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."

I spent another three nights in the healer’s den, yet Theros never came to see me or even asked about me once.

Meanwhile, Luneth sent me updates of her life with Theros every single day in different ways.

Theros even cooked for her himself, making rich and healthy dishes, saying he had to make up for the three cycles she had lost.

He took her around and watched how the land throughout the Grimmarow Wastes had changed while she was in a coma.

He also took her to the fairy tale theater and watched the fairy tales she had missed for the past three cycles.

***

There were too many to even count.

On the day I left the healer’s den, I got the full draft of the mate bond severance.

I glanced at it and confirmed it without hesitation.

I went home alone, only to find Luneth had already settled in.

She had already thrown all my belongings from the main chamber outside the door.

Luneth carried herself like the mistress of the den, giving orders to the servants. "Ayleth, sorry, you have to move to the servant chamber on the first floor. Theros said he is concerned since I have just recovered and wants me to stay here so he can look after me."

In a few nights, my bond with Theros would be fully broken and I would step my feet out of this place forever.

I had no desire to create more trouble, so I took my belongings and moved to the servant chamber.

I stayed locked inside and avoided Luneth as much as I could. I did not even step out to eat or drink.

Only when midnight came and everything outside fell silent did I leave the chamber to get a drink from the cold chest.

I never thought I would run into a scene that made my spine shiver.

Luneth had drunk too much moon-wine and lost consciousness. Theros supported her as he helped her down from the carriage.

Her hand slowly brushed against his face. "Theros, is there truly no chance for us? Do you truly reject me?"

Her hand lingered, following the lines of his face before slipping against his chest.

For three cycles as his mate, Theros never shared a night with me, not even once and saw me only as someone he opposed.

Once, in my despair, I drank too much.

I gathered the courage, changed into a revealing dark outfit, pushed him onto the bed and tried to claim his attention.

I had only touched his cheek twice when he pushed me away from the bed.

That night, he made me kneel in a tub of cleansing liquid and write lines from a rigid moral code a hundred times.

To this day, the scars from those cleansing liquid burns had not faded.

I thought it was just his so-called mysophobia that made him avoid contact.

In fact, he just refused to let me touch him. These facts proved one thing, he never loved me.

"Luneth, don't go any further."

Theros breathed heavily as he tried to hold back Luneth’s restless move.

Her cheeks burned red, her eyes soft as she called his name, "Theros."

His control broke. He lifted her and rushed into the main chamber.

I could no longer watched them. I returned to my chamber, tears streaming down my face as I clutched the knitted blanket.

Then, a sudden burst of light shone in from outside.

I rushed to pull open the curtains and noticed several male-wolves outside, spying in with viewing lenses.

"So, is she the eldest daughter of Alpha Wildbriar? She is quite an exceptional she-wolf."

"Hey, you've been watching her too long, now give the viewing lenses to me."

"Her sister, Luneth, wasn't a liar. She seems still untouched."

The crude and vulgar voices of these male-wolves reached my ears.

So, Luneth had sent those male-wolves to spy on me. I was about to go upstairs and contront her when low moans came from the main chamber.

"You, the only one I allow to touch me, Luneth, no one else."

My heart went completely numb. I pulled the curtains shut and hid myself beneath the blanket.

The next morning, Theros knocked on my door and called me to join breakfast.

Luneth sat in the dining chamber, dressed in an off-shoulder top, revealing the hickeys on her skin.

"Ayleth, nothing happened between Luneth and me last night, don't get me wrong. I slept in the guest chamber upstairs."

It no longer mattered to me.

"She just needs time. Once she adjusts to the changes of the past three cycles, she'll leave."

With those words, Theros rose from his seat and and went out to deal with urgent pack business.

Once he stepped out, Luneth pushed me hard onto the dining table. "Sister, I heard you are still untouched. I want to check it myself."