Chapter 608: The Name That Should Not Be Spoken

Chapter 607: The Name That Should Not Be Spoken

The morning in Nirvana did not feel like morning.

It never really did.

Snow was already falling before the sky properly brightened—soft, endless flakes drifting through air so cold it made silence feel heavier than sound. The Nightshade compound sat beneath it all like something carved out of the world rather than placed within it.

White ground. White roofs. White breath.

Kairen stood near the gates with Helios and Ethan beside him.

Ethan had a scowl on his face. It wasn’t time for him to begin his job as a hunter. He was having a little break, or so he thought, until Ronan had informed him that he would be going on a mission with someone called Kairen.

He’d rather enjoy his time with Genevieve, but he knew better than to go against a command from the alpha himself, no matter how annoyed he was.

"You know what your job is," Orion said.

Ethan nodded. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Helios adjusted his cloak. "We’ll move quickly. If all goes well, we’ll be back by nightfall."

"It better go well," Ethan grumbled.

Kairen said nothing at first.

His gaze flicked briefly toward the compound behind him. This was the second time he was seeing it, and he couldn’t enjoy the view either.

Orion approached him then and leaned slightly so Kairen could hear him clearly.

"Remember what we discussed," he said.

Kairen’s throat tightened slightly. He nodded and immediately put some distance between himself and Orion.

Helios turned first, boots pressing into the snow as he moved forward.

Ethan followed with a grumble, and Kairen didn’t waste time following too. He prayed to the goddess that nothing happened to both Ethan and Helios, because if anything happened, then it was his head on the platter.

The moment they left the compound, the guards stationed at the gate locked it behind them.

Silence returned.

But it didn’t stay quiet for long.

Sophia had been standing beside Orion the entire time. She didn’t say anything when she found out that Kairen, along with Ethan and Helios, would be leaving the pack for the garden.

Orion had told her about Kairen but he had not told her everything. He had collapsed before he could after all.

"I’m tired of it," she said to no one in particular, but Orion knew deep down she was speaking to him.

"I’ll ask you again, Orion. What was discovered about the plant? I know there’s more to what you told me yesterday. " she asked calmly.

Ronan, standing nearby, immediately looked away like the ground had suddenly become extremely interesting.

Brynhild, leaning lightly against one of the wooden posts, exhaled a small amused sound under her breath.

This really was bad timing for everyone involved.

Ronan prepared to escape again when Sophia turned to him.

"Don’t even think about it. You also went to get more information about the plant, and if Orion isn’t going go tellme then you will," she said.

Brynhild spoke up then. "We didn’t tell you anything because we wanted you to enjoy the celebration with your friends first."

"And that happened already, along with Orion collapsing," Sophia replied. Then she sighed. "Can you all just stop treating me like I’m some egg? Stop trying to protect me and just tell me what more it is you discovered about the plant. It’s about me after all. I was the one who took the tonic."

Ronan was quiet for a while, then he sighed.

"Fine. I can’t keep things from you for too long, especially when it’s concerning you," he said.

Sophia locked eyes with Orion. "Some people can," she said.

Orion didn’t reply as Ronan began speaking.

"I don’t know how you are..."

"...Just tell me, please," Sophia cut in.

Ronan nodded. "Right."

"The corpse plant has numerous functions," he began.

He told Sophia everything they had learned from Jarek about the corpse plant—what it was used for, what it symbolized, its side effects, and how dangerous it was. Then he explained why Kairen was being sent to the garden.

Snow fell harder for a moment, or maybe it just felt that way. Sophia didn’t know how to react to the information she had just received.

Brynhild then turned to Orion.

"I forgot when we were telling you about the plant, but we found out the other name," she said.

Ronan nodded. "That’s true. Maya told us about it, and I forgot."

Sophia turned slightly.

"Maya?"

Brynhild nodded.

"She overheard people in the black market talking about another name for it."

"I think it was called Morvithra Noctivagus," she said after a pause.

"Yes, that’s it," Ronan said, nodding. "Jarek said it meant ’the wandering death that feeds in the dark.’"

Then he shuddered.

"It’s scary to even think of something like that existing."

But Sophia was no longer looking at Ronan or Brynhild. Her gaze was on Orion, who had gone very still. His eyes were closed as he exhaled deeply.

It was the same plant Noctis had told him of. Orion didn’t have a doubt about it—not when it was the exact same name.

"Orion?" Sophia called out.

It was only then that Ronan turned to him. He had not realized that Orion had gone still because he wasn’t focused on him at all.

"Is something the matter, brother?" Ronan asked.

At this point, Orion wished he could lie so he could shake his head and tell them that nothing was the matter. That they didn’t need to trouble themselves with it. But he couldn’t.

He rubbed a hand down his face and then locked gazes with Sophia.

"Noctis knows about the plant and the general uses we know it for... that’s not all," he said. "The plant has more uses, and according to Noctis, it’s tied to black magic."

Sophia stared at Orion, as did Ronan, and even Brynhild, who just looked in his general direction.

"How... I..." Brynhild was at a loss for words.

"We can find out more, but even Noctis said it was banned. The gardens destroyed. It’s not a plant that should be cultivated," Orion said.