CHAPTER 222: PAYMENT

"By the way, I forgot to ask. What’s the price of that antidote?" Kade asked, as they walked to the dining room for breakfast. Both finally dressed in a way that didn’t expose an excessive amount of skin.

Upon hearing Kade’s question, Felix’s steps faltered, and his expression grew more pensive. So much so, that he lagged behind, causing Kade to glance back at him with raised brows.

"Felix?"

"...There’s no price," Felix said, quickly catching up, although he still appeared to be a bit lost in his thoughts.

"Are you sure? Don’t cover the costs alone. Whether it’s money, ingredients, or that ’unusual’ payment you mentioned before, we can provide anything you need."

Unusual payment. Yes, Felix had mentioned something like that before, but Kade still didn’t know that said payment was supposed to be Felix’s blood... But since he was asking about it, it meant that he suspected that Felix wasn’t the one who had brewed this potion, but just the intermediary between the Bloodmoon Pack and the witch.

Well, of course he did. Although Felix had told Kade that he could brew some potions... He had no cauldron, no ingredients, no anything. Unless he had this potion ready and stashed somewhere - which he clearly hadn’t, or he would have mentioned it the day before - there was no way he procured it on his own. It must have come from the same source as the jasmine scent lingering in his room.

And what Kade was trying to say now was: ’You’re with me now, so let me pay for any potion you get from the witch.’

However, it wasn’t that Felix was trying to handle the payment alone. Of course, if it were his blood, then Kade wouldn’t have been able to be the one to pay... But that wasn’t the case. There... truly was no payment required. Remi had explicitly stated that in his letter.

...Honestly, Felix didn’t quite know how to feel about it. Was it that the fox had so much of his blood stashed that he didn’t need any more of it? But that couldn’t be. Blood was a consummate resource, and its effects on Remi’s curse were only temporary. No matter how much blood Remi had stocked up, he would eventually run out. So, shouldn’t he restock it when he had an opportunity? He could preserve it with spells, so it’s not like he had to worry about it going bad...

Then why? Was it his way of trying to make peace? Since Felix had left because Remi had been stealing his blood, now the fox refused to take the blood even when offered in a transaction? Was that it? Because if it was, then it wasn’t working at all! Felix didn’t feel any more comfortable or reassured because of it, quite the opposite, he was even more worried. Maybe not for himself or Vivi this time, but for that fox of a witch...

It wasn’t something he could discuss with Kade, though, so he just said, "Since I’ve said it’s free, that means it’s free. Don’t get used to it though, it won’t always be like that."

"Haha, don’t worry," Kade laughed in response. "I don’t mind paying at all. I can easily afford it!"

Felix didn’t say anything, only rolling his eyes, as he passed Kade by, walking down the hallway to the dining room again. Yes, he already knew that the Alpha was so rich he could spend money like water without even wincing! But was that really a reason to brag so much?

Kade wasn’t the least deterred by the lack of response, and caught up with Felix, walking right next to him, so close that their arms and hands constantly brushed against each other. "Alright, so now that we have the antidote, we’re probably going to proceed with the negotiations today."

"Today? So fast?"

"Yeah. He’s a leader of a pack, after all, he must be a busy man. We can’t possibly force him to stay at our pack for too long!"

Felix lifted his brows, giving Kade a doubtful glance. "How considerate of you."

"I know, right?"

Hearing Kade’s cheery response, Felix couldn’t help but roll his eyes again. Although he had said so himself, somehow, he wasn’t convinced that the Bloodmoon Pack (and especially Kade) was being considerate towards Jared. Rather, forcing him to participate in the negotiations as soon as he recovered was doing him a disservice... Jared wouldn’t even have enough time to properly gather his thoughts and clear his mind beforehand.

He didn’t say anything about it, though. In Felix’s mind, mistreating Jared was always more than welcome, and perfectly justified. He was even pleased with the treatment the Bloodmoon Pack was giving to the Alpha. So, instead of speaking up for Jared, he just asked, "Can I join?"

"...You want to take part in the negotiations?" Kade seemed a bit surprised.

"Mn. Can’t I?"

"It’s not that you can’t... But are you sure you want to meet him?"

Meet him? Not really! Felix would much rather never see Jared again. However,

"It concerns me, so I would prefer to have a say in it... Or at least participate."

"Well, if that’s what you want, then there shouldn’t be any problems. I’ll talk to my father after breakfast, and let you know."

Felix nodded his head. "Thank you."

With that, they ended their conversation, as they had reached the dining room. They had to be more careful what they were saying, with so many perked-up ears around, curious about their conversations. Because of Kade’s identity and Felix’s ambiguous status, pack members would fervently eavesdrop on them, even if they were to talk just about the weather...

And the topic of their conversation this time was particularly sensitive. Although neither of them would mind if Jared were to be embarrassed in front of others, he was still the leader of the Moonhill Pack. The pack that Felix had come from. Embarrassing him would also embarrass Felix, at least in the eyes of the others... So, for the sake of Felix’s public image, the fact that Jared was cursed and throwing up black sludge had to remain a secret.