Everyone in the pack knew that a simple offering of food could make me, the so-called "foolish princess," do anything.

Kaizen Phillips, the Beta of the pack, once handed me a piece of cake, and I clung to him for years after that. Though he never showed it openly, he despised me in private, calling me shameless and accusing me of throwing myself at him. I didn’t understand what "shameless" or "throwing myself at him" meant—I only knew that Beta Kaizen gave me good food, so he must be a good person. I liked him, and I wanted to repay his kindness.

That was until the news came from the northern border: our pack had suffered a defeat, and Vera Fernandez, the Lycan King’s most cherished daughter, was to be sent as a mate to the rival pack’s Alpha to secure peace.

Vera’s mother, Bristol Larson, the Lycan Queen, came to me personally, carrying a box of pastries. She pleaded with me to take Vera’s place in the mark ceremony.

I wiped the crumbs from my mouth and waved my hand dismissively. "Don’t worry, Your Majesty. It’s just a mark ceremony. If Vera doesn’t want to go, I’ll do it for her."

---

When I was stopped at the entrance to the Lycan King’s private office, I realized I had agreed too easily.

The Lycan King, Robert Jacobs, seemed to have forgotten he even had a daughter like me, and the guards naturally refused to let me in. But the Lycan Queen had given me an entire box of pastries! If I didn’t make this happen, wouldn’t I have eaten them for nothing?

I scratched my head, then had an idea. I turned toward the office and shouted at the top of my lungs:

"Father! Father! It’s Samantha! Open the door!"

The guards growled, "How dare you! This is the Lycan King’s private office! You can’t just barge in like this!"

They raised their claws and came at me. I bolted, running circles around the office while yelling, "Father! Father! It’s Samantha! I need to talk to you!"

"Who’s making all this noise?"

The door to the office suddenly swung open, and a group of people stepped out.

The Lycan Queen had told me earlier that the Lycan King would be wearing his formal attire, adorned with the pack’s insignia. I spotted him immediately and waved breathlessly.

"Father, tell them to stop chasing me! I’m exhausted!"

The Lycan King raised a hand, and the guards backed off. He frowned at me. "Samantha? Which Samantha?"

I dropped to my knees and bowed deeply, my voice clear and bright. "Samantha from the east wing of the pack house. My mother is Luella Grant."

"Who’s Luella Grant?"

An elderly Beta standing nearby leaned in and whispered, "She was an Omega who served the previous Lycan Queen. She offended you on her first night and was never summoned again. She later gave birth to Samantha, but you never gave her a proper title."

The Lycan King’s expression darkened, and he waved a hand dismissively. "Ah, yes. I remember now. What do you want, Samantha?"

I straightened up, my eyes wide and earnest. "Father, I’ve come to volunteer for the mark ceremony. Let me take Vera’s place."

For a moment, the Lycan King just stared at me, as if he couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. Then he chuckled—a low, humorless sound that sent a shiver down my spine.

"You?" he said, his voice dripping with disbelief. "You want to take Vera’s place?"

I nodded vigorously. "Yes, Father. Vera doesn’t want to go, but I’m willing. It’s just a mark ceremony, after all."

The Lycan King’s eyes narrowed, and for a moment, I thought he might laugh in my face. But then he turned to the Beta and said, "Prepare the documents. Samantha Jacobs will take Vera’s place in the mark ceremony."

The Beta bowed and hurried off, leaving me standing there, my heart pounding in my chest.

I had done it. I had secured my place in the mark ceremony. But as I looked up at the Lycan King, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had just stepped into a trap—one I might not be able to escape.

The Beta of the West Wing once told me that my mother, Luella Grant, had been a servant in the Lycan Queen’s chambers. When the Queen fell ill, the Lycan King, Robert Jacobs, had chosen her at random to spend the night with.

My mother was devastated. She had been counting down the days until her release from the pack’s central territory, where her fiancé, a Delta in the pack’s guard, was waiting for her. They had been deeply in love, planning to start a life together once she was free.

She begged the Lycan King to let her go, but her pleas only angered him. He took her anyway, and afterward, he dismissed her with the title of "Chosen Mate," sending her to live in the forgotten West Wing of the pack’s territory—a place as cold and neglected as her shattered dreams.

Even after she gave birth to me, he never visited. Not once. He didn’t even give me a name.

It was as if he had forgotten her entirely—forgotten me entirely. When I stood before him in the grand hall, he looked at me with a distant, almost amused expression, as if trying to place who I was.

“Samantha,” he said finally, his voice warm but hollow, “what brings you here today?”

I looked up at him, forcing a smile. “I’ve come to ask for a mate pairing. I’m old enough now!”

The room, which had been stiflingly silent, erupted in laughter. The Lycan King chuckled and patted my head as though I were his favorite daughter. “A mate pairing? And who, pray tell, has caught your eye? Shall I arrange it for you?”

The Beta stepped forward, a sly grin on his face. “I’ve heard that Samantha and the Beta, Patrick Cook, have grown quite close.”

The Lycan King raised an eyebrow, his gaze shifting to Patrick, who stood among the pack’s warriors. “Is that so? Samantha, do you fancy Patrick?”

Patrick’s face tightened, his lips pressing into a thin line. His eyes met mine, filled with a mixture of tension and dread. He didn’t want this. I’d always known he didn’t.

Patrick was kind, but his kindness had its limits. We’d met years ago, when he found me being bullied by a group of Deltas, forced to crawl on all fours like a dog in exchange for a few scraps of food. He’d intervened, punishing the Deltas and leaving me with all the money he had on him.

