Rebirth Of The Rejected Luna Chapter 239: ; Curse Of Silverfang

Tiana's POV

I looked back at him. “What kind of reputation?”

He shrugged a little. “Your Alpha is cruel. Dabbled in strange things. People remember things like that.”

I didn’t say anything. I didn’t need to. He had said enough, and I knew he believed it. I wanted to tell him I could say the same thing about Corvin but I didn't. I chose to be quiet.

The fire popped and cracked, but the room still didn’t feel warm in a friendly way. Even when someone laughed at another table, it didn’t sound real. It sounded like they were trying to pretend everything was fine, even though it wasn’t. No one here seemed to trust anyone else.

After a while, I stood up from the table.

“Where are you going?” the lead guard asked without looking at me.

“Just back to my room,” I said. “You can put someone at the door if you don’t trust me.”

He didn’t say anything after that, but I could hear someone’s boots behind me as I went up the stairs again.

Back in my room, I shut the door slowly and leaned against it. The wood felt solid behind me. The walls were thick. The guards were nearby. I should have felt safe.

But I didn’t.

There was something in the air I couldn’t shake. It made shivers crawl down my spine and my heart pounded. I reached for the talisman in my coat and then threw it on the bed. Weirdly enough, it stopped; however, the wind outside blew harder, howling like a warning. The tree branches outside the window scraped across the glass. They looked like long fingers tapping to be let in. Far off in the distance, I heard a strange cry. Maybe it was an animal. Maybe not. I couldn’t tell.

I sat on the bed and pulled the blanket over my shoulders, trying to feel warm.

But the thought that something was wrong in Silverfang could not leave me. Silverfang hadn’t just changed.

It was falling apart, piece by piece.

And deep down, I knew this wouldn’t be the last time I saw this place. I would be back sooner than I wanted to be.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*++*

The next morning came with a gray sky and colder air. I had barely slept. The wind had howled through the night, and I kept waking up. My blanket had done little to keep the chill off, and even though I was tired, my mind wouldn’t rest. Thoughts kept about what was really happening here.

When I went downstairs, the fire was still going. The guards were already sitting at the table again. They looked like they had slept better than I had, though none of them looked exactly happy. A barmaid brought out breakfast without anyone asking. Simple food—porridge, bread, and some dried meat. Nothing fancy, but it was warm, and that was enough.

I ate quietly. The younger guard was sitting at the edge of the table, chewing slowly. He didn’t say much, just looked down at his bowl. He seemed lost in thought too.

After we finished eating, we all went outside. The cold hit me again right away. The wind hadn’t softened. It blew across the inn yard and tugged at our cloaks. The horses were tied up near the stable, stamping their hooves and shaking their heads. The snow on the ground crunched under our boots as we walked.

While the others were checking the saddles and adjusting their packs, I took a few steps toward the younger guard. He was standing a bit away from the others, tightening the straps on his horse. I walked up slowly, not wanting to startle him.

“Hey,” I said. He looked up at me. “What’s your name?”

He blinked like he hadn’t expected me to ask. “Calen,” he said after a second.

“Calen,” I repeated. “You said something yesterday... about Silverfang falling apart. I wanted to ask more about that.” I paused, then said, “You said things changed. Since what?"

Calen looked down at his hands like he was thinking hard about how to answer. Then he nodded.

“Yes. Since the Luna died... it got worse. He became harsher and..." He looked up again, his eyes serious. “People think the land’s cursed now. Like I said before. Bad harvests. Fires. Strange deaths. People disappear sometimes. Animals too.”

I stayed quiet for a moment, letting him talk. His voice was low and tired.

“Maybe it’s just bad luck,” he said. “Or maybe... maybe it’s his way of grieving. But he’s not the same man he was. Not since she died.”

I nodded slowly, pretending to agree, but inside I was thinking something else.

Of course, things changed after the Luna died. He had killed her, killed the Luna's sister and then killed Erika. All because he felt betrayed that the Luna had a child before him when he was the one who killed the Luna’s former Alpha.

Maybe Calen was right about the curse. But maybe it wasn’t the land that was cursed. Maybe it was Corvin. Maybe the things he did, the dark things people were too scared to confront him about. Maybe his sorcery, his secrets, had spread into the very bones of Silverfang.

I didn’t say any of that out loud. I just looked at him and said, “Thank you for telling me.”

He gave a small nod, then turned back to his horse.

We didn’t speak again after that.

The rest of the morning was spent getting ready. It took time to pack everything, check the horses, and make sure nothing was left behind. By the time we finally left the inn, the sun had started to rise higher, though it didn’t give off much warmth. We rode in a quiet line, the guards all around me as we moved through the cold countryside.

The road was long. The trees were bare. The wind didn’t stop. We didn’t talk much. Everyone seemed focused on reaching the border. No one laughed. No one joked. The mood was heavy.

After hours of riding, the land began to open up more. The hills stretched farther, and I could see the sky better. Finally, in the distance, I saw the eastern border—just a line of old stones and a signpost, weathered and leaning. Then there were the patrol guards.

We reached it just as the light began to fade again. The lead guard stopped his horse and turned to look at me.

“This is as far as we go,” he said.