CHAPTER 133: YOUNG LILITH V

*~Young Lilith POV~*

She started approaching me and I flinched instantly... I mumbled.." pls.. Help... pls.."

Nobody could move. Nobody could help me.

The cloaked woman’s smile widened as her gaze locked onto me.

"Don’t worry, little wolf," she cooed. "It won’t hurt. You’ll thank me for this. You’ll be powerful."

Her words slithered over my skin like venom.

"No..no, please..." I tried to pull away, but she grabbed my wrist in an iron grip. In one swift motion, she yanked me into the circle, dragging me right to the same place where the red-haired girl had been transformed. My feet scraped uselessly against the cold stone floor.

And then I saw it....Another body began to stir. A wolf’s corpse, stiff and rotting, dragged itself forward exactly like before—jerking, twitching, until it loomed close.

My stomach twisted.

"No, no, no!" I fought with everything I had, nails clawing at her arm, but she only chuckled and tapped a single finger against my forehead.

The world shattered.

My body fell backward like a puppet whose strings had been cut. I could still see, I could still hear, but I could not move. My arms lay limp. My legs refused me. My voice—gone. It was as if my soul had been locked inside my own useless flesh.

I was conscious... but still somehow unconscious.

She knelt beside me, humming softly, and began tying a glowing red rope around my wrist. I felt its burn immediately, the strange heat sinking into my skin. The other end, I knew, would be tied to that witches corpse.

"No! Please—don’t do this to me!" My voice screamed inside my head, but no sound escaped my lips.

She smiled, almost pitying. "I’m very sorry, little one. But your father brought you here, didn’t he? He wants the best for you. And this—this is the best. Don’t worry... you’ll thank me later."

Versa.

The rope ignited with a pulse of crimson light, and agony ripped through my arm.

It wasn’t just pain. It was as if fire had seeped into my veins, rushing through my blood, clawing through my bones. I wanted to scream, to thrash, to tear my own flesh apart just to escape it..,but my body remained limp, tears slipping silently from my eyes.

Then I felt it.

Inside me, deep in the place where my wolf lived, a sharp wrench. Like claws ripping away something vital. My chest tightened. My heartbeat faltered.

And I saw her....My wolf. My beautiful white wolf. She was standing before me in my mind’s eye, her silver fur bristling, her body trembling. She howled once, long and mournful, before collapsing.

Her glow faded. Her form flickered...She was dying.

"No! No, please—don’t take her!" I screamed inside, but my voice never left my body.

My tears burned down my cheeks. My wolf’s howl faded into silence.

Then—another surge. A wave of something alien slammed into me....It crawled through my chest like molten iron, boiling, twisting, reshaping me from the inside out. My muscles spasmed, my blood screamed, my vision blurred red.

Anger.

That’s what it became. A storm of rage so violent it drowned out everything else. Hatred. Fury. Wrath so sharp I wanted to tear apart the cloaked woman with my bare hands.

But before I could move—before I could unleash any of it—my strength collapsed.

Consciousness came rushing back to me like a violent wave. My eyes fluttered open, and the first thing I noticed was silence. The cloaked figure was gone.

But the rest of us... we were still there.

Bodies sprawled across the cave floor, breath shallow, chests heaving. For a moment, I thought I was the only one awake. My heart pounded in my ears, every muscle still aching from what had been done to me. But soon enough, groans filled the air. One by one, the others stirred, slowly dragging themselves upright.

Beside me, a red-haired girl blinked herself back into awareness. Her lips trembled as she turned toward me.

"Hi... I—I’m Alice."

I swallowed hard, my throat raw. "Lilith."

Her eyes softened at my name. "Nice... so, how did you end up here?"

I hesitated, but then my voice broke free. "My father. He told me there was an organization. That it would help me. And then... he brought me here."

Alice let out a bitter laugh, almost choking on it. "Mine is my mom. I did everything in my life to impress her. My little sister’s always been stronger, more talented. She never missed a chance to call me worthless. And when I finally mastered every spell I knew—when I thought she’d finally see me—she brought me here instead." Her voice cracked. "I thought I’d make her proud. Instead, I was wrong. She brought me here to suffer."

Without thinking, I reached for her hand. She clutched it like it was the only real thing in this nightmare.

Around us, the others began whispering too. Quiet at first, then louder, voices weaving through the air until we were all gathered close, drawn to each other’s pain.

I cleared my throat, speaking louder than I meant to. "We were forced here. Without our permission."

The cave fell silent. Some nodded. Others avoided my gaze. But one thing was clear—nobody wanted to be here.

"I don’t know what they did to us," a younger girl murmured, "but... maybe it’s for the best? Maybe she really is making us stronger."

"Stronger?" Alice’s voice cut like a blade. Her face twisted in anguish. "Look at me! Do I look stronger? I feel... wrong. Like my veins are filled with something forbidden. Like I’ve practiced thousands of dark spells in one night. I don’t feel normal anymore. I don’t even feel like me."

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the crowd. But before comfort could settle in, a harsh masculine voice broke out.

"Are you one of them?" A boy with broad shoulders jabbed his finger at the younger girl who’d spoken. "Are you siding with them?"

"N-No, I—" she stammered, her hands trembling. "I only said maybe—"

But he didn’t let her finish. He shoved her hard. She fell back against the cold stone with a cry.

Before he could strike again, I stepped forward, my hand snapping around his wrist. He froze, startled by the strength in my grip. My voice was steady, though my insides trembled.

"She was brought here just like us," I said sharply. "Hurting her won’t change anything. If we fight each other, we’re already lost." My gaze swept the room. "We need to focus on escaping this place. That’s the only way we win."

The boy’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t argue. Slowly, he pulled his hand back.

I turned to the others. "Everyone—search. Look for anything we can use. A torch, a tool—anything."

The cave erupted into motion, bodies scattering to search every crevice. Alice stayed close to me, her grip on my sleeve desperate. "Please... can I stay with you?"

I nodded. "Always."

We searched side by side, our fingers brushing over rough stone until a shout rang out.

"I found something!"

We rushed over. A boy—tall, young but with eyes too old for his age—held up a stick and a handful of rocks. Together, we sparked flame to life. The torch flared, illuminating the cavern.

The firelight revealed markings on the cave walls—strange runes carved deep into the stone, lines intersecting in patterns that felt alive.

The boy’s green eyes narrowed. His dark hair caught the fire’s glow as he traced the runes with his fingers. "This... this is a code. A message. A way out."

"How do you know that?" I asked.

He didn’t look at me. "Because I’m a wizard. My mom... she’s a witch. She taught me spells like these."

The torchlight flickered as he deciphered the marks. "It says: four people. Four corners. Clap four times. The path will open."

Without hesitation, Alice and I took our places. Four of us spread out across the edges of the cave. We clapped. Once. Twice. Thrice. Four.

The ground trembled beneath our feet. The walls groaned. And then—the cave split open, light flooding in.

But before hope could take root, a shadow fell across the opening.

The cloaked figure....Our breaths caught in unison.

Slowly, she lowered her hood. Dark curls spilled down, framing a sharp, smirking face.

"Very well," she said, her voice smooth and chilling. "Future Crescents. You have passed your second stage."

Her eyes glowed as her lips curled into a grin.

"And I must say... my name is Dahlia. And I am the one who will breed you."