream in his mind? This wasn’t the first time. The night of the initiation, when Angel called for help and Kaito had responded, Hiro had heard the same cry too. Back then, he thought he was just overthinking things, but now... it was happening again. He wondered if it had something to do with all the mind tricks he had been playing on Angel. Maybe he had created some strange connection between them without knowing.

"Hiro?"

A voice called his name and snapped him out of his thoughts. He knew the voice before he turned around. Principal Valois.

He smiled and bowed playfully. "To the most beautiful woman on earth, good afternoon."

She rolled her eyes and let out a deep sigh. She looked like someone trying very hard to stay calm. That was always her mood whenever she had to deal with Hiro’s madness. As long as she remained in the Academy, she would have to endure him.

"Have you seen Angel?" she asked.

"Angel?" Hiro raised a brow. "I thought you told me to stay away from that boy."

He said it to remind her. She might have forgotten, but he had not. The night he broke into her office, she had warned him clearly. If he didn’t stop digging into Angel’s matter, she would strip all the points from his house. She had meant it too. The way her eyes had burned that night was something he wouldn’t forget.

It had been strange. Suspicious. The fact that she was so protective of Angel only made Hiro more curious, but for the sake of his House, he had agreed to let it go.

"I did," Principal Valois said, watching him closely. "And I hope you are still following my instructions?"

She looked the same as always. Black suit that hugged her figure like it was made for her. Her skin glowed under the sunlight, and those red lips of hers were enough to drive any boy in this school crazy. Hiro wasn’t blind. She was the hottest principal alive.

"Yes, I’m following it. I’m not that stupid," he replied, his voice calm but filled with quiet frustration. He wished he could het inside her head, to know what she was hiding. What was so special about Angel that made her act like this?

"So now that I’ve dropped the case," he said, staring at her face, "will you let things return to normal?"

"Sure. I have no problem with you or your House," she replied, turning away as if the matter was closed. But Hiro wasn’t done. He stopped her before she could leave.

"So why are you protecting Angel?" Hiro’s voice was calm, but his eyes were filled with questions he could no longer hold back. "I know something is going on, and you don’t want to talk about it. Even Kaito is hiding the truth from us. I get Kaito. He has always been that way. He only shows people what he wants them to see, but you? You are our guardian. You’re supposed to protect all of us, not just one person."

Principal Valois slowly turned to him. There was a cold look in her eyes, and a flash of surprise. "I thought you said you dropped the case?"

"I did. If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t still be here in this school. I would have gone north to find out the truth in Angel’s town," Hiro replied without flinching.

"I will take three hundred points from your house if you ever ask me about Angel again," she warned sharply. Her tone was hard, and her words were final. She knew this was the only way to shut him up. Hiro was too curious. Too bold. She had dealt with many students, but none like him. "You may go."

"You didn’t call me here," Hiro muttered under his breath as he turned and walked away. His heart was already burning with suspicion. Now he was completely sure. Principal Valois had been the one giving Angel the nerve to act the way he did. She had made him feel untouchable. That was the only reason the boy had lied to his face.

But Angel was going to explain. He was not going to let this go.

As he got closer to the obstacle test field, that same scream from earlier replayed in his mind. It was loud and painful. Without thinking, Hiro dashed toward the door. He wasn’t even sure if it was his primal power or just pure instinct that pushed him to move that fast, but he got there in seconds.

He stopped at the entrance, heart pounding, breath sharp. Angel was there. Safe. Standing with the other students. Nothing seemed out of place. A few students looked tired, maybe some were already eliminated, but no sign of pain or danger.

Then he saw Kaito. He was there too. Hiro studied his face, wondering if he had also heard that same scream. Maybe that was why he showed up as well.

Angel turned and looked at him. The moment their eyes met, he froze. He didn’t need to say anything—his face gave him away. He knew what he had done.

Hiro’s lips curled into a slow, dangerous smile. It was that same smile he always wore when someone crossed the line and he was ready to deal with them. Angel quickly turned away, pretending he hadn’t seen him. That was fine. Hiro preferred it that way.

He walked straight to where they were standing and said, without hiding his irritation, "Hello, Alpha Kaito. I have a problem with one of your house members. Your roommate to be exact."

Kaito turned quickly, clearly surprised to see him there. His eyes flicked to Angel. "Angel?"

"Him, of course, brother," Hiro answered, still smiling but with a sharp edge in his tone. He slid both hands into the pockets of his trousers to keep himself from acting on his anger. He was burning inside, but he needed Kaito’s permission before dragging Angel out of there. "There’s only one Angel in this Academy, and I thank the heavens for that. If there were two, the world would fall apart."

Kaito looked at Angel, then back at Hiro. "What has he done now?"

"He..." Hiro paused. He had stormed in here with fire in his chest, but now he realized he couldn’t say too much. If he told Kaito the truth, then Kaito would know their mate had been around on the night of the full moon. Hiro wasn’t ready for that.

He shook his head and said instead, "It’s not something big. I just need a few minutes to speak with him alone. We’ll sort it out."

Kaito didn’t look fully convinced, but he stepped aside and nodded. "If you say so. You can talk to him."

Angel didn’t move right away. That hesitation made Hiro even more certain. The boy knew what he had done, and now he was scared. He should be.

