"Help me prepare a mate bond severance. I want to leave Tyler for good." I sat before the pack’s legal emissary and spoke with firm gaze.

"Ayleth, the hardest part in breaking a mating bond is the sharing of wealth. Have you brought it up with Alpha Grimvale yet?"

For three winters of our mating bond, my mate, Theros Grimvale, always hid behind his so-called "mysophobe" as a reason to avoid my touch.

I once caught him by my sister’s bedside, his eyes fixed on her old stockings, his hands moving under his body as low sounds escaped him.

Only then I understood the truth. His so-called mysophobia was a lie. His heart was never mine.

I let out a faint smile. "I don't need any of his wealth. Just tell me when it can be completed?"

"I will prepare the mate bond severance within three days and send it to you by spirit mail. If everything is in order, it can be completed in seven days."

I nodded and left the law hall, breathing out in relief. It was over at last.

This time, I will give him one last anniversary gift, the papers to break our bond and release him.

I turned and took my crystal communicator to call. "Evander, is your offer still valid? I have decided. I will become your mate."

——

"Evander, is your offer still valid? I have decided. I will become your mate."

I rested against the healer’s den entrance, my gaze locked on the nearby ward door, bitterness lingering on my lips.

After a short pause, Evander Rustpire gave a light chuckle. "If I am not wrong, you are still bound to Theros Grimvale as his mate, aren’t you?"

My eyes turned slightly red as I took a deep breath. "I will break the bond with him."

Evander’s voice dropped. "I'm sure you must've heard a lot of rumors about me. Aren't you afraid of stepping out of one trap into another?"

It was said five cycles ago, Evander was badly injured that damaged his wolf nature.

He had visited countless renowned healers, yet none could mend him, leaving him incapable of completing a mating bond.

Since then, his temper grew unstable and when he lost control, he would lash out at others.

Though the Rustpire clan was the wealthiest in all the Moonspire Courtlands, no she-wolf dared to go near him.

He still had no mate to this day.

I let out a faint smile. "It's fine. I will accept you, no matter how you are."

"Alright. In half a month, I will prepare the most magnificent mating ceremony to take you as my mate."

After getting his reply, I cut the call and turned my gaze back to the nearby ward door. Then, a soft, indistinct sound came from inside.

I stepped closer and glanced through the small glass window, only to catch an intimate scene inside.

Theros and my half-sister, Luneth Wildbriar, were pressed close together.

His body leaned against her arm as he moved in a restless rhythm.

"Luneth … my love, you feel incredible."

Luneth was originally meant to bond with Theros, but an accident left her in a motionless, unresponsive state.

Since childhood, Theros and I had clashed, our names spoken as enemies throughout the Grimmarow Wastes.

Yet, it was not like that in the beginning. I knew him first. I was the one who held his heart as a pup.

My mother, Ariella Wildbriar, died when I was five and my father, Ronan Wildbriar, burdened with pack duties, barely noticed me.

Till I turned ten, Theros never left my side, staying with me through every lonely and difficult moment.

But when my father brought back his illegitimate daughter, Luneth, everything fell apart. She stole my father and Theros away and from then on, we turned into bitter enemies.

In the same cycles, the Grimvales' business fell into decline.

Their strength and wealth ran dry and they could find no support in the Grimmarow Courtlands other than from my father.

His condition was simple. Theros had to complete the bonding agreement with the Robinson clan.

However, Luneth lay in a deep, lifeless state. How could she complete a mating bond with Theros?

In the end, I was the only possible choice.

Theros looked at me with burning rage. "Ayleth Wildbriar, are you truly that cruel? You will only stop once you separate me from your sister, huh?"

I burst into laughter, my body trembling. "Of course. The Grimvales have already fallen, taking me as your mate is your only option now, so take it or leave it."

On the day of mating ceremony, Theros never came and only sent a life-sized puppet crafted to resemble him.

The crowd showed their discontent, yet I calmly took the puppet’s arm and gently called it "my mate."

Mating with Theros had once been my deepest wish. Now, three cycles later, it had been my deepest regret.

For three winters, I did everything I could to draw near to him, trying countless times to gain his affection, but I ended in failure. I told myself he just couldn't let go of Luneth.