I’d always admired him. He was the future Beta, often visiting the pack’s central territory to train the Lycan King’s children, including my sister, Vera Fernandez. I’d even snuck into the training grounds to listen to him teach, hoping to learn something, anything, that might make me less of an outcast.

But Patrick’s kindness had turned to disdain after a pack gathering, where a group of arrogant young wolves had cornered me, offering me food in exchange for reading vulgar poetry aloud. One of them had even asked if I’d be his mistress, promising me a life of comfort.

I didn’t know what a mistress was, but the promise of warmth and food was enough to make me agree. Patrick had seen it happen. He’d dragged me away, his grip so tight I thought my arm might break.

“You’re the daughter of the Lycan King!” he’d snapped, his voice cutting through me like a blade. “How can you debase yourself like this, throwing yourself at any wolf who shows you the slightest bit of attention? You should be like Vera—proud, unyielding, a true member of the pack!”

I hadn’t understood why he was so angry. My mother had survived by doing what she had to, and after her death, I’d done the same. To me, it was just survival.

But Patrick’s words had shattered something in me. I’d spent the next years living in the shadows of the West Wing, enduring the mockery and cruelty of the pack’s lower ranks, grateful for even the smallest scraps of kindness.

Now, standing before the Lycan King, I felt the weight of Patrick’s judgment once more. He didn’t want me. He never had.

“I…” I began, my voice trembling.

But before I could say more, the Lycan King waved his hand, dismissing the matter. “We’ll discuss this later, Samantha. For now, let’s focus on the pack’s affairs.”

The room fell silent again, and I was left standing there, feeling smaller and more insignificant than ever. I retreated to the West Wing, where I belonged, and continued to live as I always had—quietly, invisibly, surviving.

Until that one time when I was caught eavesdropping on Patrick Cook’s training session, I was beaten half to death by the guards.

It was Vera Fernandez who saved me, giving me medicine to heal my wounds.

A life-saving favor is as significant as the sky itself, and I knew I had to repay it.

Now, with the pack’s territory in the north under attack, the Alpha of the northern pack, Kaizen Phillips, had once been a hostage here, enduring unimaginable suffering.

He was known for his brutality and ferocity, having barely survived his time here before escaping back to his pack. There, he killed his own father and took the Alpha position, leading his warriors to attack our lands.

He had already claimed fifty-eight territories in the north and was now marching toward the central pack, declaring that he didn’t want the throne—only the Lycan King’s daughter.

Almost everyone assumed it would be Vera, the most dazzling of the Lycan King’s daughters, who would be sent to him.

Bristol Larson, the Lycan Queen, told me Vera had been unable to eat or sleep, falling ill from the stress.

The Lycan King, Robert Jacobs, called a meeting of the pack’s leaders, but after three days of deliberation, no one dared to volunteer to face Kaizen’s forces. The warriors were either injured or dead, leaving the pack with no choice but to send Vera.

Bristol Larson, desperate, came to me with a box of pastries, begging me to take Vera’s place in the mate pairing.

I asked her if being a mate meant there would be good food.

She paused for a moment, then said there would not only be good food but also beautiful clothes and jewelry.

That sounded more than worth it!

I brightened up, wiping the crumbs from my mouth and patting my chest with confidence.

"Don’t worry, Your Majesty. If Vera doesn’t want to go, I’ll do it for her!"

But what if the Lycan King decided to pair me with Patrick instead?

I quickly waved my hands.

"No, no, I don’t want to be paired with Beta Patrick. I want to be paired with Kaizen Phillips, the Alpha of the northern pack!"

I glanced at the pack’s historian for confirmation, and he whispered, "Kaizen Phillips."

Grateful, I repeated it loudly, "I want to be paired with Kaizen Phillips!"

Perhaps my voice was too loud, because the room fell silent, everyone staring at me in shock.

"Impossible!"

Patrick Cook suddenly spoke up, kneeling on the ground with a formal bow. When he looked up, his face was pale.

"Princess Samantha is still young and doesn’t understand the significance of a mate pairing. Your Majesty, please reconsider!"

The Lycan King, Robert Jacobs, twirled the ring on his finger, his gaze fixed on Patrick as he smiled.

"Beta Patrick, our little Samantha may be young, but she’s sharp as a wolf’s fang. I like this child, and I intend to grant her wish."

With a wave of his hand, he issued the decree.

"By the command of the Lycan King, Princess Samantha Jacobs is hereby granted the title of Solaris, with the privileges of a Lycan Princess. She shall be paired with Kaizen Phillips, Alpha of the northern pack, to strengthen the alliance between our packs."

Not only that, the Lycan King also announced that Patrick Cook would be paired with Vera Fernandez next month.

Patrick’s face turned ashen, but he had no choice but to accept the decree and thank the King in front of everyone.

As for me, I was too busy thinking about the new wing of the pack house I’d been given, eager to go and explore it.

I found myself walking through the new wing, the scent of fresh wood and paint filling the air. My wolf stirred within me, her name, Luna, whispering in my mind.

"This is ours now," Luna said, her voice filled with excitement.

I nodded, feeling the weight of my new title and the responsibility it carried. But more than anything, I was ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead, with Kaizen Phillips by my side.

As I explored the new wing, I couldn’t help but think about the mark ceremony that awaited me. The thought of Kaizen’s mark on my neck sent a shiver down my spine.

"Luna," I whispered, "are you ready for this?"

"We’ve been ready," she replied, her voice steady and confident.

And with that, I knew I was ready to embrace my new life as the mate of Kaizen Phillips, the Alpha of the northern pack.