At last, Angel followed him as they moved toward a quiet corner, away from the rest of the students.

Hiro didn’t waste time. His eyes were locked on Angel’s face as he asked, "Now tell me. What exactly happened on the night of the full moon?"

His voice was low, but every word was filled with warning. Angel could see it in his eyes. He wasn’t joking.

"If you lie to me one more time," Hiro said through clenched teeth, "I swear, I will skin you alive."

.******

Angela’s mouth went dry, and for a moment, she forgot how to speak. Her heart beat faster as her mind raced for answers. How did he know she had lied? She slowly turned her head and caught sight of Kaito watching them from a distance. If she didn’t make Hiro believe her now, Kaito would soon realize she had been telling too many lies about that night.

"I’m asking you a question, Angel," Hiro said, snapping her out of her thoughts. His tone was sharp and cold. "Last time I checked, you had a loud mouth that never knew when to shut up."

"I... I didn’t lie to you," Angela said, folding her arms across her chest. Her voice was shaky, and her body had begun to tremble. Fear had started to creep in, knowing that she was standing on the edge of being exposed.

"You’re a liar," Hiro said with a quiet shake of his head, as if the very sight of her disgusted him. The way he looked at her made her feel smaller than she had ever felt. She could tell he wanted to say worse things, maybe even hurt her, but something was stopping him, and she didn’t know what it was. Whatever it was, she was grateful, because it gave her a small chance to fix things.

"I didn’t lie to you. I really did meet your mate," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. She watched his face, hoping something would change, but it didn’t. He didn’t believe her. She had underestimated how smart he was. But what part of her lie had he figured out so quickly?

"What makes you think I’m lying?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

"You said you met my mate in her wolf shape, right?" Hiro stepped closer, and with every step, her fear grew. "So tell me something—how did you know she came looking for me? You can’t understand a damn thing a wolf says. You’re not even a werewolf."

Her breath caught in her throat. She hadn’t thought about that. Not at all. When he asked her earlier that morning, she had panicked. The words had just come out. Lies built on lies. Now, he had caught her. There was no way around it.

She glanced at Kaito again, but deep down she knew he wouldn’t save her this time. She had to save herself. If she failed now, everything would fall apart.

Then something came to her. It was a small idea, but it was all she had. She forced a smile onto her face and turned to Hiro. "I didn’t lie to you. When your wolf pushed me down that night, she started walking around like she was searching for someone. She didn’t say anything, but she looked restless... then she left."

"That still doesn’t answer my question," Hiro said. He didn’t move, didn’t even blink. His eyes were locked on her, and every second felt like he was peeling her lies apart, one layer at a time.

"Exactly. I was just as confused as you are now, but when you came to me this morning and said you were her mate, I knew right away that it was you she came looking for," Angel said with a steady voice, though it was another lie. She couldn’t believe how easily it came out. Mighty-Storm had been right all along. If lying was a subject in this Academy, she would be the top of the class.

"I see," Hiro muttered, staring at her. "Who else have you told about this?"

"No one. It’s just you," Angel replied quickly. "You’re her only mate, right?" she asked, hoping he would say something that would help her keep up the act. "Are you supposed to share her with someone else?"

"That’s none of your business. Don’t get too comfortable," Hiro snapped, his voice low and threatening. His eyes darkened as he gave her one last look before turning and walking away, leaving her standing there with her heart still racing.

Angela exhaled deeply, trying to calm her nerves. She had pulled through—for now. She returned to where the rest of the students were standing, trying to act like everything was fine.

Surprisingly, Kaito didn’t ask her anything about her conversation with Hiro. He simply continued with what he was doing, then left once he was done speaking to the others.

Angela followed the boys to the changing room but didn’t join them. She picked up her bag in silence and stayed by herself. She didn’t even exchange a word with Alex, and he didn’t speak to her either. The silence between them was heavy. It made her feel sick. She kept wondering what was running through his mind. Was he beginning to doubt her too?

When they got to the dormitory, Angela wanted to speak with him. Stales wasn’t with them, so it was the perfect time. But before she could say anything, Alex stopped her with a look.

"We will definitely talk about this later," he said, then walked away without another word.

Angela stood there alone, her chest tightening. She knew that both Stales and Alex were going to be disappointed in her. They were her only true friends, and she had been lying to them from the very beginning. She had no idea what the night would bring, but whatever it was, she would try her best to protect what little friendship she had left.

But elsewhere, Hiro’s mind was burning with everything that had happened. He knew something was wrong. It couldn’t all be a coincidence. Angel had met the four Alphas on the same day. Kaito had personally accepted him into the Academy and even made him a roommate. Principal Valois had been protecting both of them like her life depended on it. And now, Angel had somehow met his mate?

This was the breaking point. It didn’t sit well with Hiro. He hated unfinished puzzles. It was time to put all the pieces together.

The moment he entered his dormitory, he didn’t waste a second. He threw open his drawer, grabbed his bag, and started packing. He wasn’t going to wait any longer. Tonight, he was going down to the ruined town Angel came from. He needed answers.

He took one last look around, then pulled out his phone and called his beta.

"Sorry, Principal Valois," he muttered under his breath. "I lied too."