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While there was a nearby shrine for visitors to pray and make their offerings, the temple itself did not usually open its gate to civilians.

It only opened its gates a few times a year to celebrate the Moon Goddess and Alpha weddings. Otherwise, the temple inhabitants kept to themselves. Silent solitude helped them to focus more on worshipping the Goddess and abandoning worldly affairs.

Needless to say, getting into the Holy Temple of Moon Goddess was already difficult enough, let alone being allowed to meet the High Seer herself.

It was a one-in-a-million chance.

When asked what one would want if they got to meet the High Seer, most of them most likely said divinations.

The High Seer was rarely wrong with her prediction.

After Deacon Clearwater paid a high price for not heeding the High Seer’s warning, all other werewolves learned to appreciate the High Seer even more.

Not that the High Seer tossed divinations left and right as she pleased. She reserved the right to share or not to share. The impact could namely change the course of things rapidly.

.....

As for Ronan Silverback, he cared for no divination. He was there for one and only purpose.

By the time the four of them arrived at the temple gate, a priest and a priestess already stood solemnly to receive them.

Ronan with Lucien in his arms was admitted into the temple, but Dane and Jake were not allowed to enter. They had to stay behind.

“You requested entry for only two people,” the shrouded priestess reminded Dane.

“But...” Jake protested, but Dane held him back.

“Go,” he told his son. “Don’t leave with regret.”

Ronan gazed at his father. He gave him a stiff nod before the priest and priestess followed him into the temple and closed the gate behind them.

At night, they had to rely on a pair of lanterns to show the path. The priest and priestess held one lantern each. They marched slowly into the temple and moved past the big hall where the yearly Moon Banquet was held. Ronan never visited the temple past this point.

After going through a few corridors that were sparsely lighted by a few torches on the wall, they ended up outside again.

Or better said, an inner garden with an open roof. At the center of the garden was the biggest tree that Ronan had ever seen. It was not too tall, but its trunk was the size of a truck. The base of the tree was submerged inside a pond, with its protruding roots peeking out of the surface and climbing over each other to form an eerie hollow frame.

Ronan was unable to rip his gaze from the tree. It looked so magnificent. So grand. So majestic.

And then, a voice rang out from another side of the inner garden and drew his attention.

“Have you heard of ‘The Tree Of Life’, Alpha Ronan?”

The High Seer stepped into the garden. She wore a simple white robe, her long silver hair was tied into a braid that hung down her back. She directed her unseeing eyes at the tree and took a deep breath.

“Back in the days, the Moon Goddess left the Tree Of Life behind to take care of her children. Our history books tell us that the tree is able to do a lot of miraculous things. Do you believe that, Alpha Ronan?” She asked again. This time, she opened her eyes and stared at Ronan with her turquoise, unfocused eyes.

“I don’t, but I want to believe,” Ronan said truthfully.

They all worshipped the Moon Goddess and they were taught to believe, but who could testify that the Tree Of Life in the books was real? No one had ever seen it before.

Even if this gigantic tree in front of Ronan was indeed the Tree Of Life, the Alpha would not automatically believe in its ability to call forth miracles. Not unless it was proven.

Was it an insolent answer from a non-believer?

Ronan tightened his grip around Lucien’s body anxiously.

The elderly with a youthful appearance broke into a smile.

“The Moon Goddess values honesty,” she said as if she just read what was in Ronan’s mind.

The High Seer slowly walked toward Ronan and Lucien. Once she stood before them, Ronan could smell the scent of wind and grass on her.

She extended a hand and caressed Lucien’s cheek.

“Your mate has been poisoned, Alpha Ronan,” she declared right away.

“After another full day, he is going to leave this world and return to the Moon Goddess.”

Ronan’s face turned ashen.

He had heard the ominous prediction of Lucien’s death so many times that his heart had gone numb from grief. Instead, he tried to focus on what the High Seer said in the first sentence.

Did he hear correctly?

Poison?

“How come it’s poison?” He heard himself asking. “Isn’t this condition a resulting backlash from our broken connection?”

The High Seer looked into Ronan’s eyes.

“As someone who suffered said backlash before, your mate should know what it feels like.”

“But... The broken Mind Link! Constant nausea and dizziness! The nosebleed...!”

The more Ronan listed out, the more he realized that none of those happened to Lucien during the seven years that they were apart.

Their Mind Link was intact back then, albeit unused. It was there before they even marked each other. Lucien suffered from physical pain for years, but he was not dying. This time he was. It was not a backlash. It was something else.

He was poisoned by someone.

“The Moon Goddess does not thrive on making her children suffer,” the High Seer pointed out. “A punishment is not a death sentence.”

“Please,” the Alpha fell to his knees. “Please, High Seer. Save my mate.”

A smile spread on the High Seer’s face.

“You ask for me to save him, but the truth is that only you can save him.”

“How?” Ronan asked. “What do I have to do?”