I believed one day I could win his heart if I tried a little harder.

That was when I caught him for the first time clinging to Luneth’s worn stockings, losing in his own desires.

When he was done, he even picked up a call as if nothing had happened.

I could not hear the voice on the other side, yet his scornful laugh reached me. "Ayleth is not even worth a single claw of Luneth. Falling for her? Impossible. Looking at her is enough to make me sick."

Each word pierced me like a blade, yet I still did not give up.

Until I caught him the second time, then the third .…

Sometimes, he would hold onto Luneth’s photo in our den.

Other times, like now, he stayed in the healer’s den beside her still, unconscious body.

I had long stopped counting how many times I caught him and my heart had already gone numb.

"Theros, if you don't choose me, someone else will."

At dawn the next day, I got up early and headed to the pack law hall to settle the terms of ending my bond.

"Ayleth, the hardest part in breaking a mating bond is the sharing of wealth. Have you brought it up with Alpha Grimvale yet?"

I let out a faint smile. "I don't need any of his wealth. Just tell me when it can be completed?"

"I will prepare the mate bond severance within three days and send it to you by spirit mail. If everything is in order, it can be completed in seven days."

I nodded and left the law hall, breathing out in relief. It was over at last.

Theros, the one who stayed by my side as I grew up, the one I had loved in silence for over a decade, was never destined to be mine.

In these three cycles as his mate, I lost pieces of myself. Since he favored Luneth's soft nature, I hid my sharpness and forced myself to be someone softer to him.

Still, in the end, I was the one Theros loathed the most.

Just then, I received a call from my pack. They said the Rustpire Clan had delivered a rare medicinal herb to our den.

They had even sent a line of carriage and ten skilled warriors to deliver the herb.

It was a Blood Ganoderma, a rare herb that bloomed only once every thirty cycles on top of Aetheria Mountain. Only one would appear each cycle, making it incredibly rare.

It was said that it could even bring back someone lying in a coma.

Ever since Luneth fell into that deep, lifeless state, Ronan had hunted far and wide for such a herb, yet he got nothing. And now, the Rustpire Clan had delivered it to our door.

I hurriedly sent Evander a message. [Was this your doing?]

His reply came almost instantly. [Yes. It's part of the mating gift. Your pack has accepted it already, so don't break your promise in two weeks.]

The Blood Ganoderma proved to be a true miracle. Just a day after taking it, Luneth woke from her deep sleep. And the third day, Luneth regained the strength to walk.

Ronan was filled with joy. He gathered the leading packs in the entire Grimmarow Wastes for a grand feast of his illegitimate daughter recovery.

For the grand feast, I dressed in a long black velvet gown with thin straps and the slit open as I walked, showing my long, fair legs.

From the day I got mated, I had avoided dressing in a bold or too revealing thing, as Theros favored modest she-wolves.

However, tonight, I confidently greeted each guest and even openly asked several young wolves to dance with me.

Halfway through, my best friend, Kharyn Evergrove, grabbed my arm. "Ayleth, have you lost your mind? You have been getting far too close to every male here. What if Theros sees this?"

I pulled Kharyn along and glanced around, no sign of Theros here.

Kharyn did not loosen her grip, determined to stop me. "No. This is Luneth’s recovery feast. If your pack sees you like this, it will only lead to trouble."

She then forcefully pulled me off the dance floor.

A feast where I could neither dance nor drink felt lifeless, so I soon lost the will to stay and chose to leave.

Just as I walked along the long corridor outside the feast hall, I heard voices I recognized coming from the end. Luneth and Theros.

I stepped closer in silence, pressing myself against the wall as I peeked around the corner. Luneth was there, her eyes red and filled with tears.

"Why have you been avoiding me since I woke up, Theros? Did I make a mistake?"

Theros lowered his eyes, his face showed pain and his voice trembled. "Luneth, you didn't make any mistakes, it's just that ...." He could not finish his words.

Even so, Luneth had learned the truth. Her emotion surged. "It’s because you bonded with my sister, isn’t it? I’ve heard it all. Theros, you were forced into that bond, weren’t you?"

The Alpha's voice came out low and rough. "Luneth, I am already bonded to her. We have no point to bring it up now."

