Hide specific category from post meta data?

I am installing a new theme that includes a featured carousel slider for posts from a specific category. I am going to create a new category solely for posts that will be included in this featured post carousel (~10 posts).

However, I would prefer that this “featured posts” category remain hidden. Especially since the theme displays relevant categories in the meta data (which is included on the homepage).

I’ve looked at a variety of code modifications and plugins but none seem to be able to do what I’m trying to accomplish. Perhaps I’m going about it the wrong way?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.