Luneth shook her head and rushed into his arms. "No. Theros, if you break the bond with Ayleth, we can go back to how we were before, right?"

"I ...."

Luneth raised her head from his embrace, her eyes glistening with tears. "You will break your bond with Ayleth and come back to me, right?"

Theros did not answer, hesitation showing in his expression.

She, then, asked with a hint of unease in her voice. "Theros, you have not fallen for her, have you?"

Before he could answer, a cruel glint appeared on her face. "Even if you have, it does not matter. Once she is gone, you will be mine again."

With those words, she pushed him and rushed out.

The moment she spotted me, shock filled her face and then, she rushed to me like a storm, showing no sign of weakness despite just waking from her long sleep.

I had no time to avoid her. She grabbed me and we both fell with a heavy splash into the nearby pools.

I did not know how to swim. I struggled with all my strength, but Luneth pushed me under the water.

The freezing pools water filled my lungs and stomach. I could not breathe.

Luneth was good at swimming, just two kicks from her, I was dragged down into the depths.

Just before I lost consciousness, a memory from my school days rose up in my mind.

On summer, when I was ten cycles old, Luneth kept picking on me. She shoved me into different pools and stood still, watching me struggle for breath with a dark, satisfied gaze. It sometimes brought her pleasure.

I went home and begged my father to have one of his special warriors teach me how to swim. Too bad, he ordered him to teach Luneth how to swim too.

As soon as Theros heard about it, he volunteered himself and convinced Ronan to teach us to swim.

But at the pool, he gave his attention and patience to Luneth. He only treated me indifferent and impatient.

I only stood by the pool and watched him teach Luneth over and over again.

When I opened my eyes, I was already in the healer’s den, surrounded by the murmurs of the healers.

"She's still in semi-conscious state and she needs to undergo surgery immediately, but we need someone to give approval. Any clue?"

"Where is the one who took her here? Was he not her pack?"

"The one who took her here was a stranger. He doesn't know her."

My head was dizzy and my sight was blurred, but I still forced myself to press for emergency call on my crystal communicator.

The call went through to Theros, but Luneth picked up, her voice shaking with tears. "Theros, it's ... Ayleth calling. You ... should ... pick it up."

His rough breathing sounded loud in my ears. "Ignore her. She just fell into the water. What could be so urgent?"

In the next instant, the call was cut off.

The healer hesitated, troubled and unsure how to respond.

I slowly reached for the approval parchment and signed my name with trembling hands. "It’s fine. I will bear the responsibility myself."

It was only after three days that I finally regained full consciousness.

The healer's helper stayed beside me and said, "Thank the Moon Goddess, you finally regained consciousness. You have been here for three days, yet no one from your pack has come."

My crystal communicator buzzed. It was a post Luneth had sent to me on purpose.

[Just a minor cold, yet you brewed medicine for me yourself and stayed by my side for three days.]

The picture showed Theros standing in the kitchen, carefully brewing the herbal.

I did not need to see his face to recognize him.

"I have no pack."

He was not my mate. He was my enemy.

Theros truly hated me for a full decade.

A sharp pain gripped my chest. I took a deep breath and dialed an emergency call. "Hello, I want to report an attack. Luneth Wildbriar tried to drown me."

It took only ten minutes for Theros to storm into my healing chamber.

Anger showed on his face and the smell of brewed medicine lingered around him. "Ayleth, did you call the hunt patrol?"

"Yes. I have already submitted the viewing crystal footage. The evidence is undeniable."

Theros stepped closer and gripped my chin roughly. "Ayleth, you are still as cruel as ever. She is your sister. She has just recovered and you are already trying to ruin her?"

Then, as if coming back to himself, he released me with clear disgust and took a cloth to wipe his hand clean.

Yes. He always used his so-called mysophobe to keep away from me. Even if he stayed in the same space as me for more than half an hour, he would cleanse the entire room with herbs. I could not stop myself from laughing, tears running down my face. "Theros, I have been lying here for three days with pneumonia! I nearly lost my life!"

Theros turned his face away, uneasy, but still scorned. "You look perfectly fine now. Stop acting. Luneth was ill for three days as well. She has already suffered enough."

"I have already told the hunt patrol to close the case on my way here. I am your mate. This is something I can deal with."